ABSTRACT
Ever since the military coup in Uganda by Idi Amin in 1971, Nyerere had been foremost in Africa in expressing his revulsion against the military regime of a 'usurper' who had overthrown a democratically elected government. He was horrified by the frequency of military coups in Africa, and had experienced a severe crisis in the army mutiny in Tanzania in 1964, when he 'disappeared' for several days at the height of the tension. Tanzania was in many ways committed to opposing Amin. The commitment was deeper than merely a legalistic objection to a usurper who had achieved power by a military coup, nor was it just a moral stand against tyranny, or an ideological stand against right-wing militarism. The new government of Uganda was quickly recognised by many nations, which could be taken at least as an acceptance of Tanzania's intervention.
