Gnassingbé Eyadéma
Gnassingbé Eyadéma | |
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Chairperson of ECOWAS | |
In office 9 November 1975 – 1 June 1978 | |
Preceded by | Yakubu Gowon |
Succeeded by | Olusegun Obasanjo |
In office 3 June 1980 – 2 April 1981 | |
Preceded by | Léopold Sédar Senghor |
Succeeded by | Siaka Stevens |
In office 7 July 1999 – 8 September 1999 | |
Preceded by | Abdulsalami Abubakar |
Succeeded by | Alpha Oumar Konaré |
Personal details | |
Born | Pya, Général de division | 26 December 1935
Gnassingbé Eyadéma (French pronunciation:
Eyadéma participated in two successful military
According to a 2018 study, "Gnassingbé Eyadema's rule rested on repression, patronage, and a bizarre leadership cult."[5]
Early life and military career
Usually Eyadéma is said to have been born on 26 December 1935 in the northern quartiers of Pya,
In 1953, Eyadéma joined the
Following nearly 10 years in the French army, Eyadéma returned to Togo in 1962. He was a leader in the 1963 Togolese coup d'état against President Sylvanus Olympio, who was assassinated during the attack; it has often been stated that Eyadéma himself committed the murder.[9] On this occasion he helped establish Nicolas Grunitzky as the nation's new president.
Four years on, Eyadéma, having fallen out with Grunitzky, led a second military coup against the latter. This time there was no bloodshed (the deposed Grunitzky managed to escape to exile in Paris) and Eyadéma installed himself as president on 14 April 1967, in addition to awarding himself the post of Defence Minister. He held both offices for almost 38 years.
Politics
According to Comi M Toulabor (researcher at the Centre d’études d’Afrique noire), "Eyadema had been a personal friend of the French president, Jacques Chirac. He had remained in power for 38 years thanks to a couple of coups, systematic electoral fraud, the faithful allegiance of an army packed with supporters and members of his Kabye ethnic group, solid foreign support (especially from France), and adroit management of access to Togo’s meagre economic resources."[10] Three years after taking power, Eyadéma created the
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President of Togo 1967–2005
Government
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A national conference was held in August 1991, electing Joseph Kokou Koffigoh as Prime Minister and leaving Eyadéma as merely a ceremonial president. Although Eyadéma attempted to suspend the conference, surrounding the venue with soldiers, he subsequently accepted the outcome.[11] Despite this, Eyadéma managed to remain in power with the backing of the army. In March 1993, an unsuccessful attack was made on the Tokoin military camp, where Eyadéma was living; several people were killed in the attack, including Eyadéma's personal chief of staff, General Mawulikplimi Ameji.[12] He attempted to legitimize his rule with a multiparty
In late December 2002, the Constitution was changed to remove term limits on the office of president. Previously, presidents had been limited to two five-year terms, and Eyadéma would have therefore been forced to step down after the 2003 election. With the removal of these limitations, however, Eyadéma was free to stand again and did so, winning the election on 1 June with 57.78% of the vote. He was sworn in for another term on 20 June.[15] Another constitutional change was to reduce the minimum age of the president to 35 years, rather than 45. As Eyadéma's son Faure Gnassingbé was 35, many observers assumed that he was opening the way for a dynastic succession should he die suddenly.[citation needed]
Eyadéma constructed a large palace near his family home in Pya a few kilometers north of Lama-Kara. He was the chairman of the Organisation of African Unity from 2000 to 2001, and he attempted, unsuccessfully, to mediate between the government and rebels of Ivory Coast in the First Ivorian Civil War, that began in that country in 2002.[16]
The
According to BBC News, Eyadéma claimed that democracy in Africa "moves along at its own pace and in its own way."[4]
Personality cult
Eyadéma had an extensive
In reality, Eyadéma was not the sole survivor of the crash on 24 January 1974.
Death
On 5 February 2005, Eyadéma died on board a plane 250 kilometres (160 mi) south of Tunis, Tunisia.[28][29][30] He died "as he was being evacuated for emergency treatment abroad", according to a government statement. Officials have stated that the cause of death was a heart attack. At the time of his death he was the longest-serving head of state in Africa.[4]
Eyadéma's funeral was held on 13 March 2005, in the presence of a number of presidents and other international dignitaries; Presidents Mathieu Kérékou of Benin, John Kufuor of Ghana, Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast, Mamadou Tandja of Niger and Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria attended the ceremony. On 15 March, Eyadema's family and the RPT party paid him a final homage in his hometown of Pya.[33]
Awards and decorations
- Togo:
- Grand Cross of the Order of Mono[34]
- Grand Officer of the Order of Mono[34]
- Knight Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit[34]
- Bavaria:
- Benin:
- Grand Officer of the National Order of Benin[34]
- France:
- Knight of the Legion of Honour[34]
- Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures with Silver-gilt star (etoile en vermeil)[34]
- Combatant's Cross[34]
- Indochina Campaign commemorative medal[34]
- North Africa Security and Order Operations Commemorative Medal with ALGÉRIE gilt clasp[34]
- Overseas Medal with campaign clasp[34]
- North Korea:
- First Class of the Order of the National Flag[36]
- Spain:
- Collar of the Order of Civil Merit
- Yugoslavia:
See also
- Edem Kodjo (opposition politician and coalition leader)
- Agbéyomé Messan Kodjo
- History of Togo
- Politics of Togo
References
- user-generated source]
- ^ Nabourema, Farida (6 October 2020). "In Togo, There Is Nowhere to Hide". New York TImes.
