HISTORY
The Ewes
moved into the area which is now Togo from the Niger River valley
between the 12th and 14th centuries. During the 15th and 16th
centuries, Portuguese explorers and traders visited the coast.
For the next 200 years, the coastal region was a major raiding
center for Europeans in search of slaves, earning Togo and the
surrounding region the name "The Slave Coast." In an
1884 treaty signed at Togoville, Germany declared a protectorate
over a stretch of territory along the coast and gradually extended
its control inland. Because it became Germany's only self-supporting
colony, Togoland was known as its model possession. In 1914, Togoland
was invaded by French and British forces and fell after brief
resistance. Following the war, Togoland became a League of Nations
mandate divided for administrative purposes between France and
the United Kingdom.
After
World War II, the mandate became a UN trust territory administered
by the United Kingdom and France. During the mandate and trusteeship
periods, western Togo was administered as part of the British
Gold Coast. In 1957, the residents of British Togoland voted to
join the Gold Coast as part of the new independent nation of Ghana.
By statute
in 1955, French Togo became an autonomous republic within the
French union, although it retained its UN trusteeship status.
A legislative assembly elected by universal adult suffrage had
considerable power over internal affairs, with an elected executive
body headed by a prime minister responsible to the legislature.
These changes were embodied in a constitution approved in a 1956
referendum. On September 10, 1956, Nicholas Grunitzky became prime
minister of the Republic of Togo. However, due to irregularities
in the plebiscite, an unsupervised general election was held in
1958 and won by Sylvanus Olympio. On April 27, 1960, in a smooth
transition, Togo severed its constitutional ties with France,
shed its UN trusteeship status, and became fully independent under
a provisional constitution with Olympio as president.
A new
constitution in 1961 established an executive president, elected
for 7 years by universal suffrage and a weak National Assembly.
The president was empowered to appoint ministers and dissolve
the assembly, holding a monopoly of executive power. In elections
that year, from which Grunitzky's party was disqualified, Olympio's
party won 90% of the vote and all 51 National Assembly seats,
and he became Togo's first elected president.
During
this period, four principal political parties existed in Togo:
the leftist Juvento (Togolese youth movement); the Union Democratique
des Populations Togolaises (IDPT); the Parti Togolais Du Progres
(PTP), founded by Grunitzky but having limited support; and the
Unite Togolaise (UT), the party of President Olympio. Rivalries
between elements of these parties had begun as early as the 1940s,
and they came to a head with Olympio dissolving the opposition
parties in January 1962 ostensibly because of plots against the
majority party government. Many opposition members, including
Grunitzky, fled to avoid arrest.
On January
13, 1963, President Olympio was assassinated in an uprising of
army non-commissioned officers dissatisfied with conditions following
their discharge from the French army. Grunitzky returned from
exile 2 days later to head a provisional government with the title
of prime minister. On May 5, 1963, the Togolese adopted a new
constitution which reinstated a multi-party system, chose deputies
from all political parties for the National Assembly, and elected
Grunitzky as president and Antoine Meatchi as vice president.
Nine days later, President Grunitzky formed a government in which
all parties were represented.
During
the next several years, the Grunitzky government's power became
insecure. On November 21, 1966, an attempt to overthrow Grunitzky,
inspired principally by civilian political opponents in the UT
party, was unsuccessful. Grunitzky then tried to lessen his reliance
on the army, but on January 13, 1967, Lt. Col. Etienne Eyadema
(later Gen. Gnassingbe Eyadema) ousted President Grunitzky in
a bloodless military coup. Political parties were banned, and
all constitutional processes were suspended. The committee of
national reconciliation ruled the country until April 14, when
Eyadema assumed the presidency. In late 1969, a single national
political party, the Assembly of the Togolese People (RPT), was
created, and President Eyadema was elected party president on
November 29, 1969. In 1972, a national referendum, in which Eyadema
ran unopposed, confirmed his role as the country's president.
In late
1979, Eyadema declared a third republic and a transition to greater
civilian rule with a mixed civilian and military cabinet. He garnered
99.97% of the vote in uncontested presidential elections held
in late 1979 and early 1980. A new constitution also provided
for a national assembly to serve primarily as a consultative body.
