Equatorial Guinea, 1986 — dissident coup attempt
Event Summary
The dataset records an event coded as an attempted dissident coup in Equatorial Guinea on 19 July 1986 against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who had seized power in 1979 by overthrowing and executing his own uncle, the brutal dictator Francisco Macias Nguema. Obiang consolidated a tightly personalist and repressive regime over the tiny, isolated oil poor state, in which real power was concentrated in his family and clan from the town of Mongomo. In mid 1986 an alleged coup plot surfaced against him, reportedly involving figures within the regime or military, and it was suppressed, in the pattern of periodic conspiracies, real or fabricated, that Obiang used to justify purging rivals and tightening his grip.
He survived this and numerous later plots, and, greatly enriched after major offshore oil discoveries in the 1990s, went on to become the longest ruling leader in the world, still holding power in Equatorial Guinea more than four decades after his 1979 coup.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Sources
Editorial Note
Cross-Reference
Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
- Cline Center id
41107191986
How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.
Outcome and Target
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: President Teodoro Obiang Nguema suppressed the July 1986 plot and continued his decades long rule.
Baseline coding: Coup attempt failed to remove the incumbent. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Baseline Source-Document Entries
CSP
The Ottawa Citizen
The Montreal Gazette
This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →