1964 Gabon coup d'état
Encyclopedia
The 1964 Gabon coup d'état was staged between 17 and 18 February 1964 by Gabon
ese military officers who rose against Gabonese President Léon M'ba
. Before the coup
, Gabon was seen as one of the most politically stable countries in Africa. The coup resulted from M'ba's dissolution of the Gabonese legislature on 21 January 1964, and during a takeover with few casualties 150 coup plotters arrested M'ba and a number of his government officials. Through Radio Libreville
, they asked the people of Gabon to remain calm and assured them that the country's pro-France foreign policy would remain unchanged. A provisional government was formed, and the coup's leaders installed Deputy Jean-Hilaire Aubame
, who was M'ba's primary political opponent and had been uninvolved in the coup, as president. Meanwhile, M'ba was sent to Lambaréné
, 250 kilometres (155 mi) from Libreville. There was no major uprising or reaction by the Gabonese people when they received word of the coup, which the military interpreted as a sign of approval.
After being informed of the coup by Gabonese Chief of Staff Albert-Bernard Bongo
, French President Charles de Gaulle
resolved to restore the M'ba government, honoring a 1960 treaty signed between the deposed government and France when Gabon became independent. With the help of French paratrooper
s, the provisional government was toppled during the night of 19 February and M'ba was reinstated as president. Afterward, M'ba imprisoned more than 150 of his opponents, pledging "no pardon or pity" but rather "total punishment". Aubame was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor and 10 years of exile, a sentence that was later commuted
. During this time, the ageing president became increasingly reclusive, opting to stay in his presidential palace under the protection of French troops. Within three years, M'ba was diagnosed with cancer; he died on 28 November 1967.
Gabon gained its independence from France on 17 August 1960. The country had a relatively high standard of living
and was considered one of the more stable countries in West Africa
, both politically and economically. At the time of the coup, the country had an estimated US$200 average annual income and was one of the few countries in Africa with a positive trade balance, with exports exceeding imports by 30 percent. As of 1964, the country was among the largest producers of uranium
and manganese
in French Africa, which Time
suggested was one of the reasons for France's response to the coup. It also had petroleum, iron, and logging interests stationed in Gabon.
M'ba was also one of the most loyal allies to France in Africa, even after the country's independence. In fact, France maintained 600 paratroopers and an air force unit, which included Mirage V and Jaguar jet fighters, at the Camp de Gaulle military base until at least 1987, a warning to any Gabonese coup plotters. M'ba famously commented during a 1961 visit to France that "[a]ll Gabonese have two fatherlands: France and Gabon", and Europeans enjoyed particularly friendly treatment under his regime. French journalist Pierre Péan
asserted that M'ba secretly tried to prevent Gabonese independence; instead, he lobbied for it to become an overseas territory of France. He went so far as to say that "Gabon is an extreme case, verging on caricature, of neocolonialism
."
M'ba aspired to establish Gabon as a democracy, which he believed was necessary to attract foreign investors. At the same time, he attempted to reconcile the imperatives of democracy with the necessity for a strong and coherent government. In practice, however, M'ba showed a weakness in attaining his goal—by this time he was known as "the old man", or "the boss"—to have a high degree of authority. On 21 February 1961, a new constitution was unanimously adopted, providing for a "hyperpresidential" regime. M'ba now had full executive powers: he could appoint ministers whose functions and responsibilities were decided by him; he could dissolve the National Assembly by choice or prolong its term beyond the normal five years; he could declare a state of emergency
when he believed the need arose, though for this amendment he would have to consult the people via a referendum. This was, in fact, very similar to the constitution adopted in favor of Fulbert Youlou
at roughly the same time. A report from the French secret service summarized the situation:
M'ba's chief political opponent had been Jean-Hilaire Aubame, a former protégé and his half-brother's foster son. M'ba was backed by the French forestry interests, while Aubame was supported by the Roman Catholic missions and the French administration. Aubame, a deputy of the opposition party l’Union démocratique et sociale gabonaise (UDSG) in the National Assembly, had few fundamental ideological differences with the M'ba-led Bloc Démocratique Gabonais (BDG), including advocating less economic dependence on France and faster "Africanization" of French political jobs. However, the new constitution and the National Union (a political union they founded) suspended the quarrels between M'ba and Aubame from 1961 to 1963. Despite this, political unrest grew within the population, and many students held demonstrations on the frequent dissolutions of the National Assembly and the general political attitude in the country. The president did not hesitate to enforce the law himself; with a chicotte
, he whipped citizens who did not show respect for him, including passersby who "forgot" to salute him.
Aubame served as foreign minister under the coalition government, though in early 1963 he was dropped from the Cabinet for refusing to create a single-party Gabon. To oust Aubame from his legislative seat, M'ba appointed him President of the Supreme Court on 25 February, practically a powerless post. M'ba supporters tried to pass a bill that declared that a member of parliament
could only hold a single role in government. The president claimed that Aubame had resigned from the National Assembly, citing incompatibility with the functions of the assembly. Aubame, however, unexpectedly resigned from the Supreme Court on 10 January 1964, complicating matters for M'ba. In a fit of rage, M'ba dissolved the National Assembly on 21 January 1964. The New York Times
speculates that this was due to it not supporting M'ba in Aubame's removal.
The electoral conditions were announced as such: The election 67 districts were reduced to 47. M'ba disqualified Aubame by announcing that anyone who had held a post recently was banned. Any party would have to submit 47 candidates who had to pay US$160 or none at all. Thus, over US$7,500 would be deposited without considering campaign expenses. M'ba's idea was that no party other than his would have the money to enter candidates. In response to this, the opposition announced its refusal to participate in elections that they did not consider fair.
Little is known of the planning of the coup. No demonstrations followed Mba's dissolution of the National Assembly, so the coup could be classified as simply a "palace coup". The 1964–1965 edition of the Adelphi Papers
speculates that the continued presence of young French military officers in Gabon may have been an inspiration to the plotters of the coup. Much of the 600-man Gabonese army had previously served in the French army prior to independence, where they were paid modestly. Like much of the rest of the country, they were displeased by M'ba's actions against Aubame, a probable cause for involvement.
