The parliament of Cote d'Ivoire voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to approve an amnesty for rebels occupying the north of the country. The law was approved with no votes against and only two abstentions, despite much grumbling from the Ivorian Patriotic Front (FPI) of President Laurent Gbagbo. The amnesty law covers acts of rebellion against the government since the controversial presidential elections of September 200 when several hundred people died in clashes. Trouble arose because former prime minister Alassane Ouattara was barred from standing in the poll on the grounds that he was not a true Ivorian.
| "He's ummmm... a Samoan." |
However, the rebel Patriotic Movement of Cote d'Ivoire (MPCI), continues to hold sway in the north of the country and the passage of the amnesty law was considered essential by all sides for a planned process of demobilisation and disarmament to get under way. It paves the way for soldiers and policemen who joined the rebel ranks to be reintegrated into the security forces.
| Where they can do it again when they feel like it... |
The rebels are also demanding that President Gbagbo appoint new ministers of defence and the interior to the broad-based coalition government before they hand over their guns and allow government administrators back into the north. The appointment of the two ministers has been held up for months by the lack of a consensus between Gbagbo, the unarmed opposition parties and the rebels over who should occupy these key posts. However, Prime Minister Seydou Diarra said during a visit to Paris last week that he would make proposals soon to overcome the impasse. |