COTE D'IVOIRE: GOF UPSET OVER GBAGBO'S TAKE-OVER

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 007586 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV IV FR SUBJECT: COTE D'IVOIRE: GOF UPSET OVER GBAGBO'S TAKE-OVER OF RTI AND FRATERNITE MATIN, MAY SEEK UNSC PRESIDENTIAL STATEMENT REF: A. ABIDJAN 1316 ¶B. KANEDA-ODELL E-MAILS Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt, 1.4 (b/d). ¶1. (C) MFA Cote d'Ivoire desk officer Charlotte Montel on November 29 said that the GOF was extremely upset over Cote d'Ivoire President Gbagbo's recent actions that in effect represented a take-over of the RTI broadcasting station, Cote d'Ivoire's state-owned and principal radio and television operation. Montel said that the GOF may seek a UNSC Presidential Statement condemning Gbagbo's move. Commenting on Gbagbo's dissolution of RTI's board of directors and his naming of his acolyte Pierre Brou Amessan by decree as Director-General to replace Yacouba Kebe for the latter's "grave faults," Montel said that Gbagbo's actions meant that PM Konan Banny might have little or no access to RTI and thus could lose this channel of communication with the Ivoirian public. She remarked that control of RTI has featured prominently during periods of unrest in Cote d'Ivoire. ¶2. (C) Montel noted that the RTI matter came on the heels of Gbagbo's move to replace the Director-General of the Fraternite Matin newspaper and the dissolution of its board of directors (ref A). These actions demonstrated clearly Gbagbo's desire to strengthen his control over the Ivoirian media and to limit access to the media by his political rivals and opponents. ¶3. (C) Montel said that she expected that the GOF, in addition to the possibility of seeking a UNSC Presidential Statement, might issue a declaration of its own, perhaps via the spokesperson at the MFA's daily press briefing, condemning Gbagbo's actions and calling for enhanced press freedoms in Cote d'Ivoire. ¶4. (C) Montel said that the GOF regretted that UNSCR 1721 had not been worded more strongly, as the French had advocated, in terms of placing constraints on Gbagbo. "This is exactly the kind of thing that we hoped a strong resolution would have discouraged him from doing," she remarked. Instead, the weak (in French eyes) 1721 "had emboldened him, which his moves against the media demonstrate." She said that the international community should consider other ways of promoting press freedoms in Cote d'Ivoire, perhaps via the UNSC resolution now under discussion to extend UNOCI (about which ref B reports her other comments). Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm STAPLETON