132-546: GNE may refer to: Equatorial Guinea , ITU country code GNE (encyclopedia) , a free content encyclopedia GNE (gene) Ganang language , spoken in Nigeria Genesis Energy Limited , a New Zealand energy company Go North East , an English bus operator UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase (hydrolysing) Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, Ludhiana (GNE Ludhiana), Punjab, India Topics referred to by
264-476: A United States House of Representatives joint resolution condemning him for acts of religious persecution and genocide had been proposed. By 1979, his servants stated that Macías Nguema had become increasingly withdrawn, often spending the time mostly alone at his Mongomo villa. He would wander around, repeatedly saying the names of his victims, and worshipping a collection of heads as per Fang tradition, hoping that this would grant him power. Even more disturbing to
396-483: A March 2004 BBC profile, politics within the country were dominated by tensions with Obiang's son, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue . In 2004, a planeload of suspected mercenaries was intercepted in Zimbabwe while allegedly on the way to overthrow Obiang. A November 2004 report named Mark Thatcher as a financial backer of the 2004 Equatorial Guinea coup d'état attempt organized by Simon Mann . Various accounts also named
528-444: A Spanish military academy together and who now headed the military. As Macías Nguema was still at his palace, isolated from the rest of the country due to his fear of being overthrown, the coup met no organized opposition. The deposed ruler and a contingent of loyal forces initially tried to resist the coup upon hearing of it, but his forces eventually abandoned him. He fled into the jungle of Rio Muni, possibly intending to get across
660-747: A Spanish spy. This led to a climate of fear and suspicion, as owning the wrong book or having talked with the wrong person could result in punishment, imprisonment or death. Having turned against Spain, Macías Nguema allied with the Eastern Bloc , enlisting support from the Soviet Union , Cuba , and North Korea . He allowed the Soviets to channel weapons through Equatorial Guinea to the MPLA in Angola , while repeatedly threatening to terminate this alliance in order to blackmail
792-550: A US-based international private military company , has worked in Equatorial Guinea to train police forces in appropriate human rights practices. In 2006, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hailed Obiang as a "good friend" despite repeated criticism of his human rights and civil liberties record. The US Agency for International Development entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Obiang in April 2006 to establish
924-424: A bloody coup d'état ; over two weeks of civil war ensued until Macías Nguema was captured. He was tried and executed soon afterward, with Obiang succeeding him as a less bloody, but still authoritarian president. In 1995, Mobil , an American oil company, discovered oil in Equatorial Guinea. The country subsequently experienced rapid economic development, but earnings from the country's oil wealth have not reached
1056-440: A coherent agenda, and made various promises to improve his popularity. He would point at European-owned houses and ask the crowds if they wanted to own the place; when they responded positively, he stated that he would give them to the listeners if they voted for him. However, Macías Nguema was easily distracted from his speeches, and often made "chaotic public appearances". His bouts of erratic behavior were generally believed to be
1188-514: A loss of privileges and 'swamping' by the Fang majority, and the Río Muni Fang nationalists on the other. At the conference, the leading Fang figure, the later first president Francisco Macías Nguema , gave a controversial speech in which he claimed that Adolf Hitler had "saved Africa". After nine sessions, the conference was suspended due to deadlock between the "unionists" and "separatists" who wanted
1320-773: A major toll on European settlers from the beginning, and it would be centuries before attempts restarted. In 1778, Queen Maria I of Portugal and King Charles III of Spain signed the Treaty of El Pardo which ceded Bioko , adjacent islets, and commercial rights to the Bight of Biafra between the Niger and Ogoue rivers to Spain in exchange for large areas in South America that are now Western Brazil. Brigadier Felipe José, Count of Arjelejos formally took possession of Bioko from Portugal on 21 October 1778. After sailing for Annobón to take possession,
1452-486: A majority of its electorate voted against Macías Nguema in the 1968 elections. Use of the Fang language was forcibly imposed, with penalties for anyone caught using Spanish or languages belonging to ethnic minorities. In a plebiscite held on 29 July 1973 , the 1968 Constitution was replaced with a new document that gave Macías Nguema absolute power and formally made his party the only one legally permitted . According to official figures, 99 percent of voters approved
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#17328439467871584-642: A measure of influence there. For the USSR, there was an advantage to be gained in the war in Angola from access to Luba base and later on to Malabo International Airport . In 1974, the World Council of Churches affirmed that large numbers of people had been murdered since 1968 in an ongoing reign of terror . A quarter of the entire population had fled abroad, they said, while 'the prisons are overflowing and to all intents and purposes form one vast concentration camp'. Out of
1716-455: A military base near the city of Bata , causing 98 deaths and 600 people being injured and treated at the hospital. In November 2022, Obiang was re-elected in the 2022 Equatorial Guinean general election with 99.7% of the vote amid accusations of fraud by the opposition. The current president of Equatorial Guinea is Teodoro Obiang. The 1982 constitution of Equatorial Guinea gives him extensive powers, including naming and dismissing members of
1848-417: A population of 300,000, an estimated 80,000 were killed. Apart from allegedly committing genocide against the ethnic minority Bubi people , Macias Nguema ordered the deaths of thousands of suspected opponents, closed down churches and presided over the economy's collapse as skilled citizens and foreigners fled the country. The nephew of Macías Nguema, Teodoro Obiang deposed his uncle on 3 August 1979, in
1980-567: A purge on Christmas Eve 1969, all of whom were political opponents. Macias Nguema further consolidated his totalitarian powers by outlawing opposition political parties in July 1970 and making himself president for life in 1972. He broke off ties with Spain and the West. In spite of his condemnation of Marxism , which he deemed " neo-colonialist ", Equatorial Guinea maintained special relations with communist states , notably China, Cuba, East Germany and
2112-553: A referendum of 15 December 1963, gave the territory a measure of autonomy and the administrative promotion of a 'moderate' group, the Movimiento de Unión Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial [ es ] (MUNGE). This was unsuccessful, and, with growing pressure for change from the UN, Madrid was gradually forced to give way to the currents of nationalism. Two General Assembly resolutions were passed in 1965 ordering Spain to grant independence to
