Ambassador

The Address of Ambassador Aubrey Hooks to the University of Cocody

“Universities as Centers of Peace and Reconciliation”

12 August 2005

Great ideas are given fragile births.  In their nascent state, they can easily be overcome by the harsh winds of cynicism, doubt, and despair.  These degenerative forces discard them as promising, but orphaned innovations alongside the long road of human progress. Yet, if an idea is sufficiently nurtured and given room to grow and gain traction, it can blossom into a powerful force.  Ideas gain strength in the company of many minds and once placed firmly within the incubator of a thoughtful and passionate group of individuals, their potential is limitless.

We are gathered today inside one of these intellectual incubators.  You, the students and faculty of this great university have within your hands the power to show your nation the path to peace and reconciliation.  Within this campus lies the promise of a better future, a future free of war and poverty, discrimination and division.   While outside these walls some talk of violence, hatred, and fear, you can talk of hope, idealism, and prosperity. 

The path to peace starts here.  Through discussion and debate you can create a vision of a lasting peace and promising future for your country.  It can start in the classrooms and the libraries, and soon it will spill over into the hallways and the canteens of the campus, and then it will spread beyond the borders of this institution.   From within this sacred ground can come the thundering calls for a brighter future for Côte d’Ivoire, which will reverberate throughout this land.  They will shake the mighty skyscrapers of Abidjan, they will resonate in the gleaming cathedral of Yamoussoukro, and they will be heard in villages north and south, east and west.

Many Ivoirians have often talked of feeling powerless in a seemingly distant process that is controlled by elite political leaders.  However, power in a democratic nation lies not with the leaders, but with the people.  You are not passive actors in this process.  You must stand up and utilize your power as a citizen in a democracy.  Nowhere is this truer than in education, where equipped with the rights of citizenship and the insights gleaned from your studies, you hold the potential to both formulate a bold new vision and to rally others to your cause.

As though looking for a solution to come from elsewhere, it is frequently asked why the international community and particularly the United States are not doing more to resolve the crisis in Côte d’Ivoire.  However, these individuals are looking in the wrong places for their answers.  The successful resolution of this crisis will not come from Washington or Pretoria, it will come from here and from you.  We, the international community, have been and will continue to be here to support you in this process, but the sustainable solutions must come from Ivoirians themselves.  As recent history has shown in Haiti, Somalia, and elsewhere, imposed solutions do not work.

Instead, the United States is working closely with the international community to support the peace process that has been agreed upon by all the parties.  In a fragile situation such as this, it is far better to speak with one clear voice, than with many different voices.  We will not allow ourselves to be divided by those seeking to create rifts between countries to exploit for their own purposes.  The international community is united behind the mediation of President Thabo Mbeki and the work of the United Nations.   Our cooperation, compromise, and coordination in these efforts stands as an example to Ivoirian leaders of how you can overcome your differences to work for a common goal.

How do you develop a viable peace plan?  How do you ensure that there are free, fair, and transparent elections? And how do you heal the wounds of this divided nation?  These are the great questions that lie before you. 

With talented and committed individuals like yourselves, this university can serve as the base for peace and reconciliation in Côte d’Ivoire.  The groups that are sent forth from this school should be forces for positive change.  They should be ambassadors of conflict resolution, not conflict creation.  They should encourage thoughtful dialogues and debates, not violent rallies and protests.  Reconciliation will come from meaningful exchanges of ideas that you can help lead.  Don’t try to shout down your opponent, listen to them, consider their perspective and allow their ideas to affect yours.

As our former President Richard Nixon said, “We cannot learn from one another until we stop shouting at one another - until we speak quietly enough so that our words can be heard as well as our voices.”

Help start the dialogue for peace and reconciliation in your country.  Bring your classmates and professors together and discuss the situation, talk about your varying perspectives, and then search for solutions.  Take these ideas to your friends, your family, and to your country’s leaders.  Engage them in the process, enlighten them with your insights, and encourage them to take action to achieve the objectives you have created. 

This is the task, which lies before you.  This is the work your country demands of you.  Shrink from this responsibility and your country will be left without one of its most valuable resources as it seeks to find its way back to peace and prosperity.  You are the hope of your country.  With this hope your country will once again be able unify and to celebrate its great diversity.  I look forward to celebrating with you. 

Thank you.