Johannesburg — Since the outbreak of fighting in Cote d'Ivoire last week, between mutinous soldiers and forces loyal to President Laurent Gbagbo, the regional economic community, Ecowas, has been pressing for a resolution to the conflict.
The Ecowas executive secretary, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, a Ghanaian, is at the forefront of these efforts, along with the current Ecowas chairman, President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal.
A summit of regional heads of state was initially set for Saturday in the Senegalese capital Dakar but was then postponed to the following Saturday. The date and venue changed again to Abidjan this Sunday. But the latest news is that the Ghanaian capital, Accra, will host the emergency meeting of West African leaders on Sunday.
In the past week, Chambas has engaged in intense regional shuttle diplomacy. He held talks with President Gbagbo in Abidjan, preceded by a mission to Cote d'Ivoire's northern neighbour, Burkina Faso, for meetings with President Blaise Compaore. Abidjan and Ouagadougou do not enjoy good diplomatic relations.
Tension deepened between the two last week, when Gbagbo obliquely accused unnamed countries 'to the north' of backing the rebels, in what the Ivorian authorities have called a failed coup. There were immediate reprisals against Burkinabe and other immigrants in Cote d'Ivoire.
So what, if anything, can the Economic Community of West African States do to improve the bad blood between Cote d'Ivoire and Burkina and, more importantly, to help resolve the Ivorian conflict which has already cost hundreds of lives?
AllAfrica's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton called up Dr Chambas in the Togolese capital, Lome, as he prepared to head across the border to Ghana, to prepare for Sunday's heads of state summit in Accra.
Dr Chambas, why does the venue for the summit keep shifting?
Purely practical considerations at this point. We believe that all the arrangements are in place now for Accra and, indeed, we have already gotten assurances from no less than 7 heads of state that they will be attending the summit.
But there are 15 member states of Ecowas. What about the presidents of Burkina Faso and Cote d'Ivoire. Are you expecting both in Accra?
Oh yes, both of them have confirmed that they will be attending the summit.
It appears there is considerable bad blood between the two, President Gbagbo and President Compaore?
I don't think so. The summit will seek to reconcile whatever differences may exist between them, and we will work to improve the relations between the two sides. We will also seek to address the ongoing military stand off in Cote d'Ivoire, in Bouake and other cities.
What about the safety of the West African immigrants in Cote d'Ivoire who came under attack after President Gbagbo accused a 'northern neighbour' of being involved in the coup? What can Ecowas do about this?
We have asked all parties to exercise maximum restraint in this matter and to be extremely cautious about utterances that could inflame passions. We have urged for the respect of the rights of all citizens and foreign nationals in Cote d'Ivoire.
There has been much talk this week about possible regional intervention in the Cote d'Ivoire crisis and even the deployment of a military force. What is the Ecowas view?
For now, the support that has been demonstrated by Ecowas is in a purely non-combative role, to bolster the democratic government of Cote d'Ivoire, which is threatened.
But is military intervention an option?
Possibly. However, the preferred option will remain to seek a political resolution to the conflict, through dialogue. At the same time the Ecowas military chiefs of staff will make the necessary arrangements to deal with the changing situation. But, dialogue would be the preferred option to resolve the conflict.
Do you think that, at this stage, dialogue can work?
We expect that it will work.
But the possibility of an Ecomog-style military intervention force remains?
It would be prudent to work out contingency arrangements concerning Ecomog, but the major emphasis would be to negotiate a peaceful settlement to the stand off.
Dr Chambas, are you hopeful?
Oh, I'm sure the heads of state will deliberate extensively on this issue, and I'm sure they will come up with an approach that I am certain the rebel troops will respond to positively.
Have you had any contact with the rebels, the mutineers in Cote d'Ivoire?
Not at this point.
Why not?
We want to approach it in a very systematic manner and we want to work closely with the Ivorian authorities, after the Ecowas summit has considered the issues and determined the manner in which to handle the crisis.
So have the rebel soldiers been invited to Accra?
This is a summit of heads of state.
When do you expect to begin talking to them?
That is why the summit has been brought forward to Sunday, because we see that the situation is urgent and demands a quick and urgent response.
For the past few days, the Ivorian government has pledged an all out counter offensive against the rebels. What do you think about that threat?
Well the Ecowas approach will be determined by the meetings of heads of state. When the heads of state have thoroughly discussed this issue and come out with an approach to solving it, then we will know the next course of action.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
At the launch of the African Union (AU), which replaced the Organisation of African Unity in July, we heard so much about how Africa was going to resolve its own conflicts and make conflict prevention and resolution a priority. Cote d'Ivoire is something of a test case, isn't it? But the latest approach seems to be more an Ecowas than an AU initiative. Has the AU said, "over to you Ecowas and we will back you?"
You've got it about right, we are cooperating closely. And I can confirm to you that the (interim) president of the African Union, Amara Essy, is on the way to Accra to attend the summit. So we expect to work closely with the African Union and the UN also. The representative of the UN secretary general, Ambassador Ould Abdallah, is also on his way to Accra to attend the summit.
So we shouldn't expect to see Ecowas following the lead of the African Union in this regional crisis in Cote d'Ivoire?
It's usually the other way round. The African Union likes to allow the regional economic communities to take a regional approach and then to lend support. That is how we have worked in the past and they have come to back up the regional initiatives.
And that is why the regional leaders are acting promptly to convene the Ecowas summit and support the legitimate and democratically elected government of Cote d'Ivoire and to uphold democracy and a constitutional government in that country. This is to send a strong signal that Africa means business when it says we will no longer recognise any government that comes to power through violence or coups d'etat.
