We, and many of the people in western Côte d’Ivoire we interviewed, believe this is shortsighted. Fraudulent sellers and bad-faith buyers profit greatly from their illegal acts and get off scot free; meanwhile, the true landowner pays endlessly to try to get his claim heard. Many still do not have access to their land two years after the conflict. Illegal sales will continue and cause further land conflict so long as this impunity remains. As noted at the outset, we will be publishing a report in early October. We want to best reflect the government’s position, providing it with an opportunity to respond to our main findings, in addition to the responses we received during meetings with government officials. Due to our publication timeline, we would be grateful for a written response to the below questions by September 6. • How does the government plan to address the widespread claims of land dispossession in western Côte d’Ivoire related to the post-election crisis? • What steps has the government taken or does the government plan to take in regard to the dispossession of land owned by people who are still refugees in Liberia? • What consultations have the government taken, or intend to take, before reforming the 1998 law on rural land tenure? Which population groups have been consulted to date and will be consulted in the future? • What aspects of the 1998 law on rural land tenure does the government believe need reforming, so that the law fully recognizes and protects all forms of land rights, including traditional and collective rights as well as land deemed sacred by local communities? • What steps has the government taken to begin the process of demarcating village boundaries, including in western Côte d’Ivoire? When does the government expect to have completed this process? What factors, if any, are constraining the government’s progress in demarcating village boundaries? • What financial or technical assistance has the national government provided to village and sub-prefectural land committees working to resolve claims of land dispossession? What factors, if any, are constraining the government’s ability to effectively finance and assist these committees’ work? • Does the government see a role for the criminal justice system in cases where someone has acted fraudulently in selling land that they have no claim to? If so, has the government told local authorities that they should be referring cases of potentially fraudulent land sales to the gendarmerie or judicial police? If not, what is the reluctance for involving the criminal justice system in cases of fraud and theft related to land? “THAT LAND IS MY FAMILY’S WEALTH” 100