Refugees Association of Ivorian Diaspora calls for Gbagbo to be released
Ivorian refugees in Ghana are calling for the unconditional release of former President Laurent Gbagbo. They want this done through a negotiated political effort from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In a statement released by members of the Refugees Association of Ivorian Diaspora, members lamented that his trial is worsening the already volatile situation in that country.
Tens of thousands of Ivorian refugees are still in the country following the post election violence that rocked the country last year.
The former Ivorian president is currently being tried at that the ICC for war crimes during the Ivorian crisis. Gbagbo, appeared before the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands on Monday, making him the first ever former head-of-state to do so.
Gbagbo has been charged with four counts of crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and persecution, during the political stalemate.More than 3,000 people died in the violence following the elections and more than one million were displaced.
According to some of the refugees the manner in which the former president of Ivory Coast is being treated by the ICC is unfair and are therefore calling for a transparent and fair way in dealing with the matter.
Benoit Kamena Brown is the leader of the Ivorian Refugee Association in Ghana and a close associate of Mr. Gbagbo.
He tells e.tv Ghana in an interview that “What we need is peace and reconciliation. Sending him to ICC will not help. We are all Africans and we have to deal with this problem in an African way.
He said all his belongings were destroyed during the political crisis. According to him the trial of the Ivorian former president has a telling effect on stability in that country.
By: Naadi Bitlegma, e.tv Ghana
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