Prime Minister Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé attended a symposium in Lomé on Monday 3 February. The symposium formed part of celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the passing of President Eyadema, a Statesman who left his mark on the Togolese history.
“On the occasion, researchers and the organisers aim to reflect on General Eyadéma’s efforts and commitment to peace and economic progress for future generations to take ownership of his engagements in our shared history,” said the chairman of the symposium’s scientific committee, Prof Kadanga Kodjona.
The aim is to revisit the prominent moments in General Eyadema’s life and his commitment to peace at national and regional level. The symposium also made it possible wrap heads around the late President’s contribution to Togo’s socio-economic development.
To achieve these objectives, researchers took delegates through two paper presentations. The first paper, under the theme “Gnassingbé Eyadéma and the challenges of peace in Africa,” was presented Mr Robert Dossou, former President of the Bar Association and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin. The second paper, titled: “Gnassingbé Eyadéma: from soldier to politician,” was presented by Prof Kokou Folly Hétchéli, lecturer and researcher at the University of Lomé.
Personalities from Benin, Burkina-Faso, the Republic of Congo, Chad and Côte d’Ivoire, among other countries, gave their accounts of the late Father of the Nation’s level of commitment in dealing by sharing their views on the following sub-themes: “Gnassingbé Eyadéma’s work for peace in Africa; Gnassingbé Eyadéma and his African peers and Gnassingbé Eyadéma’s mediation in the crises in Liberia and Sierra Leone,” Other topics discussed include “Gnassingbé Eyadéma: from soldier to general officer; Gnassingbé Eyadema and sport: a policy of national cohesion; and Gnassingbé Eyadéma and regional integration.”
Minister Kanka-Malik Natchaba and the chairman of the symposium’s scientific committee praised the late President’s leading role in settling conflicts in Africa, including in 1972, in the aftermath of the Biafra war between the Presidents of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Gabon. In December 1974, he played an instrumental role in reaching a negotiated settlement to the border dispute between Mali and the Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso).
In 1976, he helped diffuse the tension between Gabon and Côte d’Ivoire. In July 1977, he helped prevent confrontation between Egypt and Libya by travelling to Tripoli and Cairo, and spearheaded efforts towards an agreement to normalise relations between the two countries.
They also recalled the late Eyadema’s interventions in Liberia in 1996. He adopted a shuttle diplomacy approach to create a platform for negotiations leading to a ceasefire and the establishment of a transitional government. From 1991 onwards, as Sierra Leone was ravaged by civil war, he served as a regional mediator to steer peace negotiations, which climaxed with the Lomé peace agreement in 1999, and in 2002, during the politico-military crisis in Côte d’Ivoire, he played an active part in the negotiations that led to the Marcoussis agreements in 2003.
Minister Kanka-Malik Natchaba paid tribute to the memory of the illustrious departed President and expressed his gratitude to the President of the Republic, Faure Gnassingbé, for authorising the meeting, which will help enrich the country’s history.
