France-Albert René

France-Albert René
2nd President of Seychelles
In office 5 June 1977 – 14 July 2004
Vice President	James Michel (1996–2004)
Preceded by	James Mancham
Succeeded by	James Michel
2nd Prime Minister of Seychelles
In office 29 June 1976 – 5 June 1977
President	James Mancham
Preceded by	James Mancham
Succeeded by	office abolished
Personal details
Born	(1935-11-16)16 November 1935 Victoria, Crown Colony of Seychelles
Died	27 February 2019(2019-02-27) (aged 83) Mahé, Seychelles
Political party	Seychelles People's Progressive Front
Spouse(s)	Karen Handley (1950s) Geva Adam (1975) Sarah Zarquani (1992)
Alma mater	King's College London
Profession	Lawyer, politician
Signature

France-Albert René (French pronunciation: ​[fʁɑ̃salbɛʁ ʁəne]; 16 November 1935 – 27 February 2019) was a Seychellois politician. He was the second President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004. His name is often given as simply Albert René or F.A. René; he was also nicknamed Ti France.

René died on 27 February 2019 in Mahé, Seychelles from respiratory failure, aged 83.

Biography

France-Albert René was educated at St Mary's College in Southampton, England, and at King's College London before becoming a lawyer in Seychelles from 1957 to 1961. Abroad, he was deeply involved in Party politics. Labor, then led by Clement Attlee and later Hugh Gaitskell. These experiences led him to adopt a moderate socialist ideology, favorable to state intervention in the economy and to close ties with conservative forces such as the Roman Catholic Church - the initial goal of his career being to become a member of the clergy. Later, France-Albert René denounced local church leaders who criticized his policy. In 1964, he formed the United People's Unity of Seychelles, precursor of the current People's Party of Seychelles.

Other websites

• Seychelles People's Progressive Front Archived 2018-10-17 at the Wayback Machine
• Website of The People newspaper and SPPF Museum (pro-René; he formerly edited the publication)