Simone Gbagbo
Encyclopedia
Simone Ehivet Gbagbo is an Ivorian
politician. She is the President of the Parliamentary Group of the Ivorian Popular Front
(FPI) and is a Vice-President of the FPI. As the wife of Laurent Gbagbo
, the President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 to 2011, she was also first lady
prior to their arrest by pro-Ouattara forces.
, Côte d'Ivoire, her parents are Jean Ehivet, a local police officer, and Marie Djaha. Simone Gbagbo trained as an historian and earned a third cycle doctorate in oral literature. She worked in applied linguistics
, as a Marxist labor union leader, and is an Evangelical Christian in a church with close ties to the United States
. She is the mother of five daughters, the last two with her current husband Laurent Gbagbo. She has been nicknamed in the Ivorian press the Hillary Clinton des tropiques.
Ehivet Gbagbo participated in the teachers strike movement of 1982, and helped found, with her future husband, the clandestine political group which became the FPI. An active trades union militant in the 1970s, she was imprisoned a number of times during the struggle for multiparty elections.
Following the introduction of multiparty elections, Gbagbo and her husband were arrested for allegedly inciting violence in February 1992 and spent six months in prison. In 1996, she became an FPI Deputy from Abobo (part of Abidjan
) in the National Assembly
; she and her husband were also seriously injured in a car accident around that time.
Re-elected to the National Assembly as an FPI Deputy from Abobo in the December 2000 parliamentary election, Gbagbo is also President of the FPI Parliamentary Group. At the FPI's Third Extraordinary Congress, held from 20 to 22 July 2001, she was elected as the Second Vice-President of the FPI.
for human rights abuses, including organising death squads.
. Mr. Kieffer was in Abidjan at the time, researching a story on political corruption and government involvement in the Ivorian Cocoa industry. He was last seen on the way to a meeting with Michel Legré, the brother-in-law of Simone Gbagbo. French judicial officials have arrested and are investigating Jean-Tony Oulaï, a former member of the Ivorian Secret Services, whom they detained in Paris in 2006. Jean-Tony Oulaï's driver at the time Berté Seydou, as well as Mr Kieffer's brother, have alleged that Ms. Gbagbo and former Ivorian Minister of Planning and Development Paul-Antoine Bohoun Bouabré have knowledge of the events Mr Kieffer's death, and that Oulaï is responsible. Legré was arrested in Abidjan in 2004 on suspicion of kidnapping and murder, but was provisionally released in 2005 and has since fled the country—or is in an unknown location. In April 2009, Ms. Gbagbo was interviewed by two French magistrates concerning the Kieffer case. The AFP reported that the magistrates consider Legré, who they have in custody, their "chief suspect" and that neither the President nor Gbagbo "are suspected of being directly linked with Kieffer's disappearance." The French also planned interviews with Gbagbo's security chief Seka Yapo Anselme and Planning Minister Paul-Antoine Bohoun Bouabre. Gbagbo has filed a defamation lawsuit against Jean-Tony Oulai regarding his charges against her.
. She rallied support for her husband's candidacy in the forthcoming presidential election
during this tour and urged participation in the voter identification process.
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
politician. She is the President of the Parliamentary Group of the Ivorian Popular Front
Ivorian Popular Front
The Ivorian Popular Front , known by its French initials FPI, is a centre-left, democratic socialist and social democratic, political party in Côte d'Ivoire....
(FPI) and is a Vice-President of the FPI. As the wife of Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Koudou Gbagbo served as the fourth President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 until his arrest in April 2011. A historian by profession, he is also an amateur chemist and physicist....
, the President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 to 2011, she was also first lady
First Lady
First Lady or First Gentlemanis the unofficial title used in some countries for the spouse of an elected head of state.It is not normally used to refer to the spouse or partner of a prime minister; the husband or wife of the British Prime Minister is usually informally referred to as prime...
prior to their arrest by pro-Ouattara forces.
Biography
Born in 1949 in the Moossou neighborhood of Grand-BassamGrand-Bassam
Grand-Bassam is a city in Côte d'Ivoire, lying east of Abidjan. It was the French colonial capital city from 1893 until 1896, when the administration was transferred to Bingerville after a bout of yellow fever. The city remained a key seaport until the growth of Abidjan from the...
