Henri Zongo (died 19 September 1989) was a Burkinabé politician and military officer. He served as a key figure in the country's history after

decolonisation Decolonization or decolonisation is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on separatism, in ...

: Zongo was involved in two successful

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 ...

s and accused of being the conspirator of a third that led to his execution. Zongo, Thomas Sankara,

Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani Major Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani was an officer of Army of the Republic of Upper Volta executed on September 19, 1989 along with Henri Zongo by Blaise Compaoré who accused them of plotting a coup. Lingani was set by Laurent Sédego, Gilbert Die ...

and Blaise Compaoré formed the inner core of a military group that launched the 1983 coup d'état that brought Sankara to power as president. Zongo was appointed as the Minister of Economic Promotion on 4 August 1983: a role he served until his death. Zongo also served as the Sports Minister of Upper Volta; he called for an African boycott of the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

. Zongo, Lingani and Compaoré then led the 1987 coup d'état that saw the overthrow of Sankara. After this overthrow, Compaoré took power at the head of a triumvirate of which Zongo and Lingani were members. Zongo and Lingani disagreed with Compaoré on economic reform issues and were accused of an attempt to overthrow the government. Zongo, Lingani and two unnamed military plotters were arrested and executed in 1989.

References

Year of birth missing 1989 deaths Burkinabé military personnel Executed Burkinabé people Government ministers of Burkina Faso People executed by Burkina Faso {{Africa-mil-bio-stub