Author: Amnesty international
Site of publication: Amnesty
Type of publication: Rapport
Date of publication: August 2024
Notes
- Tens of thousands of people evicted since January 2024 from the Gesco, Boribana, Banco 1 and Abattoir neighborhoods
- Evictions without adequate and reasonable prior notice, some involving violence; children deprived of education; 133 farmers lost their livelihoods
- Support measures announced in March 2024 must be urgently implemented for all affected people.
The Ivorian authorities must immediately guarantee the rights of the tens of thousands of people evicted and suspend mass evictions in Abidjan until safeguards are put in place to prohibit forced evictions and to ensure the protection of the rights of people potentially affected, said Amnesty International.
Large-scale operations to demolish neighbourhoods and evict their inhabitants were launched in January 2024, on sites notably considered to be at risk of flooding. The Gesco, Boribana, Banco 1 and Abattoir neighbourhoods were demolished as part of a plan to demolish 176 sites, according to an official communique dated 26 February 2024 of the autonomous district of Abidjan.
Evicted families Amnesty International spoke with shared that they were not meaningfully informed nor consulted on the process of evictions, options for compensation and alternative housing. Additionally, they were not provided with an adequate and reasonable notice prior to the day their homes were to be destroyed. Thousands of forcibly evicted families remained to be rehoused and/or compensated for all losses.
The number of people and properties affected by the demolitions is unclear as the authorities did not systematically carry out a census in every neighbourhood. 1,199 families and 203 owners in Gesco, and 600 families in Abattoir have lost their homes according to data shared by the local authorities. The number of affected people in Boribana has been estimated at 28,000 by Colombe Ivoire, a local NGO. According to a dignitary from the community chiefdom, 5,000 people were affected in Banco 1.
On 23 February, the National Council for Human Rights issued a statement denouncing the “operations carried out in disregard of fundamental rights” and “without consultation”.
The right to education also violated
In addition to homes and shops, schools were also destroyed, depriving children and young people of an education, with no solution in sight.
Some students were unable to sit their exams as planned in June. Yaya, a student in his final year at the Groupe Scolaire Cha-Hélène, said: “The conditions for preparing for the exam were challenging. As well as the school, our houses were destroyed and there were documents we couldn’t save. We weren’t physically or mentally ready to take the Bac [exam at the end of the secondary school].”
Evicted children and youth must have safe and secure access to education, according to the Basic Principles and Guidelines on Development Based Evictions and Displacement.
On 13 March, the government announced the payment of 250,000 FCFA (around 372 euros) per household already evicted from two neighbourhoods, Boribana and Gesco, as well as support for landowners in acquiring plots of freehold land, the provision of plots of land according to family size, the allocation of construction aid of 1 million FCFA per family (around 1,500 euros), and the creation of a development unit for precarious neighbourhoods in the autonomous district of Abidjan, attached to the Prime Minister’s Office, to monitor the evictions
In the Gesco neighbourhood, 133 farmers saw their enclosures and fishponds demolished on 21 February. A site of almost four hectares had been granted to them by a state-owned company, the Société pour le Développement des Forêts, for the creation of an agro-pastoral zone. The farmers’ association estimates the losses at around 650,000,000 FCFA – around 1 million euros.
Five months after the destruction, at the time of Amnesty International’s visit to the site, no compensation had been paid, according to the farmers, who deplored the lack of information provided by the authorities.
While 256 people from the Boribana neighbourhood have been rehoused in the Songon Ahiwayi commune ahead of the evictions according to the NGO Colombe Ivoire, thousands of other people declined the proposed rehousing as the relocation site was forty kilometres away. Alternative housing should be situated as close as possible to the original place of residence and source of livelihood of those evicted, according to the Basic Principles and Guidelines on Development Based Evictions and Displacement
Violence reported during forced evictions
Excessive use of force during the destruction of the sites was reported by around twenty witnesses met by Amnesty International. “There were a lot of police cargos. The police ordered us to leave our homes. Some people resisted, but they fired tear gas and there was smoke everywhere,” said a resident of Gesco. “They arrived at 11pm and stayed until 2am,” said a resident of Abattoir. Assita, a student at the Groupe Scolaire Cha-Hélène, said: “The police brutalised the students who tried to intervene during the destruction of the school.”
According to international law, evictions must take place during the day, with respect for dignity and safety of those affected, without resort to excessive use of force. Authorities must ensure that any use of force is strictly necessary, proportionate, and complies with international human rights standards, notably the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials.
“We call on the authorities to put an immediate end to forced evictions in Abidjan to prevent any violence and to ensure that those whose rights have been violated are provided with access to justice and effective remedies. We also call on them to conduct a prompt and impartial investigation into the allegations of excessive use of force, and to bring to justice those suspected to be responsible,” said Samira Daoud, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa.
On 19 July 2024, Amnesty International sent a letter to the Prime Minister of Côte d’Ivoire, offering the opportunity to respond to the main conclusions presented in this publication. As of 5 August, no response had been received by Amnesty International.