Jean-Bedel Bokassa

Jean-Bédel Bokassa ([ʒɑ̃ bedɛl bɔkasa] ; 22 February 1921 – 3 November 1996) was a Central African politician and military officer who served as the second president of the Central African Republic (CAR) and Emperor of the Central African Empire (CAE) as Bokassa I, ruling these two states from 1966 to 1979.

Bokassa seized power in the Saint-Sylvestre coup d'état on 1 January 1966. He served about eleven years as president and three years as self-proclaimed Emperor of Central Africa, and although the regime gave the appearance of being a constitutional monarchy, in practice it was an autocratic regime. His imperial regime lasted from 4 December 1976 until his overthrow in a 21 September 1979 coup. Following his overthrow, the CAR was restored under his predecessor, David Dacko. Bokassa's self-proclaimed imperial title did not achieve international diplomatic recognition.

In his trial in absentia, Bokassa was tried and sentenced to death. He returned to the CAR in 1986 and was put on trial for treason and murder. In 1987, the jury did not decide on the charges of cannibalism because of a general amnesty, but found him guilty of the murder of schoolchildren and other crimes. The resulting death sentence was later commuted to life in solitary confinement, but he was freed in 1993. Bokassa then lived a private life in Bangui, and died in November 1996.

Bokassa was posthumously rehabilitated by President François Bozizé in 2010, leading to an upsurge in his popularity, despite his well-known crimes and extravagances.