Eyadema was reelected to a third consecutive 7-year term in December
1986 with 99.5% of the vote in an uncontested election. On September
23, 1986, a group of some 70 armed Togolese dissidents crossed
into Lome from Ghana in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the
Eyadema government.
In 1989
and 1990, Togo, like many other countries, was affected by the
winds of democratic change sweeping eastern Europe and the Soviet
Union. On October 5, 1990, the trial of students who handed out
antigovernment tracts sparked riots in Lome. Antigovernment demonstrations
and violent clashes with the security forces marked the months
that followed. In April 1991, the government began negotiations
with newly formed opposition groups and agreed to a general amnesty
that permitted exiled political opponents to return to Togo. After
a general strike and further demonstrations, the government and
opposition signed an agreement to hold a "national forum"
on June 12, 1991.
The national
forum, dominated by opponents of President Eyadema, opened in
July 1991 and immediately declared itself to be a sovereign "National
Conference." Although subjected to severe harassment from
the government, the conference drafted an interim constitution
calling for a 1-year transitional regime tasked with organizing
free elections for a new government. The conference selected Joseph
Kokou Koffigoh, a lawyer and human rights group head, as transitional
prime minister but kept President Eyadema as chief of state for
the transition, although with limited powers.
A test
of wills between the president and his opponents followed over
the next 3 years during which President Eyadema gradually gained
the upper hand. Frequent political paralysis and intermittent
violence marked this period. Following a vote by the transitional
legislature (High Council of the Republic) to dissolve the President's
political party--the RPT--in November 1991, the army attacked
the prime minister's office on December 3 and captured the prime
minister. Koffigoh then formed a second transition government
in January 1992 with substantial participation by ministers from
the President's party. Opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio, son
of the slain president Sylvanus Olympio, was ambushed and seriously
wounded apparently by soldiers on May 5, 1992.
In July
and August 1992, a commission composed of presidential and opposition
representatives negotiated a new political agreement. On September
27, the public overwhelmingly approved the text of a new, democratic
constitution, formally initiating Togo's fourth republic.
The democratic
process was set back in October 1992, when elements of the army
held the interim legislature hostage for 24 hours. This effectively
put an end to the interim legislature. In retaliation, on November
16, opposition political parties and labor unions declared a general
strike intended to force President Eyadema to agree to satisfactory
conditions for elections. The general strike largely shut down
Lome for months and resulted in severe damage to the economy.
In January
1993, President Eyadema declared the transition at an end and
reappointed Koffigoh as prime minister under Eyadema's authority.
This set off public demonstrations, and, on January 25, members
of the security forces fired on peaceful demonstrators, killing
at least 19. In the ensuing days, several security force members
were waylaid and injured or killed by civilian oppositionists.
On January 30, 1994, elements of the military went on an 8-hour
rampage throughout Lome, firing indiscriminately and killing at
least 12 people. This incident provoked more than 300,000 Togolese
to flee Lome for Benin, Ghana, or the interior of Togo. Although
most had returned by early 1996, some still remain abroad.
On March
25, 1993, armed Togolese dissident commandos based in Ghana attacked
Lome's main military camp and tried unsuccessfully to kill President
Eyadema. They inflicted significant casualties, however, which
set off lethal reprisals by the military against soldiers thought
to be associated with the attackers.
Under
substantial domestic and foreign pressure and the burden of the
general strike, the presidential faction entered negotiations
with the opposition in early 1993. Four rounds of talks led to
the July 11 Ouagadougou agreement setting forth conditions for
upcoming presidential and legislative elections and ending the
general strike as of August 3, 1993. The presidential elections
were set for August 25, but hasty and inadequate technical preparations,
concerns about fraud, and the lack of effective campaign organization
by the opposition led the chief opposition candidates--former
minister and Organization of African Unity Secretary General Edem
Kodjo and lawyer Yawovi Agboyibo--to drop out of the race before
election day and to call for a boycott. President Eyadema won
the elections by a 96.42% vote against token opposition. About
36% of the voters went to the polls; the others boycotted.
