Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The term semi-authoritarian is used to refer to a state or regime that shares both democratic and authoritarian features. According to Marina Ottaway, such states are "ambiguous systems that combine rhetorical acceptance of liberal democracy, the existence of some formal democratic institutions, and political liberties with essentially illiberal or even authoritarian traits." A young and unstable democracy struggling toward improvement and consolidation is usually not classified as a semi-authoritarian country.