2244-556: A relative who had been killed. Equatorial Guinea's per capita income fell from around $ 1,420 in 1968 to around $ 70 in 1975. Infant mortality rose to around 60%. National life expectancy declined to around 30 years. Macías Nguema's wider clan, led by Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, still leads Equatorial Guinea as of today. By 2007, his children had all left North Korea. However, Macías Nguema's daughter Mónica had relocated from North Korea to South Korea , considering Korea her home and Korean her native tongue ; she had published
2376-503: A separate Fernando Pó. Macías resolved to travel to the UN to bolster international awareness of the issue, and his firebrand speeches in New York contributed to Spain naming a date for both independence and general elections. In July 1968 virtually all Bubi leaders went to the UN in New York to try and raise awareness for their cause, but the world community was uninterested in quibbling over the specifics of colonial independence. The 1960s were
2508-668: A servant for some wealthy Spanish settlers, being described as helpful and obedient, which earned him ridicule and mistreatment by other non-Christianized Fang, and showed an inferiority complex with respect to the Spaniards. Medical reports from his early career suggested that Macías Nguema was mentally unstable. Based on a report from 1968, the French foreign intelligence service SDECE argued that he suffered from mental disorders and venereal diseases whose effects on his psyche were made even worse by his regular abuse of drugs such as cannabis in
2640-651: A social development fund in the country, implementing projects in the areas of health, education, women's affairs and the environment. In 2006, Obiang signed an anti-torture decree banning all forms of abuse and improper treatment in Equatorial Guinea, and commissioned the renovation and modernization of Black Beach prison in 2007 to ensure the humane treatment of prisoners. However, human rights abuses have continued. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International among other non-governmental organizations have documented severe human rights abuses in prisons, including torture, beatings, unexplained deaths and illegal detention. Obiang
2772-753: A socialist party called the Popular Front in the enclave which served to oppose the interests of the Fernando Pó plantation owners. When the War broke out Francisco Franco ordered Nationalist forces based in the Canaries to ensure control over Equatorial Guinea. In September 1936, Nationalist forces backed by Falangists from Fernando Pó, similarly to what happened in Spain proper, took control of Río Muni, which under Governor-General Luiz Sanchez Guerra Saez and his deputy Porcel had backed
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#17328439467872904-596: A statement to the court outlining what he viewed as the extensive good deeds he had performed for the country. At noon on 29 September 1979, the Tribunal delivered its sentences, which were more severe than what the prosecution had requested. Macías Nguema and six of his co-defendants were sentenced to death, and the confiscation of their property. Nguema was sentenced to death "101 times". Two defendants were sentenced to fourteen years in prison each, and two others to four years each. With no higher court available to hear appeals,
3036-501: A time of great optimism over the future of the former African colonies, and groups that had been close to European rulers, like the Bubi, were not viewed positively. Independence from Spain was gained on 12 October 1968, at noon in the capital, Malabo. The new country became the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (the date is celebrated as the country's Independence Day ). Macías became president in
3168-586: Is an official language (Spanish is also spoken in the African parts of Spain: the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla). It is also the most widely spoken language (considerably more than the other two official languages); according to the Instituto Cervantes , 87.7% of the population has a good command of Spanish. Equatorial Guinea's government is totalitarian and has one of the worst human rights records in
3300-566: Is bordered by Cameroon to the north and Gabon to the south and east. It is the location of Bata , Equatorial Guinea's largest city, and Ciudad de la Paz , the country's planned future capital. Río Muni also includes several small offshore islands, such as Corisco , Elobey Grande , and Elobey Chico . The country is a member of the African Union , Francophonie , OPEC , and the CPLP . After becoming independent from Spain in 1968, Equatorial Guinea
3432-469: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea , officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea , is a country on the west coast of Central Africa , with an area of 28,000 square kilometres (11,000 sq mi). Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea , its post-independence name refers to its location near both
3564-460: Is the 7th least democratic country in Africa . The Armed Forces of Equatorial Guinea consists of approximately 2,500 service members. The army has almost 1,400 soldiers, the police 400 paramilitary men, the navy 200 service members, and the air force about 120 members. There is also a gendarmerie , but the number of members is unknown. According to the 2024 Global Peace Index , Equatorial Guinea
3696-450: Is the 94th most peaceful country in the world. Equatorial Guinea is on the west coast of Central Africa . The country consists of a mainland territory, Río Muni , which is bordered by Cameroon to the north and Gabon to the east and south, and five small islands, Bioko , Corisco , Annobón , Elobey Chico (Small Elobey), and Elobey Grande (Great Elobey). Bioko, the site of the capital, Malabo , lies about 40 kilometers (25 mi) off
3828-462: Is very corrupt and 100 is extremely clean. Equatorial Guinea was the 174th lowest scoring nation out of a total of 180 countries. Freedom House, a pro-democracy and human rights NGO, described Obiang as one of the world's "most kleptocratic living autocrats", and complained about the US government welcoming his administration and buying oil from it. According to 2023 V-Dem Democracy indices , Equatorial Guinea
3960-695: The Caudillo ' s paternal hand in Cameroun and Gabon. They formed two bodies: the Movimiento Nacional de Liberación de la Guinea (MONALIGE), and the Idea Popular de Guinea Ecuatorial (IPGE). By the late 1960s, much of the African continent had been granted independence. Aware of this trend, the Spanish began to increase efforts to prepare the country for independence. The gross national product per capita in 1965
4092-639: The Catholic Church in Equatorial Guinea , as priests were ordered to thank the President before Mass , while pictures of him were placed in churches. At the Iglesia de San Fernando in Malabo a photo of the President was adorned with the statement "God created Equatorial Guinea thanks to Macías". Macías Nguema suffered from extreme paranoia , and saw plots against his life and rule everywhere. As time went on, he ordered
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4224-468: The Eastern Bloc , receiving support from the Soviet Union , Cuba and North Korea . Due to his dictatorship's severe human rights abuses and economic mismanagement, tens of thousands of people fled the country to avoid persecution. This led to Equatorial Guinea being internationally nicknamed the " Dachau of Africa". His rule also led to significant brain drain , as intellectuals and educated classes were particular targets for his persecution. In 1979, he
