By Charlotte CossetPosted on 20-09-2019Modified on 20-09-2019 at 00:03

On the night of 20 to 21 September 1979, the self-proclaimed Emperor Jean-Bedel Bokassa was overthrown by a French military operation. At the time it was euphoria, we want to destroy everything related to the Bokassa diet. But today in Bangui, it is with a benevolent look that is watched the legacy of Bokassa.

" Evreux, September 1979. It is twenty hours now that a blue and white Caravelle, registered TL AAI, landed, on the military base 105. Inside they are twenty-six to share the blue armchairs Azure of the plane, gift, in his time, President Pompidou to the head of the Central African State, Jean-Bedel Bokassa, that a coup d'état has just overthrown. This text is taken from the book of Jacques Duchemin, former Minister of Communication of Bokassa. He recounts his experience in a fictionalized book on the life of the Emperor and his memories at the Imperial Court. Several crisp passages describe Jean-Bedel Bokassa in all its forms.

Nostalgia predominates in the capital

If today these memories could lend to smile, in Bangui, the feeling is quite different. It is nostalgia that prevails in the capital formerly known as Bangui la Coquette. " We must put Bangui in Coquette, " claims the old exasperated taxi driver. When one walks the bumpy streets of the capital, the traces of Bokassa are everywhere. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, University Avenue des Martyrs, Presidential Palace of the Renaissance ... The foundations of the Central African capital were raised by the emperor or in his time.

If the architectural heritage is present, it is usually in poor condition for lack of maintenance. Little remains of furniture that was massively looted during the fall. " The looting began first where there was the coronation, the omnisports center. We saw the carts that carried Bokassa coming out, "recalls Vincent Kongo, a senior executive of the administration of that time, witnessing these scenes. " We were a little disgusted, but people did not see the seriousness of the thing, it was a historic place that needed to be protected because it could have served as a museum today. Today, very few objects are visible at the Bangui Museum.

Souvenir of a sumptuous era

It is a feeling of golden age that today predominates. Despite the bankruptcy of the end of the reign, the wages of unpaid officials in Bangui, we remember the memory of a sumptuous era. Henri Gouandja, one of the opponents of the emperor, insists on this point: " At the time there were many companies, more than 200 in Bangui. Now there may be four or five, that's all! It was a dictator, but there were companies and it worked ... There was economic development, the CAR was not a poor country, like today ... "

The Emperor had launched the "Operation Bokassa", a vast program of agricultural economy: cotton, coffee, cocoa ... In the city, traces of an old cannery are present and in the region as in Batangafo, we can see the walls from an old factory. People remember an era of activity when fields were cultivated and currencies returned. The nostalgia for a prosperous period all the more exacerbated by the years of conflict in recent years that has led to the occupation of part of the territory by armed groups, preventing the normal conduct of economic activities.

The father of 56 children

The Bokassa heritage is of course family-friendly. Jean-Bedel Bokassa claimed the paternity of 56 children. A heavy name to wear especially at the time of the coup. At this point, some of his descendants change their surname for officially security issues. Today, most Bokassa children are discreet. Some - who decided to leave the anonymity - make a portrait of their father not very eulogistic.

This is the case of Marie-France Bokassa in her recently published book "Au château de l'ogre". But this name, one of his sons - probably the best known in Bangui - assumes it. " To bear the name Bokassa remains and remains an honor and is a whole that must not only be assumed, but one must be worthy to be able to wear it, " says Jean-Serge Bokassa. Involved in politics, he intends to restore the coat of arms of the name still so much criticized today. " A society is built with models," he adds. We will win to be inspired by his patriotism, his rigor at work, his high sense of honor, etc. "

The name that has shaken the French Republic, which has cost the re-election of President Valery Giscard d'Estaing and seems to always scare even in Paris. RFI requested access to Bokassa's archives for the realization of his file, but was denied access.

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