- ^ John R. Heilbrunn, "Togo: The National Conference and Stalled Reform" in Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, page 225
- ^ a b c "Obituary: Gnassingbe Eyadema" Archived 3 November 2019 at the Wayback Machine. (5 February 2005). BBC News. Retrieved 22 May 2007.
- S2CID 149724978.
- ISBN 978-9-004-34125-8.
- ^ Toulabor, Comi M. "EYADÉMA GNASSINGBÉ". Encyclopædia Universalis (in French). Encyclopædia Universalis S.A. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-195-38207-5.
- ^ "Gnassingbe Eyadema" Archived 8 May 2019 at the Wayback Machine. (6 February 2005). The Guardian. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
- ^ "Togo: Disputed succession". Le Monde Diplomatique. April 2005.
- ^ "Togo's President Agrees to Yield Power to a Rival", The New York Times, 29 August 1991.
- ^ "Mar 1993 – Attack on presidential residence", Keesing's Record of World Events, Vol. 39, March 1993 Togo, p. 39353.
- ^ "Démocratisation à la Togolaise" Archived 17 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine ("Chronologie"), Tètè Tété, 1998 (diastode.org) (in French).
- ^ "Consideration of Reports by States Parties under Article 40 of the Covenant: Addendum Togo" Archived 5 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine, United Nations International covenant on civil and political rights, CCPR/C/TGO/2001/3, 5 July 2001.
- ^ "Le Président Eyadema a prêté serment" Archived 30 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, UPF (presse-francophone.org), 20 June 2003 (in French).
- ^ "Delegates to try and untangle Ivory Coast conflict". The Mail & Guardian. 1 January 2002. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
- ^ "RFI – Togo – La démocratie évaluée". www1.rfi.fr. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ David Lamb, The Africans, p. 48
- ^ Dr. F. Jeffress Ramsay, Global Studies Africa: Seventh Edition, p. 63
- ^ Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations. Worldmark Press. 1984.
{{cite book}}
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ignored (help) - ^ "Le Togo s'est recueilli pour la 35ème fois" (in French). Présidence du Togo. Archived from the original on 18 April 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
Le Pasteur François Roux, l'un des rescapés du Crash, invité pour la circonstance, a fait un témoignage émouvant sur cet événement.
- ^ "Le Togo s'est remémoré Sarakawa 1974" (in French). Présidence du Togo. Archived from the original on 18 April 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
Le jeudi 24 janvier 1974, le DC-3 des Forces Armées Togolaises s'écrase à Sarakawa faisant 4 martyrs, des blessés parmi lesquels, feu Général Gnassingbé Eyadema.
- ^ Marthe Fare (17 February 2012). "Togo : F. Gnassingbé s'attaque à l'héritage paternel" (in French). TV5Monde. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
On le fait passer pour le seul survivant de l'accident, d'où le mythe de son invincibilité et l'expression " le miraculé " de Sarakawa.
- ^ Me Siméon Kwami Occansey (4 February 2004). "Retour sur la fable de " L'attentat " de Sarakawa" (in French). Union of Forces for Change. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ Morten Hagen and Michelle Spearing (28 November 2000). "Togo: Stalled Democratic Transition". Diastode. Archived from the original on 2 September 2012. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ "Les " Trois Glorieuses "" (in French). République Togolaise. 23 January 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Gulfstream Aerospace G-1159 Gulfstream II 5V-TAA Lome Airport (LFW)". Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ "Publication de la liste des candidats à l'élection présidentielle du 1er juin 2003" (PDF). Journal Officiel de la République Togolaise (in French). Cabinet du Président de la République. 10 May 2003. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
- ^ "Gnassingbé Eyadéma, 69, Togo Ruler, Dies". The New York Times. 7 February 2005. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
- ^ "Togolese president Eyadema dies". BBC. 6 February 2005. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
- ^ Elraz, Khaled (5 February 2005). ""Papa Eyadéma" est mort". Afrik.com (in French). Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ "AU denounces Togo 'military coup'". 6 February 2005. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ Bailly, Hélène (14 March 2005). "Le Togo fait ses adieux à Étienne Eyadéma Gnassingbé". Afrik.com (in French). Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Portrait du président de la république togolaise Gnassingbé Eyadema, circa 1970. (Photo by Erling MANDELMANN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)". Getty Images. 9 May 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ Deutschländer, Christian; Walter, Dirk (29 December 2014). "Bayerischer Verdienstorden: Wer ihn zurückbrachte". Merkur.de. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ British Broadcasting Corporation. Monitoring Service (September 1974). "Summary of World Broadcasts: Far East, Part 3". Monitoring Service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
- ^ Acović, Dragomir (2012). Slava i čast: Odlikovanja među Srbima, Srbi među odlikovanjima. Belgrade: Službeni Glasnik. p. 638.