Sidi, I love this one just send a comment on the issue before reading yours.You will hear me on the Ivorian situation soon,not to keep you waiting. For Freedom Saiks ----- Original Message ----- From: Sidi Sanneh <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Monday, January 29, 2001 4:40 PM Subject: FWD: Ivory Coast - A multicultural mosaic in danger > by Isabelle Ligner > > ABIDJAN, Jan 29 (AFP) - Bamba Sekou owns a small shop in the working- > class > neighborhood of Adjame in Abidjan, and is a part-time poet. > A Malian born in Ivory Coast 36 years ago, he now sees his country of > adoption as a "mosaic in danger." > "In the past," he said, "foreigners helped add life and joy to the > country, > but now we are all paralysed ... by fear." > Ivory Coast, long considered an economic and political success story, is > now awash in anti-foreign sentiment nurtured by the political > establishment. > Bamba is proud of "his Abidjan" -- a cosmopolitan city peopled with > Malians, who because they speak the Dioula language are difficult to > distinguish from Ivorians from the north; Burkinabe traders and domestic > workers; Guinean food stall holders; Senegalese craftsmen, Togolese > restaurateurs; and Nigerian traders. > "At the same time the Ghanaian toutous (prostitutes) have brought a lot > to > the country," he said with a grin, referring to Ghanaian women who frequent > the city's Treichville and Yopougon quarters. > More seriously, Bamba says the situation "has deteriorated to the point > where foreigners don't dare go out." > The Malian finds it ironic that state television daily runs > advertisements > aimed at promoting reconciliation, with a message proclaiming: "in Ivory > Coast > we vibrate together." > It should rather proclaim, he said: "We tremble, each one on our own." > According to the latest census -- in 1998 -- 26 percent of Ivory Coast's > population of 15.4 million are foreigners. > The percentage is believed to be in fact higher, due to illegal > immigration, against which President Laurent Gbagbo has declared war. > Foreigners, who became a driving force behind Ivory Coast's economic > growth > in the 1970s and 1980s, have, however, become the scapegoats of successive > governments since the economy started sliding in the early 1990s. > Following an abortive coup in Abidjan on the night of January 7, the > government pointed fingers at foreigners, unleashing a wave of violent > xenophobia that has sent thousands of foreigners -- mainly Burkinabe -- > fleeing the country. > Tidiane Diouf is a Senegalese craftsman. His small shop situated at the > entrance to Abobo was destroyed by youths after the attempted coup, and > last > week he was threatened in the streets by youths angry at statements made by > Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade. > Wade said a week ago that "a Burkinabe in Ivory Coast is being treated > in a > way that a black person would not be treated in Europe" -- a statement that > provoked furious protests against Senegalese nationals living in Ivory > Coast. > "We are blamed for everything," said Tidiane. "If we breathe the same > air > as the Ivorians, it's already a problem for them." > He said he was ready to leave at the next sign of trouble. Thousands of > Burkinabe have already packed up and gone home in the past few weeks. > The same complaint is heard from foreign agricultural workers in the > vast > coffee and cocoa plantations in the west of the country. > Hundreds have fled or are getting ready to flee after being attacked or > threatened by Ivorians. > Even Ghanaian fishermen, with their heavy but colourful fishing boats > which > have become a tourist attraction at the west coast town of Sassandra, have > been told to "go find fish somewhere else." > According to the 1998 census, however, 47.3 percent of foreigners were > born > in Ivory Coast and know no other home. > Ivorian writer Maurice Bandaman says that "in searching to make > foreigners > responsible for their troubles, the people of Ivory Coast are sinking to > bestiality -- just because a generation of leaders are incapable of > analysing > the situation critically and realising that they are driving the country to > destruction." > il/bp/jlr > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > > To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L > Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html > You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] > if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------