James Michel
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| James Michel | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office August 16, 2004 |
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| Preceded by | France-Albert René |
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| Succeeded by | Incumbent |
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| Born | August 18, 1944 Birthplace? |
| Political party | Seychelles People's Progressive Front |
Colonel (ret.) James Alix Michel (born August 18, 1944) has been the president of the Seychelles since April 14, 2004. He had been vice-president to his predecessor, France-Albert René, since 1996. He began as a teacher, but became involved in the archipelago's booming tourism industry and joined Mr. René's political party before independence in 1976.
Mr. Michel followed President René through different political posts during all periods of the Seychelles' history as an independent entity. He was in the party's central committee when Mr. René staged a coup against the country's first President, James Mancham, only one year after independence. During the 1977-1993 one-party socialist dictatorship, Mr. Michel held key ruling party and ministerial portfolios.
During the rule of President René, Mr. Michel was the head of the Seychellois economy on several occasions. In these 27 years, the Seychelles has experienced an economic boom based on its tourism and fishery sectors. This, according to the opposition[citation needed], has been jeopardised during the last few years due to an accumulated budget deficit.
The new Seychellois leader also played a role in the country's slow democratisation process, which started with multi-party elections in 1993. Seychelles however still suffers from limited freedom and transparency of the press and, according to the opposition, rigged elections. According to official results[citation needed], President René and his Seychelles People's Progressive Front party only narrowly won presidential and legislative elections in 2001 and 2002 respectively.
Seychelles' opposition leader, Wavel Ramkalawan, has expressed increased concern over the negative trends in the national economy and demanded more dialogue with the ruling party. The leader of the centrist Seychelles National Party furthermore said that he would be cooperating with President Michel.
Michel won the presidential election of July 28–30, 2006, taking 53.7% of the vote. He was sworn in for his new term on August 1. [1]
| Preceded by: France-Albert René |
President of Seychelles April 16, 2004 – present |
Incumbent |
