1967 French Somaliland independence referendum

1967 French Somaliland independence referendum
19 March 1967 (1967-03-19)
Do you want the territory to become part of the French Republic under a new local government, the details of which have been brought to your attention?
OutcomeRemain and transformed into the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas
Results
Choice
 Votes %
Remain ("Yes") 22,555 60.60%
Independence ("No") 14,666 39.40%
Valid votes 37,221 99.70%
Invalid or blank votes 111 0.30%
Total votes 37,332 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 39,312 94.96%
Results by district

An independence referendum was held in French Somaliland on 19 March 1967. It was ordered by then President of France, General Charles de Gaulle, in response to rioting and demonstrations upon an official visit he made to the territory the year before.[1][2] Voters rejected independence from France by a 22-point margin.

It was the second of three independence referendums. In the first referendum, the 1958 French Somaliland constitutional referendum, voters rejected independence by a 50-point margin. In the third referendum, the 1977 Afars and Issas independence referendum, voters near-unanimously backed independence.

  1. ^ A Political Chronology of Africa, (Taylor & Francis), p.132.
  2. ^ Newsweek, Volume 81, (Newsweek: 1973), p.254.