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 ...
on 24 April 2005, following the death in office of long-time president
Gnassingbé Eyadéma
Gnassingbé Eyadéma (; born Étienne Eyadéma Gnassingbé, 26 December 1935 – 5 February 2005) was a Togolese military officer and politician who served as the third president of Togo from 1967 until his death in 2005, after which he was immed ...
Emmanuel Bob-Akitani
Emmanuel Bob-Akitani (July 18, 1930 UFC website, May 27, 2003 . – May 16, 2011
. The elections and the preceding period were marked by violence, with many people reported killed in various incidents. According to the official results, Gnassingbé won the election, taking slightly more than 60% of the vote. Violence flared in the capital
Lomé
Lomé ( , ) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in Togo, largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437
after the results were announced, and thousands fled into neighboring countries.
Background
The death of Eyadéma on 5 February 2005 was followed by the naming of his son, Faure, as president. This move was taken first by the military, ostensibly to ensure stability, and subsequently legalized—at least ostensibly—by Gnassingbé's election as President of the National Assembly by the National Assembly, which was controlled by the ruling Rally for the Togolese People (RPT). The National Assembly subsequently changed the
constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed.
When these pri ...
so that elections would not need to be held within 60 days, allowing Faure to serve out the remainder of his father's term, which would have expired in 2008. These events were branded an unconstitutional coup by many, who thought that the National Assembly president at the time of Eyadéma's death,
Fambaré Ouattara Natchaba
Fambaré Ouattara Natchaba (17 April 1945 – 15 October 2020) was a Togolese politician. He was the President of the National Assembly of Togo from September 2000 to February 2005. He was a prominent member of the ruling Rally of the Togolese Peo ...
, should have taken power in accordance with the constitution. Under heavy pressure from other countries in the region, Gnassingbé stepped down on 25 February and was replaced by
Faure was formally chosen as the party's candidate immediately prior to his resignation on 25 February. The main opposition leader,
Gilchrist Olympio
Gilchrist Olympio (born 26 December 1936) is a Togolese politician who was a long-time opponent of the regime of Gnassingbé Eyadéma and was President of the Union of Forces for Change (UFC), Togo's main opposition party from the 1990s until 201 ...
, was barred from standing due to a provision that a presidential candidate must have lived in the country for twelve months prior to the election; Olympio had been in exile, and his party, the
Union of Forces for Change
The Union of Forces for Change () is an opposition political party in Togo. The President of the UFC was Gilchrist Olympio2003 elections, receiving just over a third of the vote. Olympio returned to the country from exile on 19 March and endorsed Bob-Akitani's candidacy. Harry Olympio of the Rally for the Support of Democracy and Development (RSDD) said in mid-March that he would be a candidate; he pointed to Bob-Akitani's advanced age in saying that Togo needed youthful leadership. Gnassingbé, at age 38, was even younger than Harry Olympio, and also tried to use this to his advantage by stressing the need for youthful leadership. Another candidate,
Kofi Yamgnane
Kofi Martin Yamgnane (born 11 October 1945) is a French-Togolese politician and engineer.
Biography
Yamgnane was born in 1945 in Bassar, Togo. A member of the Bassar ethnic group in central Togo, he attended a missionary school as his early educ ...
, withdrew from the race in favor of Bob-Akitani on 23 March.
Candidates had until 26 March to register, and campaigning took place from 8 to 22 April. The opposition demanded the postponement of the elections, and continued to do so after the
Independent National Electoral Commission Independent National Electoral Commission may refer to:
*Independent National Electoral Commission (Burundi)
*Independent National Electoral Commission (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
*Independent National Electoral Commission (Guinea)
The Inde ...
said on 23 March that the elections would go ahead as scheduled. Demonstrations both for and against the 24 April date were held on 26 March. Voter registration began on 28 March; complaining of irregularities in the registration process, on 29 March minor candidates Harry Olympio and Nicolas Lawson of the Party for Renewal and Redemption (PRR) also called for the election to be delayed by one month. Harry Olympio alleged that some opposition supporters were not being allowed to register, that voter cards issued for deceased individuals were being distributed and that people were being intimidated by the army, predicting "massive electoral fraud", and said that failure to postpone the election would result in a call for revolution.
On 16 April, seven people—six from the ruling party and one from the opposition—were reportedly killed in clashes between supporters of the two sides. Each side accused the other of provoking the violence.
A few days before the elections, Interior Minister Francois Boko said it would be "suicidal" to hold the elections as planned and called for it to be postponed. He also called for a transitional government to be set up that would last for one or two years with an opposition Prime Minister. This call was quickly rejected by interim president
, who also said that Boko would be replaced as Interior Minister. Bob-Akitani, who also wanted the elections postponed, called Boko's action "courageous". Following Boko's statement, Lawson withdrew his candidacy.
On 25 April Gnassingbé and Gilchrist Olympio reportedly reached a deal providing for the establishment of a government of national unity, regardless of who won the election, but this was later denied by the opposition.
Conduct
As the voting ended on 24 April, three people were reported to have been killed. Each side accused the other of disruption and stuffing ballot boxes.
Results
On 26 April provisional results were announced; Gnassingbé had won with 60.22% of the vote, with Bob-Akitani coming in second with 38.19%. Harry Olympio received only 0.55% of the vote, while Lawson took 1.04% despite having withdrawn from the race. 63.6% of registered voters participated in the elections. The constitutional court confirmed Gnassingbé's win on 3 May, when official results were released.
Aftermath
On 27 April eleven people were reported dead and 95 injured in clashes as supporters of the opposition battled the police in Lomé. Bob-Akitani subsequently declared himself President, claiming to have actually taken 70% of the vote. By 29 April approximately 100 people were reported to have been killed, many in the town of
Aného
Aného, previously known as Anecho, Petit Popo or Little Popo, is a town in southeastern Togo, lying on the Gulf of Guinea near the border of Benin. It is situated 45 km east of the capital Lomé, between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Togo in ...
, near the border with
Benin
Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...
. While Lomé was reported to be calmer than immediately after the election, armed men shot into the German cultural center before burning the building down on the evening of 28 April.
Gnassingbé was sworn in as president on 4 May. The Togolese League of Human Rights said later in May that 790 people had been killed and 4,345 had been hurt in the violence covering the period from 28 March to 5 May, a figure considerably higher than previous estimates of a death toll of about 100. An official commission of inquiry into the violence has been ordered by the government, the results of which are planned to be made public within three months. About 24,000 people are said to have fled into neighboring
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
and
Benin
Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...
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 ...