SUMMARY
MILOCI (Mouvement pour la Liberation de l’Ouest de la Côte d’Ivoire, Movement for the Liberation of Western Ivory Coast) was a pro-government militia group active in western Ivory Coast in 2005.
When the group surfaced in February 2005 Ivory Coast had seen intermittent fighting between rebel groups and the government since 2002. The country was divided between the rebel-held north and the government-controlled south. In the western part of the country the conflict had caused ethnic tensions to escalate. In the western cocoa and coffee-belt area, the immigrant workers – commonly referred to as Dioulas – were viewed as rebel sympathizers by the indigenous population, since they to some extent shared ethnicity with the northern rebels. Relations between the Dioula and the indigenous groups had, in fact, been dire for a long time, wherefore violence was easily ignited. At the root of this were land ownership issues, with indigenous groups to a large extent having sold off their land to immigrants. As the number of immigrants continued to increase, the indigenous groups had become landless minorities in some parts of the west, causing bad blood. Thus, with the immigrants portrayed as rebel sympathisers, there was a readily available pool of recruits when ethnic pro-government militias were formed throughout the west.
It was in this context that MILOCI was established. However, the militia to some extent constitutes a break from the general pattern. MILOCI represents the Yacouba ethnic group, who are indigenous to the region, which would indeed predict hostility towards the northern rebels. However, the Yacouba had initially been connected to one of the country’s western rebel groups, MPIGO (Mouvement Populaire Ivoirien du Grand Ouest, Ivorian Popular Movement for the Great West) (see actor description). MPIGO was fighting the government to avenge the death of former military ruler General Guei (also a Yacouba) and, ultimately to overthrow the regime. MPIGO was, in turn, allied to MPCI (Mouvement Patriotique de Côte dIvoire, Patriotic Movement of Ivory Coast), the main northern rebel group, wherefore the Yacouba people were sympathetic also to the northern rebellion. Analysts have concluded that the emergence of MILOCI was an attempt by the government to split Yacouba support for the rebels.
According to statements made by MILOCI in the militia’s first week in the limelight, its main aim was to liberate Yacouba villages from rebel presence. Stating that the UN troops as well as the French peacekeeping operation were not doing their jobs, MILOCI went on to announce that the group would disarm the rebels themselves, for the sake of their people, suffering in rebel held territory.
It appears as if MILOCI had connections to at least some of the many armed pro-government militia groups that became active in western Ivory Coast after the outbreak of the intrastate conflict. FLGO (Forces de Libération de Grand Ouest, Front for the Liberation of the Great West), the most influential pro-government militia, gave its support to MILOCI soon after the latter emerged. In a statement, FLGO’s leader said that all FLGO’s youth and all its strength was at MILOCI’s disposal”for any need at any point”. Eventually MILOCI and FLGO joined together with Ap-Wê (Alliance patriotique de l’ethnie Wé, the Patriotic Alliance of Wê) and UPRAGO (Union patriotiqu de Resistance de Grand Ouest, the Patriotic Movement for the Reunification of the Great West), creating the umbrella group FRGO (Forces de réistance du Grand Ouest, Resistance Forces of the Great West) under the overall leadership of FLGO head Denis Maho Glofie. Apart from cooperation with fellow pro-government militias, there are reliable reports of support coming to the group from the Ivorian government. While the actual extent to which MILOCI followed the government’s lead is difficult to determine, it at least seems clear that the group received arms and, at times, instructions, from the Ivorian armed forces.
MILOCI was led by Pastor Diomande Gammi, who was also the militia’s spiritual leader.
MILOCI has been involved in the non-state category of UCDP organised violence.
