Danièle Darlan’s place in history is secured. The lawyer and professor became Central Africa‘s first woman to lead a government institution when she became the President of the country’s constitutional court. She held the position from 2017-2022 when she was abruptly removed from her position by President Faustin-Archange Touadér. Darlan was removed from office after she blocked a proposed law that would allow Touadér to run for an unprecedented third term.
Despite the move, the White House and First Lady Jill Biden still decided to honor her on International Women’s Day on March 8. After being honored, Darlan, through a French translator, spoke to rolling out.
What was it like being honored by Jill Biden in America at the White House?
Of course, it’s a great honor to have been given this prize. It’s a great honor, as well, to get it from the first lady, to stand beside her and besides Secretary of State [Antony] Blinken and to be in the White House, can you even imagine?
It’s a great honor for me, but I think it would be for anyone. It’s also a great stroke of luck because I’m sure there are many women who have more courage than I do. I was chosen along with 11 other women, and it’s a great honor to receive this from the U.S.A.
Did this acknowledgment feel like a bit of relief after being forced out of your position?
Absolutely. I was telling someone yesterday, and right now I’m getting emotional just thinking about it.
It was not easy. It’s not easy when you work, you apply the law and you turn around and you’re sanctioned for it. What hurt the most was the way I was sanctioned for it. I was removed from my position by the President. I was removed in a way that was very brutal, it was unconstitutional and totally unexpected. It’s true that it was very hard, but I’m encouraged by the support I get from people in Africa and elsewhere from my countrymen, and that gives me the strength to continue resisting.
I have to say that this prize is indeed a consolation because I couldn’t understand why I was being removed. I couldn’t understand why I was the only one in the constitutional court to have been removed, and this caused me a lot of suffering. It was hard for me to accept, and the fact that I am recognized with this prize, because I respect the law, is something that consoles me as well, especially since it comes from the U.S.A. Because the United States is a world power, and it’s a democracy. So that consoles me, too.
What is your superpower?
My superpower is the law. It’s all I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve taught the law, I’ve applied the law, and I also maintained my integrity. I did not give into pressure because there was pressure, and I left with my head held high. That’s my superpower.
