| Denis Sassou Nguesso | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 25 October 1997 |
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| Prime Minister | Isidore Mvouba |
| Preceded by | Pascal Lissouba |
| In office 08 February 1979 – 31 August 1992 |
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| Prime Minister | Louis Sylvain Goma Ange Édouard Poungui Alphonse Poaty-Souchlaty Pierre Moussa Louis Sylvain Goma André Milongo |
| Preceded by | Pascal Lissouba |
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| Born | 1943 Edou, Oyo, French Congo |
| Political party | PCT |
Denis Sassou Nguesso (born 1943) is a general and the president of the Republic of the Congo from 1979 to 1992 and from 1997 to date. Latest election List of Heads of State of the Republic of the Congo ( Congo-Brazzaville) (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation Events 1147 - The Portuguese, under Afonso I, and Crusaders from England and Flanders conquer Lisbon after a Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar Isidore Mvouba (born 1954 is a Congolese political figure who has been the Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo since January 7 2005. Professor Pascal Lissouba (born November 15, 1931) was President of the Republic of the Congo from August 31, 1992 to Events 421 - Constantius III becomes co- Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) Events 1056 - Byzantine Empress Theodora becomes ill dying suddenly a few days later without children to succeed the Throne Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) Louis Sylvain Goma (born 24 June 1941 is a Congolese politician Ange Édouard Poungui (born 1942 is a Republic of the Congolese politician Alphonse Poaty-Souchlaty (born 1941 is a Congolese politician Louis Sylvain Goma (born 24 June 1941 is a Congolese politician André Ntsatouabantou Milongo ( October 20 1935 – July 23 2007) was Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo Professor Pascal Lissouba (born November 15, 1931) was President of the Republic of the Congo from August 31, 1992 to The Congolese Party of Labor ( Parti congolais du Travail, PCT) founded in 1969 by Marien Ngouabi, is the ruling Political party of the The Republic of the Congo (République du Congo Kongo: Repubilika ya Kongo; Lingala: Republiki ya Kongó) also known as Congo-Brazzaville
Contents |
Biography
A member of the Mbochi tribe, Sassou Nguesso was born in Edou in the Oyo district to the north of the country. The Mbochi (or M'Boshi) are a central African ethnic group whose population is concentrated in the northern region of the Republic of the Congo.
He joined the army in 1960 just before the country was granted independence. He was marked for prominence and received military training in Algeria and at Saint Maixent, France before returning to join the elite paratroop regiment. Algeria ( ar [[Arabic]] الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir ælʤæˈzæːʔir Amazigh: ⴷⵥⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer) officially the People's This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Paratroopers are Soldiers trained in Parachuting and generally operate as part of an airborne force.
He had socialist leanings and supported the opposition to Fulbert Youlou in Les Trois Glorieuses of August 1963. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution Abbé Fulbert Youlou ( 9 June, 17 June or 9 July 1917 – 6 May 1972) was a Brazzaville - Despite this he was part of the military coup of 1968 that brought Marien Ngouabi to power and was an early member of the PCT (Parti Congolais du Travail) when it was founded in December 1969. Marien Ngouabi (or N'Gouabi) ( December 31, 1938 – March 18, 1977) was the military President of the Republic of the Congo The Congolese Party of Labor ( Parti congolais du Travail, PCT) founded in 1969 by Marien Ngouabi, is the ruling Political party of the
In 1970 Sassou Nguesso was made Director of Security and a minister in the new presidential council. When Ngouabi was assassinated Nguesso played a key role in maintaining control, briefly heading the Military Committee of the Party (CMP, Comité Militaire du Parti) that controlled the state before the succession of Colonel Joachim Yhombi-Opango. Jacques Joachim Yhombi Opango (born 1939 is a Congolese Political figure. Sassou Nguesso was rewarded with a promotion to colonel and the post of vice-president of the CMP. He remained there until February 5, 1979 when Yhomby-Opango was forced from power in a technical coup accused of corruption and political deviancy. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) On February 8 the CMP chose Nguesso as the new president and at the Third Extraordinary Congress of the PCT his position was rubber-stamped. Events 421 - Constantius III becomes co- Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
Presidency
Sassou Nguesso surprised many observers who saw only a military strongman by revealing a strong commitment to Marxism as well as a streak of practical politics. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. He negotiated IMF loans and allowed foreign investors from France and the Americas to operate in the vital oil and mineral extraction operations. The International Monetary Fund ( IMF) is an International organization that oversees the Global financial system by following the Macroeconomic Petroleum ( L petroleum, from Greek πετρέλαιον, lit A mineral is a naturally occurring substance formed through geological processes that has a characteristic chemical composition a highly ordered atomic structure and specific He also travelled to Moscow in 1981 to sign a twenty-year friendship pact with Leonid Brezhnev. Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of
He was re-elected as president at the 1984 Congress of the PCT for a further five years and he was not slow to moderate the Marxist policies of the government as the situation demanded. He was president of the Organization of African Unity from 1986 to 1987. The Organisation of African Unity ( OAU) or Organisation de l'Unité Africaine ( OUA) was established on 25 May 1963. In late 1987 he faced down a serious military revolt in the north of the country with French aid.
