Isaac Maliyamungu
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Isaac Maliyamungu, (died February 1984) also known as Isaac Lugonzo, was a Ugandan military officer who served as one of
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 192816 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until Uganda–Tanzania War, his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a Military dictatorship, ...
's most important officials and supporters during the
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
n military dictatorship of 1971–79. Born in the Congo, Maliyamungu was one of the members of the 1971 coup that brought Amin to power, and was thereafter responsible for brutally suppressing dissidents throughout the country. Rising through the ranks, Maliyamungu amassed great power and earned a feared reputation. He was responsible for the mass murder of civilians and soldiers suspected of being disloyal to Amin. As the Ugandan military dictatorship weakened and Amin's support eroded among the country's masses and elite, Maliyamungu was one of his few remaining trusted confidants. After the
Uganda–Tanzania War The Uganda–Tanzania War, known in Tanzania as the Kagera War (Kiswahili: ''Vita vya Kagera'') and in Uganda as the 1979 Liberation War, was fought between Uganda and Tanzania from October 1978 until June 1979 and led to the overthrow of Ugand ...
's outbreak in 1978, Maliyamungu held important military commands, but had little success in combat against the
Tanzania People's Defence Force The Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) () is the military force of the United Republic of Tanzania. It was established in September 1964, following a mutiny by the former colonial military force, the Tanganyika Rifles. From its inception, ...
. When the Tanzanians and their Ugandan rebel allies overthrew Amin's government in 1979, Maliyamungu fled to Zaire, where he intended to become a businessman. In the following year, he and other Uganda Army (UA) commanders assembled a rebel force with which they invaded northwestern Uganda, starting the
Ugandan Bush War The Ugandan Bush War was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 19 ...
. Maliyamungu died of poisoning in Sudan in 1984.


Biography


Early life and 1971 coup d'état

He was born in the western part of the country which later became
Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...
and is the present-day
Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...
. Maliyamungu was a
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
from the Kakwa ethnic group and a cousin or nephew of
Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 192816 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until Uganda–Tanzania War, his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a Military dictatorship, ...
. At some point, he migrated to Uganda, and got a job as gatekeeper at the Nyanza textile factory in Jinja. He joined the Uganda Army in 1967, possibly recruited on Amin's orders. By then, Amin had risen to deputy commander of the Uganda Army. In 1970 Maliyamungu was promoted to the rank of
corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...
and served as pay
clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include Records managem ...
for the Uganda Army Air Force at
Entebbe Entebbe is a city in Central Region, Uganda, Central Uganda which is located on Lake Victoria peninsula, approximately southwest of the Ugandan capital city, Kampala. Entebbe was once the seat of government for the Protectorate of Uganda pri ...
. At the time, he was aiding Amin in secretly enlisting troops from the West Nile region and southern Sudan. These forces were trained in the Mabira Forest, and were part of Amin's preparations for a coup against
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Milton Obote Apollo Milton Obote (28 December 1925 – 10 October 2005) was a Ugandan politician who served as the second prime minister of Uganda from 1962 to 1966 and the second president of Uganda from 1966 to 1971 and later from 1980 to 1985. A Lango, ...
. Maliyamungu eventually learned of Obote's intentions to arrest Amin, and warned his relative, whereupon they accelerated their coup plans. He played a crucial role in Amin's subsequent coup against Obote, and it was later claimed that he had rammed an
armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...
into an important armoury in the capital
Kampala Kampala (, ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,875,834 (2024) and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kampala, Kawempe Division, Kawempe, Makindy ...
during the coup, ensuring that the putschists had access to necessary weapons. Another putschist, Moses Galla, has disputed this story, and stated that he had been the driver of the APC. Maliyamungu's main task during the coup was to secure Entebbe airport. This he successfully did by driving a tank from the Malire Barracks to Entebbe, and shooting at the airport entrance. He killed two priests by chance, and caused a panic among the airport's guards. The loyalist resistance of Entebbe thus collapsed, allowing Maliyamungu to take control almost unopposed. His takeover of Entebbe impressed Amin, and Maliyamungu consequently won the favor of Uganda's new president. After the successful coup, Maliyamungu was one of the officers who were entrusted with defeating the remaining militant Obote loyalists and purging the Uganda Army of anti-Amin elements. For this purpose, he was granted "unlimited powers to execute anyone in the army", including superior officers. Alongside Colonel Ali, Colonel Musa, and Major Malera, Maliyamungu succeeded in defeating the armed resistance to the new regime, and proceeded to murder hundreds of political opponents. He later boasted of "single-handedly mastermind ng the mass murder of civilians suspected of being opposed to Amin.


