Government releases 54 political prisoners under amnesty law

The government of Cote d'Ivoire has released 54 political prisoners accused of supporting rebels who occupy the north of the country under the terms of an amnesty law which was approved by parliament last week, a Justice Ministry spokesman said. The spokesman told IRIN on Monday that the 16 military personnel and 38 civilians were released from prison in Abidjan on Saturday. Most were arrested after civil war broke out in September last year, but some had been in detention since disturbances at the time of the September 2000 presidential election. Most of those freed were members or tagged as members of the opposition Rally of Republicans (RDR) party of Alassanne Ouattara, who sought refuge in the French embassy as the fighting broke out and subsequently went into exile in France. Ouattara, a northerner who served as prime minister under Cote d'Ivoire's first president, Felix Houphouet Boigny, was banned from standing as a presidential candidate in the 2000 elections on the grounds that he was not Ivorian. President Laurent Gbagbo has said Ouattara is free to come home and his party is represented in parliament, but is still regarded with suspiscion as being pro-rebel by the head of state and his Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) party and other organisations of the political class. Prominent RDR figures released at the weekend included Ahmed Bassam, the head of ASH, the company which collects rubbish and cleans the streets in Abidjan, and Ali Keita, a public relations officer of the party. The amnesty law covers all those who took up arms against the government from the time of the 2000 presidential election and paves the way for policemen and soldiers who joined the rebellion to be reincorporated into the security forces without punishment. However, it excludes economic crimes and "serious violations" of human rights. Government officials have said those responsible for killings outside combat situations, rape and looting would still be liable for prosecution. Although the government has now freed political prisoners detained at the start of the civil war, it has yet to exchange prisoners of war with the rebels. A source in the West African peacekeeping force which was sent to help French troops enforce a ceasefire between the two sides earlier this year, said about 200 people would be involved. The army and rebels exchanged lists of prisoners of war at a meeting on July 29, but both were rejected as incomplete. The government put forward 50 names and the rebels 44. The military source said the issue of releasing prisoners of war would come up for discussion again on August 19 at a meeting of the joint government and rebel committee, set up to monitor the implementation of a peace agreement signed in January. Although there has been no fighting between the two sides for the past four months, progress towards demobilisation and disarmament has been painfully slow. The passage of the amnesty law was suppposed to pave the way for the rebels to demobilise, disarm and allow government administrators back into the north of Cote d'Ivoire. However, the rebels are still demanding that the vacant posts of defence and interior minister be filled by candidates acceptable to all the main political factions in the country before they hand in their guns. Meanwhile, President Gbagbo has replaced all six members of the Constitutional Council, whose key function is to vet the eligibility of presidential candidates. Opposition sources said the new council, which is headed by a magistrate, Germain Yapo Yanon, consists entirely of sympathisers of the president's party. The FPI, who is the second largest party in parliament, forms part of a coalition government of national reconciliation, which includes opposition figures and nine ministers appointed by the rebels.