Abstract EN:

This dissertation is a political anthropological study of democratization in the ivory coast. With the democratic process started in africa at the beginning of the 90s, the traditional authorities have been shaken by more or less violent democratic claims. It became necessary to redefine locally the relationship between various political forces at work in the country. The historic necessity of the chieftaincy is being more and more questioned in favor of democratic political parties. I have attempted in this dissertation to point out the evolution of this situation with the example of the tiembara chieftaincy, headed by the gon coulibaly oligarchic family. The foundation of this family chieftaincy is the "poro", a secret circle of initiated, which has played ever since, a central function in the senoufo ethnic group. It has conferred a sacred aspect to the chieftaincy, causing in so doing a merging of the political and the religious. By propagating a culture of submission, the "poro" reinforces the tiembara chieftaincy, and makes it the main political institution of the region, in the colonial as well as post- colonial eras. During monopartism, the pdci-rda, the only political party, and the chiefaincy have collaborated to control the politically the region. But with the advent of multipartism, affiliation of gon coulibaly family members in oppositing political parties has broken up this oligarhic family, weakening thus the previous alliance of the unique party with the chieftaincy. Multipartism has therefore weakened and compeled the chieftaincy to progressively retreat from the republican political arena, henceforth occupied by political parties. There is, as a result of this process, as secularization of the political activity among the senoufo people. This reveals the major disturbances that democratization has brought into the senoufo group, yet conservatory.