Official under Idi Amin


Rise in the ranks

Maliyamungu quickly became Amin's "right-hand man". He was appointed member of the Defence Council, General Staff Officer I Grade responsible for training and operations (''de facto'' army
chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...
), and commander of the Ordnance Depot at Magamaga. In 1972 he served as acting commander of the Second Infantry Battalion based in
Masaka Masaka is a city in the Central Region, Uganda, Buganda Region in Uganda, west of Lake Victoria. The city is the headquarters of Masaka District. Location Masaka is approximately to the south-west of Kampala on the highway to Mbarara. The ...
. He was appointed the official head of the "Second Simba Mechanized Battalion" at Masaka and promoted from
major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...
to lieutenant colonel in May 1973. In 1974, he transferred from head of the Ordnance Depot to commander of the Eagle Colonel Gaddafi Battalion, and was also given command of a mechanised regiment. In April 1975, Maliyamungu left leadership of the Gaddafi Battalion to Hussein Mohammed, and was appointed head of an entire brigade. He consequently oversaw several units from an office in Jinja. Most importantly of all his commands, Maliyamungu headed the VIP Protection Unit (Amin's bodyguards and enforcers) and played a major role in the State Research Bureau, Uganda's intelligence agency. Along with Major General
Mustafa Adrisi Mustafa Adrisi Abataki ( – 28 July 2013) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third vice president of Uganda from 1977 to 1979 and was one of President Idi Amin's closest associates before the two fell out. In 1978, ...
, he was believed to effectively control the entire Ugandan armed forces, and was regarded as the Ugandan President's "power base". Knowing that his power derived from his influence over the soldiers, Maliyamungu reportedly turned down offers of cabinet posts to stay in the barracks. He was generally respected and feared among the common soldiers, and held the power to beat or execute those who disappointed him or were suspected of being disloyal to the Amin regime. By 1977, he claimed to be the ''de facto'' heir of Amin due to his loyalty to the regime and reliability in carrying out the President's orders. In 1976, Maliyamungu was responsible for a major security blunder. Uganda's Ambassador to
Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...
,
Isaac Lumago Isaac Lumago (1939 – 8 May 2012) was a Ugandan military officer who served as chief of staff for the Uganda Army from 1977 to 1978, and later became leader of the Former Uganda National Army (FUNA). Biography Isaac Lumago was born at Kobo ...
, overheard a conversation by officers of the
Kenya Air Force The Kenya Air Force (KAF) or is the national aerial warfare service branch of the Republic of Kenya. The main airbase operating fighters is Laikipia Air Base in Nanyuki, while Moi Air Base in Eastleigh, Nairobi is the headquarters. Other ba ...
on 4 July. They discussed plans by Israel to carry out a raid against Entebbe to free hostages who were held there by Palestinian and German hijackers with assistance by the Ugandan government. The ambassador informed Maliyamungu, but he regarded the report as "gasiya" (rubbish) and took no action whatsoever. That same day, Israeli commandos carried out
Operation Entebbe The Entebbe raid, also known as the Operation Entebbe and officially codenamed Operation Thunderbolt (also retroactively codenamed Operation Yonatan), was a 1976 Israeli counter-terrorist mission in Uganda. It was launched in response to th ...
, freeing the hostages, and destroying one quarter of the Uganda Army Air Force. While the raid took place, Maliyamungu was allegedly relaxing at a nearby hotel with a prostitute. Following the raid, he had 14 soldiers arrested under suspicion of collaborating with the Israelis. Once they were gathered in a room at Makindye Barracks, Maliyamungu shot 12 of them with his pistol. Over time, Amin's brutal regime was increasingly destabilized by internal divisions and economic problems despite great repression by state authorities. One of Amin's policies that drew opposition even among his original followers was the great power he gave to Kakwa and
Nubians Nubians () ( Nobiin: ''Nobī,'' ) are a Nilo-Saharan speaking ethnic group indigenous to the region which is now northern Sudan and southern Egypt. They originate from the early inhabitants of the central Nile valley, believed to be one of th ...
, while leaving officials of other ethnicies underrepresented. As result, a group of officers led by Brigadier Charles Arube attempted to overthrow Amin and kill his Nubian/Kakwa followers, including Maliyamungu. In the end, the so-called Arube uprising failed. Maliyamungu was also regarded as "prime target" for assassination by Ugandan exiles, as he controlled much of the Uganda Army's tank forces. By 1978, Maliyamungu was one of the few remaining people who were regarded as trusted and loyal followers of Amin. He was one of the officers who were responsible for enlisting 10,000 new soldiers for the Uganda Army in
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
,
Kibera Kibera (Kinubi language, Kinubi: ''Forest'' or ''Jungle'') is a division and neighbourhood of Nairobi, Kenya, from the city centre. Kibera is the largest slum in Nairobi, and also the largest urban slum in all of Africa. The 2009 Kenya Popul ...
(
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
), and Uganda around September 1978. This mass recruitment followed extensive purges in the military.


