United States Embassy (Abidjan)
1 July 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.
Reports in today's Ivorian press said that thousands of Ivoirians were not able to register by the conclusion of the voter registration exercise on Tuesday, June 30, 2009. Issues, including security, during the electoral process in Cote d'Ivoire, also made the news. Other major news stories were on the latest developments in the coffee and cocoa industry embezzlement case; human rights issues; Ivorian refugees abroad; and health issues. On U.S. issues, a daily published Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson's interview on President Obama's July 10-11 visit to Ghana. The state-owned daily Fraternite Matin commented on the U.S. Government's decision to withdraw its troops from Iraq.
1. A prominent story in Fraternite Matin (a state-owned daily) said that thousands of Ivoirians at home and abroad could not register by the end date (June 30, 2009) for the voter registration exercise, which would allow them to vote in the November 29 presidential elections. According to the paper, technical problems during the registration exercise associated with delays in the re-establishment of birth and death registers in Cote d'Ivoire were the major causes. The report said that in some areas, registration agents were taken hostage by angry petitioners as the registration process officially ended yesterday. The report further quoted disenfranchised petitioners who are calling for the registration exercise to be extended. However, the paper reported that Robert Beugre Mambe, the head of the Independent Electoral Commission and Ivorian Prime Minister Guillaume Soro confirmed that the registration process will not be extended.
2. Reporting on the same issue, Notre Voie (a daily close to the ruling FPI party) carried a front-page story which said that petitioners are calling for another round of registration exercises. The paper said that petitioners are also calling on the Ivorian authorities to review their decision to hold elections on November 29.
3. In a front-page story, Soir Info (an independent daily) reported that Kouadio Konan Bertin, the leader of the JPDCI - the youth wing of the former ruling PDCI-RDA party, has vowed "to make the situation untenable shall the elections do not come on November 29." Speaking on Tuesday in Abidjan during a meeting with his supporters, the opposition youth leader said: "Get ready, we'll fight under the sun and under the rain. I don't think Gbagbo is ready to organize elections on November 29. Fortunately, Prime Minister Guillaume Soro has declared recently that the situation will be untenable if there is no election on November 29. I support him, and together we'll fight to make the situation become untenable."
4. More on the JPDCI leader's declaration, Le Jour Plus (a daily close to the opposition) said Kouadio Konan Bertin is preparing to fight the Young Patriots (a movement supportive of President Laurent Gbagbo). According to the paper, the opposition youth leader, who introduced Tuesday new members of his movement, said the motive of recruiting fresh members was "to find youth that will be capable to face the Young Patriots."
5. In a related development, L'intelligent d'Abidjan (an independent daily) carried a three-page interview with Charles Ble Goude, the leader of the Pan-African Congress for Young Patriots (COJEP), and a staunch supporter of President Gbagbo. The paper, which highlighted some key points of Ble Goude's speech, said the youth leader was very critical of the Ivorian opposition leader Alassane Dramane Ouattara; Ble Goude has accused Ouattara of "holding back" the peace process in Cote d'Ivoire.
6. As Cote d'Ivoire prepares for landmark presidential elections, a report in Fraternite Matin said that security during the electoral process was on the top of the issues discussed at a meeting yesterday between the head of the Independent Electoral Commission Robert Beugre Mambe and the Defense Minister, Michel Amani N'Guessan. According to the paper, the Electoral Commissioner explained that beside the population, the registration centers have to be protected. He reportedly said: "We are talking about extremely sensible centers that need to be secured now, because after the registration exercise, we will be processing the data collected... We hope that you'll support us in our efforts to organize peaceful elections."
7. Still on the upcoming elections, Le Nouveau Reveil (a daily close to the former ruling PDCI-RDA party) reported that Francis Wodie, the leader of the Ivorian Workers Party (PIT), questioned "the credibility" of Cote d'Ivoire's Constitutional Council. According to the paper, Wodie, who was speaking on UNOCI FM [a U.N. radio station in Abidjan], expressed doubts about the impartiality of the Constitutional Council, the body tasked with settling electoral disputes. The paper further said that Mr. Wodie, a renowned lawyer, is calling for "an independent and impartial body" because the composition of the actual Constitutional Council does not guarantee its "independence and impartiality."
8. L'inter (an independent daily): A prominent story in this paper said five top government officials are to be interrogated in connection with the probing into the alleged embezzlement in the Ivorian coffee and cocoa industry. The paper said that the five officials are all ministers in the current administration and that they had earlier been questioned in connection with this scandal. According to the paper, the five ministers are Antoine Bohoun Bouabre former Economy and Finance Minister (Minister of Planning and Development in the current cabinet); Amadou Gon Coulibaly Minister of Agriculture; Alphonse Douaty Animal Resources and Fishery Minister; Sebastien Dano Djedje former Minister of Animal Resources and Fishery and Charles Diby Koffi current Economy and Finance Minister.
9. In a related development, Soir Info told readers that Ivorian top officials, who have been jailed since 2008 in connection with alleged embezzlement in the Ivorian coffee and cocoa industry, are to appear for a hearing in an Abidjan court today. The paper said the decision to hold a hearing for these officials, resulted from several protests denouncing their "illegal" imprisonment. The paper further said that human rights groups recently denounced "this long preventive detention."
10. On human rights issues, Le Nouveau Reveil said Cote d'Ivoire's National Commission for Human Rights, (CNDHCI) in its recent report, brought to light human rights violations committed by government's forces, New Forces (the Ivorian former rebel group), militia groups and FESCI (Ivorian students' organization). However, the paper noted that the commission did not investigate the bad living conditions of inmates in MACA - a prison in Abidjan.
11. A front-page story in L'inter said that some 21,000 Ivorian refugees are still living abroad. The paper said that according to UNHCR, about 66 per cent of these refugees are living in West African countries including Liberia, Guinea (Conakry), Mali, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo. The report further said that 46 per cent of the refugees are women.
12. On health issues, a report in Notre Voie said that PEPFAR is to provide care for about 1,425 people in Cote d'Ivoire. The assistance will be targeted to people living with the HIV/AIDS, orphans, and vulnerable children. According to the paper, this was announced recently during a workshop organized by ANADER, a PEPFAR partner in the eastern city of Abengourou.
13. On U.S.-African issues, Notre Heures (a daily close to the opposition) published the full text of a June 17 interview of Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson with www.America.gov on President Obama's July 10-11 visit to Accra, Ghana.
14. "America restores Iraq's sovereignty," said a commentary in Fraternite Matin. This is the headline of a commentary in response to the pullout of U.S. troops from Iraqi cities. The commentary highlighted President Obama's reaction, in which he said the event was an "important step" towards the complete U.S. pullout from the war that began six years ago.
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