Emilienne Rochecouste
Marie Louise Emilienne Rochecouste OBE (20 September 1892 – 28 February 1979) was a Mauritian politician. In 1948 she became the first woman elected to the Legislative Council, serving until 1953.
Emilienne Rochecouste | |
---|---|
Member of the Legislative Council | |
In office 1948–1953 | |
Constituency | Plaines Wilhems–Black River |
Personal details | |
Born | 20 September 1892 |
Died | 28 February 1979 86) Quatre Bornes, Mauritius | (aged
Biography
Born Marie Louise Emilienne Orian in 1892 and from a mixed-race French-speaking background, Rochecouste worked as a primary school teacher and headmistress.[1][2][3] She married Rapael Rochecouste July in 1916.[1] During World War II their son Jean died while serving in the Royal Air Force.[4]
Prior to the August 1948 elections to the Legislative Council she was nominated as a Labour Party candidate for the six-seat Plaines Wilhems–Black River constituency on 11 July.[3] She finished second in the vote, becoming the first woman elected to the Legislative Council. Following the elections, Denise De Chazal was appointed as a second female member.[3]
She lost her seat in the 1953 elections, finishing twentieth out of thirty candidates.[5] She was later awarded an OBE in the 1958 Birthday Honours. A school in Quatre Bornes was also named after her.[6]
References
- Chit Geerjanand Dukhira (2002) History of Mauritius: Experiments in Democracy, p100
- Susan Franceschet, Mona Lena Krook & Netina Tan (2018) The Palgrave Handbook of Women’s Political Rights p549
- Ramola Ramtohul (2009) Engendering Mauritian History: The HiddenControversies over Female Suffrage Afrika Zamani, No. 17, pp63–80
- Jean Maxime Herve Rochecouste Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- Results of the General Election for the Mauritius Legislative Council held on 26 August 1953 Electoral Commission
- EMILIENNE ROCHECOUSTE GS: 24 élèves s’automutilent avec une lame de taille crayon Le Mauricien, 16 June 2011