Photo Saddam Hussein © ANP Photo
What did Pol Pot eat while two million Cambodians starved to death? Did Idi Amin really eat human flesh? And how did Saddam Hussein make good on his motto, “no revolution without a full belly”?
During the Night of the Dictatorship, you can enjoy a bowl of Saddam Hussein’s favourite fish soup while listening to the tales of Polish journalist Witold Szabłowski. Traveling across four continents, Szabłowski tracked down the personal chefs of five dictators with a reputation for suppressing and murdering their own population. We end the journey close to home in Belarus, also known as Europe’s last dictatorship. Dasha Slabchanka and Hanna Adzinets are present to give the latest update on developments in their home country.
On account of COVID-19, the interview with Szabłowski will be conducted online. Stories from his book How to feed a dictator (2020) will be read aloud live. Dasha Slabchanka and Hanna Adzinets will attend the event in person
Speakers





Night of the Dictatorship
This year, the tenth edition of the annual festival Night of the Dictatorship – as a provocative counterpart to the Day of Democracy – will be held on Thursday 24 September. ProDemos, De Balie, TivoliVredenburg, Forum Groningen and Studium Generale Groningen are teaming up to offer a full evening devoted to authoritarian regimes, democracy and the rule of law. Due to the coronavirus measures, this year the Night will take place (largely) online, but there are two live programmes at De Balie. From 7.30 to 8.30pm, you are welcome to attend How to feed a dictator with Witold Szablowski and from 9 to 11pm, De lange arm van Teheran.
Festival programme at De Balie
7:30 – 8:30PM | How to Feed a Dictator |
9:00 – 11:00PM | De lange arm van Teheran |
Misschien ook iets voor jou…
Illustratie: Sophia Twigt / Argos Let op: voor dit programma is een beperkt aantal kaarten beschikbaar. Is het uitverkocht? Dan kun je het programma ook live meekijken via deze pagina. Op wat voor manier speelt het Iraanse regime nog een rol in het leven van gevluchte Iraniërs? De Balie maakt een programma met persoonlijke verhalen

This will be an online event only. You can watch the livestream on this page, it will start around 9:15 PM Amsterdam Time. Questions can be posed through Slido and this will be explained during the program. De Balie and The John Adams Institute are pleased to announce David Frum. Frum is a journalist at