4356-563: The Equator and in the African region of Guinea . As of 2024 , the country had a population of 1,795,834, over 85% of whom are members of the Fang people , the country's dominant ethnic group. The Bubi people , indigenous to Bioko , are the second largest group at approximately 6.5% of the population. Equatorial Guinea consists of two parts, an insular and a mainland region. The insular region consists of
4488-458: The Fang people in the 1920s, at the time that Liberia was beginning to cut back on recruitment. There were garrisons of the colonial guard throughout the enclave by 1926, and the whole colony was considered 'pacified' by 1929. The Spanish Civil War had a major impact on the colony. A group of 150 Spanish whites, including the Governor-General and Vice-Governor-General of Río Muni, created
4620-448: The Nazis ", claiming that Adolf Hitler had wanted to save Africans from colonialism and only got "confused", causing him to attempt to conquer Europe . At one point he declared himself a "Hitlerian-Marxist" In 1964, Macías Nguema was named deputy prime minister of the autonomous transition government established the prior year. Around this time, Macías Nguema himself came to fear that he
4752-576: The USSR . Macias Nguema signed a preferential trade agreement and a shipping treaty with the Soviet Union. The Soviets also made loans to Equatorial Guinea. The shipping agreement gave the Soviets permission for a pilot fishery development project and also a naval base at Luba . In return, the USSR was to supply fish to Equatorial Guinea. China and Cuba also gave different forms of financial, military, and technical assistance to Equatorial Guinea, which got them
4884-512: The United Nations and European Commission . That summer, Macías Nguema organised the execution of several members of his own family, leading several members of his inner circle to fear that he was no longer acting rationally. On 3 August 1979, he was overthrown by Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, whose brother was among those murdered by the President. Obiang achieved his coup mostly with the help of his cousins with whom he had previously attended
5016-503: The Windward coast continued. The Fernandinos became traders and middlemen between the natives and Europeans. A freed slave from the West Indies by way of Sierra Leone named William Pratt established the cocoa crop on Fernando Pó. Spain had not occupied the large area in the Bight of Biafra to which it had right by treaty , and the French had expanded their occupation at the expense of
5148-647: The 26 May elections on 25 June. Interior minister Clemente Engonga refused to authorise the protest on the grounds that it could "destabilize" the country and CPDS decided to go forward, claiming constitutional right. On the night of 24 June, the CPDS headquarters in Malabo were surrounded by heavily armed police officers to keep those inside from leaving and thus effectively blocking the protest. Several leading members of CPDS were detained in Malabo and others in Bata were kept from boarding several local flights to Malabo. In 2016, Obiang
5280-502: The Bata Public Works Service. In 1961, he first travelled to Madrid as spokesperson for a delegation which honoured Francisco Franco , Spain's dictator, on the 25th anniversary of his seizure of power. At the time, Macías Nguema generally displayed no anti-Spanish sentiment and collaborated with the authorities, preferring to work towards eventual independence within the existing system. Unlike many Equatoguinean activists at
5412-510: The British ambassador described the Equatoguinean capital as being in a state of total chaos. At this point, Macías Nguema still recognized his own mental instability, and again sought help. After assuming the presidency, he made a secret trip to Barcelona and visited a psychiatrist for help. Although little was known about what advice the Spanish expert gave Macías Nguema, Kenyon argued that
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5544-588: The British moved the headquarters of the Mixed Commission for the Suppression of Slave Traffic to Fernando Pó in 1827, before moving it back to Sierra Leone under an agreement with Spain in 1843. Spain's decision to abolish slavery in 1817 at British insistence damaged the colony's perceived value to the authorities and so leasing naval bases was an effective revenue earner from an otherwise unprofitable possession. An agreement by Spain to sell its African colony to
5676-487: The British was cancelled in 1841 due to metropolitan public opinion and opposition by Spanish Congress. In 1844, the British returned the island to Spanish control and the area became known as the "Territorios Españoles del Golfo de Guinea". Due to epidemics, Spain did not invest much in the colony, and in 1862, an outbreak of yellow fever killed many of the whites that had settled on the island. Despite this, plantations continued to be established by private citizens through
5808-517: The Christy Report which brought down the country's president Charles D. B. King in 1930. By the late nineteenth century, the Bubi were protected from the demands of the planters by Spanish Claretian missionaries, who were very influential in the colony and eventually organised the Bubi into little mission theocracies reminiscent of the famous Jesuit reductions in Paraguay . Catholic penetration
5940-450: The Church. After assuming power, Macías Nguema initially maintained a moderate policy and good relations with Spain, but within a year began to hold inflammatory, anti-European speeches and claimed that there were plots to overthrow him. His rival Bonifacio Ondó Edú then fled to Gabon. Relations with Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Luis Carrero Blanco had rapidly deteriorated. The coffers of
6072-520: The Count died of disease caught on Bioko and the fever-ridden crew mutinied. The crew landed on São Tomé instead where they were imprisoned by the Portuguese authorities after having lost over 80% of their men to sickness. As a result of this disaster, Spain was thereafter hesitant to invest heavily in its new possession. However, despite the setback Spaniards began to use the island as a base for slave trading on
6204-524: The Eastern Bloc into providing him with money. The Cubans and North Koreans provided Macías Nguema with soldiers and bodyguards. His relationship with North Korea remained good until his overthrow. He admired the North Korean dictator Kim Il Sung , and according to his daughter Monica Macias , the two were friends. Starting in the early 1970s, Macías Nguema began repressing the non-Fang ethnic groups in
6336-473: The Governing Council within a single year in the 1960s after Spanish Guinea was transformed from a colony to a province of Spain. He also served as a member of the territorial parliament. Even at this early point of his career, Macías Nguema already exhibited erratic tendencies. In a conference to discuss the future independence of Equatorial Guinea at Madrid , he suddenly began an "incoherent eulogy of
6468-496: The JMM militia, as almost all judges in the country fled or were jailed during Macías Nguema's rule. In one of these show trials in 1974, even the defence team of the accused requested a death sentence for their clients. Prisoners sentenced to death were usually beaten to death with wooden clubs. Female prisoners were also subjected to rape, often in front of their husbands. Macías Nguema's regime often imprisoned entire families, including
6600-493: The Macías Nguema government. The Council subsequently convened a military tribunal on 24 September to try Macías Nguema and ten members of his government. The charges for the ten defendants included genocide , mass murder , embezzlement of public funds, violations of human rights, and treason . Besides the deposed President, the accused were described by Kenyon as "bit-part actors" who had held no important positions under
