Highlights

- UNOCI chief meets UNMIL DSRSG
- Training for sous-prefets on reconstitution of civil registries

SRSG's activities

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-general for Côte d'Ivoire, Y. J. Choi, today held talks with visiting Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and UN Humanitarian Coordinator from the UN Mission in Liberia, Mr. Jordan Ryan. They discussed the latest developments in the Ivorian peace process and issues of common interest to the two missions. The UNMIL official is on a two-day visit to Côte d'Ivoire to participate in a joint UNOCI - UN Country Team (UNCT) retreat on best practices which began in Abidjan today.

Reconstitution of registries

In preparation for the launching of the reconstitution of destroyed or lost civil registries process, the United Nations Operations for Project Service (UNOPS) has started a series of training sessions for sous-préfets in the areas concerned. The training is intended to inform the participants on how the commissions for reconstitution of civil registries which have been set up in their respective area, would function. The heads of the commissions, in charge of delivering new civil documents, are being trained on understanding technical documents, and the role that would be played by the different bodies involved in the process. Meanwhile a few towns such as Katiola, in the Bouaké area, have already started providing services to the public for the reconstitution of civil registries.

Identification

A UNOCI team, comprising the Human Rights Division, the Electoral Assistance Division, the Certification Cell and UNPOL, which went to Sinfra, 135 km southeast of Daloa, to monitor the identification and voter registration operation in the region, was told that the Mayor of Sinfra was suspended on 11 February 2009 on suspicion of tampering with birth certificates. In December 2008, nine people, including the president and two vice-presidents of the regional electoral commission, and two staff members from the sous-prefecture in the town were also arrested and detained for tampering with birth certificates. They are being held in Bouaflé prison awaiting trial. The team also observed that only 57 identification sites out of 142 were functional.

Arms embargo

UNOCI peacekeepers yesterday successfully carried out arms embargo inspections at the Armed Forces of the Forces Nouvelles' (FAFN) 109th battalion Ferkéssedougou (north), at 64th battalion in Daleu (west), at its 34th artillery battalion in Sakassou, near Bouake, as well as at the Defence and Security Forces of Cote d'Ivoire's (FDSCI) gendarmerie brigade in Sandégue (east) near Bondoukou at its artillery battalion in Guiglo and at the first engineering battalion in the Abidjan area of Adjamé.

Human Rights

The Regional Human Rights Office in Odienné together with the Child Protection Unit yesterday held a working session with the commander of the gendarmerie brigade to discuss the case of a three-year-old girl who was raped by a 15-year-old boy. The commander informed them that the boy, who had confessed to the crime, was being detained at the gendarmerie.