U.S. Ambassador to Gabon Charles Darlington
suggested that the coup plotters may have tried to imitate the style of Colonel Christophe Soglo
. Soglo, a commander in Dahomey
's 800-man army, had deposed President Hubert Maga
in October 1963, ruled for about a month, then resigned in favor of Dahomey's citizens. The plotters apparently did not consider French involvement, so therefore didn't take any additional steps to prevent it. They could have created protests to show public support, although the spokesman for the coup plotters, Sub-Lieutenant
Daniel Mbene, justified the coup by claiming in a broadcast that the army had to act to avoid the rash of "uncontrollable demonstrations that would have been difficult to halt".
It is unlikely that Aubame participated in the planning of the coup. It appears that he joined the effort after being recruited by the new government. His nephew, Pierre Eyeguet, a former ambassador to the United Kingdom, may have known of the plot beforehand and notified his uncle, although it is unknown whether or not Aubame established contact with the plotters.
Lieutenant Valerie Essone only decided to participate on 17 February. This was a crucial decision for he led the First Company of the Gabonese Army, the company of the other officers. Apparently at that moment he told his troops to perform average night maneuvers. That day, Gabonese chief of staff Albert Bernard (later Omar) Bongo
informed President M'ba that the number of troops outside Libreville
was unusually high. M'ba, however, did not think much of this anomaly.
, and police, headed by Lieutenant Jacques Mombo and Valére Essone, seized the presidential palace. The gendarmes on duty claimed that this was but a military exercise. However, during the "exercise" the lieutenants dragged President M'ba from his bed at gunpoint. Bongo heard this noise and telephoned President of the National Assembly Louis Bigmann
to find out what had happened. Bigmann arrived at the presidential palace and asked the rebels what Bongo had asked him. At this point they opened the gates and arrested him too. The plotters subsequently arrested every member of the Gabonese cabinet except the respected technician André Gustave Anguilé
. Apparently, the plotters let him roam free in the hopes of him joining them, although before noon he asked to be arrested. Joseph N'Goua, the Gabonese minister of foreign affairs, was able to tell the French Embassy of this before he was arrested.
The insurgents, calling themselves a "revolutionary committee", spread themselves strategically across the Gabonese capital during the night. They shut down the airport and seized the post office and radio station. On Radio Libreville, the military announced that a coup had taken place and that they required "technical assistance". They issued radio statements every half hour promising that "public liberties will be restored and all political prisoners will be freed" and ordered the French not to interfere in the matter, claiming that it would be a violation of their sovereignty. In addition, they decreed the closing of schools and businesses. M'ba acknowledged his defeat in a radio broadcast, in accordance with orders from his captors. "D-Day is here, the injustices are beyond measure, these people are patient, but their patience has limits", he said. "It came to a boil."
During these events, no gunshots were fired. The public did not react strongly, which, according to the military, was a sign of approval. A provisional government was formed, composed of civilian politicians from the UDSG and BDG such as Philippe N'dong, editor of Gabon's literary review Réalités Gabonaises; Dr. Eloi Chambrier, Gabon's only physician; Philippe Maury, a famous Gabonese actor; and civil servant Paul Gondjout
. Mbene stated that the provisional government would not include any members of the M'ba government. He declared that Gabon's pro-French foreign policy would remain unchanged and that Mombo would supervise the government until the presidency was given to Aubame. The plotters were content to ensure security for civilians, urging them to remain calm and not hurt anyone. Most of them were junior officers, living in the army barracks. The senior officers did not intervene; instead, they stayed in their "pleasant" houses.
Aubame was unaware of the coup until the French ambassador to Gabon, Paul Cousseran, called him on the telephone roughly a half hour after sunrise. Cousseran, meanwhile, was awoken by the noisy streets and checked to see what was happening. Aubame replied that he was to find out why there was "no government", as Cousseran never directly mentioned a coup. However, about midway through the morning an automobile carrying the revolutionary committee arrived at Aubame's residence and drove him to the governmental offices, where he had been named president.
Second Lieutenant Ndo Edou gave instructions to transfer M'ba to Ndjolé
, Aubame's electoral stronghold. However, due to heavy rain, the deposed president and his captors took shelter in an unknown village. The next morning they decided to take him over the easier road to Lambaréné
. Several hours later, they returned to Libreville.
, decided that he would restore the legitimate government. This was in accordance with a 1960 treaty between Gabon and the French, which was ironically signed by Aubame in his stint as Foreign Minister. Foccart, on the other hand, had only decided to launch the countercoup to protect the interests of the French petroleum group Elf
, which operated in Gabon and was led by a close friend of his. M'ba was also a close friend of his; David Yates reports that M'ba could call Foccart personally, and Foccart would meet with him "at a moment's notice". French commentators, however, claimed that if they did not intervene, they would be tempting other dissidents. France had refrained from intervening in recent coups in the French Congo
, Dahomey
, and Togo
, despite being opposed to all of them. However, the Gabon coup differed in that, they claimed, it lacked notable public support. Following the restoration of M'ba's government in Gabon, the French intervened in African coups roughly every other year. In 1995, the French Minister for Foreign Assistance Jacques Godfrain explained that Paris "will intervene each time an elected democratic power is overthrown by a coup d'état if a military cooperation agreement exists".
Shortly after de Gaulle and Foccart's meeting, French commanders Haulin and Royer were released at the request of the French Embassy. Intervention could not commence without a formal petition to the Head of State of Gabon. Since M'ba was held hostage, the French contacted the Vice President of Gabon, Paul-Marie Yembit
, who had not been arrested. At the time, Yembit was in a car with U.S. ambassador Charles Darlington travelling to N'Dende. This was to officially open a school built by the Peace Corps
nearby, in Yembit's birthplace of Moussambou, and completing his electoral campaign. Therefore, they decided to compose a predated letter that Yembit would later sign, confirming their intervention. They sent this to him via a small airplane, since there were no road bridges in Gabon at the time and the only way to cross a river was on a ferry. Yembit did not come back to Libreville on the plane as would be expected, but rather at 8:00 WAT
on 18 February to read a statement over Radio Libreville that was likely prepared by French officials. Yembit, however, claimed that he called for French intervention while the insurgent troops held M'ba hostage; this version of the story was quickly disputed by several diplomats on the scene, as several French troops had arrived before this alleged incident.
