SUMMARY
From independence until 1993, Ivory Coast was a single-party state, led by President Félix Houphouët-Boigny and his party PDCI-RDA (Parti démocratique de la Côte dIvoire - Rassemblement démocratie africain, Democratic Party of Côte dIvoire-African Democratic Rally). During this 33-year long period, the government skillfully managed to balance the appointment of senior ministers to avoid a build-up of ethnic, regional or religious tensions among the countrys diverse population. However, in the face of economic decline and popular protest, the political system in Ivory Coast was forced to change and multi-party elections took place for the first time in 1990.
With the inception of multi-party politics, politicians began to play upon ethnic, regional and religious differences and use these as a means to access power. The migrant community was used as a scapegoat for the receding economy and the concept of "Ivorité" (Ivorianess) was introduced. Policies building upon the concept distinguished sharply between Ivoirians of "authentic" native origin and those of foreign descent and led to the effective marginalizing of both the Muslim North and the immigrant community.
During the tumultuous 1990s, the country was led by a string of presidents. Houphouët-Boigny remained in power until his death in 1993, when he was succeeded by fellow PDCI-RDA member Henri Konan Bédié. In 1999 Bédié was overthrown in a coup and General Robert Guéï was installed as a military head of state in December. During a violent and chaotic 2000, the junta ruled the country, all the while planning an election that would return the country to civilian rule. However, Guéï manipulated the process in an effort to hold on to power. For instance, a new constitution required that to be able to contest presidential elections, the candidates both parents had to have been born in Ivory Coast. The new constitution also provided for a strong presidency where the president is the head of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. This was transparently designed to exclude the leader of the largest opposition party, Alassane Ouattara, and to strengthen the general’s position. The consequence was a further deterioration of the relationship between people of different ethnicities. In spite of these attempts, Guéï was ousted from power by Laurent Gbagbo of the FPI (Front Populaire Ivoirien, Ivorian Popular Front), who won the flawed elections.
The political turmoil eventually led to the outbreak of an intra-state conflict, fought between 2002 and 2004. Laurent Gbagbo remained president of the country throughout the conflict. It should be noted that since Ivory Coast lacked a functioning government through most of these years, it was in fact Gbagbo and his party that ran the country. A peace agreement signed in January 2003 stipulated for the creation of a government of national reconciliation, where posts were shared between FPI, the rebels as well as opposition parties. However, the different unity governments were continuously paralyzed by frequent walk-outs and internal struggles. Laurent Gbagbo’s official mandate expired on 30 October 2005, however the security situation was deemed too unstable for elections and thus his mandate was extended.
In 2010 the situation was considered stable enough for the organization of elections. With an estimated 80%, the Ivorian presidential elections reached one of the highest election turnouts ever recorded on the African continent. After the first round put Laurent Gbagbo in a lead, the Independent Electoral Commission declared Alassane Ouattara the winner of the second round; making him the new president of Côte dIvoire. Although international observers judged the elections to have been mostly fair and just, the results of the IEC were strongly criticized by officials in the pro-Gbagbo camp. Their concern lay within the voting procedures of the rebellious north claiming that they had been rigged to favour the opposition. In the immediate aftermath, the Constitutional Council, headed by close allies of Laurent Gbagbo, nullified the results of seven regions located in the northern parts of the country. As a result, the presidency was accorded to Laurent Gbagbo with 51% of the vote.
Once again the political turmoil led to the outbreak of violence. After several months of conflict, the forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara captured the capital of Yamoussoukro. As a result, since March 30, 2011, the government of Ivory Coast is represented by Alassane Ouattara and his cabinet.*
With the rise to power of Ouattara, the national army previously known as FANCI (Forces armées nationales de Côte d’Ivoire), was changed into FRCI (Forces Républicaines de Cote d’Ivoire). The new army is a coalition of the armed forces of the New Forces, the national army, former militia members and volunteers. The Ivorian armed forces include the army, air force and navy and the national forces of law and order include the police and the gendarmerie. Furthermore, during the intra-state war the government increasingly came to rely on local militias to combat the rebellion. Ivorian government officials commonly refer to these as "parallel forces". The parallel forces were used for a wide variety of measures, ranging from battling the rebel forces to violently suppressing opposition demonstrations, and from provoking violent anti-foreigner sentiment to attacking rebel-held villages in the western cocoa and coffee producing areas.
The government of Ivory Coast has been involved in the state-based and the one-sided categories of UCDP organised violence.
*The UCDP is concerned with who is controlling power in practice (de facto). We are not concerned with who is the rightful holder of the power (de jure). UCDP uses control of the capital as an indicator of the de facto government.