6732-583: The Movimiento de Protesta Popular (People's Protest Movement), were arrested. They were detained on 13 May. They called for a peaceful protest at the Plaza de la Mujer square on 15 May. Coordinator Enrique Nsolo Nzo was also arrested and taken to Malabo Central Police Station. Nsolo Nzo was released later that day without charge. Shortly after the elections, opposition party Convergence for Social Democracy (CPDS) announced that they were going to protest peacefully against
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#17328439467876864-690: The National Assembly was effectively defunct, while the JMM militia ran amok across Equatorial Guinea, drunkenly murdering civilians. The overcrowding of the prisons was solved through regular mass executions, though many prisoners were simply left to starve to death. Even the presidential guards were forced to survive by scavenging fruits and hunting wild animals, as supply had mostly collapsed. In mid-April 1979, Macías Nguema's wife travelled to North Korea for surgery, taking their three younger children, Monica , Maribel, and Paco, with her. By 1979, Macías Nguema's government had garnered condemnation from
6996-607: The President or the government. Insulting or offending the President or his cabinet was punishable by 30 years in prison. On 14 July 1972, a presidential decree merged all existing political parties into the United National Party , later the United National Workers' Party, with Macías Nguema as President for Life of both the nation and the party. Fearing that the Spanish wanted to overthrow him, Macías Nguema offered promotions and other rewards to anyone who revealed
7128-461: The Republican government. By November, the Popular Front and its supporters had been defeated and Equatorial Guinea secured for Franco. The commander in charge of the occupation, Juan Fontán Lobé, was appointed Governor-General by Franco and began to exert more Spanish control over the enclave interior. Río Muni officially had a little over 100,000 people in the 1930s; escape into Cameroun or Gabon
7260-700: The United Kingdom's MI6 , the United States' CIA , and Spain as tacit supporters of the coup attempt. Nevertheless, the Amnesty International report released in June 2005 on the ensuing trial of those allegedly involved highlighted the prosecution's failure to produce conclusive evidence that a coup attempt had actually taken place. Simon Mann was released from prison on 3 November 2009 for humanitarian reasons. Since 2005, Military Professional Resources Inc. ,
7392-488: The age of five. Equatorial Guinea's nominal GDP per capita is $ 10,982 in 2021 according to OPEC. Since Equatorial Guinea is a former Spanish colony, Spanish is the main official language. French and (as of 2010 ) Portuguese have also been made official, but they are not as widely used. Aside from the partially recognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic , it is the only country situated in Mainland Africa where Spanish
7524-452: The ages of 7 and 14 receive military training, and that any parent or person refusing would be imprisoned or shot. Tens of thousands of citizens responded by fleeing in fear of persecution and to protect their personal safety. Af Klinteberg reported that as of 1978, at least 101,000 persons, out of a contemporary population that the World Bank estimates totalled 215,284 persons—nearly 47% of
7656-458: The border into exile, but was captured on 18 August. The former president was found by an old woman; he was exhausted and probably delirious, sitting beneath a tree and eating sugarcane. Obiang's troops proceeded to arrest him, and found his nearby car stuffed full of suitcases with $ 4 million in cash. It was believed that Macías Nguema had actually burned 100 million dollars (much of Equatorial Guinea's cash reserves) before attempting to escape
7788-629: The breakaway state fled to the island. The International Committee of the Red Cross began running relief flights out of Equatorial Guinea, but Macías quickly shut the flights down, refusing to allow them to fly diesel fuel for their trucks nor oxygen tanks for medical operations. The Biafran separatists were starved into submission without international backing. After the Public Prosecutor complained about "excesses and maltreatment" by government officials, Macías had 150 alleged coup-plotters executed in
7920-482: The cabinet, making laws by decree, dissolving the Chamber of Representatives, negotiating and ratifying treaties and serving as commander in chief of the armed forces. According to Human Rights Watch , the dictatorship of President Obiang used an oil boom to entrench and enrich itself further at the expense of the country's people. Since August 1979, some 12 perceived unsuccessful coup attempts have occurred. According to
8052-583: The civil service exam three times in the 1930s. Regardless, he eventually became a clerk in the Spanish colonial administration, after passing the exam on the fourth try with assistance and some favoritism from colonial authorities, serving as court interpreter. In the 1940s, he also worked for the Forest Service in Bata , the Río Benito Public Works Department, as a catechist in Bata, and in
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#17328439467878184-521: The coast of Cameroon. Annobón Island is about 350 kilometers (220 mi) west-south-west of Cape Lopez in Gabon. Corisco and the two Elobey islands are in Corisco Bay, on the border of Río Muni and Gabon. Equatorial Guinea lies between latitudes 4°N and 2°S , and longitudes 5° and 12°E . Despite its name, no part of the country's territory lies on the equator—it is in the northern hemisphere, except for
8316-847: The coast, especially in the Muni River estuary. The Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests ecoregion covers most of Bioko and the adjacent portions of Cameroon and Nigeria on the African mainland, and the Mount Cameroon and Bioko montane forests ecoregion covers the highlands of Bioko and nearby Mount Cameroon . The São Tomé, Príncipe, and Annobón moist lowland forests ecoregion covers all of Annobón, as well as São Tomé and Príncipe. Francisco Mac%C3%ADas Nguema President of Equatorial Guinea Government Francisco Macías Nguema (born Mez-m Ngueme , later Africanised to Masie Nguema Biyogo Ñegue Ndong ; 1 January 1924 – 29 September 1979), often referred to as Macías Nguema or simply Macías ,
8448-475: The colony of Spanish Guinea . The economy was based on large cacao and coffee plantations and logging concessions and the workforce was mostly immigrant contract labour from Liberia , Nigeria , and Cameroun . Between 1914 and 1930, an estimated 10,000 Liberians went to Fernando Po under a labour treaty that was stopped altogether in 1930. With Liberian workers no longer available, planters of Fernando Po turned to Río Muni. Campaigns were mounted to subdue
8580-426: The colony, and in 1966, a UN Commission toured the country before recommending the same thing. In response, the Spanish declared that they would hold a constitutional convention on 27 October 1967 to negotiate a new constitution for an independent Equatorial Guinea. The conference was attended by 41 local delegates and 25 Spaniards. The Africans were principally divided between Fernandinos and Bubi on one side, who feared
8712-423: The colony, where they quickly began to join the new group. To the local mix were added Cubans, Filipinos, Jews and Spaniards of various colours, many of whom had been deported to Africa for political or other crimes, as well as some settlers backed by the government. By 1870, the prognosis of whites that lived on the island was much improved after recommendations that they live in the highlands, and by 1884 much of
