Update on the Political Situation in Côte d’Ivoire
Update 3/10/10:
The violence in Côte d'Ivoire has subsided following the announcement of a new government in Côte d'Ivoire in late February, albeit with many of the same ministers as in the previous government. President Gbagbo and Prime Minister Soro remained in place, and of the 16 ministers from the president's party in the previous government, 13 were reappointed. The opposition coalition, which derives its support from the northern part of the country (where we work), replaced 8 of its 11 ministers, including the Minister of Health. The new Minister of Health is Eugène Aka Aouelle. The newly elected head of the Electoral Commission (Youssouf Bakayoko) is still a member of the opposition coalition, as was his predecessor. (Read more from the Boston Globe or the BBC.)
Elections have now been targeted for May, although it is unclear whether this timeline can be met.
Our teams have been able to resume site visits and report that work is going fine. They are being cautious, and as many Ivorians, are having to cope with frequent power shortages. These shortages disrupt hospitals and health clinics and people's day-to-day living, as it has become impossible to keep anything refrigerated for more than a few hours.
Original post 2/24/10:
A political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire has been making news the past few weeks, and we wanted to give an update on the situation on the ground, including how our staff are doing.
On Friday February 12th, President Laurent Gbagbo dissolved the government and the electoral commission, following his accusation that the commission illegally added names to the electoral register.
Since then, there have been demonstrations in many major cities. We have offices in three cities in the north (Bouaké, Korhogo, Bondoukou), and in Abidjan in the south. Our staff are partners are all safe, and are continuing to work where possible from our offices. Our staff are not making site visits for now while the unrest persists.
Ivorian woman looks at posted electoral rolls. Source: Reuters/France 24
To give a little bit more background, presidential elections that were scheduled to be held in March were postponed with the dissolution of the electoral commission. This is the sixth time that elections have been cancelled since 2005. Read more about the reasons for the dispute.
Because of the frustration over the postponement, people began demonstrating in the streets in many cities, including the main port city of Abidjan, and Bouaké, Korhogo and Bondoukou in the north, where we work. Some of the protests turned violent, with buildings and cars set on fire and government offices looted. Some deaths have been reported from clashes with security forces on February 19th.
The latest news is that the Prime Minister, Guillaume Soto, announced a new unity government late Tuesday, February 23rd. The new government is to include 27 ministers from both the president's party and opposition parties, although only 16 have been named so far. The opposition party's participation is contingent on the electoral commission being reinstated. A new commission is expected to be announced tomorrow (Thursday).
We are continuing to monitor the situation closely, and prioritize the safety and security of our staff and partners. We will post updates as we get more news.
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