Alain-Richard Donwahi: freed by mutineers
Ivory Coast mutineers allowed defence minister Alain-Richard Donwahi and dozens of others to leave a house in Bouake, the country’s second largest city, where they had been trapped on Saturday when some mutineers appeared to reject aspects of a deal intended to end a two-day revolt.
It remained unclear, however, whether the disgruntled soldiers – most of them former rebel fighters now integrated into the army – would honour the agreement announced by President Alassane Ouattara just hours earlier.
The mutiny began early on Friday when the soldiers seized Bouake.
Over the next two days, soldiers at military camps in cities and towns across the country, including the commercial capital Abidjan, joined the mutiny.
Following talks between a government delegation headed by Donwahi and representatives of the mutineers, Ouattara announced he had agreed to some of the soldiers’ grievances but chastised them for sparking the unrest.
“I would like to say that this manner of making demands is not appropriate. It tarnishes the image of our country after all our efforts to revive the economy,” he stated in a declaration that was broadcast on state-owned television.
A mutineer close to the negotiations stated the soldiers were satisfied with the deal, which would address demands for bonus payments and improve living conditions, and stated they were preparing to return to barracks.
But some of the renegade troops later opened fire outside the house in Bouake where the talks had taken place, trapping Donwahi, local officials, journalists and the mutineers’ own negotiators inside.
They were only allowed to leave several hours later.
“We are all out. The soldiers stepped aside and allowed us out. The minister took off from the airport,” stated a Reuters reporter who had also been trapped inside the house.
A defence ministry statement later denied Donwahi had been held by the soldiers.
“The minister was in no way threatened by his soldiers but rather continued to carry out the talks,” the statement read.