James Mancham

James Mancham
1st President of Seychelles
In office June 29, 1976 – June 5, 1977
Prime Minister	France-Albert René
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	France-Albert René
1st Prime Minister of Seychelles
In office October 1, 1975 – June 28, 1976
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	France-Albert René
Chief Minister of the Crown Colony of Seychelles
In office November 12, 1970 – October 1, 1975
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Office abolished
Born	August 11 1939(1939-08-11) Victoria, Seychelles
Died	January 8 2017 (aged 77) Glacis, Seychelles
Political party	Seychelles Democratic Party
Spouse	Heather Jean Evans (1963-1974) Catherine Olsen (1985-to death of James Mancham 2017)
Profession	Lawyer Politician Writer

Sir James Mancham on obverse of the Seychellois rupee silver coin, 1977

Sir James Richard Marie Mancham KBE (August 11, 1939 – January 8, 2017) was a Seychellois politician who founded the Seychelles Democratic Party and was the first President of Seychelles from 1976 to 1977.

Life

James Mancham was the eldest son of Richard and Evelyn (nee Tirant) Mancham. After graduating high school and Seychelles College, his father, a successful businessman, sent James to law school in England.

He was called to the Bar in London in 1961. Returning to the Seychelles, he served as barrister and Attorney-at-Law, before the Supreme Court of Seychelles from 1963 to 1967.

Mancham married Heather Jean Evans in 1963 and the marriage was dissolved in 1974. They had two children: one daughter (Caroline), and one son (Richard). In 1985, while in exile in London, he remarried, to Catherine Olsen, an Australian journalist working in London, with whom he had one son (Alexander).

In 1992 he was able to return to the Seychelles where he spent the rest of his life working to strengthen democracy there and to promote national reconciliation.

Mancham died suddenly on January 8, 2017 at age 77.

Career

Statesman

When Britain announced its intention to give independence to the colony, Mancham founded the Democratic Party (S.D.P.). France-Albert René 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 than a year later, in June 1977, he was deposed in a coup by Prime Minister France-Albert René, who had the support of Tanzanian-trained revolutionaries and Tanzanian-supplied weapons, whilst Mancham was attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference in London.

Mancham lived in exile in London until April 1992. During this period, Mancham was financially successful in several international business ventures. When he returned to the Seychelles following the lifting of the ban on opposition, he resumed the promotion of tourism to the tropical islands.

He ran for president in July 1993 and finished second behind René with 36.72 percent of the vote. In March 1998 he ran again, receiving third place and 13.8 percent of the vote, behind René and Wavel Ramkalawan.

First President of Seychelles James Mancham (left), second President France-Albert René (right) and third, incumbent President of Seychelles James Michel (center) in Victoria's State House at René's 78th birthday party, (Mervyn Marie, Seychelles News Agency).

In 2005 he stepped down as leader of the Democratic Party, and spent the rest of his life as a leading advocate for peace and reconciliation, speaking often on these topics at international conferences.

Author

Mancham was the author of a number of books, among them being Paradise Raped about the June 1977 coup d'état in the Seychelles, War on America: Seen from the Indian Ocean, written after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, his autobiography; Seychelles Global Citizen: The Autobiography of the Founding President, in 2009, and Seychelles: The Saga of a Small Nation Navigating the Cross-Currents of a Big World, in 2015. Mancham also served on the advisory board of International Journal on World Peace.

Awards

Mancham received the prestigious International Jurist Award at the International Conference of Jurists 2010. The ceremony took place at the inauguration of the International Conference of Jurists at the Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, India under the distinguished patronage of Indian Vice-President M. Hamid Ansari. Under the theme International Terrorism, the event was jointly organised by the International Council of Jurists, the National Human Rights Commission of India, the All India Bar Association and Indian Council of Jurists.

In a welcoming speech Dr. Adish Aggarwala, President of the International Council of Jurists and Chairman of All India Bar Association, said the award for Mr Mancham was to recognise his role in promoting world peace and the pivotal part he played in helping to settle international disputes.

“He is a visionary statesman who has influenced many world leaders with his contemporary philosophy and outlook,” said Dr Aggarwala.

Mancham was also one of the recipients of the Gusi Peace Prize in 2011.

In 2013, Mancham was invited to join the prestigious 'Club de Madrid', a world leadership alliance comprising 92 former democratic heads of State and government who believe in democracy and the promotion of democratic values.

Major Works

• Paradise Raped. 1983. Methuen Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-0413529008
• War on America Seen from the Indian Ocean. 2001. Paragon House. ISBN 978-1557788153
• The Future of Peace in the Twenty-First Century. 2003. Carolina Academic Press. ISBN 978-0890892114 (Co-edited with Nicholas N. Kittrie)
• Seychelles Global Citizen: The Autobiography of the Founding President. 2009. Paragon House. ISBN 978-1557788870
• Seychelles: The Saga of a Small Nation Navigating the Cross-Currents of a Big World. 2015. Paragon House. ISBN 978-1557789150

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Lee, Christopher. Seychelles: Political Castaways. Elm Tree Books, 1976. ISBN 978-0241894408
• McAtee, William. To Be A Nation: The History of the Seychelles 1920-1976. Pristine Books, 2008. ISBN 978-9993180920
• Pothin, Andy (ed.). The Sayings of James R. Mancham. Mahe Publications Ltd, 2002. ASIN B000K2MXSK

External links

All links retrieved

• Sir James R. Mancham, KBE - Ph.D. (Hon.) Founding President of the Republic of Seychelles
• James Mancham Find-a-Grave
• Mancham's words of wisdom immortalized in new publication www.seychelles.net.
• Mourners express admiration for President Mancham in condolence book; 'Monumental loss,' one says Seychelles News Agency.

Political offices
Preceded by: post created	Prime Minister of Seychelles 1970-1976	Succeeded by: France-Albert René
Preceded by: post created	President of Seychelles 1976–1977	Succeeded by: France-Albert René

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