United States Embassy (Abidjan)
16 June 2009
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 Ivorian press today reported on recent developments on Cote d'Ivoire's electoral process and the recent visit of U.N. Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping Alain Le Roy to this country. A post-conflict project to create jobs for youth and a series of strikes launched by dockworkers and health workers were the other major news items in the press.
1. Fraternite Matin (a state-owned daily): The paper reported on a meeting between President Laurent Gbagbo and U.N. Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping Alain Le Roy on the role of the United Nations mission in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) in the country's peace process, especially ahead of the upcoming presidential election. According to the report, the U.N. Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping reiterated the support of UNOCI to ensure a safe and peaceful atmosphere during the elections. On his meeting with President Gbagbo, he reportedly said: "President Gbagbo was firm that the polls will be held according to plan [November 29, 2009]."
2. Still on the November 29 polls, Le Temps (a daily close to the ruling FPI) reported that Cote d'Ivoire has asked the African Union to send election observers to monitor its long-delayed presidential vote. The paper, which attributed this to a statement issued by the AU, quoted the document as saying "AU's Peace and Security Council had taken note of an invitation by Ivorian authorities to give its support to the electoral process, including through sending an electoral observer mission." "The AU commended the former arch-rivals for their commitment to ending the crisis and urged them to continue to demonstrate the necessary political will to create a climate conducive to the holding of the presidential election," the paper further quoted the statement as saying.
3. The coming presidential elections were also high on the agenda as President Gbagbo tours Cote d'Ivoire's war-torn western regions. Addressing a rally in the Bafing region, the Ivorian leader was quoted by Notre Voie (a daily close to the ruling FPI party) as saying: "I'm not on an electoral campaign." The report said that Gbagbo was reacting to opponents who accused him of being engaged in electoral politics ahead of the November 29 presidential elections.
4. As preparations are underway for Cote d'Ivoire's crucial polls, L'inter (an independent daily) looked at the country's political landscape. In a prominent story, the paper speculated about "a pact" to be sealed between Gbagbo and his main opponent, Alassane Dramane Ouattara. The deal could end up in what the paper called "a gentleman's agreement" ahead of the coming elections. The paper also hinted that representatives of the two political rivals have been holding "secret meetings" to craft the deal. Meanwhile, the paper quoted a leading member of the opposition RDR [Ouattara's party] who denied any consultations that would lead to an alliance between the RDR and the ruling FPI party. The paper quoted the RDR's leader, who claimed that all these speculations are calculated to torpedo the RHDP opposition coalition. [NOTE: RHDP is made up of RDR, the former ruling PDCI-RDA party led by Ivorian ex-President Henri Konan Bedie, and two other minor parties.]
5. On another development, a report in Nord-Sud Quotidien (a daily close to the opposition) said that more than 2,000 youth in Abidjan are to get jobs under a UNDP-sponsored program. According to the paper, this was announced Monday at a seminar aimed at evaluating post-conflict projects designed to provide jobs to youth in Cote d'Ivoire. Estimated at FCFA 225 million (about $473,000), this project also received financial support from other international donors.
6. A front-page story in Fraternite Matin said that in retaliation for anti-riot police's intervention to control striking dockworkers, angry demonstrators Monday destroyed public buses in Abidjan. In a related development, the paper indicated that nine health workers' unions in Cote d'Ivoire have maintained their strike despite negotiations with the government on Monday to find solutions to their demands. According to the paper, the strike, which started yesterday, will continue until June 24. Medical doctors and other health workers are pressing for salary increases.
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