Shoes, furs and hypocrisy: Why we love to hate despots’ wives
Marrying a despot guarantees a woman two things: An extravagant lifestyle, and a fragile reputation. In the eyes of the public, many of these wives earn their condemnation.
Aside from their own shady behaviour, they stand by men who have (variously) rejected democracy, ravaged their nations’ economies, or killed and exiled their political opponents.
Who can blame a brutalised people for loathing such a figurehead.
But it’s fair to ask the question: Are they more reviled because they’re female?
‘She corrupted him!’
In Zimbabwe, newly ousted first lady Grace Mugabe is probably Africa’s most hated woman.
Her husband enjoyed 37 years of authoritarian rule, but was finally undone by her bid to succeed him – which the powerful army could not accept.
Many Zimbabweans have grievances with Robert Mugabe’s record, but still respect his part in the country’s independence struggle. And so Grace is widely blamed for “corrupting” her husband.