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81-590: Ange-Félix Patassé came to power in October 1993 following national elections ; he was the first democratically elected president of the Central African Republic. He inherited a nearly bankrupt government and there was civil unrest by unpaid civil servants. Military officers were also unpaid, and some of them accused him of unequal treatment of officers from different ethnic groups. The disgruntled military officers attempted three coups in 1996. There

162-675: A referendum on 5 December 2004. After seizing power, Bozizé initially said he would not run in a planned future presidential election, but after the successful constitutional referendum, he announced his intention to stand as a candidate on 11 December: After Bozizé seized power, the Central African Republic Bush War began with the rebellion by the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR), led by Michel Djotodia . This quickly escalated into major fighting during 2004. The UFDR rebel forces consisted of five allies,

243-449: A bloodless coup and took power, after which he forbade political activity in the country. Patassé felt obliged to leave the Central African Republic to live in exile once again, but on 27 February 1982, Patassé returned to the Central African Republic and participated in an unsuccessful coup d'état attempt against General Kolingba with the help of a few military officers such as General François Bozizé. Four days later, having failed to gain

324-575: A brotherly atmosphere". He also reiterated his intention to stand as a presidential candidate in 2010. Patassé placed second in the January 2011 presidential election, far behind Bozizé, although ill-health had impeded his campaigning. He suffered from diabetes and was prevented from leaving the country for treatment in Equatorial Guinea in March 2011. He was eventually allowed to travel, but

405-450: A candidate. Although Ziguélé had taken over the MPLC, Patassé declared that he would convene a party congress upon his return. He eventually returned to Bangui on 30 October 2009, amidst a "discreet atmosphere". He subsequently met with Bozizé on November 9. Following the meeting, Patassé thanked Bozizé in a statement and said that they had discussed the Central African Republic's problems "in

486-400: A commission to revise the constitution in order to promote pluralism. As a result, the donor community severely restricted aid flows pending movement towards democracy putting the country into a vicious cycle in which it could not obtain the resources to pay for an election which would legitimize it sufficiently to obtain a flow of aid. When he was pressured by the international community, via

567-405: A convert to Islam for a few months, and changed his name to Mustafa Patassé. After Bokassa became Emperor Bokassa I, Patassé was named Prime Minister and Head of the first Imperial Government. He remained in this position for 2 1/2 years, when a public announcement was made that Patassé had stepped down from office due to health problems. Patassé then left for France, where he remained in exile until

648-607: A country with a budget of only 90–100 billion francs. He was also accused of war crimes in connection with the violence that followed a failed 2002 coup attempt , in which rebels from the northern Democratic Republic of the Congo came to Patassé's assistance, but were accused of committing many atrocities in the process. Patassé, the Congolese rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba and three others were charged in September 2004. However,

729-483: A coup. There were failed coup attempts against him in 2001 and 2002, which he suspected Andre Kolingba and/or General François Bozizé were involved in, but when Patassé attempted to have Bozizé arrested, the general left the country for Chad with military forces which were loyal to him. Patassé left the country for a conference in Niger in 2003, and in his absence Bozizé seized Bangui on March 15. Although this takeover

810-410: A failed 1982 coup attempt against President André Kolingba and subsequently fled the country. Years later, he served as Army Chief of Staff under President Ange-Félix Patassé , but began a rebellion against Patassé in 2001. Bozizé's forces captured the capital, Bangui , in March 2003, while Patassé was outside the country, and Bozizé took power, ushering in a transitional period of government. He won

891-493: A greater extent than before. In the presidential election of September 1999, Patassé won easily, defeating former presidents Kolingba and Dacko, winning in the first round with about 51.6% of the vote. Opposition leaders accused the elections of being rigged. During his second term, Patassé, whose rule had always been erratic and arbitrary, became increasingly unpopular. In 2000, he may have had his former prime-minister Jean-Luc Mandaba and his son poisoned on suspicion of planning

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972-493: A group of locally represented international donors called GIBAFOR (France, USA, Germany, Japan, EU, World Bank and UN), including a very vocal and eloquent US ambassador to the Central African Republic, Daniel H. Simpson , to hold fair elections. They were assisted by the UN Electoral Assistance Unit and monitored by international observers in 1992 but a lot of the resources came from France. Kolingba had

