This is from The "Ugandaobserver" PART1: Amin�s famous global telegrams
One to the British prime minister: �British people are also our friends. We therefore share their pleasure and griefs�By Billie O'Kadameri GUEST WRITERL'Harmattan, is a popular Book Centre on 16, rue des Ecoles in the 5th district of Paris. It is always teeming with Africans and Europeans interested in African affairs. Here you can find old, out-of-print books that you are unlikely to find anywhere else. The section on Uganda has books written in any of the languages and dating as far back as the early part of the last century. The jewel for me was a book that might not be on the library shelves of many institutions. Idi Amin talking to a foreign journalist (PHOTO: File) Telegrams by, and to, President Amin, VC, DSO, MC is a collection of the late dictator's hilarious telegrams to world leaders on all sorts of subjects, and the cracking collection is as entertaining as it is educative.The book, published in 1974, has a foreword written by then permanent secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, one Abd-el Nasser. If the Uganda archives on Jinja Road do not already have a copy, I am willing to hand my copy to them, though it cost some cool 25 Euros!Here is a sample of Amin's globally famous telegrams, without any alteration to Big Daddy's style:"FROM PRESIDENT AMIN TO EDWARD HEATH, PRIME MINISTER OF BRITAIN (On the Deteriorating Economic Situation in Britain) January 17, 1974.The rapidly deteriorating economic situation in Britain, which country is the seniorest member of the Commonwealth, is a shame and great embarrassment, not only to Britain, but also to other members of the Commonwealth. You will no doubt, agree with me that it is imperative that the position be arrested immediately so that the innocent Britons who have suffered enough do not continue with severe hardships they are now experiencing.I am one of the strongest supporters of the Commonwealth. You are fully aware that apart from being our former colonial masters, British people are also our friends. We therefore share their pleasure and griefs. As one of the practical demonstrations of this, although you and your representative in Uganda have never officially informed me of your present economic plight, I launched the 'Save Britain Fund' for which the response has, as expected, been very favourable. I will, at an appropriate time, hand the contributions to your government so that they can play part in assisting our hard-hit British friends.As I have already stated, Britain must admit that she is suffering from the aftermath of her colonial past. Britain should, however, not be allowed to suffer much longer. Britain's financial and human resources, if properly planned and utilised, are capable of rectifying the position.It would seem that Britain's economic crisis has completely got out of control and reached a stage whereby only external assistance can save the very grave situation from getting worse.As you know, Uganda has many good friends. I have very good contacts. If you will let me know officially the exact position of the mess into which Britain has plunged, I will do my best in asking some of Uganda's friends to join us in giving assistance to Britain.Your government, BBC and British press especially the Observer, and the Telegraph did all they could to ensure that Uganda collapsed when I declared the Economic War. Britain, for example, went out of her way to blackmail Uganda by making most unfounded and malicious propaganda against Uganda. Britain persuaded her allies to cut off all technical aid to Uganda. Most of them did. Britain even persuaded such international organisations as World Bank not to grant loans to Uganda. Such British acts, must, of course, be condemned in the strongest possible terms by all the people of the world who believe in equality, justice, sovereignty of states and the divine rights of those sovereign states to control their economic destinies.As you are aware, Uganda has not at all collapsed. Instead, Uganda is prospering and the economy of Uganda which is now controlled by Ugandans, is becoming stronger and stronger. It is Britain which has collapsed and which I and the rest of my countrymen are keen to assist because we do not believe in retaliation. We believe that it is noble to forgive and forget and we have forgiven you and those that are like you. Your government, BBC and the British press especially the Observer and the Telegraph mounted propaganda against the Arabs in their just liberation struggle of nineteen sixty-seven and nineteen seventy three. Britain supported the Zionists. One of the possible solutions to Britain's present economic chaos is for her to change her policy in the Middle East. If Britain continues with her Middle East policy which is against the Arabs, and if the Arabs react much more strongly with oil than they have hitherto done, Britain will get to a point of no return in her economic calamity, a position which friends of Britain, like Uganda, would not like to be reached.It is our earnest hope and desire that everything possible will be done to rectify the economic position of Britain, the seniorest member of the Commonwealth, in the interests not only of the British people. I am ready to assist Britain in anyway possible, such as in advising how the British economy may recover. Please, therefore, feel completely free to ask me at any time.AL-HAJJI GENERAL IDI AMIN DADA, V.C., D.S.O., M.C.,President of the Republic of Uganda.Billie O'Kadameri is a Ugandan journalist based in Paristo be continued next week \\\\\\\"Always be a first rate version of yourself instead of a second rate version of someone else.\\\\\\\\\\\\\" Njoki Paul University of Pretoria -------------------------------------------- This service is hosted on the Infocom network http://www.infocom.co.ug
