Amnesty International published a shocking report on the violence that has rocked Côte d'Ivoire since the second round of the presidential election on Nov ember 28th 2010. The report entitled ‘They saw his identity card and killed him’ is based on the findings of investigations conducted by Amnesty International in the last six months. The title of the report captures the reality of the abuses in the city of Abidjan and the west and comes as a warning to President Alassane Quattara on the magnitude of the task ahead in the reconciliation and rebuilding efforts of this once stable nation.
The Amnesty International report points out that there was an "excessive use of force" by Gbagbo's camp on the supporters of Alassane Quattara during the march held on December 16, 2010 that sought to take control of RTI (Ivorian Radio and Television) in which several by-standers were killed for being pro-Quattara Further, individuals with Muslim names or wearing Muslim clothes were also targeted and sometimes killed, arrested or disappeared within neighbourhoods, streets and homes.
In late February 2011, security forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo began firing mortar shells on densely populated areas in the town of Abobo which had just come under the control of invisible forces hostile to Gbagbo. The shootings killed about 20 people with about 60 reported to have been injured.
The invisible forces on their part had launched attacks on civil and military groups on 11 and 12 January 2011 killing 6 policemen in addition to committing serious human rights violations against the Ebrié ethnic group.
Amnesty International has also collected over 100 testimonials from people who escaped the massacre of Duekoué on March 29, 2011. According to witnesses, the FRCI, forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara, executed men of all ages on the basis of their ethnicity and political affiliation using knives or automatic weapons. Other victims were killed by burning in their houses. Most of the victims were people belonging to Guéré ethnic group.
The presence of Liberian mercenaries and militia loyal to Laurent Gbagbo also led to serious abuses in this part of the country with 47 people from the north reported killed in Blolequin about 80 km from Duékoué.
Sexual violence
Women have been victims of sexual abuse. The fieldwork collected testimonies of women raped by forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo especially in Abobo. One victim said: "On 19 December 2010, they came home in Abobo in the middle of the night when I was sleeping with my husband and children. They knocked on our wooden door, we did not open and they gained entry by breaking it. They were eight, four plainclothes and four others dressed in military uniform and dark hoods. Two of them took my husband outside and six came for me. They asked me to undress and when I did not, they pounced on me. They all raped me in turns.’ Some women are reported to have been raped in detention.
In the opposing camp, the same stories were collected in the western regions of the country. A 15 year old schoolgirl narrated how she was raped by a FAFN commander (an armed opposition group under the supervision of Guillaume Soro) in mid-January 2011: "I was going home about 4 o'clock. The Commander of the Forces Nouvelles forced me to get into his car, took me into the bush outside the village, and raped me in the back of the vehicle." Other testimonies included in the report were cases of rape and sexual violence by members of FRCI in the region of Duekoue.
UN peacekeepers failed to act
The report of NGOs is very critical of the role played by the ONUCI which it says failed to protect the civilians albeit they were also verbally and physically targeted by forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo. Amnesty International said that insufficient number of ONUCI troops in Duekoue region in particular, could be the reason behind the lack of protection of the civilians.
Situation still fragile after Laurent Gbagbo
Amnesty International believes that the situation is still unstable. Since the arrest of Laurent Gbagbo, "the human rights abuses are still committed against current or supposed supporters of Laurent Gbagbo in Abidjan and the west". Proven or suspected supporters of Laurent Gbagbo continue to be hounded.
Gunmen supporting Alassane Quattara, claiming to be looking for militiamen who supported the former president, plundered many villages, scaring people. A village chief told Amnesty International on May 9, 2011: "Since May 6, the FRCI has engaged in countless atrocities against us. There are dead people everywhere, since people fled into the bush, there is no one to bury the corpses that are exposed on the road. Behind all this, there is a problem because the alien elements want to take our land."
There are concerns about the fate of the Gbagbo's family who were abused during their arrest and have been in detention without trial to date.
The report warns that "Without justice for all victims, regardless of their political affiliation or ethnic group, appeals for reconciliation may lead to an unstable and unsatisfactory compromise that could lead to more bloodshed and vengeance in future," It calls on the President to punish perpetrators of these abuses and stop the violations forthwith.
AI welcomes Quattara’s request to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the Côte d'Ivoire case, as well as the promise of establishing a truth and reconciliation commission provided it meets the criteria and standards established by international law.