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Thievocracy (rule by thievery) is a form of governing power structure in which political figureheads hold a self-enrichment mentality at the expense of the private landowners, businesses, the general public, along with other political leaders within the same administration. One feature of political-based socioeconomic thievery is that there is often no public announcement explaining or apologizing for misappropriations, nor any legal charges or punishment levied against the offenders.

Thievocracy in Third-World Nations
In recent years, charges of thievocracy have been leveled against a number of corrupt African and third-world nations, particularly the 37-year rule of President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. The situation in Zimbabwe became so dire that a number of nations imposed banking and travel restrictions on Zimbabwe’s government officials, to prevent “the thievocracy from stashing away their ill-gotten gains.” The confiscation of large tracts of privately-owned land and other assets in Zimbabwe is not only a textbook example of thievocracy, but appears to have also spawned an unprecedented food shortages and misery.

Concepts behind Thievocracy
To some observers, a thievery society allows the politically connected to redirect wealth to those deemed worthier by state apparatchiks. According to some pundits, one reason governmental bodies subscribe to theft-prone policies is to lay the groundwork for the socialization of labor and property in an effort to permit thievocrats to make the populace “subservient to an institutionalized authority.” Others, such as newspaper columnist Paul Greenberg, take the position that thievocracy can be viewed as a Marxist construct, suggesting that the Soviet Union was a “Communist thievocracy,” which for 40 years has “obliterated not only economic progress but also the idea of a modern economy.”

Political and Corporate Kleptomania
Other forms of a thievery society that can induce a “culture of systematic fraud” has been described as “political and corporate kleptomania.” In this case the plunder and looting enriches not only high government officials, but a narrow class of plutocrats, who usually represent wealthy individuals and families who have amassed great assets through the usage of political favoritism, special interest legislation, monopolies, special tax breaks, state intervention, subsidies or outright graft. This type of economic system of political spoils is sometimes referred to as crony capitalism.

Thievery as a Virtue
In Guards! Guards! from Terry Prachett Diskworld fantasy series, guilds and other institutions are permitted a quota of legally licensed thievery. The Thieves’s Guild is responsible for instigating theft, and is equipped with annual budget. Prachett created a thievocratic world where the state regulates thievery and graft as any other activity. Unauthorized crime is not tolerated and is considered an “injustice.” The notion of theft among societal members is seen as a positive process to get what one wants, although technically the act of stealing is still publically expressed as illegal. Moreover, it was a widely held belief that to arrest lawful thieves “was against the law.”