SUMMARY

The Guéré ethnic group is part of the larger Kru tribe, located mainly in the south-western parts of Ivory Coast and in Liberia. The land of the Guéré reaches from the Cavalla River in Liberia to the Sassandra River in the Ivory Coast. While the origins of the group are unknown it is believed that they settled in the Ivory Coast before the 16th century. The Guéré has long been famous for the ferocity of their warriors and their strong spirit of independence. Hence the western shores of the Ivory Coast were often referred to as the land of the “bad people” by traders and the French colonizers.

Together with the Khran people, the Guéré are also known as the Wé people. The two groups were separated by the French during the colonization. Guéré was the name given to the people of the south and Khran the name given to the people living in the north and in Liberia.

Up until the late 1950’s, agricultural activities were the main livelihood of the group. Today, the group has moved on to more profitable commercial activities such as fishing or the production of cocoa.

A key issue in Ivory Coast is that of ethnicity and origin. The Guéré consider themselves to be Ivoirians, a sentiment that is shared by several other ethnic groups. However, the question of belonging has been highly volatile in Ivory Coast, ever since independence. During the preface to the elections of 2000, as well as 2002, which were marred with ethnic violence, the issue was inevitably brought into the limelight. The nationality of the leading opposition politician, Alassane Ouattara, was subject to doubt, and it was claimed he was in fact Burkinabe, an accusation that further fuelled the ethnic polarization in the Ivorian society. The issue of Ivorianess was brought to the fore during the election process of 2002 when the issue of voter registration turned out to be problematic. The Guéré was among those who were not excluded by this process. Rather they identified strongly as being part of the electorate, being Ivoirians in every sense.

The Guéré have been involved in the non-state category of UCDP organised violence