Ivory Coast town turns to “reconciliation marriages” to foster peace ahead of elections
In Duekoue, a town still scarred by mass killings during Ivory Coast’s 2010–11 post-election violence, local activists are promoting peace through “reconciliation marriages” between rival ethnic groups.
Dozens of couples from communities including the Gueres and Baoule have married with support from the nonprofit Limpia, which offers counseling and organizes community events. The initiative aims to build familial and social bonds that bridge historical divides, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
“These marriages will create many grandsons and great-grandsons … who will be forced to share everything in terms of heritage and language,” said Alexis Kango, Limpia’s director.
An early example is Matinez Pode (Guere) and Elisabelle Kouadio Ahou (Baoule), who married in 2012 despite family opposition stemming from lingering tensions after the 2011 massacre. Over time, their families came to accept the union, highlighting the potential for reconciliation.
With the Ivory Coast presidential election scheduled for Saturday, in which President Alassane Ouattara seeks a fourth term, Limpia plans another mass ceremony of 10 weddings next year to further strengthen community ties.
Located 400 km west of Abidjan, Duekoue lies in the country’s main cocoa-producing region, historically a hotspot for land disputes between local groups and settlers — disputes that helped fuel the deadly post-election violence more than a decade ago.
Similar news
