Côte d'Ivoire:
Who Killed the Seven Women Protestors? (Videos)
Posted 4 March 2011Unrest between supporters of Cote d'Ivoire's two opposing leaders, Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara, has taken a further violent turn. Since December 3, 2011, both politicians have claimed to have won the November 2010 presidential election.
Ivorian women have held demonstrations against the political situation since February 25, 2011.
Bloody Thursday
What was supposed to be a peaceful march ended up as a bloodbath on Thursday March 3, 2011. During an all female protest organised in Abobo, a pro-Ouattara district of economic capital Abidjan, seven women were shot dead, apparently by Gbagbo's national Defense and Security Forces.
Videos of the gunfire rapidly spread online via video sharing service Youtube.
Youtube user Dreamdav posted a seven minute long video, in which unarmed women can be seen chanting “ADO” (Alassane Dramane Ouattara), when suddenly (at 3:32), national police tanks shoot at the demonstrators, dispersing them and forcing them to seek shelter.
Other citizen videos posted show the same incident (WARNING: GRAPHIC).
This video posted by SuperDjatou and shot by a protestor within the crowd shows the confusion a few seconds after the gun shots:
Another video shows four dead bodies lying on the ground:
Sadness and anger are just some of the feelings being shared by Ivorians netizens and others in the wake of the attack. Here are some of the reactions from social microblogging network Twitter, sent to the hashtag being used for the unrest, #civ2010.
@KDGF2505 replying to another Twitter user says:
narrow-minded are ones killing innocent women…do you think that hatred can be stopped in that way?
@SenamBeheton, a Twitter user from Benin names the 7 dead women “martyrs”:
La boucherie d'Abobo (8 martyres) est une erreur grave que Gbagbo regrettera.
Abobo slaugther (8 martyrs) is a serious mistake that Gbagbo will regret.@kanazan reminds us that International women day is arriving soon and wonders:
comment celebrerons nous le 8 mars en? #civ2010 femmes abattues …
How will we celebrate March 8 in Côte d'Ivoire? women killed..Pointing Blame
In an article [fr] published on the website of French daily paper Liberation, a source claims that the people who shot the women were in a 4×4 vehicle. When contacted via email, the journalist behind the article, Thomas Hofnung, confirmed that the source is reliable.
According to another testimony by a military source to a Reuters journalist, it was an accident:
Une source militaire a confirmé la fusillade en expliquant qu'il s'agissait d'un accident justifié par la «nervosité des forces de sécurité à la suite de précédents accrochages»
A military source confirmed the gunfire explaining that it xas an accident justified by the “nervosity of Forces of Security following previous clashes”Another version of the facts was shared on Laurent Gbagbo's fan page on social network Facebook. According to this interpretation, these women were killed by rebels loyal to Prime Minister Guillaume Soro's Forces Nouvelles (New Forces), who in turn are loyal to President Ouattara:
Des femmes de la commune d’Abobo qui ont décidé de marcher hier (3 mars 2011) matin, ont essuyé des tirs des éléments de la rébellion de ladite commune.
Women of Abobo who decided to march yesterday (March 3, 2011) in the morning, were shot by rebellious elements.Today, Notre Voie, one of the main daily newspapers in Côte d'Ivoire, accused the mysterious ‘Invisible Commandos‘ - a group of pro-Ouattara masked men - of the killings. In an unequivocal frontpage headline, the newspaper writes: ‘”The Invisible Commandos” Kill Seven Women'.
- Notre Voie N° 3822 du Friday mars 04 2011
The same denial has been aired on the national television station RTI: Côte d'Ivoire army spokeperson, Colonel Major Hilaire Babri Gohourou has said [fr]:
les troupes sont restées stationnées dans leur cantonnement d'Abobo.
the troops were confined in their headquater in AboboDjibiTV [fr], a web television station reputed to belong to one of Laurent Gbagbo's daughters, Marie Patrice Gbagbo, maintains this version:
Des femmes qui marchaient pacifiquement ont essuyé des tirs de cette force négative [le commando invisible ndlr] qui ont fait une diziane de morts. Cet acte s’est déroulé dans la commune d’Abobo où est logé la rébellion d’Alassane Ouattara qui tue et égorge les paisibles populations.
