Louis-Paul Aujoulat (28 August 1910 – 1 December 1973) was a French politician and missionary doctor. Following his long and illustrious political career he served as France's representative to the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

Early life

Aujoulat was born on 28 August 1910 in

Saïda, Algeria Saïda ( ar, سعيدة, Latn, ar, saʿīda, ) is a commune and the capital city of Saïda Province, Algeria. Location Saïda is located in north-western Algeria, on the southern slopes of the Tell Atlas mountain range at the northern fringe of ...

. He completed his secondary education in

Sidi Bel Abbès Sidi Bel Abbès ( ar, سيدي بلعباس), also called Bel Abbès, is the capital (2005 pop. 200,000)''Sidi Bel Abbes'', lexicorient.com (Encyclopaedia of the Orient), internet article. of the Sidi Bel Abbès wilaya (2005 pop. 590,000), Alger ...

, where his father taught, before being educated at the Catholic University in Lille (North of France) in 1928 to follow the Faculty of Medicine course. In 1934, he completed his thesis, which was named the best in his faculty. With his doctorate of medicine, for the next two years he worked with a physiology professor named Legrand and lectured at the local nursing school. He was married in 1936, after which he joined the ''Ad lucem'' Catholic medical foundation, with whom he founded a hospital in Efok, Cameroon. Aujoulat served as director of the foundation from 1936 to 1945.

Political career

Aujoulat was elected to the French National Assembly from the First College in Cameroon. At the

Palais Bourbon The Palais Bourbon () is the meeting place of the National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French Parliament. It is located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, on the '' Rive Gauche'' of the Seine, across from the Place de la Con ...

, he was appointed Commissioner of overseas territories. Under this post, his most notable achievement was reorganizing the healthcare of the overseas territories. Aujoulat was re-elected in

June 1946 The following events occurred in June 1946: June 1, 1946 (Saturday) *Penicillin first went on sale to the general public in the United Kingdom. The antibiotic had been made available at pharmacies in the United States beginning March 15, 1 ...

and again in

November 1946 The following events occurred in November 1946: November 1, 1946 (Friday) *In what the National Basketball Association (NBA) credits as its first game, the New York Knicks defeated the Toronto Huskies 68–66. The only game scheduled for the ...

. Besides his other post, he was appointed member of the National Defense Commission. Aujoulat assisted the

UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Cur ...

in 1946, as a counselor of the French delegation and intervenes on 13 December to approve trusteeship agreements in

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

and

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

. In November 1948, he abandoned the MRP, thus becoming an independent. Aujoulat was appointed Deputy Secretary of State for Overseas France from 29 October 1949 to 17 February 1950, then Secretary of State for Overseas France from 2 to 12 July. In 1950, Aujoulat chaired the Economic Development Plan and Social Council and its implementing body, the Investment Fund (FIDES). He also led the Catholic Union of International Cooperation (UCCI) and the International Movement for Fraternal Union Among Races and Peoples (UFER). In 1951, he launched his own party, the Cameroonian Democratic Bloc (BDC). He has the support of Prelate René Graffin, who is openly campaigning on his behalf: "All Catholics must, on election day, go to the polls and vote for the good Christian. "However, the BDC will never succeed in developing seriously and competing with the

Union of the Peoples of Cameroon The Union of the Peoples of Cameroon ( - UPC) is a political party in Cameroon. Foundation The UPC was founded on 10 April 1948, at a meeting in the bar ''Chez Sierra'' in Bassa. Twelve men assisted the founding meeting, including Charles Assa ...

.Thomas Deltombe, Manuel Domergue, Jacob Tatsita, KAMERUN !, La Découverte, 2019 He was re-elected again in the June 1951 elections, this time contesting a Second College seat. He was also elected to Cameroon's Territorial Assembly, a position he would hold for two years. In Paris, Dr. Aujoulat is appointed to the Board of Justice and Law, the Foreign Affairs Committee and that of industrial production and energy. He was the

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

from 19 June 1954 to 3 September 1954, then Minister of Labor and Social Security until 23 February 1955. According to the testimonies of some of his collaborators, he was homosexual but had to hide it because of his conservative commitment and religious beliefs.

Later life

Aujoulat ran for re-election in the January 1956 elections, but received only 13% of the vote as he was defeated by André Mbida. After this he abandoned parliamentary life, instead focusing on a career as France's representative to the

. He died on 1 December 1973 in Paris.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aujoulat, Louis-Paul 1910 births 1973 deaths People from Saïda People of French Algeria Pieds-Noirs Popular Republican Movement politicians French Ministers of Health French Ministers of Labour and Social Affairs Members of the Constituent Assembly of France (1945) Members of the Constituent Assembly of France (1946) Deputies of the 1st National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Deputies of the 2nd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic 20th-century French diplomats French people of colonial Algeria