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USS Dolphin (PG-24)

USS Dolphin (PG-24) was a gunboat/dispatch vessel; the fourth ship of the United States Navy to share the name. Dolphin was the first U.S. Navy ship to fly the flag of the president of the United States during President Chester A. Arthur's administration, and the second Navy ship to serve as a presidential yacht.

Design and construction
Dolphin's keel was laid down by Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works of Chester, Pennsylvania. She was launched on 12 April 1884, with Captain George Dewey in command, and commissioned on 8 December 1885 with Captain R. W. Meade in command.

Dolphin was originally built as a dispatch vessel, intended to courier messages, as radio had not yet been invented. She was the only U.S. Navy vessel ever specifically designated as such. She was also called an "unarmored" or "unprotected" cruiser, and was eventually designated as a patrol gunboat (PG-24) on 1 July 1921, a few months before she was sold to Mexico. She was ordered as part of the "ABCD" ships, the others being the cruisers USS Atlanta (1884), USS Boston (1884), and USS Chicago (1885). These were the first ships of what came to be called the "New Navy", representing the transition from wooden-hulled to steel-hulled warships. Like the other three, Dolphin was built with a sail rig (later removed) to increase the ship's cruising range due to the inefficient steam engines of the day. All were ordered from the same shipyard, John Roach & Sons of Chester, Pennsylvania. However, when Secretary of the Navy William C. Whitney initially refused to accept Dolphin, claiming her design was defective, the Roach yard went bankrupt and the remaining three ships were completed in navy yards that had little experience with steel-hulled ships. Built for speed at the expense of protection, Dolphin was unarmored and her engine was unprotected as it extended above the waterline.

She was built with one 6 in/30 caliber Mark 1 gun, two 6-pounder (57 mm) rapid-fire guns, and four 3-pounder (47 mm) Hotchkiss revolving cannon.

Dolphin was powered by four coal-fired cylindrical boilers and one 1 vertical compound engine producing 2255 ihp for a speed of 16 kn.

Refits
References vary as to Dolphin's armament in a given period. In 1891, the 6-inch gun was replaced by two 4 in/40 caliber guns. In 1913 her armament was replaced with six 6-pounders, augmented by two 3 in/50 caliber guns in 1918. By 1921 her armament was one 4 in/50 caliber gun and two 6-pounders.

Before Spanish–American War
The first of the vessels of the "New Navy" to be completed, Dolphin was assigned to the North Atlantic Station, cruising along the eastern seaboard until February 1886. She then sailed around South America on her way to the Pacific Squadron for duty.

She visited ports in Japan, Korea, China, Ceylon, India, Arabia, Egypt, Italy, Spain, and England, and the islands of Madeira and Bermuda, before arriving at New York City on 27 September 1889 to complete her round-the-world cruise.

She returned to duty on the North Atlantic Station, cruising in the West Indies from 9 December 1889 to 12 June 1890. On 23 December 1890, she was reassigned to the Squadron of Evolution and sailed from New York City on 7 January 1891 for a Caribbean cruise, returning to Norfolk, Virginia, on 7 April 1891.

Out of commission from 1 May 1891 to 14 March 1892, Dolphin then resumed her cruising along the United States East Coast, often carrying the United States Secretary of the Navy. In April 1893, President Grover Cleveland conducted New York's inaugural International Naval Review from the deck of the Dolphin. On 3 December 1895, she was assigned to the Special Service Squadron and made a surveying expedition to Guatemala in January–February 1896. She carried President William McKinley and his party during the naval review following the ceremonies dedicating Grant's Tomb in New York City on 27 April 1897. Dolphin was placed out of commission at New York on 23 November 1897.

Spanish–American War
Dolphin was recommissioned on 24 March 1898, just prior to the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, and served on blockade duty off Havana, Cuba in April–May. On 6 June, she came under fire from the Morro Battery at Santiago. On 14 June, she provided fire support for elements of the 1st Marine Battalion at the Battle of Cuzco Well in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba resulting in a total rout of the Spanish forces. Later that month, she sailed for Norfolk, arriving on 2 July.

Before World War I
From 1899 until the outbreak of World War I in Europe, Dolphin served as a special dispatch ship for the Secretary of the Navy and often carried the President of the United States and other important officials and diplomats. She visited Washington Navy Yard for the Peace Jubilee of 14 May – 30 June 1899; New York City for the George Dewey celebration of 26–29 September; and Alexandria, Virginia, for the city's sesquicentennial on 10 October. From 7 November 1899 – 2 February 1900, she cruised to Venezuela to survey the mouth of the Orinoco River. On 27–28 May 1900, Dolphin anchored off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, with President William McKinley on board to observe a total solar eclipse. She departed Washington, D.C., on 11 January 1902 to survey the southeast coast of Santo Domingo, then carried the Chief of the Bureau of Equipment from Havana for a tour of inspection of the coaling stations in the West Indies. She returned to Washington on 6 May.

Dolphin sailed from Norfolk on 2 December 1902 to carry mail and dispatches to Culebra Island, Puerto Rico, then took the U.S. Minister to Venezuela to La Guaira, arriving on 11 January 1903. She continued to cruise in the West Indies until returning to Washington, D.C., on 19 April. From 1903 to 1905, she carried such dignitaries as the Naval Committee, Secretary of the Navy, Admiral and Mrs. George Dewey, the Philippine Commissioners, the Attorney General, Prince Louis of Battenberg and his party, and President Theodore Roosevelt on various cruises. In January 1904, she carried the remains of James Smithson, which had arrived in New York City from Genoa, Italy, for re-interment in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Early in August 1905, she carried the Japanese peace plenipotentiaries from Oyster Bay, New York, to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to negotiate the settlement of the Russo-Japanese War. In 1907, the first live singing performed over radio, by Eugenia Farrar from Lee de Forest's laboratory atop the Parker Building, was received by the Dolphin's wireless operator, Oliver A. Wyckoff, while docked at Brooklyn Navy Yard.

She continued on primarily ceremonial duty, participating in the interment of John Paul Jones at the United States Naval Academy, and the departure ceremonies for the Great White Fleet until 22 October 1908, when she became flagship of the Third Squadron, Atlantic Fleet.

When Franklin D. Roosevelt became Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1913, he occasionally used Dolphin to transport himself and his family. During his time on Dolphin FDR forged lifelong friendships with future Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy and Richard E. Byrd, both of whom served aboard. Dolphin was Byrd's third assignment after graduating from the Naval Academy. He served on Dolphin until he was medically retired in 1916 for a foot injury he sustained on board Dolphin.

Tampico, Veracruz, and Santo Domingo
In the spring of 1914 the Third Squadron – with Dolphin as flagship – sailed into Tampico to protect American lives and property. When some sailors from Dolphin were arrested by the Mexican government on 9 April 1914, the Tampico Affair took place, which later resulted in the United States occupation of Veracruz. On 23 November 1914, after seven months, the United States withdrew its armed forces. Subsequently, Dolphin assisted in the occupation of Santo Domingo from 12 to 22 May 1916. Her career as flagship continued until 1917.

World War I
In March 1917 President Woodrow Wilson started arming US merchant ships in response to attacks by the Central Powers. First to be armed was the cargo ship SS Aztec, on which two 5-inch guns were installed. A lieutenant and 11 ratings were detached from Dolphin at Washington Navy Yard and transferred to crew Aztec's guns.

Sailing from Washington, D.C., on 2 April 1917 to take possession of the recently purchased United States Virgin Islands, Dolphin received word four days later that war had been declared between the U.S. and Germany.

The next day, she arrived at St. Thomas and the squadron commander assumed office as Governor of the Virgin Islands on 9 April. Dolphin carried the Governor and his staff to the islands of Saint Croix and St. John to hoist the American flag with proper ceremony. On 26 April, she began a search for the steamer Nordskar, flying Danish colors, but suspected of aiding enemy operations. She found her at St. Lucia on 5 May and since her registry showed irregularities, Dolphin kept her in custody until departing for Key West, Florida on 28 June, when she turned her charge over to British authorities. Dolphin continued to patrol in the Caribbean Sea until arriving at Washington on 6 September.

Assigned as flagship for the American Patrol Detachment on 17 September 1917, Dolphin was based at Key West, and operated in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea to protect merchant shipping until the end of the war.

During World War I, this Dolphin was one of three U.S. Navy vessels in commission or considered for service of this name, and should not be confused with USS Dolphin (SP-318), a fishing vessel the U.S. Navy considered for service as a patrol vessel in 1917 but apparently never acquired from her owners, or with USS Dolphin (SP-874), a patrol vessel in commission during 1918.

After World War I
Dolphin remained in the Caribbean until her departure for New York City on 25 June 1920. After an overhaul at Boston, Massachusetts, she sailed on 16 October as flagship of the Special Service Squadron and joined the gunboat USS Des Moines (PG-29) in representing the United States at the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the Straits of Magellan. Dolphin returned to Balboa in the Panama Canal Zone, and was based there for target practice, for hydrographic experiments, and to obtain political information, visiting various neighboring countries to promote friendly relations. On 16 September 1921, she was at Puerto Barrios, Guatemala, to attend the observance of the anniversary of Guatemalan independence.

Dolphin arrived at the Boston Navy Yard on 14 October 1921. She was decommissioned on 8 December 1921, after 36 years of service, and sold to Mexico on 25 February 1922. She served in Mexico with the name Plan de Guadalupe until stricken in 1924. She was scrapped circa 1927.

