20110507
reuters

ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's Alassane Ouattara took his presidential oath on Friday, cementing his rule over the West African state in a tense ceremony conducted by an ally of ousted leader Laurent Gbagbo.

A dispute over who won a November 2010 election triggered all-out conflict between pro-Ouattara and pro-Gbagbo forces that killed thousands of people and displaced more than a million, and only eased last month with Gbagbo's arrest.

"I salute all the members of the Constitutional Council for the courageous decision that they have taken," Ouattara said after the ceremony held in a room in the presidential palace, scene of some of the worst fighting.

"It has re-established the integrity of the ballot box and given justice to the Ivorian people," he said. The swearing-in will be followed by a more lavish inauguration in the coming weeks, Ouattara's goverment has said.

The ceremony was conducted by Constitutional Council President Paul Yao N'Dre, a close Gbagbo ally who had sworn in the incumbent leader in late November after rejecting U.N.-certified results showing Ouattara won.

N'Dre, who retained his post at the top of the country's highest legal body despite Gbagbo's eventual defeat, called in a speech for Ivorians to forgive and reconcile their differences. He was heckled at times by members of the audience.

"Mr. President of the Republic, we are seeking the right words of compassion so that Ivorians and Ivory Coast can forgive in the way that they know how," he said.

The ceremony, attended by a full house of dignitaries and diplomats including the ambassador from former colonial power France, cut a stark contrast to Gbagbo's in November, a ramshackle affair attended mostly by the incumbent's young Patriot youth militia.