1053-430: A new prime minister from the opposition party by 18 January 2013. On 13 January, Bozizé signed a decree that removed Prime Minister Touadéra from power, as part of the agreement with the rebel coalition. On 17 January, Nicolas Tiangaye was appointed prime minister. By 22 March, however, the rebels had renewed their advance, accusing Bozizé of failing to honor the January ceasefire agreement. They took towns throughout

1134-884: A new government headed by Faustin-Archange Touadéra , an academic figure who was politically unknown. In that government he kept the defense portfolio, while also appointing his son Francis Bozizé to work under him as Minister-Delegate. Bozizé's sister, Yvonne M'Boïssona , who had been Minister of Tourism, was reappointed to the government as Minister of Water, Forests, Hunting, Fishing, and the Environment. His nephew, Sylvain Ndoutingai , served as Minister of State of Mines, Energy, and Water Resources. In February 2010, Kolingba died in France. In early March, Bozizé presided over his burial ceremony in Bangui. The same week, Bozizé signed

1215-601: A presidential decree setting the date for the next presidential election which was to be held on 25 April 2010. The elections were first postponed to 16 May, and then indefinitely. The parliament was asked to pass a change to the constitution allowing the President to continue its mandate until elections could be organized. Some sources saw the delay in elections as a constitutional coup, and did not expect elections to take place anytime soon. However, elections were held in January and March 2011. Bozizé and his party both won in

1296-515: A route to attack Chad . Bozizé’s response was that he would close the border between Sudan and Central African Republic. On 10 December 2012, the Séléka CPSK-CPJP-UFDR ( Séléka means coalition ) seized the towns of N'Délé , Sam Ouandja and Ouadda . Rebels fought with government and allied CPJP troops for over an hour before securing the town of N'Délé. On 27 December, Bozizé requested international assistance to help with

1377-511: A second set of elections was held and on the second round on 19 September 1993, he came in first with 37 percent of the vote—well ahead of his nearest competitors, Kolingba, David Dacko and Abel Goumba . He defeated Goumba in the runoff. Largely thanks to the foreign pressure notably from the USA and technical support from the UN, for the first time the elections were fair and democratic. Patassé thus became

1458-571: A truce between the government and rebel forces. Following this mediation process, the Bangui Agreements were signed in January 1997 by the government, opposition forces and religious groups. A peacekeeping force called Mission Interafricaine de Surveillance des Accords de Bangui (MISAB) was established to supervise the accord. It consisted of around 800 troops from Burkina Faso, Chad, Gabon, Mali, Senegal and Togo, besides logistic and financial support from France. The efforts were welcomed by

1539-425: A two term limit. That same month on 30 December 2004, Bozizé was one of five candidates approved to run in the presidential election scheduled for early 2005. On 4 January 2005, Bozizé announced that three initially excluded candidates would also be allowed to run, although former president Patassé was not included in either group. In late January, it was announced that more candidates would be permitted to run in

1620-557: A unity government and local elections in 2009 and parliamentary and presidential elections in 2010. During this war many were killed,houses burnt, villages destroyed and many others such as no drinking water. Around 10,000 people were displaced because of the civil unrest. In every case of rebellion, there are abuses, I cannot deny that, there are abuses.– François Bozizé Even though the Central African Republic has many minerals and abundance of arable land many of

1701-454: Is a Central African politician who was President of the Central African Republic from 2003 to 2013. He was the only Central African president born in modern-day Gabon . Bozizé rose to become a high-ranking army officer in the 1970s, under the rule of Jean-Bédel Bokassa . After Bokassa was ousted, Bozizé served in the government as Minister of Defense from 1979 to 1981 and as Minister of Information from 1981 to 1982. He participated in

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1782-559: The Democratic Republic of the Congo after the rebel forces attacked Bangui and took control of the presidential palace. There, he was housed by Paul Biya , president of Cameroon. On 29 May 2013, an international arrest warrant was issued against Bozizé by the Central African Republic. Bozizé was born in the present-day nation of Gabon , a member of the Gbaya people , and attended a military officers' training college in

1863-758: The Groupe d'action patriotique pour la liberation de Centrafrique (GAPLC), the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace (CPJP), the People's Army for the Restoration of Democracy (APRD), the Movement of Central African Liberators for Justice (MLCJ), and the Front démocratique Centrafricain (FDC). In December 2004, a constitution was approved in a referendum which would allow a semi presidential system and

