political purge
Ousting perceived enemies
A political purge is the systematic removal of people from an organization, government, or party based on their perceived disloyalty or ideological deviation.
Purges range from dismissals and expulsions to imprisonment and execution.
The term often evokes authoritarian regimes—Stalin's purges, Mao's Cultural Revolution—but democracies also purge officials after power shifts: The new administration conducted a purge of appointees from the previous government.
- StalinSoviet autocrat, mid-century
- cleansingRemoving dirt or toxins
- expulsionForced permanent removal
- exileBanishment from homeland
- gulagForced labor prison system
show trial · kangaroo court · forced confession · enemy · liquidation · denounce · blacklist · disappear · memory hole · McCarthy · witch hunt · loyalty · traitor · dissident · reign of terror · execution · paranoia · informer
- Spanish HistoryReconquista, Spanish Inquisition, Spanish Empire, conquistadors, Catholic Monarchs
- political dysfunctionmisrule, tyranny, authoritarianism, dictatorship, despotism
- mass killingmass murder, massacre, slaughter, carnage, bloodshed
- Totalitarianismtotalitarianism, one-party state, one-party rule, dictatorship, single-party state
- Tribunalsinternational tribunal, military tribunal, war crimes tribunal, criminal tribunal, war tribunal
- Occupationmilitary occupation, occupation force, occupation forces, occupation of Japan, occupation zone
political purgepolitical amnesty
State-granted immunity for offenses
coalition building · reinstatement · reintegration · appointment
political purgepolitical amnesty
State-granted immunity for offenses
truth and reconciliation · restorative justice · national reconciliation · blanket amnesty · de-escalation
political, politic, politics, politically, politicize, politicized, politicization, politician, politicians