afrol News, 12 September - Henri Konan Bédié, Ivorian President until he was toppled in the 1999 coup, has returned to Côte d'Ivoire after a 6-year exile in France to prepare for his candidacy in the planned 30 October elections. There is however a growing agreement between Ivorian parties and foreign leaders that elections must be postponed.

Ex-President Bédié was given a hero's welcome by cheering crowds as he arrived at the international airport in Abidjan yesterday afternoon. With political supporters clapping and screaming, armed UN peacekeepers were heavily challenged in their attempt to guarantee security.

The returnee headed right to a press conference, where he tried to outline his political visions for the civil war plagued country. Mr Bédié is set to return to the leadership of the Côte d'Ivoire Democratic Party (PDCI), which ruled the country from 1960 to 1999. The 71-year-old probably will be the PDCI's presidential candidate in the next elections.

The PDCI has however not been a strong political force in Côte d'Ivoire since the 1999 coup that toppled Mr Bédié. It has had a limited representation in parliament and participated in the March 2003 to March 2004 unity government. The strongest forces in the country now are President Laurent Gbagbo's Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), Alassane Ouattara and his RDR party and the northern rebels.

According to the South Africa brokered peace plan, the country should by now have started its transition process, leading to elections on 30 October. The process is however strongly delayed due to mistrust between the main Ivorian political blocks.

The Forces Nouvelles - the ex-rebel group that still controls the northern half of Côte d'Ivoire - have not been willing to disarm due to lack of confidence in President Gbagbo. Under the last peace agreement, the President surprisingly attacked the north in November 2004, thus leaving the northern rebels in a state of constant mistrust.

The northerners have already made it clear that they will not disarm and participate in the planned elections under the current conditions. They demand the resignation of President Gbagbo and the installation of a collective leadership during the time of election preparations to assure that the polls are conducted correctly.

Last week, also UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan concluded that it would be impossible to hold elections in Côte d'Ivoire on 30 October. The UN leader told 'Radio France Internationale' (RFI) that elections "cannot be possible because the political leaders and the parties have not cooperated."

Mr Annan threatened with further sanctions against Côte d'Ivoire and its political leaders if they were not to start cooperating. "Frankly, I don't understand how these men think - they are trying to become President of a country they are destroying," Mr Annan told RFI. "How can you explain that to the population?" he asked.

Most political leaders in Côte d'Ivoire meanwhile have issued statements saying they agree with the UN Secretary-General. Also representatives from the ruling FPI party have indicated that a postponement of the election may seem obvious, although insisting that the poll needed to be organised soon.

By staff writers

© afrol News

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