First Ivorian Civil War - Rising Tensions

Rising Tensions

Violence was turned initially against African foreigners. The prosperity of Côte d'Ivoire had attracted many Africans from West Africa, and by 1998 they constituted 26% of the population, 56% of whom were Burkinabés.

In this atmosphere of increasing racial tension, Houphouët-Boigny's policy of granting nationality to Burkinabés resident in Côte d'Ivoire was criticized as being solely to gain their political support.

In 1995, the tensions turned violent when Burkinabés were killed in plantations at Tabou, during ethnic riots.

Ethnic violence had already existed between owners of lands and their hosts particularly in the west side of the country, between Bete and Baoule, Bete and Lobi. Since independence, people from the center of the country, Baoules, have been encouraged to move to fertile lands of the west and south-west of the country where they have been granted superficialities to grow cocoa, coffee and comestibles. Years later, some Bete have come to resent these successful farmers. Voting became difficult for these immigrants as they were refused voting rights.