Awards

 * Sampson Medal
 * Spanish Campaign Medal
 * Haitian Campaign Medal
 * Dominican Campaign Medal
 * Mexican Service Medal
 * World War I Victory Medal with "PATROL" clasp

title: USS Dolphin (PG-24)


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Adnan Terzić

Adnan Terzić (born 5 April 1960) is a Bosnian politician who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2002 to 2007. He was a longtime member of the Party of Democratic Action, until he left it to join the Union for a Better Future of BiH.

Terzić was born in Zagreb in 1960, before moving to Sarajevo in his youth. He graduated from the University of Sarajevo in 1986. He was in the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. Following the war, Terzić served as Governor of Central Bosnia Canton from 1997 to 1998. He was afterwards elected to the Federal Parliament.

Following the 2002 general election, Terzić was appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers. He was succeeded as chairman by Nikola Špirić in January 2007.

Early life and education
Terzić was born on 5 April 1960 in Zagreb, FPR Yugoslavia to Bosniak parents. His parents moved to Sarajevo when he was a kid, and there he graduated from the Faculty of Civil engineering at the University of Sarajevo in 1986.

Career
From 1986 until 1990, Terzić was an advisor in the municipal government in Travnik. He joined the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) in 1991, shortly after it was founded. Between 1992 and 1995, he served in the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War.

Following the war, Terzić was the president of the municipal council in Travnik from 1996 to 2001. He also served as Governor of Central Bosnia Canton. On 13 October 2001, he became the vice-president of the SDA, holding office until 2009.

Terzić served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 23 December 2002 to 11 January 2007. In 2009, he left the SDA and joined Fahrudin Radončić's newly established Union for a Better Future of BiH one year later, and was also named as the party's new vice-president.

Personal life
Terzić lives in Sarajevo with his wife Maida and their son Tarik.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Adnan Terzić


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Utkir Tukhtamurodovich Sultonov

Utkir Tukhtamurodovich Sultonov (14 July 1940 – 29 November 2015) was an Uzbek politician who served as the Prime Minister of Uzbekistan from 21 December 1995 until his dismissal on 12 December 2003.

Cabinet included

 * Abdulaziz Kamilov - foreign minister from 1994 until 2003
 * Sodiq Safoyev - since March 2003

title: Utkir Tukhtamurodovich Sultonov


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Paramanga Ernest Yonli

Paramanga Ernest Yonli (born 31 December 1956) also known as Ernest Paramanga Yonli, is a Burkinabé politician. He was Prime Minister from 6 November 2000 to 3 June 2007 and then President of the Economic and Social Council of Burkina Faso until March 2015.

He is a member of the Congress for Democracy and Progress party and a Grand Officer of the National Order of Burkina Faso.

Biography
Yonli is a descendant of the last dynasty of the Gurma kingdom, founded at the end of the 13th century by migrants from Kanem–Bornu, a region situated initially between modern Niger, Nigeria, and Chad. This dynasty, often confused with the history of the Gurma people, who live in Eastern Burkina Faso, can be subdivided into three lines: Yobri, Tambaga, and Tansarga. Paramanga Ernest Yonli comes from one of the ruling families of the last line of Tansarga.

The Gurma society is organized around a power center of a founding family, ministers of the court, and the people. This power center is governed by democratic principles whereby all adult citizens appoint the Chief or the King following an aligned vote. Paramanga Ernest Yonli's great-grandfather, grandfather, and father each ruled Tansarga in the canton of Gobnangou. Today his older brother remains the chief of the village of Tansarga.

He obtained his mathematics and natural sciences baccalaureate with honors in 1976.

At the university level, following a degree in general economics at the University of Ouagadougou, he came top of his class in his Masters in economic sciences at the University of Benin in Togo, then completed his training with a Ph.D. at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. His thesis focused on "Farmer strategies in food security and cereal marketing: the role of cereal banks in the North Plateau-Central of Burkina Faso."

Paramanga Ernest Yonli is also a specialist in international economics (Paris I University – Pantheon Sorbonne) and development and agricultural economics (same institution).

Married to Safi, one of the daughters of former President Saye Zerbo (1980–82), he is father to four children.

Career
After working in management and business administration in France, he began a career as a researcher at the University of Ouagadougou from 1985 to 1994. During this period, he became a member of an international multi-disciplinary research team whose work focused on “risks in agriculture” in semi-arid areas. This international research body, headquartered in Europe, brings together researchers from the European Union and ECOWAS countries like Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin, Togo, the Ivory Coast, etc.

The Ph.D. thesis he defended in 1997 at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands was a logical progression from the research results discovered by this international team in Burkina Faso, particularly in the provinces of Yatenga, Sanmatenga, Namentenga, Bam, and Passoré. In October 1994, Paramanga Ernest Yonli was appointed, in addition to his role as researcher, as Director General of the National Fund for the Promotion of Employment (F.A.P.E.). He was tasked with reorganizing this body to promote the self-employment of graduates from the country's universities and professional training colleges.

Upon receiving further funding, Yonli extended the Fund to artisans and the informal sector. He simultaneously decentralized the Fund, opening branches in Burkina Faso's ten main towns after Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso, thus also demonstrating his sense of innovation and openness to modernization.

Political career
In 1992, during the first general elections, which saw the return of Burkina Faso to the rule of law, Yonli was approached to head up the list of ODP/MT candidates in his constituency of Tapoa. He declined the offer for personal reasons but led the campaign that saw his party win two of the three contested seats.

During the elections for the second government of the 4th Republic in 1997, while simultaneously serving as Cabinet Leader for Prime Minister Kadré Désiré Ouedraogo from 1996, he headed up the list of candidates for the ruling party, which had since become the Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP). As a result, he won the two contested seats in his constituency and would go on to do the same in 2002, 2007, and 2012.

Although elected four times as a Member of the National Assembly (1997 to 2012), Yonli never took his seat as an MP, occupying senior governmental posts throughout this period instead. Firstly, as Cabinet Leader for the Prime Minister in 1996, as mentioned above, then as Minister of Civil Service and of State Reform in 1997, and finally as Prime Minister and Head of Government in 2000, a post he would occupy for seven years. He thus holds the record for the longest time spent in senior political positions in his country. Additionally, he served as Minister of Finance from 2000 to 2002.

In 2007, he was appointed Ambassador for Burkina Faso to the United States. He would be the first Ambassador to bring together the entire Burkinabé community residing in the United States, as well as traveling regularly to the University of Houston in Texas to visit one of the largest Burkinabé student communities in the United States.

He returned to his home country in 2012 to become President of the Economic and Social Council, a post he still occupies today.

Achievements for Burkina Faso
The leadership of Yonli was characterized by his innovation, his promotion of the fundamental values of Burkinabé society (dialogue – tolerance - forgiveness), and efficiency.

Implementation of the Global Public Administration Reform (RGAP)
When in September 1997, President Blaise Compaoré appointed Yonli as Minister for Civil Service, he gave him the formidable task of overseeing the Global Public Administration Reform. Following several attempts at reform, both with social partners and with members of the National Assembly, this project had still not been completed despite the government's overwhelming majority in the National Assembly (101 MPs out of 111). It was the first challenge taken up by Yonli. Following the start of his role in September 1997, he would organize national reform hearings in December of the same year and successfully secure the adoption of three laws governing the Global Public Administration Reform as of the first session of the National Assembly in 1998.

Institutionalization of social dialogue
To further cement the public administration reform, Yonli implemented a permanent consultation framework between trade union organizations and the government. This government-trade union meeting was to become institutionalized in 2000 when Yonli became the Burkinabé head of government. These now annual meetings allow the two sides to examine on a yearly basis the negotiating platform of trade union organizations on the one hand, and government actions aimed at the promotion and optimization of the reform's content on the other. The institutionalization of these meetings has helped reduce labour conflicts as much as possible, and to instil trust between the government and workers’ unions, both of which have shored up social stability which is a pre-requisite for the harmonious development of a nascent democracy.

Institutionalization of government-private sector dialogue
In July 2001, in Bobo Dioulasso, Yonli decided in agreement with the business world, to institutionalize exchanges between the government and the entire private sector. Welcomed by the Chamber of Commerce and development partners, this meeting which is held yearly in the economic capital allows countries to share their economic and social achievements over the past year, gauge the extent of challenges faced and forecast for the year ahead. This meeting, which still takes place today, has become a key tool for economic governance in Burkina Faso, because it allows the government to make their interventions in the economic sector more targeted, in line with medium and long-term economic planning benchmarks.

National Youth Forum and Annual women’s conference
Drawing on the sectoral strategies of international organisations, under the Yonli government Burkina Faso decided to go beyond conventional gender management methods and organise annual meetings focused on women and young people in 2004. These meetings have served as a forum for self-reflection and brainstorming to effectively tackle the problem of promoting and developing these two social groups who make up more than 70% of the country's active population.

Creation of ‘’BURKINA 2025’’ and reintroduction of the National Territorial Development Plan (SNAT)
When Yonli became head of government at the end of 2000, he had three main objectives:
 * 1) Quickly restore peace after the assassination of journalist Norbert Zongo;
 * 2) Ensure decentralization;
 * 3) Speed up the implementation of poverty reduction reforms.

These three objectives were tackled by a cabinet which he composed himself and submitted to Président COMPAORÉ who approved it without any significant changes. The cabinet made up of technocrats, politicians and representatives from civil society, got to work on the priorities set by Yonli.

On a social level, dialogue was used as a driving force to foster the right conditions for peace through calls for tolerance and patriotism. In terms of the decentralization objective, the government chose a progressive approach to ensure the best conditions for the adoption of this process by business managers, elected representatives and the wider population.

On an economic level, under the Yonli Government, economic growth went from an annual rate of between 3 and 4% to a rate ranging from 7 to 9%.

