Ivory Coast: Peace hopes fade?

President Laurent Gbagbo will visit the New Forces rebel stronghold of Bouake on Monday to oversee a weapons burning ceremony with Prime Minister Guillaume Soro, leader of the New Forces.

Yet momentum is beginning to slip in the Ivory Coast peace process, after a promising start under the Ouagadougou Accord signed in March. The disarmament and reintegration goals are behind schedule -- both for the rebels and for pro-Gbagbo militia.   Voter identification and registration have also suffered delays. It now appears that rather than a new voter's register, the existing -- and controversial -- voters roll will simply be updated.  The elections may be delayed again, stretching the legitimacy of Gbagbo's mandate, and that of parliament, even thinner. 

Although the international community remains engaged -- donors recently pledged over 400 million dollars in aid, and the UN peace-keeping force will remain in place until mid-January 2008 -- momentum must be regained if the Ouagadougou Accord is to avoid collapsing like its predecessors.