Central African Republic: the opposition announces that it is boycotting the republican dialogue
Maître Nicolas Tiangaye announced that the opposition parties would not participate in President Touadéra's republican dialogue.
AFP PHOTO / SIA KAMBOU
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2 mins
The republican dialogue promised for a year and a half by President Touadéra must begin Monday morning.
But all the opposition parties which had participated in the preparations so far have just announced that they are finally boycotting the meeting on the grounds that their demands have not been met.
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With our correspondent in Bangui,
Carol Valade
The dialogue will therefore take place without opposition.
His spokesman, Me Nicolas Tiangaye, says he has tried to the end to put the real problems on the agenda.
Namely, according to him, the necessary participation of armed groups.
“
Armed groups are the protagonists of the crisis and the crisis cannot be resolved by excluding these protagonists
,” he asserts.
The opposition also called for a debate on the 2020 electoral crisis, since it still considers
the re-election of President Touadéra
to be illegitimate .
Less than one in three voters were able to vote then due to the coordinated attack by rebel groups across the country.
"
We do not intend to serve as a foil to this parody of dialogue
", concluded Me Nicolas Tiangaye on behalf of the broader opposition, which includes COD2020, Martin Ziguélé's MLPC and Crépin Mboli-Goumba's homeland.
Jean-Serge Bokassa's MKMKS and Joseph Bendounga's MDRC had already let it be known that they would not be present at the opening of the dialogue on Monday morning.
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To read also: RCA, a republican dialogue for what?
The opposition's decision is considered "
absurd
" by the MCU, the ruling party.
Mathurin Dimbelet-Nakoé is surprised that the opposition withdraws at the last moment after having sat on the organizing committee, established the themes and defined the contours of the dialogue.
"
Despite the outstretched hand by the dear of the state, these people are not for peace,
" he retorts.
A group of people cannot continue to hold the Central African Republic hostage.
»
On the side of civil society, they express their disappointment but they remain hopeful in the outcome of the dialogue.
"
It's lamentable
," reacts Hyacinthe Longba, human rights defender and member of the dialogue's organizing committee.
“
I would have liked to see all the sensitivities around the table
”, adds Paul-Crescent Beninga, the general rapporteur from civil society.
Questions
“
The dialogue is maintained
”, assures the presidency.
But questions remain.
The themes addressed are very broad, the objective of the organizers is to put an end to the crisis and restore peace, without specifying by what concrete measure, hoping that a solution will emerge from the discussions.
Monsignor Nongo, president of the episcopal conference, will plead for a better distribution of the fruits of mining.
Aly Ousmane, from Muslim civil society, is calling for support for the displaced people who are flocking to the capital from the center of the country where serious human rights violations are currently being committed, he says.
Still others fear that the dialogue will lead to a modification of the Constitution.
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Central African Republic