1944-714: The March–May 2005 presidential election in a second round of voting, and was re-elected in the January 2011 presidential election , winning the vote in the first round. In December 2012, the CAR was plunged into an uprising by rebel forces who condemned the Bozizé government for not honoring peace agreements after the Central African Republic Bush War in 2007. On 24 March 2013, Bozizé fled to Cameroon via

2025-533: The Republic of Chad , but failed and was arrested again. He was later released due to alleged health problems. Patassé returned to the CAR to present himself as a candidate for the presidential election of 15 March 1981 , after which it was announced that Patassé gained 38% of the votes and thus came in second, after President Dacko. Patassé denounced the election results as rigged. Several months later, on 1 September 1981, General André Kolingba overthrew Dacko in

2106-719: The Sara-Kaba ethnic group which predominates in the region around Paoua. Patassé's father, Paul Ngakoutou, who had served in the Free French military forces during the Second World War and afterwards worked for the colonial administration in the Province of Ouham-Pendé, was a member of the Sara-kaba people and was raised in a small village to the northeast of Boguila . Patassé's mother, Véronique Goumba, belonged to

2187-553: The United Nations Electoral Assistance Unit. He was chosen a second time in a fair election (1999) as well. However, during his first term in office (1993–1999), three military mutinies in 1996–1997 led to increasing conflict between so-called "northerners" (like Patassé) and "southerners" (like his predecessor President André Kolingba ). Expatriate mediators and peacekeeping troops were brought in to negotiate peace accords between Patassé and

2268-872: The United Nations Security Council with Resolution 1125 in August 1997, which authorised the presence of the force for a period of three months. French troops temporarily supported the peacekeeping force after escalation of violence in June 1997. They however withdrew from the country in October 1997, closing their long standing military base in Bouar as well. Security Council Resolution 1136 , adopted in November 1997, authorised MISAB for another three months. The French troop withdrawal and their plans for stopping logistic support by April 1998 prompted

2349-514: The "good morality" requirement for candidates because of an international warrant and United Nations sanctions against him for alleged assassinations, torture and other crimes. The government then accused Bozizé of plotting a coup. On 22 September 2023, Bozizé, who fled to Chad before moving to Guinea-Bissau, was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment with hard labor by the Bangui Court of Appeal for unspecified crimes. On 30 April 2024,

2430-539: The 1992 election sabotaged as he discovered he was not expected to win the vote and so declared the election invalid getting the Constitutional Council cancel it. Under continued pressure from the donor group the election was rescheduled for September 1993. In the 1993 election, Bozizé ran for the presidency as an independent , receiving 12,159 votes, 1.5% of the total votes cast. Patassé, Abel Goumba and Kolingba received 37.32%, 21.68% and 12.10% of

2511-399: The 2003 coup; these observers said that because Bozize had been unable to pay the ex-combatants. Between 2006 and 2007 President Francois Bozize was holding a national dialogue with rebel groups and political foes to try to end the fighting. He has signed peace pacts with two rebel groups but instability was rising. Further negotiations resulted in an agreement in 2008 for reconciliation,

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2592-563: The Armed Forces Chief of Staff. Bozizé showed no activity against Patassé and frequently crushed revolts against the president. On 28 May 2001, a coup was attempted against Patassé and defeated with the help of Libyan troops and Congolese rebels of the Movement for the Liberation of Congo . Afterwards, Bozizé's loyalty was questioned, and in late October 2001 he was dismissed as Army Chief of Staff. Fighting erupted when

2673-444: The Central African Republic, including Damara and Bossangoa . They advanced to within 22 kilometers of Bangui, but were halted with an aerial assault from an attack helicopter . However, Nelson N'Djadder, presumed spokesman for the rebels, claimed that they shot down the helicopter. On 24 March, rebel forces heavily attacked Bangui and took control of major structures, including the presidential palace. Bozizé's family fled across

2754-642: The Central African province of Bouar . He became a second lieutenant in 1969 and a captain in 1975. He was appointed Brigadier General by the Emperor of Central Africa Bokassa I ( Jean-Bédel Bokassa ) in 1978, after he beat a French noncommissioned officer who had been disrespectful to the Emperor. With General Josyhat Mayomokala, Bozizé ordered military personnel to attack young demonstrators who were asking for their parents' arrears . After Bokassa

