Museveni, Yoweri (you`ərē m

'səvā`nē), 1944–, Ugandan political leader, president of Uganda (1986–), b. Ntungamo. He studied economics and political science at the Univ. of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania (B.A., 1970), where he headed a leftist student group. He worked briefly as an intelligence official in the government of Milton Obote Obote, Apollo Milton (ōbō`tā), 1924–2005, president of Uganda (1966–71, 1980–85).
..... Click the link for more information. . When Idi Amin Amin, Idi (ē`dē amēn`), c.1925–2003, Ugandan army officer and dictator.
..... Click the link for more information. took power, Museveni went into exile (1971) in Tanzania, organizing an opposition group that had a pivotal role in overthrowing (1979) Amin. Museveni lost to Obote in the 1980 presidential elections, which were widely believed to have been fixed. He then founded the National Resistance Army (NRA), which ultimately won the five-year guerrilla war; Museveni was declared president.

Pledging to restore peace and end ethnic strife, he instituted a number of reforms, e.g., the privatization of state-owned companies and promotion of a free market to help rebuild Uganda's ravaged economy, cutbacks in government spending, and an independent judiciary, and instituted an effective program to control the spread of AIDS. He also has consistently opposed multiparty democracy, maintaining that it requires a thriving economy and viable middle class. Generally considered a leading African statesman and power broker, Museveni has maintained that Africans must stop blaming colonialism for their problems and attempt to operate without Western aid. However, Uganda also has intervened in the political affairs of neighboring countries, including Congo, Rwanda, and Sudan, and Museveni's reputation was tarnished by profiteering and looting by Uganda's forces in the Congo.

Uganda's first direct presidential election (1996) returned Museveni to office by an overwhelming majority, but a referendum that approved (2000) continuing his so-called no-party state saw a large drop in voter turnout. He was reelected president by a large majority in 2001, but this time there were cleared indications of vote fraud, although it seemed to have inflated rather than ensured his win. A 2005 referendum, which approved returning to a multiparty system, was supported by Museveni. He was elected to a third term in 2006 after the constitution was amended (2005) to permit him to do so.

Bibliography

See his Selected Articles on the Uganda Resistance War (1986); G. Ondoga Ori Amaza, Museveni's Long March (1998).

Museveni, Yoweri (Kaguta)

(born 1944, Mbarra district, Uganda) President of Uganda (from 1986). As a university student he led a group allied with African liberation movements. When Idi Amin came to power in 1971, Museveni went into exile. He founded the Front for National Salvation, which helped topple Amin in 1979. He replaced Milton Obote as president in 1986, winning election to the post in 1996. Though he rejected multiparty democracy, he allowed a free press and private enterprise. He is credited with bringing stability and economic growth to Uganda, though his support for rebels in other African countries has been controversial.