8844-589: The continental enclave of Río Muni, only 26,000 km out of the 300,000km stretching east to the Ubangi river which the Spaniards had initially claimed. The humiliation of the Franco-Spanish negotiations, combined with the disaster in Cuba led to the head of the Spanish negotiating team, Pedro Gover y Tovar , committing suicide on the voyage home on 21 October 1901. Iradier himself died in despair in 1911; decades later,
8976-424: The country , such as the Bubi people of Santa Isabel , whom he associated with relative wealth and education, and the Annobónese , due to what he felt was too much affection for Spain. Santa Isabel was then militarized, with its inhabitants harassed. Pagalu, part of Annobón, was cut off from aid during a 1973 cholera epidemic, resulting in around 100 deaths. In 1972, mass arrests had taken place on Annobón after
9108-473: The country and is organized from Spain mainly within the social-democratic Convergence for Social Democracy. Most of the media are under state control; the private television channels, those of the Asonga group, belong to the president's family. In their 2020 publishing, Transparency International awarded Equatorial Guinea a total score of 16 on their Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). CPI ranks countries by their perceived level of public corruptionwhere zero
9240-528: The country as revenge. When his wife heard of his overthrow, she returned to Equatorial Guinea to protect their eldest son. Monica, Maribel, and Paco remained behind for their own safety, and consequently lived in North Korea for the remainder of their childhood. Monica stated that Kim Il Sung honored his friendship to Macías Nguema by acting as their guardian and financing their education. The Supreme Military Council opened Case 1979 on 18 August 1979, and began interviewing witnesses and collecting evidence against
9372-454: The country by Spain and which he opposed. He began travelling the country, encouraging his followers to fight against the Spanish, provoking a diplomatic crisis, also ordering the confiscation of all weapons possessed by Spaniards in the country and demanding they abandon all property they owned there. The Spanish government subsequently organized the evacuation of all its citizens (roughly 7,500) and all its Civil Guard forces, while
9504-492: The country has never recovered. Two-thirds of the legislature and 10 of his original ministers were also killed or had been disappeared. To prevent people from escaping, Macías Nguema had the only road out of the country mined, and camouflaged ditches with spikes constructed along the mainland border. In 1976, Nigeria evacuated 45,000 contract laborers from the country, citing "brutal ill treatment" by Macías Nguema's regime. In 1977, responding to falling cocoa production (one of
9636-512: The country's only free and fair election to date . The Spanish (ruled by Franco ) had backed Macías in the election; much of his campaigning involved visiting rural areas of Río Muni and promising that they would have the houses and wives of the Spanish if they voted for him. He had won in the second round of voting. During the Nigerian Civil War , Fernando Pó was inhabited by many Biafra-supporting Ibo migrant workers and many refugees from
9768-456: The country's government began to fall apart. During Macías Nguema's rule, the country had neither a development plan nor an accounting system or budget for government funds. After the killing of the governor of the Central Bank, he carried everything that remained in the national treasury to his Mongomo villa. Statisticians were also heavily repressed, and as a consequence, little economic data
9900-660: The country's main export items), the President instituted a "system of slavery". During his presidency, his country was nicknamed the "Dachau of Africa", after the Nazi concentration camp , with condemnations of his government issued by the International Commission of Jurists , World Council of Churches , the UN, the Organisation of African Unity , Amnesty International , and the European Commission . By 1978,
10032-498: The decision of the Special Military Tribunal was final. However, one problem arose, as Macías Nguema reportedly swore that his ghost would return and take revenge on those who had condemned him. The Equatoguinean soldiers consequently refused to shoot him. A group of hired Moroccan troops was instead employed to carry out the sentence. 55-year old Macías Nguema and the six other defendants sentenced to death were executed by
10164-437: The entire population to undergo daily military training with a wooden rifle. On 7 May 1971, Macías Nguema issued Decree 415, which repealed parts of the 1968 Constitution and granted him "all direct powers of Government and Institutions", including powers formerly held by the legislative and judiciary branches, as well as the cabinet of ministers. On 18 October 1971, Law 1 imposed the death penalty as punishment for threatening
10296-489: The first president of the soon-to-be independent country in 1968. Early in his rule, he consolidated power by establishing an extreme cult of personality and a one-party state ruled by his United National Workers' Party (PUNT), and declaring himself president for life in 1972. Domestically, his presidency was characterized by attempts at Africanization and harsh persecution of non-Fang ethnic groups. In foreign policy, he quickly turned against Spain and allied himself with
10428-446: The food would be resold, products would often be expired before they were offered to the public. He eventually outlawed Christianity, and used the slogan, sometimes claimed to be the national motto "There is no other God than Macías". Owning anything related to Christianity became a reason for imprisonment due to alleged support for anti-government plots or coup attempts. Following his repeated purges and unpredictable policies,
10560-625: The form of the edible derivative bhang , and iboga , a drink with strong hallucinogenic effects. Several contemporaries, such as the French ambassador to Equatorial Guinea, argued that Macías Nguema was insane. Some observers have posited that Macías Nguema may have been a psychopath , a disorder potentially enabled, in part, by reported childhood psychological trauma , and that his behaviour could have been affected by other possible mental illnesses, as well as his reported periodic use of drugs. Journalist Paul Kenyon described Macías Nguema as "dangerously mentally ill". Macías Nguema failed
10692-399: The hired firing squad, at Black Beach Prison at 6 pm on the same day. Macías Nguema's regime was estimated to have killed between 20,000 and 50,000 people, equating to between 9 and 23 percent of the country's contemporary population, with some estimates ranging as high as 80,000 deaths. By the end of his rule, over half of the population had been arrested at least once, or had
10824-511: The insular Annobón Province , which is about 155 km (96 mi) south of the equator. Equatorial Guinea has a tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons. From June to August, Río Muni is dry and Bioko wet; from December to February, the reverse occurs. In between it, there is a gradual transition. Rain or mist occurs daily on Annobón, where a cloudless day has never been registered. The temperature at Malabo, Bioko, ranges from 16 °C (61 °F) to 33 °C (91 °F), though on