Decentralization in Burkina Faso was kick-started. As a result, the process is now complete and serves as a benchmark in the sub-region. Under the Yonli Government, 13 regions were created, making up the 4 provinces. Furthermore, the guidelines for decentralization allowed for the number of communes to be changed from 55 to 30, to allow the population to appoint their local authorities, which led to the development of participatory democracy and also to the development of local economies.

Programmes to combat poverty, although not achieving all anticipated results, have made the country the best economic performer in the sub-region from the point of view of its multilateral partners.

It is also worth mentioning the ten-year education development programme, which has helped speed up the literacy rate. Under his government, the rate of school enrolment has gone from 39 to 70% in seven years.

Finally, instruments for the identification, evaluation and reduction of poverty have now become everyday tools for planning and economic governance leaders. These are all things which help to make development projects and programmes more targeted and yield faster and more tangible results.

This was consolidated thanks to the two major decisions which today underpin the country's economic and social governance:

 * Making development part of the long-term perspective through the creation of a national roadmap called BURKINA 2025.
 * The creation of a global visibility framework called the National Territorial Development Plan, which organizes development by tapping into regional potential, to optimize the various areas of expertise specific to each region.

Economic promotion of Burkina Faso overseas
In 2004, Yonli undertook a world tour to promote Burkina Faso's economic potential. The objective of his trip was to provide sufficient information on the economic potential of the country to thus increase its attractiveness to investors.

With this in mind, he visited, accompanied by business leaders:

 * April 2004: Geneva, with 50 businessmen.
 * October 2004: Canada, with 80 businessmen. During his visit, he heavily emphasized Burkina Faso's gold mining potential.
 * April 2005: France, with 70 businessmen.
 * September 2005: Malaysia, again with around 50 businessmen.

The most significant results of this came after the visit to Canada. It was during this visit that major gold mines were opened, including the first gold mine in Taparko (Sanmatenga province). By 2009, six gold mines were operational, placing gold at the top of the list of products exported from the country, ahead of cotton. Currently, a new mining code is in the process of being adopted, to strike a balance between the profits made by miners, the government and the local populations.

Achievements within the Economic and Social Council
Since 2012, as President of the Economic and Social Council, Yonli has published various reports including:
 * A report on agriculture, highlighting the need to develop this sector in Burkina Faso.
 * A second report on gold and the need to submit a new mining code to the National Assembly.
 * A third report on governance and distrust of public authority, with solutions for sustainable social stability.

Opposition to Article 37
Having reiterated the legality of such a Constitutional reform during a meeting of the CDP at the Stade du 4 Août, Yonli nevertheless officially participated in Autumn 2014 in the drafting of a public report to the Economic and Social Council on the political and social risks linked to such a Constitutional reform.

It is noteworthy that the National Assembly's draft vote on the reform of Article 37 of Burkina Faso's Constitution ultimately caused President Blaise Compaoré's demise.

Distinctions and awards

 * Member of several charitable organizations
 * Grand Officer of the National Order
 * Officer of the National Order
 * Commander of the Order of Brilliant Star with a special grand cordon, of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

title: Paramanga Ernest Yonli


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Hun Sen

Samdech Hun Sen (ហ៊ុន សែន, UNGEGN: ; born 5 August 1952) is a Cambodian politician, and former army general who currently serves as the president of the Senate. He previously served as the prime minister of Cambodia from 1985 to 2023. Hun Sen is the longest-serving head of government in Cambodia's history. He is the president of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), which has governed Cambodia since 1979, and has served as a member of the Senate since 2024. His full honorary title is Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen (សម្តេច អគ្គមហាសេនាបតី តេជោ ហ៊ុន សែន ; meaning "Lord Prime Minister and Supreme Military Commander Hun Sen").

Born Hun Bunal, he changed his name to Hun Sen in 1972, two years after joining the Khmer Rouge as a soldier. He fought for the Khmer Rouge in the Cambodian Civil War and was a battalion commander in Democratic Kampuchea until defecting in 1977 and fighting alongside Vietnamese forces in the Cambodian–Vietnamese War. From 1979 to 1986 and again from 1987 to 1990, he served as Cambodia's foreign minister in the Vietnamese occupied government. At age 26, he was also the world's youngest foreign minister.

Hun Sen rose to the premiership in January 1985 when the one-party National Assembly appointed him to succeed Chan Sy, who had died in office in December 1984. He held the position until the 1993 UN-backed elections which resulted in a hung parliament, with opposition party FUNCINPEC winning the majority of votes. Hun Sen refused to accept the result. After negotiations with FUNCINPEC, Norodom Ranariddh and Hun Sen agreed to simultaneously serve as First and Second Prime Minister, until the coalition broke down and Sen orchestrated a coup d'état in 1997 which toppled Ranariddh. Between 1998 and 2023, Hun Sen led the CPP to consecutive and often contentious election victories, overseeing rapid economic growth and development, but also corruption, deforestation and human rights violations. In 2013, Hun Sen and the CPP were reelected with a significantly reduced majority amidst a resurgent opposition. Allegations of voter fraud and irregularities led to unprecedented anti-government protests. In 2018, he was elected to a sixth and final term in a largely unopposed poll after the Supreme Court dissolved the main opposition party, with the CPP winning every seat in the National Assembly. He led the country during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and Cambodia's third chairmanship of ASEAN; and, after the 2023 election formally announced his resignation as prime minister in favour of his son, Hun Manet. He remains as party leader and in 2024, was appointed president of the Senate, ensuring his continued influence over the country's politics.

Hun Sen has been prominent in communist, Marxist–Leninist, and now state capitalist and national conservative political parties, and although Khmer nationalism has been a consistent trait of all of them, he is thought to lack a core political ideology. He has been described as a "wily operator who destroys his political opponents" by The Sydney Morning Herald and as a dictator who has assumed highly centralized power in Cambodia and considerable personal wealth using violence and corruption, including a personal guard said to rival the country's regular army.

Early life
Hun Sen was born on 4 April 1951, in Peam Kaoh Sna, Kampong Cham as Hun Bunal (also called Hun Nal), the third of six children. His father, Hun Neang, had been a resident monk in a local Wat in Kampong Cham province before defrocking himself to join the French resistance and marry Hun Sen's mother, Dee Yon, in the 1940s. Hun Neang's paternal grandparents were wealthy landowners of Teochew Chinese heritage.

Hun Neang inherited some of his family assets, including several hectares of land, and led a relatively comfortable life until a kidnapping incident forced their family to sell off much of their assets. Hun Nal left his family at the age of 13 to attend a monastic school in Phnom Penh. At the time, he changed his name to Ritthi Sen or simply Sen; his prior given name, Nal, was often a nickname for overweight children.

Education
He graduated with a master in state administrative management from the (Vietnam) National Academy of Public Administration of Vietnam.

Military career and entry to politics
When Lon Nol removed Norodom Sihanouk from power in 1970, Sen gave up his education to join the Khmer Rouge following Sihanouk's call to join the insurgency. Sen also claims he was inspired to fight against foreign interference when his hometown of Memot was bombed by U.S. aircraft in Operation Menu. Sen claims he had no political opinions or ideology at the time. As a soldier, he again changed his name, this time to Hun Samrach, to conceal his identity.

He changed his name to Hun Sen two years later, saying that the name Hun Samrach had been inauspicious and that he had been wounded several times during the period he had that name. Sen rapidly ascended ranks as a soldier, and fought during the fall of Phnom Penh, becoming injured and being hospitalized for some time and sustaining a permanent eye injury.

In Democratic Kampuchea, Sen served as a Battalion Commander in the Eastern Region, with authority over around 2000 men. The involvement or role of Sen in the Cambodian genocide is unclear, although he denies complicity. Human Rights Watch suggested he may have had a role in a massacre to suppress Cham Muslim unrest in September–October 1975, but Sen has denied this, claiming that he had stopped following orders from the central government by this time. Sen claims he had increasing disagreements with Khmer Rouge authorities in the administration throughout 1975–1977.

In 1977, during internal purges of the Khmer Rouge regime, Hun Sen and his battalion cadres fled to Vietnam. During the Cambodian–Vietnamese War as Vietnam prepared to invade Cambodia, Hun Sen became one of the leaders of the Vietnamese-sponsored rebel army. He was given the secret name Mai Phúc by Vietnamese leaders.

Following the defeat of the Khmer Rouge regime, Hun Sen was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Vietnamese-installed People's Republic of Kampuchea/State of Cambodia (PRK/SOC) in 1979 at age 26. The Vietnamese-appointed government appointed Sen some authority over the K5 Plan, a Khmer Rouge containment strategy that saw the mass mobilization of civilian labor in constructing barricades and land mines, although the extent of his involvement is unclear.

First appointment as prime minister (1985–1993)
Hun Sen first rose to the premiership in January 1985 when the one-party National Assembly encouraged by politburo cadre Say Phouthang appointed him to succeed Chan Sy, who had died in office in December 1984. As the de facto leader of Cambodia, in 1985, he was elected as Chairman of the Council of Ministers and Prime Minister. Sen oversaw continuing conflict against several ongoing insurgencies during this period.

In 1987, Amnesty International accused Hun Sen's government of torturing thousands of political prisoners, using "electric shocks, hot irons and near-suffocation with plastic bags."

Paris Peace Talks and UNTAC (1991–1993)
As Foreign Minister and then Prime Minister, Hun Sen played a role in the 1991 Paris Peace Talks, which brokered peace in Cambodia and formally ended the Cambodian–Vietnamese War.

