Idi Amin: Koboko Uganda

Born in 1924 in Koboko Uganda, Idi Amin joined the British Colonial Army in 1946 to fight the war against the Mau Mau revolt in Kenya. After joining the army, he coutinuously rose in military ranks and became Uganda’s heavy weight boing champion. In 1962, Uganda won their independence from Britain, Idi Amin began supporting his country’s new prime minister, Milton Obote. Obote appointed Amin as chief of the army and air force. The relationship between Obote and Amin quickly began deteriorating and on 25 January 1971, Amin staged a military coup to overthrow President Milton Obote while he was out of the country. He seized power and began his callous rule of the country. The Amin regime in Uganda from 1971 to 1979 was largely characterized by

Amin’s military regime accused Obote and his rule of “corruption, economic mismanagement, suppressing the democracy and failing to maintain law and order within the country.” (Source 2). Amin occused Obote of this after he found out that Obote had intentions of arresting him on charges of “misappropriating millions of dollars of military funds.” (Source 2). As soon as Amin was declared president, he made empty promises to the Ugandan’s saying that he was going to “release all political prisoners, introduce political reforms, abolish the secret police and return the country to civilian rule.” (Source 2). However, as soon as Amin was declared president of Uganda, he immediately declared the killing and execution of all officers and troops he believed to be loyal to former President Milton Obote in which 9000 soldiers were executed. (Source 2). This shows how Amin not only immediately placed the country in bloodshed but also committed major crimes against the innocent people of Uganda. He used his words to manipulate the country into taking his side only for them to learn that he was a brutal man who was willing to be cruel and monstrous towards his own

He was not one to just sit and accept opposition but rather to brutally torture them. “He does more than murder those whom he considers his enemies: he also subjects them to barbarisms even after they are dead.” (Source 8). Many of Amin’s former partners and Cabinet members have said Amin cut of and ate body parts after the people had been killed. Source 8 states “it is common knowledge in the Ugandan medical profession that many of the bodies dumped in hospital mortuaries are terribly mutilates, with livers, noses, lips, genitals or eyes missing. Amin’s killers do this on specific instructions; the mutations follow a well-defined pattern.” This shows that not only was Amin’s rule completely barbaric to the living people of Uganda but also to those who had lost their lives during his