10956-416: The islands around 1500 as the Portuguese quickly recognized the positives of the islands including volcanic soil and disease-resistant highlands. Despite natural advantages, initial Portuguese efforts in 1507 to establish a sugarcane plantation and town near what is now Concepción on Fernando Pó failed due to Bubi hostility and fever. The main island's rainy climate, extreme humidity and temperature swings took
11088-467: The islands of Bioko (formerly Fernando Pó ) in the Gulf of Guinea and Annobón , a small volcanic island which is the only part of the country south of the equator . Bioko Island is the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea and is the site of the country's capital, Malabo . The Portuguese-speaking island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe is located between Bioko and Annobón. The mainland region, Río Muni ,
11220-535: The latest. The earliest settlements on Bioko Island are dated to AD 530. The Annobón population, originally native to Angola , was introduced by the Portuguese via São Tomé island . The Portuguese explorer Fernando Pó , seeking a path to India, is credited as being the first European to see the island of Bioko, in 1472. He called it Formosa ("Beautiful"), but it quickly took on the name of its European discoverer. Fernando Pó and Annobón were colonized by Portugal in 1474. The first factories were established on
11352-413: The mass murder of government ministers, members of National Assembly , officials, and even members of his own family. Intellectuals and skilled professionals were a particular target, with human rights researcher Robert af Klinteberg describing Macías Nguema's policy as "deliberate cultural regression". The president's paranoid actions included mandating the death of those who wore glasses, banning use of
11484-468: The minimal administrative machinery and key plantations had moved to Basile hundreds of meters above sea level. Henry Morton Stanley had labeled Fernando Pó "a jewel which Spain did not polish" for refusing to enact such a policy. Despite the improved survival chances of Europeans living on the island, Mary Kingsley , who was staying on the island, still described Fernando Pó as "a more uncomfortable form of execution" for Spaniards appointed there. There
11616-508: The minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so." Pygmies probably once lived in the continental region that is now Equatorial Guinea, but are today found only in isolated pockets in southern Río Muni. Bantu migrations likely started around 2,000 BC from between south-east Nigeria and north-west Cameroon (the Grassfields). They must have settled continental Equatorial Guinea around 500 BC at
11748-602: The nation lacked foreign currency, meaning that the Equatorial Guinean ekwele introduced in 1975, which had quickly lost nearly all value, could not be replaced. Only Macías Nguema, the army, and the police were able to receive a regular salary during this time, with others sometimes going months without getting paid, eventually leading to the economy regressing to a subsistence barter system and government services shrinking to only cover internal security. Starting in 1976, Macías Nguema mandated that all children between
11880-659: The nearby mainland. Between 1778 and 1810, the territory of what became Equatorial Guinea was administered by the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata , based in Buenos Aires . Unwilling to invest heavily in the development of Fernando Pó, from 1827 to 1843, the Spanish leased a base at Malabo on Bioko to the United Kingdom which it had sought as part of its efforts to suppress the transatlantic slave trade . Without Spanish permission,
12012-479: The new constitution was not retroactive and the two-term limit would only become applicable from 2016. The elections on 26 May 2013 combined the senate, lower house and mayoral contests in a single package. Like all previous elections, this was denounced by the opposition, and it too was won by Obiang's PDGE. During the electoral contest, the ruling party hosted internal elections, which were later scrapped. Clara Nsegue Eyi and Natalia Angue Edjodjomo, coordinators of
12144-1031: The new document. The same year, a United Nations mission was expelled from the country. Macías Nguema went on to establish a totalitarian regime with three important pillars: the United National Workers' Party , the Juventud en Marcha con Macías (JMM; English: Youth on the March with Macías ) militia/youth group, and the Esangui clan of Río Muni . The country's instruments of repression (the military and presidential bodyguard) were entirely controlled by Macías Nguema's relatives and clan members. The JMM became increasingly powerful, and its members abused their powers, often drunkenly harassing and imprisoning individuals based on mere suspicions of sympathy for dissident ideas. The President mostly filled his inner circle with family members such as Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo , who
12276-514: The old regime. Their presence was supposed to make the trial look more legitimate. Macías Nguema appeared generally calm and unafraid during the trial. The state prosecutor requested that Macías Nguema receive a death sentence , five others receive 30-year sentences, three others receive a year in prison, and two be sentenced to time served. Macías Nguema's defense counsel countered that the other co-defendants were responsible for specific crimes, and asked for acquittal. Macías Nguema himself delivered
12408-819: The only two banks in the new country, the Banco Exterior de España and the Banco de Crédito, were emptied, meaning officials could not be paid. The country still lacked a national bank or its own currency, meaning the Spanish peseta had to be used, and according to the transition agreements with Spain, any biennial budgets approved for the territory prior to independence would need to be used, but Spain refused to honor its obligations. In March 1969, Macías Nguema arrested his own foreign minister and political rival, Atanasio Ndongo Miyone , on treason charges, and killed him by defenestrating him. Macías then took photographs of Ndongo dying on
12540-438: The policies of Portugal and France, notably in dividing the population into a vast majority governed as 'natives' or non-citizens, and a very small minority (together with whites) admitted to civic status as emancipados , assimilation to the metropolitan culture being the only permissible means of advancement. This "provincial" phase saw the beginnings of nationalism , but chiefly among small groups who had taken refuge from
12672-419: The population and the country ranks low on the UN human development index. 7.9% of children die before the age of 5, and more than 50% of the population lacks access to clean drinking water . President Teodoro Obiang is widely suspected of using the country's oil wealth to enrich himself and his associates. In 2006, Forbes estimated his personal wealth at $ 600 million. In 2011, the government announced it
12804-492: The population—had fled the country. Other reporting, such as a 1979 Time magazine account stating that "perhaps 150,000" persons fled, suggests that the proportion of the population that sought safety in exile may have approached 70%, based on the World Bank's estimate of the population in 1979. By the end of his rule, nearly all of the country's educated class was either executed or forced into exile—a brain drain from which
12936-456: The port of Cogo was renamed Puerto Iradier in his honour. Land regulations issued in 1904–1905 favoured Spaniards, and most of the later big planters arrived from Spain after that. An agreement was made with Liberia in 1914 to import cheap labor. Due to malpractice however, the Liberian government eventually ended the treaty after revelations about the state of Liberian workers on Fernando Pó in
