14 Through the prism of the cinquantenaire
-
Kathrin Heitz
Abstract
During the first decades of Houphouet-Boigny's rule, Cote d'Ivoire's economy flourished and independence ceremonies were celebrated with glamour and grandeur. In a large part of the population, Houphouet-Boigny acquired the status of a demigod. As another elderly man put it: 'Houphouet is not a man, Houphouet is God'. This chapter describes the cinquantenaire modelled according to this conventional style in the northern part of Cote d'Ivoire. By the time of the cinquantenaire, administrative powers had been effectively transferred to the state administration, although the (ex) rebels remained in charge of crucial elements such as the local armed forces and the tax system. Throughout the programme of the official cinquantenaire, the rhetoric of the 'second independence' has nurtured the theory of French manipulation of Ivoirian politics. The conventional Ivoirian independence celebration was portrayed by the pro-Gbagbo movement as an anachronistic remnant of the 'houphouetist' postcolony.
Abstract
During the first decades of Houphouet-Boigny's rule, Cote d'Ivoire's economy flourished and independence ceremonies were celebrated with glamour and grandeur. In a large part of the population, Houphouet-Boigny acquired the status of a demigod. As another elderly man put it: 'Houphouet is not a man, Houphouet is God'. This chapter describes the cinquantenaire modelled according to this conventional style in the northern part of Cote d'Ivoire. By the time of the cinquantenaire, administrative powers had been effectively transferred to the state administration, although the (ex) rebels remained in charge of crucial elements such as the local armed forces and the tax system. Throughout the programme of the official cinquantenaire, the rhetoric of the 'second independence' has nurtured the theory of French manipulation of Ivoirian politics. The conventional Ivoirian independence celebration was portrayed by the pro-Gbagbo movement as an anachronistic remnant of the 'houphouetist' postcolony.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of illustrations ix
- Abbreviations xi
- Notes on contributors xv
- Acknowledgements xix
- Introduction 1
- 1 Gaston Defferre’s Loi-Cadre and its application, 1956/57 15
- 2 A vocation for independence 30
- 3 French officials and the insecurities of change in sub-Saharan Africa 44
- 4 'Saving French West Africa’ 61
- 5 The French Army and Malian independence (1956–1961) 75
- 6 Transfer of military power in Mauritania 90
-
Part III Continuities and connections
- 7 Franco-African security relations at fifty 107
- 8 French coopération in the field of education (1960–1980) 120
- 9 Jacques Foccart 135
-
Part IV Anglo-French relations
- 10 Whitehall, the French Community and the Year of Africa 155
- 11 A transnational decolonisation 171
-
Part V Nationalist trajectories, border issues and conflicted memories
- 12 The changing boundaries of resistance 189
- 13 A fragmented and forgotten decolonisation 204
- 14 Through the prism of the cinquantenaire 219
- 15 Chad’s political violence at 50 233
- Bibliography 249
- Index 275
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of illustrations ix
- Abbreviations xi
- Notes on contributors xv
- Acknowledgements xix
- Introduction 1
- 1 Gaston Defferre’s Loi-Cadre and its application, 1956/57 15
- 2 A vocation for independence 30
- 3 French officials and the insecurities of change in sub-Saharan Africa 44
- 4 'Saving French West Africa’ 61
- 5 The French Army and Malian independence (1956–1961) 75
- 6 Transfer of military power in Mauritania 90
-
Part III Continuities and connections
- 7 Franco-African security relations at fifty 107
- 8 French coopération in the field of education (1960–1980) 120
- 9 Jacques Foccart 135
-
Part IV Anglo-French relations
- 10 Whitehall, the French Community and the Year of Africa 155
- 11 A transnational decolonisation 171
-
Part V Nationalist trajectories, border issues and conflicted memories
- 12 The changing boundaries of resistance 189
- 13 A fragmented and forgotten decolonisation 204
- 14 Through the prism of the cinquantenaire 219
- 15 Chad’s political violence at 50 233
- Bibliography 249
- Index 275
