The Big Man
Thuggish rulers have plagued several African nations in the post-colonia
l period. The "Big Men" have generally taken power in military coups and repressed any disagreement in their nations. Most of the "Big Men" have been uneducated soldiers who were poorly equipped to lead. They often used elaborate displays to impress their people, but their actions sometimes bordered on buffoonery.
Jean-Bedel Bokassa saw himself as a modern Napoleon when he installed himself as "emperor" of the Central African Republic. Bokassa's $22 million "coronation" consumed one quarter of his poor nation's annual revenue. After Bokassa's overthrow two years later, he was convicted, among other things, of murdering members of his army and poisoning his grandchild. Bokassa personally participated in the massacre of school children who protested against paying for school uniforms bearing Bokassa's picture. Bokassa was exiled after a 1979 coup. He later voluntarily returned to face murder charges for the killing of the school children, and served six years in prison. Bokassa was released in 1993 and died three years later.
Idi Amin staged a coup in Uganda in 1971. He named himself Chief of the Armed Forces, Field Marshal, President for Life, King of Scotland, and Heavyweight Boxing Champion. Amin forced all Asian immigrants to leave Uganda in 1972, because he said God ordered him to do so in a dream. Amin gave their businesses and homes to native Ugandans, which led to the breakdown of Uganda's economy. In 1976, Amin was personally involved in the Palestinian hijacking of a French airliner to Entebbe, Uganda. Amin was toppled in a 1979 coup, and now lives in Saudi Arabia.
When the people of the Belgian Congo declared their independence in 1960, the Congolese people elected Patrice Lumumba as their leader. Lumumba took power during the "Cold War," a conflict led by the United States and the Soviet Union (now Russia) from the end of World War II to 1990. The United States led the "free world" of capitalist countries in North America in Europe, while the Soviet Union led the "Communist" world of eastern Europe and most of Asia. Both nations wanted to influence the "third world" of underdeveloped nations in Africa, the Caribbean, South America, and Southeast Asia. Fidel Castro took control of the Caribbean island of Cuba in 1959 and formed a Communist state. The American and European government feared
Lumumba would do the same in Congo, so they backed a coup, or military takeover, led by Joseph D. Mobuto.
Mobuto was a corrupt ruler who used his country's treasury to amass a fortune estimated at $5 billion, including homes throughout Europe. In 1970, he renamed his nation Zaire, and ordered that all places and people take African names. Mobuto renamed himself Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku wa za Banga, which according to a government authorized translation means: "The all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, will go from conquest to conquest leaving fire in his wake." Mobutu was suffering from cancer when Laurent Kabila led a 1997 rebellion. He left quietly with his fortune and died in exile.*
Many dictators continue to rule African nations, but the passing of Mobutu and the election of Nelson Mandela in South Africa are hopeful signs for Africans who want to bring freedom to their people.
* There are African nations known as Congo. Mobutu ruled the larger of the two nations now known as the Democratic Republic of Congo. Moboutu renamed his nation Zaire in 1970, but the current leaders reverted to Congo once Mobuto left power. You will often see Zaire on older maps of Africa.
The Forest Dwellers | The Big Man | Nigeria | The Nations of Africa
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To cite this page:
Dowling, Mike, "The Electronic Passport Homework
to the Big Man," available from http://www.mrdowling.com/611-bigman.html;
Internet; updated
Saturday, June 17, 2006
.