[image: The Star]
*Pursuit of democracy at all costs* *Ami Mpungwe, The Star, Johannesburg, 30 December 2010* *[shortened parts in italics]* *Independence, 1960… troubled elections in 2000… failed 2002 coup d’état… split the country, with “Forces Nouvelles” in the north… negotiations… * The negotiations resulted in agreements relating to the termination of hostilities, the unification of the country, the restoration of civilian state administration in the areas controlled by the Forces Nouvelles, disarmament, demobilisation and the registration of citizens and voters, and the holding of elections. I put the matter of holding the elections lasting this list because indeed the Ivorians made the determination that the elections would be held after all the other matters I have mentioned had successfully been addressed. *[Confirmed by] 2008 Fourth Supplementary Agreement of the Ouagadougou Political Agreement… UN said that elections could not take place until disarmament and demobilisation… * * * *However, the Forces Nouvelles continued to hold on to areas occupied during their failed 2002 coup directed against President Laurent Gbagbo… the country remained divided… Ouattara “won” more than 90% of the votes these areas… All this could have been and was foreseen.* *Why then did Ivorians, and especially Gbagbo, agree to the presidential election when the necessary and known condition had not been created? Two possible reasons… One is pressure from “international community” [Imperilism] after seven postponements… Another is found in a cable by Wanda L Nesbitt released by Wikileaks suggesting that the Ougadougou Agreements are essentially between Blaise Compaore and Laurent Gbagbo concerning the north of Ivory Coast… But Compaore supported the “Forces Nouvelles” all along.* * * *Cheriff Sy, editor of Burkina newspaper Bendre says “Compaore is the armed wing, the representative of France in Africa. He intervenes in countries he has contributed to set on fire to defend French interests. It’s that simple.”* *Did Compaore simply deceive Gbagbo?* The pursuit of democracy at all costs, even when the necessary conditions for democratic elections have not been created, has now led to the extremely dangerous situation that Ivory Coast seems to be sliding into civil war. The constitution and the electoral law of Ivory Coast provide that the results determined by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) are provisional and must be submitted to the Constitutional Council for approval, this being the only institution legally authorised to announce the final and definitive results. These legal prescriptions were respected by everybody in the preparation and conduct of the first round of the presidential elections. However, it has now bee argued hat, in the name of democracy, the rules of law should be thrown out of the window. Thus, for reasons of political expediency, it is argued that the determination of who won the presidential election should be based on the provisional results of the IEC and not the final results announced by the Constitutional Council. When the dust has settled and the international community has shifted its focus elsewhere, the Ivorians would be left alone to deal with the consequences of the anarchy and arbitrary rule which are inherent within the practice of disrespect for the rule of law. Africa could face the prospect of yet another failed state, akin to Somalia, with disastrous results for both Ivory Coast and the neighbouring states. The question will have to be answered: whose interests did it serve to insist on elections disregarding the correct views of the Ivorians that the necessary conditions would have to be created to ensure that these elections would lead to a peaceful, united, and stable Ivory Coast? But more immediately the challenge that faces Africa in particular is urgently to facilitate a peaceful resolution of the Ivorian crisis in a manner that takes into account the deep-seated structural faults in Ivorian society of which the recent presidential elections are but a mere reflection. It remains to be seen whether Africa has the courage and wisdom to achieve this outcome, in the interest of the millions who will be the victims of any failure in this regard, part of the “collateral damage” that was bound to define the forced democratisation of the Ivory Coast. - Ambassador *Ami Mpungwe* served as a member of the Tanzanian Foreign Service for many decades. Now retired, he is a private businessman and a business consultant advising investors from many parts of the world on investment opportunities in Africa. -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. 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