This is the first meeting between the head of state and his predecessor since his return last month after his acquittal of ICC crimes against humanity. The meeting between the two people in the Ivorian political scene must take place at the Presidential Palace in the late afternoon.
as reported from Abidjan, Sidy Yansane
This is the event that everyone was waiting for in Côte d’Ivoire: the reunion between the official winner of the 2010 presidential election and the one who still today declares that victory has been confiscated. This meeting is considered an important step in the national reconciliation process, which all political parties demand.
Ten years after the terrible crisis after the election, responsible for more than 3,000 deaths according to the UN, Alassane Ouattara will meet Laurent Gbagbo at the Presidential Palace at 17 Until now, the two men had only spoken discreetly. On the phone at at the beginning of the month.
Since his triumphant return on June 17, the founder of FPI visited first in his hometown Mama, flew to Kinshasa at the invitation of opponent Jean-Pierre Bemba (his cell neighbor at the ICC), dined with Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi, before visiting former Ivorian head of state Henri Konan Bédié, who has been his ally since the election in March last year.
The meeting between the two presidents Ouattara-Gbagbo follows unfriendly statements from their respective camps in recent days. During the Tabaski party a week ago, the head of state demanded to continue the march towards reconciliation. The next day, the government announced an upcoming meeting with its predecessor. An interview that the governing party and the FPI above all define as fraternal and serves to calm the political climate.
Several possible files on the menu
On the power side, we repeat that the historical opponent’s return to Côte d’Ivoire above all illustrates a citizen’s return to his home. On the FPI side, a source close to the party leadership defines the interview this afternoon as “a courtesy visit to Republican ethics”. She insists on the former head of state’s contingency logic. In short, this reunion is first and foremost part of a logic of African fraternity.
At present, no details are filtered about the content of the upcoming interview. But there are no political issues missing. Earlier this month, Laurent Gbagbo announced that he wanted to greet the prisoners of conscience from all political stripes still in custody. The request, which was refused by the Minister of Justice for security reasons, could be put back on the table.
There is also the legal situation of the opponent, sentenced by Ivorian justice during his stay at the ICC to twenty years in prison in the so-called case “Crime by BCEAO”. President Alassane Ouattara had already indicated that an amnesty would be possible.
And then, of course, there is the political future of the two presidents. The head of state is said to intend to introduce an age limit of 75 for candidates for the highest office, which would effectively eliminate the two men.
In any case, the two camps strive to say that this first hearing first plays for a relaxation of the political climate.
.