Following the 1989 Congress, Sassou Nguesso saw the collapse of the socialist states of Eastern Europe and, under pressure from the French, began to prepare the process of bringing the country to capitalism. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where In December 1989 he announced the end of government control of the economy and declared a partial amnesty for political prisoners. Amnesty (from the Greek amnestia, oblivion is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to Into the following year he attempted to improve the failing economic situation and reduce the outrageous levels of corruption. From September 1990 political parties other than the PCT were allowed and Sassou Nguesso undertook a symbolic state visit to the United States of America, laying the grounds for a new series of conditional IMF loans later that year. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
In February 1991, a national conference began; the opposition gained control of the conference, and the conference's declaration of its own sovereignty was not challenged by Sassou Nguesso. The conference, which concluded in June 1991, chose André Milongo as Prime Minister during the transitional period leading to scheduled elections in 1992. André Ntsatouabantou Milongo ( October 20 1935 – July 23 2007) was Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo Milongo was given executive powers, leaving Sassou Nguesso as effectively a figurehead president. In politics a figurehead, by Metaphor with the carved figurehead at the prow of a sailing ship is a person who holds an important title or office yet executes little [1]
1992 elections
In the parliamentary election of June-July 1992, the PCT won only 19 of 125 seats in the National Assembly; the Pan-African Union for Social Democracy (UPADS) was the largest party, with the Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development (MCDDI) another strong force. A parliamentary election was held in the Republic of the Congo in 1992 along with a presidential election, marking the end of the transition to multiparty politics The Pan-African Union for Social Democracy ( Union Panafricaine pour la Démocratie Sociale) is a Political party in the Republic of the Congo, led by former The Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development ( Mouvement Congolais pour la Démocratie et le Développement Intégral) is a Political party in the In the August 1992 presidential election, Sassou Nguesso was eliminated in the first round, in which he placed third with 17% of the vote; although he performed strongly in the north, he fared poorly in the rest of the country. A presidential election was held in the Republic of the Congo in August 1992 marking the end of the transitional period that began with the February&ndashJune 1991 National The second round was held between Pascal Lissouba (UPADS) and Bernard Kolelas (MCDDI); Sassou Nguesso backed Lissouba, who won in the second round with 61% of the vote, although he and the PCT quickly went into opposition after the PCT received fewer positions in government under Lissouba than it had anticipated. Professor Pascal Lissouba (born November 15, 1931) was President of the Republic of the Congo from August 31, 1992 to Bernard Kolélas (born 12 June 1933) is a politician in the Republic of the Congo and the President of the Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral [2]
Lissouba began his rule dogged with accusations of voting irregularities and he had to act with increasing repression to maintain his power. From November 1993 to the end of that year clashes between supporters of Kolelas and Lissouba left almost 1500 people dead. In 1994 Sassou Nguesso prudently left the country for Paris. He returned to Congo on January 26, 1997 and intended to contest the presidential election scheduled for July. Events 1340 - King Edward III of England is declared King of France. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar [3]
Return to Presidency
In May 1997, a visit by Sassou Nguesso to Owando, Yhombi-Opango's political stronghold, led to the outbreak of violence between his supporters and those of Yhombi-Opango. Owando is a town in the central Republic of the Congo, lying on the Kouyou River. On June 5, 1997, government forces surrounded Sassou Nguesso's home in the Mpila section of Brazzaville, attempting to arrest two men, Pierre Aboya and Engobo Bonaventure, who had been implicated in the earlier violence. Events 70 - Titus and his Roman Legions breach the middle wall of Jerusalem in the Siege of Jerusalem Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar ||-||} Brazzaville is the Capital and largest city of the Republic of the Congo and is located on the Congo River. Fighting broke out between the government forces and Sassou Nguesso's fighters, called Cobras, and led to the outbreak of a civil war. From History of the Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo Civil War, lasting from June 1997 to December 1999 was fought between partisans By October, Sassou Nguesso, who was aided at the end of the war by Angolan troops, was in control of the country, and he was sworn in as President on October 25. Angola, officially the Republic of Angola (República de Angola Pronounced ʁɛˈpublikɐ dɨ ɐ̃ˈgɔlɐ Repubilika ya Ngola is a country in south-central Events 1147 - The Portuguese, under Afonso I, and Crusaders from England and Flanders conquer Lisbon after a [3]
