Gabon - Politics 2023 - Election and Coup
A dozen mutinous soldiers appeared 30 August 2023 on Gabonese national television, announcing the cancellation of recent election results and the dissolution of “all the institutions of the republic”. The announcement came after President Ali Bongo Ondimba, 64, was re-elected for a third term, in an election the opposition described as a ‘fraud orchestrated’ by the ruling party. In a video apparently from detention at his residence, President Ali Bongo Ondimba called on people to “make noise” to support him. But crowds instead took to the streets of the capital and sang the national anthem. The Gabon junta named General Brice Oligui Nguema as transition leader, soldiers said on national television.
On 07 September 2023 the Gabon junta named a Bongo critic as interim prime minister. Ndong Sima, a 68-year-old economist, served as prime minister under ousted president Bongo from 2012 to 2014 before becoming a critic and eventually challenging him in elections in 2016 and 2023. In his inauguration speech, Oligui vowed to hold "free, transparent and credible elections" to restore civilian rule, although he did not give a timeframe. He also said he would shortly announce an inclusive transitional government drawing on figures from across the political spectrum.
The soldiers who seized power said they were speaking on behalf of the “Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions”, and announced the annulment of the election and closure of all borders. They also announced the dissolution of institutions of state including “the government, the Senate, the National Assembly, the Constitutional Court, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council and the Gabonese Elections Centre”.
One officer read a joint statement on TV channel Gabon 24, while about a dozen others stood silently behind him in military fatigues and berets. They included army colonels, members of the elite Republican Guard, regular soldiers and others. The soldier’s statement, which was read out in French, read in part:
“Our beautiful country, Gabon, has always been a haven of peace. Today, the country is going through a serious institutional, political, economic and social crisis.”
“We are therefore forced to admit that the organisation of the general elections of 26 August 2023 did not meet the conditions for a transparent, credible and inclusive ballot so much hoped for by the people of Gabon.
“Added to this is irresponsible and unpredictable governance, resulting in a continuing deterioration in social cohesion, with the risk of leading the country into chaos…People of Gabon, we are finally on the road to happiness. May God and the spirits of our ancestors bless Gabon. Honour and loyalty to our homeland.”
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, the current chair of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), is working closely with other African heads of state on how to respond to an attempted coup in Gabon, his spokesperson Ajuri Ngelale has said. Tinubu is watching developments in Gabon and the “autocratic contagion” spreading across the continent “with deep concern”, the spokesperson said.
The African Union’s Peace and Security Council said it had decided to “immediately suspend” Gabon following the military coup in the country this week. The body said on X, formerly Twitter, that it “strongly condemns the military takeover of power in the Republic of Gabon” and has decided “to immediately suspend the participation of Gabon in all activities of the AU, its organs and institutions”.
If successful, the coup would represent the eighth in West and Central Africa since 2020. Coups in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger have undermined democratic progress in recent years. “Political analysts believe that it’s a trend that’s emerging in Africa… [and] unless leaders in Africa sit up and listen to the people, certainly we will have an epidemic on our hands,” Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris said, reporting from Niamey in Niger.
Ovigwe Eguegu, analyst at the security consultancy group Afripolitika, told Al Jazeera the apparent coup in Gabon is not similar to others witnessed in West Africa. “The coup in Gabon is different from what we are seeing in other West African countries. While those other coups are more about security and governance, this is specifically about the electoral process,” he said.
Sanusha Naidu, senior research fellow at the South African think tank The Institute for Global Dialogue, said Wednesday’s developments were indicative of “people being dissatisfied with corruption, legacy leaders, and mismanagement of their finances or mismanagement of resources that don’t lead to real development”. She said “It is a reaction not just to a broken system, and an undemocratic one. It’s also the fact that the democratic process in itself is raising a lot of contradictions in terms of people feeling as if they can’t trust the political process, the democratic process, and are basically looking towards the military as possibly being that institution that can actually turn things around”.
The US said the situation in the African country is "deeply concerning." White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the US remains "a supporter of the people in the region, a supporter of the people of Gabon and of their demand for democratic governance," according to media reports. John Kirby told a briefing. “We’re following this very, very closely,” he said. “It’s deeply concerning to us … we will remain a supporter of people in the region and supporter of the people in Gabon.”
