United States Embassy (Abidjan)
30 May 2008
This daily press review is compiled by the Information Section of the Public Affairs Office of the American Embassy in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
Friday's news reports in the Ivorian press focused on the ongoing peace process as well as efforts by authorities to stamp out corruption in Cote d'Ivoire. The papers also talked about the National Forum on the Role of the Media during the Electoral Period; the case of Guy-Andre Kieffer who went missing in Cote d'Ivoire in April 2004; and the eradication of Guinea worm disease in Cote d'Ivoire.
1. Fraternite Matin (a state-owned daily): A prominent headline in the front page of this paper said that the Ivorian Chief of Defense General, Philippe Mangou, had declared "war" on racketeering in Cote d'Ivoire. According to the paper, Mangou said "The control will be rigorous." The paper further said that after an awareness campaign on the racketeering phenomenon, Mangou had outlined "new tasks" that have been assigned to the Cote d'Ivoire Armed Forces, including more stringent measures to deter racketeering. General Mangou, who was speaking to the paper, said: "We've effectively decided to tackle the problem concerning the fight against racketeering."
2. Notre Voie (a daily close to the ruling FPI party): In a front-page story, the paper told readers that the voters' registration has been "delayed" because of "disagreements" amongst the entities that have been tasked to conduct the operation. The paper went on to state that one of these differences was the fact that "the mode of operation that was proposed by SAGEM - the French group in charge of the exercise - did not take into account the electoral rolls that were utilized during the 2000 elections in Cote d'Ivoire." According to the paper, the National Statistics Institute (INS) had made "a series of proposals aimed at remedying the situation."
3. La Patriote (a daily close to the opposition RDR party): The paper told readers that "The November 30 presidential election could be delayed." "The enthusiasm that greeted the announcement of the date of the presidential polls is dying out, while the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) in charge of the organization of the election is struggling to meet the challenge," commented the paper. To meet the deadline, the paper further commented, that the CEI had put in place "an agenda of activities" to be conducted in the run-up to the polls. However, the paper said "the operations such as the reestablishment of birth, marriage and death registries - that were destroyed during the war, which were supposed to be completed this month, has not happened."
4. Le Jour Plus (a daily close to the opposition): "The presidential election postpones to May 2009," said a prominent headline on the front-page of this paper. "There is no smoke without fire," commented the paper, which indicated that "rumors, which have been circulating recently about the impossibility to hold the presidential elections on November 30, 2008, are alarming." Quoting a well-informed source, the paper wrote: "The much-coveted election won't be held according to plan." The same source, explained the paper, said that the polls could be held during the period of "May-June 2009."
5. On the changes in the political landscape in Cote d'Ivoire ahead of the upcoming presidential election, Fraternite Matin reported that Laurent Dona Fologo, the Chairman of the Economic and Social Council, who was also a leading member of the former ruling PDCI-RDA party, has created his own party. According to the paper, the Rassemblement Pour La Paix (RPP), a movement that was created by Fologo in 2003 for the purpose of promoting peace and justice, has metamorphosed into a "political party." The announcement was made yesterday by Fologo, who the paper quoted as saying, "I leave the PDCI with peace."
6. As the National Forum on the Role of the Media during the Electoral Period, which opened a few days ago, ends today, Fraternite Matin reported on the debates and proposals made by both journalists and political parties in their vows to ensure "a fair and balanced" coverage of the political campaign by the media.
7. L'inter (an independent daily newspaper) devoted its front page to the case of Guy-Andre Kieffer, a French-Canadian journalist who went missing in Cote d'Ivoire in April 2004. The paper carried a headline reading: "Kieffer's affair has been classified for State's reason." According to the paper, a documentary film entitled: "Guy-Andre Kieffer: the disturbing journalist" shed more light on the disappearance of this journalist, whose reports focused on coffee and cocoa issues in Cote d'Ivoire. The paper further alleged that Bernard Nicholas, the producer of the documentary film, had "once again demonstrated the implication of people close to the Ivorian Head of State, Laurent Gbagbo in what is called 'The Kieffer Affair'." [NOTA: Guy-André Kieffer is a journalist of dual French-Canadian nationality who worked in West Africa generally and in Cote d'Ivoire specifically. On April 16, 2004, he was kidnapped, while in a parking lot in Abidjan; he has not been seen since.]
8. On health-related issues, Fraternite Matin reported that "since September 2006, no case of the Guinea worm disease has been recorded in Cote d'Ivoire." According to the paper, the announcement was made yesterday at the World Health Organization's headquarters in Abidjan by a team of national and international medical professionals. "The spread of the Guinea worm disease has stopped throughout the country," the paper quoted the medical experts' published results on the "Fifteen-year fight" against this disease.
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