Illegitimate political regimes

Political regimes can be created without constitutional approval or the consensus of the national majority. Such regimes may be the result of a coup d'etat, which necessarily entails the practice of political repression and tends to be exploitive and elitist. In an ex-colonial situation, legalized racial discrimination may be enforced. Such regimes may well be threatened from outside, resulting in very tight government control. This may lead to subversive activities often with foreign assistance, or alternatively apathy, or foreign intervention.