Ivory Coast on the ‘Brink of Genocide’
January 1st, 2011A few terms that don’t appear in the story below: Oil, diamonds, cobalt, gold, iron, manganese and nickel.
Cocoa, however, is mentioned.
Via: Guardian:
Ivory Coast is on the “brink of genocide” and the world must take urgent action, the country’s new ambassador to the UN has warned. Youssoufou Bamba also claimed that some houses were being marked according to the tribe of the occupier.
The plea came as the UN accused the security forces of the incumbent president, Laurent Gbagbo, of blocking access to mass graves, saying investigators believed as many as 80 bodies may be in one building.
World leaders have stepped up pressure on Gbagbo to quit in favour of Alassane Ouattara, who is widely recognised as having won last month’s elections.
Speaking in New York, Bamba, who was appointed by Ouattara, described him as the rightful ruler of Ivory Coast. “He has been elected in a free, fair, transparent, democratic election,” he said.
“The result has been proclaimed by the independent electoral commission, certified by the UN. To me the debate is over, now you are talking about how and when Mr Gbagbo will leave office.”
Bamba alleged there had been a “massive violation of human rights”, with more than 170 people killed during street demonstrations. “One of the messages I try to get across is to tell we are on the brink of genocide. Something should be done.”
He implied that Ouattara strongholds, which are largely in the north, could be targeted by Gbagbo backers, saying: “If houses are being marked according to your tribe, what is going to be next?”