He held the position of Prime Minister during the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) until the 1993 UN-sponsored elections, which resulted opposition party FUNCINPEC winning the majority of votes with a hung parliament. Hun Sen and his party formally rejected the result. With the support of much of the state apparatus, including the army and police, Hun Sen and his deputy Norodom Chakrapong threatened to lead the secession of seven provinces and CPP-backed forces committed violence against UN and FUNCINPEC forces although Sen distanced himself from the secessionist movement a few days later. UNTAC and FUNCINPEC conceded a unique power sharing agreement with Hun Sen serving as Second Prime Minister alongside First Prime Minister Norodom Ranariddh.

1997 coup
In 1997, the coalition became unstable due to tensions between Ranariddh and Hun Sen. FUNCINPEC entered into discussions with the remaining Khmer Rouge rebels (with whom it had been allied against Hun Sen's Vietnamese-backed government during the 1980s), with the aim of absorbing them into its ranks. Such a development would have altered the balance of military power between royalists and the CPP.

In response, Hun Sen launched the 1997 coup, replacing Ranariddh with Ung Hout as the First Prime Minister and maintaining his position as the Second Prime Minister.

In an open letter, Amnesty International condemned the summary execution of FUNCINPEC ministers and the "systematic campaign of arrests and harassment" of political opponents. Thomas Hammarberg, then Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Human Rights in Cambodia, strongly condemned the coup.

Prime Minister of Cambodia (1998–2023)
In the 1998 election, he led the CPP to victory and forming a coalition with FUNCINPEC.

The elections of July 2003 resulted in a larger majority in the National Assembly for the CPP, with FUNCINPEC losing seats to the CPP and the Sam Rainsy Party. However, the CPP's majority was short of the two thirds constitutionally required for the CPP to form a government alone. This deadlock was overcome when a new CPP-FUNCINPEC coalition was formed in mid-2004, with Norodom Ranariddh chosen to be head of the National Assembly and Hun Sen again becoming sole Prime Minister.

Sen has opposed extensive investigations and prosecutions related to crimes committed by former Khmer Rouge leaders by the UN-backed Khmer Rouge Tribunal.

On 6 May 2013, Hun Sen declared his intention to rule Cambodia until the age of 74.

2013–2014 protests

After the July 2013 general elections both Hun Sen and his opponents Cambodia National Rescue Party claimed victory. In August, Hun Sen continued to pursue his aim of forming a new government. Cambodians in the United States, Canada and elsewhere, with hundreds of Buddhist Monks, peacefully protested in front of the United Nations in New York City on 19 August in opposition to Hun Sen's deployment of military and security forces in Phnom Penh, his unwillingness to share political power with opposition groups and seriously address earlier voting fraud and election irregularities.

One person was killed and others injured during protests in Phnom Penh in September 2013, where a reported 20,000 protesters gathered, some clashing with riot police. Following two weeks of opposition protests, Hun Sen declared that he had been constitutionally elected and would not step down nor hold a new election.

On 7 September 2013, tens of thousands of Cambodians, along with Buddhist monks and opposition groups, including Sam Rainsy's Cambodian National Rescue Party held mass demonstrations in Phnom Penh to protest the 28 July elections results which they claimed were flawed and marred by voting irregularities and potential fraud. The groups asked the United Nations to investigate and claimed that the elections results were not free and fair.

On 3 January 2014, military police opened fire at protesters, killing 4 people and injuring more than 20. The United Nations and US State Department condemned the violence. US Congressman Ed Royce responded to the report of violence in Cambodia by calling for Hun Sen to step down, saying that the Cambodian people deserve a better leader.

Consolidation of power (2015– 2023)

On 10 June 2014, Hun Sen made a public appearance and claimed he has no health problems. He warned that if he were to die prematurely, the country would spin out of control and the opposition could expect trouble from the armed forces, saying he is the only person who can control the army.

Following Hun Sen's orders, on 31 January 2017, the National Assembly voted unanimously to abolish the Minority Leader and Majority Leader positions to lessen the opposition party's influence. On 2 February 2017, Hun Sen barred the opposition from questioning some of his government ministers. Furthermore, Hun Sen vowed a constitutional amendment which later saw the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party dissolved. This move led to the surprise resignation of opposition leader Sam Rainsy. The controversial law was passed on 20 February 2017, effectively granting the ruling party the right to dissolve political parties. Opposition leader Kem Sokha was later arrested for treason.

On 30 June 2018, weeks before the parliamentary elections, Hun Sen appointed his second eldest son, Hun Manet, into higher military positions. Some analysts had speculated Manet may be a future candidate for Sen's position. Hun Sen affirmed at the time that his son could become prime minister if elected rather than through direct handover, though he intends to rule until at least 2028.

The 2018 elections were dismissed as sham elections by the international community, the opposition party having been dissolved.

Hun Sen blocked the return of exiled Cambodia National Rescue Party leaders to Cambodia, including Sam Rainsy and Mu Sochua, in November 2019. He ordered the military to "attack" them on sight should they return, threatened airlines with legal actions for allowing them to board, deployed thousands of troops to the Thai and Vietnamese borders, and requested other ASEAN leaders arrest them and deport them to Cambodia.

In 2020, the European Union suspended its Everything but Arms preferential trade agreement with Cambodia due to concerns over human rights violations under Hun Sen's government. Sen criticized the move as "biased" and "unfair", including at the United Nations General Assembly in 2020.

During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hun Sen downplayed the risk of the virus and declined to introduce preventative measures or evacuate Cambodian citizens from Wuhan during the initial outbreak in China. It was widely reported this was in an attempt to show solidarity with China, one of Cambodia's closest diplomatic and economic allies. Hun Sen visited China during the outbreak and offered to visit Wuhan specifically during its lockdown. In February 2020, at a press conference, he criticized the media for sensationalizing the virus, and threatened to expel those present who were wearing masks. Hun Sen was also present to welcome passengers of the MS Westerdam cruise ship to dock in Sihanoukville, after it was turned away from other countries. Cambodia started implementing preventative measures and travel restrictions from March 2020 as the pandemic spread globally.

A new State of Emergency Law prepared in response to COVID-19 granted Hun Sen further powers to restrict movement and assembly, seize private property and enforce quarantine. The new law has been criticised by Amnesty International for curbing human rights.

Ultimately, the government's successful vaccination efforts and pandemic response were viewed by the Cambodian public as contributing to the perceived legitimacy and effectiveness of the government. A study conducted by IEAS found that more than 80% of those surveyed approved of the government response, with more than 25% strongly approving of the response.

On 10 July 2023, Hun Sen warned Ukraine of using cluster munitions, saying "It would be the greatest danger for Ukrainians for many years or up to a hundred years if cluster bombs are used in Russian-occupied areas in the territory of Ukraine," Sen further cited his country's "painful experience" from the Vietnam War that has killed or maimed tens of thousands of Cambodians.

Following controversy over the 23 July 2023 elections, the King confirmed that Hun Manet would succeed Hun Sen as Prime Minister.

Corruption and land issues
Hun Sen and his family were estimated to have amassed between US$500 million and US$1 billion by Global Witness in 2016, and a number of allies have also accumulated considerable personal wealth during his tenure.

Hun Sen implemented land reform, the "leopard skin land reform", in Cambodia. Hun Sen's government has been responsible for leasing 45% of the total landmass in Cambodia—primarily to foreign investors—in the years 2007–08, threatening more than 150,000 Cambodians with eviction. Parts of the concessions are protected wildlife areas or national parks and have driven deforestation across the country. As of 2015, Cambodia had one of the highest rates of forest loss in the world. The land sales have been perceived by observers as government corruption and have resulted in thousands of citizens being forcibly evicted. According to Alice Beban, the land reform strengthened patronage politics in Cambodia and did not enable land tenure security.

Hun Sen was implicated in corruption related to Cambodia's oil wealth and mineral resources in the Global Witness 2009 report on Cambodia. He and his close associates were accused of carrying out secret negotiations with interested private parties, taking money from those who would be granted rights to exploit the country's resources in return. The credibility of this accusation has been challenged by government officials and especially Prime Minister Hun Sen, himself.

Human rights issues
Sen and the CPP were accused of orchestrating summary executions during the 1997 coup.

Hun Sen frequently calls for violence against his political opponents during seemingly irrelevant public events, often characterizing this as necessary to maintain peace and stability in Cambodia. In 2017, he said he would be prepared to "eliminate 100 or 200 people if they would destabilize the peace in Cambodia" while speaking at commemoration for his defection from the Khmer Rouge. In 2019, as opposition party leaders prepared to return to the country, Sen ordered the military to "attack them wherever you see them—you don't need arrest warrants at all" while speaking at a graduation ceremony for exceptional high school students in Phnom Penh. He also threatened the European Union if they withdrew a commercial deal: "If you want the opposition dead, do it. If you want it alive, don't do it and come and talk", although they did not give in. "We didn't pursue you because we didn't want to kill you at the time," Hun Sen said to opposition leader Sam Rainsy, although such death threats have not been implemented.

Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) has banned public gatherings, driven opposition supporters from the site of former protest meetings 'Freedom Park', and deployed riot police to beat protesters and detain union leaders.

Several Australian politicians, most prominently Gareth Evans and Julian Hill, have been highly critical of Sen and his government over human rights issues and have called for changes to Australia–Cambodia relations.

After the execution of 4 prisoners in July 2022 in Myanmar, Hun Sen warned to rethink the peace agreement if the regime continued to execute prisoners.

Foreign relations
Sen has frequently criticized Western powers such as the European Union and United States in response to their sanctions on Cambodia over human rights issues.