Less than 24 hours after de Gaulle had been notified, French paratroopers stationed in Dakar
and Brazzaville
under General René Cogny
and a General Kergaravat were notified that they were going to end the coup. This had come even before the provincial government was formed. Maurice Robert and Guy Ponsaille, who were among a group Foccart convened to discuss the French intervention, were part of the paratrooper unit. Receiving Foccart's orders to "normalize" the situation by 19 February or the next day at the latest, at 10:50 WAT
on 18 February, the first 50 troops landed at the Libreville International Airport
. The rebels closed the airport but failed to establish obstacles, allowing the French troops to land unharmed, albeit during a large storm. Throughout that day, more than 600 paratroopers arrived at the airport.
Sweeping through Libreville unopposed, the troops easily captured the provincial council, though they met resistance at the Baraka military base in Lambaréné when they attacked at daylight. Upon learning of the impending attack, Aubame called Cousseran and asked him what had been going on. Cousseran dodged answering the question and requested that Aubame release M'ba uninjured. After receiving the false assurance from the ambassador that the French government had no intention of restoring M'ba to power, Aubame sent out a military officer to the countryside to find the deposed president. M'ba was moved to a small village near the Albert Schweitzer Hospital
. At dawn on 19 February, French Air Force
planes strafed
the rebels at Baraka, while the French Army
attacked the insurgents with machine gun
fire and mortars
. The rebels at the military base promptly surrendered once their ammunition supply ran out, and their commander, Lieutenant Ndo Edou, was executed. Later, the French army managed to break through the gate to the village where M'ba was held and rescued the deposed president.
Before the end of the day, the French troops surrounded all of Libreville's public buildings. Shortly thereafter, Radio Libreville announced the surrender of the rebel forces. Kergaravat concluded his military operation on 20 February, saluting Cousseran and saying "Mission accomplie". Over its course, one French soldier was killed and 18 died on the Gabonese side. Unofficial sources said two French soldiers and 25 insurgents were killed, with more than 40 Gabonese and four French troops were wounded. The number of civilian casualties was unknown but numerous, as the straw roofs on their homes were not a good protector against aerial bullets.
France's intervention in the coup was openly applauded by the Central African Republic
, Chad
, Côte d'Ivoire
, Madagascar
, Niger
, and Upper Volta
. In fact, France was barely criticised at all in Africa, other than a mild response by Dahomey and one by the Democratic Republic of Congo. The matter was not discussed at the next meeting of the Council of Ministers of the OAU, held on 24 February–29 February in Lagos
. The revolutionary movement in French Africa immediately retrogressed following the coup.
M'ba was returned to Libreville on 21 February. Shortly after his arrival, the 10:00 pm curfew that had been imposed by the French was lifted, and some stores were reopened. Squads of officials, known as "les gorilles", travelled through Libreville and arrested any suspected M'ba opposers. After his reinstatement, M'ba refused to believe that the coup was directed against his regime, instead considering it to be a conspiracy against the state. Nonetheless, following the coup M'ba dismissed every soldier in the army and started recruiting new men.
On 1 March, however, anti-government demonstrations began, with protesters shouting "Léon M'ba, président des Français!" ("Léon M'ba, President of the French!") and calling for the end of the "dictatorship". Originating in Libreville, these demonstrations spread to Port-Gentil
and N'Dende and lasted into the summer. When 1,000 pro-government demonstrators responded by shouting "Long Live Léon M'ba" outside the presidential palace, they were attacked by dissidents. Among the pro-government demonstrators were an opposition member, Martine Oyane, who had been forcefully undressed following her arrest, beaten by the police, paraded naked throughout Libreville, and forced to shout "Long Live Léon M'ba". At the height of these demonstrations, 3,000 to 4,000 Gabonese protested throughout central Libreville. Protesters also took their anger out against the French in Gabon, stoning more than 30 cars belonging to Frenchmen and chanting "Go home, go home!" This rioting was so intense that M'ba announced that whoever went to work would not be paid. The French reacted to these incidents by swinging rifle butts and throwing grenades. The crowds responded by throwing bottles and stones, though they were put down soon after. There were no reports of injured protesters, despite orders to the Gabonese police that they fire at protesters on sight.
asserted that French officials helped spread the rumor of American involvement. This reached a point which some automobile stations refused to help Darlington and other Americans. After William F. Courtney, deputy chief of the United States Embassy, received a call from a man identifying himself as DuPont and threatening an imminent attack, a hand grenade
exploded outside the embassy. The explosion, which occurred at a time when the building was closed and locked on 3 March, resulted in damage to the embassy sign and the cracking of two windows.
Following the bombing, French Gabonese made more threatening phone calls to the embassy. A second bomb exploded at the embassy two nights later, causing no damage. A drive-by shooting, during which at least five rounds of buckshot were fired from a 12-gauge automatic shotgun, riddled the second story windows with over 30 holes. It is likely that its perpetrators were French, as Gabonese have no access to grenades. Following the second bombing a car containing white men was noticed, driving through otherwise empty Shore Boulevard. At the time, practically the only white men in Gabon were French.
Two Gabonese policemen were assigned to protect the building, and M'ba ordered an investigation into the bombings. He denounced the allegations against Americans, saying:
Much of these attacks against Americans were against Darlington personally. His son Christopher was hit by a grenade in July, though it did not detonate. The ambassador resigned his post on 26 July. It was not until 14 August 1965 that David M. Bane replaced him.
France closely followed the election, deporting a Peace Corps
teacher. The UDSG disappeared from the political scene, and M'ba's opposition was composed of parties that lacked national focus and maintained only regional or pro-democracy platforms. Nevertheless, the opposition garnered 46% of the vote and 16 of 47 seats in the assembly, while the BDG received 54% of the vote and 31 seats. The opposition disputed this, and held strikes across the country, though these did not have a sizable impact on business.
. A "state of precations" was imposed, which decreed that local government kept surveillance on suspected troublemakers and, if necessary, order curfew, while special permits were required to travel through the town. The trial was held in a school building overlooking the Ogooue River
, which was near Albert Schweitzer
's hospital
. Space at the hearing was limited, so members of the public were disallowed from attending. Permits were required to attend the trial, and family members were restricted to one permit each. Press coverage was limited, and journalists were allowed only if they represented a high-profile news agency. In addition, there were restrictions on the defence of the accused.
