Sir James Richard Marie Mancham KBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born August 11 1939,
VictoriaVictoria is the capital city of the Republic of Seychelles and is situated on the north-eastern side of Mahé island, which the main island of the archipelago. The city was first established as the seat of the British colonial government. As of 2009, the population is 25,000, out of the...
) was the first President of Seychelles from 1976 to 1977. His father, Richard Mancham, a successful businessman, sent James to law school in England. When Britain announced its intention to give independence to the colony, Mancham founded the
Democratic PartyThe Seychelles Democratic Party is a political party in Seychelles. It was founded by Sir James Mancham in 1964, and governed the country from 1976 to 1977. After a time in exile in the United Kingdom, Mancham returned to the islands following the Seychelles' transition to democracy in 1993. He has...
(S.D.P.), and served as its leader until February 2005.
http://www.dpseychelles.org/events.php#20 France-Albert RenéFrance-Albert René was the long-time socialist President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004. He is known by government officials and party members as "the Boss." His name is often given as simply Albert René or F.A...
founded an opposition party, the Seychelles People's United Party (S.P.U.P) with the support of the Soviet Union.
Sir James Richard Marie Mancham KBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born August 11 1939,
VictoriaVictoria is the capital city of the Republic of Seychelles and is situated on the north-eastern side of Mahé island, which the main island of the archipelago. The city was first established as the seat of the British colonial government. As of 2009, the population is 25,000, out of the...
) was the first President of Seychelles from 1976 to 1977. His father, Richard Mancham, a successful businessman, sent James to law school in England. When Britain announced its intention to give independence to the colony, Mancham founded the
Democratic PartyThe Seychelles Democratic Party is a political party in Seychelles. It was founded by Sir James Mancham in 1964, and governed the country from 1976 to 1977. After a time in exile in the United Kingdom, Mancham returned to the islands following the Seychelles' transition to democracy in 1993. He has...
(S.D.P.), and served as its leader until February 2005.
http://www.dpseychelles.org/events.php#20 France-Albert RenéFrance-Albert René was the long-time socialist President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004. He is known by government officials and party members as "the Boss." His name is often given as simply Albert René or F.A...
founded an opposition party, the Seychelles People's United Party (S.P.U.P) with the support of the Soviet Union. As Chief Minister of the colony, Mancham promoted tourism to the Seychelles and arranged for the building of the airport that was to make the Seychelles accessible to the rest of the world. Tourism increased and the economy developed. In 1976, Mancham won the popular vote when the British gave the Seychelles independence. Less that a year later, in June 1977, he was deposed by Prime Minister
France-Albert RenéRené is a very common given name in French-speaking countries. It comes from the Latin name Renatus. René is normally, originally only a masculine name . But in non-Francophone countries, the habit of giving the name René to both boys and girls is now common which sometimes surprises French speakers...
in a coup with the support of Tanzanian-trained revolutionaries and Tanzanian-supplied weapons.
Mancham lived in exile until the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991 and
France-Albert RenéRené is a very common given name in French-speaking countries. It comes from the Latin name Renatus. René is normally, originally only a masculine name . But in non-Francophone countries, the habit of giving the name René to both boys and girls is now common which sometimes surprises French speakers...
, declaring that the Seychelles would once again become a multi-party state, ended the ban on the S.D.P. and its activities. While in exile, Mancham was financially successful in several international business ventures and married Catherine Olsen, an Australian journalist working in London. When he returned to the Seychelles, he resumed the promotion of tourism to the tropical islands.
Mancham ran for president in July 1993 and finished second behind René with 36.72% of the vote. In March 1998 he ran again, receiving third place and 13.8% of the vote, behind René and
Wavel RamkalawanWavel Ramkalawan is a politician of the Seychelles.-Early life:Wavel Ramkalawan was born in Mahé, the principal island of Seychelles. He was born into a modest family, the youngest of three children. His father was a metalworker and his mother a teacher...
.
He is also the author of two books, one about the coup called
Paradise Raped and a more recent book, written after 9/11,
War on America Seen from the Indian Ocean.