Former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo visited Duekoue in the west of the country on Friday, the notorious site of the massacre where more than 800 people were killed in 2011 during the post-election crisis that ended with Gbagbo’s arrest.
Former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo visited the site of the 2011 Duekoue massacre on Friday. "He was just saying hello to the people that had been waiting for him for so long – for hours," FRANCE 24's Hannane Ferdjani reported from Duekoue.
"He has just made his way through to this monument that was erected in tribute to the people that died during this massacre back in 2011. And of course this is a very symbolic event, a very symbolic visit; it's about him pretty much respecting his promise – a promise he gave to the people of this region back when he returned to the Ivory Coast in 2021.”
At the same time, Ferdjani continued, “there is clearly a sense that this has also a political dimension, especially because historically this region has been in his favour –when he was in power, they were mainly in his favour – and they seem to still support him today despite what happened over 11 years ago."
Click on the video player above to watch FRANCE 24's report.