France condemned the military coup in Gabon and is closely monitoring developments in the country, and reaffirmed its wish that the outcome of the election, once known, be respected, French government spokesman Olivier Veran was quoted as saying in media reports. France, as a former colonial power, has always been committed to maintaining the stability of its former colonies, the expert noted. However, due to the current Russia-Ukraine conflict on Europe's doorstep and the heavy colonial burden it carries, France appears to be indecisive in its actions. If the Gabon coup succeeds, the French government will not stand idly by. After all, the Bongo family has maintained good personal relationships with successive French presidents, and national interests are highly intertwined. France cannot lose Gabon.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that "China is closely following the developments in Gabon. We call on relevant sides in the country to proceed from the fundamental interests of the nation and the people, resolve differences peacefully through dialogue, restore order at an early date." The Chinese Embassy in Gabon issued a consular notice, stating that due to the current situation in the country, the embassy has activated its emergency mechanism for significant unexpected incidents. It also advised all Chinese citizens in Gabon to stay at home and not venture outside.
"Elections in the African region have their uniqueness and cannot be judged solely on the surface. For example, the overthrow of Mali's president Keita in 2020, who was elected by a large majority, is a case in point," You Tao, deputy director of the research center for francophone world development at Sichuan International Studies University, told the Global Times.
A fundamental reason for the coup in Gabon is primarily due to Gabon's relatively low level of governance and inefficacy in administration, Song Wei, a professor at the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times. "The core of this issue is its influence from former Western colonial powers and the governance and political system reforms that the West has been pushing in Africa since the Cold War. These reforms have not laid the foundation for Africa to innately produce democracy," she said. Thus, the West's overall promotion of governance in Africa has essentially been a failure, she said.
Albert Ondo Ossa, Gabon’s main opposition candidate in the August 26 presidential election, claimed victory in the election while dismissing Wednesday’s coup in the oil-rich central African country as “a disappointment” and “family affair”. “I had imagined this coup d’etat, it was likely,” Ossa told Al Jazeera. “I follow political activity in the country, I see how the institutions work, I see how the presidential guard works and I saw the rise of Brice Oligui Nguema and I knew something was up.” The politician had told French channel TV5 Monde that the coup had been orchestrated by Pascaline Bongo, sister of the deposed president. He declined to give any more details about her alleged involvement to Al Jazeera, instead preferring to focus on the new leader who he called a “little Bongo”.
“He’s a cousin of Bongo, so how can I think he’s different? It’s a palace revolution, we’re still in Bongo power … he grew up in the palace, this young man. I knew him as a relative of Bongo, as all Gabonese know,” Ossa said, while declining to comment on the specifics of the report. “Basically, I think the Bongo family got rid of one of its members who was weighing on the family, and they wanted Bongo power to continue, while at the same time preventing Albert Ondo Ossa from coming to power,” he added. “It was a palace revolution, not a coup d’etat. This is a family affair, where one brother replaces another.”
General Brice Oligui Nguema, who led military officers in seizing power in Gabon, said the dissolution of the country's institutions was "temporary," amid pressure on the junta to hand power to a civilian government. "It is a question of reorganizing [institutions] in order to make them more democratic and more in line with international standards... for human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law," he said in a televised address.
Military leaders ordered the arrest of one of Bongo's sons, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, and several members of Bongo's cabinet on accusations ranging from alleged embezzlement to narcotics trafficking. State broadcaster Gabon 24 said that duffel bags stuffed with cash wrapped in plastic had been confiscated from the homes of various officials. Its footage included a raid on the house of former cabinet director Ian Ghislain Ngoulou. He told the channel that the money was part of Bongo's election fund. Bongo Valentin was standing next to him. It was unclear when the images were shot. Lawyers for Bongo's wife said that Bongo Valentin was incarcerated in an undisclosed location, and they were concerned about his safety.
Ndong Sima was appointed as head of the transitional government by General Brice Oligui Nguema. Ndong Sima, 68, is a Paris-educated economist who served as prime minister under Bongo from 2012 to 2014 before becoming a critic and competing against him in the 2016 and 2023 presidential campaigns. His appointment, announced on state TV, was made in a decree on 07 September 2023 by Oligui. The new government that Ndong Sima announced included military figures and ex-ministers who served under ousted president Ali Bongo Ondimba, but none of the main opposition figures.
