Brussels, 04/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - Kristalina Georgieva, European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, fears a major humanitarian crisis in Côte d'Ivoire. Concerned by the escalation of violence in Abidjan and throughout the country, and by increasing numbers of civilian victims and refugees, soon to reach 1 million, she is “alarmed by reports about man-hunt and ethnic killings” and she is concerned by the spill-over of the impact of this crisis into neighbouring countries, particularly Liberia, which has already taken in 120,000 refugees. She therefore calls on Laurent Gbagbo and the elected president Alassane Ouattara to prevent Côte d'Ivoire from slipping into civil war. This message, which the commissioner sent out on Monday 4 April, sounds like a last attempt to bring both sides to reason in the name of respect for the people of the country and international humanitarian law.
“More than 120,000 refugees are flocking into poor areas where their hosts were already living on the verge of a humanitarian crisis. History has given us far too many bitter examples of the scale that humanitarian disaster can reach when such escalation of violence is not stemmed by decisive and responsible action. This is why I appeal to both Laurent Gbagbo and President-elect Alassane Ouattara: for the sake of your people, for the sake of humanity, protect civilians, allow the help of humanitarian workers and prevent Côte d'Ivoire from slipping further into a civil war. I hope the Ivorian leadership realises the importance that the international community attaches to the full compliance with international humanitarian law. Humanitarian organisations which are there to help people in need must be allowed to continue their work in an impartial and neutral way”. (A.N./transl.fl)