Ivory Coast rebels return to government
 |
Story Tools
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS
|
Follow the news that matters to you. Create your own alert to be notified on topics you're interested in.
Or, visit Popular Alerts for suggestions.
|
|
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (Reuters) -- Ivory Coast's rebels attended their first ministerial meeting with President Laurent Gbagbo Tuesday since ending a three-month boycott of a coalition government set up under a peace deal to end civil war.
The return of rebel ministers from the so-called New Forces is expected to lift hopes that a troubled peace process can move ahead in the world's top cocoa-growing country.
"We want to make a fresh start. We're back with a very positive attitude," Issa Diakite, a minister from the rebel New Forces who is in charge of land administration, told reporters outside the presidency.
Ivory Coast's civil war broke out after rebels tried to topple Gbagbo in September 2002. Thousands of people were killed and one million fled their homes in the months of fighting that followed and the West African country is still split in two.
Although the war was formally declared over in July, Ivory Coast, once the region's most vibrant economy, is still divided with rebels holding the north and pro-Gbagbo troops the south.
The thorny issues of nationality and land rights that lie at the heart of Ivory Coast's political crisis topped the agenda of the meeting in the commercial capital Abidjan.
Six out of nine rebel ministers, dressed in dark suits and carrying shiny briefcases, arrived at the meeting although the political leader of the rebellion, Guillaume Soro, was absent.
Sidiki Konate, a spokesman for the New Forces, said Soro had been held up by a death in the family but would attend government meetings scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
A government spokesman said the talks which lasted more than four hours were frank and "fraternal."
Copyright 2004
Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