The prosecution called 64 separate witnesses. Essone, Mbene, and Aubame claimed that their involvement in the coup was due to a lack of development in the Gabonese army. Judge Leon Auge, the judge in the case, said that if "that is the only reason for your coup d'état, you deserve a severe penalty." Essone said that almost all Gabonese military officers knew of an imminent coup beforehand, while Aubame affirmed his position that he did not participate in its planning. According to him, he formed the provisional government in a constitutional manner, and at the request of some "putschists". He reasoned that the French intervention was effectively an illegal act of interference, an assertion which Gondjout and the former education minister, Jean Mare Ekoh, shared. Ekoh had served as Foreign Minister during the coup. The Gabonese actor said that it should be the French troops being tried, not he and his comrades: "If we'd been able to put up a few more Gabonese soldiers against the French, we'd have won — and we shouldn't be here today."
On 9 September, without consulting M'ba, Leon Auge handed down a verdict which acquitted both Ekoh and Gondjout; although the charges carried the death sentence as a maximum. Aubame was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor and 10 years of exile on a remote island off Settecama, 100 miles (161 km) down the coast of Gabon, as were most criminals of the case. He was not particularly popular during his political career, though according to Time
, his arrest "ballooned him to heroic proportions in the eyes of the aroused public". While serving his 10 years of labor, he was beaten regularly by prison guards. Besides Aubame, M'ba imprisoned more than 150 of his opponents, most of whom were sentenced to 20 years of hard labor. These included the two officers and Aubame's nephew, Pierre Eyeguet, a former ambassador to the United Kingdom. The actor and the doctor were given 10 years of imprisonment each. While appealing for peace on 18 February, he pledged "no pardon or pity" to his enemies, but rather "total punishment".
Two years after the coup there was still open repression of dissent in Gabon. Following these events M'ba became increasingly reclusive, staying in his presidential palace protected by French troops known as the "Clan des Gabonais". Not even Yembit was close to him, but Foccart's friends Ponsaille and Robert "were never far" from M'ba, according to Pean, and provided the aging president with counseling and advice. M'ba was, however, still convinced of his popularity. Three years later, M'ba was diagnosed with cancer, and he died on 28 November 1967. After M'ba's death, French-supported Bongo succeeded him as president, and released Aubame in 1972.
Gabon
Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
ese military officers who rose against Gabonese President Léon M'ba
Léon M'ba
Gabriel Léon M'ba was the first Prime Minister and President of Gabon. A member of the Fang ethnic group, M'ba was born into a relatively privileged village family. After studying at a seminary, he held a number of small jobs before entering the colonial administration as a customs agent...
. Before the coup
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
, Gabon was seen as one of the most politically stable countries in Africa. The coup resulted from M'ba's dissolution of the Gabonese legislature on 21 January 1964, and during a takeover with few casualties 150 coup plotters arrested M'ba and a number of his government officials. Through Radio Libreville
Radio Libreville
Radio Libreville is a radio station based in Libreville, Gabon's capital. The station played an important role politically in Gabon throughout the 1960s and 1970s and was the state's communication system to the nation....
, they asked the people of Gabon to remain calm and assured them that the country's pro-France foreign policy would remain unchanged. A provisional government was formed, and the coup's leaders installed Deputy Jean-Hilaire Aubame
Jean-Hilaire Aubame
Jean-Hilaire Aubame was a Gabonese politician active during both the colonial and independence periods. The French journalist Pierre Péan said that Aubame's training "as a practicing Catholic and a customs official helped to make him an integrated man, one of whom political power was not an end in...
, who was M'ba's primary political opponent and had been uninvolved in the coup, as president. Meanwhile, M'ba was sent to Lambaréné
Lambaréné
Lambaréné is the capital of the political district Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. The city counts 24,000 inhabitants and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator....
, 250 kilometres (155 mi) from Libreville. There was no major uprising or reaction by the Gabonese people when they received word of the coup, which the military interpreted as a sign of approval.
After being informed of the coup by Gabonese Chief of Staff Albert-Bernard Bongo
Omar Bongo
El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba , born as Albert-Bernard Bongo, was a Gabonese politician who was President of Gabon for 42 years from 1967 until his death in office in 2009....
, French President Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
resolved to restore the M'ba government, honoring a 1960 treaty signed between the deposed government and France when Gabon became independent. With the help of French paratrooper
Paratrooper
Paratroopers are soldiers trained in parachuting and generally operate as part of an airborne force.Paratroopers are used for tactical advantage as they can be inserted into the battlefield from the air, thereby allowing them to be positioned in areas not accessible by land...
s, the provisional government was toppled during the night of 19 February and M'ba was reinstated as president. Afterward, M'ba imprisoned more than 150 of his opponents, pledging "no pardon or pity" but rather "total punishment". Aubame was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor and 10 years of exile, a sentence that was later commuted
Commutation of sentence
Commutation of sentence involves the reduction of legal penalties, especially in terms of imprisonment. Unlike a pardon, a commutation does not nullify the conviction and is often conditional. Clemency is a similar term, meaning the lessening of the penalty of the crime without forgiving the crime...
. During this time, the ageing president became increasingly reclusive, opting to stay in his presidential palace under the protection of French troops. Within three years, M'ba was diagnosed with cancer; he died on 28 November 1967.
Background and origins
Standard of living
Standard of living is generally measured by standards such as real income per person and poverty rate. Other measures such as access and quality of health care, income growth inequality and educational standards are also used. Examples are access to certain goods , or measures of health such as...
and was considered one of the more stable countries in West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
, both politically and economically. At the time of the coup, the country had an estimated US$200 average annual income and was one of the few countries in Africa with a positive trade balance, with exports exceeding imports by 30 percent. As of 1964, the country was among the largest producers of uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
and manganese
Manganese
Manganese is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a free element in nature , and in many minerals...
in French Africa, which Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
suggested was one of the reasons for France's response to the coup. It also had petroleum, iron, and logging interests stationed in Gabon.
M'ba was also one of the most loyal allies to France in Africa, even after the country's independence. In fact, France maintained 600 paratroopers and an air force unit, which included Mirage V and Jaguar jet fighters, at the Camp de Gaulle military base until at least 1987, a warning to any Gabonese coup plotters. M'ba famously commented during a 1961 visit to France that "[a]ll Gabonese have two fatherlands: France and Gabon", and Europeans enjoyed particularly friendly treatment under his regime. French journalist Pierre Péan
Pierre Péan
Pierre Péan is a renowned French investigative journalist and author of many books concerned with political scandals.-Books, investigations and controversies:...
asserted that M'ba secretly tried to prevent Gabonese independence; instead, he lobbied for it to become an overseas territory of France. He went so far as to say that "Gabon is an extreme case, verging on caricature, of neocolonialism
Neocolonialism
Neocolonialism is the practice of using capitalism, globalization, and cultural forces to control a country in lieu of direct military or political control...
