Jean Louis Georges Poiret (25 April 1872 - 1932) was Lieutenant-Governor of

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

when it was a

French colony The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas Colony, colonies, protectorates, and League of Nations mandate, mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "Firs ...

. Born in

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

, he served twice as acting Governor of French Guinea; 9 May 1912 to 7 March 1913 and from 23 October 1915 to 12 October 1916. After that, he continued to serve as governor until 21 July 1929. Poiret was known for breaking strikes, he believed African workers did not have the right to go on strike. He believed in enforcing a rigid colonial hierarchy, he lowered pay for African workers and raised pay for European workers who were doing the same tasks, believing that this would further reinforce the power structure. Poiret did not like the

évolué In the Belgian and French colonial empires, an (, 'evolved one' or 'developed one') was an African who had been Europeanised through education and assimilation and had accepted European values and patterns of behavior. spoke French and foll ...

system, and he had almost as

bureaucrats in the colony fired and replaced with white French bureaucrats. This included every single employee of the railway system that was not involved exclusively with manual labor.Through Experiments to Prosperity in French Guinea by C. Archambaud pg. 55

References

1872 births 1932 deaths People from Le Mans French colonial governors and administrators French people in French Guinea {{France-politician-stub