Idi Amin Dada

Idi Amin Dada (May 17, 1925 - August 16, 2003) was the military dictator and third President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946, serving in Somalia and Kenya. Eventually, Amin held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military coup of January 1971, deposing Milton Obote. He later promoted himself to Field Marshal while he was the head of state.

“	You cannot run faster than a bullet.	„
	~ Idi Amin

“	Field Marshal Idi Amin became President of Uganda in 1971. To the rest of the world, he was a showman whose extravagance was matched only by his talent for comic buffoonery. But behind the grinning face was a calculating monster who brought a tragedy of monumental proportions. He slaughtered thousands of innocent Ugandans in a campaign of ethnic cleansing and executed his enemies live on television. He mutilated his wife and murdered his ministers, keeping their heads in his fridge as a warning to others. He ordered his secret police to torture and kill using sledgehammers while Amin kept the pictures for his own sick amusement. By the end of his reign, over 300,000 people had been murdered by Amin. He had turned the prosperous country of Uganda into a disease ridden backwater, its rivers choked with the corpses of his victims.	„
	~ Introduction to a Discovery Channel documentary about Idi Amin

Amin's rule was characterised human rights abuse, political repression, ethnic persecution, extrajudicial killings, nepotism, corruption, and gross economic mismanagement. The number of people killed as a result of his regime is estimated by international observers and human rights groups to range from 100,000 to 500,000. During his years in power, Amin shifted in allegiance from being a pro-Western ruler enjoying considerable Israeli support, to being backed by Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, the Soviet Union and East Germany. In 1975–1976, Amin became the Chairman of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), a pan-Africanist group designed to promote solidarity of the African states. During the 1977–1979 period, Uganda was a member of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. In 1977, when Britain broke diplomatic relations with Uganda, Amin declared he had defeated the British and added "CBE", for "Conqueror of the British Empire", to his title. Radio Uganda then announced his entire title: "His Excellency President for Life, Field Marshal Alhaji Dr. Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, CBE".

Dissent within Uganda and Amin's attempt to annex the Kagera province of Tanzania in 1978 led to the Uganda–Tanzania War and the demise of his eight-year regime - leading Amin to flee to exile first to Libya, then to Saudi Arabia where he lived until his death on 16 August 2003.

In the film The Last King of Scotland Amin serves as the main antagonist.