13068-656: The presidential palace from around 1974 and visited the capital on ever more rare occasions. Instead, he began holing up in a fortified villa at his home village of Mongomo; the location had a private bunker as well as prison and was protected by a military camp. The villa's private prison usually housed about 300 inmates, and the President occasionally personally executed some of them. As time went on, Macías Nguema's actions became ever more bizarre. He declared private education subversive, and banned it entirely with Decree 6 on 18 March 1975. He Africanized his name to " Masie Nguema Biyogo Ñegue Ndong " in 1976 after demanding that
13200-425: The remaining 36 being ordered to dig ditches, in which they were subsequently buried up to their necks and eaten alive by red ants over the next few days. A commonly circulated claim that these mass executions were performed by executioners dressed up as Santa Claus is almost certainly a fabrication, as this sensational detail does not appear in any primary sources about the incident. In 1971, he began forcing
13332-428: The rest of the Equatoguinean population replace their Hispanic names with African names. He also banned Western clothes, foods and medicines for the rest of the population, stating that they were un-African, with Macías Nguema obtaining the little food available and reselling it at prices the vast majority of the population could not afford to punish those he thought did not want to work. As he also decided at what time
13464-437: The richest country per capita in Africa, and its gross domestic product (GDP) adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita ranks 43rd in the world; however, the wealth is distributed extremely unevenly, with few people benefiting from the oil riches. The country ranks 144th on the 2019 Human Development Index , with less than half the population having access to clean drinking water and 7.9% of children dying before
13596-403: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title GNE . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=GNE&oldid=1115421343 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
13728-466: The second half of the 19th century. The plantations of Fernando Pó were mostly run by a black Creole elite , later known as Fernandinos . The British settled some 2,000 Sierra Leoneans and freed slaves there during their rule, and a trickle of immigration from West Africa and the West Indies continued after the British left. A number of freed Angolan slaves, Portuguese-African creoles and immigrants from Nigeria, and Liberia also began to be settled in
13860-423: The servants was one occasion, however, when he ordered a meal and table to be prepared for eight guests. He then sat there alone, casually talking "with the dead". Members of Macías Nguema's inner circle and government officials became more and more worried about his erratic behavior. At this point, the government had mostly ceased to function, as most minister posts were vacant, officials were no longer paid, and
13992-669: The sign of a "fearless" and "charming" leader. In what has been the only free election held in the country to date, he defeated Ondó Edú in the runoff and was sworn in as president on 12 October. During his time as president-elect, he was awarded the Collar of the Order of Civil Merit . He was also made Commander of the Civil Order of Africa [ es ] for his service during the colonial administration. By this point he had also distanced himself from Catholicism, becoming outwardly critical of
14124-548: The southern Moka Plateau, normal high temperatures are only 21 °C (70 °F). In Río Muni, the average temperature is about 27 °C (81 °F). Annual rainfall varies from 1,930 mm (76 in) at Malabo to 10,920 mm (430 in) at Ureka , Bioko, but Río Muni is somewhat drier. Equatorial Guinea spans several ecoregions . Río Muni region lies within the Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests ecoregion except for patches of Central African mangroves on
14256-423: The spouses and children of suspected dissidents. The abuse in the prisons was overseen by Teodoro, who reportedly enjoyed mocking and torturing the prisoners. Among the few people who could still convince Macías Nguema to spare suspected dissidents were his relatives, such as Raimundo Ela Nve Senior, though his circle of confidants grew ever smaller. Growing increasingly paranoid, Macías Nguema no longer slept at
14388-435: The street, later showing the album to Newsweek correspondent John Barnes. Edú was also captured and brought back to Equatorial Guinea, where he and several other senior officials were killed at Black Beach . Macías Nguema then accused Spain of creating an economic blockade by refusing to acknowledge obligations under the transition agreements, declaring he would not abide by the 1968 Constitution that had been "imposed" on
14520-521: The territory claimed by Spain. Madrid only partly backed the explorations of men like Manuel Iradier who had signed treaties in the interior as far as Gabon and Cameroon, leaving much of the land out of "effective occupation" as demanded by the terms of the 1885 Berlin Conference . Minimal government backing for mainland annexation came as a result of public opinion and a need for labour on Fernando Pó. The eventual treaty of Paris in 1900 left Spain with
14652-440: The time, he was never jailed by the Spanish. As court interpreter, Macías Nguema eventually began taking bribes to manipulate his translations to absolve or incriminate defendants. The Spanish interpreted his important role in many trials as evidence for influence and talent for leadership, and began to rapidly promote him. He became assistant interpreter, mayor of Mongomo, minister of public works, and finally deputy president of
14784-448: The treatment appeared to have failed, considering the president's subsequent development. Macías Nguema persisted in consuming large amounts of drugs. On Christmas Eve 1969, Macías Nguema had 186 alleged dissidents executed inside the national football stadium in Malabo, as amplifiers in the stadium played Mary Hopkin 's song " Those Were the Days ". 150 of them were shot or hanged, with
14916-447: The word "intellectual" and destroying boats to stop his people fleeing from his rule. Fishing was banned. He was known to order entire villages destroyed just to eliminate one suspected dissident. His prisons, most importantly Black Beach, were notorious for human rights abuses; prisoners were humiliated, starved, tortured, and murdered without due process. When there was a trial at all, dissidents faced kangaroo courts organized by
15048-589: The world , consistently ranking among the "worst of the worst" in Freedom House 's annual survey of political and civil rights . Reporters Without Borders ranks Obiang among its "predators" of press freedom. Human trafficking is a significant problem, with the U.S. Trafficking in Persons Report identifying Equatorial Guinea as a source and destination country for forced labour and sex trafficking. The report also noted that Equatorial Guinea "does not fully meet
15180-453: Was $ 466, which was the highest in black Africa; the Spanish constructed an international airport at Santa Isabel, a television station and increased the literacy rate to 89%. In 1967, the number of hospital beds per capita in Equatorial Guinea was higher than Spain itself, with 1637 beds in 16 hospitals. By the end of colonial rule, the number of Africans in higher education was in only the double digits. A decision of 9 August 1963, approved by
