ICC has issued warrant for Ivory Coast's Gbagbo - lawyer

Reuters ^ | November 29th 2011 | Mark John

[Cardhu]

The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for ousted Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, his France-based lawyer said on Tuesday.

"They (Ivorian justice authorities) showed it to him this morning,"

[Pan_Yan]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't the French / UN Puppet President had Gbagbo and his wife locked up since the French and UN troops overthrew the government upheld the election of the Muslim? This isn't like an arrest warrent for someone on the lam, it's a formality before they shuffle him off the a very, very quiet life of solitude.

[AnAmericanAbroad]

I’d forgotten about Gbagbo. I just looked, and yeah, he’s still in custody in Cote d’Ivorie. This is essentially a formality before he’s haled before the ICC in The Hague, which I presume is going to be his next place of residence.

[Cardhu]

Yes that is true, his lawyer, Jean Gbougnon, told AFP and Le Monde Tuesday that Gbagbo is expected to be transferred to the Hague on Wednesday.

[Pan_Yan]

I’ve kept an eye on it since their “election.” They’ve been consolidating power, settling grudges and building an atrocities case.

[AnAmericanAbroad]

African politics.

I was visiting in Uganda in 2005; not a bad place. It’s warm pretty much all year round, and the people I encountered were quite friendly and hospitable. Sadly, owing to politics (not to mention the late Idi Amin) the country is still mired in horrific poverty.

The current President, Museveni, is a damn sight better than Amin (or Milton Obote), but still a dictator. I know Uganda has abundant natural resource wealth, and it’s been said that owning to huge amounts of arable land and great soil conditions, Uganda by itself could easily feed at least half of Africa’s entire population.

Ugandans will talk politics with you, by VERY privately. They really don’t mind Museveni that much, but they wish things were better.

Interestingly, there’s a popular theory in Uganda that President Museveni isn’t actually a Ugandan! They contend he was actually born in Rwanda and came to Uganda when he was a small child, and hence is unfit to lead their nation. This speculation precedes that of Obama by at least a decade.

The difference between Ugandan and American speculation regarding the provenance of their respective Presidents is that people who’ve complained about this in Uganda have an unfortunate tendency to end up dead.

[Cardhu]

Ivorian ex-president Laurent Gbagbo departs for the Hague to face ICC

Laurent Gbagbo, the former president of Ivory Coast, has departed the West African nation for the Hague, his lawyer says, after an arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court earlier in the day.

FRANCE24

[Pan_Yan]

African Politics: the ultimate “loser pays” system.

[Cardhu]

You have that right PY.

[AnAmericanAbroad]

Heh. Indeed it is. If you're lucky (and with some prudent planning) you have a helicopter/jet warmed up and ready 24/7/365 and the contents of your nations central bank converted into bearer bonds in your attache case. If you're not so lucky then you get a dirtnap with a sendoff from this fellow;