A blast from the past, this guy and Saddam had a few things in common...
I remember planeloads of asians had to do a runner to the UK when he dreamt that God told him to remove them.
There were about 20 attempts on his life.
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Former Ugandan leader Idi Amin - whose 1971 to 1979 regime was one of the bloodiest in African history - is reported to be in a coma.
"They have told me he is in coma and on a life support machine. We are still waiting for more information from there," one of his wives Madina Amin told AFP news agency.
He is said to have been admitted to the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah on Friday.
"His situation is very bad, we don't expect him to last until tomorrow," the Associated Press news agency quoted an unnamed hospital as saying.
Mr Amin, who converted to Islam, has lived in Saudi Arabia with his entourage for more than 10 years, after almost a decade in Libya.
He has not been back to Uganda since he was ousted by Tanzanian troops and Ugandan exiles in 1979.
'Decent' funeral
Mrs Amin said her husband, who is 78, had suffered from hypertension for some time and fell into the coma on Friday.
"We have contacted the (Kampala) government, to ask that if he dies his body can be brought back home for a decent burial," she said.
The BBC's Will Ross, reports from Kampala, that deep wounds remain even 24 years after he fled the country.
He says those who are old enough will never forget the nature of Idi Amin's eight-year dictatorial rule when Ugandans were gripped in a climate of fear.
Up to 400,000 people are estimated to have died during his time in office or are still unaccounted for.
Under Mr Amin, Asians in Uganda who dominated business in the country were given 90 days to leave the country, as he embarked on a programme to Africanise the economy.
Many fled to the United Kingdom.
He confiscated all their properties, which he distributed to his cronies, who later ran them down.
A whole generation of Ugandan intellectuals were either killed for questioning the regime or fled into exile.
Quiet exile
Uganda's Sunday Vision newspaper scored a scoop in 1999 when it secured the first interview with the so-called "Butcher of Africa" in almost 20 years.
"I am leading a quiet life and committed to my religion, Islam, and Allah. I don't have problems with anyone," Mr Amin told the newspaper's reporter in his luxury home in Jeddah.
"But I am satisfied with what I am getting and even paying school fees for a number of my orphaned relatives in Uganda, and helping needy people," he said.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3081287.stm
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[This message was edited by eek on July 20, 2003 at 07:06 PM.]
I remember planeloads of asians had to do a runner to the UK when he dreamt that God told him to remove them.
There were about 20 attempts on his life.
==========================================
Former Ugandan leader Idi Amin - whose 1971 to 1979 regime was one of the bloodiest in African history - is reported to be in a coma.
"They have told me he is in coma and on a life support machine. We are still waiting for more information from there," one of his wives Madina Amin told AFP news agency.
He is said to have been admitted to the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah on Friday.
"His situation is very bad, we don't expect him to last until tomorrow," the Associated Press news agency quoted an unnamed hospital as saying.
Mr Amin, who converted to Islam, has lived in Saudi Arabia with his entourage for more than 10 years, after almost a decade in Libya.
He has not been back to Uganda since he was ousted by Tanzanian troops and Ugandan exiles in 1979.
'Decent' funeral
Mrs Amin said her husband, who is 78, had suffered from hypertension for some time and fell into the coma on Friday.
"We have contacted the (Kampala) government, to ask that if he dies his body can be brought back home for a decent burial," she said.
The BBC's Will Ross, reports from Kampala, that deep wounds remain even 24 years after he fled the country.
He says those who are old enough will never forget the nature of Idi Amin's eight-year dictatorial rule when Ugandans were gripped in a climate of fear.
Up to 400,000 people are estimated to have died during his time in office or are still unaccounted for.
Under Mr Amin, Asians in Uganda who dominated business in the country were given 90 days to leave the country, as he embarked on a programme to Africanise the economy.
Many fled to the United Kingdom.
He confiscated all their properties, which he distributed to his cronies, who later ran them down.
A whole generation of Ugandan intellectuals were either killed for questioning the regime or fled into exile.
Quiet exile
Uganda's Sunday Vision newspaper scored a scoop in 1999 when it secured the first interview with the so-called "Butcher of Africa" in almost 20 years.
"I am leading a quiet life and committed to my religion, Islam, and Allah. I don't have problems with anyone," Mr Amin told the newspaper's reporter in his luxury home in Jeddah.
"But I am satisfied with what I am getting and even paying school fees for a number of my orphaned relatives in Uganda, and helping needy people," he said.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3081287.stm
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[This message was edited by eek on July 20, 2003 at 07:06 PM.]
