The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas was the name given to present-day Djibouti between 1967 and 1977, while it was still an overseas territory of France.
The area was formerly known as French Somaliland (Côte française des Somalis). Its name derives from the Afar people of Djibouti and the Somali Issa clan.
History
From 1862 until 1894, the land to the north of the Gulf of Tadjoura was called Obock and ruled by Somali and Afar Sultans, local authorities with whom France signed various treaties between 1883 and 1887 to gain a foothold in the region. In 1894, Léonce Lagarde established a permanent French administration in the city of Djibouti and named the region Côte française des Somalis (French Somaliland), a name which continued until 1967.
In 1958, on the eve of neighboring Somalia's independence in 1960, a referendum was held in the territory to decide whether or not to join the Somali Republic or to remain with France. The referendum turned out in favour of a continued association with France, partly due to a combined yes vote by the sizable Afar ethnic group and resident Europeans. There were also allegations of widespread vote rigging. The majority of those who had voted no were Somalis who were strongly in favour of joining a united Somalia, as had been proposed by Mahmoud Harbi, Vice President of the Government Council. In October 1960, he and several of his associates died in a plane crash under mysterious circumstances on a return trip from China to Somalia.
In 1966, France rejected the United Nations recommendation that it should grant French Somaliland independence. In August of the same year, an official visit to the territory by then French President, General Charles de Gaulle, was also met with demonstrations and rioting. In response to the protests, de Gaulle ordered another referendum.
On 19 March 1967, a second plebiscite was held to determine the fate of the territory. Initial results supported a continued but looser relationship with France. Voting was also divided along ethnic lines, with the resident Somalis generally voting for independence, with the goal of eventual reunion with Somalia, and the Afars largely opting to remain associated with France. However, the referendum was again marred by reports of vote rigging on the part of the French authorities,[8] with some 10,000 Somalis deported under the pretext that they did not have valid identity cards. According to the UN, there was an inordinate number of invalid ballots in Somali districts, which it suggested implied that the plebiscite had been manipulated.[10] Although the territory was at the time inhabited by 58,240 Somali and 48,270 Afar, official figures indicated that only 14,689 Somali were allowed to register to vote versus 22,004 Afar. Somali representatives also charged that the French had simultaneously imported thousands of Afar nomads from neighboring Ethiopia to further tip the odds in their favor, but the French authorities denied this, suggesting that Afars already greatly outnumbered Somalis on the voting lists. Announcement of the plebiscite results sparked civil unrest, including several deaths. France also increased its military force along the frontier.
In 1967, shortly after the referendum was held, French Somaliland was renamed Territoire français des Afars et des Issas. This was both in acknowledgement of the large Afar constituency and to downplay the significance of the Somali composition (the Issa being a Somali subclan).
The French Territory of Afars and Issas also differed from French Somaliland in terms of government structure, as the position of Governor General changed to that of High Commissioner. A nine-member council of government was also implemented.[citation needed]
With a steadily enlarging Somali population, the likelihood of a third referendum appearing successful for the French had grown even dimmer. The prohibitive cost of maintaining the colony, France's last outpost on the continent, was another factor that compelled observers to doubt that the French would attempt to hold on to the territory.
On 8 May 1977, a third vote took place. A landslide 99.8% of the electorate supported disengagement from France, officially marking Djibouti's independence. Hassan Gouled Aptidon, a Somali politician who had campaigned for a yes vote in the referendum of 1958, eventually wound up as the nation's first president (1977–1999).
Face value | Family number | English name | Scientific name
1967.01
21.08.1967
Fauna
10f
90
Grey-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala
55f
88
Abyssinian Roller Coracias abyssinicus
200f
78
Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax
1967.02
25.09.1967
Fauna
15f
40
Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus
50f
49
Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
1972.01
21.04.1972
Birds
30f
26
Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse Pterocles lichtensteinii
49f
84
Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops
66f
49
Great Snipe Gallinago media
1972.02
03.11.1972
Birds
500f
13
Djibouti Spurfowl Pternistis ochropectus
1974.01
22.02.1974
Lake Abbe
5f
35
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
15f
35
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
50f
35
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
1975.01
23.05.1975
Birds
500f
27
Speckled Pigeon Columba guinea
1975.02
21.11.1975
Birds
20f
235
Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura
50f
231
Variable Sunbird Cinnyris venustus
60f
70
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea
1975.03
19.12.1975
Birds
100f
71
Hamerkop Scopus umbretta
1976.01
15.06.1976
Birds
300f
69
African Spoonbill Platalea alba
1976.02
13.10.1976
Birds
25f
108
Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri
100f
27
Namaqua Dove Oena capensis
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