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| - Sporadic protests broke out on Thursday in Abidjan, Ivory Coast's economic hub, as demonstrators defying a ban voiced anger at President Alassane Ouattara's bid for a third term in office. Groups of demonstrators erected barricades and burned tyres in various parts of the city in response to a call from the opposition and civil society groups, AFP journalists saw. "His candidacy is against the constitution -- we don't want a third term," said protester Herve Seka in Abidjan's Anono district. The authorities announced a ban on the protest late Wednesday, in a communique issued by the minister of territorial administration, Sidiki Diakite, and read on state television. Ouattara, 78, announced a week ago that he would contest the October 31 presidential elections, a move that came after his anointed successor, Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly, died of a heart attack last month. The announcement sparked fury among Ouattara's critics, as he has already served two terms and can only contest a third by arguing that a constitutional change entitles him to reset the clock. The vote is taking place in a country still scarred by a low-level civil war that erupted in 2011 when former strongman Laurent Gbagbo refused to cede power to Ouattara after losing elections. The ensuing unrest claimed some 3,000 lives and split the country along north-south lines. In the Abidjan district of Yopougon, police fired teargas and chased protestors down narrow streets. A protest gathering several dozen people took place in Port Bouet, a seaside area, while a heavy deployment of riot police maintained order in the upscale district of Cocody, where many top politicians live, including Ouattara. The situation was tense in Bonoua, 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of Abidjan, where demonstrators blocking the main road to Ghana faced off with police. ck/ri/gd
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