Abdou Diouf
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Abdou Diouf ( ; Serer: ; born 7 September 1935)Biography at Socialist Party website
.
is a Senegalese politician who was the second
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
of
Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
, in office from 1981 to 2000. Diouf is notable both for coming to power by peaceful succession, and leaving willingly after losing the 2000 presidential election to
Abdoulaye Wade Abdoulaye Wade (born 29 May 1926)
Encyclopedia of the Nations. Retrieved February 28, ...
. He was also the second Secretary-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie from January 2003 to December 2014.


Early life

Diouf was born into the
Joof family Joof (English spelling in the Gambia) or Diouf (French spelling in Senegal and Mauritania) is a surname that is typically Serer. This surname is also spelt Juuf or Juf (in the Serer language). They are the same people. The differences in spel ...
in
Louga Louga ( ar, لوجا; Wolof: Luga) is a town in northwestern Senegal. Louga is a cattle market centre, and has road and rail links with the port city of Saint-Louis to the northwest and Dakar to the southwest. The area surrounding Louga is ...
, Senegal, the child of an Halpulaar mother and a
Serere Serere is a town in Eastern Uganda. It is the chief political, administrative and commercial town in Serere District, and the district headquarters are located there. The district is named after the town. Location Serere lies in Serere District ...
father. He went to primary and secondary school at the Lycée Faidherbe in Saint-Louis, and studied law at
Dakar University Cheikh Anta Diop University (french: Université Cheikh Anta Diop or UCAD), also known as the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, is a university in Dakar, Senegal. It is named after the Senegalese physicist, historian and anthropologist Cheikh ...
and then at the
Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...
in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
. Diouf graduated in 1959.


Political career

After graduation, Diouf returned to Senegal, where in September 1960 he was appointed Director of International Technical Cooperation. In November 1960 he became assistant of the Secretary-General of the Government and in June 1961 he became Secretary-General of the Ministry of Defense.Rake, African Leaders: Guiding the New Millinium, p. 193. Scarecrow Press, Inc, 2001. In 1961 he joined the
Senegalese Progressive Union The Socialist Party of Senegal (french: Parti Socialiste du Sénégal, PS) is a political party in Senegal. It was the ruling party in Senegal from independence in 1960 until 2000. In the 2000 presidential election, the party's candidate and previ ...
(''Union Progressiste Sénégalaise'', UPS), which later became the
Socialist Party of Senegal The Socialist Party of Senegal (french: Parti Socialiste du Sénégal, PS) is a political party in Senegal. It was the ruling party in Senegal from independence in 1960 until 2000. In the 2000 presidential election, the party's candidate and previ ...
. In December 1961 he became Governor of the
Sine-Saloum Sine-Saloum is a region in Senegal located north of the Gambia and south of the Petite Côte. It encompasses an area of 24,000 square kilometers, about 12% of Senegal, with a population in the 1990s of 1,060,000. The western portion contains the ...
Region, serving in that position until December 1962, when he became Director of the Cabinet of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In May 1963 he was moved to the position of Director of the Cabinet of President
Léopold Senghor Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name) * Leopold (surname) Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold Bloom, the protagonist o ...
, where he remained until December 1965. In January 1964 he became Secretary-General of the Presidency, serving until March 1968 when he became Minister of Planning and Industry. He remained in the latter position until February 1970, when he was named Prime Minister.


Presidency

In 1970, Senghor reinstated the post of prime minister, giving it to Diouf, his protégé. Senghor trusted Diouf, who had administrative experience but no independent power base of his own. This was important, for Senghor's last prime minister Mamadou Dia was accused of using the position to launch a
coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...
. On January 1, 1981, Senghor resigned in favor of Diouf, who became president of Senegal.


1983 and 1988 elections

Diouf continued the political liberalization Senghor had begun by holding elections in 1983. He allowed fourteen opposition parties to run, instead of the four Senghor had allowed. The practical effect of this was to fragment the opposition, and Diouf won with 83.5 percent of the vote. In 1985, opposing parties tried to form a coalition. It was broken up on the grounds that coalitions were forbidden by the constitution. Also in 1985,
Abdoulaye Wade Abdoulaye Wade (born 29 May 1926)
Encyclopedia of the Nations. Retrieved February 28, ...
, Diouf's main political opponent, was temporarily arrested for unlawful demonstration. In February, 1988, elections were held again. Diouf won 72.3 percent of the vote to Wade's 25.8 percent, and opposing parties alleged electoral fraud. Disturbances followed, and Diouf declared a state of emergency, detaining Wade again until May of that year.


