Ivory Coast’s Political Repression Exposed Amid Election Crackdown

As Ivory Coast approaches its October 12 presidential election, the country finds itself once again in the throes of political turmoil—this time marked by what credible reports label as arbitrary arrests of opposition party members. The African Peoples’ Party–Côte d’Ivoire (PPA-CI), led by former President Laurent Gbagbo’s affiliates, has been left reeling after six of its members were abducted overnight from Saturday to Sunday and taken to undisclosed locations.Such actions highlight a troubling pattern in Ivorian politics where ruling powers tighten their grip at the expense of free and fair elections. The arrests come on the heels of disqualifications that...