China
Sen strengthened a close diplomatic and economic relationship with China, which has undertaken large-scale infrastructure projects and investments in Cambodia under the Belt and Road Initiative.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, China provided major assistance to the Hun Sen government's vaccination campaign. As of early November 2021, China had sent more than 35 million vaccines to Cambodia. China provided many of them free of charge. Vaccines provided by China accounted for more than 90% of total vaccines provided to Cambodia from other countries. China also provided other health care supplies as well as medical professionals to Cambodia during the pandemic. In part thanks to Chinese contributions, Cambodia had the second-highest vaccination rate in Southeast Asia, despite having the second lowest per capita GDP in the region.

Thailand
Sen oversaw a number of diplomatic disputes with neighboring Thailand.

The 2003 Phnom Penh riots resulted in the ransacking of the Thai embassy in Cambodia, following false allegations that a Thai soap opera actress Suvanant Punnakant claimed that Angkor Wat belonged to Thailand. Sen called for a boycott of Thai goods and television shows and criticized the actress shortly before the riots. The riots and Sen's response severely damaged Cambodia–Thailand relations. Sen's Thai counterpart Thaksin Shinawatra closed the borders, expelled the Cambodian ambassador and evacuated Thai citizens from Phnom Penh in response. Thaksin also sent a warning to Hun Sen after witness reports suggested the army and police had not intervened until the embassy was destroyed. Sam Rainsy accused Sen of inciting the riot.

From 2008 to 2013, the Cambodian–Thai border dispute was an ongoing conflict, which on a number of occasions led to fighting between Cambodian and Thai forces. Sen and Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva negotiated a de-escalation on several occasions with the encouragement of ASEAN. Cambodia was granted sovereignty over the Preah Vihear Temple area by a UN court in 2013, ending the dispute.

Myanmar
In his capacity as chairman of ASEAN, Sen became the first foreign leader to visit Myanmar following the 2021 coup d'état.

United States
In November 2016, Hun Sen publicly endorsed US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump who went on to be elected president.

President of the Senate (2024–present)
The Cambodian People's Party claimed an expected landslide victory in the 2024 Senate election, paving the way for Hun Sen to become its president when the new Senate convenes. He resigned from his National Assembly seat on 2 April, allowing him to take his seat in the Senate. The full Senate unanimously confirmed him as president on 3 April.

Public image
In Cambodia, Hun Sen's core support base is from the majority of the population who reside in the countryside and work in the agricultural sector. He is less popular in urban centers like Phnom Penh.

Hun Sen's leadership has received criticism from various organizations, media and foreign governments for corruption, cronyism, environmental degradation, human rights violations and violence. Hun Sen and his government was described by former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew in 2000 as "utterly merciless and ruthless, without humane feelings".

Alleged Vietnamese ties
Some political opponents of Hun Sen have criticized him for alleged ties to Vietnam. Norodom Sihanouk once referred to him as a "one-eyed lackey of the Vietnamese", with Sam Rainsy and members of the Cambodia National Rescue Party later echoing similar sentiments during the 2010s. This is due to his position in the Vietnamese occupied government and prominence in figure in the People's Revolutionary Party of Kampuchea. Anti-Vietnamese sentiment and racism is common in Cambodia.

Control of media
Although Cambodia had relatively independent press during and immediately following the UNTAC era, Hun Sen and the CPP have since come to strictly control media in Cambodia. This has more recently encompassed social media, which surpassed traditional media as a news source for Cambodians in 2017.

Television, radio, and newspapers
Bayon Television is owned and operated by Hun Mana, Hun Sen's eldest daughter. Apsara TV is joint-owned by Say Sam Al, CPP Minister of Environment and son of Say Chhum, CPP secretary and the son of CPP Deputy Prime Minister Sok An. CTN, CNC and MyTV are all owned by Khmer-Chinese tycoon, Kith Meng.

CPP officials claim that there is no connection between the TV stations and the state. However, CPP lawmaker and official spokesman Cheam Yeap once stated "We pay for that television [coverage] by buying broadcasting hours to show our achievements".

A demand for television and radio licenses was one of 10 opposition requests adopted by the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) at its "People's Congress" in October 2013.

Radio stations were banned from broadcasting Voice of America and Radio Free Asia in August 2017. The country's most prominent independent newspaper Cambodia Daily was closed on 4 September 2017, a day after the main opposition leader Kem Sokha was arrested for treason. The Phnom Penh Post, another widely circulated independent newspaper, was sold to a Malaysian investor with ties to Hun Sen in 2018, which undermined its independence and aligned it closer to the government.

Social media and suspension from Facebook
Facebook and the internet became widely used in Cambodia during the 2010s. It is thought that its adoption by the Cambodia National Rescue Party played a role in the party's gains in the 2013 election.

In the mid-2010s, Hun Sen and the Cambodian People's Party became enthusiastic users of Facebook. Hun Sen declared in February 2016 they had become an "electronic government" and regularly posted and livestreams of speeches, announcements, and selfies to million of followers. In 2017, Hun Sen's official page was the eighth-most liked Facebook page of any world leader and as of December 2020 was the most liked Facebook page in Cambodia.

Facebook activity in Cambodia is monitored by the authorities, and criticism of the government and prime minister on Facebook has led to several arrests in the country. Cambodia has also prosecuted women who post images of themselves wearing revealing clothing on Facebook, with Hun Sen saying it is "a violation of culture and tradition" and invites sexual harassment. Amnesty International criticized this speech, characterizing it as "victim blaming" and contributing to violence against women.

On 29 June 2023, Hun Sen deleted his Facebook account, which had approximately 14 million followers, hours after Meta's oversight board ruled that he should face a six-month ban from the platform over a video post in which he threatened to have opponents beaten. On the following day, 30 June 2023, the Cambodian Ministry of Post and Telecommunications announced they would deport a Meta representative immediately and Cambodia would cease all cooperation with the company, attributing the move to an abundance of fake accounts, data risks, and lack of transparency. On 4 July 2023, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement that all of Meta's Oversight Board's 22 members were "persona non-grata", barring them from entering the country because "[t]he recommendation of the Oversight Board to Meta Platforms Inc. to temporarily suspend the official Facebook page belonging to Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen is political in nature. It intends to obstruct the freedom of the press for the citizens of Cambodia and the right to receive credible news from a leader whom they support and admire."

Personal life

Hun Sen is married to Bun Rany. They have 6 children, including one adopted daughter: Kamsot (deceased), Manet, Mana, Manith, Mani and Mali. The couple also adopted a daughter (who is not named in news media sources) in 1988, but they legally disowned her in 2007 for being lesbian. In 2010, Manet was promoted Major General in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) and became the Deputy Commander of the Prime Minister's Body Guard headquarters. All three of Hun Sen's sons play big roles in his government. His older brother, Hun Neng, was a governor of Kampong Cham and a member of parliament.

Hun Sen is fluent in Vietnamese, in addition to his native Khmer. Hun Sen also speaks some English after beginning to learn the language in the 1990s, but usually converses in Khmer through interpreters when giving formal interviews to the English-speaking media.

Hun Sen is blind in one eye because of an injury he sustained during the fall of Phnom Penh while fighting for the Khmer Rouge. He is fitted with a Japanese made artificial eye, which is regularly replaced by Japanese doctors.

Hun Sen is a Buddhist. He has made major donations for the renovation of numerous pagodas, including Wat Vihear Suor.

Until June 2022, Hun Sen has used 4 April 1951 as his legal birthdate even if he was actually born on 5 August 1952. He had it changed due to a Cambodian superstition relating to having wrong legal birthdates causing conflict with the Chinese zodiac. A lot of Cambodians use two birthdates due to losing their birth certificates during the Khmer Rouge era of the 1970s. Hun Sen had it changed for believing the death of his brother in May 2022 due to a cardiac arrest was related to this superstition since he also had an incorrect birth date.

Honours
National Orders:
 * KHM Grand Order of National Merit rib.png Grand Order of National Merit (1996)
 * KHM Ordre Royal du Cambodge - Grand Croix BAR.png Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Cambodia
 * KHM Royal Order Of Sowathara - Grand Cross rib.png Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Sowathara
 * KHM Royal Order of Monisaraphon - Grand Cross.png Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Monisaraphon
 * KHM Sena Jayaseddh Medal - v.2.png Sena Jayaseddh Medal
 * KHM National Defence Medal - gold x2 BAR.svg Medal of National Defense, with 2 gold stars
 * KHM National Defence Medal - silver x2 BAR.svg Medal of National Defense, with 2 silver stars
 * KHM National Defence Medal - bronze x2 BAR.svg Medal of National Defense, with 2 bronze stars
 * KHM Medal of Labour.png Medal of Labour
 * KHM National Construction Decoration.png National Construction Decoration

Foreign Orders:
 * Brunei:
 * Sultan's Golden Jubilee Medal (2017).jpg Recipient of the Sultan of Brunei Golden Jubilee Medal (2017)
 * Cuba:
 * Ribbon jose marti.png Recipients of the Order of José Martí (1999)
 * Laos:
 * LAO Gold Medal of the Nation BAR.svg Gold Medal of the Nation (2008)
 * Philippines:
 * PHL Order of Sikatuna - Grand Cross BAR.png Grand Cross (Datu) of the Order of Sikatuna
 * Russia:
 * Orden of Friendship.png Recipients of the Order of Friendship (2021)
 * Thailand:
 * Order of the White Elephant - Special Class (Thailand) ribbon.svg Knight Special Grand Cordon of the Order of the White Elephant (2001)
 * Ukraine:
 * Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise 1st 2nd and 3rd Class of Ukraine.png Member 3rd Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise (Awarded by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, 30 December 2022)

title: Hun Sen


text:
User talk:Mywyb2

Welcome to Wikipedia, Mywyb2. :-) -- Timwi 21:56, 8 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Welcome to Wikipedia!
Hello Mywyb2, welcome to Wikipedia! Thanks for all your contributions. Here are some useful links in case you haven't already found them: If you have any questions, see the help pages, add a question to the village pump or ask me on my talk page. I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian!
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Congratulations for your 50th edit! :-) -- Timwi 00:26, 10 Feb 2004 (UTC)

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Hello! You were listed on the Wikipedians/Germany page as living in or being associated with Germany. As part of the User categorisation project, these lists are being replaced with user categories. If you would like to add yourself to the category that is replacing the page, or one of the Bundesland-based subcategories, please visit Category:Wikipedians in Germany for instructions. --Angr ( tɔk ) 15:13, 15 January 2006 (UTC)

Invite

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title: User talk:Mywyb2


text:
Peter Mafany Musonge

Peter Mafany Musonge (born 3 December 1942 ) is a Cameroonian politician who was Prime Minister of Cameroon from September 19, 1996, to December 8, 2004.

