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Central African Republic Page |
Welcome to ElectionInfo.com's pages on Central African Republic
Official Name: Central African Republic
Capital: Bangui
Area: 622,980 square kilometres (240,534 square miles)
Major cities (Population)
Bangui 474,000 (1990 estimate)
Population: 3,315,000 (1995 estimate)
Population growth rate: 2.5 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Type of government:
Independence: 13 August 1960 (from France)
Constitution: January 1995
Voting Rights: Universal at age 21
Government
The president is head of state and head of government. The legislature has 85 deputies elected by region, and there is a separate judicial branch. The country is divided into 16 administrative districts, each of which is divided into sub-districts. Each town has an elected mayor, and a makunji, or village chief, is elected in each village. The responsibilities of the makunji depend on the strength and popularity of the mayor. All citizens have the right to vote at the age of 21.
Recent History
The Central African Republic gained independence from France in 1960. David Dacko served as the country’s first president, but was overthrown in a coup led by Colonel Jean-Bedel Bokassa in 1966. In 1977 Bokassa crowned himself Emperor Bokassa I, in ceremonies that were estimated to have cost one-quarter of the country’s income. His excesses eventually prompted France to support a coup led by Dacko in 1979 while Bokassa was out of the country. The republic was restored, but in 1981 General André Kolingba overthrew Dacko in yet another coup. The military ran the government until 1985, when Kolingba appointed civilians to his new cabinet. Kolingba created the Rassemblement Démocratique Centrafricain (RDC) as the only legal party in 1986. Elections in 1986 were used to approve a new constitution and a six-year term in office for Kolingba. In 1993 Bokassa was released from jail under an amnesty granted by Kolingba, but was banned for life from taking part in elections. In the much-postponed elections held that year, Ange-Félix Patasse was elected president in the second round. The Mouvement de Libération du Peuple Centrafricain (MLPC) won the largest number of seats, but failed to get an absolute majority.
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