Guillaume Soro - Political Career

Political Career

Following a peace agreement in January 2003, Soro joined the government as Minister of Communications in April 2003. The New Forces ministers began a boycott of the government in September 2003 and returned to the government in January 2004. After an opposition demonstration held in Abidjan was violently broken up in March 2004, Soro and other former rebel and opposition ministers began boycotting the government. In turn, Gbagbo dismissed Soro from his position, along with two other ministers, on 19 May 2004. Soro denounced this move, saying that it was effectively a coup by Gbagbo against the peace agreement. On 9 August 2004 Soro attended a cabinet meeting and was reinstated in his position. On 28 December 2005, Soro was appointed Minister of Reconstruction and Reintegration in the government of Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny; in this position he became the second ranking member of the government, after the Prime Minister. He did not, however, attend a cabinet meeting in this capacity until 15 March 2006.