bridzwsss

Ivory Coast was once considered the most politically stable and prosperous state in West Africa.Buy nike running shoes online

But now, as Alassane Ouattara prepares to take over, he faces enormous challenges in restoring the economy and security to the country following months of post-election violence.

Ouattara, internationally recognized as the legitimate president of Ivory Coast, earned a majority of votes in the disputed Nov. 28 election. But former President Laurent Gbagbo refused to step down.

"Even on Nov. 28, Ouattara would have been facing an almost evenly split electorate, and that split reflects ethnic divisions, regional divisions and, to some extent, religious divisions," says Dorina Bekoe, a program officer with the U.S. Institute of Peace. "After four months of violence and hundreds dead and a million displaced, that division is even more pronounced."

The nation's regional and ethnic divisions have sparked violence sporadically over the course of the past decade, but particularly so in the months since the election.

Gbagbo, who has been Ivory Coast's leader since 2000, rejected the results of the November election and remains holed up in an underground bunker in Abidjan, the country's leading city. Assuming Gbagbo eventually comes out, Ouattara will have to find a way of binding Ivory Coast's wounds in order to ensure that the present crisis marks an end to the nation's period of political violence, rather than serving as the wellspring of future disputes.

"There is a huge challenge in restoring public order in Abidjan," says Gilles Yabi, who directs the International Crisis Group's cheap nike mens acg sandals 2011 West Africa Project in Senegal. "In Abidjan, a lot of civilians have received weapons the last few weeks and those people will remain in place after Gbagbo is gone."

The Situation On The Ground

Ouattara's 54.1 percent win in last November's election has been certified by the country's election commission and recognized by international observers, including the United Nations and President Obama.

In dismissing the results, Gbagbo set off a period of violence that helped trigger sanctions from the international community. But over the past couple of weeks, military forces backing Ouattara have swept across much of the country, entering Abidjan last week.

Bekoe, the USIP program officer, says she worries about the precedent set by outside militaries using force to help resolve an electoral dispute. Still, with dozens of elections coming up in Africa this year, it was important to send a signal to other leaders that they cannot dismiss clear results and seek to retain power through violence, she says.

But Gbagbo is not a tyrant with no popular support. He won nearly half the votes in the election and he's long been able to exploit the schism between the country's regions, calling into the question the Ivoirite, or true nationality, of the more Muslim and immigrant-heavy northern population.

Even if Ouattara had been able to take power as a result of a peaceful transition, he would have needed to take steps to reassure Gbagbo's supporters that they would be treated fairly. Now, this will be essential in order to reunite the country.

"There has to be some effort at political reconciliation," Bekoe says. "Ouattara had said even before the election he'd be open to putting together a unity government, without Gbagbo. That is the approach the African Union has recommended. I think that's even more important now because I think it will be quite difficult to govern."

Investigating His Own Supporters

Any attempt at reconciliation will come in the wake of considerable violence, primarily perpetrated by Gbagbo in the weeks following the election and, more recently, by pro-Ouattara forces during their sweep across the country.

Ouattara has denied accusations from the U.N. that his supporters have massacred hundreds of civilians, including 800 people in the town of Duekoue.

"There's an awful lot of ethnic hatred and calling for revenge," says William Zartman, former head of Africa studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. "As in any situation like this, people have lost relatives and will be harboring animosities."

Independent observers have not been able to investigate the situation throughout the country. But, with hundreds of thousands displaced, it's clear that there has been conflict on a massive scale.

"Ouattara should signal that it's not going to be a victor's justice — it's not going to be one-sided — and investigate pro-Ouattara crimes, as well as serious crimes committed by Gbagbo," says Philippe Bolopion, U.N. advocacy director for Human Rights Watch.

The Task Of Recovery

Bolopion warns that the temptation to gloss over allegations of violence and crimes in the name of reconciliation should be resisted. That's what happened during an earlier period of political violence that lasted roughly from 2002 to 2004, he says.

But even before deciding whether to investigate past crimes, Ouattara will have to restore security in Abidjan and much of the country. He also will need to get the economy going again, including resumption of exports of the all-important cocoa and coffee crops. buy Reebok ZigTech onlineSome reports on Thursday indicated Ouattara could lift the cocoa ban he called for in January within days.

"Economic activity has been almost paralyzed," says Yabi, the International Crisis Group director in West Africa. "It has suffered a lot because of the political climate, but also because of economic sanctions that were adopted by the international community."

