The 1981 Gambian coup d'état attempt began on 30 July 1981 and was quashed in early August following a Senegalese military intervention. The insurrection was carried out by members of the

Gambia Socialist Revolutionary Party The Gambia Socialist Revolutionary Party (GSRP) was a communist party in the West African state of The Gambia, most noted for leading a failed insurrection in 1981 against the government of Dawda Jawara. Origins and ban The GSRP was formed i ...

and disaffected staff of the

Gambia Field Force The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

. At the time, President

Dawda Jawara Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara (16 May 1924 – 27 August 2019) was a Gambian politician who served as prime minister from 1962 to 1970, and then as the first President of The Gambia from 1970 to 1994, when he was overthrown by Yahya Jammeh. Jawa ...

was in the United Kingdom attending the

wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer The wedding of Prince Charles (later King Charles III) and Lady Diana Spencer took place on Wednesday, 29 July 1981, at St Paul's Cathedral in London, United Kingdom. The groom was the heir apparent to the British throne, and the bride was a mem ...

. The failure of the coup precipitated the creation of the

Senegambia Confederation Senegambia, officially the Senegambia Confederation or Confederation of Senegambia, was a loose confederation in the late 20th century between the West African countries of Senegal and its neighbour The Gambia, which is almost completely sur ...

in 1982. The coup attempt led to the loss of 500–1,000 lives.

Origins

Dissatisfaction in the Field Force

The British colonial government had disbanded the Gambia Regiment due to cost concerns in 1958 and created a paramilitary unit of 140 police called the Gambia Field Force. By 1981, the Force was officially made up of 358 police, but may have actually numbered as many as 500. On 27 October 1980, Deputy Commander E. J. Mahoney was murdered by Private Mustapha Danso, at the Bakau Depot. The government explained the incident as a solitary act of mutiny, but still invoked the 1965 common defence agreement with Senegal, leading to the deployment of 150 troops on a joint training exercise called 'Operation Foday Kabba I' for one week. Furthermore, that between one-third and one-half of the Field Force would subsequently participate in the attempted coup, including the recently retired assistant commissioner Ousman Bojang, suggested that dissatisfaction within the Force was widespread.

Opposition

The Gambian government was concerned about the foreign policy of Libyan leader

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...

in the region. The Libyan embassy in Banjul had been increasing in size and it was believed that it was supporting local dissidents, including the socialist newspaper ''The Voice''. As early as July 1980, the Libyans had been accused of providing military training to Gambians who had been recruited by Senegalese rebel leader, Sheikh Ahmed Niasse of Kaolack. On 29 October 1980, the Libyan embassy was shut down and diplomatic relations were broken off. The background for the rebels involved in the attempted coup came from the Gambia Socialist Revolutionary Party (GSRP), founded in early 1980 by Gibril L. George, a former businessman. This party was joined by

Kukoi Sanyang Kukoi Samba Sanyang (1952 – 18 June 2013) was a Gambian politician and leader of the unsuccessful 1981 coup d'état against the government of Dawda Jawara. Early years Sanyang was born in the village of Wassadu in the district of Foni Jarrol. ...

, a former National Convention Party politician who had traveled to

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. After being declared unlawful on 30 October 1980, the party became the Gambia Underground Socialist Revolutionary Workers Party (GUSRWP), and committed itself to overthrow of the Gambian government. Supposed members of the GUSRWP who swore to overthrow the Gambian government included 10 civilians and 36 Field Force officers. The ideology of the group was a form of Marxist-Leninist and radical

pan-Africanist Pan-Africanism is a nationalist movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all indigenous peoples and diasporas of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the Trans-Sa ...

thinking. They spoke of "Victory for the Gambian revolutionary struggle under the dictatorship of the proletariat and the leadership of a Marxist-Leninist party" and of "Death to

neocolonialism Neocolonialism is the control by a state (usually, a former colonial power) over another nominally independent state (usually, a former colony) through indirect means. The term ''neocolonialism'' was first used after World War II to refer to ...

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

and

fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

Timeline

Build-up to the coup attempt

Covert meetings in Serekunda were held in late July, led by Kukoi Sanyang, to plan the coup. Of the 15 members of this group, at least five had been involved in the Field Force. A number were also employed as taxi drivers - lending the name 'taxi driver's coup'. The plotters waited until President

was out of the country to attend the

in London before launching the coup d'état.

Coup attempt

In the early hours of July 30th, 1981, the coup began. Kukoi Sanyang and 10 accomplices made their way on foot to the Bakau Field Force Depot from Serekunda, five miles away. They broke into the depot using wire cutters and met up with a conspirator in the Field Force - Momodou Sonko - who let them into the armoury. Armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, the group were able to take the Depot and collected Ousman Bojang, the former Assistant Commander. A number of disaffected Field Force officers also joined them, but the greater number fled. Once the Depot was taken, the rebels moved onto other targets of importance. By dawn, they had secured the Radio Gambia buildings, Yundum airport, and the State House in Banjul. Civilian supporters of the group were given weapons at the armoury in order to assist the coup.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1981 Gambian coup d'état attempt 1981 in the Gambia 1980s coups d'état and coup attempts Attempted coups d'état in the Gambia Communist rebellions Conflicts in 1981 Military history of the Gambia Politics of the Gambia