."
M'ba aspired to establish Gabon as a democracy, which he believed was necessary to attract foreign investors. At the same time, he attempted to reconcile the imperatives of democracy with the necessity for a strong and coherent government. In practice, however, M'ba showed a weakness in attaining his goal—by this time he was known as "the old man", or "the boss"—to have a high degree of authority. On 21 February 1961, a new constitution was unanimously adopted, providing for a "hyperpresidential" regime. M'ba now had full executive powers: he could appoint ministers whose functions and responsibilities were decided by him; he could dissolve the National Assembly by choice or prolong its term beyond the normal five years; he could declare a state of emergency
State of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
when he believed the need arose, though for this amendment he would have to consult the people via a referendum. This was, in fact, very similar to the constitution adopted in favor of Fulbert Youlou
Fulbert Youlou
Abbé Fulbert Youlou was a Brazzaville-Congolese Roman Catholic priest, nationalist leader and politician.-Early life:...
at roughly the same time. A report from the French secret service summarized the situation:
M'ba's chief political opponent had been Jean-Hilaire Aubame, a former protégé and his half-brother's foster son. M'ba was backed by the French forestry interests, while Aubame was supported by the Roman Catholic missions and the French administration. Aubame, a deputy of the opposition party l’Union démocratique et sociale gabonaise (UDSG) in the National Assembly, had few fundamental ideological differences with the M'ba-led Bloc Démocratique Gabonais (BDG), including advocating less economic dependence on France and faster "Africanization" of French political jobs. However, the new constitution and the National Union (a political union they founded) suspended the quarrels between M'ba and Aubame from 1961 to 1963. Despite this, political unrest grew within the population, and many students held demonstrations on the frequent dissolutions of the National Assembly and the general political attitude in the country. The president did not hesitate to enforce the law himself; with a chicotte
Sjambok
The sjambok or litupa is the official heavy leather whip of South Africa, sometimes seen as synonymous with apartheid but actually much older and still used outside the official judiciary....
, he whipped citizens who did not show respect for him, including passersby who "forgot" to salute him.
Aubame served as foreign minister under the coalition government, though in early 1963 he was dropped from the Cabinet for refusing to create a single-party Gabon. To oust Aubame from his legislative seat, M'ba appointed him President of the Supreme Court on 25 February, practically a powerless post. M'ba supporters tried to pass a bill that declared that a member of parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
could only hold a single role in government. The president claimed that Aubame had resigned from the National Assembly, citing incompatibility with the functions of the assembly. Aubame, however, unexpectedly resigned from the Supreme Court on 10 January 1964, complicating matters for M'ba. In a fit of rage, M'ba dissolved the National Assembly on 21 January 1964. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
speculates that this was due to it not supporting M'ba in Aubame's removal.
The electoral conditions were announced as such: The election 67 districts were reduced to 47. M'ba disqualified Aubame by announcing that anyone who had held a post recently was banned. Any party would have to submit 47 candidates who had to pay US$160 or none at all. Thus, over US$7,500 would be deposited without considering campaign expenses. M'ba's idea was that no party other than his would have the money to enter candidates. In response to this, the opposition announced its refusal to participate in elections that they did not consider fair.
Planning
Adelphi Papers
The Adelphi Papers is a monograph series in which the policy-related original academic research of the International Institute for Strategic Studies is principally published. The series was established in 1961 and continues today....
speculates that the continued presence of young French military officers in Gabon may have been an inspiration to the plotters of the coup. Much of the 600-man Gabonese army had previously served in the French army prior to independence, where they were paid modestly. Like much of the rest of the country, they were displeased by M'ba's actions against Aubame, a probable cause for involvement.
U.S. Ambassador to Gabon Charles Darlington
Charles Darlington
Charles F. Darlington was an American diplomat. He was United States Ambassador to Gabon from 1961 to 1965 and also to the Central African Republic, Chad, and Congo as at the time this region was known as French Equatorial Africa. Darlington was ambassador to Gabon during the 1964 coup d'état...
suggested that the coup plotters may have tried to imitate the style of Colonel Christophe Soglo
Christophe Soglo
Christophe Soglo was a Beninese military officer and political leader and one of the most important figures in Benin's period of political instability and frequent, though usually bloodless, coups during the 1960s.-Biography:...
. Soglo, a commander in Dahomey
Dahomey
Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...
's 800-man army, had deposed President Hubert Maga
Hubert Maga
Coutoucou Hubert Maga was a politician from Dahomey .Dahomey was renamed Benin in 1975. See . He arose on a political scene where one's power was dictated by what region in Dahomey they lived...
in October 1963, ruled for about a month, then resigned in favor of Dahomey's citizens. The plotters apparently did not consider French involvement, so therefore didn't take any additional steps to prevent it. They could have created protests to show public support, although the spokesman for the coup plotters, Sub-Lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant
Sub-lieutenant is a military rank. It is normally a junior officer rank.In many navies, a sub-lieutenant is a naval commissioned or subordinate officer, ranking below a lieutenant. In the Royal Navy the rank of sub-lieutenant is equivalent to the rank of lieutenant in the British Army and of...
Daniel Mbene, justified the coup by claiming in a broadcast that the army had to act to avoid the rash of "uncontrollable demonstrations that would have been difficult to halt".
It is unlikely that Aubame participated in the planning of the coup. It appears that he joined the effort after being recruited by the new government. His nephew, Pierre Eyeguet, a former ambassador to the United Kingdom, may have known of the plot beforehand and notified his uncle, although it is unknown whether or not Aubame established contact with the plotters.
Lieutenant Valerie Essone only decided to participate on 17 February. This was a crucial decision for he led the First Company of the Gabonese Army, the company of the other officers. Apparently at that moment he told his troops to perform average night maneuvers. That day, Gabonese chief of staff Albert Bernard (later Omar) Bongo
Omar Bongo
El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba , born as Albert-Bernard Bongo, was a Gabonese politician who was President of Gabon for 42 years from 1967 until his death in office in 2009....
informed President M'ba that the number of troops outside Libreville
Libreville
Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon, in west central Africa. The city is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea, and a trade center for a timber region. As of 2005, it has a population of 578,156.- History :...
was unusually high. M'ba, however, did not think much of this anomaly.