15312-598: Was also a trickle of immigration from the neighboring Portuguese islands, escaped slaves, and prospective planters. Although a few of the Fernandinos were Catholic and Spanish-speaking, about nine-tenths of them were Protestant and English-speaking on the eve of the First World War, and pidgin English was the lingua franca of the island. The Sierra Leoneans were particularly well placed as planters while labor recruitment on
15444-473: Was an Equatoguinean politician who served as the first president of Equatorial Guinea from the country's independence in 1968, until his overthrow in 1979. He is widely remembered as one of the most brutal dictators in history. As president, he exhibited bizarre and erratic behavior; many of his contemporaries believed he was insane. A member of the Fang people , Macías Nguema held numerous official positions under Spanish colonial rule before being elected
15576-440: Was announced that there would be two vice-presidents in clear violation of the constitution that was just taking effect. In October 2012, during an interview with Christiane Amanpour on CNN , Obiang was asked whether he would step down at the end of the current term (2009–2016) since the new constitution limited the number of terms to two and he has been reelected at least 4 times. Obiang answered he refused to step aside because
15708-561: Was born on 1 January 1924, as Mez-m Ngueme at Nzangayong, Spanish Guinea , to parents who had been expelled with the rest of their clan from what is today Woleu-Ntem Province , Gabon , at a time when the Spanish Colonial Guard had not yet exerted control over the jungled area. He belonged to the Esangui clan, part of the Fang , Equatorial Guinea's majority ethnic group. His family settled in Mongomo , where he grew up. Macías Nguema
15840-560: Was easy. Fernando Pó thus continued to suffer from labour shortages. The French only briefly permitted recruitment in Cameroun, and the main source of labour came to be Igbo smuggled in canoes from Calabar in Nigeria . This resolution led to Fernando Pó becoming one of Africa's most productive agricultural areas after the Second World War . Politically, post-war colonial history has three fairly distinct phases: up to 1959, when its status
15972-450: Was furthered by two small insurrections in 1898 and 1910 protesting conscription of forced labour for the plantations. The Bubi were disarmed in 1917, and left dependent on the missionaries. Serious labour shortages were temporarily solved by a massive influx of refugees from German Kamerun , along with thousands of white German soldiers who stayed on the island for several years. Between 1926 and 1959, Bioko and Río Muni were united as
16104-609: Was generated on Equatorial Guinea during the 1970s. When the Equatorial Guinean director of the Institute of Statistics, Saturnin Antonio Ndongo, published demographic data considered too low by Macías, he was dismembered to "help him learn to count". After 1973, his regime also suppressed private commercial activity, and due to a lack of exports and foreign investment (the latter due to Macías Nguema's refusal in most cases),
16236-586: Was his nephew and served as military governor of Bioko and Vice-Minister of the Armed Forces. Macías Nguema developed an extreme cult of personality , and assigned himself titles such as the "Unique Miracle" and "Grand Master of Education, Science, and Culture". The island of Fernando Pó had its name Africanised after him to Masie Ngueme Biyogo Island; upon his overthrow in 1979, its name was again changed to Bioko . The capital, Santa Isabel, had its name changed to Malabo . His cult of personality even infiltrated
16368-400: Was limited to a maximum of two seven-year terms and would be both the head of state and head of the government, therefore eliminating the prime minister. The new constitution also introduced the figure of a vice president and called for the creation of a 70-member senate with 55 senators elected by the people and the 15 remaining designated by the president. In the following cabinet reshuffle, it
16500-452: Was mentally unstable. Before the 1968 Spanish Guinean general election , aged 44, he travelled to Madrid, where he was treated at the Ruben clinic. Despite these concerns, Macías Nguema ran for president of the soon-to-be independent country against Prime Minister Bonifacio Ondó Edú on a strongly nationalist platform in 1968. He employed a Spanish lawyer to write his texts, providing him with
16632-476: Was overthrown in a coup d'état by his nephew Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and was subsequently tried and executed. According to various sources, anywhere from 20,000 to 80,000 of the roughly 200,000 to 300,000 people living in the country were killed under his regime, with tens of thousands more fleeing the country. He has been compared to Pol Pot because of the violent, unpredictable, and anti-intellectual nature of his government. Francisco Macías Nguema
16764-478: Was planning a new capital for the country, named Oyala . The city was renamed Ciudad de la Paz ("City of Peace") in 2017. As of February 2016 , Obiang was Africa's second-longest serving dictator after Cameroon 's Paul Biya . Equatorial Guinea was elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council 2018–2019. On 7 March 2021, there were munition explosions at
16896-466: Was raised from "colonial" to "provincial", following the approach of the Portuguese Empire ; between 1960 and 1968, when Madrid attempted a partial decolonisation aimed at keeping the territory as part of the Spanish system; and from 1968 on, after the territory became an independent republic . The first phase consisted of little more than a continuation of previous policies; these closely resembled
17028-407: Was re-elected to serve an additional term in 2009 in an election the African Union deemed "in line with electoral law". Obiang re-appointed Prime Minister Ignacio Milam Tang in 2010. In November 2011, a new constitution was approved. The vote on the constitution was taken, though neither the text nor its content was revealed to the public before the vote. Under the new constitution, the president
17160-461: Was reelected for an additional seven-year term in an election that, according to Freedom House , was plagued by police violence, detentions and torture against opposition factions. Following the 2022 general elections , President Obiang's Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea holds all of the 100 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and all of those in the Senate. The opposition is almost non-existent in
17292-439: Was ruled by Francisco Macías Nguema . He declared himself president for life in 1972, but was overthrown in a coup in 1979 by his nephew, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo , who has served as the country's president since. Both presidents have been widely characterized as dictators by foreign observers. Since the mid-1990s, Equatorial Guinea has become one of sub-Saharan Africa 's largest oil producers. It has subsequently become
17424-537: Was the son of a witch doctor who allegedly killed his younger brother as a sacrifice. Macías Nguema managed to survive several bouts of tuberculosis as a child, which left him with a profound fear of death for the remainder of his life. He was educated at a Catholic school through to primary level. He changed his name to Francisco Macías Nguema at this time after being baptized by Spanish Catholic missionaries, and would come to learn Spanish in addition to his native Fang . During his adolescence, he worked as
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