Trouble in Togo

On 5 February Togo's President Gnassingbe Eyadim died of a massive heart attack. Mr. Eyadim ruled Togo as a dictator during the last thirty-eight years. Although nominally Togo has a Parliament, Mr. Eyadim generally got what he wanted without compromise.

Within hours of Mr. Eyadim's demise, Togo's military imposed a Constitutional amendment that made Mr. Eyadim's son Faur Gnassingbe the new President. The pre-amended succession rule was that if the President cannot complete his term, Parliament's Speaker serves as Acting President and calls an election within sixty days. Faur Gnassingbe has the force of arms to support his claim to power, but he does not have the Togolese people's support.

When the succession was announced, opposition groups mounted a rapid response. They declared a general strike and began various kinds of protests in the capital Lome. Soon the protests erupted into chaos. Togolese police killed one protester and wounded several more. The opposition places the death toll at eleven. Shouts of "Liberate Togo! Liberate Togo!" greet anyone perceived to break the general strike. Old cars were burned and overturned to serve as barricades. Still the military and Faur Gnassingbe clung firmly to their theory of succession.

Finally other African leaders took note of the situation. Nigera's President Obasanjo was among the first to comment in favor of the opposition groups. As the current Organization for African Unity (OAU) leader, Mr. Obasanjo's word has special authority. The fact that 5000 Nigerians live in Togo made the situation more critical to him. The West African Economic Coalition also addressed Togo's problems with the observation that imposing economic sanctions was a viable consequence if order is not restored in Togo very soon.

But how can Faur Gnassingbe restore order when his governance has no apparent popular sovereignty? When an acting head of state has no pretense of legitimacy, it is impossible for him to be the one to urge the rebels to bring order to the streets.

Reports of Mr. Eyadim's human rights violations and other curious activities make the prospect of a Togolese civil war seem quite likely. The longer the riots persist, the more difficult order will be to restore. Mr. Gnassingbe now is in the position that to decline the Presidency is his only logical option. Then he leaves Togo or resigns now to take his chance on the next ballot and agrees to accept the will of Togo's voters based on the initial Constitutional succession.

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