People's Republic of the Congo
Republic of the Congo, 1969–1992. Draft, not yet reviewed
The People's Republic of the Congo was a communist state in Central Africa that was established in 1969 following a military coup the previous year, and it remained in place until political reforms in 1992. It was founded in December 1969 as the first Marxist-Leninist state in Africa. The ruling Congolese Party of Labour appointed Marien Ngouabi as president, who established the Congo as a one-party communist government aligned with the Soviet Union. The People's Republic of the Congo transitioned into a multi-party system following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, restoring the earlier name and flag, and ceased to exist by March 1992.
Seat of power: Brazzaville
Rulers
Marien Ngouabi
President of the Republic of the Congo, 1968–1977
He changed the name of the country to the People's Republic of the Congo, declaring it to be the first Marxist-Leninist state in Africa, and founded the Congolese Workers' Party as the only legal political party. His presidency lasted until his assassination in 1977.
Portrait of Marien Ngouabi: Unknown authorUnknown author, Attribution, file
Joachim Yhombi-Opango
President of the Republic of the Congo, 1977–1979
After the assassination of Ngouabi in March 1977, he became Head of State. He served in office for nearly two years until being forced to resign in February 1979.
Culture
- The administration became strongly centralized in Brazzaville, and the main government posts were taken over by cadres of the Congolese Workers' Party.
- The People's Republic of the Congo shared close ties with the Soviet Union, and the government also maintained a close relationship with France throughout its existence.
- The People's Republic of the Congo had 2,153,685 inhabitants in 1988, and most people belonged to the Kongo, Sangha, Mbochi or Teke ethnic groups.
- In mid-1991 the Sovereign National Conference removed the word populaire from the official name of the country and replaced the flag and anthem.
Picture
Marien Ngouabi was a Congolese politician and military officer who served as the fourth President of the People's Republic of the Congo from 1969 until his assassination in 1977.
Image: Unknown authorUnknown author, Attribution, file
Sources
- People's Republic of the Congo (Wikipedia)
- People's Republic of the Congo (Wikidata)
- About the picture (Wikipedia)
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.