Abidjan:  an appeal for peace and to solve the crisis in Ivory Coast was presented to the press by religious leaders and civil representatives
29th May 2010

On Tuesday, 25th May at the Community of Sant’Egidio seat in Abidjan, was made a new appeal for the peace and the solution to the political crisis in Ivory Coast. The appeal was presented to the press by its signers, Christian and Muslim leaders together with civil representatives who attended the meeting that was held in Washington, from 26th April to 1st May, , organizes by the Community of Sant’Egidio in collaboration with USIP (United States Institute of Peace) and Georges Mason University.

The appeal asks to the Ivorian political class, to acknowledge the role of different religious confessions and civil society in the search for a “real peace” in Ivory Coast, after the crisis started in September 2002, who has led to the fracture of the country till the agreements of Ouagadougou in March 2007.

Because of the state of tension that has weighed down on Ivorian society for a long time, the promoters of the initiative think that the solution to this crisis can’t lie in violence but, on the contrary, in the reinforcement of peace and gradual agreements between political actors. Facing the next presidential elections, long postponed and not yet settled, the Ivorian personalities gathered at the seat of the Community of Sant’Egidio ask for a “guarantee agreement” that could reassure all the candidates about the security of themselves and their belongings after the vote that should be peaceful, free, fair and clear.

The appeal was signed by the following religious and civil personalities: Pastor Ediémou Blin Jacob (Église du Christianisme céleste, President of the National Forum of Religious Confessions), Imam Koné Koudouss (CNI), Cheik Boikary Fofana (COSIM), Bishop Benjamin Boni (United Methodist Church) , Pastor Koffi Téhua Ouattara (Evangelic Church), Superior Jules Dogbo (Eglise Harriste), Honoré Guié (President of Ivorian Television, GERDDES-CI), Kamaté Banhouman André (LIDHO), Patrick N’Gouan (CSCI), Me Kaudjhis-Offoumou (AID-Afrique) and Coulibaly Tiozon Ibrahima (WANEP-CI) and subscribed by the Archbishop of Abidjan, Jean-Pierre Kutwa.

The Community of Sant’Egidio has worked for a pacific solution of the Ivorian crisis since September 2002, furthering reconciliation between the conflicting groups and attended the meetings who have led to the agreements in Ouagadougou in March 2007.