A/HRC/16/79 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 25 February 2011 Original: English Human Rights Council Sixteenth session Agenda item 4 Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the situation of human rights in Côte d’Ivoire* Summary The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution S14/1, in which the Council invited the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit a report on the abuses and violations of human rights in Côte d’Ivoire in relation to the conclusion of the 2010 presidential election. The report covers events up to 31 January 2011. The long-awaited presidential election in Côte d’Ivoire was held on 31 October and 28 November 2010 after having been postponed six times since 2005. While the first round was conducted on 31 October in a peaceful atmosphere and provided hope for the end of the long-running political and military crisis in the country, the run-off round held on 28 November was marred by a radicalization of political rhetoric and speech that progressively drove the country into turmoil, with severe consequences for the overall human rights situation. Following the announcement of divergent results by the Independent Electoral Commission and the Constitutional Council, elected President Alsassane Ouattara formed a Government, while Laurent Gbagbo has tried to hang on to power and also appointed a “Government” that is not, however, recognized by the international community. The imposition of a night-time curfew on the eve of the run-off round, attempts to prevent members of the Dioula and Baoulé ethnic communities from voting, significant irregularities and acts of intimidation witnessed in the Centre-North-East zone controlled by Forces nouvelles, the violent repression by law enforcement officers of a public demonstration organized by the Rassemblement des houphouëtistes pour la démocratie et la paix (RHDP) on 16 December 2010 and the subsequent call by RHDP for civil disobedience on 18 January 2011 progressively contributed to the deterioration of the situation in the country. This unprecedented situation was exacerbated by the recruitment and use of youth groups, militias and alleged mercenaries, which resulted in a number of serious human rights violations, some of which reportedly were ethnically and politically motivated and produced victims in both sides, but mainly among supporters of RHDP. * GE.11-11407 Late submission.