Editing Gabon (section)

===== Death of Bongo and succession =====

[[File:Independence Celebration in Gabon.JPG|thumb|upright=1.25|Independence Day celebration in Gabon]]

Following the death of President Omar Bongo on 8 June 2009 due to cardiac arrest at a Spanish hospital in Barcelona, Gabon entered a period of political transition. Per the amended constitution, [[Rose Francine Rogombé]], the President of the Senate, assumed the role of Interim President on 10 June 2009. The subsequent presidential elections, held on 30 August 2009, marked a historic moment as they were the first in Gabon's history not to feature Omar Bongo as a candidate. With a crowded field of 18 contenders, including Omar Bongo's son and ruling party leader, [[Ali Bongo Ondimba|Ali Bongo]], the elections were closely watched both domestically and internationally.

After a rigorous three-week review by the Constitutional Court, Ali Bongo was officially declared the winner, leading to his inauguration on 16 October 2009.<ref name=bn/> However, the announcement of his victory was met with scepticism by some opposition candidates, sparking sporadic protests across the country. Nowhere was this discontent more pronounced than in [[Port-Gentil]], where allegations of electoral fraud resulted in violent demonstrations. The unrest claimed four lives and led to significant property damage, including attacks on the French Consulate and a local prison. Subsequently, security forces were deployed, and a curfew remained in effect for over three months.<ref name=bn/>

In June 2010, a partial legislative by-election was held, marking the emergence of the Union Nationale (UN) coalition, primarily comprising defectors from the ruling PDG party following Omar Bongo's death. The contest for the five available seats saw both the PDG and UN claiming victory, underscoring the political tensions that persisted in the aftermath of the presidential transition.<ref name=bn/>

The political landscape was further disrupted in January 2019 when a group of soldiers attempted a coup against President Ali Bongo. Despite initial unrest, the coup ultimately failed, but it highlighted the ongoing challenges facing Gabon's political stability.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bnonews.com/index.php/2019/01/military-coup-underway-in-gabon/|title=Soldiers in Gabon try to seize power in failed coup attempt|website=Bnonews.com|date=7 January 2019|access-date=7 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107084533/https://bnonews.com/index.php/2019/01/military-coup-underway-in-gabon/|archive-date=7 January 2019|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Against this backdrop of political volatility, Gabon achieved significant milestones on the international stage. In June 2021, it became the first country to receive payments for reducing emissions resulting from deforestation and forest degradation. Additionally, in June 2022, Gabon, along with [[Togo]], joined the [[Commonwealth of Nations]], signalling its commitment to multilateral engagement and cooperation.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://thecommonwealth.org/news/gabon-and-togo-join-commonwealth |title=Gabon and Togo join the Commonwealth |publisher=[[Commonwealth of Nations]] |date=25 June 2022 |access-date=24 September 2022 |archive-date=21 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220721122228/https://thecommonwealth.org/news/gabon-and-togo-join-commonwealth |url-status=live }}</ref>