Involvement in state repression

Maliyamungu was known as Idi Amin's "hit man" and "principal hangman". The forces under his command used extreme methods in suppressing suspected dissidents. Though there is no record of Maliyamungu behaving violently before the coup, after Amin's takeover he became one the new regime's most vicious officials. He was reportedly feared by his colleagues on the Defence Council due to his brutality, and by the rest of the army due to his great powers and close connection with President Amin. Maliyamungu preferred to execute his victims by dismembering or disemboweling them and driving military trucks or tanks over them. His reputation was such that people would panic whenever he came to visit an area. Maliyamungu was linked to the deaths of several prominent Ugandans during the rule of Amin. In 1972, rebels invaded Uganda. Maliyamungu was entrusted with hunting down and killing rebel stragglers and supporters in Masaka. In course of these purges, he was reportedly responsible for the execution of Francis Walugembe, the popular former Mayor of Masaka. Maliyamungu had previously come into conflict with Walugembe while the latter was mayor as the former tried to exert significant control over Masaka. Maliyamungu first cut off Walugembe's genitals, then paraded him through Masaka's streets, and finally "cut iminto pieces in the own'smarket in full public view". He also chaired the show trial of Janani Luwum,
Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
of the
Church of Uganda The Church of Uganda (C/U) is a member province of the Anglican Communion. Currently, there are 37 dioceses that make up the Church of Uganda, each headed by a bishop. Each diocese is divided into archdeaconries, each headed by a senior priest k ...
, and other religious leaders in 1977. Luwum as well as his colleagues were murdered shortly after the trial. According to Mustafa Adrisi (
Vice President of Uganda The vice president of Uganda is the second-highest executive official in the Ugandan government. The vice president is appointed by the president. Vice presidents of Uganda References Works cited * * See also *President of Uganda *Pr ...
at the time) and a
Human rights commission A human rights commission, also known as a human relations commission, is a body set up to investigate, promote or protect human rights. The term may refer to international, national or subnational bodies set up for this purpose, such as nationa ...
, Maliyamungu was directly responsible for their deaths. Intelligence reports also implicate him in the killing of Kung'u Karumba, a friend of
Prime Minister of Kenya The prime minister of Kenya was a post in the Kenyan government. The first prime minister of Kenya was H.E. Jomo Kenyatta, who became prime minister in 1963. In 1964, when Kenya became a republic, the post of prime minister was abolished and ...
Jomo Kenyatta Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He played a significant role in the ...
and a prominent Kenyan nationalist. Maliyamungu's wife was reportedly indebted to Karumba, and the latter was murdered during a disagreement over the debts in June 1974. According to
George Ivan Smith George Ivan Smith AO (11 July 1915 – 21 November 1995) was an Australian radio and war correspondent, movie director, diplomat, poet and writer. He was born 11 July 1915 George Charles Ivan Smith in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is ...
, President Amin, Vice President Adrisi, and Maliyamungu decided to order a purge of the Langi and
Acholi Acholi may refer to: * Acholi people, a Luo nation of Uganda, in the Northern part of the country. * Acholi language, a Nilotic language * Acholi Inn, a building in Gulu, Uganda * Acholi nationalism, a political ideology of Acholi people {{dab ...
ethnic groups in northern Uganda in 1977. Thousands belonging to these ethnic groups, primarily men, were subsequently murdered. Despite the widespread and brutal suppression of all dissidents, the power of the Amin regime increasingly deteriorated in the late 1970s, as political and economic instability grew in Uganda. In response to these developments, Maliyamungu (by then promoted to
brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...
) declared in a 1978 speech to 10,000 civilians that he would use tanks and bulldozers to destroy any area that was opposed to the government, proving to everyone that the regime "is hotter than a heated iron bar and not afraid to act".


