The new president of Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouattara - Getting together, awaiting reconciliation

At his inauguration as president of Ivory Coast on Saturday 21st May in Yamassoukro, the political capital of the country, Alassane Ouattara placed emphasis on Ivorians gathering together, while awaiting reconciliation between political enemies. The official proclamation of the results took place on 5th May, six months after the elections. The intervening period was marked by oppression from both the army and the supporters of the former president Laurent Gbagbo, with the country nearing a state of civil war. 

The Yamassoukro-based ‘Félix Houphouët-Boigny Foundation for Peace’ was the symbolic spot for the swearing in ceremony. It is the stronghold of Henri Konan Bédié who, after his elimination in the first round of the elections, advised his supporters to vote for Ouattara, which they did. A delegation of followers of Gbagbo also took part in the ceremony.

The inauguration also gathered a score of heads of state, notably from West Africa. They included supporters of Ouattara, including Burkina Faso’s Blaise Compraoré and President of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade, also those on Gbagbo’s side, such as Ghana’s Head of State, John Atta-Mills.

Hegel Goutier