“NO
WAR, NO PEACE”
IN COTE’D’IVOIRE
AND THE WAY FORWARD
By
Emmanuel Abalo
The
intractable climate
of ‘No Peace, No
War” in the West
African country of Cote
d’Ivoire, formerly
known as the Ivory Coast
continues too challenge
peace efforts of the
African Union and the
United Nations and prolong
economic and political
instability in the suregion..
The
once relatively stable
nation often referred
to as the “Paris”
of Africa remains divided
between the northerners
who are predominantly
of foreign origin and
Islamists and the southerners
who are predominantly
Christians.
The Ivorian crisis finds
its genesis in an attempted
1999 military coup which
led to national elections
in which President Laurent
Gbagbo emerged as the
winner and a second
attempted coup by rebels
in 2002 - all of which
have failed to address
the gripe of the rebels.
In
2002, the rebels known
as the New Forces Movement
launched their rebellion
and quickly took control
of the northern half
of the country which
also included the cocoa
belt. Cote d’Ivoire
is the world largest
cocoa producer. Interestingly,
the rebels did not trumpet
economic disparity as
the centerpiece of their
rebellion. Instead,
they have complained
and maintain that they
have been discriminated
against as immigrants,
and relegated to “second
class’ citizens
and denied political
representation through
the promulgation of
laws by the ‘Christian”
south dominated government
of President Gbagbo.
And
so the rebels say to
address their concerns,
they are demanding the
resignation of President
Gbagbo and new elections
held and the end to
discrimination against
northerners. They rebels
are also calling for
a reintegration of exiles
into the Ivorian army
and the premiership
in government.
The
Ivorian President is
countering the rebels
demand by demanding
that they surrender
their weapons and areas
they occupy. International
peace efforts by the
former colonial power
France and the African
Union have so far failed
to broker a deal to
end the impasse resulting
into a fragile, but
tense truce.
In
November, 2004, Ivorian
government troops violated
the 18-month ceasefire
by launching an attack
on rebels’ positions.
There were dozens of
deaths among civilians
and the French military
which is manning a buffer
zone between the belligerents
suffered nine casualties.
The French military
swiftly retaliated again
the Ivorian military
and destroyed that country’s
air force The French
government, however,
not wanting become a
victim of “mission
creep” and not
wanting to be perceived
as perpetuating its
colonial influence ceded
its peace making role
to an active African
Union solution which
has the blessings of
the United Nations.
France has about 4,000
troops in Cote d’Ivoire
charged to enforce the
uneasy peace between
the government and rebel
forces.
The
danger is that both
the Ivorian government
and its supporters and
the rebels led by Mr.
Guillaune Soro are digging
in along political,
ethnic lines and religious
lines. Hate speech against
the rebels and immigrants
and media reports supportive
of President Gbagbo
continue to fan tensions.
The rebels in their
area of control are
reported to be utilizing
cocoa resources to purchase
arms and ammunitions,
engaging in human rights
abuses and benefitting
personally from the
stalemate. According
to a recent U.N. team
of expert report, “cocoa
plays an important role
in providing funds for
the off-budget and extrabudgetary
military procurement
efforts of the Government.,"
Two
years since 2003 after
the Linas-Marcoussis
Accord was signed by
the Ivorian government
and rebels in France
aimed at settling the
internal conflict, a
resolution remains elusive.
The Peace Accord addresses
the issues of citizenship,
Presidential eligibility
and land ownership.
At
a U.S House Committee
Congressional hearing
in February, 2003 on
the Ivorian situation,
chaired by Republican
Representative Ed Royce,
the Assistant Secretary
of State for African
Affairs Mr. Walter Kansteiner
a panelist asserted
the U.S. Administration’s
position when he said,
“…we have
made clear to all of
Cote d'Ivoire's neighbors
that we cannot tolerate
interference to further
destabilize the country.
We, and others, have
made this point with
particular emphasis
to President Blaise
Compaore of Burkina
Faso and President Charles
Taylor of Liberia. While
both presidents deny
any connection with
or support for the rebels,
circumstantial evidence
suggests that there
is ample reason to remain
concerned and vigilant…”
Burkina
Faso and the then Charles
Taylor government have
been accused by the
Ivorian government of
“supporting, protecting
and training armed opposition
groups, especially the
rebels.
Former President Taylor
was forced out of power
by advancing Liberian
rebels in August, 2003,
granted and remains
in exile in Calabar,
Nigeria and under criminal
indictment by the United
Nations backed Special
Court for Sierra Leone.
