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Banana republic (or Bananaland) is a pejorative term for describing a country with a non-democratic or unstable government, especially where there is widespread political corruption and strong foreign influence. It is most often applied to small countries in Central America or the Caribbean.
The original 'banana republic' was Honduras, where the term originated because of the strength of the United Fruit and Standard Fruit Companies, who dominated the key banana export sector as well as some support sectors such as railways. The United Fruit Company was nicknamed 'The Octopus', for its willingness to - at times forcefully - involve itself in politics. For example, in 1910 a ship of armed hired thugs was sent from New Orleans to Honduras to install a new president by force when the incumbent failed to grant the company tax breaks. The newly installed Honduran president granted the company a waiver from paying any taxes for 25 years. The company's particular dominance in Honduras, as well as other Central American countries like Guatemala, led Pablo Neruda, to write a poem titled "La United Fruit Co." in Spanish.
In modern usage the term has come to be used to describe a generally unstable or "backward" dictatorial regime, especially one where elections are often fraudulent and corruption is rife. The foreign influence may well be more political (for example through corruption in the elite, or military support for a dictator) than economic dominance of key sectors. The term no longer implies that the foreign influence is a corporation; it could well be a foreign government, in which case the relationship can resemble a colonial one.
By extension, the word is occasionally applied to governments where a strong leader hands out appointments, advantages, etc. to friends and supporters, without much consideration for the law.