Côte d’Ivoire: NPWJ calls on new government to bring an end to violence and ensure accountability for all crimes committed

Côte d’Ivoire: NPWJ calls on new government to bring an end to violence and ensure accountability for all crimes committed
Brussels-Rome-New York, 13 Apr 2011

“No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) and the Transnational Nonviolent Radical Party (TRP) call on President Alassane Ouattara to fulfil his commitment to investigate serious violations of international law committed by all forces, to prevent further reprisals of violence and make all efforts to bringing about reconciliation in this sharply divided country. “To end Côte d'Ivoire's longstanding cycle of abuse and impunity, the new government should urgently take decisive measures to ensure that all perpetrators of human rights abuses against the civilian population are held accountable for their actions and brought to justice, irrespective of their rank or political allegiance. They must do so not only to provide redress for the events of the past, but to prevent crimes being committed today, tomorrow and in the weeks to come. “This includes cooperation with the International Criminal Court: in 2003, the former Ivorian Government recognised the ICC’s jurisdiction over events in Côte d’Ivoire since 19 September 2002. The new government should take immediate action to become a State Party to the Rome Statute for the ICC, to overcome the inertia that seems to have existed since that declaration. While we welcome the Prosecutor’s indications last week of an intention to open an investigation into recent events in Côte d’Ivoire, there is a serious need to take real, concrete action to answer the victims’ cries for justice over the past decade.

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