Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bouake (Fides Service)- “Nothing new in Côte d'Ivoire: after signing yet another peace agreement with great press attention, the following day government and rebels accused one another of breaking the pact”. There is neither resignation nor anger in the voice of the missionary contacted by Fides in northern Côte d'Ivoire, but the calm of a person armed only with faith who continues to live difficult situations close to the people entrusted to him by the Lord.
After the agreement signed on April 6 in South Africa by the main parties in the Ivorian crisis, the New Forces rebels which control the north and west of the country accused President Laurent Gbagbo of recruiting militia to attack rebel positions. “Accusations and counter-accusations have been part of the Ivorian political panorama for too long. However no one has the right to throw the first stone” the missionary said. “If the President recruits militia, what should be said about the rebels who publicly recruit military and police in the areas under their control? Hadn’t all started a process of disarmament?” the missionary asks. “The rebels say they are training police and military to integrated into the future unified armed forces to be formed when the crisis is over. But are we sure this is the only intention? In fact the rebels are behaving like a sovereign authority and this does not help dialogue”.
For their part the rebels accuse President Gbagbo of recruiting 3,000 mercenaries in neighbouring Liberia and making an alliance with Ibrahim Coulibaly, referred to as IB, a former military accused of organising a coup, who is against the New Forces leaders. “Ibrahim Coulibaly acts on his own and I think it is highly improbable that he has made an alliance with the President. We can say he is a third party which could represent a new source of instability” the missionary said.
On Thursday 14 April, in Bouake, the rebel “capital”, Prime Minister Diarra and military leaders of both sides will meet to discus disarmament. On Friday 15 April there will be a cabinet meeting at which Minister representatives of rebels should take part. “However it is not certain that they will because the New Forces MPs say security is insufficient. We have to wait and see if these two appointments are kept” the missionary said. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 12/4/2005 righe 32 parole 418)
