Daily Brief on Côte d’Ivoire for Wednesday, 11 June 2008

11 juin 2008

Daily Brief on Côte d’Ivoire for Wednesday, 11 June 2008


- SRSG opens Inter-Mission Force Commanders Conference
- Villagers in Bouna area living in fear after armed attack

Military

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Cote d'Ivoire, Mr. Y.J. Choi, today officially opened the Inter-Mission Force Commanders' Conference which was held at UNOCI headquarters in Abidjan. Mr. Choi told participants, who came from the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSL) and the UN Office in West Africa (UNOWA), that even though the security situation in several parts of Africa is deteriorating with no sign of stability, UN peacekeepers should take pride in what they do because they are contributing to the future of the countries in which they are stationed.

Security

Villagers in Kouedidouo in the Bouna area have told UNOCI that they are living in fear following an attack by an unknown armed group against a family in the village. Six members of the family were injured, three of them seriously with bullet wounds.

A two-day peaceful demonstration against frequent power cuts in Bondoukou, organized by a youth group called MOREB (Movement des Jeunes Pour La Renaissance de Bondoukou), ended yesterday. The demonstration was held in front of the offices of the electricity company. The youths say that the power cuts are preventing businesses, which could provide much needed jobs, from setting up in the area.

UNOCI Military Observers, who went to Armed Forces of the Forces Nouvelles (FAFN) post in Mahandiana Sokurani in the Goulia area, near Odienné (north), to carry out a planned arms embargo inspection, were told by villagers that they had burnt down the post because they were angry at the soldiers. The villagers claimed that the soldiers demanded money from them all the time but did not provide them with the security they need. Following the dispute, the villagers claimed that the soldiers were ordered to move to nearby Gbeya, by the local Zone Commander.

Arms embargo

Arms embargo inspections were yesterday successfully carried out by UNOCI peacekeepers at the FAFN's 74th Battalion in Sipilou, on the Guinea border (northwest), at its 37th Infantry battalion in Angoua Yaokro, near Bouaké and at its 12th battalion in Kalamon, Bouna (east). Meanwhile, similar inspections were also carried at the National Armed Forces of Cote d'Ivoire's (FANCI) Regrouping Centre in San Pedro (south), at its Unit in Dibobly, near Duékoué (west) and its Gendarmerie Brigade in Bocanda, near Daoukro (east).

Human Rights

The Human Rights Office in Korhogo (north) in collaboration with OCHA and a local NGO today organized a training seminar on how to stop female genital mutilation in Côte d'Ivoire. During this session, the origins of this practice were examined as well as the national and international legal frameworks and methods of countering it. 40 participants, including representatives from local organisations in Boundiali, Ferkessédougou, Tengréla and Korhogo, working with women and children, as well as local opinion leaders participated in the training.

The Regional Human Rights Office in Bouaké, on 9 June 2008, met with an FAFN official to discuss the case of a school teacher from the city's Tolakouadiokro district, who was beaten up by two soldiers from the Compagnie Guépard, in his classroom on 22 May 2008 [Ref: Sitrep of 6 June 2008]. The official assured the Office that the two soldiers would be punished for their conduct. [Comments: Despite the official's assurances, the Office has previously reported similar cases where no action was taken by the FAFN authorities against the perpetrators.]

A two-day human rights training workshop was organized from 6 to 7 June 2008 for 20 members of the human rights protection cells in Kimbrila-North and Tienko, situated 105 km and 95 km respectively from Odienné (north). Participants were briefed on basic international human rights standards. In another development, the Regional Human Rights Office in Odienné, in collaboration with the human rights club at thr city's Collège Moderne, organized a competition on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in which 100 students participated.