Senegambia

Under Diouf, Senegal agreed to form a confederation called Senegambia with neighboring Gambia on December 12, 1981; this union took place on February 1, 1982. In April 1989, the Mauritania-Senegal Border War developed, leading to an outbreak of ethnic violence and the severing of diplomatic relations with Mauritania. As the region destabilized, Senegambia was dissolved.


Response to AIDS

In 1986, Diouf began an anti- AIDS program in Senegal, before the virus was able to take off in earnest. He used the media and schools to promote safe-sex messages and required prostitutes to be registered. He also encouraged civic organizations and both Christian and Muslim religious leaders to raise awareness about AIDS. The result was that while AIDS was decimating much of Africa, the infection rate for Senegal stayed below 2 percent.


1993 and 2000 elections

Diouf was reelected in February 1993 with 58% of the voteElections in Senegal
African Elections Database.
to a 7-year term; presidential term lengths had been extended by two years in 1991. In the first round of the 2000 elections, on February 27, he took 41.3% of the vote against 30.1% for the long-time opposition leader
Abdoulaye Wade Abdoulaye Wade (born 29 May 1926)
Encyclopedia of the Nations. Retrieved February 28, ...
, but in the second round on March 19 he received only 41.5% against 58.5% for Wade. Diouf conceded defeat and left office on April 1. From this electoral defeat came one of Diouf's greatest contributions to African peace, for he gracefully surrendered power to Abdoulaye Wade, his long-time rival. When Diouf left office, Wade even said he should receive a
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...
for leaving without violence.


Socialist Party leadership

Diouf was Deputy Secretary-General of the Socialist Party under Senghor. He became Secretary-General in 1981, and when the party was restructured at its Thirteenth Congress in 1996,Page on the PS at party website
.
he was moved to the position of President of the PS, while
Ousmane Tanor Dieng Ousmane Tanor Dieng (January 2, 1947 – July 15, 2019) was the First Secretary of the Socialist Party of Senegal. He was vice-president of the Socialist International from 1996 until his death. Personal life Born in 1947 in Nguéniène, Seneg ...
became First Secretary, having been proposed by Diouf.


International organizations

Both during and after his presidency, Diouf has been active in international organizations. He was President of the
Organization of African Unity The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; french: Organisation de l'unité africaine, OUA) was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's ...
(OAU) from 1985 to 1986. Soon after his election, he made a personal plea to François Mitterrand, the President of
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, resulting in France speaking strongly for sanctions against
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
. In 1992, he was re-elected President of the OAU again for another year-long term. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the
Goree Institute The Goree Institute, formally The Goree Institute, Centre for Democracy, Development and Culture in Africa (french: L’Institut Gorée – Centre pour la Démocratie, le Dévéloppement et la Culture en Afrique), is a Pan African organization loca ...
. After leaving office as President of Senegal, he was unanimously elected as Secretary-General of
La Francophonie LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...
at that organization's Ninth Summit on October 20, 2002 in
Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
,"Abdou Diouf, premier francophone"
Afrik.com, October 20, 2002 .
following the withdrawal of the only other candidate,
Henri Lopes Henri Lopes (born 12 September 1937)''International Who's Who of Authors and Writers 2004'', Europa Publications, p. 339.
of the Republic of the Congo. Diouf took office as Secretary-General on January 1, 2003. He was re-elected as Secretary-General for another four years at the organization's summit in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
in September 2006. Diouf is an Eminent Member of the
Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation Sergio may refer to: * Sergio (given name), for people with the given name Sergio * Sergio (carbonado), the largest rough diamond ever found * ''Sergio'' (album), a 1994 album by Sergio Blass * ''Sergio'' (2009 film), a documentary film * ''Se ...
. He is also a member of the
Fondation Chirac The Fondation Chirac was launched by former French President Jacques Chirac, after having served two terms in office between 1995 and 2007. Since 2008, this foundation strives for peace through five advocacy programmes: * conflict prevention * ...
's honour committee, ever since the foundation was launched in 2008 by former French president Jacques Chirac in order to promote world peace and on the International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber Threats (IMPACT) International Advisory Board. Additionally, he is one of the 25 leading figures on the Information and Democracy Commission launched by Reporters Without Borders.


Honours and decorations


References


External links

, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Diouf, Abdou 1935 births Cheikh Anta Diop University alumni Living people Presidents of Senegal Recipients of the Grand Star of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria Senegalese Sunni Muslims Serer presidents Prime Ministers of Senegal Socialist Party of Senegal politicians Secretaries-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie People from Louga Region 20th-century Senegalese politicians