Biography
Musonge was born at Muea in the Fako Department of Cameroon's South-West Region. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering at Drexel University and received a Master of Science degree in structural engineering at Stanford University, and has worked on a variety of development projects. He has been a longtime supporter and assistant of President Paul Biya, and is an Anglophone and a member of the Bakweri ethnic group. He left his position as Prime Minister after a cabinet reshuffle which followed Biya's successful 2004 reelection, for which Musonge served as campaign manager.

Musonge is a member of the Central Committee of the ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM). Biya appointed Musonge as Grand Chancellor of National Orders on April 4, 2007.

In May 2013, President Biya appointed Musonge to the Senate of Cameroon. He was one of 30 senators to receive their seats by presidential appointment; the other 70 senators were indirectly elected. Biya appointed three senators for each region, and Musonge was one of the three to come from the South-West Region. There was some speculation that he might receive the post of President of the Senate, but Marcel Niat Njifenji was elected to that post on 12 June 2013. Musonge was instead designated as President of the CPDM's Senate Parliamentary Group.

title: Peter Mafany Musonge


text:
José Maria Neves

José Maria Pereira Neves (born 28 March 1960) is a Cape Verdean politician who is currently the president of Cape Verde, having previously served as the Prime Minister of Cape Verde from 2001 to 2016. He is a member of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV). In the 2021 presidential election, he was elected with 51.7% of votes, beating his nearest rival Carlos Veiga who got 42.4% of the total votes.

Biography
Neves was born on the island of Santiago in 1960. He became interested in the politics of Cape Verde as a teenager and was the leader of a nationalist youth organization during the country's transition from Portuguese rule to independence and democracy in 1975. Part of his higher education was at the São Paulo School of Business Administration of the Getúlio Vargas Foundation in Brazil.

He returned to Cape Verde in the 1980s and worked as a clerk in different state institutions. From 1987 to 1989, he was coordinator of the Project Administrative and Reform and Modernization. From 1988 to 1988, he was director of the National Training Centre for Public Administration. From 1989 to 1998, he was consultant in the field of National Training and Development of Human Resources Management.

Political career
In 1989, he became member of the PAICV party. As a candidate for the party leadership at PAICV's September 1997 congress, he faced Pedro Pires; Pires defeated Neves in the leadership election, winning 68% of the vote. In May 2000, Neves—then serving as President of the Santa Catarina Town Council—announced that he would seek the PAICV presidency again at the June 2000 party congress; Pires was leaving the PAICV presidency in anticipation of his candidacy in the next year's national presidential election.

After he became prime minister, he established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. In 2002, he signed a "special treaty" with the European Union, it was discussed on 15 November 2005. In 2007, he called for a special relationship with the European Union due to the archipelago's proximity to the other islands of Macaronesia, which are regions of Spain and Portugal. A meeting with the CPLP (Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries) was held in November 2002. He also met Alamara Nhassé, Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau. He held additional portfolio of Minister of Finance from 2003 to 2004.

In August 2005, he visited Brazil, where he toured six states and had an audience with President Lula da Silva. A topic of discussion was investment in Cape Verde, including in the University of Cape Verde, the first public university in the archipelago.

He won the 2006 parliamentary election on 22 January with 52.28% of the votes and got 41 seats. and on 7 March, he served his second term as prime minister. The World Bank and the IMF judged favorably on its economic and financial policies.

While acknowledging the harmful effects of slavery and colonialism on Africa, Neves said in December 2006 that African leaders were primarily responsible for the continent's present-day problems, and that they "must assume their responsibility to develop a clear strategy for Africa's future that takes advantage of all of its human capabilities and natural resources."

On 2 January 2007, he wanted to give Cape Verde a special status with ECOWAS.

A new government under Neves was announced on 27 June 2008, with six ministers joining the government and four ministers leaving it. Three of the new ministers were women, making it the first government in Cape Verde with a female majority (eight out of 15 portfolios).

On 6 February 2011, he was elected to his third term by most Cape Verdean voters with 52.68% over MpD and 38 out of 72 seats, thus reinforcing his party's influence in the Cape Verdean parliament. He visited a trading conference, the 4th Global Review of Aid for Trade in from 8 to 10 July 2013.

On 6 September 2014, he announced another government. Janira Hopffer Almada succeeded Neves as president of the parliamentary section of the PAICV party. After the 2016 parliamentary elections on 22 April, he was succeeded by Ulisses Correia e Silva as prime minister.

In October 2021, José Maria Neves, won the presidential election in the first round of 17 October. According to the first results published on an official website, he won 51.5% of the vote, an absolute majority necessary to be elected in the first round.

As a writer
Neves is also author of books and some news articles. Some of these were published in other African countries and in parts of Europe and in Brazil. He wrote:

 * Ensaios sobre la Administrativa de la Ciência Política (Essays on the Administrative of Political Sciences)
 * A Teória de la Administração Pública em Cabo Verde (A Theory on Public Administration in Cape Verde)
 * Princípios sobre a Administração Pública em Cabo Verde no Século XXI (Principles on Public Administration in Cape Verde in the 21st Century)
 * O Estado e a Administração Pública em Cabo Verde (The State and the Public Administration in Cape Verde)
 * Administração Pública no Concelho do Santa Catarina (Public Administration in the Municipality of Santa Catarina)
 * O Estado na Era da Modernização no Cabo Verde. (The State in the Modernization Age in Cape Verde)
 * Uma Agenda de Transformação para Cabo Verde (A Transformation Agenda for Cape Verde)
 * Cabo Verde - Gestão das Impossibilidades (Cape Verde - Management of Impossibilities)
 * Um Futuro a Construir, em co-autoria com Francisco Pinto Balsemão. (A Future to Build), with Francisco Pinto Balsemão as the co-author

Foreign honours

 * 🇱🇺 Luxembourg:
 * Ordre du Lion d'Or de la Maison de Nassau ribbon.svg Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau (23 May 2023)

title: José Maria Neves


text:
Mario Dumont

Mario Dumont (born May 19, 1970) is a Canadian television personality and former politician in Quebec, Canada. He was a Member of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNA), and the leader of the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ), from 1994 to 2009. After the 2007 Quebec election, Dumont obtained the post of Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly.

Following his party's poor showing in the 2008 Quebec election, he announced his resignation as ADQ leader, and subsequently joined the television network V to host a daily news and talk show, Dumont, which began in 2009. He left that network in 2012 to join the all-news channel LCN.

Biography
Dumont was born in Saint-Georges-de-Cacouna, Quebec. Dumont and his wife, Marie-Claude Barrette, have three children: Angela, Charles, and Juliette. Dumont obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Concordia University in 1993, and completed some graduate work at the Université de Montréal.

Quebec Liberal Party
Dumont bought his first membership card in the Liberal Party of Quebec at age 15. He stated to his school friends that in the future he would be Quebec's premier. Dumont was a former President of the Liberal Party's Youth Commission, but had a falling out with the party following the rejection of the Allaire Report proposing maximalist powers for Quebec after the collapse of the Meech Lake Accord.

Dumont called himself and Michel Bissonnet, who preceded Dumont as leader of the Liberal youth wing, the first Liberal sovereigntists. This was the group that led the Liberal sovereigntist faction while Liberal premier Robert Bourassa remained unopposed.

Dumont organized the "Liberals for the No side," in the 1992 referendum on the Charlottetown Accord.

Action démocratique du Québec
Dumont and Liberal party insider Jean Allaire played a central role in the creation and development of the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) in 1994. He succeeded Allaire as leader after the latter resigned for health reasons.

Dumont was elected as an ADQ member of the National Assembly for Rivière du Loup in the 1994, 1998, 2003, 2007 and 2008 elections.

In the 1995 Quebec referendum, Dumont joined with Parti Québécois Premier Jacques Parizeau and Bloc Québécois leader Lucien Bouchard, who wooed him and with whom he remains close, in support of the sovereigntist campaign. Dumont revealed to Journalist Chantal Hébert and Jean Lapierre that they planned to use 1995 Quebec Referendum as a way to advocate for a new partnership between Quebec and Canada. However, Parizeau advocated for separation; so both Bouchard and Dumont followed his direction. In subsequent years, however he changed positions on the issue, arguing that the sovereignty question had been decided and that Quebecers had no desire to revisit it.

In the years that followed, the constitutional position of the ADQ changed to favour Quebec autonomism, supporting increased powers and responsibilities for Quebec while remaining within Canada. In practical terms, Dumont has supported the creation of a Quebec constitution, the change of the province's name to that of the "autonomous state of Québec", and the collection of all taxes by the provincial government, with the funds necessary for the federal government to fulfill its constitutional responsibilities being transferred to it by the province.