There is enough blame
to go around in Cote
d’Ivoire. However,
the argument can be
made that both rebel
northerners and the
government may have
legitimate cases that
need to be addressed
through constitutional
and peaceful means in
order to end the division
of the country and resolve
the political impasse.
But the use of force
of arms by either side
to gain an advantage
at the “political
table” is totally
unacceptable and a violation
of international law.
Cote’d’ivoire
remains a “magnet”
for mercenaries looking
for “work”
in the sub region and
the continued impasse
directly threaten the
fragile peace which
has obtained in Sierra
Leone and Liberia. In
late October, 2005,
the Washington DC based
Human Rights Watch in
a release issued said,
“… Since September,
Ivorian army officers
and Liberian former
commanders have been
conducting a recruitment
drive seeking ex-combatants
in Liberian towns and
villages bordering Côte
d'Ivoire.
The
Ivorian government is
bolstering its military
manpower by recruiting
children who fought
in Liberia's brutal
civil war," said
Peter Takirambudde,
executive director of
the Africa division
of Human Rights Watch.
"The international
community must do all
it can to ensure that
these children are demobilized
and that their recruiters
are prosecuted."
In
October, Human Rights
Watch interviewed 19
Liberian ex-combatants;
including three children
aged 13 to 17. All of
them had been approached
by Liberian and Ivorian
recruiters to join a
fighting "mission"
on behalf of Côte
d'Ivoire's government.
Several of those interviewed,
including the children,
said that they themselves
were involved in the
recruitment of additional
fighters…”
A
striking cross border
threat is the fact that
an ethnic conflagration
may erupt on the Liberian-Ivorian
border pitting the Ivorian
Guere tribe and their
Liberian cousins squarely
behind President Gbagbo
in a battle against
the Yacoubas who live
on both sides of the
borders and are reported
to be sympathetic to
the rebels.
There is also large
Burkinabe poverty ridden
immigrant population
in Cote d‘Ivoire
who has complained of
been harassed and subjected
to intimidation and
violence by Ivorians
in the south who accuse
the Burkinabes of supporting
the rebels. Burkinabes
from the homeland could
come to the defense
of their fellow nationals
in the instance of an
all out war between
Cote d‘Ivoire and
Burkina Faso.
Religious
fanatics’ and terrorists
intent on attacking
western interests and
their supporters may
also gravitate to this
West African hotspot,
establish a foothold
and foment trouble.
After all, a stable
West African sub region
is strategically important
for continued economic,
military, social and
political growth and
dynamism.
The
Way Forward
The
solution here then is
the full implementation
of the U.N. Security
Council Resolution backed
by the African Union.
A recently passed U.N.
Security Council resolution
supported allowing President
Gbagbo up to 12 additional
months in power, after
presidential elections
scheduled for October,
2005 were deemed impossible
by the United Nations.
Although peace mediation
efforts continue by
an African head of state
delegation, the international
community must insist
and make clear that
the post of Prime Minister
is filled by a credible
Ivorian candidate acceptable
to all sides in order
to facilitate a movement
to a national resolution.
According to latest
news reports, an Ivorian
financial heavyweight
Mr. Konan Banny, who
has been serving as
the governor of the
Central Bank of West
African States, has
been named as interim
Prime Minister. Diplomatic
and political sources
say the new interim
Prime Minister has a
reputation for being
“competent and
strong willed.”
. His mandate will be
to disarm the rebels
and organize and conduct
national elections paving
the way for a government
to acceptable to all
sides.
The government and rebels
and their supporters
must also be put on
notice by the United
Nations and the African
Union that they will
be indicted and prosecuted
for war crimes, human
rights abuses and violation
of international law
if they persist along
this path. We also call
on ordinary Ivories
to begin collecting
and preserving evidences
of abuses by any side
for potential prosecutorial
criminal and civil actions
against those responsible.
Additionally, we urge
the imposition of economic
and travel sanctions
now against those stifling
the resolution of the
Ivorian crisis.
Never
again should any African
warlord or insurgent
group be rewarded with
the political power
except through the constitutional
and democratic process
undertaken through free
and fair elections sanctioned
by the international
community.
------------------------------------
Emmanuel
Abalo is an exiled Liberian
journalist, media and
human rights activist.
He is the former Acting
President of the Press
Union of Liberia (PUL).
Mr. Abalo presently
resides in Pennsylvania,
USA and works as an
analyst with CITIGROUP,
North America.
“NO
WAR, NO PEACE”
IN COTE’D’IVOIRE
AND THE WAY FORWARD