Corruption

Like many other high-ranking officials under Amin, Maliyamungu used his power to enrich himself. When Amin ordered the
expulsion of Asians from Uganda In early August 1972, the President of Uganda Idi Amin ordered the expulsion of his country's Indian minority, giving them 90 days to leave the country. At the time, South Asians in East Africa were simply known as "Asians". They had come to dom ...
, Maliyamungu was placed on a committee to oversee the distribution of their wealth, taking much for himself. He was also involved in
coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...
, shipping large amounts of coffee with boats from Uganda across
Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...
to
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
. President Amin ordered his British advisor Bob Astles to clamp down on Maliyamungu's smuggling operations in 1978. According to Indian diplomat Madanjeet Singh, Maliyamungu responded by kidnapping and torturing Astles before releasing him. Maliyamungu also used his national position to intervene in sporting. In late 1975 he interrupted a session of the Uganda Amateur Athletics Association (UAAA) general assembly and declared his desire to lead the organisation. The assembly then unanimously elected him UAAA chairman. During this time he repeatedly intervened in the affairs of Uganda's national sport teams to oversee their preparations for the
1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...
. This came to naught as Uganda boycotted the event.


The Uganda–Tanzania War, exile and death

When the
Uganda–Tanzania War The Uganda–Tanzania War, known in Tanzania as the Kagera War (Kiswahili: ''Vita vya Kagera'') and in Uganda as the 1979 Liberation War, was fought between Uganda and Tanzania from October 1978 until June 1979 and led to the overthrow of Ugand ...
broke out under unclear circumstances in October 1978, the Uganda Army soon began to encounter serious difficulties. The Ugandan
Invasion of Kagera In October 1978 Uganda invaded the Kagera Region, Kagera Salient in northern Tanzania, initiating the Uganda–Tanzania War. The Ugandans met light resistance and in November President Idi Amin of Uganda announced the annexation of all Tanzani ...
was repelled by November 1978, as the
Tanzania People's Defence Force The Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) () is the military force of the United Republic of Tanzania. It was established in September 1964, following a mutiny by the former colonial military force, the Tanganyika Rifles. From its inception, ...
(TPDF) launched a large-scale counter-offensive. After retaking Kagera, the Tanzanians advanced into Uganda. At the time, Radio Tanzania falsely claimed that Amin had dismissed Maliyamungu and put him under house arrest. By February 1979, Maliyamungu was in command of the garrison at Masaka, which was one of the most important towns in southern Uganda, and thus became a target of the advancing Tanzanian troops. Though thousands strong, the Ugandan forces at Masaka were wrought by indiscipline and internal divisions. With the exception of a number of probes against Tanzanian positions around the town, which Maliyamungu ordered on 23 February, the defense of Masaka was ineffective. The TPDF managed to occupy it almost without resistance on 24 February, while the Ugandans fled north. Maliyamungu got lost in
the bush "The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, where it is largely synonymous with hinterlands or backwoods. The fauna and flora contained within the bush is typically native to the regi ...
for more than a week following the battle at Masaka; according to journalist Felix Ocen, he feared reprisals for his defeat, and eventually returned with an apology. With Masaka under Tanzanian control, Kampala was threatened, prompting President Amin to order a counter-offensive. It was planned that the Ugandans and allied
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
n forces would first retake Lukaya, and then attack Masaka with the ultimate aim of expelling the TPDF from Uganda. Maliyamungu was one of the commanders entrusted with leading this operation, and prepared the troops under his command well, according to Tanzanian Lieutenant Colonel Ben Msuya. The Ugandan offensive began on 10 March 1979, starting the Battle of Lukaya. Widely differing assessments of Maliyamungu's conduct during this battle exist. Whereas Msuya praised him for smartly executing the initial Ugandan attack which resulted in the rout of the Tanzanian 201st Brigade and capture of Lukaya, Idi Amin's son Jaffar Rembo Amin later claimed that Maliyamungu had been bribed by the Tanzanians to lose the battle, and also accused him of cowardice for placing his command position miles from the frontlines. The battle turned against the Ugandans on 11 March, as the TPDF launched a successful counter-attack. In an attempt to strengthen morale, Maliyamungu and Major General Yusuf Gowon joined their troops on the frontline at Lukaya. For unknown reasons, the positions the two men took were frequently subject to sudden, intense rocket fire. Ugandan junior officers tried to convince their men that the Tanzanians were probably aware of the generals' presence and were targeting them with precise bombardments. The Ugandan troops nonetheless felt that Maliyamungu and Gowon were harbingers of misfortune and nicknamed them ''bisirani'', or "bad omen". The leading Ugandan commander at Lukaya,
Godwin Sule Godwin Sule (died 11 March 1979) was a high-ranking Sudanese-born Ugandan military officer who held important commands in the Uganda Army during the dictatorship of President Idi Amin. A native of southern Sudan, he fought as a rebel in the First ...
, realised the generals were not having a positive effect and asked them to leave the front. When Amin's regime finally collapsed and Kampala fell to the Tanzanians, Maliyamungu fled with his family across the border to Zaire. He took a substantial amount of his wealth with him, and intended to become a businessman. Maliyamungu subsequently became involved in the pro-Amin rebellion in the
West Nile sub-region West Nile sub-region, previously known as West Nile Province and West Nile District, is a sub-region in north-western Uganda, in the Northern Region, Uganda, Northern Region of Uganda. Location The sub-region is bordered by the Democratic Republ ...
during the
Ugandan Bush War The Ugandan Bush War was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 19 ...
. Having gathered a band of fighters, he invaded the West Nile region from Zaire in coordination with other Amin loyalists. He later moved to
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
where he died of poisoning in February 1984.


