More Ivory Coast

In my previous post on this subject I wrote that even if negotiations are unsuccesful to get Gbagbo to admit defeat in the recent presidential elections so Outtara can become president, the United Nations, along with the African Union and ECOWAS, will be showing that there are costs to violence against political opponents and the rule of law by "not really being able to do business and run a country before going through negotiations." This is true, but there are other things that the international community can and does do. At least it can continue to provide some protection for political opponents who are at risk of violence from the government. It can monitor if elections are fair or not, although it probably is bad for international organizations to say that a certain side won an election. There may be an invasion to stop this dictatorship, but that is almost certainly not worth it. There may be sanctions. In the short-run, this may mean higher prices for chocolate because Ivory Coast is the world's largest producer of cocoa beans, but in the long-run it may mean a better understanding by African politicians of their responsibilities, which will mean a more peaceful and prosperous Africa, which will mean more agricultural production and less hunger.

Ivory Coast

I am very happy to see that the New York Times is calling the country of Ivory Coast "Ivory Coast," instead of Cote d'Ivoire, the French name for the country, which translates as "Ivory Coast." To call if Cote d'Ivoire would only be a combination of political correctness to transfer resources and respect to people who would act offended if somebody used the English name and for people who are unusually and unreasonably interested in trivia to show off their sensitivity and knowledge of nonsensical trivia.

That being said, I am unhappy to see that Ivory Coast is in a state of turmoil as President Laurent Gbagbo has refused to step down and acknowledge that he lost the recent elections to his challenger, Alassane Outtara. If the Ivorians, the United Nations, and other countries are able to resolve this situation that would be ideal, but even if they do not, the United Nations will still be showing that violence against political opponents and the rule of law has not only the organic and internal consequences of a bad relationship between a government and its citizens, but also the international consequences of not really being able to do business and run a country before going through negotiations with the United Nations and other parties.