On 13 January 1963, Togo, a little West African country, experienced one its most memorable events; a coup d’ etat. This coup has the record of being the first coup in the history of Africa.
The coup plotters had 3
notable players, Etienne Eyadema, Emmanuel Bodjolle and Kleber Dadjo. They took
over the presidential palace, government buildings, the roads and arrested some
government officials.
At that point, the
nation was under the dictator rule of President Sylvanus Olympio, who had been
in power since Togo gained independence from France in 1960.
The occasions that
paved way to the overthrow were multifaceted and entrenched in political
issues. This was coupled with disappointment from the populace with the
policies and performance of Olympio.
Though the facts are
yet to be established, President Kwame Nkrumah and the government of Ghana was
implicated in the coup and assassination of Olympio.
Beginning
Togo was once a
protectorate of the German Colonial Empire but was taken over during World War
1 by the British and French. They both partitioned the country in 1922 with a
part coming under the control of France. The other part was joined with other
groups to form the Gold Coast Colony which was then under British control.
In later years, during
World War 2, the French arrested prominent members of the Olympio family in
Togo, Including Sylvanus Olympio. They were perceived to be allies to the
British. The imprisonment of Olympio became an issue that promoted him in the
eyes of the public. And upon his release he served as a rallying point for
independence from French colonization.
He participated
actively through the 1950’s for independence and had his political party
boycott assembly elections because of French interferences.
However, in the 1958 elections
saw Olympio’s party win overwhelmingly despite the French’s one-sided
involvement in the elections against Olympio’s party. The French colonial
authorities had no choice than to name Olympio the Prime Minister of the
colony.
Olympio as president
He spearheaded a
constitutional amendment that made him President of Togo in 1961. This success and
feat achieved by Olympio roused many other neighboring nations to seek
independence from French rule.
An attempt to
assassinate him in the same year forced him to take an oppressive approach to
governance which literarily turned the nation into a one-party state.
Early on in Olympio's
presidency, he took a centralized and autocratic approach to governance, sowing
the seeds of discontent. His government leaned more toward the Ewe ethnic group,
to which he belonged to.
He also pursued a policy that excluded and marginalized other ethnic groups within the country. Also, there were allegations of corruption, which further fueled disdain towards his government.
The Catholic
authorities also clashed with his government which further isolated his
government from the people.
Therefore to assert
control, he went brutal and ruthless against his opponents. Political parties
and adversaries were hounded, locked up and in some cases killed.
The many internal and external factors
One other key factor
that led to his ousting from power was the issue of land changes. President
Olympio tried to carry out land reforms that would expropriate land from traditional
heads and reallocate these lands to peasant farmers.
This move was met with
stiff resistance from the elites and traditional rulers who held enormous powers
and influence in the country.
At the initial stage of
his reign he worked closely with Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana but fell out with him
when the latter proposed the unification of the two countries. The former
however requested for the return of the eastern part of Togo that was carved
into Ghana.
Their relationship soon
went sour based on this and many other issues. History has it on record that
attempts of assassination on Olympio and Nkrumah were made severally. Political
dissidents from Togo also take refuge Ghana and vice versa.
The men accused and blamed
each other for the attempts. The coup against Olympio has been linked to the
rift Nkrumah and Olympio as Ghana was accused of its involvement.
Olympio as president
relied more on German aid instead of French assistance and exempted his nation
from any alliance with the French. But he still maintained diplomatic relations
with France and signed a defense pact with them.
The French on the other
hand had perceived him as a pro-British president, due to his alignment with
the British and The United States.
The emergence of Etienne Eyadema
Ignorant of the
importance of the military he failed to expand and modernize the army and thus
kept them small. Troops of Togolese extraction that left the French Army on
returning home thus had no space or departments to be enlisted in.
Despite pressures from
Emmanuel Bodjolle and Kleber Dadjo who were leaders in the Togolese Army to
increase funding for the army, Olympio refused.
He also refused Etienne
Eyadema who was a returnee sergeant from the French military, the opportunity
to serve in the Togolese Army.
In 1963 a written
request from Dadjo seeking for permission to enlist ex-French troops was torn
into pieces by the president. This probably was the point where scheming’s
against the president intensified.
The Coup
In the midst of
developing strains, a group of displeased military officials, led by Sergeant
Etienne Eyadéma (later known as Gnassingbé Eyadéma), plotted to oust President
Olympio's administration. Etienne Eyadema and Emmanuel Boole both connived to
remove Olympio from office.
The coup was carried
out with precision and force in the early hours of January 13, 1963. The
revolutionaries or rebels as it were, stormed the presidential residence,
bringing about the demise of President Olympio.
Before dawn the dead
body of Olympio was found some feet away from the gate at the front of the US
embassy by the then Ambassador Leon B. Poullada.
Olympia became the
first African head of state to be assassinated in a coup. Some of his cabinet
members were arrested while some took to their heels and fled to neighboring
countries or went into hiding.
Eyadema takes control of government
Following the overthrow,
the coup plotters, under Eyadéma's initiative, assumed command and took
leadership and control of government. The constitution was put on hold while
the National Assembly was dissolved. A state of emergency was also declared by
the junta.
Thereafter, exiled
political leaders including Nicolas Grunitzky and Antoine Meatchi were asked to
come back home to form a government. Nicholas was elected president while
Antoine served as his vice.
A second coup was also
carried out by Eyadema on April 14, 1967 after he deposed the government of
Nicholas Grunitzky. Eyadéma took on the position of head of state and later
turned into the Leader of Togo, laying out a military dictatorship that lasted
for almost forty years. Eyadema ruled Togo until 2005.
Aftermath
The coup in Togo had
significant repercussions for the nation and the region as a whole. It exposed
the option of military intervention in governance to other nations in the
region. The coup also set a besetting precedence for African nations during the
post-independence era.
Additionally, the
political instability and oppressive rule under Eyadéma's system ruined Togo's democratic
advancement and subdued civil liberties.
In summary, the tragic
assassination of President Olympio and the establishment of a military
dictatorship under Eyadéma's rule occurred as a result of the 1963 coup in
Togo. It mirrored the intricacies and difficulties of post-colonial African
politics.
The issues were usually similar; power struggles, ethnic pressures, marginalization and grievances against dictatorship. This often culminated in coups and protracted political instability which still persist in Africa, especially West Africa, the latest being the coup in Niger Republic.