Fresh gunfire in army barracks town in Ivory Coast
ABIDJAN: Ivory Coast special forces fired in the air in the army barracks town of Adiake for a second day yesterday, the latest incident in weeks of trouble with mutinous soldiers and security forces.
The elite troops appeared to be angling for a deal with the government along the lines of one struck in January that offered some soldiers large one- off lump sum payments.
“The shooting has started again. Today, it’s market day, and they (the troops) told the women to return to their houses. Everyone is terrified, and holed up in their homes,” a resident of Adiake told AFP by phone.
The gunfire in Adiake, located to the east of the commercial capital Abidjan, is the first protest action by special forces troops based there who are in charge of the president’s security.
Protests in January were by soldiers and members of the security forces.
Adiake also is home to a maritime base that trains marine commandos and provides coastal surveillance in an area that shares a border with Ghana.
The elite troops were on the front line of fighting in March last year when jihadist forces attacked the resort of Grand Bassam east of Abidjan, leaving 19 people dead.
They are also tasked with ensuring the security of President Alassane Ouattara.
A defence ministry official said the government will make a statement later Wednesday on the unrest.
Troops first launched a mutiny over pay on Jan 5.
The initial protests were quelled when the government reached a deal with 8,500 mutineers, agreeing to give them 12 million CFA francs each.
However more soldiers have since taken to the streets demanding similar bonuses.
Last year Ivory Coast approved an ambitious military planning budget seeking to modernise the army and buy new equipment.
But even that 1.2 billion euros pot would not be enough to offer similar payments to all of the country’s 23,000- strong security forces.
The revolt led to Ouattara ordering major changes in top security ranks – the armed forces’ chief of staff, the senior commander of the national gendarmerie and the director- general of the police.