INTERNATIONAL ASSISTANCE IN CÔTE D’IVOIRE MUST TURN TO REUNIFICATION – UN OFFICIAL

International efforts in Côte d'Ivoire, long focused on elections, must now prioritize uniting the country, which has been divided since 2002 between the Government and the rebel Forces Nouvelles, a United Nations envoy said today.

"Henceforth, the progress in the electoral process is now contingent on the evolution of the reunification issue," Choi Young-Jin, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative for the West African country, told the Security Council.

Last year, Mr. Choi explained, the UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), which he leads, focused its attention on a citizen identification and voter registration operation, providing technical, logistical and financial support for these pre-election needs.

In his latest report on UNOCI, Secretary-General Ban called for a realistic timetable for the holding of the long-postponed elections as a matter of urgency, saying that the polls would bring to a successful conclusion the current transitional arrangement in Côte d'Ivoire.

However, at the onset of 2009, the momentum toward elections weakened when reunification became a precondition for the polls, under new accords reached under the Ouagadougou Political Agreement that guides the country's peace process.

Unfortunately, reunification, in turn, has gotten bogged down due to differences over the centralization of the treasury, the transfer of authority from Zone Commanders to administrative and other necessary, but contentious, issues.

"In sum, as it stands, the prospect for the early elections and reunification cannot be described as encouraging," Mr. Choi said.

On the other hand, the restoration of peace, security and normalcy is making steady progress in the country, and not a single major incident has marred the identification process, which has topped six million people.

Achievements highlighted in Mr. Ban's report included the end of hostilities between the Forces Nouvelles and national troops, the removal of the zone of confidence that had physically divided the country, and the restoration of free movement of people and goods throughout its territory.

In today's statement, Mr. Choi added that ministries remain in place, along with some 40,000 State security forces supported by about $200 million in funds out of a $5 billion annual national budget.

However, he also pointed out that all State institutions are somewhat hampered by the transitional nature of the Government, making political progress necessary.

"This complicated picture of the Ivorian political and electoral map requires some hard thinking on our part," Mr. Choi told the Council.

Noting that the international community up until now had not been heavily involved in reunification, he concluded, "Now that the electoral process is predicated on the reunification issue, we may have to [make] some meaningful contributions to reunification, by extension accelerating the electoral process."
________________