27
Feb
Obituary: Albert René
Early today the 2nd president of Seychelles died aged 83. He was admitted to the hospital for respiratory problems on 12 February.
“He was a true patriot who cared about his country and his people”, Current President Danny Faure said on a national broadcaster, describing Mr René as the “modern-day architect of Seychelles”.
France-Albert was born to Price René, a plantation manager, and Luisa Morgan René, a seamstress, on 16th November 1935 on the island of Farquhar. The 5-year-old boy was sent to St Joseph’s Convent, and later to St Louis College. At the age of 17, René was granted a scholarship in Switzerland to study theology at the Capuchin Seminary of St Maurice in the canton Valais. After his first year, he was transferred to England where he began legal studies at St Mary’s College in Southampton. In 1957 he qualified as a lawyer at King’s College in London and joined Middle Temple. Soon after, René married Karen Handley with whom he had a daughter. While in England, he became interested in the politics of the Labour Party.
Young and enthusiastic René returned home and worked as a lawyer between 1957 and 1961. However, he became disappointed with the social policies of British colonialism that created massive injustice among the population. As a result, he decided to participate in the political development of his country. In 1964 he became a founding member of the People’s United Party that opposed the Democratic Party led by a fellow London-trained lawyer, James Mancham. René also launched a newspaper, The People.
When a former British colony became independent on 29th June 1976, Mancham’s party was in the majority in the islands’ Legislative Assembly and thus, he was appointed as President. Mancham formed a coalition administration with René as his prime minister. In 1975 France-Albert re-married Geva Adam whom he divorced after a 20-year marriage.
While James Mancham was away to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference in London and celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, on 5th June 1977 Albert René seized power in a bloodless coup that overthrew the founding president of Seychelles. His estranged wife Karen Handley commented about the coup: “René plotted his communist revolution from my semi in Luton”.
René was installed as the president of the Republic of Seychelles. After the 1977 coup, a significant amount of the Seychelles population, including the first president James Mancham, fled to the UK and South Africa due to fear of the new government’s alignment with the Soviet Union, Tanzania, and North Korea.
After the seizure of power, France-Albert René established a one-party socialist state that ruled the 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean until 1993 when multiparty democracy commenced. René won presidential elections in 1979, 1984, 1989, 1993, 1998, and 2001, despite at least three serious coup attempts against his own rule.
In 1981 South African mercenaries under the command of notorious British Colonel “Mad Mike” Hoare tried to restore the pro-Western James Mancham into power. 44 men entered the country disguised as tourists but their plan failed when the airport security guard spotted a weapon in their luggage. At the discovery, a gunfight started and the group hijacked an Air India flight, forcing the pilot to help them escape to Durban in South Africa.
In 1992 René got married the third time. His bride was Sarah Zarqani, 25 years his junior, with whom he had three daughters.
For better or worse, René destroyed the old system and replaced it with a new one, which he later referred to as the “Seychelles Way”. His supporters believe that his strong political course led Seychelles to be the most developed country in Africa.
During his presidency, he built one of the highest gross domestic products per capita on the continent. The René government has funded education and healthcare, making both vital institutions free for all segments of society. The weakest links such as infant mortality, literacy rate, and economic wellbeing still proved to be the best in Africa.
René faced international pressure as the country’s secondary education system had a compulsory National Youth Service. Along with traditional curricula, it included political education and supposedly, ideological indoctrination and paramilitary training. However, these requirements were abandoned after the country’s transition to a multiparty system.
On 14th July 2004, France-Albert René handed over power to his vice-president, James Alix Michel. He, however, remained the leader of the People’s Progressive Front, which replaced the SPUP in June 1978. René was also known as “the boss” among fellow politicians.
After his retirement as the country’s president, apparently, Albert René’s political power weakened with the time. As a result, his party lost the 2016 parliamentary elections to the opposition. “Many people voted for René’s party to honour him but now that he is gone, I don’t see them winning again soon”, a fisherman who decided to remain anonymous, told Africa News.
France-Albert René left a controversial legacy after his long-lasting political career.
Dolor Ernesta who served as minister in René’s government, said: “The President will be remembered as a true leader who led the fight for independence. I will also remember him as having a great vision for the development of the new Seychelles as we know it today, for he truly loved his country”.
Paul Chow who was forced to go exile during the René regime said that two men had made the history of Seychelles, presidents “James Mancham and France-Albert René”. Although the political refugee pins his hopes on judgements of history to revise the value of F.A. René’s presidency for the country and his Seychellois regime outcomes.
In his State of the Nation Address 2004, France-Albert René humbly but proudly said: “I trust that when you walk across our islands, you’ll conclude that I have done my duty as a Seychellois worker”. Clearly, this is how he hoped to be remembered.
