Paul Biya 392319 212831930 2008-05-16T13:51:09Z Sardanaphalus 427947 updating link using [[Project:AutoWikiBrowser|AWB]] {{Infobox President |name = Paul Biya |nationality = Cameroonian |image = Biya behind podium.jpg |caption = President Biya at the inauguration of the new U.S. Embassy, [[16 February]] [[2006]] |order = [[President of Cameroon]] |primeminister = [[Maigari Bello Bouba]]<br>[[Luc Ayang]]<br>[[Sadou Hayatou]]<br>[[Simon Achidi Achu]]<br>[[Peter Mafany Musonge]]<br>[[Ephraïm Inoni]] |vicepresident = |term_start = [[06 November]] [[1982]] |term_end = |predecessor = [[Ahmadou Ahidjo]] |successor = |religion = |signature = |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1933|02|13|df=yes}} |birth_place = [[Mvomeka'a]], [[Centre-South Province, Cameroon|Centre-South Province]], [[French Cameroon]] |death_date = |death_place = |spouse = [[Chantal Biya]] |party = [[Cameroon People's Democratic Movement|RDPC]] |religion = [[Roman Catholic]] [http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1074754,00.html] |order2 = [[Prime Minister of Cameroon]] |president2 = [[Ahmadou Ahidjo]] |term_start2 = [[30 June]] [[1975]] |term_end2 = [[06 November]] [[1982]] |predecessor2 = |successor2 = [[Bello Bouba Maigari]] }} '''Paul Biya''' (born [[13 February]] [[1933]]) has been the [[List of Presidents of Cameroon|President]] of [[Cameroon]] since [[November 6]], [[1982]].<ref name=Pres>[http://www.prc.cm/index_fr.php?link=6 Profile of Biya at Cameroonian presidency web site] {{fr icon}}.</ref><ref name=Elect>[http://www.presidential2004.gov.cm/candidats.php?id_cand=10&module=bio&lang=en Biography at 2004 presidential election web site].</ref> ==Personal life== Biya was born in the village of [[Mvomeka'a]]<ref name=Pres/><ref name=Elect/> in the [[Centre-South Province, Cameroon|Centre-South Province]] of what was then [[French Cameroon]]. He is a member of the [[Beti-Pahuin]] ethnic group. He studied in [[Paris]] at ''[[Paris Institute of Political Studies|Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris]] (Sciences Po)'', where he graduated in [[1961]] with a diploma in [[International relations|International Relations]]. He married [[Jeanne-Irène Biya]] with whom he had a son, [[Franck Biya]]. After Jeanne-Irène Biya died on [[July 29]] [[1992]], Paul Biya married [[Chantal Biya]] on [[April 23]] [[1994]],<ref name=Elect/> and he has had two more children with her. ==Political career== He served under President [[Ahmadou Ahidjo]]; after becoming Director of the Cabinet of the Minister of National Education in January 1964 and Secretary General of the Ministry of National Education in July 1965, he was named Director of the Civil Cabinet of the President in December 1967 and Secretary General of the Presidency (while remaining Director of the Civil Cabinet) in January 1968. He gained the rank of Minister in August 1968 and Minister of State in June 1970, while remaining Secretary General of the Presidency. He became [[Prime Minister of Cameroon|Prime Minister]] on [[June 30]] [[1975]]. In June 1979, a law designated the Prime Minister as the President's constitutional successor. Following Ahidjo's resignation on [[November 4]] [[1982]], Biya became President on [[November 6]].<ref name=Pres/><ref name=Elect/> Because Biya is a Christian from southern Cameroon, it was considered surprising that he was chosen by Ahidjo, a Muslim from the north, as his successor. After Biya became President, Ahidjo initially remained head of the ruling [[Cameroon National Union]] (CNU). Biya was brought into the CNU Central Committee and Political Bureau and was elected as the party's vice-president. On [[December 11]] [[1982]], he was placed in charge of managing party affairs in Ahidjo's absence. During the first months after Biya's succession, he continued to show loyalty to Ahidjo, and Ahidjo continued to show support for Biya, but in 1983 a deep rift developed between the two. Ahidjo went into exile in [[France]], and from there he publicly accused Biya of abuse of power and paranoia about plots against him. The two could not be reconciled despite the efforts of several foreign leaders. After Ahidjo resigned as CNU leader, Biya took the helm of the party at an extraordinary session held on [[September 14]] [[1983]].<ref name=KT>Milton H. Krieger and Joseph Takougang, ''African State and Society in the 1990s: Cameroon's Political Crossroads'' (2000), Westview Press, pages 65&ndash;74.</ref> In November 1983, Biya announced that the next presidential election would be held on [[January 14]] [[1984]]; it had been previously scheduled for 1985. He was the sole candidate in this election and won 99.98% of the vote.