Kampala: Former dictator Idi Amin, who died on August 16 in a Saudi hospital, ruled Uganda in an eight- year orgy of slaughter and lunatic brutality that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

Amin did as much as any other African despot to stain the continent with a reputation for bloodshed and backwardness, killing more than 300,000 political rivals and ordinary Ugandans and destroying the country's economy.

As armed forces chief, Amin staged a coup on January 25, 1971 when President Milton Obote was out of the country and proclaimed himself Head of State.

"Big Daddy," as he became known, began by slaughtering Obote loyalists, but the killing quickly spread from the barracks to the entire country, and included an Anglican Archbishop, a Chief Justice and several Cabinet Ministers.

It was one of the most appalling reigns of terror anywhere, with Amin reputed to have fed the remains of victims to the crocodiles in Lake Victoria and kept the heads of decapitated political rivals in his refrigerator.

Amin also drove out of the country about 80,000 Ugandans of Asian origin, saying God had commanded him to do so in a dream. He distributed their vast businesses to his cronies, who mismanaged them, leading to a phenomenal economic meltdown.