Off the top of my head I can only think of Ferdinand Marcos living pretty well in Hawaii.
I’m sure there are other examples.
I always assumed that the country offering the asylum was at least a one time ally of the dictator. Then when the trouble starts, the one time ally sees the writing on the wall and decides that it would be best for everyone if you’d just get on this plane.
Do the Russians just give Assad a nice mansion on a lake and tell him to shut up?
What are some historical examples of former dictators living peacefully in another country until natural death? Or even not being treated so well.
Assad is quite wealthy. The Russians will give him nothing except the asylum he seeks. Assad will live a very cushy life on the fortune he took from his country.
As you said, the countries that supported a dictator will let them live the rest of their life in their country. That dictator likely can never leave that country though for fear of being arrested.
It’s a gilded cage for them. But not a bad fate considering what they (probably) deserve.
Idi Amin had a checkered history after fleeing Uganda, going to Libya and ultimately Saudi Arabia, where he was given a nice stipend to stay out of politics. But then he left without permission, flew to Zaire hoping to muster a rebel force to retake Uganda, was arrested and ultimately wound up back in Saudi Arabia where he remained peacefully until his death, reportedly eating a fruitarian diet.
Maybe Putin will let Assad agitate for a return to Syria.
The dictator of Haiti-- “Baby Doc” Jean Claude Duvalier-- fled to France, on a U.S. air force plane. Wiki says he lived a quiet life there for a few decades, then decided to return to Haiti.
I do not know but it seems Dictator-101 to secure your money no matter what happens. Assad had a lot of time to realize he was in trouble. I’d think he’d secure some soft-landings for himself should the worst happen.
Right, but other than whatever he could carry on him, most of his money is probably spread out among banks and investment firms around the world, most of which are probably not taking his calls right now. That’s assuming the various governments involved haven’t frozen his accounts.
And even if he manages to get some of it to Russia, I bet Putin charges a steep rent. If you know what I mean.
A large part of Assad’s stolen wealth was probably already on Russia to begin with.
If not and he doesn’t have access to it, which I think is plan B for Russia, they will probably give him a small stipend, enough to leave him comfortable and keep him quiet.
Pinochet didn’t exactly get asylum from the UK. But his house arrest at one of the finest golf clubs in the country wasn’t a bad gilded cage. It was really an excuse by his old friend Thatcher to prevent him from being extradited.
Pretty much. Though I imagine he has to pay for his own mansion.
Idi Amin was one example he died in 2003 in exile in Saudi Arabia. When I read that (which in classic old person fashion I imagined was like 5-10 years ago ) I was utterly amazed he was still alive.
The Shah wandered from country to country, including a short stint in the US for medical treatment, and died of cancer in Egypt in 1980, just over a year after his overthrow.
During his second exile, Mohammad Reza traveled from country to country seeking what he hoped would be temporary residence. First, he flew to Aswan, Egypt, where he received a warm and gracious welcome from President Anwar El-Sadat. He later lived in Marrakesh, Morocco, as a guest of King Hassan II. Mohammad Reza loved to support royalty during his time as Shah and one of those who benefitted had been Hassan, who received an interest-free loan of US$110 million from his friend.[298] Mohammad Reza expected Hassan to return the favour, but he soon learned Hassan had other motives. Richard Parker, the U.S. ambassador to Morocco, reported, “The Moroccans believed the Shah was worth about $2 billion, and they wanted to take their share of the loot”.[299] After leaving Morocco, Mohammad Reza lived in Paradise Island, in the Bahamas, and in Cuernavaca, Mexico, near Mexico City, as a guest of José López Portillo. Richard Nixon, the former president, visited the Shah in summer 1979 in Mexico.
Not really. I don’t think everything in Russia belongs to Putin. He could take anything he wants, but he has more than enough, and he is far too smart to do that.
If he can take whatever he wants, then for all effects and purposes, everything belongs to him.
Besides, taking Assad’s money isn’t like taking from one of his oligarchs. Assad is just a refugee with no power base and no friends. Nobody in Russia would care if Putin took his money.
It might discourage other brutal dictators from aligning themselves too closely with Russia. They all need a reliable Plan B, and it’s not in Putin’s interests to signal that Russia is unreliable in this respect.
) I was utterly amazed he was still alive.