Togo: Coup No. 2

It was four years to the day since irate Togolese soldiers murdered President Sylvanus Olympic because he had refused to spend more money on the army. What more appropriate way to celebrate the anniversary than with another coup? So Army Chief of Staff Etienne Guassinghe Eyadéma, 34, did just that. In a swift and bloodless takeover, he ousted President Nicholas Grunitzky, suspended the constitution and the National Assembly, and banned all political parties. Coup No. 2 for tiny Togo (pop. 1,617,000) was the seventh military takeover in a year for Black Africa.

Lieut. Colonel Eyadéma, a burly ex-sergeant in the...

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