Statement by Press Secretary/Director-General for Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the Presidential Election in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire

November 5, 2010
Japanese

A presidential election took place in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire on October 31 (Sun) after several delays due to internal conflicts. The fact that the presidential election took place despite the difficult situation in the country is extremely significant from the perspective of the consolidation of peace in Côte d'Ivoire.
The presidential election occurred under the supervision of election monitoring missions from different countries including Japan as well as international organizations. The election was carried out without any major confusion, resulting in high voter turnout. Japan welcomes the fact that the election took place in a mostly peaceful manner and received the participation of a broad spectrum of people.
In accordance with provisional results announced on November 4 (Thu) by the independent election commission, a second round of runoff voting is expected to take place on November 28 (Sun) to choose between top two candidates, Mr. Laurent Gbagbo and Mr. Alassane Ouattara. The consolidation of peace in Côte d'Ivoire requires that all interested parties participate in the electoral process in a peaceful manner without resorting to violence. Japan will continue to cooperate proactively for the establishment of democracy in Côte d'Ivoire.

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