2835-483: The Constitutional Court announced the list of approved presidential candidacies. Bozizé, who was still in exile, was barred from standing. Officially, he was excluded on the grounds that he was not registered on the voter list and because he had agreed not to run again as part of the peace agreement in January 2013. Gunfire was subsequently reported in parts of Bangui, as his supporters reacted angrily to

2916-761: The Council for the Central African Revolution (in imitation of the Libyan Revolutionary Command Council ), Patassé was named a member of the Council of the Revolution with the rank of Prime Minister in charge of Posts and Communications, Tourism, Water, Forests, Hunting and Fishing, as well as Custodian of the Seats of State (4 September 1976 – 14 December 1976). During this period Patassé followed Bokassa in becoming

2997-462: The French, but his obvious dependency on the French, against whom he had regularly railed, reduced his standing further. His subsequent use of Libyan troops as a body guard did nothing to help his reputation, either locally or with the donor community and the USA even closed their embassy temporarily. The last and most serious mutiny continued until early 1997, when a semblance of order was restored after

3078-890: The Kare ethnic group of northwestern Ubangi-Shari. As Patassé spent much of his youth in Paoua he was associated with the Ouham-Pendé province and many of his most loyal political supporters were ethnic Kaba. After attending school in Ubangi-Shari, Patassé studied in an agricultural institute in Puy-de-Dôme , France, where he received a Technical Baccalaureate which allowed him to enroll in the Superior Academy of Tropical Agriculture in Nogent-sur-Marne , and then in

3159-403: The Kare people of his mother. Most of his supporters lived in the most populous northwestern savanna regions of the CAR, and thus came to be called "northerners", whereas all previous presidents were from either the forest or Ubangi river regions in the south, and so their supporters came to be called "southerners". As a populist, Patassé promoted himself as a candidate who represented a majority of

3240-505: The March 13 election except for Patassé, on the grounds that he was the subject of judicial proceedings. The MLPC instead backed his last prime minister, Martin Ziguélé , for president. Patassé was accused of stealing 70 billion Central African francs from the country's treasury. He denied this and in an interview with Agence France-Presse on 21 December 2004, he stated that he had no idea where he could have found so much money to steal in

3321-549: The Ministry of Agriculture in July 1963, under President David Dacko . In December 1965, Dacko appointed him Director of Agriculture and Minister of Development. In 1966, Jean-Bédel Bokassa took power in a coup d'état. Patassé was the "cousin" of President Bokassa's principal wife, Catherine Denguiadé , and gained the confidence of the new president, serving in almost all the governments formed by Bokassa. After Bokassa's creation of

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3402-690: The Movement for the Liberation of the Central African People (MLPC). The donor community, with the fall of the Soviet Union, saw no need to prop up the Kolingba regime and so had pressed for change helping to organize elections with some help from the UN Electoral Assistance Unit and with logistical support from the French army. After the Kolingba regime sabotaged a first set of elections in 1992, which Patassé would have probably won,

3483-776: The National Agronomical Institute in Paris. Specializing in zootechnology, he received a diploma from the Center for the Artificial Insemination of Domestic Animals in Rambouillet , France. He finished his studies in Paris in 1959, a year before the independence of the Central African Republic. Patassé joined the Central African civil service in 1959, shortly before independence. He became an agricultural engineer and agricultural inspector in

3564-498: The President seize power in 2003. Prior to the killings, the Chadian combatants had staged violent demonstrations, looted approximately 75 homes in a Bangui suburb, and demanded payment from President Bozize for their support during the rebellion that allowed him to depose former President Patasse . During the year, the President reportedly paid each Liberator $ 1,000 (504,000 CFA francs) before they ostensibly returned to Chad. During

3645-686: The Security Council to adopt the Security Council Resolution 1159 in March 1998 which agreed to establish the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic by 15 April 1998 to take over from MISAB. The peacekeeping force, which had a strength of 1350, was assembled by 15 April 1998 and comprised soldiers from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, France, Gabon, Mali, Portugal, Senegal, Togo and Tunisia. In addition to

3726-494: The UFDR, its recognition as a political party, and the integration of its fighters into the army. Further negotiations resulted in an agreement in 2008 for reconciliation, a unity government, and local elections in 2009 and parliamentary and presidential elections in 2010. The new unity government that resulted was formed in January 2009. Facing a general strike over wage arrears for civil servants in January 2008, Bozizé appointed

