Mahamat Abdoul Kadre Oumar, better known as Baba Laddé ("father of the bush" in the

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...

language used to designate the lion) is a Chadian Fulani rebel opposing the Chadian regime of

Idriss Déby Idriss Déby Itno ( '; 18 June 1952 – 20 April 2021) was a Chadian politician and military officer who was the sixth List of heads of state of Chad, president of Chad from 1991 until his death in 2021 during the 2021 Northern Chad offensive, No ...

. He is sometimes referred to as Abdel Kader Baba Laddé.

Biography

He was born on July 21, 1970, in

Gounou Gaya Gounou Gaya () is a town in Chad. It is the capital of the Kabbia department in Mayo-Kebbi Est Region, and is served by an airport.Mayo-Kebbi East and is of

ethnicity. Gendarme, he went into rebellion on October 15, 1998, by founding an armed group, the Popular Front for Recovery (PFR). He was imprisoned for the first time from November 1998 to September 1999. He then took refuge in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

for several years. He joined

Darfur Darfur ( ; ) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju () while ruled by the Daju, who migrated from Meroë , and it was renamed Dartunjur () when the Tunjur ruled the area. ...

with his PFR fighters from 2006 to 2008 alongside other rebel groups. For a few months, he was the Defense Commissioner of the Forces unies pour le changement (FUC) coalition, the coalition bringing together most of these groups. In 2008, he joined the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

with his men. He was arrested by Chadian forces in

Bangui Bangui (; or Bangî in Sango language, Sango, formerly written Bangi in English) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in the Central African Republic, largest city of the Central African Republic. It was established as a Fren ...

in 2009 while taking part in negotiations, but imprisoned in

N'Djamena N'Djamena ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Chad, largest city of Chad. It is also a Provinces of Chad, special statute region, divided into 10 districts or ''arrondissements'', similar to the city of Paris. Originally calle ...

, he managed to escape in 2010. On December 23, 2011, in an article entitled "Central African Republic: Laddé, the man who wants to liberate the Peuls", the newspaper

Jeune Afrique ''Jeune Afrique'' (English: ''Young Africa'') is a French-language pan-African weekly news magazine, founded in 1960 in Tunis and subsequently published in Paris by Jeune Afrique Media Group. It is the most widely read pan-African magazine. It o ...

affirms that Baba Laddé wants to unite the Fulani movements with

AQIM Al-Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (, ), or AQIM, is an Islamist militant organization (of al-Qaeda) that aims to overthrow the Algerian government and institute an Islamic state. To that end, it was then engaged in an insurgency c ...

, the

Polisario Front The Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (Spanish language, Spanish: ; ), better known by its acronym Polisario Front, is a Sahrawi nationalism, Sahrawi nationalist liberation movement seeking to end the occupatio ...

, the Tuaregs and the separatists of the

Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; , ) is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region. It is also natively referred to as Soomaali Galbeed (). The region forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia ...

. However, it could be a disinformation campaign to discredit the Chadian opposition. On January 23, 2012, Chadian and Central African armies launched an offensive against his bases located near Kaga-Bandoro,

Kabo Kabo is a town in the northern Central African Republic, lying north west of Kaga Bandoro. It is a market town and the border post for Chad. History The northern nomads in the Central African Republic resented the central government and a rebe ...

, Ouandago, Gondava (north-central Central African Republic), causing losses among PFR rebels, civilians and military from both countries. Baba Laddé and most of his men then left the area.

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

claims on March 7, 2012, that 16,000 people have been displaced as a result of these clashes, in May the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

mentions of 22,000 displaced. According to researcher Roland Marchal, “What is different is the fact that he (Baba Laddé) was able to have a political discourse that was not confined within the borders of the Central African Republic, and within the localist claims. He developed an argument on the marginalization of Fulani Bororos pastoralists." In an interview with

Radio France Internationale Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the State media, state-owned international radio news network of France. With 59.5 million listeners in 2022, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world ...

on February 28, 2012, Baba Laddé affirms that his new objective is to overthrow the Chadian and Central African regimes. At that moment, the Romanian mercenary

Horațiu Potra Horațiu Potra (born 1970, Mediaș, Socialist Republic of Romania) is a Romanian-French security expert, businessman, mercenary, and political figure. He served in the French Foreign Legion, later working as a security chief for political fig ...

, a former legionary, offered to help him. On March 16, 2012,

Pierre Buyoya Pierre Buyoya (24 November 1949 – 17 December 2020) was a Burundian army officer and politician who served two terms as President of Burundi in 1987 to 1993 and 1996 to 2003. He was the second-longest-serving president in Burundian history. An ...

, former president of

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

, affirmed “As for Baba Laddé, we have known for a long time that he is a bandit, a coupeur de route. I am surprised to see that he now has political demands. Is he manipulated? Maybe." According to

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

of April 20, 2012, and

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

, Baba Laddé and his men were on that date in the south-east of the Central African Republic, in the area where the

Lord's Resistance Army The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) is a Christian extremist organization operating in Central Africa and East Africa. Its origins were in the War in Uganda (1986–1994), Ugandan insurgency (1986–1994) against Yoweri Museveni, during which Jo ...

is operating. On June 1, 2012, Baba Laddé told Radio France Internationale that he was in

South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya; and on the ...

