April 19, 2010

The Ivorian electoral process, especially the question of the disarmament and the recent visit of a UN fact-finding mission and the country’s political stakeholders made prominent stories in Monday’s and weekend’s press. The decision by Cote d’Ivoire’s transport workers to call off a week-long strike on Friday after the government cut gasoil prices was also the subject front-page stories in many dailies.

1. Commenting on the implementation of the Ouagadougou Political Agreement, the state-owned daily Fraternite Matin today carries a full-page article commending the Ivorian political stakeholders for their “good intentions”, but expresses concerns about the fact that this has yet to be followed by “concrete actions.” The paper suggests that the ideal should be that the peace process gets back on track by the end of April; but is quick to point out that there is little chance for the process to resume. The paper also suggests that reading through the lines of a recent statement made by President Laurent Gbagbo, one would come to the conclusion that there is a lot to be done before the long-awaited presidential elections could take place in Cote d’Ivoire.
2. Fraternite Matin also elaborates on the electoral certification to be conducted by the United Nations Operation in Cote d’Ivoire (UNOCI). The paper recalls that this certification was requested by parties that signed the Pretoria Peace Agreement in 2005 in a bid to guarantee free and fair elections in Cote d’Ivoire. According to the paper, the certification will take into account five criteria, including a prevailing peace in Cote d’Ivoire, an all-inclusive electoral process that allows all eligible Ivorian voters to take part in the vote, the political coverage by the state-run media and the results of the polls.
3. Another story in Fraternite Matin says that New Forces military commander Gal Soumaila Bakayoko told a visiting UN mission about the problems that are holding back the disarmament program. “We inform the delegation about the progress made in the disarmament, demobilization and the reinsertion program; and use the occasion to talk about the difficulties that we encounter in the implementation of the peace program,” the paper quotes Gal Bakayoko as saying after the meeting.
4. On the same issue, a report in L’Expression (a daily close to the opposition) says that the UN fact-finding mission met yesterday with commanders of the Center of Integrated Command – a joint government and New Forces security unit – whose role is to ensure security during the electoral process. Reporting on the visit of the UN mission in Cote d’Ivoire, Le Patriote (a daily close to the opposition RDR party) says that the UN is concerned about the recruitment of mercenaries and acquisition of war planes in Cote d’Ivoire. In a related development, a prominent story in Nuit & Jour (a daily close to the ruling FPI party) says that the security during the coming elections could be threatened, unless the militia groups operating in Cote d’Ivoire are disbanded.
5. Meanwhile, a prominent story in Fraternite Matin quotes Issa Malick Coulibaly, President Gbagbo’s national campaign director, as saying that President Gbagbo and his Prime Minister, Guillaume Soro, are in “perfect harmony” when it comes to issues related to the provisional voters’ list and the reunification of the country. Regarding the disarmament of the former combatants, Notre Voie (a daily close to the ruling FPI party) also quotes Mr. Coulibaly, who was speaking at a political meeting over the weekend, as saying that an operation designed to “lodge New Forces in barracks will start on May 1^st, 2010 in Korhogo.”
6. Finally, prominent reports in the weekend’s issues of many Ivorian dailies including Fraternite Matin says that Cote d’Ivoire’s transport workers called off a week-long strike on Friday after the government accepted a FCFA 30 cut of the gasoil fuel prices.