The Great Dictators

Pakistan has been under dictator8217;s rule thrice. In 1958, Field Marshal Ayub Khan seized power through a coup against...

Pakistan has been under dictator8217;s rule thrice. In 1958, Field Marshal Ayub Khan seized power through a coup against Iskandar Mirza. In March 1969, gave control of Pakistan to General Yahya Khan. In 1977, General Zia-ul-Haq became the military ruler of Pakistan, overthrowing Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. And in 1999, Musharraf seized power in Pakistan in a coup against Nawaz Sharif. Here is a look at some of the most powerful dictators in the world:

Suharto, was an Indonesian military leader, and the second President of Indonesia, holding the office from 1967 to 1998. According to Transparency International, Suharto embezzled more money than any other world leader in history with estimated US 15-35 billion embezzlement during his 32 years rule. He resigned from Presidency in 1998 and died on January 27, 2008 after his family agreed to remove life support machines that had sustained him after almost all his organ functions had failed.

Saddam Hussein was the President of Iraq from July 16, 1979 until April 9, 2003. Saddam was deposed by the US and its allies during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Saddam was brought to trial under the Iraqi interim government set up by US-led forces. On November 5, 2006, he was convicted of charges related to the executions of 148 Iraqi Shi8217;ites suspected of planning an assassination attempt against him, and was sentenced to death by hanging. Saddam was executed on December 30, 2006.

Augusto Jose Ramon Pinochet Ugarte was a Chilean military officer and dictator. He was President of the Government Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1974 and, by decree of the Junta, President of Chile from 1974 until the return of civilian rule in 1990. Pinochet8217;s regime has been accused of systematic and widespread human rights violations both in Chile and abroad, including mass-murder, torture, kidnapping, illegal detention, and censorship of the press. Pinochet died after suffering a heart attack on December 3, 2006.

Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir is the President of Sudan. He came to power in 1989 when, as a colonel in the Sudanese army, he led a group of officers who ousted the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Sadeq al-Mahdi. His Government has been widely criticised for its role in the Darfur conflict. In July 2008, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court accused al-Bashir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur, and requested that the court issue a warrant for his arrest.

George Speight, occasionally known as Ilikimi Naitini, was the principal instigator of the Fiji coup of 2000, in which he kidnapped thirty-six government officials and held them from May 19, 2000 to July 13, 2000. He is currently serving a term of life imprisonment for his role in the overthrow of the constitutional government.

Carlos Romaacute;n Delgado Chalbaud Goacute;mez was President of Venezuela from 1948 to 1950. Delgado Chalbaud spent his entire adult life in the Venezuelan army. By 1945 he was a high-ranking officer and was among the leaders of a military coup. In 1948 he led another military coup and became head of state as chairman of a military junta. He was assassinated in Caracas.

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Lt Gen Frederick William Kwasi Akuffo is a former Chief of Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces and the head of state and chairman of the ruling Supreme Military Council in Ghana from 1978 to 1979. He came to power in a military coup, was overthrown in another coup and executed three weeks later.