Coup
During the night of 17 February and the early morning of 18 February 1964, 150 members of the Gabonese military, gendarmerieGendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
, and police, headed by Lieutenant Jacques Mombo and Valére Essone, seized the presidential palace. The gendarmes on duty claimed that this was but a military exercise. However, during the "exercise" the lieutenants dragged President M'ba from his bed at gunpoint. Bongo heard this noise and telephoned President of the National Assembly Louis Bigmann
Louis Bigmann
-Early life and political career:A member of the Mpongwe people, he was born and lived in Baraka. Bigmann attended the Ecole Montfort in Libreville, Gabon's capital...
to find out what had happened. Bigmann arrived at the presidential palace and asked the rebels what Bongo had asked him. At this point they opened the gates and arrested him too. The plotters subsequently arrested every member of the Gabonese cabinet except the respected technician André Gustave Anguilé
André Gustave Anguilé
André Gustave Anguilé is a former Gabonese politician and diplomat. He was the foreign minister of his country from 1960–1961.-References:...
. Apparently, the plotters let him roam free in the hopes of him joining them, although before noon he asked to be arrested. Joseph N'Goua, the Gabonese minister of foreign affairs, was able to tell the French Embassy of this before he was arrested.
The insurgents, calling themselves a "revolutionary committee", spread themselves strategically across the Gabonese capital during the night. They shut down the airport and seized the post office and radio station. On Radio Libreville, the military announced that a coup had taken place and that they required "technical assistance". They issued radio statements every half hour promising that "public liberties will be restored and all political prisoners will be freed" and ordered the French not to interfere in the matter, claiming that it would be a violation of their sovereignty. In addition, they decreed the closing of schools and businesses. M'ba acknowledged his defeat in a radio broadcast, in accordance with orders from his captors. "D-Day is here, the injustices are beyond measure, these people are patient, but their patience has limits", he said. "It came to a boil."
During these events, no gunshots were fired. The public did not react strongly, which, according to the military, was a sign of approval. A provisional government was formed, composed of civilian politicians from the UDSG and BDG such as Philippe N'dong, editor of Gabon's literary review Réalités Gabonaises; Dr. Eloi Chambrier, Gabon's only physician; Philippe Maury, a famous Gabonese actor; and civil servant Paul Gondjout
Paul Gondjout
Paul Marie Indjendjet Gondjout was a Gabonese politician and civil servant, and the father of Laure Gondjout, another prominent Gabonese politician. Gondjout was a member of the Mpongwe ethnic group, and served in the French colonial administration from 1928, and founded the Cercle amical et...
. Mbene stated that the provisional government would not include any members of the M'ba government. He declared that Gabon's pro-French foreign policy would remain unchanged and that Mombo would supervise the government until the presidency was given to Aubame. The plotters were content to ensure security for civilians, urging them to remain calm and not hurt anyone. Most of them were junior officers, living in the army barracks. The senior officers did not intervene; instead, they stayed in their "pleasant" houses.
Aubame was unaware of the coup until the French ambassador to Gabon, Paul Cousseran, called him on the telephone roughly a half hour after sunrise. Cousseran, meanwhile, was awoken by the noisy streets and checked to see what was happening. Aubame replied that he was to find out why there was "no government", as Cousseran never directly mentioned a coup. However, about midway through the morning an automobile carrying the revolutionary committee arrived at Aubame's residence and drove him to the governmental offices, where he had been named president.
Second Lieutenant Ndo Edou gave instructions to transfer M'ba to Ndjolé
Ndjolé
Ndjolé is a town in Gabon, lying north east of Lambaréné on the River Ogooué, the N2 road and the Trans-Gabon Railway. It is known as a base for logging and as a transport hub. Ndjolé is the last city that can be reached by barge traffic traveling up the Ogooué River. Above Ndjolé there are...
, Aubame's electoral stronghold. However, due to heavy rain, the deposed president and his captors took shelter in an unknown village. The next morning they decided to take him over the easier road to Lambaréné
Lambaréné
Lambaréné is the capital of the political district Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. The city counts 24,000 inhabitants and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator....
. Several hours later, they returned to Libreville.
French intervention
French authorities first received information on the coup not from Cousseran but rather from Bongo, giving him some standing among them. President de Gaulle, upon advice from his chief adviser on African policy, Jacques FoccartJacques Foccart
Jacques Foccart was a chief adviser for the government of France on African policy as well as the co-founder of the Gaullist Service d'Action Civique in 1959 with Charles Pasqua, which specialized in covert operations in Africa.From 1960 to 1974, he was the President of France's chief of staff...
, decided that he would restore the legitimate government. This was in accordance with a 1960 treaty between Gabon and the French, which was ironically signed by Aubame in his stint as Foreign Minister. Foccart, on the other hand, had only decided to launch the countercoup to protect the interests of the French petroleum group Elf
Elf Aquitaine
Elf Aquitaine was a French oil company which merged with TotalFina to form TotalFinaElf. The new company changed its name to Total in 2003...
, which operated in Gabon and was led by a close friend of his. M'ba was also a close friend of his; David Yates reports that M'ba could call Foccart personally, and Foccart would meet with him "at a moment's notice". French commentators, however, claimed that if they did not intervene, they would be tempting other dissidents. France had refrained from intervening in recent coups in the French Congo
French Congo
The French Congo was a French colony which at one time comprised the present-day area of the Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and the Central African Republic...
, Dahomey
Dahomey
Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...
, and Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
, despite being opposed to all of them. However, the Gabon coup differed in that, they claimed, it lacked notable public support. Following the restoration of M'ba's government in Gabon, the French intervened in African coups roughly every other year. In 1995, the French Minister for Foreign Assistance Jacques Godfrain explained that Paris "will intervene each time an elected democratic power is overthrown by a coup d'état if a military cooperation agreement exists".
Shortly after de Gaulle and Foccart's meeting, French commanders Haulin and Royer were released at the request of the French Embassy. Intervention could not commence without a formal petition to the Head of State of Gabon. Since M'ba was held hostage, the French contacted the Vice President of Gabon, Paul-Marie Yembit
Paul-Marie Yembit
Paul-Marie Yembit was a vice president of Gabon under Léon M'ba.A member of the Bapounou people, he was born at Moussambou and educated in local Catholic schools, then at the public secondary school of Lambaréné. He was a businessman in Mouila from 1943 to 1952, then was elected to the Territorial...