3807-502: The UN announced that a unit of 60 Tanzanian UN peacekeepers is to be sent home after eleven members of the unit were accused of sexual abuse and exploitation. Some of the victims are believed to have been minors at the time the abuse occurred. Since 2013, more than 100 accusations of sexual abuse against women and children perpetrated by peacekeepers in the Central African Republic have been voiced. Ange-F%C3%A9lix Patass%C3%A9 Ange-Félix Patassé (25 January 1937 – 5 April 2011)

3888-456: The age of 56. He then married a Togolese woman, Angèle Patassé , who became first lady during his presidency. The couple had three children. Ange-Félix and Angèle Patassé lived in exile in at a villa in Lomé , Togo, beginning in 2003. Angèle Patassé died in Lomé on 3 December 2007 at the age of 52. Fran%C3%A7ois Boziz%C3%A9 François Bozizé Yangouvonda (born 14 October 1946)

3969-520: The airport. Patassé took refuge in Cameroon and then Togo the next year. On 23 March, Bozizé appointed Abel Goumba as prime minister. In December, he made Goumba Vice-President and appointed Célestin Gaombalet in his place as prime minister. Bozizé suspended the country's 1995 constitution after seizing power, and a new constitution, reportedly similar to the old one, was approved by voters in

4050-582: The change of power on Radio Bangui . He then obtained refuge in France. Bozizé was arrested in Cotonou , Benin in July 1989, and imprisoned and tortured. He was put on trial by Kolingba on charges of helping the coup d'état in May but was acquitted on 24 September 1991 and released from prison on 1 December. He then sought refuge in France , where he remained for nearly two years. Under pressure to democratize

4131-415: The economy appeared to improve a little as the flow of donor money started up again following the elections and the apparent legitimacy they brought. There were three consecutive mutinies in 1996–1997, during which destruction of buildings and property had an adverse impact on the economy. The first mutiny began in May 1996. Patassé's government successfully regained control with the help of François Bozizé and

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4212-480: The election, bringing the total to 11 and leaving only Patassé barred. The elections were also delayed by one month from the previously scheduled date of 13 February to 13 March. Bozizé placed first in the 13 March election, taking just under 43% of the vote according to official results. He faced Patassé's last prime minister, Martin Ziguélé , in a second round of voting; this was held on 8 May and according to official results announced on 24 May, he won with 64.6% of

4293-551: The elections. After Francois Bozizé took power in March of 2003 a rebellion broke out. Soon the rebellion would turn into a civil war and the rebels now called Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) led by Michel Djotodia who would take power in a coup d’etat in 2013. But before the start of the bush war in 2004 Central African Republic was already become unstable. On 17 April 2004, security forces reportedly killed eight "Liberators," Chadian combatants who had helped

4374-511: The end of the transitional period, he retained the defense portfolio when he appointed a new government under Doté in June 2005, and he also kept it in a September 2006 cabinet reshuffle. In early 2006, Bozizé's government appeared stable. However, Patassé, who was living in exile in Togo, could not be ruled out as a leader of a future uprising. His supporters reportedly were joining or were prepared to join rebel movements in belief that their leader

4455-493: The first president in the nation's history to gain power by such means. When he took office on 22 October 1993; it marked the first (and to date, only) time in the country's history that a sitting government peacefully surrendered power to the opposition. He had the support of most of his own sara-kaba people, the largest ethno-linguistic group in the Central African Republic, as well as the Souma people of his "hometown" of Paoua and

4536-575: The first year, many parts of the country, and the Government was significantly affected by insecurity and the threat of conflict. In April 2004, the Government deployed 200 soldiers to fight banditry in the northern and northwest provinces , including Kemo and Ouham-Pende. Some human rights observers said they believed that many of the armed groups were the same rebels and mercenaries, including Chadian ex-combatants, who helped Bozize seize power in

4617-478: The government during the 1980s, Kolingba had formed a political party and held a referendum , in which he was elected to a six-year term in office as president. After the fall of the Berlin Wall , internal and external pressures eventually forced Kolingba to adopt the beginnings of a democratic approach. In March 1991, he named Édouard Frank Prime Minister but allowed him virtually no power. He also established

4698-627: The government of the Central African Republic was unable to arrest them, so the courts referred the matter in April 2006 to the International Criminal Court . On 7 December 2008, Patassé returned to the Central African Republic for the first time since his ouster in order to participate in a national dialogue, with the government's permission. Arriving at the airport in Bangui, he kissed the ground and said that he had "not come to judge but to find grounds for entente and to tackle

