The president who embraced his enemies

Jan 01, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
This letter is tangential to your editorial of 30 December 2009, “Dialogue not debate”.
The Ivory Coast in West Africa has over 70 ethnic groups and a population of over 20 million.
For over 30 years one individual managed to keep this ethnic melting pot together through thick and thin.
His name was President Felix Houphouet Boigny who led the country since independence in 1960. He died in December 1993.
I lived in the RCI (Ivory Coast Republic) as he preferred it be called for five years from 1980 and had quality meetings with President Felix on two occasions.
He was a fascinating man who richly deserved his sobriquet “Le sage” or “the wise one”. In those days I regularly visited some 24 African countries from Morocco to Zaire.
As a result I had a good working knowledge of African politics and the behavioural patterns of leaders as complex and enigmatic as Hassan 2, Samuel Doe, Gerry Rawlins, Paul Biya and Omar Bongo. Among the Black African leaders Felix Houphouet Boigny stood out like an icon in a Holy Day procession.
The first time I met President Felix he was in relaxed mood at his somewhat baroque residence in Abidjan.
I could not help but ask him about his idiosyncratic behaviour in having lengthy conversations with his sworn enemies.
This was uncharacteristic behaviour for an African maximum leader in an era when leaders were known to imprison suspected enemies for life, banish them from the land of their birth, execute them or somehow neutralize them permanently.
It was popularly held that one Head of State routinely ate his opponents. During Felix Houphouet Boigny’s presidency a number of his captured enemies were put behind bars pending “conversation” with “Le Vieux” another fond name for the octogenarian president.
These were not your garden variety detractors but men who had tried to overthrow the president through violent military coups or had master-minded his assassination.
Speaking at first in perfect English President Felix explained that he learns more from his enemies than he does from his friends.
Then switching to his nasal French he went on to say “Moi, J’embrasse mes ennemis” and explain that friends and people who work for him feel compelled to tell him what they think he wants to hear while those who want his head speak the truth.
He did not elaborate but on many occasions he would have dialogue with his imprisoned enemies in their cells (often unprotected by presidential guard) and then have them released from prison.
Cynics claimed that he would give them a huge bag of money and an important job in his administration but I did not question him on that.
Whatever may have been communicated in those dark Ivorian dungeons, many a sworn enemy was converted to an ardent admirer, friend or devotee after a visit from Le Sage – a truly remarkable man and a credit to Africa.
F. Hamley Case

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