Few months back, I was just on my regular Google search to find some source for my writing and that is when I accidentally went into another site and met Idi Amin; the Hitler of Uganda. 

Perhaps, most of you all have already assumed the story by reading the title itself, for as you know Hitler and his dictatorships but might have not heard much of Idi Amin unlike me whom I just came to know a couple of months back.

Here are a little insight of Idi Amin and his life.

Early Life

There is no written official data on the account of Idi Amin's life, However, many scholars suggest that he was born between 1923-28 either in Koboko or Kampala of Uganda. Another source by Fred Guweddeko, a researcher at Makerere University suggest that he was the son of Andreas Nyabire, who belonged to the Kakwa ethnic group, converted from Roman Catholic to Islam and later changed his named to Amin Dada.

It is known that Idi Amin didn't had enough formal education where many sources have claimed that he had just studied till 4th grade from Islamic school in Bombo, a town in the central region of Uganda and started doing odd jobs before finally joining the British Colonial Auxiliary Force. 

British Colonial days and Popularity

Idi Amin had initially served as an assistant cook in the King's African Rifles of the British Colonial Auxiliary Force. He was among few who quickly rose through the ranks, and served in the British action against Kenya in Mau Mau revolt in 1952-56. Perhaps, his unproven claimed of fighting in the Burma (Myanmar) in World War II between 1939-1945 has led to consideration for his quick promotions, however his military records shows his service began from 1946.

In 1959, Idi Amin received the highest possible rank for a black African serving in the British army of that time. He was conferred as afande (highest rank military officer) 2nd class warrant officer, following that a year later on 1961, Amin was once again received a short-service-commissioned as a lieutenant becoming one of the first two Ugandans to become a commissioned officer.

Holger Bernt Hansen, a researcher, in his book Uganda Now states that Amin's attitudes, behaviors, and communication strategies were shaped very much by his military experiences. It was his hands-on leadership style that eventually contributed to his popularity among certain sections of Ugandan society.

Post-Independence and Incidents

On 1962, Uganda gained independence from the United Kingdom. Dr Apollo Obote leader of the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) along with Kabaka Mutese II King of Buganda formed the government. Thus on 1963, Kabaka Mutese was elected as the first President of Uganda but for a short lived. The coalition between Obote and Mutese couldn’t last longer due to their different agendas. On 1966, the Kabaka Palace was surrounded by the Ugandan Army under the command of General Idi Amin and on the orders of Obote forcing Mutese to exile. As a result, the federal constitutional status of the kingdoms was abolished, the Prime Minister's office merged with the President's and all executive powers were transferred to Obote.

After that, Amin scored constant achievements in his ranking in the Ugandan army in a short time span between 1962 and 1970.  Right after independence, he became a captain, then a major in 1963, then deputy commander of the army in 1964, then commander of the army in 1966, and finally commander of all the armed forces in 1970.   

However, his role as Commander of all the armed forces lasted only a few months before the then president of Uganda, Milton Obote, took over all the control. The reason behind this move was because of Amin's recruitment of soldiers from the West Nile region, his involvement in operations to support the rebellion in southern Sudan, and an attempt on Obote's life in 1969.  

Military Coup and Tyranny

As the relationship between Obote and Amin grew bitter, Amin, fearing for his arrest for defrauding military funds, sized a powerful coup on February, 1971 while President Obote was in Singapore attending the Commonwealth Summit.

Troops of Amin took over Kampala and sealed the Entebbe International Airport, On the other hand Radio broadcast blamed the Obote’s government for corruption and being favourable to Lango region and its people. Amin portrayed himself as a soldier not as politician and promised to hold clean elections. The coup saw a great ecstatic among the public but only until it turned out to be the darkest period of Uganda’s history.

Just a week after the coup, Amin declared himself the President and the Chief of the Army. He suspended some provisions from the Ugandan Constitution, appointed soldiers at the top government post and government-owned corporations.

Amin later started to fight back against the attempted invasion by exiles of Uganda, killing the troops of Obote primarily those belonging to Acholi and Lango ethnic groups. This marked the beginning of terror and tribulation that lasted for 8 long years in Amin’s regime. The victims soon continued to include ethnic groups, religious leaders, journalist, artist, senior bureaucrats, student leaders, judge, lawyers and foreigners. This people were mainly killed for either criminal motives or simply at will.

It was also during this period that the Asian minorities of Uganda were brutally tortured and forced to exile. Many Asians mostly of Indian origin fled to UK and other commonwealth countries like Australia, South Africa and Canada.

Well it is quiet unknown about the exact number of death, the International Commission for Jurist claims the death toll more likely around 3, 00,000 while some estimates from the exile organization suggest around 5,00,000.

The Fall of Amin’s Regime

After surviving 8 attempted coups, the terror of Idi Amin’s regime finally came into downfall on April 1979. Amin handing over the properties and businesses belonging to the Asians and the Europeans caused many industries to collapse due to lack of knowledge and experience by his supporters. As a result Uganda’s economy declined further.

Additionally, Amin's relations with the west, the country's key military and financial backer, turned bitter. It was then when the combined forced of Ugandan exile led by the President Obote under the umbrella of Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), along with Tanzania People’s Defense Force (TPDF) dethrone Amin’s regime. 

Following the defeat, Amin initially fled to Libya and finally settled in Saudi Arabia where he was offered a sanctuary by the Saudi royal family. In 1989, he fled Saudi Arabia without permission and was en route to Ziare where he intended to form a rebel group to regain control of Uganda. However at N'djili airport, he was quickly identified, arrested, and sent back to Saudi Arabia, where he remained until his death in 2003.