Cote d'Ivoire: Lome talks to tackle disarmament, election issues at next round Paris AFP (World Service) in English 1248 GMT 03 Nov 02 AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE Sunday, November 3, 2002 Journal Code: 2131 Language: ENGLISH Record Type: FULLTEXT Document Type: Daily Report; News Word Count: 612 ABIDJAN, Nov 3 (AFP) - Negotiators for the government and rebels in Ivory Coast prepared Sunday to resume peace talks in Lome, where they are expected to tackle opposing demands for rebel disarmament and new elections. The talks were put on hold during the weekend, as rebel leaders returned to their stronghold of Bouake in central Ivory Coast to brief their supporters. "The real debate will begin next week," a rebel who identified himself only as Major Sinclair said. Other rebels described the three days of talks so far as "a drop in the ocean," saying the decisive negotiations concerned the government demand for rebel disarmament and the rebel demand for new elections. Neither side has appeared willing to budge on either demand, although they did reach an accord on Friday (1 November) that rebels could be granted amnesty and reintegrated into the armed forces if the crisis is resolved. President Laurent Gbagbo's office said in a statement Sunday that "all options with the potential for ending chronic instability, consolidating a spirit of harmony, and reaffirming national reconciliation in Ivory Coast should be explored." "Every opportunity for serious peace should be seized to protect the future of current and future generations," said the statement, which was issued to thank tens of thousands of pro-government protesters who filled downtown Abidjan on Saturday (2 Novvember). The demonstration, organized by a coalition of pro-government groups calling themselves "young patriots," was peaceful, despite anti-immigrant and anti-French slogans on some of the hand-written placards. Organizers repeatedly urged the crowd to keep the protest peaceful, and not to assume that immigrants and people from northern Ivory Coast were rebel supporters. The protest came amid a two-day pause in peace talks, held in Lome under the mediation of Togolese President Gnassingbe Eyadema. Negotiators reached their first agreement on Friday, when Ivory Coast's government accepted in principle to grant amnesty to rebels and to reintegrate mutineers back into the armed forces. While pushing forward efforts to end the conflict, the agreement still did not address the government's key demand that the rebels disarm, or the rebel demand for new elections. Under the mini-deal, the government is to draft an amnesty bill that would allow imprisoned soldiers to rejoin the military; end legal action against people charged with threatening state security, and bring mutinous contingents back into the armed forces. Soldiers living in exile should be allowed to return, and a fact-finding team from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is to examine alleged abuses by both parties. Both sides agreed to allow humanitarian aid to reach rebel-held regions and to grant "the immediate release of all civilian and military prisoners" of war, the statement said. One source close to the negotiations said the goal was to gradually move the rebels toward discussing disarmament. The uprising has disrupted one of west Africa's strongest economies, which produces 40 percent of the world's cocoa, and severed key transport links to the region. Hoping to prevent the conflict from escalating and destabilizing the entire region, ECOWAS plans to deploy up to 2,000 troops to replace the French forces monitoring the ceasefire. UN agencies have warned that the country faces a humanitarian disaster. At least 400 people have been killed in the uprising, while at least 200,000 people have fled their homes.