, who had not been arrested. At the time, Yembit was in a car with U.S. ambassador Charles Darlington travelling to N'Dende. This was to officially open a school built by the Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
nearby, in Yembit's birthplace of Moussambou, and completing his electoral campaign. Therefore, they decided to compose a predated letter that Yembit would later sign, confirming their intervention. They sent this to him via a small airplane, since there were no road bridges in Gabon at the time and the only way to cross a river was on a ferry. Yembit did not come back to Libreville on the plane as would be expected, but rather at 8:00 WAT
West Africa Time
West Africa Time, or WAT, is a time zone used in west-central Africa . The zone is one hour ahead of UTC , which makes it the same as Central European Time...
on 18 February to read a statement over Radio Libreville that was likely prepared by French officials. Yembit, however, claimed that he called for French intervention while the insurgent troops held M'ba hostage; this version of the story was quickly disputed by several diplomats on the scene, as several French troops had arrived before this alleged incident.
Less than 24 hours after de Gaulle had been notified, French paratroopers stationed in Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
and Brazzaville
Brazzaville
-Transport:The city is home to Maya-Maya Airport and a railway station on the Congo-Ocean Railway. It is also an important river port, with ferries sailing to Kinshasa and to Bangui via Impfondo...
under General René Cogny
René Cogny
René Cogny was a French Général de division, World War II and French Resistance veteran and survivor of Buchenwald and Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camps. He was a commander of the French forces in Tonkin during the First Indochina War, and notably during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu...
and a General Kergaravat were notified that they were going to end the coup. This had come even before the provincial government was formed. Maurice Robert and Guy Ponsaille, who were among a group Foccart convened to discuss the French intervention, were part of the paratrooper unit. Receiving Foccart's orders to "normalize" the situation by 19 February or the next day at the latest, at 10:50 WAT
West Africa Time
West Africa Time, or WAT, is a time zone used in west-central Africa . The zone is one hour ahead of UTC , which makes it the same as Central European Time...
on 18 February, the first 50 troops landed at the Libreville International Airport
Libreville International Airport
Libreville Leon M'ba International Airport is an airportsituated in Libreville, Gabon. It is the main international airport in the country.Named after the first president of Gabon, Léon M'ba, it was the hub of former national airline Air Gabon until March 2006.-Airlines and destinations:-Cargo...
. The rebels closed the airport but failed to establish obstacles, allowing the French troops to land unharmed, albeit during a large storm. Throughout that day, more than 600 paratroopers arrived at the airport.
Sweeping through Libreville unopposed, the troops easily captured the provincial council, though they met resistance at the Baraka military base in Lambaréné when they attacked at daylight. Upon learning of the impending attack, Aubame called Cousseran and asked him what had been going on. Cousseran dodged answering the question and requested that Aubame release M'ba uninjured. After receiving the false assurance from the ambassador that the French government had no intention of restoring M'ba to power, Aubame sent out a military officer to the countryside to find the deposed president. M'ba was moved to a small village near the Albert Schweitzer Hospital
Albert Schweitzer Hospital
The Medical Research Unit of the Albert Schweitzer Hospital was established in Lambaréné, Gabon, to study major causes of disease burden in the local population...
. At dawn on 19 February, French Air Force
French Air Force
The French Air Force , literally Army of the Air) is the air force of the French Armed Forces. It was formed in 1909 as the Service Aéronautique, a service arm of the French Army, then was made an independent military arm in 1933...
planes strafed
Strafing
Strafing is the practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. This means, that although ground attack using automatic weapons fire is very often accompanied with bombing or rocket fire, the term "strafing" does not specifically include the...
the rebels at Baraka, while the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
attacked the insurgents with machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
fire and mortars
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
. The rebels at the military base promptly surrendered once their ammunition supply ran out, and their commander, Lieutenant Ndo Edou, was executed. Later, the French army managed to break through the gate to the village where M'ba was held and rescued the deposed president.
Before the end of the day, the French troops surrounded all of Libreville's public buildings. Shortly thereafter, Radio Libreville announced the surrender of the rebel forces. Kergaravat concluded his military operation on 20 February, saluting Cousseran and saying "Mission accomplie". Over its course, one French soldier was killed and 18 died on the Gabonese side. Unofficial sources said two French soldiers and 25 insurgents were killed, with more than 40 Gabonese and four French troops were wounded. The number of civilian casualties was unknown but numerous, as the straw roofs on their homes were not a good protector against aerial bullets.
Immediate aftermath and riots
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic , is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the north east, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about ,...
, Chad
Chad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
, Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
, Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, and Upper Volta
Republic of Upper Volta
The Republic of Upper Volta was established on December 11, 1958, as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before attaining autonomy it had been French Upper Volta and part of the French Union. On August 5, 1960 it attained full independence from France.Thomas Sankara came to power...
. In fact, France was barely criticised at all in Africa, other than a mild response by Dahomey and one by the Democratic Republic of Congo. The matter was not discussed at the next meeting of the Council of Ministers of the OAU, held on 24 February–29 February in Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
. The revolutionary movement in French Africa immediately retrogressed following the coup.
M'ba was returned to Libreville on 21 February. Shortly after his arrival, the 10:00 pm curfew that had been imposed by the French was lifted, and some stores were reopened. Squads of officials, known as "les gorilles", travelled through Libreville and arrested any suspected M'ba opposers. After his reinstatement, M'ba refused to believe that the coup was directed against his regime, instead considering it to be a conspiracy against the state. Nonetheless, following the coup M'ba dismissed every soldier in the army and started recruiting new men.
On 1 March, however, anti-government demonstrations began, with protesters shouting "Léon M'ba, président des Français!" ("Léon M'ba, President of the French!") and calling for the end of the "dictatorship". Originating in Libreville, these demonstrations spread to Port-Gentil
Port-Gentil
Port-Gentil or Mandji is the second-largest city of Gabon and a leading seaport. It is the center of Gabon's petroleum and timber industries. Although it lies inshore, the nearby mainland is a remote forest area and it is not connected by road to the rest of the nation...
and N'Dende and lasted into the summer. When 1,000 pro-government demonstrators responded by shouting "Long Live Léon M'ba" outside the presidential palace, they were attacked by dissidents. Among the pro-government demonstrators were an opposition member, Martine Oyane, who had been forcefully undressed following her arrest, beaten by the police, paraded naked throughout Libreville, and forced to shout "Long Live Léon M'ba". At the height of these demonstrations, 3,000 to 4,000 Gabonese protested throughout central Libreville. Protesters also took their anger out against the French in Gabon, stoning more than 30 cars belonging to Frenchmen and chanting "Go home, go home!" This rioting was so intense that M'ba announced that whoever went to work would not be paid. The French reacted to these incidents by swinging rifle butts and throwing grenades. The crowds responded by throwing bottles and stones, though they were put down soon after. There were no reports of injured protesters, despite orders to the Gabonese police that they fire at protesters on sight.
