Central African Republic President Michel Djotodia Resigns

Americans don't know much about the Central African Republic. Until the last couple of weeks it hadn't been in the American news cycles since 1979 when French paratroopers ousted self-proclaimed Emperor Jean-Bedel Bokassa, who had been eating school children. He was found guilty of related charges but they never proved the cannibalism charges-- nor did they try very hard since it was seen as a national embarrassment-- and he served 7 years of his life-in-prison sentence. He was posthumously pardoned in 2010.

One of Africa's most brutal dictators, accused of cannibalism and feeding his opponents to animals, has received a posthumous pardon from his country. Jean-Bédel Bokassa was the self-crowned emperor of the Central African Republic (CAR) until he was ousted in 1979. He fathered 62 children and his coronation, based on that of Napoleon, cost his country's entire GDP. He was rehabilitated this week by the CAR's president, François Bozizé, who said Bokassa had "given a great deal for humanity" and would have "all his rights" returned, the BBC reported.

"This rehabilitation of rights erases penal condemnations, particularly fines and legal costs, and stops any future incapacities that result from them," said a presidential decree issued to mark the CAR's 50th anniversary of independence from France.

Bokassa was "a son of the nation recognised by all as a great builder", the president added. "He built the country but we have destroyed what he built."

Bozizé, who seized power in a coup in 2003, awarded Bokassa's widow, Catherine, a state medal of honour. Bokassa's children said they would set up a fund to compensate victims of his tyranny.

The CAR's decision took Africa experts by surprise. Richard Dowden, director of the Royal African Society, said: "To celebrate someone who came to power in a coup and ruled so brutally is not what you expect in a democracy."

He added: " Elections in the CAR have been postponed and postponed. Presumably François Bozizé is trying to shore up support and he needs to get the family on board. But that's just speculation."

Dowden recalled seeing Bokassa on a visit to Uganda. "He had come to meet Idi Amin. He was a fanatical collector of medals, but so was Amin, and Amin had the bigger chest so he could wear more medals."

Backed by France, Bokassa came to power in a coup in 1965 and ruled with an iron fist, torturing and killing political rivals and cutting off the ears of thieves. Accusations of cannibalism were widespread but unproven, triggered by photographs in Paris-Match magazine that apparently showed a fridge containing the bodies of schoolchildren. It was also claimed his political rivals were cooked and served to visiting foreign dignitaries or fed to lions and crocodiles in his personal zoo.

Bozizé staged a pantomime election in 2011 and was "reelected," sparking a low-grade civil war which eventually led to a power-sharing deal between the rebels and Bozizé which didn't last very long. Bozizé fled the country and Michel Djotodia took over last year, sparking a Muslim/Christian civil war and genocide. Today, after 9 months of contentious rule, Djotodia resigned and fled to Benin, amid reports of… cannibalism.

Deadly violence including reports of cannibalism and widespread looting gripped the capital of the Central African Republic on Saturday after the resignation of its ex-rebel president and with stranded foreigners waiting to be airlifted out of the country.

Sporadic gunfire was heard overnight in Bangui with the shooting leaving three people dead-- a Christian vigilante, a former rebel and a civilian-- the head of the Central African Red Cross, pastor Antoine Mbaobogo, told AFP.

There has also been looting throughout the city with crowds breaking down the doors of shops, many of them belonging to Muslims, reflecting the sectarian nature of the strife that has wracked the country, AFP correspondents reported.

"Those who were looted when the (mainly Muslim) Seleka (rebels) arrived (in March last year) are now looting in turn," Mbaobogo said.

One resident of the capital, still in shock, related an incident on Tuesday when a Muslim man was attacked by a group who cut him up with a machete.

"One of the individuals took hold of an arm and went and bought some bread and starting chewing on the flesh, along with his bread," said 35-year-old Jean-Sylvestre Tchya.

"The scene made many people vomit, and some cried out in horror," he said.

Another witness, Alain Gbabobou, said he saw a man pick up the head and wrap it up carefully, saying he would "feast on it" later.

Meanwhile, the International Organisation for Migration said it would begin Saturday to airlift thousands of foreigners out of the strife-torn country following appeals from neighbouring countries.

More than 60,000 people from other African nations have asked for help at their embassies in the Central African Republic, an IOM statement said, adding that requests had come from Chad, Niger, Mali, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo to aid their stranded nationals.

Some of the thieves allegedly committed acts of cannibalism, witnesses told AFP.