10 Worst Dictators In Power Today
Not all of history's dictators died out; many remain to terrorize their people & frighten the world.
When most people think of the concept of the "evil dictator," they cast their thoughts towards the 20th century. When you consider the era, there were a lot of horrible dictators in power responsible for the imprisonment, torture, and deaths of millions of people.
Generally, folks like to believe we have moved beyond the totalitarian style of dictatorship common in the previous century, but sadly, that's simply not the case. There are people in power today who got their start decades ago while others are new to the game. If you live in a country led by a sane leader who doesn't allow their ego to direct them towards horrible decisions, count yourself lucky; there are millions of people all over the world who cannot do the same.
Modern dictators are much like their 20th century counterparts in that they limit exposure to outside media, employ a state-sponsored news and media empire upon their people (i.e., propaganda), and impose harsh penalties on their citizens for a wide variety of so-called crimes against the State.
Unfortunately, the days of the evil dictator are not behind us and the world remains afflicted with dangerous and horrible people - with these ten being the worst of them all.
10. Rodrigo Duterte (Philippines)
Rodrigo Roa Duterte is the legally, directly-elected President of the Philippines and leading member of the PDP-Laban party. Duterte is the perfect example of a man elected into office who technically has every right to be there, but is considered a dictator by most people living outside of the Philippines due to his extreme views and nationalist rhetoric.
One of his extreme views, which has been embraced by many but decried by most, is the extrajudicial killing of drug users. That's "users," not dealers. While most nations impose fines or short terms of imprisonment, Duterte believes the best way to deal with an addict is to kill them. Brutally.
His sights aren't set solely on drug users; Duterte has been involved in the killing of an estimated 1,400 people since his time as Mayor of Davao and now President of the nation. These killings were done at the hands of purported death squads who also targeted street children and petty criminals.
If you thought he wasn't the sort to get his hands dirty killing people himself, that couldn't be further from the truth. Numerous times, Duterte has confirmed that he personally killed three kidnapping suspects while he was Mayor in 1988.