United States Embassy (Abidjan)
14 November 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.
The postponement of Cote d'Ivoire's presidential election, which was initially billed for 30 November 2008, continued to dominate the Ivorian press. President Laurent Gbagbo's analysis of the election of Senator Barack Obama, the first Black American, to be President of the United States sparked mixed reactions in today's newspapers. The standoff between the State prosecutor and striking lawyers was also a major item in the dailies.
1. Fraternite Matin (a state-owned daily) reported that the delay of the post-war presidential election originally planned for November 30 was the major topic during a meeting Thursday in Abidjan between President Gbagbo and the Ambassadors of the United States and France. The paper quoted US Ambassador Wanda L. Nesbitt as saying "The more the polls are delayed, the more Cote d'Ivoire cannot progress in terms of development." Ambassador Nesbitt, who was speaking to the press after her meeting with the Ivorian leader, reportedly called for the voter registration to be carried out in "good faith" in order for the elections to be conducted "as soon as possible." According to the paper, Ambassador Nesbitt further noted that Ivorian key political players must work tirelessly to hold the elections. The French Ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire, Andre Janier, who also met President Gbagbo yesterday, was quoted as saying "The delay of the elections could slow down the political momentum," adding this could lead to other "complications."
2. The meeting between President Gbagbo and the foreign diplomats was also a subject of major stories in Nord-Sud Quotidien (an opposition newspaper) and the privately-owned daily L'intelligent d'Abidjan. According to Nord-Sud Quotidien the United States and France are concerned about the continuous delay of the presidential elections. Regarding the funding of the peace process in Cote d'Ivoire, Ambassador Nesbitt called on all players to spare no effort so as to push the peace process forward.
3. A prominent report in Notre Voie (a daily close to the ruling FPI party) said that the turnout at the voter registration centers has dropped in Abidjan following the recent meeting on November 10 in Ouagadougou of CPC - the committee overseeing the Ouagadougou Political Agreement. According to the paper, this was announced by a leading member parliament, who is also a member of the ruling FPI. The report had it that the turnout of voters, which was about 90 petitioners a day, has now dropped to 60. In a related development, a report in Soir Info (an independent daily) said that the New Forces - the former Ivorian rebellion - has launched a campaign to sensitize the populations in the former New Forces-controlled territories to get enrolled.
4. In a front-page story, Notre Voie applauded President Gbagbo's analysis on the election of Senator Barack Obama. The paper published the full text of the Ivorian President's commentary and told readers that the president has put aside his mantles as a Head of State and a politician to critically comment on the recent US presidential elections as "an intellectual and a man of culture." The paper suggested that President Gbagbo in his analysis was trying to send a message that the world has changed. The paper further said that Gbagbo's message was directed to those who continue to believe that "an individual from a minority ethnic group could not pretend to play a leading role." Le Temps (a daily close to the ruling FPI) also carried a commentary saying that the Ambassadors of the United States and France to Cote d'Ivoire "congratulated" President Gbagbo on his analysis.
5. Reacting President Gbagbo's analysis and the lessons to be learned from the US Presidential elections, Le Patriote (a daily close to the opposition RDR party) questioned the democratic credentials of the Ivorian leader. The paper commended President Gbagbo for acknowledging that "the American electoral system is set like a clock." However, the paper quickly pointed out that a smooth electoral system was possible in the United States because its leaders, including President George Bush, wanted it to be so, while in Cote d'Ivoire "the Head of State refuses to go the polls and continues to maneuver delays in going to the polls."
6. On the strike by lawyers, a front-page story in Fraternite Matin showed the picture of an apparently angry State prosecutor, Tchimou Raymond Fehou, threatening "to punish" the disgruntled lawyers who are demanding his resignation. The lawyers are striking to protest what they call "the violation of the right and dignity of a sitting lawyer by the Prosecutor." According to the paper, the State prosecutor who was addressing a press conference November 13 in Abidjan allegedly accused the President of the Cote d'Ivoire Bar Association of "manipulating the media and other lawyers." According to the paper, the Prosecutor told reporters how the President of Cote d'Ivoire Bar Association tried "to twist the truth" in a case between a lawyer and a company. The report further said that the striking lawyers have maintained their movement saying "the strike will continue until the Prosecutor resigns." The paper also said that President Gbagbo has called upon both parties to exercise restraint and instructed the Justice Minister to meet both sides in order to find a solution to their disagreement.
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