Sassou Nguesso declared that he was willing to allow a return to democracy and began a three-year transition process in 1998, but renewed fighting with opposition groups led to the collapse of the endeavour. With the government forces in ascendency and following peace agreements in 1999, elections were re-scheduled for 2002, although not all rebel groups signed the accords. On March 10 Sassou Nguesso won with almost 90% of the vote; his two main rivals Lissouba and Kolelas were prevented from competing. Events 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing The only remaining credible rival, André Milongo, withdrew candidacy three days before the election day after finding out the election was rigged. André Ntsatouabantou Milongo ( October 20 1935 – July 23 2007) was Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo A new constitution was agreed upon in January 2002 which granted the president new powers and also extended his term to seven years as well as introducing a new bicameral assembly. A constitution is a system for government often Codified as a written document that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity In Government, bicameralism (bi + Latin la ''camera'' chamber is the practice of having two legislative or Parliamentary chambers Thus a bicameral While the 2002 elections were hailed as being free of violence, they conferred little legitimacy on Sassou Nguesso's regime due to the lack of meaningful participation by opposition parties. Sassou Nguesso was sworn in on August 14, 2002. Events 1183 - Taira no Munemori and the Taira clan take the young Emperor Antoku and the three sacred treasures See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. [4]
Having already served as the Chairman of the Organisation of African Unity in 1986 to 1987, he was elected Chairman of the African Union, the OAU's successor body, in January 2006. The Chairperson of the African Union is chosen by the Assembly of the African Union, which consists of the heads of state of member countries to serve a one-year The Organisation of African Unity ( OAU) or Organisation de l'Unité Africaine ( OUA) was established on 25 May 1963. The Chairperson of the African Union is chosen by the Assembly of the African Union, which consists of the heads of state of member countries to serve a one-year The African Union (abbreviated AU in English, and UA in its other working languages is a Confederation consisting of 53 African His election was the result of a compromise reached to prevent the chairmanship from going to Omar al-Bashir, President of Sudan. Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir ( Arabic: عمر حسن أحمد البشير born January 1 1944) is the President of Sudan. Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan) ( السودان al-Sūdān is a country in northeastern Africa. Despite making frequent trips around the continent and around the world during his year-long tenure as AU chairman, Sassou Nguesso's achievements in the office were limited.
Sassou Nguesso was re-elected as President of the Central Committee of the PCT at the party's Fifth Extraordinary Congress in December 2006. [5]
In January 2007, Sassou Nguesso's international reputation suffered a blow after a panel of judges in France reopened an official investigation into the alleged role of Sassou Nguesso's government in the 1999 disappearance of 353 Congolese refugees. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. [6]
Personal spending
In January 2007, journalists published accounts showed Sassou Nguesso's personal spending habits. On one five-night stay in April 2006 in New York at the Waldorf Astoria, the suite occupied by Sassou-Nguesso recorded £12,000 of room service charges during a five-night stay, and a total cost of £73,000. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel is a famously luxurious hotel in New York [7]
When Sassou Nguesso attended the United Nations General Assembly meeting in September 2006, almost £14,000 of room service at the Waldorf Astoria was added to his bill during another five-night stay. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security His entourage, including several members of his family, occupied 44 rooms which together ran up a bill of £130,000. The bills on September 19 included two bottles of Cristal champagne charged at £400. Events 335 - Dalmatius is raised to the rank of Caesar by his uncle Constantine I. Cristal is the brand name of a well-known champagne produced by Louis Roederer. Champagne is a Sparkling wine produced by inducing the in-bottle Secondary fermentation of Wine to effect Carbonation. This was pointed out by the British newspaper The Sunday Times to be "comfortably more than the £106,000 that Britain gave the Republic of Congo in humanitarian aid in 2006. The Sunday Times is a Sunday Broadsheet Newspaper distributed in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. "[8]
The spending was run up in the year that the World Bank, led by Paul Wolfowitz, delayed the debt relief deal known as the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) Initiative after learning that aides to Sassou-Nguesso had paid £100,000 in cash towards a September 2005 hotel bill totalling £169,000. The World Bank is an internationally supported Bank that provides financial and technical assistance to developing countries for development programs (e Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is a former United States Ambassador to Indonesia, U Heavily Indebted Poor Countries ( HIPC) are a group of 37 Developing countries with high levels of Poverty and Debt overhang which are eligible The Congo-Brazzaville debt relief package was provided on the grounds that the Republic of Congo was too poor to meet its financial commitments.
