FESCI’s Structure and Organizational Culture
FESCI is a rigidly hierarchical organization consisting of a national bureau, below which sit a number of “sections” of equal rank.64 Sections are formed either by colleges within the university (i.e. criminology, modern letters, law), university residential complexes known as cités, or high schools. The national bureau is headed by a national secretary general, chosen by FESCI’s membership during elections, who in turn appoints all of the secretary generals of the various sections.65 At the base, rank-and-file members who are not part of the bureau of any section are known as “antichambrists” or “ATC.”66 Described by FESCI members interviewed as “foot soldiers,” these are the members sent out as part of mass mobilizations for protest in favor of the government, or to do the “dirty work” described below.67
Beyond the strict hierarchy, status within FESCI is often influenced by a number of informal factors. Within FESCI, there is a system of patronage whereby nearly everyone acts as protector to someone, and in turn is protected by someone else. Subordinate members who are under the political cover of a superior are referred to as a “bon petit.” 68 Being the “bon petit” of a high-ranking leader is often a ticket to a leadership position within the organization, together with the power, prominence, and often wealth, derived from the FESCI-run extortion and protection rackets that go with it. At the same time, leaders seek to maximize the number of members under their protection to extend their influence.
Outside of FESCI’s formal structure sit former influential members known as the “doyens” or “observers,” some of whom continue to live in the university residences for years after graduation.69 One doyen in particular, known as “KB,” short for Kacou Brou, is referred to by former FESCI members interviewed by Human Rights Watch as FESCI’s “military leader” and “the power behind the throne” of FESCI’s top leadership. KB is also described by former FESCI members as one of the key liaisons between FESCI’s leadership and the FPI party.70 KB is a graduate of the prestigious National School for Administration (École Nationale d’Administration, ENA), a state institution intended to produce high-level civil servants.
Divisions within the ruling FPI party are mirrored by divisions and power struggles within FESCI. According to FESCI members interviewed by Human Rights Watch, there are two primary factions within the FPI, the first influenced by Pascal Affi N’Guessan, secretary general of the party, to which “KB” and FESCI’s most recent secretaries general have been loyal. A second faction is allegedly loyal to First Lady Simone Gbagbo and Charles Blé Goudé. Late-2006 internecine violence within FESCI has been attributed to an attempt by those in the Blé Goudé camp to take control of FESCI, though Blé Goudé denied the allegations.71
In addition to intra-FPI politics, power struggles within FESCI are often motivated by the economic spoils that often come with office. Due to extortion and protection rackets that FESCI runs (described in more detail below), being secretary general of a section can be highly lucrative and therefore highly prized. As a result, internecine violence, putsches, and putsch attempts are common.72 Intra-FESCI violence during elections for the national bureau, including machete battles between rival factions, is routine.73
Since the outbreak of the crisis, but likely before, there has been an increasing militarization of FESCI’s organizational culture. Secretaries general, both at the level of the national bureau as well as individual sections, are greeted by FESCI members (and even some non-FESCI members living in student dormitories) with a military-style salute, and the statement “Yes, General, I am at attention!”74 Members are often known only by their noms de guerre, examples of which include “Che,” “Foday Sankoh,” and “Kabila.” At the entrance to FESCI’s de facto headquarters, one of the university residences known as the “Cité Rouge,” FESCI’s emblem, a raised fist, is painted in red above the words “high command.”