4779-481: The government tried to arrest Bozizé on 3 November; after five days of this, government forces aided by Libyan troops captured the barracks where Bozizé was based, and Bozizé fled north to Chad . Fighting between government forces and Bozizé's rebels continued during 2002. From 25 to 31 October, his forces unsuccessfully attacked on the capital, Bangui ; soldiers of the Congolese MLC, which again came to Patassé's aid, were accused of looting and rape. This period

4860-468: The mandate of MINURCA till 15 February 2000. A civilian mission headed by the Representative of the Secretary-General, called the UN Peace-Building Support Office in the Central African Republic (BONUCA formed from the initials of its French name Bureau des Nations Unies pour la consolidation de la paix en République centrafricaine ). took over from MINURCA on 15 February 2000. The total expenditures incurred by MINURCA amounted to $ 101.3 million. On 9 June,

4941-468: The military personnel, the force had 24 civilian police personnel and civil staff. The peacekeeping force were instrumental in conducting the legislative elections in late 1998 and the presidential elections in September 1999 . Even though disarmament was not explicitly mentioned in its mandate, MINURCA continued MISAB's policy of storing and disposing of weapons collected from dissidents. Security Council Resolution 1271 , adopted in October 1999, extended

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5022-476: The mutineers and to maintain law and order. During his second term as president, Patassé increasingly lost the support of many of his long-time allies as well as the French, who had intervened to support him during his first term in office. Patassé was ousted in March 2003 and went into exile in Togo . Patassé was born in Paoua , the capital of the northwestern province of Ouham Pendé in the colony of Ubangi-Shari in French Equatorial Africa , and he belonged to

5103-401: The news. The KNK said that Bozizé's exclusion was "the result of internal and external pressure", with many of his supporters alleging that the French government was involved in the decision. At the end of 2019 Bozizé returned to CAR and announced his presidential candidacy for upcoming elections . However, on 3 December 2020 the Constitutional Court of CAR ruled that Bozizé did not satisfy

5184-434: The overthrow of Bokassa in September 1979. Shortly before Bokassa's overthrow, Patassé announced his opposition to the Emperor and founded the Front de Libération du Peuple Centrafricain (FLPC; Front for the Liberation of the Central African People). Emperor Bokassa was overthrown and President David Dacko restored to power by the French in 1979. Dacko ordered Patassé to be put under house arrest. Patassé attempted to escape to

5265-538: The people in Central African Republic were in poverty and male life expectancy went down during his presidency and in 2009 CAR had a GDP per capita of just 456$ . The cause for this was because he would focus on only himself. This would make living standards in CAR worse because commercial enterprises were destroyed. While he ruled the country corruption increased under his rule and so would diamond smuggling. In April 2006, Chadian rebels names United Front for Democratic Change that were based in Darfur used C.A.R . as

5346-440: The population against the privileges of southerners who held a disproportionate number of lucrative jobs in the public and parastatal sectors of the economy. As President, Patassé began to replace many "southerners" with "northerners" in these jobs which infuriated many Yakoma people in particular who had benefited from the patronage of former President Kolingba. During Patassé's first six-year term in office (22 October 1993 – 1999),

5427-453: The presidential palace. There, he was housed by Paul Biya, president of Cameroon. A warrant was placed for him and was transmitted on May 30, 2013. Bozize was accused of a string of arrests, abductions and arbitrary detentions as well as the destruction of nearly 4,000 homes. Kwa Na Kwa announced on 10 August 2015 that Bozizé would return to the country and stand as a candidate in the October 2015 presidential election . On 8 December 2015,

5508-414: The problems of the Central African Republic". At the dialogue, Patassé said that the political situation should be resolved not through removing Bozizé from office, but through "democratic, transparent and fair elections in 2010". Patassé said in June 2009 that he would be leaving his Togolese exile and returning to Bangui in preparation for the 2010 presidential election , in which he planned to stand as

5589-422: The rebellion, in particular from France and the United States. French President François Hollande rejected the plea, saying that the 250 French troops stationed at Bangui M'Poko International Airport are there "in no way to intervene in the internal affairs". On 11 January 2013, a ceasefire agreement was signed in Libreville , Gabon. The rebels dropped their demand for Bozizé to resign, but he had to appoint

