 Ivorian opposition leader Alassane Ouattara (L) talks with President Thomas Boni Yayi of Benin (C) and President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone following a meeting with African mediators. AFP photo. |
The African Union's envoy said Wednesday that mediators in the Ivory Coast political crisis will "go the extra mile" to negotiate Laurent Gbagbo's removal from power to avoid the bloodshed that would likely occur if force is used.
West African leaders have threatened to use military force to oust Gbagbo, who has clung to power more than a month after the United Nations said he lost the presidential runoff vote to rival Alassane Ouattara after a decade in power.
Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who joined a troika of West African leaders as the African Union's envoy in recent talks, said mediation takes time, giving his own experience as an example. Kenyan political rivals disputed the presidential poll results three years ago and violence broke out killing more than 1,000 people. It took two months to negotiate an end to that crisis.
In the case of Ivory Coast, the African Union and Economic Community of West African States are trying to get Gbagbo to peacefully step down in favor of the internationally recognized winner of the election, Ouattara.
Odinga represented the African Union when a high-level delegation went on Monday for the second time to urge Gbagbo to step down, but he rebuffed their appeal. The delegation, which included the leaders from the nations of Benin, Cape Verde and Sierra Leone then traveled to Nigeria to meet with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, the current chairman of the 15-nation regional bloc ECOWAS.
ECOWAS and the African Union released a statement late Tuesday indicating that Gbagbo had "agreed to negotiate a peaceful end to the crisis without any preconditions." But the statement did not elaborate on what actions that would entail other than lifting a blockade around the hotel where his rival is based, and Gbagbo had not relinquished power Tuesday. The statement also called on Gbagbo to hand over power "without further delay."
Odinga said that an amnesty deal is on the table for Gbagbo that includes guarantees he will not be prosecuted if he peacefully hands over power whether he stays in Ivory Coast or goes into exile. Such a deal will be extended to members of Gbagbo's entourage, unless they are found to have committed crimes against humanity, Odinga said.
West African leaders have threatened to use military force to oust Gbagbo, who has clung to power more than a month after the United Nations said he lost the presidential runoff vote to rival Alassane Ouattara after a decade in power.
Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who joined a troika of West African leaders as the African Union's envoy in recent talks, said mediation takes time, giving his own experience as an example. Kenyan political rivals disputed the presidential poll results three years ago and violence broke out killing more than 1,000 people. It took two months to negotiate an end to that crisis.
In the case of Ivory Coast, the African Union and Economic Community of West African States are trying to get Gbagbo to peacefully step down in favor of the internationally recognized winner of the election, Ouattara.
Odinga represented the African Union when a high-level delegation went on Monday for the second time to urge Gbagbo to step down, but he rebuffed their appeal. The delegation, which included the leaders from the nations of Benin, Cape Verde and Sierra Leone then traveled to Nigeria to meet with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, the current chairman of the 15-nation regional bloc ECOWAS.
ECOWAS and the African Union released a statement late Tuesday indicating that Gbagbo had "agreed to negotiate a peaceful end to the crisis without any preconditions." But the statement did not elaborate on what actions that would entail other than lifting a blockade around the hotel where his rival is based, and Gbagbo had not relinquished power Tuesday. The statement also called on Gbagbo to hand over power "without further delay."
Odinga said that an amnesty deal is on the table for Gbagbo that includes guarantees he will not be prosecuted if he peacefully hands over power whether he stays in Ivory Coast or goes into exile. Such a deal will be extended to members of Gbagbo's entourage, unless they are found to have committed crimes against humanity, Odinga said.
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