Roy Probert
On 4 November, Côte d’Ivoire’s 18-month ceasefire came to an abrupt halt. What was once one of West Africa’s most stable and wealthy countries was again plunged into turmoil, including anti-western violence.
On 9 November, with the security situation deteriorating, French and other foreign nationals began to be evacuated to their home countries.
While information about the humanitarian situation in the country remains sketchy, it is clear that there is cause for concern. Electricity and water supplies in the north have been cut off for one week, and outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, are becoming increasingly likely.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been assisting the injured in Abidjan and the northern part of the country. It has been assisted by Côte d’Ivoire Red Cross (CRCI) doctors and volunteers trained in first aid, who have transferred patients from overcrowded medical posts to better equipped hospitals, and have supplied medicines and bandages.
However, the scale of violence means that their movement and interventions have been restricted. Nonetheless, CRCI medical posts in Abidjan have treated almost 2,500 people and transferred almost 100 to hospital. Figures from other towns have been difficult to obtain due to the lack of security and a breakdown in communications.
“The volunteers are doing an incredible job. Despite an atmosphere of hostility in Abidjan, they are still eager to get out onto the streets to help the wounded,” said Eric Michel-Sellier, the Federation’s Head of Office in Abidjan.
There is growing concern that the situation in Côte d’Ivoire will spill over into neighbouring countries, and the National Red Cross Societies of Liberia, Guinea, Mali and Burkina Faso are all monitoring the situation and are in close contact with International Federation’s offices in the region.
The United Nations believes that 5,000 Ivorians have already fled to Liberia, a country which itself is struggling to recover from its own civil war, while Ghana has reportedly received hundreds of people.
“Volunteers and local branches in border areas are carrying out assessment missions and making initial preparations to assist the refugees, in collaboration with other organizations,” said Michel-Sellier, who along with other expatriate delegates, was temporarily relocated for security reasons.
The Federation’s local staff resumed work on Thursday 11 November, the office in Abidjan having been closed for two days. The unrest has thrown into doubt polio and measles vaccination campaigns scheduled for December. The CRCI is coordinating with the Ministry of Health on whether these campaigns can still take place.
Meanwhile, the French Red Cross has been assisting families arriving at Paris airports from Côte d’Ivoire, giving them warm clothes, accommodation and other basic needs.