Chad’s assassinated leader Idriss Deby Itno’s son will take over as president instead of his father, according to a charter released by the presidency on Wednesday, while rebel forces targeted the state’s capital N’Djamena and threatened to disrupt a country more vital. international efforts to combat extremists in Africa.
According to the presidency, General Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, 37, who was appointed transition leader on Tuesday as head of a military council after his father’s death, will “exercise the presidency of the republic” and also serve as head of the armed forces. The Charter repeals the previous Constitution and will be implemented as the “Basic Law of the Republic”, under its terms.
The younger Deby has also been named “supreme commander of the armed forces”, it is said. Deby’s son had overseen his father’s safety as head of the elite presidential guard and had often appeared with him. He signed a decree on Tuesday to draw up a military council of 15 generals, including himself and 14 others known to have been part of the late president’s circle of loyalists. The Council’s task is to move to 18 months against “free and democratic elections”.
Mahamat Idriss Deby is also chairman of the “Military Transitional Council, the Council of Ministers, Councils and overarching committees of national defense”, according to the charter.
The new Head of State will publish legislation adopted by the 69 members of the Transitional National Council, appointed directly by the Mahamat. The Transitional Charter, which contains 95 articles, also guarantees “freedom of opinion, conscience and worship”.
A transitional government has been set up, whose members were also appointed by the new president.
“Members of the army called to the transitional government are released from all military duties,” the charter said, according to remarks by the Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Meanwhile, schools and some businesses were open in N’Djamena on Wednesday, but many people had chosen to stay at home and the streets were quiet, a Reuters witness said. Authorities imposed a curfew every night and closed land and air borders after Deby’s death was announced. A 14-day period of national mourning is observed.
Deby, 68, died on Monday in the front line of a fight against Libyan-based fighters, shocking the nation and raising concerns among Western allies who had long seen him as an ally in their fight against extremist groups.
He had been in power since 1990 and had just been announced the winner of a presidential election that would have given him a sixth term. Deby, who often joined soldiers on the battlefield in his military fatigue, visited troops after the rebel group Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) invaded from Libya and advanced hundreds of miles to the capital.
FACT rejected the military’s transition plan and said they would continue their offensive against the capital.
“Chad is not a monarchy. There can be no dynastic distribution of power in our country,” FACT said in a statement. Opposition politicians also demanded a return to civilian rule.
Deby had won friends abroad by sending his well-trained army to fight terrorists including Boko Haram in the Lake Chad Basin and groups linked to al-Qaeda and Daesh in the Sahel. His main ally, France, has about 5,100 troops based across the region as part of international efforts to fight the militants, including its main base in N’Djamena. His death, which Paris described as the loss of a brave friend, raises questions about stability in the region and within Chad itself.
In addition to the rebel threat, the military is divided and opposition to Deby’s authoritarian rule has increased. “The potentially explosive consequences of President Deby’s death cannot be underestimated – both for Chad’s future and for the entire region,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement.
The New York-based organization said the military council must respect human rights and ensure that civilians are protected. It also required a rapid transition to democratic civilian rule and free and fair elections.
“For years, international actors have supported Deby’s government for its support for terrorist operations … while largely turning a blind eye to his legacy of repression and violations of social and economic rights at home,” HRW said in a statement.
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