Allegations of U.S. involvement
Some Gabonese mistakenly identified the United States as a co-conspirator in the coup. TimeTime (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
asserted that French officials helped spread the rumor of American involvement. This reached a point which some automobile stations refused to help Darlington and other Americans. After William F. Courtney, deputy chief of the United States Embassy, received a call from a man identifying himself as DuPont and threatening an imminent attack, a hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
exploded outside the embassy. The explosion, which occurred at a time when the building was closed and locked on 3 March, resulted in damage to the embassy sign and the cracking of two windows.
Following the bombing, French Gabonese made more threatening phone calls to the embassy. A second bomb exploded at the embassy two nights later, causing no damage. A drive-by shooting, during which at least five rounds of buckshot were fired from a 12-gauge automatic shotgun, riddled the second story windows with over 30 holes. It is likely that its perpetrators were French, as Gabonese have no access to grenades. Following the second bombing a car containing white men was noticed, driving through otherwise empty Shore Boulevard. At the time, practically the only white men in Gabon were French.
Two Gabonese policemen were assigned to protect the building, and M'ba ordered an investigation into the bombings. He denounced the allegations against Americans, saying:
Much of these attacks against Americans were against Darlington personally. His son Christopher was hit by a grenade in July, though it did not detonate. The ambassador resigned his post on 26 July. It was not until 14 August 1965 that David M. Bane replaced him.
1964 elections
Despite these incidents, legislative elections planned before the coup were held in April 1964. They were originally to be held on 23 February, though he dissolved the National Assembly and rescheduled them for 12 April. Upon insistence of the French, M'ba allowed opposition candidates to run, which it claimed was the main reason for starting the coup in the first place. However, their leaders were barred from participating because of their involvement in the coup, and known anti-Mba organizers were deported to remote parts of the country. In addition, M'ba was known to have bribed voters with banknotes.France closely followed the election, deporting a Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
teacher. The UDSG disappeared from the political scene, and M'ba's opposition was composed of parties that lacked national focus and maintained only regional or pro-democracy platforms. Nevertheless, the opposition garnered 46% of the vote and 16 of 47 seats in the assembly, while the BDG received 54% of the vote and 31 seats. The opposition disputed this, and held strikes across the country, though these did not have a sizable impact on business.
Lambaréné trial and rest of M'ba's term
Aubame and Gondjout fled Libreville, but were captured sometime before 20 February. Most of the other rebels took refuge at the U.S. Embassy, though they were soon discovered and brought to jail. That August, a trial of the military rebels and provisional government was opened in LambarénéLambaréné
Lambaréné is the capital of the political district Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. The city counts 24,000 inhabitants and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator....
. A "state of precations" was imposed, which decreed that local government kept surveillance on suspected troublemakers and, if necessary, order curfew, while special permits were required to travel through the town. The trial was held in a school building overlooking the Ogooue River
Ogooué River
The Ogooué , some 1,200 km long, is the principal river of Gabon in west central Africa. Its watershed drains nearly the entire country of Gabon, with some tributaries reaching into the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea....
, which was near Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
's hospital
Albert Schweitzer Hospital
The Medical Research Unit of the Albert Schweitzer Hospital was established in Lambaréné, Gabon, to study major causes of disease burden in the local population...
. Space at the hearing was limited, so members of the public were disallowed from attending. Permits were required to attend the trial, and family members were restricted to one permit each. Press coverage was limited, and journalists were allowed only if they represented a high-profile news agency. In addition, there were restrictions on the defence of the accused.
The prosecution called 64 separate witnesses. Essone, Mbene, and Aubame claimed that their involvement in the coup was due to a lack of development in the Gabonese army. Judge Leon Auge, the judge in the case, said that if "that is the only reason for your coup d'état, you deserve a severe penalty." Essone said that almost all Gabonese military officers knew of an imminent coup beforehand, while Aubame affirmed his position that he did not participate in its planning. According to him, he formed the provisional government in a constitutional manner, and at the request of some "putschists". He reasoned that the French intervention was effectively an illegal act of interference, an assertion which Gondjout and the former education minister, Jean Mare Ekoh, shared. Ekoh had served as Foreign Minister during the coup. The Gabonese actor said that it should be the French troops being tried, not he and his comrades: "If we'd been able to put up a few more Gabonese soldiers against the French, we'd have won — and we shouldn't be here today."
On 9 September, without consulting M'ba, Leon Auge handed down a verdict which acquitted both Ekoh and Gondjout; although the charges carried the death sentence as a maximum. Aubame was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor and 10 years of exile on a remote island off Settecama, 100 miles (161 km) down the coast of Gabon, as were most criminals of the case. He was not particularly popular during his political career, though according to Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, his arrest "ballooned him to heroic proportions in the eyes of the aroused public". While serving his 10 years of labor, he was beaten regularly by prison guards. Besides Aubame, M'ba imprisoned more than 150 of his opponents, most of whom were sentenced to 20 years of hard labor. These included the two officers and Aubame's nephew, Pierre Eyeguet, a former ambassador to the United Kingdom. The actor and the doctor were given 10 years of imprisonment each. While appealing for peace on 18 February, he pledged "no pardon or pity" to his enemies, but rather "total punishment".
Two years after the coup there was still open repression of dissent in Gabon. Following these events M'ba became increasingly reclusive, staying in his presidential palace protected by French troops known as the "Clan des Gabonais". Not even Yembit was close to him, but Foccart's friends Ponsaille and Robert "were never far" from M'ba, according to Pean, and provided the aging president with counseling and advice. M'ba was, however, still convinced of his popularity. Three years later, M'ba was diagnosed with cancer, and he died on 28 November 1967. After M'ba's death, French-supported Bongo succeeded him as president, and released Aubame in 1972.