Personal life

Maliyamungu was
multilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...
, and could speak Kakwa,
Kiswahili Swahili, also known as as it is referred to in the Swahili language, is a Bantu language originally spoken by the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique (along the East African coast and adjacent littoral i ...
, English,
Lusoga Soga, or Lusoga, is a Bantu language spoken by the Soga people of the Busoga region in Eastern Uganda. With over three million speakers, it is one of the major languages of Uganda, after English, Swahili, and Luganda. However, it is largely r ...
,
Luganda Ganda or Luganda ( ; ) is a Bantu language spoken in the African Great Lakes region. It is one of the major languages in Uganda and is spoken by more than 5.56 million Ganda people, Baganda and other people principally in central Uganda, includ ...
,
Runyoro Nyoro or Runyoro (, ) is a Bantu language spoken by the Nyoro people of Uganda. It has two dialects: ''Runyoro'' proper and ''Rutagwenda''. A standardized orthography was established in 1947. It's most closely related to Rutooro. Samples La ...
, Luo, as well as other languages. Although little is known about his education, he was regarded as intelligent. The ''Drum'' magazine described Maliyamungu as ruthless, courageous, and highly ambitious. In regard to his brutal suppression of dissidents, historian Richard J. Reid described Maliyamungu as "possibly psychotic", while researcher Samuel Decalo called him "a notoriously sadistic killer". Even Amin once reportedly remarked that Maliyamungu was possibly insane. Maliyamungu was married, and had a son named Samson.


Legacy

Maliyamungu was one of the most well known and infamous members of the Amin regime. His violent behaviour has remained a critical part of memory of him in Uganda As result of his reputation, Maliyamungu's name was even used as nickname for another infamous soldier, Musa Jammeh, a member of
the Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...
's presidential guard under
Yahya Jammeh Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh (born 25 May 1965) is a Gambian politician and former soldier, who served as President of the Gambia from 1996 to 2017. He was the Chairman of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) from 1994 ...
. Both informal narratives and academic works often use him as an example of the foreign "mercenaries" employed by Amin's regime and often imply that his violent behaviour could be explained by either his non-Ugandan origin or his allegedly "psychotic" mental state. Maliyamungu was portrayed by Ka Vundla in the 1981
biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...
'' Rise and Fall of Idi Amin''. Maliyamungu did not appear in ''
The Last King of Scotland ''The Last King of Scotland'' is a novel by journalist Giles Foden, published by Faber and Faber in 1998. Focusing on the rise of Ugandan President Idi Amin and his reign as dictator from 1971 to 1979, the novel, which interweaves fiction and ...
'', another
historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...
centered on Amin; the non-appearance of Maliyamungu and other close allies of the Ugandan ruler was one of several points of criticism by Ugandan critics of the film.


Notes


References


Citations


Works cited

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maliyamungu, Isaac Year of birth uncertain 1984 deaths Assassinated Ugandan military personnel Ugandan military personnel Ugandan murder victims Ugandan exiles Ugandan people murdered abroad Deaths by poisoning People murdered in Sudan Democratic Republic of the Congo emigrants to Uganda Idi Amin Military personnel of the Uganda–Tanzania War Torturers Ugandan Protestants