People's desire to get back to work and resume their normal lives will help Ouattara settle the mood of the country, suggests Zartman, the SAIS scholar.

But, given deep disputes over land ownership and the legacy of political violence, it won't be easy.

"He wants to build up his country and move beyond the war," Zartman says. "He'll have a hell of a time."

Protests across the Middle East turned violent Friday, with pro-democracy activists reportedly killed in Syria and Yemen, nike running shoes online while Iranians and Saudis rallied in support of Bahraini reformists, and Egyptians gathered to voice demands regarding their own rulers.

In Syria, anti-government protests broke out in several places. At least 17 people are said to have been killed in protests against President Bashar al-Assad and his ruling Baath Party in the southern city of Daraa, with witnesses saying ambulances were prevented from reaching the scene, the Guardian reports. However, Syrian state-run TV reported that it was in fact police officers who had been killed.

Syrian security forces fired tear gas and live ammunition as thousands of protesters gathered in Daraa despite overtures by Syria's president to end three weeks of unrest, Haaretz reports witnesses as saying.

There are also unconfirmed reports of deaths in Homs, Duma and Harasta, as protests swept the country.

In Yemen's southern city of Taiz, at least two people were reportedly killed in clashes between security forces and anti-government protesters, after President Ali Abdullah Saleh rejected a plan for him to step down proposed by Persian Gulf states. nike mens acg sandals 2011

Saleh told a crowd of supporters near the presidential palace in the capital Sanaa on Friday that a mediation offer by the Gulf Cooperation Council countries had been rejected, Bloomberg reports. Elsewhere in the capital, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered to demand an immediate end to Saleh’s rule.

In Egypt, tens of thousands of activists reportedly gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Friday demanding that ousted president Hosni Mubarak be prosecuted.

According to the Washington Post, the massive turnout reflected growing frustration with what activists see as the slowness of Egypt’s new military rulers to punish former figures in Mubarak’s regime for corruption and recoup their personal fortunes.

Mubarak and his family have been under house arrest at a presidential palace in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh since he was forced from office Feb. 11, banned fro travel and with their assets frozen.

In Iran, meantime, several hundred chanting protesters took to the streets in Tehran to denounce Bahrain's crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. And in Saudi Arabia, hundreds of people gathered in two eastern towns in support of the protesters in Bahrain, most of them Shiite Muslims.

Bahrain's crown prince reiterated this week that the government remained committed to political reforms but said there would be "no leniency" for those who try to "split our society into two halves," The National reported.

In Iraq, meanwhile, Iraqi security forces reportedly clashed with rock-throwing crowds at an Iranian refugee camp in Diyala province,  Reebok ZigTech onlinekilling dozens of them, according to Al Jazeera. Hospital officials said at least three people were killed, but Camp Ashraf residents said at least 25 people were killed and 320 wounded.

Restrictions on abortion as well as other steps that nike running shoes online Democrats find objectionable are "an important part of this discussion" in talks to avert a looming U.S. cheap nike mens acg sandals 2011 government shutdown, an aide to House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said on Thursday.

"Americans are concerned not just about how much we're spending, but how we're spending it," Boehner spokesman Reebok ZigTechMichael Steel said. "That's why the policy provisions are an important part of this discussion."

Republican Speaker of the House John Boehnernike running shoes online gave a press conference earlier to provide updates on the budget negotiations and said “everyone is taking their time trying to get this right.” Then, in what seemed to be an attempt to lighten the mood and take a quick break from the seriousness of the issue, Boehner had a little fun ribbing NBC’s Luke Russert.

As Russert tried to ask a question, Boehner interrupted him cheap nike mens acg sandals 2011 and asked, “why are you so loud all the time? And you speak up over all your colleagues. You know, it’s one thing when you’re standing there because you’re taller than most of them.” Unfazed, Russert proceeded with his question regarding whether members of Congress will receive a salary if there is a government shutdown. Boehner reiterated his position that Congress should not be paid, but looked disappointed that Russert didn’t joke back with him in response.

Watch the clip from CNN below:

The yen weakened to a six-month low against the dollar and tumbled against the euro amid speculation the Bank of Japan will trail the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank in ending stimulus. Asian stocksnike running shoes online retreated after China raised interest rates for the fourth time since October.

The yen dropped 0.9 percent to 121.87 against the euro and fell 0.5 percent versus the dollar as of 4:30 p.m. in Tokyo. Taiwan's currency rose the most in three months before a report that may show inflation quickened. Ten-year Treasury yields approached a four-week high. Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures gained 0.3 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 0.2 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was little changed. Copper advanced.

