Highlights

-SRSG to meet Facilitator, President Blaise Compaore, in Ouaga today
-DSRSG leads IDP assessment mission to the west
-President Gbagbo starts visit to Forces Nouvelles areas in north

Political

The new Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Côte d'Ivoire, Y.J. Choi, today met with the President of the Ivorian International Electoral Commission, who briefed him on progress made so far in preparations for free, fair and transparent elections in Cote d'Ivoire. Mr. Choi later left for Ouagadougou to meet with President Blaise Compaore, the Facilitator of the Ouagadougou Political Agreement, and discuss the latest developments in the Ivorian peace process. Mr. Choi, who took up his post a week ago, will be meeting the Facilitator for the first time. His visit comes one day after Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo and Prime Minister Guillaume Soro met with the Facilitator in Ouagadougou to sign an additional agreement stating that elections should be held by June 2008. The Independent Electoral Commission said two months ago that it could take until October 2008 to hold the elections.

Humanitarian

A delegation of the Inter-agency Humanitarian Co-ordination Committee (IAHCC) led by the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Georg Charpentier, yesterday started a mission in the Moyen Cavally region to assess the situation of returning internally displaced persons (IDPs). At a meeting with local authorities held shortly after the delegation's arrival, the Military Prefect of the Region said that he and his colleagues were ready to closely collaborate with the humanitarian agencies in order to help the population.

Denial of freedom of movement

A routine patrol comprising Military Observers and UN Police was yesterday denied entry to the Autonomous Port in Abidjan. A guard refused to allow the patrol to enter the premises on the pretext that it had no authorization to do so.

President's visit

Some 4,500 troops from UNOCI, Force Licorne, the Defence and Security Forces of Côte d'Ivoire (FDS-CI) and the Armed Forces of the Forces Nouvelles (FAFN) will provide security for President Laurent Gbagbo's visit to the north, which is scheduled to start today. UNOCI and Licorne troops will provide security back-up to the two Ivorian forces, who will be on the frontline. The President, who will be in the north until 30 November 2007, is expected to visit Korhogo, Boundiali, Tengrela, Ferkéssédougou and Peugekaha.

Security

Residents of Mahibouo village near the centre-west town of Gagnoa, yesterday told a UNOCI patrol that despite the presence of a temporary gendarmerie checkpoint at the entrance of the village, bandits carry out criminal activities, especially at night.

People in Djaiyo, a village along the San Pedro-Tabou road in southwestern Côte d'Ivoire, are also experiencing a crime wave. According to the village chief, robberies have increased there recently. The latest incident, which happened two weeks ago, resulted in the death of a 50-year-old man reportedly killed by bandits. The village chief complained that instead of protecting them, soldiers from the National Armed Forces of Côte d'Ivoire (FANCI) frequently extort money from them, demanding 5000 FCFA from each villager under the pretext of checking people's identity documents.

Military

In line with the new redeployment plan for UNOCI troops, peacekeepers have dismantled two operational posts in Totokro and Sandengue previous occupied by BANBATT and GHANBATT respectively. Work is also due to start on the building of two new camps in Dabakala in the north and Divo in the west in December 2007. The work is scheduled to last two months. The dismantling of UNOCI's camp in Betie started on 26 November 2007.

Joint patrols were yesterday conducted by MORBATT along with UNPOL and Licorne in Bouakéé while TOGOBATT carried out a joint patrol with Licorne in Abidjan.

Civil Affairs

The Civil Affairs Office in Korhogo yesterday started reviewing data collected during a physical census being carried out by the regional office of the National Committee for Redeployment of the Administration in the Savannah region. At least seven other major state bodies have opened services in the zone under Forces Nouvelles control. These are the ministries of Youth and Sport, Economic Infrastructure, Animal Production, Agriculture, Home Affairs, Economic and Financial Services and New Information and Communication Technologies along with the Ivorian Postal Service.

The Civil Affairs Office in San Pedro, together with Military Observers, yesterday carried out an assessment mission in nearby Poro village with a view to settling the ongoing wrangles between villagers and port authorities. The village chief said the dispute centred on the fact that the port authorities claimed the village was within the port area and wanted to resettle the villagers elsewhere. The chief said that the villagers objected to being moved because the village had existed since the 18th century. The port authorities said they had located a new site for the resettlement. The Office will continue to work on the issue in order to avoid an escalation of the conflict between the two parties.

Human Rights

The Regional Human Rights Office in the centre-west town of Daloa, together with the non-governmental organization (NGO) "Un amour pour Daloa", commemorated International Day for the Eradication of Violence Against Women on 25 November 2007. The ceremony was attended by 123 participants, including representatives of local human rights NGOs and women's associations. The aim of the celebration was to raise awareness about gender-based violence - which is widespread in the Daloa region - including rape, sexual exploitation, domestic violence, female genital mutilation and forced marriage. The Office emphasized UN Security Council Resolution 1325 relating to the participation of women in peace processes. At the same event, a woman and child promotion and protection cell was established within "Un amour pour Daloa".