Ivory Coast soldiers reject government deal t end mutiny

Mutinying soldiers stand in guard at the checkpoint of the entrance of Bouake, Ivory Coast, May 15, 2017. (Photo by Reuters)

Mutinous soldiers in Ivory Coast have denied the government’s claim about reaching an agreement to end their rebellion over their unpaid bonuses.

“They proposed 5 million CFA francs ($8,356) to be paid tomorrow (to each soldier). But we want 7 million to be paid in one payment and immediately,” a spokesman of the rebellious soldiers, Sergeant Seydou Kone, said on Tuesday.

Another mutineer spokesman, Sergeant Cisse, said the soldiers would return to barracks “once the 7 million is deposited in our accounts.”

Late Monday, the country’s Defense Minister Alain-Richard Donwahi announced that a deal had been reached between the government and the renegade soldiers to end their mutiny.

“To end the stalemate and avoid any more bereavement of families, the army chief of staff held talks with the soldiers on Sunday and Monday. … The talks have resulted in an arrangement to end the crisis,” Donwahi said.

Government representatives began talks with the soldiers on Saturday.

A mutinous soldier gestures as he stands guard at the checkpoint of the entrance of Bouake, Ivory Coast, May 15, 2017. (Photo by Reuters)

Thousands of disgruntled soldiers started their mutiny on May 12 over a pay dispute, leaving their barracks and blocking access to the country’s second largest city of Bouake.

The revolt over unpaid bonuses has paralyzed cities and towns across the West African nation. 

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On Monday, gunfights erupted in cities of Abidjan and Bouake. The mutineers seized control of the national military headquarters and the Defense Ministry before being driven back by loyalist forces.

Heavy shooting was also heard in Daloa, a hub for the western cocoa growing regions of the country..

Earlier on Sunday, the mutineers shot and wounded five people in Bouake to break up a march against them.

The fresh mutiny comes after the government promised in January to pay 12 million CFA francs (18,000 Euros) each to rebellious soldiers in Bouake. Soldiers are reportedly angry at the government’s inability to reimburse the last installment of the payment this month, which was about seven million francs.