5670-443: The river to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and then to Yaoundé , the capital of Cameroon, where he was granted temporary refuge. Subsequently, he requested that Benin grant him political asylum . Bozizé was forced to flee the country after being overthrown in a coup d’etat in 2013. While in exile, Bozizé fled to Cameroon via the Democratic Republic of the Congo after the rebel forces attacked Bangui and took control of

5751-404: The signing of the Bangui Agreements , and with the help of troops from Burkina Faso , Chad , Gabon , Mali , Senegal , and Togo . The Security Council of the United Nations approved a mission for peace, MINURCA , in 1998. MINURCA was made up of 1,350 African soldiers. These mutinies greatly increased the tension between "northerners" and "southerners" in the CAR and thus polarized society to

5832-477: The support of the military forces, Patassé went in disguise to the French Embassy to seek refuge. After heated negotiations between President Kolingba and the French, Patassé was allowed to leave for exile in Togo. After remaining abroad for almost a decade, of which several years were spent in France, Patassé returned to the Central African Republic in 1992 to participate in presidential elections as head of

5913-408: The vote, respectively, but since none of the candidates obtained a majority, a run-off election between the top two candidates — Patassé and Goumba — was held. Patassé defeated Goumba by a 53.49%–46.51% vote and was elected president of the Central African Republic. For many years Bozizé was considered a supporter of Patassé and helped him suppress army mutinies in 1996 and 1997. Bozizé was named

5994-408: The vote. He was sworn in on 11 June. The National Assembly authorized Bozizé to rule by decree for three months, from 1 January to 31 March 2006; his prime minister, Élie Doté , said that this period of rule by decree was successful, enabling Bozizé to take measures to streamline the civil service. In addition to being president, Bozizé has been Minister of National Defense since taking power. At

6075-439: Was a Central African politician who was president of the Central African Republic from 1993 until 2003, when he was deposed by the rebel leader François Bozizé in the 2003 coup d'état . Patassé was the first president in the CAR's history (since 1960) to be chosen in what was generally regarded as a fairly democratic election ( 1993 ) in that it was brought about by donor pressure on President André Kolingba and assisted by

6156-643: Was also widespread looting in Bangui and other provinces and the police created the Squad for the Repression of Banditry, which had the power to execute criminals the day after their apprehension. French troops who were present in the country since its independence attempted to restore order on the President's request. In December 1996, Patassé asked the Presidents of Gabon, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali to mediate

6237-557: Was hospitalised at Douala in Cameroon en route to Malabo , and died there on 5 April 2011. There were calls for a state funeral. Patassé's first wife was Lucienne Patassé , with whom he had seven children - four girls and three boys. Patassé separated from and divorced Lucienne during his first exile in Togo from 1982 to 1992. Lucienne Patassé, who was elected to the National Assembly in 1993, died on 29 July 2000, at

6318-714: Was internationally condemned, no attempt was made to depose the new leader. Patassé then went into exile in Togo. Although nominated as the MLPC's presidential candidate in November 2004, on 30 December 2004 Patassé was barred from running in the 2005 presidential election due to what the Constitutional Court considered problems with his birth certificate and land title. He was one of seven candidates barred, while five, including Bozizé, were permitted to stand. After an agreement signed in Libreville , Gabon on 22 January 2005, all barred presidential candidates were permitted to stand in

6399-437: Was marked by tensions between Chad and Patassé's government. Patassé's ruling party accused Chadian president Idriss Déby of destabilizing the Central African Republic by supporting Bozizé with men and equipment. On 15 March 2003, Bozizé finally succeeded in seizing power, with his forces entering Bangui unopposed. Patassé was returning from a meeting in Niger at the time, but could not land because Bozizé's forces controlled

6480-484: Was ousted by David Dacko in 1979, Bozizé was appointed Minister of Defense after an operation that the French army used to overthrow Bokassa (Operation Barracuda). Following Dacko's ouster by André Kolingba in September 1981, Bozizé was appointed Minister of Information, but fled to the north of the country with 100 soldiers after his involvement in a failed coup attempt led by Ange-Félix Patassé on 3 March 1982, in which he accused Kolingba of treason and proclaimed

6561-527: Was still the rightful head of state of the country. Further, members of Kolingba's Yakoma tribe in the south posed a potential threat to Bozizé's government because of their widespread boycott of the second round of the legislative elections. Members of the Yakoma dominate the army. On 13 April 2007, a peace agreement between the government and the UFDR was signed in Birao . The agreement provided for an amnesty for

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