"They are asking for the UN to use force and physically remove Gbagbo.... the UN began evacuating some 500 staffers.... the only way to remove him may be through military intervention"
Ivory Coast faces crisis over election reversal
The presidential election was meant to restore stability after a civil war erupted in 2002, destroying the economy of one of the most affluent countries in Africa. Instead the election is now casting a growing shadow as it becomes increasingly clear that incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo is unwilling to step aside.
See: Opposition leader named Ivory Coast winner
Also see: The Ivory Coast's Illegal Immigrants
Ivory Coast Election
Hey, look, they are shams just like ours, AmeriKan!
Mediators try to step in to Ivory Coast election crisis
The country could again be divided in two. In the northern opposition stronghold of Bouake, several hundred people marched down a main boulevard yesterday afternoon, calling for incumbent Laurent Gbagbo to stand down. Villagers wielding machetes created their own checkpoint in protest on a major road in the region.
Despite opposition leader Alassane Ouattara’s international support, Gbagbo holds many of the key elements of power, including the army and the state media.
Then he's not going anywhere.
"UN moves to protect election winner as Ivory Coast standoff enters its 2d day" by Associated Press / December 7, 2010
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — UN peacekeepers laid sandbags and rolled out miles of razor wire yesterday to protect the aging hotel that has become the de facto presidency of the man who most of the world says won Ivory Coast’s presidential election.
A UN tank also took position on one side of the lagoon-facing hotel and armored personnel carriers were strategically guarding the parking lot as Alassane Ouattara held his first Cabinet meeting. Across town in the presidential palace, incumbent Laurent Gbagbo continued to defy calls from the United States, France, and the European Union to step down.
But when Israel continues to defy calls to halt settlements, well....
Last week, the United Nations certified the election results confirming that Ouattara won, and his victory has been recognized by numerous world powers. But that didn’t stop Gbagbo from going ahead with a shotgun inauguration over the weekend, where he warned foreign powers not to interfere.
A UN tank also took position on one side of the lagoon-facing hotel and armored personnel carriers were strategically guarding the parking lot as Alassane Ouattara held his first Cabinet meeting. Across town in the presidential palace, incumbent Laurent Gbagbo continued to defy calls from the United States, France, and the European Union to step down.
But when Israel continues to defy calls to halt settlements, well....
Last week, the United Nations certified the election results confirming that Ouattara won, and his victory has been recognized by numerous world powers. But that didn’t stop Gbagbo from going ahead with a shotgun inauguration over the weekend, where he warned foreign powers not to interfere.
Ouattara’s advisers gathered by the hotel’s pool and in the lobby yesterday, sitting in lounge chairs between potted palm trees. Joel N’Guessan, his spokesman, said they are asking for the UN to use force and physically remove Gbagbo if he continues to cling to the office....
Gbagbo, who came to power a decade ago and has stayed on as president five years after his legal term expired, has clamped down on TV and radio, yanking foreign channels off the air. State television is broadcasting continuous loops showing his inauguration ceremony, and many people in the capital are not even aware that most of the world believes Ouattara to be the legal winner.
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UN, African leaders call on Gbagbo to quit
The continuing uncertainty over what will happen next in Ivory Coast led hundreds of people to flee the West African country, and the UN also began evacuating some 500 staffers.
Gbagbo has turned his back on international opinion and defiantly went ahead yesterday.
You know, like Israel and their settlements.
Gbagbo appears to be backed by the army, and if he does not agree to step down, the only way to remove him may be through military intervention.
Or assassination.
Gbagbo has turned his back on international opinion and defiantly went ahead yesterday.
You know, like Israel and their settlements.
Gbagbo appears to be backed by the army, and if he does not agree to step down, the only way to remove him may be through military intervention.
Or assassination.