Policy makers are exploring ways to ease stimulus as the global economy recovers, with the ECB set to lift rates from a record low and Fed officials split on their view of the U.S. economy. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said the cycle of higher Chinese rates may be "close to an end" after yesterday's increase. Concerns about Japan following March 11's record earthquake remained elevated after Moody's Investors Service said it may cut its rating on Toyota Motor Corp.

"It's not an easy environment to be investing in right now as we're at the cross roads for both the developing and emerging world," said Pearlyn Wong, an investment analyst at Bank Julius Baer Group Ltd., which manages about $262 billion in client assets worldwide. buy Reebok ZigTech online "Investors are watching every single piece of data to see where central banks are headed. We're in the middle of an interest-rate upcycle, with the tail-end likely to come by the end of this year."

BOJ, ECB

The yen weakened against all 16 most active counterparts. The Bank of Japan will likely keep its target rate at zero to 0.1 percent at the end of a two-day policy meeting tomorrow, while the ECB is forecast to lift its main rate by a quarter- percentage point from 1 percent at its meeting tomorrow, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

"Central banks worldwide seem to be heading for an exit from monetary easing, whereas the central bank here may lag behind," said Akira Hoshino, Tokyo-based chief manager of foreign-exchange trading at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd., a unit of Japan's largest lender by market value. "The yen is likely to be the weakest currency."

Japan's currency traded at 85.29 after earlier reaching 85.53 per dollar, the weakest since Sept. 21. Minutes from the Fed's March 15 meeting showed the Federal Open Market Committee debated the path of monetary policy after the June completion of their $600 billion bond-purchase program.

Rate Bets

Yields on 10-year Treasuries rose one basis point to 3.49 percent, extending a jump of six basis points yesterday after the release of the minutes. Interest-rate futures contracts on the Chicago Board of Trade yesterday showed a 40 percent chance U.S. policy makers will increase the target lending rate by December, up from odds of 33 percent a day earlier. The Fed has kept its target rate for overnight lending between banks at zero to 0.25 percent since December 2008.

Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke Fivefingers Kso-Vibram fivefingers Kso said this week policy makers will "have to respond" if estimates that faster inflation will be transitory prove incorrect. Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser and Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota have also suggested the central bank may need to consider raising interest rates this year.

"America's been pumping out cash and arguably some of that money's been finding its way into other parts of the world, including Asian share markets," said Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors Ltd., which manages $98 billion in Sydney. "If it brings that easy monetary policy to an end, and more importantly starts tightening, investors might worry this might reduce the return potential for Asian equities and emerging markets generally."

Australian employment growth surged in March, sweeping aside lingering fears of a sharp slowdown in the economy in the first quarter and Buy nike running shoes onlinesuggesting an interest rate increase may be closer than currently thought.

The Australian dollar surged to a fresh post-float high of US$1.0481, climbing half a U.S. cent immediately after the release of the data. Employment rose 37,800 compared with an expected increase of 24,000 by economists.

Unemployment fell to a lower-than-expected seasonally adjusted 4.9% in March from 5.0% in February, while economists expected unemployment to remain at 5.0%. The jobless rate is now at its lowest rate since December 2008. The number of people in full-time work rose 32,100, while the number of people in part-time work rose 5,700, the bureau said.

The fall in unemployment comes despite a string devastating natural disasters in the first quarter, which are expected to slow the economy sharply. The strong result also defies the soaring Australian dollar, which is taking a hefty toll on non-mining exporters. cheap nike mens acg sandals 2011

"This is a real return to the heady days of 2010 when employment growth was really rocketing along," said Brian Redican, an economist at Macquarie.

Mr. Redican added that much of the growth was Queensland-based, showing the state is rebounding from flooding, which affected much of the region as a deluge swamped the central business district of Brisbane.

"The Reserve Bank of Australia won't be panicking, it will just give them more reassurance that the economy is hanging together in a very good shape and the current policy stance is completely justified," he added.

The RBA left interest rates on hold on Tuesday, citing an absence of immediate inflation risks and pointing to the high Australian dollar as a headwind for the economy.

The cash rate has been left at 4.75% since November, with most economists expecting it to remain sidelined until the second half of the year. buy Reebok ZigTechThe high Australian dollar could well remain a restraint on growth.

"There's just no ceiling in sight for the Australian dollar with further gains likely, said RBS FX strategist Greg Gibbs. "There's no obvious near-term resistance level, so the risk is it does continue to grind higher."