Faruk Malik was a Ugandan intelligence officer who served during the dictatorship of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern w ...

in the 1970s. Working in the State Research Bureau, Malik reportedly oversaw dozens of spies, advised Amin on important matters, acquired foreign aid, and spied on Uganda's Asian community.

Biography

According to journalists

Martha Honey Martha (Hebrew: מָרְתָא‎) is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem. She was witness to J ...

and David B. Ottaway, Malik was a "

Zanzibar Zanzibar (; ; ) is an insular semi-autonomous province which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of many small islan ...

i of Pakistani origin". Indian diplomat Madanjeet Singh concurred, describing him as Pakistani national. In contrast, one of Amin's advisors, Bob Astles, claimed that Malik was a "Pakistani/British Asian" and "London friend" of his. Malik rose to prominence while serving in the State Research Bureau, a Ugandan

intelligence agency An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives. Means of informa ...

and

secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of ...

which operated during President Amin's rule (1971–1979). According to Singh, Malik was Amin's "master spy". Astles stated that Malik understood the President very well, and that the two were "very close". In this position, he played a major role in Uganda's Ministry of Information, overseeing "several dozen" other spies. One of his main tasks was to spy on Uganda's expatriate and local Asian community. He also assessed and organized British newspaper clippings on Uganda. According to Astles, Malik was supposed to keep Amin up-to-date on "hijacking developments" after the President gave shelter to a hijacked

Airbus A300 The Airbus A300 is a wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Airbus. In September 1967, aircraft manufacturers in the United Kingdom, France, and West Germany signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a large airliner. West ...

jet airliner A jet airliner or jetliner is an airliner powered by jet engines (passenger jet aircraft). Airliners usually have two or four jet engines; three-engined designs were popular in the 1970s but are less common today. Airliners are commonly clas ...

in 1976. In addition, Malik helped the Ugandan government in procuring foreign technology and experts. He signed a contract with the Harris Corporation to set up a satellite station in Arua; he personally profited from this deal. Honey and Ottaway also claimed that Malik "singlehandedly" recruited about 400 Pakistani experts to support Amin's regime, although Singh stated that Finance Minister

Moses Ali Moses Ali (born 5 April 1939) is a Ugandan politician and retired military officer. He is the Second Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of Government Business in Parliament. He previously served in the Cabinet of Uganda as Third Deputy Prime ...

played a crucial role in bringing Pakistani personnel to Uganda. Overall, hundreds of Pakistanis were aiding the Ugandan government by 1978, providing crucial technical support in a military and civilian capacity. When the

Uganda–Tanzania War The Uganda–Tanzania War, known in Tanzania as the Kagera War (Kiswahili: ''Vita vya Kagera'') and in Uganda as the 1979 Liberation War, was fought between Uganda and Tanzania from October 1978 until June 1979 and led to the overthrow of Ugan ...

erupted in 1978, Malik and his associate Justice Mohamed Said attempted to bolster Amin's government. He was among the last loyalists of the Ugandan government, although both he as well as Said fled the country before the

Fall of Kampala The Fall of Kampala, also known as the Liberation of Kampala ( Kiswahili: ''Kukombolewa kwa Kampala''), was a battle during the Uganda–Tanzania War in 1979, in which the combined forces of Tanzania and the Uganda National Liberation Front ...

to Tanzanian-led troops in April 1979. The two Pakistanis managed to cross the border to Kenya, although their

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

cars were confiscated by Amin's guards for their own escape.

Notes

References

Works cited

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Malik, Faruk Ugandan people of Indian descent Pakistani expatriates in Uganda Ugandan spies Possibly living people Year of birth missing