Life is an adjective that refers to something that lasts from the moment it is obtained until the end of life. It can be a position, a membership or an income, among other issues.
For example: “Augusto Pinochet sought impunity with his oath as senator for life in Chile”, “My father is a member of the club for life and can enter the games for free”, “The president of the corporation has agreed to leave the administration, but in exchange, he agreed to a lifetime lease.” The figure of the senator for life was created as a prerogative of the former presidents of a republic. This means that, after leaving office, they become senators with no election and no set term for the end of their term. This charge, however, has been removed from most constitutions.
Some historical figures, on the other hand, have appealed to the office of president for life. This title was assumed by dictators who sought to eliminate any kind of time limit on their mandates. Other similar positions were also created, such as that of consul for life (Napoleon Bonaparte). The first president who sought, with the return of his lifetime title, that his authority would never be questioned, was Julius Caesar himself, at the time of the Roman Republic. It was the year 45 a. C. when the mythical dictator proclaimed himself perpetual. It is worth mentioning that, originally, this position could be held for a maximum period of half a year. Several centuries later, the leader of France Napoleon Bonaparte followed in his footsteps to become the first consul for life, specifically in 1802. From then on, many dictators followed suit; some made the decision to satisfy his desire for power, while others were appointed by their subjects, by legislators who did not contemplate the possibility of rejecting the will of their superiors. It is worth mentioning that most of the leaders who became presidents for life did not end their terms along with their lives, since in some cases they were dethroned or assassinated. Some examples of happy endings were Josip Broz Tito, Francisco Franco, François Duvalier, Rafael Carrera y Turcios, José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia and Saparmyrat Nyýazow. On the other hand, it is known that Mobutu Sese Seko failed in his attempt to perpetuate the position of President of the State of Zaire in the early 1970s. Other figures enjoyed very long mandates, such as Fidel Castro and Kim Il-sung, presidents of Cuba and North Korea, respectively, and are often cited as lifelong exponents of the presidency. In Il-sung’s case, the influence he wielded over his people appears to be enormous: after his death, the government named him eternal president and removed the office of president from the North Korean constitution. Since there can be no successor, since Kim Il-sung will reign forever from the afterlife, his powers were nominally and effectively divided between the chairmen of the Supreme People’s Assembly, the Prime Minister, and the National Defense Commission.
These political positions are developed with the aim of perpetuating the exercise of power and attacking the freedom of peoples. Most democracies include laws that require the alternation of rulers, to prevent a person or a social sector from perpetuating power and using the state apparatus for their own benefit. In everyday language, the adjective life is also used to name someone or something that seems to perpetuate itself in the same situation, even in a mocking tone or with little seriousness: “My son has failed again: I think he is already a student of life . “