, Côte d'Ivoire, her parents are Jean Ehivet, a local police officer, and Marie Djaha. Simone Gbagbo trained as an historian and earned a third cycle doctorate in oral literature. She worked in applied linguistics
Applied linguistics
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of study that identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems...
, as a Marxist labor union leader, and is an Evangelical Christian in a church with close ties to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. She is the mother of five daughters, the last two with her current husband Laurent Gbagbo. She has been nicknamed in the Ivorian press the Hillary Clinton des tropiques.
Ehivet Gbagbo participated in the teachers strike movement of 1982, and helped found, with her future husband, the clandestine political group which became the FPI. An active trades union militant in the 1970s, she was imprisoned a number of times during the struggle for multiparty elections.
Following the introduction of multiparty elections, Gbagbo and her husband were arrested for allegedly inciting violence in February 1992 and spent six months in prison. In 1996, she became an FPI Deputy from Abobo (part of Abidjan
Abidjan
Abidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
) in the National Assembly
National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire
The National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire is Côte d'Ivoire's unicameral legislative body. Evolved from semi-representative bodies of the French Colonial period, the first National Assembly was constituted on 27 November 1960 with 70 elected member in accordance with the Constitution of 31 October...
; she and her husband were also seriously injured in a car accident around that time.
Re-elected to the National Assembly as an FPI Deputy from Abobo in the December 2000 parliamentary election, Gbagbo is also President of the FPI Parliamentary Group. At the FPI's Third Extraordinary Congress, held from 20 to 22 July 2001, she was elected as the Second Vice-President of the FPI.
Controversy
Simone Gbagbo is a controversial figure in Côte d'Ivoire. Involved in nationalist politics surrounding the Ivorian Civil War, in 2005 Radio France International reported that she was being investigated by the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
for human rights abuses, including organising death squads.
The Kieffer Affair
In July 2008 she was formally called for questioning by a French investigative judge, examining the April 2004 disappearance and presumed death in Abidjan of French-Canadian journalist Guy-André KiefferGuy-André Kieffer
Guy-André Kieffer is a journalist of dual French-Canadian nationality who worked in West Africa generally, and in Côte d'Ivoire specifically. On April 16, 2004, he was kidnapped from an Abidjan parking lot and has not been seen since....
. Mr. Kieffer was in Abidjan at the time, researching a story on political corruption and government involvement in the Ivorian Cocoa industry. He was last seen on the way to a meeting with Michel Legré, the brother-in-law of Simone Gbagbo. French judicial officials have arrested and are investigating Jean-Tony Oulaï, a former member of the Ivorian Secret Services, whom they detained in Paris in 2006. Jean-Tony Oulaï's driver at the time Berté Seydou, as well as Mr Kieffer's brother, have alleged that Ms. Gbagbo and former Ivorian Minister of Planning and Development Paul-Antoine Bohoun Bouabré have knowledge of the events Mr Kieffer's death, and that Oulaï is responsible. Legré was arrested in Abidjan in 2004 on suspicion of kidnapping and murder, but was provisionally released in 2005 and has since fled the country—or is in an unknown location. In April 2009, Ms. Gbagbo was interviewed by two French magistrates concerning the Kieffer case. The AFP reported that the magistrates consider Legré, who they have in custody, their "chief suspect" and that neither the President nor Gbagbo "are suspected of being directly linked with Kieffer's disappearance." The French also planned interviews with Gbagbo's security chief Seka Yapo Anselme and Planning Minister Paul-Antoine Bohoun Bouabre. Gbagbo has filed a defamation lawsuit against Jean-Tony Oulai regarding his charges against her.
Political activity since 2008
In September 2008, Gbagbo engaged in a two-week tour of the central part of the country, concluding the tour on 14 September in the city of BouakéBouaké
Bouaké is the second largest city in Côte d'Ivoire, with a population of 775,300 . It is the main urban settlement of the Bouaké Department with a population exceeding 1.2 million, in the Vallée du Bandama Region...
. She rallied support for her husband's candidacy in the forthcoming presidential election
Ivorian presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in two rounds in Côte d'Ivoire . The first round was held on 31 October 2010 and a second round, in which President Laurent Gbagbo faced opposition leader Alassane Ouattara, was held on 28 November 2010...
during this tour and urged participation in the voter identification process.