The International Criminal Court and the Peace Process in Côte d’Ivoire

Abstract

The armed conflict of 2002/2003 in Cote d’Ivoire led to the partitioning of the country between government forces that controlled the South and Forces Nouvelles (FN), the rebel group that controlled the North. Also, in 2010/2011 a post-election violence (PEV) erupted between the supporters of Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara. This chapter examines the political situation in Cote d’Ivoire between 2002 and 2011 and the efforts to resolve the conflicts, particularly the influence of the ICC’s prosecutions on the peace process in the country. It relies on an analysis of data collected from fieldwork in 2014 and 2015 on the situation in Cote d’Ivoire and on a literature review. The chapter examines the impact of the ICC on the peace process in Cote d’Ivoire through the four analytical themes that were framed in Chapter 1 as core research questions of the study. It argues that after several years of conflict, the prosecution of some political leaders in Cote d’Ivoire by the ICC has brought international justice closer to the country, which signifies that, to an extent, the era of impunity and lawlessness may be over.