<ref name=KT/> In February 1984, Ahidjo was put on trial ''in absentia'' for alleged involvement in a 1983 coup plot, along with two others; they were sentenced to death, although Biya commuted their sentences to life in prison, a gesture seen by many as a sign of weakness.<ref name=WP>Jonathan C. Randal, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/19/AR2006071901340_pf.html "Tales of Ex-Leader's Role In Revolt Stun Cameroon"], ''The Washington Post'', April 15, 1984, page A01.</ref> Biya survived a military coup attempt on [[April 6]] [[1984]], following his decision on the previous day to disband the Republican Guard and disperse its members across the military.<ref name=KT/> Estimates of the death toll ranged from 71 (according to the government)<ref name=WP>Jonathan C. Randal, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/19/AR2006071901340_pf.html "Tales of Ex-Leader's Role In Revolt Stun Cameroon"], ''The Washington Post'', April 15, 1984, page A01.</ref> to about 1,000.<ref name=KT/> Northern Muslims were the primary participants in this coup attempt, which was seen by many as an attempt to restore that group's supremacy; Biya, however, chose to emphasize national unity and did not focus blame on northern Muslims.<ref name=KT/><ref name=WP/> Ahidjo was widely believed to have orchestrated the coup attempt,<ref name=WP/> and Biya is thought to have learned of the plot in advance and to have disbanded the Republican Guard as a reaction, forcing the coup plotters to act earlier than they had planned, which may have been a crucial factor in the coup's failure.<ref name=KT/><ref name=WP/> In 1985, the CNU was transformed into the [[Cameroon People's Democratic Movement]], and Biya was elected as its President. He was also re-elected as President of Cameroon on [[April 24]] [[1988]].<ref name=Elect/> According to official results, Biya won the [[Cameroonian presidential election, 1992|first multiparty presidential election]], held on [[October 11]] [[1992]], with about 40% of the vote; the second placed candidate, [[John Fru Ndi]] of the opposition [[Social Democratic Front]] (SDF), officially received about 36%.<ref name=Mbaku>John Mukum Mbaku, "Decolonization, Reunification and Federation in Cameroon", in ''The Leadership Challenge in Africa: Cameroon Under Paul Biya'' (2004), ed. John Mukum Mbaku and Joseph Takougang, page 34.</ref><ref name=DB>[http://africanelections.tripod.com/cm.html Elections in Cameroon], African Elections Database.</ref> The results were strongly disputed by the opposition, which alleged fraud.<ref name=Mbaku/> In the [[Cameroonian presidential election, 1997|October 1997 presidential election]], which was boycotted by the main opposition parties, Biya was re-elected with 92.6 percent of the vote;<ref name=DB/><ref>[http://www.unhcr.org/home/RSDCOI/3c2b4e020.html "UK Home Office Immigration and Nationality Directorate Country Assessment - Cameroon"], UNHCR.org.</ref> he was sworn in on [[November 3]].<ref>[http://web.peacelink.it/africa/weekly/06_11_97 "Cameroun. Biya reinstalle"], ANB-BIA, November 3, 1997.</ref> Biya won another seven-year term in the presidential election of [[October 11]], [[2004]], officially taking 70.92 percent of the vote,<ref name=Confirm>"Cameroon's Supreme Court confirms Biya's re-election" ''Agence France Presse'', October 25, 2004.</ref><ref name=Gov>[http://www.spm.gov.cm/detail_art.php?id_art=271&type=simpl&lang=en "President Biya is sworn in for another seven-year mandate."], Cameroonian government website].</ref> although the opposition alleged widespread fraud.<ref name=Confirm/> Biya was sworn in on [[November 3]].<ref name=Gov/> After being re-elected in 2004, Biya was barred by a two-term limit in the [[Constitution of Cameroon|1996 Constitution]] from running for President again in 2011, but his supporters sought to revise this to allow him to run again. In his 2008 New Year's message, Biya expressed support for revising the Constitution, saying that it was undemocratic to limit the people's choice.<ref>[http://www.afriquenligne.fr/actualites/politique/cameroun%3a-paul-biya-va-modifier-la-constitution-2008010214343/ "Cameroun: Paul Biya va modifier la Constitution"], Panapress (afriquenligne.fr), January 2, 2008 {{fr icon}}.</ref> The proposed removal of term limits was among the grievances expressed during [[2008 Cameroonian anti-government protests|violent protests]] in late February 2008. Nevertheless, on [[April 10]] [[2008]], the National Assembly voted to change the Constitution to remove term limits. Given the RDPC's control of the National Assembly, the change was overwhelmingly approved, with 157 votes in favor and five opposed; the 15 deputies of the SDF chose to boycott the vote in protest. The change also provided for the President to enjoy immunity from prosecution for his actions as President after leaving office.