Amadou Toumani Touré, (born November 4, 1948 in Mopti, Mali[1]) is the president of Mali. He overthrew a military ruler, Moussa Traoré in 1991, then handed power to civilian authorities the next year. He won the presidential elections in 2002, with a broad coalition of support and was easily re-elected in 2007.
Amadou Toumani Touré was born on 4 November 1948, in Mopti, where he attended primary school. Between 1966 and 1969, he attended Badalabougou Standard Secondary School in Bamako in order to become a teacher. Eventually, he joined the army and attended the Kita Inter-Military College. As a member of the Parachute Corps, he rose quickly through the ranks and after numerous training courses in the Soviet Union and France, he became the commander of the parachute commandos in 1984.
In March 1991, after public demonstrations were violently quelled, he participated in a coup d'etat against Moussa Traoré and became leader of the Transitional Committee for the Welfare of the People, and performed the functions of the head of state during the transitional period towards democracy. He organized the national conference (between 29 July and 12 August 1991) which drew up the Constitution of Mali and the legislative and presidential elections in 1992. When the results of the election became known he relinquished power to the newly elected president, Alpha Oumar Konaré. Because of this, he gained the nickname "The Soldier of Democracy." [More]
Source: wikipedia.org |