saudi arabia is an absolute monarchy. however, according to the basic law of saudi arabia adopted by royal decree in 1992, the king must comply with sharia (islamic law) and the quran, while the quran and the sunnah (the traditions of muhammad) are declared to be the country's constitution. no political parties or national elections are permitted. critics regard it as a totalitarian dictatorship. "the economist" rated the saudi government as the fifth most authoritarian government out of 167 rated in its 2012 democracy index, and freedom house gave it its lowest "not free" rating, 7.0 ("1=best, 7=worst") for 2019.