Thomas Gankama-Quiwonkpa (27 July 1955 – 17 November 1985), a

Dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa **Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoir ...

from Nimba County, was a Commanding General of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and founder of the

National Patriotic Front of Liberia The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) was a Liberian rebel group that initiated and participated in the First Liberian Civil War from 1989 to 1996. Leadership The military aspects of NPFL were led by Charles Taylor, a former governme ...

(NPFL).

Biography

Born in the town of Zualay in 1955, Quiwonkpa was the son of

subsistence farmers Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families on smallholdings. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements, with little or no su ...

. At the age of sixteen, he joined the AFL. After finishing high school in 1978 through a programme at the Barclay Training Center, he received an assignment to the AFL's records department."General Quiwonkpa: A Profile". ''The Redeemer'' 1980-05-16: 7-8.

Part of Samuel Doe's coup (1980)

He came to prominence on 12 April 1980, when he assisted

Samuel Doe Samuel Kanyon Doe (6 May 1951 – 9 September 1990) was a Liberian politician who served as the 21st president of Liberia from 1980 to 1990. Doe ruled Liberia as Chairman of the People's Redemption Council (PRC) from 1980 to 1984 and then a ...

in a military coup that overthrew the Americo-Liberian government of

William R. Tolbert, Jr. William Richard Tolbert Jr. (13 May 1913 – 12 April 1980) was a Liberian politician who served as the 20th president of Liberia from 1971 until 1980. Tolbert was an Americo-Liberian and trained as a civil servant before entering the House of ...

About a month later, the revolutionaries arrested AFL commander-in-chief Edwin Lloyd and other military leaders on charges of planning a counter-coup. By mid-May, Quiwonkpa was proclaimed a major general and made the new AFL commander. Two months later he was using the title of brigadier general. Before long, he fell out with Doe; in 1983, Quiwonkpa was demoted and subsequently charged with an attempt to overthrow the Doe administration, forcing him to flee the country.

Coup attempt against Doe (1985)

On 12 November 1985, one month after elections were held, Quiwonkpa, supported by about two dozen heavily armed men, covertly entered Liberia through Sierra Leone, and launched a coup against Doe. However, Quiwonkpa's unorthodox methods and lack of support from the United States resulted in a disastrous failure. Quiwonkpa was captured and on November 15 was killed and mutilated by

Krahn The Krahn are an ethnic group of Liberia and Ivory Coast. This group belongs to the Kru language family and its people are sometimes referred to as the Wee, Guéré, Sapo, or Wobe. It is likely that Western contact with the Kru language is the p ...

soldiers loyal to Doe. His killers then dismembered his body and reportedly ate parts of it. His body was publicly exhibited on the grounds of the Executive Mansion in Monrovia soon after his death. Joe Wylie, later Deputy Minister of Defense in the NTGL, was among the group who launched the coup.

Post-coup attempt reprisals

In a campaign of retribution against the coup plotters and their supporters, Doe's government launched a bloody purge against the

Gio Gio or GIO may refer to: People * Gio (nickname) * Gio (footballer, born 1984), Spanish * Gio (singer) (born 1990) * Gio people, an ethnic group in northeastern Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire Science and technology * Gi/o, protein subunits * GIO, ...

and

Mano Mano may refer to: People * Mano people, an ethnic group in Liberia * Mano (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Mano (Mozambican footballer) (born 1984), real name Celso Halilo de Abdul * Mano (Portuguese footballer) ...

ethnic groups in Quiwonkpa's Nimba County, raising alarm about a possible genocide. Doe's slaughter of an estimated 3,000 people provoked ethnic rivalries that later fuelled the

First Liberian Civil War The First Liberian Civil War lasted from 1989 to 1997. President Samuel Doe had established a regime in 1980 but totalitarianism and corruption led to unpopularity and the withdrawal of support from the United States by the late 1980s. The Nat ...

. p. 46

References

External links

Liberia - Election and Coup Attempt - 1985
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quiwonkpa, Thomas 1955 births 1985 deaths Liberian murder victims People murdered in Liberia People from Nimba County Brigadier generals Executed military leaders People's Redemption Council Dan people People executed by Liberia by firing squad