April 11th

On this day - April 11th 1979 - Idi Amin is deposed in Uganda

Idi Amin was the third president of Uganda in the years from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment in 1946 and served in both Kenya and Uganda. He climbed to rank of major general in the Ugandan army before he took over as commander. In 1971 he led the military coup deposing Milton Obote. Under his regime the population suppressed and breaches of human rights were common. His political adversaries were being killed, people were prosecuted for their ethnicity and the officials were corrupt. The number of people who disappeared or were killed is reported from 100,000 to 500,000 by different observeres. In the end disagreements within Uganda and the failed attempt to annex Kagera (province of Tanzania) led to Amins fall and his escape to Libya. Eventually he settled in Saudi-Arabia where i died in 2003.  The story has been depicted in several books, documentaries, songs, and movies. The most recent was "The Last King of Scotland"

March 23rd

On this day - March 23rd 1933 - The passing of the "Enabling Act" made Hitler a dictator

The enabling act, or Ermächtigungesetz, which was passed in 1933 was an amendment to the German constitution. The act gave the German Cabinet the power to enact laws without the approval of the Reichstag. Effectively this act gave Adolf Hitler the power to create whichever law he saw fit. The law was passed in the Reichstag, led by Hermann Göring on March 23rd 1933, after ruls of procedures were changed to make it easier to pass the act.

This act, together with the limitations of civil rights after the Reichtags Fire Decree passed in February 1933, made Hitler into the de facto dictator of Germany. The Enabling act was to last for four years before it had to be re-instated by the Reichstag, which was done in

Hitlers speech after the act was passed. From the Bundesarchive.