Genocide over breakfast: Parade's "World's Worst Dictators"

by Martha Heinemann Bixby

Published March 22, 2009 @ 04:51PM PT

Every year, Parade Magazine releases a list of the "worlds worst dictators".  Parade usually covers celebrity, health, and human interest type stories that are slightly more pleasant to read over your Sunday waffles.  Yet, once a year, they devote their cover and a "top ten list" inside to some of the worst people to ever be called "head of state".  Three of the individuals run countries that are marked as "red alert" on the Genocide Prevention Project's list of Mass Atrocity Crimes Watch List.

This year, Robert Mugabe tops the list.  (He's moving up in the world - last year he was at a lowly number 6). Regular readers of this blog will be quite familiar with what Mugabe's done to deserve this honor.  But, helpfully, Parade highlights a "U.S. link" for each of these dictatorial super-stars.  For Mugabe, despite our government's heighten rhetoric,

imports from Zimbabwe (primarily nickel and ferrochromium, both used in stainless steel) rose in 2008.

Demoted from #1, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, the first sitting head of state the International Criminal Court has ordered arrested, is now the proud holder of the "World's Worst Dictators" silver medal.

Again, the U.S. link is two-fold:

Both former President Bush and President Obama have spoken out strongly against Bashir’s actions. Although we’ve imposed trade sanctions against Sudan, the U.S. still supplies the country with substantial amounts of sorghum and other food products. The U.S. also purchases from Sudan millions of dollars worth of gum Arabic, used in soft drinks, candy, and shoe polish. In 2008, U.S. trade with Sudan actually increased to $148 million.

Gum Arabic - part of this balanced breakfast?

Number four on Parade's list is Than Shwe of Myanmar.  Interestingly, like for Kim Jong-Il (North Korea) and Isayas Afewerki (Eritrea), the only U.S. link mentioned is political pressure:

The U.S. has condemned the military regime for 21 years and called for the release from house arrest of Nobel Peace Prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi.

Kudos to Parade Magazine for reminding us how our sodas and candy - and other every day purchases and actions help prop up some of the world's worst dictators.  For more information on campaigns to help us stop using our money to support brutality and mass atrocities, check out Investors Against Genocide, the Sudan Divestment Task Force and the Enough Project's Congo Conflict Minerals Action (know what's in your cell phone?)

Cartoon from Cagle Cartoons, photo of gum arabic from amretradeoil.org.