The Assassination of Sylvanus Olympio of Togo and The Rise of Eyadéma.

On January 13th 1963 President Sylvanus Olympio was assassinated in a military coup by a group of eight Togolese militants led by Emmanuel Bodjolle, under direction of Sergeant Étienne Eyadéma Gnassingbé. Shock of Olympio’s assassination (which is remembered as the first President in Africa to be assassinated in a military coup) rippled throughout Togo and other countries of Africa, and was widely condemned. However, Gnassingbé himself was not immediately appointed president. Although there is little documentation reporting the situation on the ground at the time, the following is a an excerpt from a description of Olympio’s assassination, given by Sofia Poullada, daughter of the then U.S. ambassador to Togo, Leon B. Poullada: “During the period following President Olympio’s assassination there was civil unrest. The Togolese government ministers were taken into custody. Soldiers killed others, and many people simply disappeared.” January 17th: In wake of the assassination, Nicholas Grunitzky assumed presidency and formed an interim civilian government, simultaneously dissolving the national assembly and Togo’s previous constitution. May 5th: Grunitzky was officially elected president, and Togo’s new constitution was approved in a national referendum. As a result of Olympio’s assassination in January and Grunitzky’s appointment as President of Togo in May, many within Togo were outraged. Citizen unrest festered, and incidents of civil unrest and public demonstrations increased. Particularly the contentions between the Ewe ethnic group (making up the majority of Togolese population, of which former president Olympio identified as), and Gnassingbé’s ethnic group, the Kabre. According to a study by the University of Central Arkansas, “some 100 individuals were killed.” Although vague, additional violence was also reported to have taken place on November 21, 1966 when “government troops suppressed a rebellion led by Noe Kutuklui, leader of the Congres Unite Togolaise (CUT), in Lomé.” (UCA) THE BIOGRAPHY OF SYLVANUS OLYMPIO Sylvanus Epiphanio Olympio born on 6th September 1902 – 13 January 1963 was a Togolese politician who served as Prime Minister, and then President, of Togo from 1958 until his assassination in 1963. He came from the important Olympio family, which included his uncle Octaviano Olympio, one of the richest people in Togo in the early 1900s. After graduating from the London School of Economics, he worked for Unilever and became the general manager of the African operations of that company. After World War II, Olympio became prominent in efforts for independence of Togo and his party won the 1958 election making him the Prime Minister of the country. His power was further cemented when Togo achieved independence and he won the 1961 election making him the first President of Togo. He was assassinated during the 1963 Togolese coup d’état. (The events leading to his death is described above) To be Continued… Sources : https://humanrightstogo.wordpress.com/history-of-hr/1963-2/ and https://alchetron.com/Sylvanus-Olympio