Aya Virginie Toure
Encyclopedia
Aya Virginie Toure is a peace activist
in Côte d'Ivoire
(Ivory Coast), West Africa
. She became known for organizing women in nonviolent resistance
against President Laurent Gbagbo
who refused to step down since he lost the presidential election to Alassane Ouattara
. Toure worked to mobilize women as the Deputy Director for Ouattara's Ivorian presidential election, 2010.
RDR, the ruling political party in Côte d'Ivoire, Aya Virginie Toure is the elected President of the Rally of Republican Women. (RFR).
She spoke out against Gbagbo and his inner circle of people who were allegedly sending taxpayers' money out of the country as their own personal wealth.
. In an impassioned interview on BBC News
, Toure compared the ongoing Second Ivorian Civil War
to the 2011 Libyan civil war
and asked for support from the international community
. She called for military intervention to remove Laurent Gbagbo from power the same way Charles Taylor was removed in the Second Liberian Civil War
.
Peace activist
This list of peace activists includes people who proactively advocate diplomatic, non-military resolution of political disputes, usually through nonviolent means.A peace activist is an activist of the peace movement.*Jane Addams*Martti Ahtisaari...
in Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
(Ivory Coast), West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
. She became known for organizing women in nonviolent resistance
Nonviolent resistance
Nonviolent resistance is the practice of achieving goals through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, and other methods, without using violence. It is largely synonymous with civil resistance...
against President Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Koudou Gbagbo served as the fourth President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 until his arrest in April 2011. A historian by profession, he is also an amateur chemist and physicist....
who refused to step down since he lost the presidential election to Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Dramane Ouattara is an Ivorian politician who has been President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2011. An economist by profession, Ouattara worked for the International Monetary Fund and the Central Bank of West African States , and he was the Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire from November 1990 to...
. Toure worked to mobilize women as the Deputy Director for Ouattara's Ivorian presidential election, 2010.
Congress of Republican Women
In the Rally of the RepublicansRally of the Republicans
The Rally of the Republicans is a liberal party in Côte d'Ivoire. It is presently the country's governing party; the party's leader, Alassane Ouattara, is the current President of Côte d'Ivoire....
RDR, the ruling political party in Côte d'Ivoire, Aya Virginie Toure is the elected President of the Rally of Republican Women. (RFR).
She spoke out against Gbagbo and his inner circle of people who were allegedly sending taxpayers' money out of the country as their own personal wealth.
Leader of civil war protests
Toure organized numerous peace protests throughout Côte d'Ivoire during the 2010–2011 Ivorian crisis2010–2011 Ivorian crisis
The 2010–11 Ivorian crisis was a political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire which began after Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2000, was proclaimed the winner of the Ivorian election of 2010, the first election in the country in 10 years...
. In an impassioned interview on BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
, Toure compared the ongoing Second Ivorian Civil War
Second Ivorian Civil War
The Second Ivorian Civil War broke out in March 2011 when the crisis in Côte d'Ivoire escalated into full-scale military conflict between forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2000, and supporters of the internationally recognised president-elect Alassane Ouattara...
to the 2011 Libyan civil war
2011 Libyan civil war
The 2011 Libyan civil war was an armed conflict in the North African state of Libya, fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to oust his government. The war was preceded by protests in Benghazi beginning on 15 February 2011, which led to clashes with security...
and asked for support from the international community
International community
The international community is a term used in international relations to refer to all peoples, cultures and governments of the world or to a group of them. The term is used to imply the existence of common duties and obligations between them...
. She called for military intervention to remove Laurent Gbagbo from power the same way Charles Taylor was removed in the Second Liberian Civil War
Second Liberian Civil War
The Second Liberian Civil War began in 1999 when a rebel group backed by the government of neighbouring Guinea, the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy , emerged in northern Liberia. In early 2003, a second rebel group, the Movement for Democracy in Liberia, emerged in the south, and...
.
Demonstrations
- In December 2010, Toure led hundreds of women in a peaceful protest during the ongoing crisis2010–2011 Ivorian crisisThe 2010–11 Ivorian crisis was a political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire which began after Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2000, was proclaimed the winner of the Ivorian election of 2010, the first election in the country in 10 years...
in AbidjanAbidjanAbidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
, the economic capital of Ivory Coast. They banged pots to warn about the arrival of the militas.
- On March 3, 2011, Toure led 15,000 women in a peaceful protest in Abidjan. Some were dressed in black, some were wearing leaves, and some were naked, all signs of an African curseCurseA curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
directed toward Laurent Gbagbo. In the neighborhood of Abobo, they were met by security forces with tanks that opened fire on the women. Seven women were killed and approximately 100 were wounded.
- On March 8, International Womens Day, Toure organized 45,000 women in peaceful protests across the country. The women were met with youth armed with machetes and automatic weapons firing into the air at KoumassiKoumassiKoumassi is a town and commune in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.It is one of four communes of Abidjan south of Ébrié Lagoon, the others being Treichville, Marcory and Port-Bouët.-References:*This article was initially created from the French Wikipedia....
. One woman and three men were killed in Abidjan by the army.
Reaction to demonstrations
- On March 8, 2011, Leymah GboweeLeymah GboweeLeymah Roberta Gbowee is a Liberian peace activist responsible for leading a women's peace movement that brought an end to the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003. This led to the election of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in Liberia, the first African nation with a female president...
issued a statement of support for the peaceful protests of the Christian and Muslim women in the Ivory Coast and compared them to the women of LiberiaWomen of Liberia Mass Action for PeaceWomen of Liberia Mass Action for Peace is a peace movement started by women in Liberia, Africa thatbrought an end to the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003. Organized by social worker Leymah Gbowee, the movement started with local women praying and singing in a fish market...
.
- On March 23, at the ECOWAS Summit in NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, a "One Thousand Women March" was organized by peace activists in West Africa in support of the women in the Ivory Coast. They wore white t-shirts and represented countries across West Africa including Côte d'Ivoire, GhanaGhanaGhana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, LiberiaLiberiaLiberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
, Nigeria, Sierra LeoneSierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
and TogoTogoTogo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
. They issued a press release and presented a position statement to the ECOWAS Heads of State.
- On March 23, Goodluck JonathanGoodluck JonathanGoodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, GCFR, BNER, GCON is the 14th Head of State and current President of Nigeria.He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the...
, President of NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
urged the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
to pass a resolution to take decisive action, saying instability posed a threat to security in West AfricaWest AfricaWest Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
.
- On March 30, the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1975United Nations Security Council Resolution 1975United Nations Security Council Resolution 1975, adopted unanimously on March 30, 2011, after recalling previous resolutions on the situation in Côte d'Ivoire , including resolutions 1572 , 1893 , 1911 , 1924 , 1933 , 1942 , 1946 , 1951 , 1962 , 1967 and 1968 , the Council demanded that Laurent...
was adopted unanimously, demanding that Laurent Gbagbo step down as President and allow internationally-recognised President Alassane Ouattara to take power. The resolution imposed sanctions on Gbagbo and his close associates. The resolution was sponsored by FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.