Ouattara to Address National Assembly

United States Embassy (Abidjan)

21 April 2011

This daily press review is compiled by the Information Section of the Public Affairs Office of the American Embassy in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Reports in today’s Ivorian press say President Alassane Ouattara will soon address the National Assembly. Security issues are also prominent in the press amid reports of fresh fighting in Abidjan. The general political atmosphere and the state of the media in Cote d’Ivoire are the other major issues in the press.

1. A prominent story in the state-owned daily Fraternite Matin announces that President Alassane Ouattara will address the National Assembly on April 27. According to the paper, the decision was taken after talks on Wednesday with the Speaker of the Parliament, Mamadou Koulibaly, who was meeting the president for the first time since former President Laurent Gbagbo was arrested by pro-Ouattara forces. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mr. Koulibaly said that the discussion focused on issues such as the rule of law, security and social cohesion among the people of Cote d’Ivoire. “We told the president it is important that at the beginning of his mandate there should be a regular swearing-in ceremony, as recommended by the African Union.” The Speaker of the House also hinted that “the President of the Constitutional Council, Paul Yao N’Dre, is expected soon in Abidjan for the ceremony.” On security issues, Mr. Koulibaly denounced looting and vandalism in Abidjan and brought to the president’s attention the case of members of the former ruling FPI party who are “concerned about their security.” The Speaker of the parliament also asked the president to address the case of “Ivorians from the Bete ethnic group [like former President Gbagbo] who are being assaulted.”

2. Reporting on the meeting between President Ouattara and the Speaker of the Parliament, L’Expression (a daily close to President Ouattara) prominently announces that the inauguration of the Ivorian new president is set for May 15. “Koulibaly sets the record straight,” writes L’Inter (an independent daily), while a front-page headline in L’Intelligent d’Abidjan (an independent daily) says that “the Speaker of the House demands that Ouattara respect the Constitution.” According to the paper, Mr. Koulibaly also warned against any attempt to muddle politics with ethnicity in Cote d’Ivoire. “If certain persons think that Ouattara’s accession to power means that power is now in the hands of the Dioulas or Northerners, then there will be chaos,” the paper quotes him as saying.

3. The speaker’s statement after his meeting with the president sparks outrage in Le Patriote (a daily close to President Ouattara), which deplores Mr. Koulibaly’s accusations leveled against the pro-Ouattara RHDP coalition for murder. In a commentary, the paper notes that the President of the National Assembly has lost his way, adding that he showed “no compassion for the victims of abuses committed by pro-Gbagbo forces, notably the women who were killed in cold blood in Abobo.” Reacting to Mr. Koulibaly’s statement, Le Democrate (a daily close to the RHDP – a coalition supporting President Ouattara) quotes a leading member of the RHDP coalition, who called the speaker “a dangerous” man.

4. Meanwhile, a prominent headline in L’Inter (an independent daily) says that heavy fighting erupted yesterday in the pro-Gbagbo neighborhood of Yopougon, forcing residents to flee the zone. The paper quotes a soldier as saying that the Forces Republicaines de Cote d’Ivoire (FRCI) have launched a campaign designed “to flush out pro-Gbagbo Liberian militiamen who are using Yopougon as their hideout.” The paper also reports heavy gunfire in the neighborhood of Abobo, as elements of the FRCI attacked formerly allied “Invisible Commandos”. “No Gbagbo, no Cote d’Ivoire,” says a story in L’Intelligent d’Abidjan (an independent daily), which attributes this message to Liberian mercenaries. According to the report, the mercenaries are controlling a large part of Yopougon, moving around in 4×4 vehicles and looting shops. Reporting on the turn of events in Yopougon, Nord-Sud Quotidien (a daily close to President Ouattara) says that the FRCI’s campaign in this area is aimed at destroying the positions of pro-Gbagbo militia and mercenaries.

5. On media-related issues, a report in L’Expression (a daily close to President Ouattara) says that journalists working with the state-run broadcaster Radiodiffusion Television de Cote d’Ivoire (RTI) asked for forgiveness, when the Minister in charge of Communication, Ahmed Bakayoko, visited the television house yesterday. “Our mission now is to make sure that RTI does not become a propaganda tool,” Le Nouveau Reveil (a daily close to the RHDP – a coalition supporting President Ouattara) quotes the spokesperson of the journalists as saying. The minister was accompanied by the new Managing Director of RTI, Brou Aka Pascal (a former IV), who invited his colleagues “to stop their unprofessional practices… and take full part in the national reconciliation process.” The minister, who also visited the state-run Fraternite Matin, told the journalists that the paper must help “consolidate peace.” “The public media should live up to their responsibility,” Le Patriote (a daily close to President Ouattara) quotes Mr. Bakayoko as saying.

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