Women who were marching peacefully were shot by this dark force [the ‘Invisible Commandos'] who killed dozens of people. This happened in Abobo where Alassane's Ouattara rebellion is headquartered, killing and cutting the throats of peaceful people.
Protesters defy militia as thousands flee Cote d'Ivoire
Image: @Sanders225
Six women have reportedly been killed at a march in favour of Alassane Ouattara in Ivory Coast. Ouattara and the incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo have been running rival administrations following contested elections four months ago. Results indicated that Gbagbo, had been deposed in favour of newcomer Ouatarra. However Gbagbo initially vacillated, then refused to yield, leaving the West African country in a precarious, and often violent state of limbo. Two presidents still face off across the capital of Abidjan, with the country’s economy, and fragile peace, in tatters. Refugees are streaming across the border into Liberia. In an apparent escalation of tension this week, international radio signals have been cut and some electricity supplies stopped.
The uploader of this video says unarmed woman were attacked and killed for asserting their choice of president. The incident took place on Thursday. The video shows the panic which overtook the demonstration once gunfire is heard. Please be advised that this video shows graphic images of some of those killed and injured, which you may find distressing.
From dreamdav
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees warned on Friday that the situation in Ivory Coast was becoming extremely difficult. It warned of the problems of communications disruption in Abobo, and concerns for the fate of a group of families trapped inside a church in the area. Access to UNHCR’s own offices has proved difficult.
UNHCR is warning today that access for humanitarian organizations in Abidjan and other parts of Côte d'Ivoire is shrinking rapidly amid widening insecurity.
In Abidjan, the estimated number of displaced people now exceeds 200,000 – most of these are people who have fled the fighting in Abobo. Many are staying with friends or relatives, but large numbers – possibly a quarter of the displaced – are staying in temporary locations around the city, including in churches and other communal places. These groups are in urgent need of humanitarian help.
#Photos: Running for Shelter in Côte d'Ivoire http://ow.ly/47MzF 70K Ivorian#refugees now in E. #Liberia since last Nov #CIV2010
View Cote d'Ivoire violence in a larger map
@cocoloposo: #civ2010 URGENT: confrontations with machetes RHDP/LMP at terminus 25 koumassi #Abidjan #IvoryCoast
Many people stranded in Abobo and we would like to have access to help.#civ2010
On Monday, it was the turn of hundreds of women dressed in white to march against Gbagbo and state their demands – that he step down.
#IvoryCoast Stalemate Breeds Mass Destruction #civ2010 via M&Ghttp://ow.ly/45sUa
Informal comments to the media by H.E. Mr. Li Baodong, Permanent Representative of China and President of the Security Council on the situation in Côte d’Ivoire.
United Nations allegations that Ivory Coast's incumbent government is breaking an international arms embargo is increasing tension between government supporters and U.N. peacekeepers in Ivory Coast. U.N. officials believe the government is now arming civilians.
Incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo tried to expel the entire U.N. mission, shortly after it certified his rival, Alassane Ouattara, as the winner of November's presidential election.
But the United Nations refused to terminate the mission because it no longer recognizes Gbagbo's authority.
At least 10 soldiers loyal to the disputed presidency of Laurent Gbagbo have been killed by unidentified "commandos" amid renewed political violence in Côte d'Ivoire, according to reports.
The ambush followed clashes in a stronghold of Gbagbo's rival, Alassane Ouattara, and an Amnesty International investigation that uncovered a wave of murders, beatings and gang rapes.
An African Union delegation led by President Jacob Zuma has failed to end the crippling power struggle between Gbagbo and Ouattara, who is widely acknowledged as the winner of elections in November.
An adviser to Ouattara, who did not wish to be named, told the Associated Press that "invisible commandos" seized at least four military and police vehicles in a pro-Ouattara neighbourhood in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire's largest city, killing forces loyal to Gbagbo. The death toll could not be independently confirmed. BBC News put the toll at least 10.