he Chadian Bishops Conference launched an appeal for dialogue to the government and rebels in name of “the general interest” of the country. In the message, of which MISNA received a copy, Chad’s Bishops call for a rebel “cease-fire”, to be corresponded by “a suspension of the electoral calendar” on the government side.
Among the causes of the current situation, the Bishops highlight “the extension of presidential mandates through modifications to the Constitution, the changes to the oil bill, the push to go to elections despite the protests of the political opposition and civil society, and the absence of dialogue.
“Peace has no price, for this reason we call on everyone to utilize every possible means to avoid the Ivorian people the national catastrophe that the nations appears headed toward”, continue the Bishops. “The situation in the country is extremely critical. We observe with concern that the political situation, marked with a break in national dialogue, has degraded considerably in recent times due to various elements”, continues the note.
Among the causes of this degrade, the Bishops emphasize “the extension of presidential mandates through modifications to the Constitution”, “the changes to the oil bill”, “the push to go to elections despite the protests of the political opposition and civil society” and “the absence of dialogue”.
“In consequence of all these factors – write the Bishops in a declaration that they define as “delicate” – we witnessed waves of army desertions that transformed political movements into military movements and contributed to reinforcing the already existent rebellions”.
“This politicization of a part of the security forces rendered even more complicated the search for national dialogue”, which for the Bishops is the only way out of the ongoing crisis. “The higher well-being of the nation is at stake. All the sides must sit around a table to negotiate”, conclude the Chadian Bishops.
(From MISNA)