UNOCI Pursues Peaceful Election in Cote d’Ivoire

by Admin on April 6th, 2010

The United Nations (UN) mission in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) is deploying a multifaceted strategy to create a peaceful environment for the country’s repeatedly delayed presidential elections. UNOCI noted that it is “very closely” following current consultations between Côte d’Ivoire’s President, Laurent Gbagbo, and crisis mediator, President Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso, according to UNOCI spokesperson Hamadoun Touré.

Cote d’Ivoire, which is banned from exporting rough diamonds, has delayed presidential polls numerous times since 2005, with the most recent postponement occurring this past March. A new crisis erupted in February, when Gbagbo dissolved the government and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).  Since that time, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s special representative, Y. J. Choi, has been holding intensive talks with all of the concerned parties, including the IEC’s newly appointed president, Issouf Bakayoko.

Yesterday, Touré reaffirmed UNOCI’s willingnes to help the new IEC executive facilitate the voter registration process, which stalled in January. UNOCI estimated that  another 1 million people still needed to be confirmed at press time. To further his efforts to establish a peaceful electoral environment, Choi met with leaders of various youth organizations today.  

The other mission initiatives cited by Touré included his seminars in Abidjan and Adzope, which were held for the purpose of bolstering the commitment of various communities, organizations, institutions and traditional chiefs to a peacement electoral environment.

This week in Daloa, 20 directors of private, nonprofit radio stations participated in a training workshop intended to improve the quality of the information they provide to voters, so that they are adequately informed. In Séguéla, a mini-marathon and a football tournament are being utilized to promote peace.

“All these initiatives have the same objective, revolving around three major principles: maintaining peace and security, preserving the achievements made so far, including the provisional electoral list, and producing the definitive electoral list as soon as possible,” UNOCI noted in its news release.

No Marange Diamonds Certified: Chikane

by Admin on April 2nd, 2010

 

No diamonds from the Marange diamond fields in Chiadzwa, Zimbabwe have yet been certified by the Kimberley Process (KP), Abbey Chikane, the KP monitor for Zimbabwe, told Rapaport

Chikane dismissed recent reports indicating that the KP approved Mbada Diamonds to sell approximately 2 million carats of diamonds from the fields, since he has yet to visit Chiadzwa on a certification mission.

Chikane stressed that his visit to Zimbabwe in March, shortly after his appointment to the position, was strictly a fact finding mission and that his first certification visit has not yet been scheduled. He added that since the March visit, he has submitted an “elaborate report” to the KP working committee on monitoring Chikane stressed that his visit to Zimbabwe in March, shortly after his appointment to the position, was strictly a fact finding mission and that his first certification visit has not yet been scheduled. He added that since the March visit, he has submitted an “elaborate report” to the KP working committee on monitoring.

New Zimbabwe last week cited unnamed sources saying that Chikane gave the green light to Mbada, one of two companies working the fields with the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, to sell its output.Chikane further dismissed a report in ZimOnline stating that he would be visiting Chiadzwa to examine Marange production next week. “A number of dates have been suggested but none have been decided,” he said.