. He settled in Boro Madina (or Boro Medina) in the state of

Western Bahr el Ghazal Western Bahr el Ghazal is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of and as of 2020 has estimated 600,000 in population. It is part of the Bahr el Ghazal region. Its capital is Wau. The state shared international borders with Sudan to the north ...

, in

Raga county Raga County is a county in Western Bahr el Ghazal state, in the Bahr el Ghazal region of South Sudan. It is the largest county in the nation. In Arabic, Raga County can be known as "Raja". Geography Raga County is located in the northwestern part ...

. On July 23, 2012, Idriss Déby told Jeune Afrique that Baba Laddé "is a former Chadian gendarme who became a coupeur de route and trafficker in ivory, he is not a rebel, as some media claim, but a great bandit. This kind of character does not constitute a threat to

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

. For the Central African Republic, maybe." On August 14, 2012,

François Bozizé François Bozizé Yangouvonda (born 14 October 1946) is a Central African Republic, Central African politician who was List of heads of state of the Central African Republic, President of the Central African Republic from 2003 to 2013. He was th ...

reaffirmed to Radio France Internationale that Baba Laddé was in South Sudan. On September 2, 2012, Baba Laddé surrendered to the Central African authorities in the town of Ippy after announcing a few days before his return to the Central African Republic that he wanted to negotiate with the Chadian and Central African governments. He was officially welcomed in Bangui on September 3, then a United Nations plane transferred him to N'Djamena on September 5. On September 8, the communiqué of agreement signifying the surrender of Baba Laddé was signed by the ministers of the interior and of defense of Chad and the Central African Republic. On January 15, 2013, he was appointed advisor in charge of mission in the cabinet of the head of government of Chad. In conflict with the Prime Minister, he went into exile in Nigeria then in Niger in September 2013. He traveled to Benin then to Kenya where he met Jean-Francis Bozizé (son of François Bozizé) in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

in November, then Joachim Kokaté in

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. As the Niamey Urban Community (, CUN), it is a Regions of Niger, first-level division of Niger, surrounded by the Tillabéri Region, in the western part of the country. Niamey lies on the Nige ...

. After negotiations, the Nigerian Toubou Goukouni Zen and the Central African of

Séléka Séléka CPSK-CPJP-UFDR was an alliance of rebel militia groups that subjugated the Central African Republic (CAR) on 24 March 2013. After its official dissolution in September 2013, the remaining rebel groups became known as Ex-Séléka. Sél� ...

Abakar Sabon brought Baba Laddé back to Chad at the end of January 2014. On July 19, 2014, he was appointed prefect of the department of Grande Sido. On November 24, 2014, like most prefects and sub-prefects of Chadian departments, Baba Laddé was dismissed from his post by decree. But having invested a lot in his department, the population of Maro is opposed to his eviction. A military convoy picks him up on December 1, but he escapes while his wife and bodyguard are beaten. He was then reported on December 5 in Bateldjé, in the Central African Republic between Kabo and

Batangafo Batangafo is a town located in the Central African Republic Prefectures of the Central African Republic, prefecture of Ouham-Fafa at the confluence of Ouham River and its affluent Fafa River, Fafa. History Democratic Front of the Central Africa ...

, where his men would have killed five civilians, a Central African minister affirmed on December 8 that Baba Laddé's presence in the Central African republic is for the moment only a rumor, but on December 10, the United Nations announces that the rebel leader was arrested on December 8 in Kabo by

MINUSCA United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (also called MINUSCA, which is an initialism of its French name Mission multidimensionnelle intégrée des Nations unies pour la stabilisation en C ...

and transferred to Bangui. On the 11th, a former minister, Sheikh Aboulanwar Mahamat Djarma Khatir gave his support to Baba Laddé. He was extradited to Chad on January 2, 2015, and imprisoned in the prison of

Koro Toro Koro Toro is a settlement in the southern Borkou Region of Chad. It hosts the Koro Toro Airport and a "notorious" maximum security desert prison used by the Chadian government to detain captured fighters of Boko Haram and Chadian rebel groups. Acco ...

. In the Central African crisis that began at the end of 2012, some of the RPF fighters joined the Séléka, mainly under the command of Ali Darassa, former right-hand man of Baba Laddé and now at the head of his own Fulani militia, the

Union for Peace in the Central African Republic Union for Peace in the Central African Republic (UPC, ) is a rebel group in the Central African Republic which controls southern parts of the country. History UPC was formed on 17 September 2014 by Ali Darassa from the ex-Séléka elements. ...

. On December 6, 2018, the N'Djamena Court of Appeal sentenced him to 8 years' imprisonment. After serving his sentence in Koro Toro, then at Amsinéné prison in N'Djamena, he was transferred in 2019 to Moussoro. His prison term ends on January 5, 2020, but he is not released until September 7, 2020. On March 3, 2021, the Supreme Court rejected his candidacy for the 2021 presidential election, ruling that his party had not been duly recognized by the Ministry of Territorial Administration. The court also stated that the extract from the criminal record provided by the applicant did not comply with legal requirements. In October 2021, Baba Laddé was appointed director of general intelligence of Chad, position he held for a few months. Arrested again on 26 December 2022, he was released on 17 February 2023.Tchad: l'ancien patron des renseignements généraux Baba Laddé a été relâché
18 February 2023

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ladde, Baba Chadian politicians Living people People from Mayo-Kebbi Est Region 1970 births