Ghana-based
armed dissidents launched a new commando attack on military sites
in Lome in January 1994. President Eyadema was unhurt, and the
attack and subsequent reaction by the Togolese armed forces resulted
in hundreds of deaths, mostly civilian. The government went ahead
with legislative elections on February 6 and February 20, 1994.
In generally free and fair polls as witnessed by international
observers, the allied opposition parties UTD and CAR together
won a narrow majority in the National Assembly. On April 22, President
Eyadema named Edem Kodjo, the head of the smaller opposition party,
the UTD, as prime minister instead of Yawovi Agboyibo, whose CAR
party had far more seats. Kodjo's acceptance of the post of prime
minister provoked the CAR to break the opposition alliance and
refuse to join the Kodjo government.
Kodjo
was then forced to form a governing coalition with the RPT. Kodjo's
government emphasized economic recovery, building democratic institutions
and the rule of law and the return of Togolese refugees abroad.
In early 1995, the government made slow progress toward its goals,
aided by the CAR's August 1995 decision to end a 9-month boycott
of the National Assembly. However, Kodjo was forced to reshuffle
his government in late 1995, strengthening the representation
by Eyadema's RPT party, and he resigned in August 1996. Since
then, Eyadema has reemerged with a sure grip on power, controlling
most aspects of government.
In the
June 1998 presidential election, the government prevented citizens
from effectively exercising the right to vote. The Interior Ministry
declared Eyadema the winner with 52% of the vote in the 1998 election;
however, serious irregularities in the government's conduct of
the election strongly favored the incumbent and appear to have
affected the outcome materially. Although the government did not
obstruct the functioning of political opponents openly, the President
used the strength of the military and his government allies to
intimidate and harass citizens and opposition groups. The government
and the state remained highly centralized: President Eyadema's
national government appointed the officials and controlled the
budgets of all subnational government entities, including prefectures
and municipalities, and influenced the selection of traditional
chiefs.
The second
multi-party legislative elections of Eyadema's 33-year rule were
held on March 21, 1999. However, the opposition boycotted the
election, in which the ruling party won 79 of the 81 seats in
the National Assembly. Those two seats went to candidates from
little-known independent parties. Procedural problems and significant
fraud, particularly misrepresentation of voter turnout marred
the legislative elections.
After
the legislative election, the government announced that it would
continue to pursue dialog with the opposition. In June 1999, the
RPT and opposition parties met in Paris, in the presence of facilitators
representing France, Germany, the European Union, and La Francophonie
(an international organization of French-speaking countries),
to agree on security measures for formal negotiations in Lome.
In July 1999, the government and the opposition began discussions,
and on July 29, 1999, all sides signed an accord called the "Lome
Framework Agreement," which included a pledge by President
Eyadema that he would respect the constitution and not seek another
term as president after his current one expires in 2003. The accord
also called for the negotiation of a legal status for opposition
leaders, as well as for former heads of state (such as their immunity
from prosecution for acts in office). In addition, the accord
addressed the rights and duties of political parties and the media,
the safe return of refugees, and the security of all citizens.
The accord also contained a provision for compensating victims
of political violence. The President also agreed to dissolve the
National Assembly in March and hold new legislative elections,
which would be supervised by an independent national election
commission (CENI) and which would use the single-ballot method
to protect against some of the abuses of past elections. However,
the March 2000 date passed without presidential action, and new
legislative elections were ultimately rescheduled for October
2001. Because of funding problems and disagreements between the
government and opposition, the elections were again delayed, this
time until March 2002.
In May
2002 the government scrapped CENI, blaming the opposition for
its inability to function. In its stead, the government appointed
seven magistrates to oversee preparations for legislative elections.
Not surprisingly, the opposition announced it would boycott them.
