Henri Konan Bédié
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Aimé Henri Konan Bédié (born May 5, 1934) was President of Côte d'Ivoire from 1993 to 1999 and is the President of the Democratic Party of Côte d'Ivoire (PDCI).[1]
Bédié was born in Dadiékro in Daoukro Department. After studying in France,[1][2] he became Côte d'Ivoire's first ambassador to the United States and Canada following independence in 1960,[1] and from 1966 to 1977 he served in the government as Minister of Economy and Finance.[1][2] While serving as Finance Minister, Bédié became the first Chairman of the IMF and World Bank's joint Development Committee,[1][3] serving from 1974 to 1976.[1] He was Special Advisor to the World Bank Group's International Finance Corporation[1][2] from 1978 to 1980.[2] In December 1980, Bédié was elected President of the National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire, having been elected as a deputy in the National Assembly; he was re-elected as National Assembly President in 1985 and 1990.[2]
As National Assembly President, Bédié succeeded long-time president Félix Houphouët-Boigny upon the latter's death in December 1993. He announced that he was assuming the presidency on state television a few hours after Houphouët-Boigny's death on December 7. A brief power struggle between Bédié and Prime Minister Alassane Ouattara ensued; Bédié was successful and Ouattara resigned as Prime Minister on December 9.[4] Bédié was subsequently elected as President of the PDCI in April 1994.[5]
As President, Bédié encouraged national stability but was accused of political repression and stratospheric levels of corruption.[citation needed] In the October 1995 presidential election, Ouattara was barred from participating through a revision to the electoral code that was widely believed to have been done specifically to prevent his candidacy, and the two main opposition parties, the Rally of the Republicans (RDR) and the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), decided to boycott the election. Bédié won the election with 96% of the vote.[5]
Bédié was overthrown in a military coup on December 24, 1999, after he rejected the demands of soldiers who rebelled on December 23; one of these demands was for the release of members of the RDR.[6] Retired general Robert Guéï became president. Bédié fled to a French military base before leaving Côte d'Ivoire by helicopter on December 26 and going to Togo, along with family members.[6][7] Upon his arrival at the airport in Lomé, he was greeted by Togolese President Gnassingbe Eyadema.[7][8]
On September 11, 2005, Bédié returned to Côte d'Ivoire after spending a year in exile in France. Upon his arrival, he said that President Laurent Gbagbo should not remain in office after the end of his term in October and that a transitional government should be installed.[9]
In an interview with Agence France Presse on May 20, 2007, he said that he would be the PDCI candidate in the next presidential election, expected to be held in early 2008.[10]
Bédié addressed a rally in Dabou on September 22, 2007, in which he declared the need for a "shock treatment" to return the country to normal,[11][12] promised to restore the economy,[12] and strongly criticized Gbagbo.[13]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g Biography at PDCI website (French).
- ^ a b c d e "Citation Award of the World Health Organization Health-for-All Gold Medal to His Excellency Mr Henri Konan Bédié President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire", World Health Organization, May 15, 1998.
- ^ "Pages from World Bank History: The Development Committee, 1974–1984", World Bank website, April 11, 2003.
- ^ "Parliament Leader Prevails In Ivory Coast", Associated Press (Tulsa World), December 10, 1993.
- ^ a b Robert J. Mundt, "Côte d'Ivoire: Continuity and Change in a Semi-Democracy", Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. Clark and Gardinier, page 194–197.
- ^ a b "COTE D'IVOIRE: Ousted president arrives in Togo", IRIN, December 26, 1999.
- ^ a b "Ousted leader, family, aides flee to Togo", AFP (The Washington Times), December 27, 1999.
- ^ Donald G. McNeil, Jr., "Ousted Leader Of Ivory Coast Flees to Togo", The New York Times, December 27, 1999.
- ^ "COTE D'IVOIRE: Former president calls for Gbagbo to hand over to a transitional government", IRIN, September 12, 2005.
- ^ "Côte d'Ivoire: Bédié "impatient" d'aller à l'élection présidentielle", AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 20, 2007 (French).
- ^ "Côte d'Ivoire: Bédié veut un "traitement de choc" pour le retour de la paix", AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), September 22, 2007 (French).
- ^ a b Loucoumane Coulibaly, "Opposition leader unveils recovery plan", Reuters (IOL), September 24, 2007.
- ^ "Ex-Ivory Coast head in rare rally", BBC News, September 23, 2007.
[edit] See also
| Preceded by Félix Houphouët-Boigny |
President of Côte d'Ivoire 1993-1999 |
Succeeded by Robert Guéï |
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