List of modern dictators
- For a list of Roman dictators, see Roman dictator.
The following is a list of national leaders (heads of state and/or heads of government) commonly regarded as modern dictators. This usage usually carries a pejorative sense and refers to a ruler who:
Some so-called "benevolent dictators" may be viewed as beneficial and their leadership seen as a "necessary evil". The modern usage of the term 'dictator' developed largely in response to instances of autocratic rule in republics, so traditional monarchs are not usually described as dictators in historical commentary. Also excluded from this list are those who held absolute power during national emergencies, but restored the rule of law soon thereafter. Otherwise those included have been widely cited by historians or described by the media as dictators. Any controversy surrounding such characterisation is mentioned in the notes.
Africa
Name |
Country |
Came to power |
Lost power |
References for the term 'dictator' |
|
Kwame Nkrumah |
Ghana |
1957 elected |
1966 by military coup |
|
Gamal Abdel Nasser |
Egypt |
1954 |
1970 |
|
Ahmed Sékou Touré |
Guinea |
1958 |
1984 |
[1][2][3][4] |
Modibo Keïta |
Mali |
1960 |
1968 by military coup |
|
Albert Kalonji |
South Kasai |
1960 |
1961 |
|
Moise Tshombe |
State of Katanga |
1960 |
1963 |
|
Joseph Kasa-Vubu |
Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) |
1960 |
1965 |
|
David Dacko |
Central African Republic |
1960, 1979 by military coup |
1966, 1981 |
[5][6] |
N'Garta Tombalbaye |
Chad |
1960 |
1975 |
|
Moktar Ould Daddah |
Mauritania |
1960 elected |
1978 by military coup |
|
Félix Houphouët-Boigny |
Côte d'Ivoire |
1960 elected |
1993 |
|
Milton Obote |
Uganda |
1962 elected, 1980 |
1972, 1985 |
|
Hastings Kamuzu Banda |
Malawi |
1963 |
1994 lost election |
|
Kenneth Kaunda |
Zambia |
1964 elected |
1991 lost election |
|
Houari Boumediene |
Algeria |
1965 bloodless coup |
1978 death |
|
Ian Smith |
Rhodesia |
1965 |
1979 |
|
Mobutu Sese Seko |
Zaire |
1965 coup |
1997 civil war |
[7] |
Jean-Bédel Bokassa |
Central African Empire |
1966 coup |
1979 |
[6] |
C. Odumegwu Ojukwu |
Biafra |
1967 |
1970 |
|
Gnassingbé Eyadéma |
Togo |
1967 coup |
2005 death |
[8] |
Omar Bongo |
Gabon |
1967 from Vice-President |
2009 death |
Francisco Macías Nguema |
Equatorial Guinea |
1968 elected |
1979 |
|
Moussa Traoré |
Mali |
1968 |
1991 |
|
Gaafar Nimeiry |
Sudan |
1969 by military coup |
1985 |
|
Siad Barre |
Somalia |
1969 by military coup |
1991 |
|
Muammar Gaddafi |
Libya |
1969 by military coup |
2011 killed in popular uprising" |
|
Anwar Sadat |
Egypt |
1970 |
1981 assassinated |
|
Idi Amin |
Uganda |
1971 |
1979 deposed |
|
Mengistu Haile Mariam |
Ethiopia |
1974 |
1991 |
|
Kenneth Mopeli |
QwaQwa |
1974 |
1994 |
|
Mathieu Kérékou |
Benin |
1975 |
1991 |
|
Olusegun Obasanjo |
Nigeria |
1976 by military coup |
1979 |
|
Jean-Baptiste Bagaza |
Burundi |
1976 |
1987 |
[2], [3] |
Lucas Mangope |
Bophuthatswana |
1977 |
1994 |
|
France-Albert René |
Seychelles |
1977 |
2004 |
|
Daniel arap Moi |
Kenya |
1978 |
2002 |
|
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo |
Equatorial Guinea |
1979 by coup |
present |
|
José Eduardo dos Santos |
Angola |
1979 |
present |
[4] |
João Bernardo Vieira |
Guinea-Bissau |
1980 by coup, 2005 |
1984, 2009 |
|
Samuel K. Doe |
Liberia |
1980 by military coup |
1990 |
[5] |
Robert Mugabe |
Zimbabwe |
1980 elected |
present |
[6], [7], [8], [9]. |
Jerry Rawlings |
Ghana |
1981 by military coup |
1992 resigned |
|
André Kolingba |
Central African Republic |
1981 by military coup |
1993 lost elections |
|
Hosni Mubarak |
Egypt |
1981 |
2011 popular uprising |
|
Paul Biya |
Cameroon |
1982 from Prime Minister |
present |
|
Hissène Habré |
Chad |
1982 by military coup |
1990 |
|
Thomas Sankara |
Burkina Faso |
1983 by military coup |
1987 by military coup |
|
Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya |
Mauritania |
1984 by military coup |
2005 by bloodless coup |
|
Ibrahim Babangida |
Nigeria |
1985 |
1993 |
|
Yoweri Museveni |
Uganda |
1986 |
present |
|
Mswati III |
Swaziland |
1986 inherited |
present |
|
Blaise Compaoré |
Burkina Faso |
1987 by military coup |
present |
|
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali |
Tunisia |
1987 |
2011 popular uprising |
|
Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir |
Sudan |
1989 by military coup |
present |
|
Idriss Déby |
Chad |
1990 by military coup |
present |
[10] |
Isaias Afewerki |
Eritrea |
1991 |
present |
|
Meles Zenawi |
Ethiopia |
1991 by military coup |
present |
|
Sani Abacha |
Nigeria |
1993 by military coup |
1998 |
|
Yahya Jammeh |
The Gambia |
1994 by military coup |
present |
|
Laurent-Désiré Kabila |
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
1997 by military coup |
2001 |
|
Charles G. Taylor |
Liberia |
1997 elected |
2003 |
|
Denis Sassou Nguesso |
Republic of the Congo |
1997 elected |
present |
|
Ismaïl Omar Guelleh |
Djibouti |
1999 elected |
present |
|
François Bozizé |
Central African Republic |
2003 by military coup |
present |
[11] |
Ely Ould Mohamed Vall |
Mauritania |
2005 by military coup |
2007 relinquished power |
|
Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz |
Mauritania |
2008 by military coup |
present |
|
The Americas
North America
Central America
South America
Caribbean
Asia
Western Asia ("Middle East")
Central Asia
South Asia
Eastern Asia ("Far East")
Europe
See also
References
- ^ In Search of Africa - Manthia Diawara | Harvard University Press
- ^ BBC - Radio 3 Awards for World Music 2003 - Bembeya Jazz
- ^ Twentieth Century Atlas - Death Tolls
- ^ Africa Safari Holidays & African Safaris with Africa Odyssey
- ^ The Central African Republic
- ^ a b CENTRAL AFRICA, A FORFEIT DESTINY (archived from the original on 2007-10-14).