A two-year transition before the free elections promised by Gabon's new military rulers is a "reasonable objective" the new prime minister they appointed said 10 September 2023. "It's good to set off with a reasonable objective by saying: we have the desire to see the process come to an end in 24 months so we can go back to elections," said Raymond Ndong Sima, prime minister during the transition. That period could end up being slightly longer or shorter, he added.
The Election
The Bongo family had ruled the country for 55 years already and was branded a "dynastic power" by the opposition. Oil-rich Gabon will hold presidential, legislative and local elections on August 26, with President Ali Bongo Ondimba strong favorite to win against a divided opposition.
Bongo said 09 July 2023 he will stand again. His powerful Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) holds strong majorities in both houses of parliament. Bongo, 64, took over from his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, the country's ruler for 41 years, in 2009. The president was narrowly re-elected in 2016, with just 5,500 more votes than rival Jean Ping who claimed the election had been fixed.
Gabon was a republic with a presidential form of government dominated by the Gabonese Democratic Party and headed by President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose family has held power since 1967. Bongo Ondimba has been president since 2009 and was declared winner of the 2016 presidential election. Observers noted numerous irregularities in 2016, including a questionable vote count in Bongo Ondimba’s home province.
The government forcibly dispersed violent demonstrations that followed the 2016 election. In the peaceful 2018 legislative elections, the Gabonese Democratic Party won 100 of 143 National Assembly seats. The African Union observer mission did not comment on whether the elections were free and fair but noted some irregularities. Some opposition parties boycotted the elections; however, fewer did so than in the 2011 legislative elections.
Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: torture and cases of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment by the government; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; political prisoners or detainees; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; serious restrictions on free expression and media due to censorship and the enforcement of criminal libel laws to limit expression; inability of citizens to change their government peacefully through free and fair elections; serious government corruption; and existence of the worst forms of child labor.
The government took some steps to identify, investigate, and prosecute officials and punish those convicted of human rights abuses or engaged in corruption; however, impunity remained a problem. The government made significant anticorruption efforts to reduce cases of security forces harassing or extorting refugees and noncitizen Africans. The government made strides to address violence against women, however societal barriers continued to hinder women from reporting cases to authorities.
Prison conditions were harsh and potentially life threatening due to low-quality food, inadequate sanitation, lack of ventilation, gross overcrowding, and limited medical care. Conditions in jails and detention centers mirrored those in prisons. Libreville’s central prison was severely overcrowded; it was built to hold 500 inmates but held approximately 4,000. There were also reports of overcrowding in other prisons. Some prisoners and detainees were kept in solitary confinement for several months without access to exercise or use of showers and other sanitary facilities.
Approximately two-thirds of prison inmates were held in pretrial detention that sometimes lasted up to three years. There were instances in which the length of pretrial detention exceeded the maximum sentence for the alleged crime. Prolonged pretrial detention was common due to overburdened dockets and an inefficient judicial system. The law limits pretrial detention to six months on a misdemeanor charge and one year on a felony charge, with six-month extensions if authorized by the examining magistrate.
During the 2016 presidential election, observers noted numerous irregularities after President Bongo Ondimba was declared the winner. The most notable irregularity was the official vote count in Bongo Ondimba’s home province, where results were released several days after other provinces, showing voter turnout of more than 99 percent, of whom more than 95 percent voted for Bongo Ondimba. In an election with a nationwide voter turnout of 54 percent and a margin of victory of just more than 5,000 votes, the alleged results sparked widespread protests and violence.
Opposition party members complained voter districts were unfairly drawn, alleging the president’s home province received disproportionately more parliamentary seats than other provinces. They also stated the PDG had greater access to government resources for campaign purposes than did other parties.
In 2023 the opposition failed to agree on a single candidate for the presidential election, leaving some 15 candidates to announce their intentions to stand. In April, the Gabonese parliament voted to amend the constitution and reduce the president's term from seven to five years. Sections of the opposition criticised the changes, in particular the end of two rounds of voting, as a means of "facilitating the re-election" of Bongo. The amendments bring all mandates into line at five years and make all elections single-round ballots again after the last changes to the constitution in 2018 set up two rounds of voting.
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