Since the 1998 provincial election, Dumont has distinguished himself primarily for his stances on economic issues, which are generally considered to be right of centre in the context of the predominantly social-democratic Quebec political scene. He advocates the payment of a cash allowance to parents who do not wish to make use of the province's $7 a day daycare program, changes to the provincial health system that would allow private for profit health care and private health insurance alongside the public system, the abolition of school boards, the encouragement of private education, a tougher criminal justice system, reductions in the size of the provincial bureaucracy, and the repayment of the province's $127 billion government debt.

Dumont was personally very popular, and for most of his career was far more popular than the ADQ as a whole. In fact, for many years, the ADQ tried to capitalize on Dumont's personal popularity by using the official name Action démocratique du Québec-Équipe Mario Dumont (Action démocratique du Québec-Team Mario Dumont}. However, this didn't translate to support for his party; it never won much support in Montreal or the Outaouais.

2007 Quebec election
In the 2007 Quebec election, the ADQ won 41 seats with 31% of the popular vote, and formed the Official Opposition in the National Assembly. Prior to the dissolution of the National Assembly, the ADQ had held only five seats, and as a result did not have official party status. Despite becoming the Official Opposition, the ADQ was almost nonexistent in several of the province's major cities. It won almost no seats in Montreal, Gatineau, Saguenay, Longueuil, Laval and Sherbrooke. Tasha Kheiriddin argued that his result would have given right-of-centre currents swirling in Quebec politics.

2008 Quebec election
On October 23, 2008, two ADQ MNAs, André Riedl and Pierre-Michel Auger, crossed the floor to the governing Liberal Party, embarrassing Dumont. Quebec premier Jean Charest subsequently called a snap election for December 8, 2008. A Léger Marketing poll conducted between Friday, November 14 and Monday, November 17, showed the Liberals with 44% support, the PQ with 33%, and the ADQ with 15%.

The ADQ won a meagre seven seats (17% of the vote) in the election. Following this poor showing, Dumont retired from politics on election night.

Television career
At TQS' 2009 upfronts presentation, it was announced that Dumont would join the network in the fall as host of a daily news and information series, Dumont 360. The series launched in September 2009, shortly after the network was rebranded as V.

In 2012, Dumont moved to LCN and began a new show called Mario Dumont.

Since 2018, he has also hosted his own radio show, Le retour de Mario Dumont, on QUB Radio.

Electoral record

 * }
 * }

 * }
 * }

title: Mario Dumont


text:
Talk:Mohammad Daoud Khan

?: britannica and many other pages give April 27 as death date --Ktotam 23:30, 12 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Untitled

 * 28th is from the Library of Congress country study. It says:

"On April 27, 1978, a coup d'état beginning with troop movements at the military base at Kabul International Airport, gained ground slowly over the next twenty-four hours as rebels battled units loyal to Daoud in and around the capital. Daoud and most of his family were shot in the presidential palace the following day. Two hundred and thirty-one years of royal rule by Ahmad Shah and his descendants had ended, but it was less clear what kind of regime had succeeded them."

( 22:11, 8 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Afghanistani
This has been covered in numerous other articles. "Afghan" is the correct term for things or people relating to Afghanistan. Further insertion of "Afghanistani" will be considered vandalism. --Khampalak 18:39, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

 * Who are you to make rules around here? This isn't a dictarship here where one person makes the decision, don't make me laugh. However in this case, Afghan is the correct term since he was an ethnic Afghan (Pashtun). -- Behnam 18:54, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

 * Take your own advice, sag e parchami. I've had enough of your double-talk.  --Khampalak 19:19, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Biased, pro-American propaganda
Not surprisingly, this English-language article reflects distorted and biased point of view maintained by US government and its "research centers".

Allegations about direct KGB involvement in the events of 1978 are a complete lie spread by US government organisations. Events of 1974-1978 were internal matter of Afghanistan and turned out to be rather unexpected development for Moscow. KGB started to actively get involved only after that.

Remarkably, the article attempts to cover up that Daoud's coming into power in 1973 was the brutal and illegal coup by itself and marked a start of a long-time period of instability in Afghanistan.

Soviet Union had good relations with king Zahir Shah and did not have any intent to destabilize Afghanistan at that time. This destabilizing was in fact inspired by US and UK. Terrible results of US policy are being dealt with till the present time.

The real picture can only be seen after sufficient study into Russian sources, including Russian-language version of the same Wikipedia article.Alexander0807 (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 17:42, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

the articel should be improved
Hi.

I think that there is some information missing about daud khan.

1. The king zahir sha had only his familie memebers in top positions during his regim. Daud was one of them, and because of some of dauds behavoir zahir sha replaced him.

2. Daud Khan replace his cousin Zahir Sha in an undemocratical way when zagir was visiting italy or somewhere. And in his new regim he had his closest familiemembers at the top positions. He was know for his 25 year old plans.. but non of them worked. He lost a lot of the countries money trying to make the ideas coming tru. Not only that he killed and arrested journalists and demonstrators who fought and wanted to bring democrati to the country and thats way he also lost the support of the people.

3. Since he from the begging replaced zahir sha in a undemocratical way, and arrested leaders from khalq and parcham and also activists who fought for democrati.. Daud khan was asked to leave his position. He refused, and there where negotiations going one for a long while. parchamis disrecommended strongly to kill Daud khan and Khalqis agreed, even though that daud khan was ask to leave otherwise he would get killed in an attac. But the leader of Khalq, Afizulla Amin, leaved the negotiations sayin that he was going to toilette. But he went straightly to the army leader and told and ordered him to attac daud and his top men. He told the army leader that it was the decition made during the meeting. Daud Khan and his top men (HIS COUSINS AND OTHER NEAR MEMBERS)got killed. It is very veryyyy wrong to say his "familie" since he himself hired his familie members to his undemocratical goverment. The poeple who got killed where all politicans. When you write: "Daud khan and his familie got killed" it sounds like his childerns, womens and other poeple not beeing involved also got killed which is absolutly not true.

And that was also way khalm and Parcham started to get pissed at eachother. Beacause of Afisulah amin.

It is also importent to note that he nobbed communists because he got cheques from saudis and USA. He then did not any longer needed sovjets support. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.227.13.139 (talk) 00:51, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

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 * Mohammed-Daoud-Khan.jpg

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 * Mohammed Daoud Khan.jpg

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 * Daoud Khan and Asif Khan.jpg

the current picture is not Daoud Khan. this is Naim Khan his brother. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A02:908:D41:DB20:C874:2907:54A3:EF6D (talk) 13:25, 24 April 2021 (UTC)

Public image misses citation.
There is no citation for this part "During his regime, all controlling position in the government, army and educational institutions were held by Pashtuns". The first reference from this article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Qadir_Nuristani proofs atleast 2 non pashtuns in his regime.
 * The content is sourced to Walter 2017, p. 75; however, the excerpt that is available in preview form online shows that whoever added this content to Wikipedia exaggerated the claim made by the author, so your point is well-taken. Regards,TheTimesAreAChanging (talk) 09:08, 10 July 2021 (UTC)

English
Hamza 103.215.210.1 (talk) 15:49, 28 May 2022 (UTC)

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 * Flag of Afghanistan (1974–1978).svg

Requested move 5 February 2023

 * The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: Page moved. (closed by non-admin page mover) --  Dane  talk  01:31, 13 February 2023 (UTC)

Mohammed Daoud Khan → Mohammad Daoud Khan – As per native Pashto and Dari languages, his name is more accurately romanized as Mohammad with an 'a'. In the Afghan languages this common name is never pronounced as 'Mohammed'.  WR   15:28, 5 February 2023 (UTC)

 * I support this move due to his ancestors Dost Mohammad Khan being referred to as the correct term. Noorullah21 (talk) 03:47, 7 February 2023 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

title: Talk:Mohammad Daoud Khan


text:
Wolfgang Heidenfeld

Wolfgang Heidenfeld (29 May 1911 – 3 August 1981) was a German chess player and chess composer.

Heidenfeld was born in Berlin. He was forced to move from Germany to South Africa in the 1930s because he was a Jew. There, he won the South African Chess Championship eight times, and he represented South Africa in the Chess Olympiad in 1958. Besides playing chess, he was also a writer, door-to-door salesman, journalist, and designer of crossword puzzles. His hobbies were poker, bridge and collecting stamps as well as playing chess. During World War II, he used his fluency in German to help decode German messages for the Allies. Despite having so many different interests and activities to engage into, he nevertheless managed to succeed in chess to the point of becoming national champion in both of the countries he lived in.

In 1955, he beat former world champion Max Euwe. He also won games against Miguel Najdorf, Joaquim Durao and Ludek Pachman. He never became an International Master—he did eventually attain the required qualifications but declined to accept the award from FIDE.

He wrote several chess books, including Chess Springbok (1955), My Book of Fun and Games (1958), Grosse Remispartien (1968; in German; an English edition entitled Draw!, edited by John Nunn, was published in 1982), and Lacking the Master Touch (1970).

In 1957, after visiting Ireland, he moved to Dublin. In 1979, the family moved back to Ulm, where he died two years later.

Heidenfeld was Irish Champion in 1958, 1963, 1964, 1967, 1968, and 1972. He won the Leinster Chess Championship in 1965, 1969 (shared), and 1972. He was in the Olympiad team in 1966, 1968, 1970 and 1974; and in the European Championships team in 1967.

His son Mark Heidenfeld is an International Master, has also played chess for Ireland, and won the Irish Chess Championship in 2000 and 2021.