<ref>[http://www.jeuneafrique.com/fluxafp/fil_info.asp?art_cle=44617 "Cameroun: adoption d'une révision constitutionnelle controversée"], AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), April 10, 2008 {{fr icon}}.</ref> He has been consistently re-elected as the National President of the RDPC; he was re-elected at the party's second extraordinary congress on [[July 7]] [[2001]] and its third extraordinary congress on [[July 21]] [[2006]].<ref>[http://www.camerounlink.net/fr/news.php?nid=24113&kat=1&seite=195 "21 ANS DE TÂTONNEMENT"], Camerounlink.net, July 21, 2007 {{fr icon}}.</ref><ref>[http://www.rfi.fr/actufr/articles/079/article_45203.asp "Paul Biya réélu sans surprise à la tête du RDPC"], rfi.fr, July 22, 2006 {{fr icon}}.</ref> Biya regularly spends extended periods of time in Switzerland at the Hotel [[InterContinental]] [[Geneva]] where the former director [[Herbert Schott]] reportedly said he comes to work without being disturbed<ref>[http://fr.allafrica.com/stories/200710300790.html Cameroun: Herbert Schott - Paul Biya est un sacré personnage]</ref>. These extended stays away from Cameroon, while sometimes as short as 2 weeks are sometimes as long as three months and are almost always referred to as short stays in the state owned press and other media<ref>[http://www.prc.cm/index_fr.php?link=magazine/sejour_prive_europe_310507 Le Chef de l’Etat en séjour privé en Europe]</ref><ref>[http://www.prc.cm/index_en.php?link=magazine/retour_sejour_prive_europe_190607 http://www.prc.cm/index_en.php?link=magazine/retour_sejour_prive_europe_190607]</ref>. ==Opposition and criticism== Biya has been criticized by some as being a [[strongman (political)|strongman]], and is sometimes considered to be aloof from the people. He has also been strongly criticized by the [[Anglophone]]s, the English-speaking people of Cameroon who live in the region formerly under British colonial rule, for their marginalization and oppression. His strongest opposition is from this region of Cameroon. The historian [[David Wallechinsky]], in his book ''Tyrants, the World's 20 Worst Living Dictators'', ranked Biya with three others in sub-Saharan Africa: [[Robert Mugabe]] of [[Zimbabwe]], [[Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo]] of [[Equatorial Guinea]] and [[Mswati III of Swaziland|King Mswati]] of [[Swaziland]]. He describes Cameroon's electoral process in these terms: “Every few years, Biya stages an election to justify his continuing reign, but these elections have no credibility. In fact, Biya is credited with a creative innovation in the world of phony elections. In [[2004]], annoyed by the criticisms of international vote-monitoring groups, he paid for his own set of international observers, six ex-U.S. congressmen, who certified his election as free and fair.”<ref>David Wallechinsky, ''Tyrants: the World's 20 Worst Living Dictators'', Regan Press, 2006, pp. 286-290</ref> In [[2007]], ''Parade'' magazine ranked Biya the 19th worst dictator in the world.<ref>[http://www.parade.com/articles/editions/2007/edition_02-11-2007/Dictators The World's Worst Dictators - 2007]</ref> ==Notes== <!--<nowiki> See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref> and </ref> tags, and the template below. </nowiki>--> {{reflist}} {{Commons|Paul Biya}} {{start box}} {{s-off}} {{Succession box |title = [[Prime Minister of Cameroon]] |before = Office created |after = [[Bello Bouba Maigari]] |years = [[1975]] – [[1982]] }} {{Incumbent succession box |title = [[President of Cameroon]] |before = [[Ahmadou Ahidjo]] |start = [[1982]] }} {{end box}} {{CameroonPresidents}} {{CameroonPMs}} {{African Union chairpersons}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Biya, Paul}} [[Category:Presidents of Cameroon]] [[Category:Prime Ministers of Cameroon]] [[Category:Current national leaders]] [[Category:Alumni of Sciences Po]] [[Category:Family of Paul Biya]] [[Category:1933 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Cameroonian Roman Catholics]] [[cs:Paul Biya]] [[de:Paul Biya]] [[et:Paul Biya]] [[el:Πωλ Μπιγιά]] [[es:Paul Biya]] [[fr:Paul Biya]] [[gl:Paul Biya]] [[hr:Paul Biya]] [[id:Paul Biya]] [[it:Paul Biya]] [[he:פול בייה]] [[mr:पॉल बिया]] [[nl:Paul Biya]] [[ja:ポール・ビヤ]] [[pl:Paul Biya]] [[pt:Paul Biya]] [[ru:Бийя, Поль]] [[simple:Paul Biya]] [[sk:Paul Biya]] [[sl:Paul Biya]] [[fi:Paul Biya]] [[sv:Paul Biya]] [[tr:Paul Biya]] [[zh:保罗·比亚]]