In March, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, went to visit Gabon. While he was there, people in the second largest city of Gabon, Port-Gentil, protested and asked for the French soldiers to leave their country.
France has about 400 soldiers living in the capital city, Libreville, to train the military there. France also has important financial interests in its former colony, like mining and oil.
The Port-Gentil protests happened because the Gabonese Patriotic Front, a group that opposes the government, believed that the agreements between two countries regarding defense no longer helped Gabon grow because Gabon was not currently involved in any war.
“We strongly condemn the alliance between France and the unjust government of Ali Bongo, whose family has been in control of Gabon since 1967,” stated David Pandjo Ngoma, one of the leaders of the protest.
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Anti-French riots erupted prior to Macron’s most recent visit
