French Somaliland independence referendum, 1967 on:
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An independence referendum was held in
Elections in Djibouti
African Elections Database Voting was also divided along ethnic lines, with the resident Somalis by and large voting for independence, with the goal of eventual reunion with Somalia, and the
An independence referendum was held in French Somaliland
French Somaliland (french: Côte française des Somalis, lit= French Coast of the Somalis so, Xeebta Soomaaliyeed ee Faransiiska) was a French colony in the Horn of Africa. It existed between 1884 and 1967, at which time it became the French Ter ...
on 19 March 1967. It was ordered by then President of France, General Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...
, in response to rioting and demonstrations upon an official visit he made to the territory the year before.''A Political Chronology of Africa'', (Taylor & Francis), p.132.''Newsweek'', Volume 81, (Newsweek: 1973), p.254. Voters rejected independence from France by a 22-point margin.
It was the second of three independence referendums. In the first referendum, the 1958 French Somaliland constitutional referendum
A referendum on the new constitution of France was held in French Somaliland on 28 September 1958 as part of a wider referendum held across the French Union. The new constitution would see the country become part of the new French Community if acc ...
, voters rejected independence by a 50-point margin. In the third referendum, the 1977 Afars and Issas independence referendum
An independence referendum was held in the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas on 8 May 1977 alongside an 1977 Afars and Issas Constituent Assembly election, election for a Constituent Assembly. Previous referendums were held in 1958 Fren ...
, voters near-unanimously backed independence.
Conduct
As with the previous referendum of 1958, the vote was marred by reports of vote rigging on the part of the French authorities,American Universities Field Staff, ''Northeast Africa series'', Volume 15, Issue 1, (American Universities Field Staff.: 1968), p.3. with some 10,000 Somalis deported under the pretext that they did not have valid identity cards.Jean Strouse
Jean Strouse (born 1945) is an American biographer, cultural administrator, and critic. She is best known for her biographies of diarist Alice James and financier J. Pierpont Morgan.
Strouse was an editorial assistant at ''The New York Review of ...
, ''Newsweek'', Volume 69, Issues 10-17, (Newsweek: 1967), p.48. According to official figures, although the territory was at the time inhabited by 58,240 Somali and 48,270 Afar, only 14,689 Somali were allowed to register to vote versus 22,004 Afar.Africa Research, Ltd, ''Africa contemporary record: annual survey and documents'', Volume 1, (Africana Pub. Co.: 1969), p.264. Somali representatives also claimed that the French had simultaneously imported thousands of Afar nomads from neighboring Ethiopia to further tip the odds in their favor. The French authorities denied this, suggesting that Afars already greatly outnumbered Somalis on the voting lists.
Results
Initial results supported a continued but looser relationship with France, with 60.6% of the electorate voting for the status quo on a 95% turnout.African Elections Database Voting was also divided along ethnic lines, with the resident Somalis by and large voting for independence, with the goal of eventual reunion with Somalia, and the
Afars
The Afar ( aa, Qafár), also known as the Danakil, Adali and Odali, are a Cushitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting the Horn of Africa. They primarily live in the Afar Region of Ethiopia and in northern Djibouti, as well as the entire southern ...
generally opting to remain associated with France.
Aftermath
The announcement of results led to civil unrest and several deaths. The French government increased its military force along the frontier.Alvin J. Cottrell, Robert Michael Burrell, Georgetown University. Center for Strategic and International Studies, ''The Indian Ocean: its political, economic, and military importance'', (Praeger: 1972), p.166.References
{{Djiboutian elections French S Referendums in Djibouti Independence referendums Djibouti French Somaliland March 1967 events in Africa