Held in October, as a result of the opposition’s boycott
the government party won more than two-thirds of the seats in
the National Assembly. In December 2002, Eyadema’s government
used this rubber-stamp parliament to amend Togo’s constitution,
allowing President Eyadema to run for an "unlimited"
number of terms. A further amendment stated that candidates must
reside in the country for at least 12 months before an election,
a provision that barred the participation in the upcoming presidential
election of popular Union des Forces du Progres (UFC) candidate,
Gilchrist Olympio, who had been in exile since 1992. The presidential
election was held June 1. President Eyadema was re-elected with
57% of the votes, amid allegations of widespread vote rigging.
On April
14, 2004, the Government of Togo signed an agreement with the
European Union that included 22 commitments the Government of
Togo must honor as a precondition for resumption of EU aid. Among
the most important of these commitments are a constructive national
dialogue between the Government of Togo and the traditional opposition
parties, and free and democratic legislative elections.
By November
2004, Togo had made modest progress on some commitments, releasing
500 prisoners, removing prison sentences from most provisions
of the Press Code, and initiating a dialogue with the core opposition
parties. Consultations were ongoing with the European Union with
regard to when and how to resume development cooperation.
On Friday,
February 4, 2005 President Gnassingbe Eyadema died. In an unconstitutional
move, the military leadership swore in as President Faure Gnassingbe,
the late President Eyadema's son. Immediate condemnation by African
leaders followed by sanctions of the Economic Community of West
African States and the African Union combined with pressure from
the international community led finally to a decision on February
25 for Faure Gnassingbe to step down. Protest efforts by the public
included a large demonstration in Lomé that was permitted
to proceed peacefully. Prior to stepping down, Gnassingbe was
selected as leader of the ruling party and named as a candidate
in the announced presidential elections to choose a successor
to Eyadema. Abass Bonfoh, National Assembly Vice President, was
selected to serve as Speaker of the National Assembly and therefore
simultaneously became interim President. Real power apparently
was retained by Gnassingbe as he continued to use the offices
of the President while the interim President operated from the
National Assembly.
Deeply flawed elections were held in April 2005, marred by violence and widespread accusations of vote tampering, and causing tens of thousands of Togolese to flee to neighboring Benin and Ghana. Faure Gnassingbe was pronounced the winner, and was pressed by the international community--including regional heads of state--to form a government of national unity, including key opposition figures. After Gnassingbe failed to reach agreement with the opposition, he named as Prime Minister Edem Kodjo, a founder of the ruling RPT and former OAU Secretary-General and Togolese Prime Minister. Kodjo subsequently named a Cabinet that kept security-related ministries in the hands of the RPT and did not include any representatives from the genuine opposition.
In August 2006 President Gnassingbe and members of the opposition signed the Global Political Agreement (GPA), bringing an end to the political crisis trigged by Gnassingbe Eyadema's death in February 2005 and the flawed and violent electoral process that followed. The GPA provided for a transitional unity government whose primary purpose would be to prepare for benchmark legislative elections. CAR opposition party leader and human rights lawyer Yawovi Agboyibo was appointed Prime Minister of the transitional government in September 2006. Leopold Gnininvi, president of the CDPA party, was appointed minister of state for mines and energy. The third opposition party, UFC, headed by Gilchrist Olympio, declined to join the government, but agreed to participate in the national electoral commission and the National Dialogue follow-up committee, chaired by Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore.
The legislative elections held on October 14, 2007, in which all opposition parties participated, were declared free and fair by international and national election observers. The RPT, with 50 seats, won a majority. The UFC took 27 seats, with the CAR receiving the remaining 4. RPT members were elected to all the internal leadership positions within the National Assembly.
On December 3, 2007, President Gnassingbe appointed as the new Prime Minister Komlan Mally, an RPT member and former Minister of Urban Development. The President named the rest of his cabinet on December 13, 2007 from the RPT and a number of lesser parties. The number of ministries was reduced substantially, down to 22 from 35. The other two parties elected to the National Assembly, the UFC and CAR, are not represented in the cabinet.
On September 5, 2008, Prime Minister Mally submitted his resignation to President Faure, who named Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo, formerly of the UNDP, to the position two days later. The rest of the cabinet was named on September 16, 2008 and is composed of members of the RPT, the CDPA, the CPP, and civil society. The number of ministers rose from 22 to 26, plus two secretaries of state.
