9. Isaias Afewerki - Eritrea
Afewerki devoted considerable time and effort in bringing independence to Eritrea. There was a long, long conflict and eventually, Afewerki's group - Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) won the 30 year fight, Eritreans refer to as 'Gedli'. He was appointed de facto President of an independent Eritrea in 1991. A UN conference gave him de jure recognition as head of Eritrea in 1993. Afewerki led Eritrea into a senseless and brutal war against its neighbouring fellow dictatorship - Ethiopia (under Meles Zenawi) which let to 70,000 deaths from 1998 until a peace accord in 2000. Eritrea is a far left country with one party rule and according to observers, it has the press with the least freedom of speech after North Korea. Reformers are ruthlessly silenced. Religious intolerance is also a part of the Afewerki regime. There are four recognised religions in Eritrea - Sunni Islam, Lutheranism, Catholicism and Eritrean orthodoxy. Everything else is either banned or awaiting approval. The government particularly hounded Jehovah's Witnesses and deprived them of their basic rights. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have reported the forced cessation of religious worship and the USA government have particularly singled out Eritrea for religious persecution. Afewerki is likely to remain in power for the considerable future, given that the extent of political opposition or resistance in Eritrea stands at less than one percent.