Thabo Mbeki tries to resolve political turmoil in Ivory Coast Former South African president steps in as rival candidates claim presidency following disputed election Associated Press Monday December 6 2010 The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/05/thabo-mbeki-ivory-coast-election The former South African president Thabo Mbeki tried to mediate in Ivory Coast's growing political crisis today as hundreds of people protested in the north of the country a day after both candidates in the disputed election said they were president. In the opposition stronghold of Bouake, several hundred people marched down a main street to call for the incumbent, Laurent Gbagbo, to stand down. They chanted: "Gbagbo, thief!" and carried signs including one that read: "Ten years in power, nothing good." The international community has recognised the opposition leader, Alassane Ouattara, as the winner of the presidential run-off vote, held a week ago. That, however, did not stop Gbagbo from defying calls to concede. Yesterday, he wrapped himself in the Ivorian flag as he was sworn in for another term at the presidential palace. Hours later, Ouattara told reporters that he, too, had been sworn in to office. The development effectively set up parallel governments and raised serious questions about who was actually in charge of Ivory Coast, which was split into two by a civil war eight years ago. Despite Ouattara's international support, Gbagbo holds many key elements of power including the army and the state media. "The risk of violence between supporters of the two parties, as well as repression by Ivorian security forces against real or perceived supporters of Ouattara, is very high," Corinne Dufka, the senior West Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch, said. Mbeke arrived in Ivory Coast's main city, Abidjan, according to aides for both candidates. He met Gbagbo at his residence on Saturday afternoon, Augustin Gehoum, a Gbagbo aide, said. At his swearing-in, Gbagbo repeated allegations that his supporters had been intimidated in the north, repeating the rationale used by the country's constitutional council to throw out 500,000 ballots cast in Ouattara strongholds. "You think that you can cheat, stuff ballot boxes and intimidate voters and that the other side won't see what is going on," Gbagbo said. Ivory Coast's long-awaited election had been meant to restore stability to what was once one of the most affluent countries in Africa. Instead, it has cast a growing shadow. Gbagbo says he is the rightful winner of the run-off vote, citing the Ivorian constitution. It gives ultimate authority on the issue to the country's constitutional council, which declared him the winner. However, Ouattara points to the 2007 peace deal which states that the UN must certify the election results. The UN maintains that the vote was credible, and that Ouattara won. Ivory Coast was placed on lockdown immediately after the commission announced Ouattara's win on Thursday, with a decree read on state TV saying the nation's air and land borders had been closed. However, borders remained open in the country's north, and residents there were not observing the nationwide curfew. guardian.co.uk Copyright (c) Guardian News and Media Limited. 2010 -- ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