Diarra Traoré (1935 – 8 July 1985) was a

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

n soldier and politician. He served as Prime Minister of Guinea briefly in 1984 as a member of a junta led by

Lansana Conté Lansana Conté (; 30 November 1934 – 22 December 2008

. In 1985, after Traoré attempted a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

against President Conté, Conté had him executed.

Career

Traoré received his military training at the French school in

Fréjus Fréjus (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Var (department), Var Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, Var, Saint-Raphaël ...

. After Guinea gained its independence in 1958, he was first given command of the garrison at Koundara, then the

Futa Jalon Fouta Djallon (, , ; ) is a Highland (geography), highland region in the center of Guinea, roughly corresponding with Middle Guinea, in West Africa. Etymology The Fulani people call the region Fouta Jallon Kingdom, Fuuta-Jaloo ( ) in the Pular l ...

region. However, President

Ahmed Sékou Touré Ahmed Sékou Touré (var. Sheku Turay or Ture; N'Ko: ; 9 January 1922 – 26 March 1984) was a Guinean political leader and African statesman who was the first president of Guinea from 1958 until his death in 1984. Touré was among the primary ...

did not trust him, so he was discharged from the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

. Traoré became a regional governor, being moved around regularly to various postings. In the late 1970s, he joined the Democratic Party of Guinea (PDG, ''Parti Démocratique de Guinée''). At the death of Ahmed Sékou Touré in March 1984, on 3 April, Traoré supported a ''

'' led by Lieutenant Colonel

Lansana Conté Lansana Conté (; 30 November 1934 – 22 December 2008

. The coup ousted interim President

Louis Lansana Beavogui Louis Lansana Beavogui (; 28 December 1923 – 19 August 1984) was a Guinean politician. He was Prime Minister from 1972 to 1984 and was briefly interim President in 1984. Background and political career Beavogui, a member of the Toma ethni ...

and the PDG. Conté made himself President and appointed Traoré Prime Minister. Conté, Traoré and others governed as the

Military Committee of National Restoration The Military Committee of National Restoration (, CMRN) was the ruling junta of Guinea which, led by Colonel Lansana Conté, seized power in a coup d'état on 3 April 1984, following the death of President Ahmed Sékou Touré on 26 March. It was c ...

(CMRN). A few months later, however, Conté demoted Traoré to Minister of State for National Education. On 4 July 1985, Traoré attempted to overthrow Conté, who was attending a summit in

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

, but was quickly thwarted by loyal troops. Traoré went into hiding, but Conté's forces swiftly captured him and showed him on television being brutally assaulted. Traoré and about one hundred other military personnel, many of them also ethnic

Malinké The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group primarily found in southern Mali, The Gambia, southern Senegal and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 11 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the largest eth ...

like Traoré, were executed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Traore, Diarra 1935 births 1985 deaths Executed prime ministers Executed military personnel Executed Guinean people 20th-century executions by Guinea 20th-century Guinean politicians

Career

See also

References