Mengistu Haile Mariam(Amharic:መንግሥቱ ኀይለ ማርያም, pronunciation:[mənɡɨstu haɪlə marjam]; born 21 May 1937) is an Ethiopian soldier and politician who was the president ofEthiopiafrom 1977 to 1991 andGeneral Secretaryof theWorkers’ Party of Ethiopiafrom 1984 to 1991. He was the chairman of theDerg, thesocialistmilitary juntathat governed Ethiopia, from 1977 to 1987, and the President of thePeople’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia(PDRE) from 1987 to 1991.
The Derg took power in theEthiopian Revolutionfollowing the overthrow of EmperorHaile Selassie Iin 1974, marking the end of theSolomonic dynastywhich had ruled Ethiopia since the 13th century. Mengistu purged rivals for power from the Derg and made himself Ethiopia’s dictator, attempting to modernize Ethiopia’sfeudaleconomy throughMarxist-Leninist-inspired policies such asnationalizationandland redistribution. His bloody consolidation of power in 1977–78 is known asthe Ethiopian Red Terror,[4]a brutal crackdown on opposition groups and civilians following a failed assassination attempt by theEthiopian People’s Revolutionary Party(EPRP) in September 1976, after it had ignored the Derg’s invitation to join the union of socialist parties. The death toll is unknown, but is often estimated as between 30,000 and 750,000.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mengistu_Haile_Mariam