Augustin Mian, elected as the new secretary general of FESCI in uncontested December 2007 elections, stands outside the Cité Rouge in the Abidjan suburb of Cocody. © 2007 AFP
Why Students Join FESCI Today
Students interviewed by Human Rights Watch cite a range of reasons for membership in FESCI. Most frequently, former members cite economic incentives, including the access to free university housing, free food, and free transportation that membership in FESCI often assures, essential commodities for survival that other students must struggle to obtain.75 In an already impoverished society ravaged by conflict, and where a university diploma no longer guarantees privileged economic livelihood or a job in the civil service, one professor noted that:
When I studied at this university decades ago, there was work, so you wanted to finish school as soon as possible to get a paying job. But today, there are no jobs so there is no hurry to finish. In fact, students can make more money by staying here. Or they can make money here for a while and then possibly think about a job in the future. If there was economic hope for youth, it would weaken FESCI.76
In addition to economic incentives, other former FESCI members cited the respect and power accorded to members: “When I joined in 1998, FESCI was a way to express myself. Coming from a poor family of farmers, this gave me a way to organize, be respected, and try to solve problems.”77 As has been said in the context of another pro-government group, the Young Patriots, for many students FESCI constitutes a sort of “counter-society where students flunking out can be called ‘professor,’ and unemployed youth, thugs even, become ‘deputy’ or ‘general,’ and will be recognized as such by their peers.”78
A few students interviewed by Human Rights Watch stated frankly that they joined FESCI because they saw it as a springboard to politics: “I joined FESCI because it suited my political ambitions. They say that unions are the antechamber of politics. And my time in FESCI ripened me politically, but I came to deplore the barbarity and violence that has come to be a part of FESCI.”79
64 Each section in turn has its own executive bureau.
65 Elections are in theory held every two years. In practice, for a variety of reasons, several leaders have served more than two years.
66 The word “Antichambrist” does not have a direct translation into English. Literally, it refers to “those waiting in the antechamber.” In context, it refers to those FESCI “soldiers” who sit outside the hall of power and wait to be called into action. A member’s status as an “antichambrist” does not necessarily correspond to his age or level in school, but often suggests that an individual did not have enough interest or political clout to obtain a position as a member of the bureau of a section. Human Rights Watch interviews with former FESCI members, Abidjan, August 24 and 26 and September 28, 2007.
67 Ibid.
68 The term “bon petit,” or “good little one,” does not translate well into English, but roughly corresponds to the idea of “protégé.”
69 Human Rights Watch interviews with former FESCI members, Abidjan, August 23 and October 2.
70 According to former FESCI members interviewed by Human Rights Watch, KB allegedly liaises with Damana Pickas, a former head of the JFPI, who currently serves as a counselor to Pascal Affi N’Guessan, the head of the ruling FPI party. Pickas was a member of FESCI’s National Bureau under Guillaume Soro.
71 In late December 2006, intra-FESCI clashes on campus led to a series of machete attacks and one death. Serge Koffi, then serving as FESCI’s Secretary General, accused former FESCI leaders Charles Blé Goudé and Jean-Yves Dibopieu of supporting the “dissidents.” “Crise au sein de la Fesci: Serge Koffi, secrétaire général: ‘ Le mal c’est Blé Goudé’,” L’inter (Abidjan), January 17, 2007.
72 FESCI members interviewed by Human Rights Watch stressed however that any successful “putsch” to secure control of a section requires the approval of a doyen like KB. Human Rights Watch interviews with former FESCI members, Abidjan, September 30 and October 4, 2007.
73 One notable exception is the December 2007 elections that brought Augustin Mian to power as FESCI’s new secretary general. Some local press accounts attributed this fact to FESCI’s growing maturity as an organization. “Fédération estudiantine et scolaire de Côte d'Ivoire (FESCI) - La paix retrouvée,” Notre Voie (Abidjan), December 27, 2007. It is worth noting, however, that Mian ran unopposed and that clan rivalries and other issues of succession may have been previously settled during a December 2006 spate of campus violence. See footnote 72, infra.
74 Human Rights Watch interviews with former FESCI members, Abidjan, October 20 and 23, 2007.
75 See Criminal Control by FESCI of Key University Facilities and Services, Infra.
76 Human Rights Watch interview with professor, Abidjan, October 4, 2007.
77 Human Rights Watch interview with former FESCI member, Abidjan, August 23, 2007.
78 Richard Banégas, “Côte d'Ivoire : les jeunes ‘se lèvent en hommes’: anticolonialisme et ultranationalisme chez les Jeunes patriotes d'Abidjan,” Les études du CERI-Sciences Po, 2007.
79 Human Rights Watch interview with former FESCI member, Abidjan, October 20, 2007.