- ^ "Mobutu Sese Seko, 66, Longtime Dictator of Zaire". The New York Times. http://partners.nytimes.com/library/world/090897obit-mobutu.html.
- ^ MAR | Data | Chronology for Ewe in Togo
- ^ Manuel Estrada Cabrera (president of Guatemala) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ "Estrada Cabrera, Manuel - MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-10-31. http://www.webcitation.org/5kwtF67ku.
- ^ Masters of War: Latin America and United States Aggression from the Cuban Revolution through the Clinton years, p. 114 (ISBN 1-58322-545-5): "During this second term (1972-1975) López governed without a congress and by decree."
- ^ Manuel Noriega (Panamanian military leader) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ "Manuel Noriega - MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. http://www.webcitation.org/5kyWbC9r7.
- ^ 404 | MiamiHerald.com
- ^ "Colombia", Microsoft Encarta 2003. Archived 2009-11-01.
- ^ Juan Vicente Gomez (Venezuelan dictator) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ Scott, A. O. (7 February 2005). "We're Sorry". The New York Times. http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/movie.html?v_id=156078. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
- ^ "Juan Vicente Gomez - MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-10-31. http://www.webcitation.org/5kwtGklk1.
- ^ cache:0PFM13qC39YJ:www.ablongman.com/history_rh_bridge/assets/0321025865_ch15.pdf "Italian dictator Benito Mussolini" - Google Scholar
- ^ Greenwood Publishing Group doi:10.1336/0275979377
- ^ Miguel Primo de Rivera (Spanish dictator) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ Primo de Rivera, Miguel , The Columbia Encyclopedia: Sixth Edition. 2000 (archived from the original on 2000-08-23).
- ^ "Primo de Rivera - MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. http://www.webcitation.org/5kyWbjtS1.
- ^ Joseph Stalin (prime minister of Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ "Stalin - MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. http://www.webcitation.org/5kyWcCKAb.
- ^ Commanding Heights : Joseph Stalin | on PBS
- ^ Albanian Information - Albanian.com
- ^ The Kingdom of Talossa
- ^ A short history of Albania (archived from the original on 2004-11-13).
- ^ cache:wEZn53dBGtoJ:www.gla.ac.uk/departments/dcees/Duvold.pdf Antanas Smetona "dictatorship" - Google Scholar
- ^ [1]
- ^ "There are approaches to define the İnönü period ("Millî Şef dönemi" ) as a dictatorship"., Hakkı Uyar, Tek Parti Dönemi ve Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi, Boyut Kitapları, 1998, ISBN 9789755211442, p. 381.
- ^ "Inönü was a statesman, and not a dictator; he did not try to promote his personal interests and/or pursue his own Utopian or fanciful projects...", Metin Heper, İsmet İnönü: The Making of a Turkish Statesman, BRILL, 1998, ISBN 9789004099197, p. 98., "As noted, unlike Atatürk, Inonü never became a taboo in the eyes of the people...", Heper, İsmet İnönü, p. 6.
- ^ Kriza Titova režima i Titove Jugoslavije - Ilija Jukić - Google Knjige
- ^ Payne, Stanley G. (11 January 2011). Spain: A Unique History. Univ of Wisconsin Press. pp. 227. ISBN 9780299250249. http://books.google.com/books?id=Lv0AQzbnRlUC. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
- ^ Natasha M. Ezrow, Erica Frantz, Dictators and Dictatorships: Understanding Authoritarian Regimes and Their Leaders, Continuum International Publishing Group, 2011, p. 183.
- ^ Peter W. Galbraith, Unintended Consequences: How War in Iraq Strengthened America's Enemies, Simon and Schuster, 2008, p. 106.
- ^ Rice: Russia's future linked to democracy, CNN, 20 April 2005
- ^ Profile: Europe's last dictator?. BBC. Accessed 10 June 2011.