From Deseret News archives:
Son aims to set record straight about Amin
But for the former tyrant's son Jaffar, Whitaker's acclaimed performance in "The Last King of Scotland" failed to capture the tall, powerful man Jaffar still describes as his "Big Daddy." The Amin family has shunned the media for more than two decades, but now that the film has returned Amin to the spotlight, Jaffar wants to offer a son's perspective.
"Dad is the only person that has ever been accused and sentenced, incarcerated by opinion, without it ever reaching any courthouse," Jaffar Amin said in an exclusive interview with the Associated Press, calling for a truth and reconciliation committee to investigate that dark period in Uganda's history.
Jaffar Amin is a 40-year-old father of five with broad shoulders, a rich baritone and a confident, animated demeanor. He bears a striking resemblance to his father and punctuates his conversation with impersonations of the late dictator.
Though he doesn't deny the atrocities committed during Amin's reign of terror, he says the film will compound many of the negative images. He also acknowledges that humanizing Amin is a difficult battle — ironic given that critics say Whitaker did exactly that. ("He actually makes you feel sorry for Idi Amin," wrote the AP's Christy Lemire.)
"Dad's image cannot be changed," Jaffar sighed. "If I bring an understanding, it will be very little because he's in a compartment and getting him out of there will take a thousand years. But I believe my father would take it on the chin whatever they say about him."
Jaffar Amin has broken the family's vow of silence and says he's writing a book to counter his father's reputation as a brutal buffoon and cruel eccentric.
Rights groups estimate that up to 500,000 people disappeared under Amin's eight-year regime. His secret police force was notorious for torturing and killing Ugandans they believed to be political opponents.
"I don't want to fight what has been written, but I want to show another side. I want to show a parent, I want to show my father," he said.
He is the tenth of Amin's 40 official children by seven official wives. "Father had quite an appetite for women," he said simply. "It's very African actually."
At 6 foot 1 he is also the shortest of Amin's sons. "My father was 6 foot 4, but most of his male children towered over him. He used to joke that we would make a great basketball team," Jaffar recalled with a smile.