As of June 2007, Nguesso, along with President Omar Bongo of Gabon, is being investigated by the French police due to claims that he has used millions of pounds of embezzled public funds to acquire lavish properties in France. El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba (born Albert-Bernard Bongo on 30 December 1935) became President of Gabon in 1967 Gabon (gəˈbɒn or /gaˈbõ/ in French) is a country in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Republic Public funding is money given from Tax revenue or other Governmental sources to an individual organization or entity This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. He has been cited in recent years during French criminal inquiries into hundreds of millions of euros of illicit payments by Elf, the former French state-owned oil group. An elf is a creature of Norse mythology. The elves were originally imagined as a race of minor nature and fertility gods, who are often pictured as youthful-seeming [1]
In July 2007, British NGO Global Witness published documents on its website that appear to show that the President's son, Denis Christel Sassou-Nguesso, may have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of money that may derive from the country's oil sales on shopping sprees in Paris and Dubai. Global Witness is an international NGO established in 1993 that works to break the links between natural resource exploitation conflict Poverty, corruption [9] The documents show that in August 2006 alone, Denis Christel, who is the head of Cotrade - the marketing branch of Congo's state oil firm SNPC - spent $35,000 on purchases from designers such as Louis Vuitton and Roberto Cavalli. [10]. Attempts were made by Schillings Solicitors to suppress this information but the application failed see law report at http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/inpractice/lawreports/view=details.law?GAZETTEINPRACTICEID=357873
References
- ^ John F. Clark, "Congo: Transition and the Struggle to Consolidate", in Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, pages 68–69.
- ^ John F. Clark, "Congo: Transition and the Struggle to Consolidate", in Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, pages 70–71.
- ^ a b "ENTRE ARBITRAIRE ET IMPUNITE : LES DROITS DE L'HOMME AU CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE", Congolese Human Rights Observatory and International Federation of Human Rights (fidh. org), April 1998 (French).
- ^ Richard Songo, "Le putschiste Sassou devient officiellement "président élu"", Congopage. com, August 14, 2002 (French).
- ^ Willy Mbossa, "Denis Sassou Nguesso reconduit à la tête du comité central du Parti congolais du travail", Les Dépêches de Brazzaville, December 30, 2006 (French).
- ^ http://fr.news.yahoo.com/10012007/5/disparus-du-beach-la-justice-francaise-poursuit-l-enquete.html
- ^ Congo leader’s £169,000 hotel bill - Times Online
- ^ News and Views from The Times and Sunday Times | Times Online
- ^ "Congo: Is President’s son paying for designer shopping sprees with country’s oil money?", Global Witness, June 26, 2007.
- ^ http://www.globalwitness.org/media_library_get.php/439/en/denis_christel_sassou_nguesso_credit_card_bill.pdf
See also
- Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD-IV), 2008. is a conference held every five years in Tokyo, Japan, with the objective "to promote high-level policy dialogue between African leaders and development partners
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Joachim Yhombi-Opango |
President of the Congo-Brazzaville 1979 – 1992 |
Succeeded by Pascal Lissouba |
| Preceded by Pascal Lissouba |
President of the Congo-Brazzaville 1997 – present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Olusegun Obasanjo |
Chairperson of the African Union 2006 – 2007 |
Succeeded by John Kufuor |
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