France-Albert René
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| Order: |
2nd Prime Minister of Seychelles; |
| Term of Office |
(Prime Minister): |
| Followed: | James Mancham |
| Succeeded by: | James Michel |
| Date of Birth | November 16, 1935 |
| Place of Birth: | Seychelles |
| Wife: |
Karen Handley (1950s); |
| Occupation: | lawyer |
| Political Party: | SPUP (1964); SPPF (1978) |
France-Albert René (born November 16, 1935) was the long-time socialist President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004. He is known by government officials and party members as "the Boss." His name is often given as simply Albert René or F.A. René; he is also nicknamed Ti France.
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[edit] Early life
He attended Saint Mary's College and King's College London in the United Kingdom before he served as a lawyer in Seychelles from 1957 to 1961. While abroad, he became heavily involved in the politics of the Labour Party, at the time led by Clement Attlee and later Hugh Gaitskell. These experiences led him to adopt a moderate socialist ideology that encouraged an economic statist drift and strong ties with conservative forces such as the Roman Catholic Church (René's initial career goal was to join the priesthood), though René later denounced local church leaders who criticized his policies. He formed the Seychelles People's United Party (the forerunner to today's Seychelles People's Progressive Front) in 1964.
In 1976, he became the country's prime minister under President James Mancham following assembly elections which the SPUP came in second place. On June 5, 1977, partisan supporters of René installed him as president in a coup d'état. After coming to power, René declared that he was not a Soviet-style Communist, but rather an "Indian Ocean socialist." Early on he opposed the Anglo-American military installation on the nearby island of Diego Garcia because of the possible storage of nuclear weapons and alleged detainment of terrorist suspects at that location.
[edit] Single-party state and coups d'état
René's party was the sole legal political party in the country from 1979 to 1993. He won presidential elections in 1979, 1984, 1989, 1993, 1998 and 2001. He most recently defeated the candidate of the Seychelles National Party, Wavel Ramkalawan.
In 1979, a planned invasion of Seychelles by supporters of Mancham with the assistance of American diplomatic staff in Kenya and Seychelles was discovered before it could be carried out. An official investigation also implicated France with involvement in the coup. [1]
On November 25, 1981, Seychellois security forces put down a coup attempt sponsored by South Africa and remnants of Ian Smith's former Rhodesian regime. Well-known mercenary "Mad Mike" Hoare and 43 others posed as members of the "Ancient Order of Frothblowers", a charitable beer-drinking fraternity that had in fact died out after the Second World War, visiting the islands as tourists. Shortly after leaving their plane, an airport security guard spotted a Kalashnikov assault rifle in their luggage; the discovery launched a gun battle in which hostages were taken. Most of the mercenaries escaped after hijacking another plane sitting on the runway. An independent inquiry by the United Nations found that South African intelligence was indeed behind the coup; Hoare described the reaction he received from a CIA agent in Pretoria as "extremely timid" and it is not believed that the United States played a significant direct role in the incident, though there was cooperation at the time between the CIA and the South African government on other issues. [2] Three million dollars were paid to President René and his government by South Africa for the return of the remaining mercenaries detained in Seychelles. The 1981 attempt was the second major threat to his government at that point in time, and there were two other unsuccessful coup attempts in 1986 and 1987.
[edit] Legacy
René led his country to the point of being the most developed country in Africa, as measured by the Human Development Index, and helped build one of the continent's highest gross domestic products per capita. His supporters believe that he had solid social priorities, including his government's extensive funding of education, health care and the environment. Critical indicators such as infant mortality, literacy rate, and economic well-being are among the best in the continent. During his rule, the Seychelles avoided the volatile political climate and underdevelopment in neighboring island countries such as the Comoros and Madagascar. His critics believe that he and his party are responsible for systematic torture and other human rights abuses involving critics of the government, allegedly including the death of a prominent dissident in London, Gérard Hoarau. After the 1977 coup, a significant portion of the population (including the deposed President Mancham) fled to the UK and South Africa due to political persecution and fear of the new government's alignment with the Soviet Union, Tanzania and North Korea. René also faced international pressure regarding his government's former requirement that all applicants to the country's secondary education system graduate a compulsory National Youth Service which included traditional curricula, political education and, according to critics, ideological indoctrination and paramilitary training. This requirement was disbanded after the transition to multiparty rule and the organization was eventually abolished entirely. According to various reports, cronyism, corruption and impunity for law-breaking were problems during René's almost three decades of rule.
On February 24, 2004, René announced that he would be stepping down in favour of Vice President James Michel. He did so on April 14, 2004. For the time being, he continues as leader of the People's Progressive Front. He has purchased a ranch in Australia and it appears that he will move there for his retirement with his Iranian-born third wife.
[edit] References
- ^ Blum, William. Killing Hope: U.S. Military and C.I.A. Interventions since World War II. Monroe, ME: Common Courage Press, 2004. p. 268. ISBN 1-56751-252-6
- ^ Ibid., p. 268-69.
[edit] External links
- Seychelles People's Progressive Front
- Website of The People newspaper and SPPF Museum (pro-René; he formerly edited the publication)
| Preceded by: James Mancham |
Prime Minister of Seychelles | Succeeded by: post abolished |
| Preceded by: James Mancham |
President of Seychelles | Succeeded by: James Michel |