The Heidenfeld Trophy, the second division, of the Leinster chess league, is named in his honour.

title: Wolfgang Heidenfeld


text:
Abel Goumba

Abel Nguéndé Goumba (18 September 1926 – 11 May 2009) was a Central African politician. During the late 1950s, he headed the government in the period prior to independence from France, and following independence he was an unsuccessful candidate for President of the Central African Republic four times (1981, 1993, 1999, and 2005). Goumba, who was President of the Patriotic Front for Progress (FPP) political party, served under President François Bozizé as Prime Minister from March 2003 to December 2003 and then as Vice President of the Central African Republic from December 2003 to March 2005. Subsequently, he was appointed to the official post of Ombudsman.

Early life
He was born in 1926 in Grimari, Ouaka Prefecture in the Oubangi-Chari French colony, which is now the Central African Republic. He was a qualified medical doctor and member of the medical faculty in Bangui.

Entry into politics
While the country was still a French colony, Goumba was Vice-President of the Government Council from May 1957 to July 1958, President of the Government Council from July 1958 to December 1958, and was briefly Prime Minister in an acting capacity in April 1959, following the death of Barthélemy Boganda in a plane crash. He was defeated in a political power struggle by David Dacko in 1959 and then became a minor opposition party leader. He was in exile in France from 1960 until 1980. He worked for the World Health Organization in Rwanda and then Benin during the 1970s; while in Rwanda, he met his wife, Anne-Marie. Even after his return to the Central African Republic, he was occasionally arrested for political activity. He feuded with all of Central African Republic's presidents until 2003 and was declared by them to be a national traitor.

1990s
Goumba had a reputation for honesty and integrity. He stressed the importance of governing without corruption. In the 1981 presidential election, which was won by Dacko (who was nevertheless ousted only a few months later), Goumba took less than 2% of the vote, but in the 1993 presidential election he achieved his best result, coming in second place but being defeated by Ange-Félix Patassé in a run-off, in which Goumba took about 46% of the vote. In 1999 he did poorly by comparison, taking only about 6% of the vote and placing fourth, behind Patassé, André Kolingba, and Dacko.

Under Bozizé
After Bozizé seized power on 15 March 2003, ousting Patassé, he appointed Goumba as Prime Minister on 23 March. His government was formed on 31 March 2003; in its composition it was viewed as a compromise between Bozizé and Goumba, with a number of military allies and relatives of Bozizé receiving key posts while other posts went to associates and allies of various political leaders and to independent figures regarded as competent. Goumba kept the portfolio of Minister of Finance himself. The National Transitional Council (CNT) rejected Goumba's proposed programme of general policy on 5 November 2003, saying that the government's objectives, along with the methods of implementing those objectives, were not sufficiently defined in the programme. He had planned to submit a revised programme on 12 December 2003, but on 11 December, Bozizé dismissed him as Prime Minister. On the next day Célestin Gaombalet was named to replace him; Goumba was appointed as Vice-President instead.

2005 candidacy
He was a presidential candidate for the fourth time in the election held on 13 March 2005. Goumba was not expected to win; he received sixth place and 2.51% of the vote. He was one of the five candidates initially approved by the transitional constitutional court on 30 December 2004; seven other candidates were excluded, although six of them were later allowed to run.

On 14 March 2005, the day after the election, members of the Collective of Political Parties of the Opposition (CPPO), including Goumba, signed a petition in which they alleged that fraud had occurred. On 15 March, before the election results became available, Bozizé dismissed Goumba from the Vice-Presidency and the position was abolished. According to presidential spokesman Alain-George Ngatoua, this was because the constitution adopted in December 2004 did not provide for a Vice-President, and the dismissal was unrelated to the quality of Goumba's work; Ngatoua said that Bozizé thanked Goumba for facilitating the transitional process through his "wisdom and courage". Goumba expressed disgust at the manner of his dismissal; he said that he had received no notification of the dismissal and found out about it when it was reported on state radio. Goumba's view was that transitional institutions, including the Vice-Presidency, were supposed to be maintained until the installation of an elected government.

Goumba ran for a seat from Kouango in the 2005 parliamentary election, held concurrently with the presidential election, but was defeated; his wife Anne-Marie won a seat, however.

Retirement
Goumba's son, Alexandre was elected to succeed him as President of his party, Patriotic Front for Progress (FPP), on 5 March 2006, after the elder Goumba was appointed to the official post of Ombudsman. As Ombudsman, he called for the government to negotiate with a rebel group after it captured Birao on 30 October 2006.

He presented the first volume of his memoirs, covering the period from 1956 to 1959, on 14 January 2007.

Goumba died at age 82 on 11 May 2009 at a clinic in Bangui after being taken to hospital the previous evening.

title: Abel Goumba


text:
Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum

Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum (مكتوم بن راشد آل مكتوم; 15 August 1943 – 4 January 2006) was an Emirati royal and politician who served as the second vice president, first and third prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and as the ruler of Dubai. He was prime minister from 1971 to 1979 and from 1990 to 2006, he served as the ruler of Dubai from 1990 to 2006. He was succeeded after his death by his brother Sheikh Mohammed as Ruler of Dubai.

Early life
He was born in 1943 in Al Shindagha, Dubai to the Al Maktoum family of the Al Bu Falasah tribe.

Political career
His father Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum became the Ruler of Dubai upon the death of his own father, Sheikh Saeed bin Maktoum bin Hasher Al Maktoum (Saeed II), in 1958. Sheikh Maktoum formed the first cabinet of the United Arab Emirates. He served as prime minister first from the country's independence on 9 December 1971 until 25 April 1979, when he was replaced by his father, who had been Vice President since 1971. Following his father's death on 7 October 1990, he resumed his position as Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and also took over as Ruler of Dubai and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates. He served in all three positions until his death on 4 January 2006.

Sheikh Maktoum also briefly served as acting President of the United Arab Emirates on 2–3 November 2004 between the death of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and the proclamation and installation of his son Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan as President of the United Arab Emirates on 4 November 2004.

Sheikh Maktoum ran the emirate of Dubai along with his two brothers, Sheikh Mohammed (Crown Prince and Minister of Defence) and Sheikh Hamdan (Minister of Finance) of the United Arab Emirates. Internationally, he was also known as co-owner (with his brothers) of Dubai's Godolphin Stables, which competes in major horse races around the world.

Death
Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid al Maktoum died on the morning of 4 January 2006, suffering a heart attack while staying at Palazzo Versace Hotel in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. He was succeeded by his brother, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, as ruler of Dubai. His body was brought back from Australia and buried in Dubai.

Personal life
Sheikha Alia bint Khalifa Al Maktoum was Al Maktoum's wife until his death in 2006. They married on 12 March 1971. Sheikha Alia, like other members of the Maktoum family, is involved in horse racing.

One of Al Maktoum's daughters with Alia bint Khalifa bin Saeed Al Maktoum, is Lateefa bint Maktoum Al Maktoum  (born 11 February 1985). Sheikha Lateefa bint Maktoum is the founder of the art centre Tashkeel Dubai. Sheikha Alia's other children are Sheikha Hessa, Sheikha Maitha, Sheikh Saeed and Sheikh Rashid (1979–2002).

Age of consent allegations
In 2023, the New Yorker reported on allegations by multiple drivers that Sheikh Maktoum travelled on private jets with underage girls.

Sheikha Bouchra
Sheikha Bouchra bint Mohammed was Al Maktoum's second wife and had three sons named Sheikh Mohammed, Hamdan and Zayed with him. She was a hobbyist painter and a horse racing enthusiast. Bouchra's lifestyle conflicted with the traditional customs and strictures on female royalty in the UAE. In April 2000, there were allegations that Bouchra had been abducted by the Emirati government while she was the United Kingdom, forcefully bringing her to Dubai where she was made a house prisoner. She apparently died in 2007, aged 34, not long after her husband's death.

title: Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum


text:
Moussa Faki

Moussa Faki Mahamat (موسى فقي محمد, Mūsā Fakī Muḥammad; born 21 June 1960) is a Chadian politician and diplomat who has been the elected Chairperson of the African Union Commission since 14 March 2017. Previously he was Prime Minister of Chad from 24 June 2003 to 4 February 2005 and Minister of Foreign Affairs from April 2008 to January 2017. Faki, a member of the ruling Patriotic Salvation Movement (MPS), belongs to the Zaghawa ethnic group, the same group as the late President Idriss Déby.

On 6 February 2021, he was re-elected as Chairperson of the African Union Commission for another four year term from 2021-2024.

Biography
Faki was born in the town of Biltine in eastern Chad. He attended university in Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo, where he studied law. He went into exile when Hissein Habré took power on June 7, 1982 and joined the Democratic Revolutionary Council headed by Acheikh Ibn Oumar; however, he did not return to Chad when Acheikh joined with Habré in 1988. He eventually returned on 7 June 1991, after Déby took power. He was director-general of two ministries before serving as the Director-General of the National Sugar Company (SONASUT) between 1996 and 1999.

Subsequently, he served as Director of the Cabinet of President Déby from March 1999 to July 2002, and he was Déby's campaign director for the May 2001 presidential election. Faki was then appointed as Minister of Public Works and Transport in the government of Prime Minister Haroun Kabadi, which was named on June 12, 2002. After a year in that post, he was appointed as Prime Minister by Déby on June 24, 2003, replacing Kabadi. Faki resigned in early February 2005 amidst a civil service strike and a rumored quarrel with Déby.

Faki was nominated as a member of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council on 19 January 2007, and was then elected as the Council's President in mid-February 2007. In the government of Prime Minister Youssouf Saleh Abbas, which was announced on April 23, 2008, he was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs.

On 30 January 2017, he was elected to succeed South Africa's Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as Chairperson of the African Union Commission, defeating Amina Mohamed of Kenya. Hissein Brahim Taha was appointed to replace him as Chadian Minister of Foreign Affairs on 5 February 2017. Faki took office as Chairperson of the AU Commission on 14 March 2017.

title: Moussa Faki