Guillaume Soro

Guillaume Soro
Prime Minister of the Ivory Coast
In office 4 April 2007 – 13 March 2012*
President	Laurent Gbagbo Alassane Ouattara
Preceded by	Charles Konan Banny
Succeeded by	Jeannot Ahoussou-Kouadio
Minister of Defence
In office 11 April 2011 – 13 March 2012
Preceded by	Amani N'Guessan
Succeeded by	Alassane Ouattara
Leader of the Patriotic Movement
Incumbent
Assumed office 20 December 2005
Preceded by	Party established
Personal details
Born	(1972-05-08) 8 May 1972 Diawala, Ivory Coast
Political party	Patriotic Movement
Religion	Roman Catholic
*The office of Prime Minister was disputed between Soro and Gilbert Aké from 6 December 2010 to 11 April 2011.

Guillaume Kigbafori Soro (born 8 May 1972) is an Ivorian politician of Roman Catholic faith. He was the Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire from April 2007 to March 2012. Prior to his service as Prime Minister, Soro led the Patriotic Movement of Côte d'Ivoire, and later the New Forces as its Secretary-General.^[1][2] Since March 2012, Soro has been President of the National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire.

Ivorian Civil War

Soro led the Patriotic Movement of Côte d'Ivoire (MPCI) in a September 2002 rebellion against President Laurent Gbagbo that triggered the Ivorian Civil War. In December 2002 Soro's MPCI combined with two other rebel groups, the Ivorian Popular Movement of the Great West (MPIGO) and the Movement for Justice and Peace (MJP), to form Forces Nouvelles de Côte d'Ivoire (New Forces). He was appointed the group's Secretary-General.

Political career

Following a peace agreement in January 2003, Soro became Minister of Communications for the Ivory Coast.^[3] The New Forces ministers began a boycott in September and returned the following January.^[4] After an opposition demonstration held in Abidjan in March 2004 was violently broken up, President Gbagbo dismissed Soro and two other ministers from their positions. Soro denounced the dismissals, saying they were effectively a coup by Gbagbo against the peace agreement.^[5][6] On 9 August Soro's position was reinstated.^[7]

On 28 December 2005, Soro was appointed Minister of Reconstruction and Reintegration by Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny.^[8] He attended his first cabinet meeting in this capacity on 15 March.^[9]

Prime Minister

Following a peace deal signed on 4 March 2007, Soro was considered a possibility for Prime Minister, and got Gbagbo's endorsement.^[10] In an interview published on 26 March, Soro said that he would be willing to assume the position.^[11] Gbagbo officially appointed him on 29 March,^[12][13] Soro took office on 4 April,^[14] and his 32 ministers were named on 7 April, many of whom served under his predecessor.^[15][16]

In a speech on 13 April, Soro apologized "to everybody and on behalf of everybody" for the harm caused by the rebellion.^[17] On 30 July, Soro and Gbagbo participated in "peace flame" disarmament ceremony, which involved the burning of weapons to symbolize the end of the conflict.^[18][19]

The peace agreement barred Soro from standing in the 2010 presidential election, and he told Jeune Afrique in a March 2008 interview that he would discuss his political future after the election. It has been rumored that Soro and Gbagbo have made a secret agreement, whereby Soro would support Gbagbo in the election and, in exchange, Gbagbo would back Soro in the subsequent presidential election. Soro dismisses this as "gossip," describing himself as an "arbiter of the electoral process," and further said the New Forces would not back any candidate and that its members could vote for whomever they wished.^[20]

When the Gbagbo-allied Constitutional Council announcedd their results of the 2010 poll and Gbagbo was sworn in, Soro resigned as prime minister, supporting opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara. Ouattara had been declared the winner by the electoral commission, and reappointed Soro after taking the oath of office at a rival ceremony.

Soro was elected to the National Assembly in the December 2011 parliamentary election on 12 March 2002, ensuring his presence in Ivorian politics.^[21]

Assassination attempt

On 29 June 2007, a Fokker 100 carrying Prime Minister Soro, members of his delegation, and 20 journalists was taxiing on a runway at an airport in Bouakéa when it was targeted by rocket and Kalashnikov fire. One rocket struck and exploded in the cabin, one missed, and a third bounced off the fuselage and did not detonate. Soro wasn't injured, but four people were killed and ten others wounded.^[22] Those who died were Security Chief Drissa Ouattara, the Prime Minister's bodyguard Siaka Diomandé, and Protocole d’Etat members Sékou Doumbia and Souleymane Sérifou.^[23] Arrests were subsequently reported.^[24]

References

External links

• MPCI Official website (French)
• (French) Review of Guillaume Soro: Pourquoi je suis devenu un rebelle éditions Hachette Littératures (2005).

Party political offices
New political party	Leader of the Patriotic Movement 2005–present	Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Charles Konan Banny	Prime Minister of the Ivory Coast 2007–2012	Succeeded by Jeannot Ahoussou-Kouadio
Preceded by Amani N'Guessan	Minister of Defence 2011–2012	Succeeded by Alassane Ouattara

v t e Heads of government of Ivory Coast Colonial Denise Houphouët-Boigny Independent Houphouët-Boigny post abolished, 1960-90 Ouattara Duncan Diarra N'Guessan Diarra Banny Soro (Aké) Soro Ahoussou-Kouadio Duncan

Authority control WorldCat VIAF: 2730091 LCCN: no2005076367 ISNI: 0000 0000 4779 8313 SUDOC: 087497689 BNF: cb146483350

Persondata
Name	Soro, Guillaume
Alternative names
Short description	Ivorian politician
Date of birth	8 May 1972
Place of birth	Diawala, Ivory Coast
Date of death
Place of death