Côte d'Ivoire: Opposition supporters to demonstrate in Abidjan July 20

Event

Supporters of the Youth of the Ivorian Popular Front (JFPI) are planning to hold a demonstration in Abidjan on Thursday, July 20. The event is scheduled to start at 07:00 (local time) in the Plateau area, with participants expected to gather at the Sud du Plateau station before marching to the Palais de Justice. Expect increased security measures and potential traffic disruptions in surrounding areas.

Context

The JFPI is calling for the release of alleged political prisoners who used to work in the government of former President Laurent Gbagbo. On Wednesday, July 19, Assoa Adou - a former minister who served in Gbagbo’s administration - was sentenced to four years in prison on charges of disrupting public order. He was originally arrested in 2015 and is a hardline supporter of Gbagbo’s Ivorian Popular Front (FPI).

Gbagbo was president at the start of the political crisis of 2010, when he refused to step down after opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara was declared winner of the presidential election by a number of observers and members of the international community. Violence erupted between supporters of Gbagbo and Ouattara and continued into 2011; some 3000 people are estimated to have been killed in the conflict. Gbagbo was eventually arrested by Ouattara supporters, who were backed by French and UN forces. In November 2011, he was turned over to the International Criminal Court and accused of four accounts of crimes against humanity.

Advice

Individuals in Abidjan are advised to avoid all protests and demonstrations due to the risk of violence and to anticipate increased security and traffic disruptions in affected areas.

On a separate note, due to tensions between ethnic groups and occasional outbreaks of deadly violence, some Western governments advise against nonessential travel to the southwestern border areas with Liberia (Bas-Sassandra, Haut-Sassandra, Dix-Huit Montagnes regions).