Death and state funeral of Omar Bongo
The second President of Gabon, Omar Bongo, died in Spain on June 8, 2009, after having suffered from colorectal cancer. A month of mourning and state funeral, spanning June 11 to 18th, followed. After Bongo's death his coffin was flown from Barcelona to Libreville on June 11. It was driven to his presidential palace beside the Atlantic Ocean and displayed until June 16. A state funeral service was conducted on June 16, the day that interim President Rose Francine Rogombé declared a national day of mourning. The service was attended by dignitaries  from at least forty nations. After the service, Bongo's coffin was transported to his home village for burial on June 18. At the time of his death, Bongo had been Africa's longest serving leader. Death. On 7 May 2009, the Gabonese Government announced that Bongo had temporarily suspended his official duties and taken time off to mourn his wife and rest in Spain. It was reported by the international media that he was seriously ill, and undergoing treatment for cancer in hospital in Barcelona, Spain. The Gabonese government maintained that he was in Spain for a few days  of rest following the "intense emotional shock" of his wife's death, but eventually admitted that he was in a Spanish clinic "undergoing a medical check up". AFP eventually released a report stating among other things that "While Gabon's government has insisted he was undergoing a medical check-up, several sources said he was being treated for intestinal cancer, which they said had reached an advanced stage". On 7 June 2009, unconfirmed reports quoting French media and citing sources "close to the French government" reported that Bongo had died in Spain. The Government of Gabon denied the report. The  same day, Gabon's prime minister released a statement saying that he went to visit Bongo in the Quiron clinic in Barcelona: "This morning I visited the President, accompanied by the President of the National Assembly, the Foreign Minister, the head of the President's cabinet and senior members of the presidential family and after a meeting with the medical team we can confirm that the President is alive." The Prime Minister made no comment on Bongo's state of health after reading the statement to reporters. On 8 June 2009, the BBC released a report stating that: "The Spanish  foreign affairs ministry backed [Prime Minister] Ndong's assertion, saying: "We have confirmed that he [President Bongo] is alive. We have no further information about him". But later on Monday, reports in the Spanish media said Bongo had died shortly after Ndong's news conference. They quoted members of Bongo's entourage as saying the African leader had died at 12:00 GMT. The clinic and the Spanish government refused to comment on the latest reports". The Gabonese government maintained its position. Sky News reported that a Gabonese government spokesman had stated: "The presidency of the Gabonese Republic would like to  stress that the President of the Republic, the Head of State, His Excellency Omar Bongo is not dead ... He is continuing his holiday in Spain following his checkup at the Quiron Clinic in Barcelona". Speaking on French radio, spokesman Raphael N'Toutoume added that the latest update he had heard was good news – and that Bongo was preparing to leave the clinic. "We are getting ready to welcome the head of state. No date for his return has been set", the spokesman said. Privately, Gabonese officials were furious with the premature announcement by France, questioning how Germany would react if France  announced the death of Angela Merkel. Bongo's death was confirmed by Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong in a written statement on June 8, 2009. In his statement, Eyeghe Ndong said that Bongo had died of a heart attack shortly before 12:30 GMT on June 8. Declarations and tributes. Interim Gabonese President Rose Francine Rogombé received the condolences of several world leaders following the death of Bongo. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) declared a thirty-day period of mourning. A 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier between Cameroon and Gabon was postponed by FIFA following Bongo's death , with the Gabonese Football Federation being informed by letter. The match was rescheduled for September 5. Funeral events. Period of mourning. Rose Francine Rogombé was sworn in as interim president on June 10, 2009, immediately declaring a period of mourning lasting thirty days. A government statement issued in the daily "L'Union" newspaper on June 11, declared that day and the day of the funeral a public holiday. Businesses and offices were shut down in Libreville, with the city's mayor ordering all bars and night clubs be closed until after the funeral. Arrival at Libreville airport. Bongo's corpse was  flown by aircraft from his deathplace in Barcelona and arrived at Libreville's airport on 11 June at approximately 16:15 pm (01:15 AEST). A crowd of around 10,000 people, including diplomats, politicians and members of the country's security forces were waiting at the airport for the dead President's arrival. Several people were tearful, including cabinet chief Pascaline, also known as Bongo's daughter, who lay emotional in the arms of President Denis Sassou Nguesso. Young people in the crowd were seen to wear T-shirts decorated with Bongo photos and slogans which read: "I love and admire my  president". Officials were also emotional as they left the plane, Bongo's coffin in tow, draped in Gabon's national flag. The coffin was lifted into a military vehicle and it drove off. It arrived at Bongo's oceanside presidential palace overlooking the Atlantic. There it lay in state until the President's state funeral on June 16, 2009. Also on hand were Nicolas Sarkozy and Jacques Chirac — the current and former French presidents and the only Western heads of state to attend. The pair arrived in a stretch limousine and were quickly escorted inside the palace as a group  of people outside yelled, "No to France!" Sarkozy and Chirac later approached the coffin together and stood before it with their eyes lowered. They laid down a wreath of roses. Then, each signed a condolence book. Chad's President Idriss Deby, bowed his head before the coffin. Cameroon's Paul Biya, placed a wreath of flowers at the foot of the coffin, as did Burkina Faso's Blaise Compaore. Military parade. A military parade was held to honour Bongo on 16 June 2009. Hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets to say farewell to Bongo, whose flag-draped coffin  was paraded through Libreville. The state funeral began inside the marble halls of the presidential palace. The red carpet leading to his casket was strewn with white rose petals — flown in from France. Eulogy. In a eulogy, Bongo's son and defence minister, Ali Ben Bongo said: "You leave a peaceful, free and fair Gabon". Dignitaries. Dignitaries from many nations flew into Gabon to attend the funeral. This included approximately forty heads of state or their representatives, about a dozen of these were from within the African continent. Two French Presidents attended the funeral ceremony. President of the Central African  Republic, François Bozizé, arrived in Libreville on June 11. South African International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and Sizakele Makhumalo Zuma, the wife of President Jacob Zuma, left for Gabon on 15 June and planned to return to South Africa on 16 June. The Angolan Prime Minister, António Paulo Kassoma, flew to Libreville on 15 June where he represented President José Eduardo dos Santos. The French president Nicolas Sarkozy attended the funeral, despite a period of diplomatic difficulties between France and Gabon. Former French President Jacques Chirac and Sarkozy laid red and white coloured roses in wreaths at  the coffin. Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner was also present at the ceremony. Chirac received cheers but Sarkozy was booed by crowd members who had gathered outside the presidential palace. Spanish Third Vice President, Manuel Chaves González, attended the funeral. Others in attendance at the funeral included President of the Republic of the Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso, President of Togo, Faure Gnassingbé, President of Cameroon, Paul Biya and Jean Ping, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, and the Presidents of Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Chad, Mali, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of São Tomé  and Príncipe. Burial. Bongo was privately buried in his native village on 18 June 2009.