Saye Zerbo (27 August 1932 – 19 September 2013) was a Burkinabé military officer who was the third

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 the

Republic of Upper Volta The Republic of Upper Volta (french: République de Haute-Volta) was a landlocked West African country established on 11 December 1958 as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before becoming autonomous, it had been part of the ...

(now

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana t ...

) from 25 November 1980 until 7 November 1982. He led a coup in 1980, but was resisted by

trade unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

and was overthrown by Major

Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo Jean-Baptiste Philippe Ouédraogo (; born 30 June 1942), also referred to by his initials JBO, is a Burkinabé physician and retired military officer who served as President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 8 November 1982 to 4 August 198 ...

and the Council of Popular Salvation (CSP).

Biography

Saye Zerbo was born Tougan,

French West Africa French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now B ...

, on 27 August 1932. He went to school in

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...

and Saint-Louis,

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

. Then he joined the

French military The French Armed Forces (french: Forces armées françaises) encompass the Army, the Navy, the Air and Space Force and the Gendarmerie of the French Republic. The President of France heads the armed forces as Chief of the Armed Forces. France ...

in 1950 and attended the

military academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

Saint-Cyr. As a

paratrooper A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Worl ...

, Zerbo took part in both the

First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...

and the

Algerian War of Independence The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence,( ar, الثورة الجزائرية '; '' ber, Tagrawla Tadzayrit''; french: Guerre d'Algérie or ') and sometimes in Algeria as the War of 1 November ...

. After Upper Volta's independence from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1960, he transferred to that country's army in 1961. In the

military government A military government is generally any form of government that is administered by military forces, whether or not this government is legal under the laws of the jurisdiction at issue, and whether this government is formed by natives or by an occup ...

of Sangoulé Lamizana, who ruled Upper Volta from 1966, Saye Zerbo was

minister of foreign affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

from 1974 to 1976. He also held the positions of commander of the regiment in the capital

Ouagadougou Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's n ...

and director of the military

intelligence agency An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives. Means of inf ...

. On 25 November 1980, Zerbo staged a coup against President Lamizana, who had been re-elected democratically in 1978, and took on the positions of

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and ...

and

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

. The constitution, which had been introduced in 1977, was suspended and the

Military Committee of Recovery for National Progress A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...

(''Comité Militaire de Redressement pour le Progrès National''; CMPRN) established. The trade unions in the country opposed his seizure of power, although they had supported Zerbo for a long time, and on 7 November 1982, Saye Zerbo was deposed in another

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 ...

. He was succeeded by

as the head of the Council of Popular Salvation (''Conseil du Salut du Peuple''; CSP). After being deposed, Zerbo was also incarcerated. On 4 August 1983, Ouédraogo was deposed by

Thomas Sankara Thomas Isidore Noël Sankara (; 21 December 1949 – 15 October 1987) was a Burkinabé military officer, Marxist–Leninist revolutionary, and Pan-Africanist, who served as President of Burkina Faso from his coup in 1983 to his deposition a ...

. In May 1984, Zerbo and Lamizana were put on trial for various crimes. Zerbo was sentenced to 15 years in prison. During his imprisonment, Zerbo converted from

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

.Saye Zerbo, président of the republic from 1980 to 1982 (article in French)
"At once stopped, Saye Zerbo is thrown in prison. After his imprisonment, the deposed president contemplated and read the Qu'ran through whole nights. He also asked for the Bible that the archbishop of Ouagadougou, the cardinal Paul Zoungrana, had offered to him at the time of the first Christmas following his takeover. At this point in time he had the revelation which changed his life. In a mystical dash, Saye Zerbo was brought to his knees, returned thanks to God and converted to Christianity. His entire family did the same thing thereafter." He was released from jail in August 1985. After

Blaise Compaoré Blaise Compaoré (born 3 February 1951)''Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders'' (2003), page 76–77.

had deposed Sankara he sought Zerbo's advice. Zerbo's conviction from 1984 was annulled on 18 February 1997 by the supreme court of Burkina Faso. Zerbo's third daughter Araba Kadidiatou Zerbo is married to the former

Prime Minister of Burkina Faso This is a list of prime ministers of Burkina Faso since the formation of the post of Prime Minister of the Republic of Upper Volta in 1971 to the present day. A total of fifteen people have served as Prime Minister of Upper Volta/Burkina Faso ...

Paramanga Ernest Yonli.

External links

Le faso article about Zerbo

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zerbo, Saye École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr alumni French military personnel of the First Indochina War French military personnel of the Algerian War People of French West Africa Burkinabé military personnel Burkinabé former Muslims Burkinabé politicians Heads of state of Burkina Faso Prime Ministers of Burkina Faso Foreign ministers of Burkina Faso Leaders who took power by coup Leaders ousted by a coup 1932 births Burkinabé prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Burkina Faso Burkinabé Christians Converts to Christianity from Islam 2013 deaths People from Boucle du Mouhoun Region 21st-century Burkinabé people