1980 in Liberia

Decades:	1960s; 1970s; 1980s; 1990s; 2000s;
See also:	Other events of 1980; Timeline of Liberian history;

Events in the year 1980 in Liberia.

Incumbents[edit]

President
- William Tolbert (until April 12)^[1]
- Samuel Doe (from April 14, as Chairman of the People's Redemption Council)^[1]
Vice President
- Bennie Dee Warner (until April 12)^[1]
- Thomas Weh Syen (from April 14, as Co-Chairman of the People's Redemption Council)^[1]
Chief Justice
- James A. A. Pierre (until April 12)^[1]
- Emmanuel Gbalazeh (after April 14)^[2]

Events[edit]

January 8 – The Progressive People's Party is registered.^[3]
March 10 – George Boley is arrested on charges of treason and sedition.^[4]
March 28 – The oppositional Progressive People's Party is banned by an act of the Legislature of Liberia.^[3]
March 31 – Liberia establishes diplomatic ties with Ecuador.^[5]
April 12 – 1980 Liberian coup d'état
- President William Tolbert is assassinated following an attack led by seventeen members of the Armed Forces of Liberia on the Executive Mansion.^[1]
- The Liberian Constitution of 1847 is suspended.^[6]
- George Boley is released from prison.^[4]
April 14 – The People's Redemption Council is established, with Samuel Doe as its chairman, and head of state of Liberia.^[1]
April 22 – The Doe regime executes five of President Tolbert's cabinet ministers and eight former Liberian officials by firing squad.^[1]^[7]
April 30 – Former Vice President Bennie Dee Warner announces the formation of a government-in-exile in Ivory Coast with the intention of overthrowing the Doe regime.^[8]
August 26 – Doe leaves to visit Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in his first international visit since his taking power.^[9]
Full date unknown
- Matilda Newport Day is abolished.^[10]
- Liberia establishes formal diplomatic relations with Libya.^[11]

Births[edit]

May 22 – Eddie Watson, Liberian-born Ghanaian actor^[12]

Deaths[edit]

April 12 – William Tolbert, President of Liberia, in Monrovia (b. 1913)^[1]
April 22 – Thirteen officials executed by the Doe Regime, including:
- Cyril Bright, former Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs^[13]
- Joseph J. Chesson, Minister of Justice^[13]
- Cecil Dennis, Secretary of State (b. 1931)^[13]
- Richard A. Henries, Speaker of the House of Representatives (b. 1908)^[13]
- Charles T. O. King, Deputy Minister for Agriculture^[13]
- David Franklin Neal, former Minister of Planning and Economic Affairs^[13]
- P. Clarence Parker II, Chairman of the National Investment Council and Treasurer of the True Whig Party^[13]
- James T. Phillips, former Minister of Finance and former Minister of Agriculture^[13]
- James A. A. Pierre, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (b. 1908)^[13]
- John W. Sherman, Assistant Minister of Commerce and Trade^[13]
- Frank J. Stewart Sr., Director of the Budget^[13]
- Frank E. Tolbert, President Pro-Tempore of the Senate (b. 1910)^[13]
- E. Reginald Townsend, Chairman of the True Whig Party (b. 1917)^[13]
November 10 – Momolu Dukuly, former Secretary of State, in Monrovia (b. 1903)^[14]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. pp. 90–91. ISBN 9781461659310.
^ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 143. ISBN 9781461659310.
^ ^a ^b Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. xxxi. ISBN 9781461659310.
^ ^a ^b Ungar, Sanford J. (June 1981). "Liberia". The Atlantic. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
^ "Diplomatic relations between Ecuador and Liberia as of 31 Mar. 1980". United Nations Digital Library. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
^ "Liberia's Constitution of 1986" (PDF). Constitute Project. p. 5. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
^ Dash, Leon (April 23, 1980). "Liberian Soldiers Taunt, Shoot 13 Former Leaders". The Washington Post.
^ Methodists Prepare to Quit Liberia As Their Bishop Challenges Regime New York Times May 1, 1980
^ "Liberia Strongman On Visit to Ethiopia". The Miami Herald. August 14, 1981. p. 143. Retrieved November 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 248. ISBN 9781461659310.
^ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 231. ISBN 9781461659310.
^ "Eddie Watson". ibakatv. Archived from the original on 17 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Dash, Leon (April 14, 2022). "Tolbert family calls for decent burial". The New Dawn.
^ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 116. ISBN 9781461659310.

[coup-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. pp. 90–91. ISBN 9781461659310.

[2] Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 143. ISBN 9781461659310.

[timeline-3] Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. xxxi. ISBN 9781461659310.

[atlantic-4] Ungar, Sanford J. (June 1981). "Liberia". The Atlantic. Retrieved November 26, 2022.

[5] "Diplomatic relations between Ecuador and Liberia as of 31 Mar. 1980". United Nations Digital Library. Retrieved November 27, 2022.

[6] "Liberia's Constitution of 1986" (PDF). Constitute Project. p. 5. Retrieved November 26, 2022.

[7] Dash, Leon (April 23, 1980). "Liberian Soldiers Taunt, Shoot 13 Former Leaders". The Washington Post.

[8] Methodists Prepare to Quit Liberia As Their Bishop Challenges Regime New York Times May 1, 1980

[9] "Liberia Strongman On Visit to Ethiopia". The Miami Herald. August 14, 1981. p. 143. Retrieved November 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

[10] Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 248. ISBN 9781461659310.

[11] Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 231. ISBN 9781461659310.

[12] "Eddie Watson". ibakatv. Archived from the original on 17 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2023.

[executed-13] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Dash, Leon (April 14, 2022). "Tolbert family calls for decent burial". The New Dawn.

[14] Dunn, Elwood D.; Beyan, Amos J.; Burrowes, Carl Patrick (2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 116. ISBN 9781461659310.

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v t e 1980 in Africa
Sovereign states	Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eswatini Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire) Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South-West Africa Sudan Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Upper Volta Zambia Zaire Zimbabwe
States with limited recognition	Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Dependencies, colonies and other territories	Ascension Island Mayotte Réunion Saint Helena Tristan da Cunha Western Sahara