Gbagbo arrest in the Ivory Coast now makes fighters nothing more than criminals

I have not been in agreement with much that has come from the United Nations but I am in agreement with the U.N. chief as quoted in the CNN Wire Staff’s article titled U.N. chief: Violence in Ivory Coast must stop after Gbagbo's arrest.  It reports that “the chief of the United Nations called for President Alassane Ouattara to ensure there is no retaliation against supporters of a former leader whose refusal to step aside spurred a civil war.”  That does not cover those troops who still fight after their leaders capture.

They should be made acutely aware that continued fighting and provoking of unrest in the region means that they are now no longer considered soldiers but common criminals and shall be treated as such.  The Ivory Coast needs now to put this civil unrest in their past and concentrate on the future.  There has been enough killing and lives lost, it is now time to rebuild their country and come together for a much better future.  For those die-hard fighters who just can’t seem to accept that this fight is over, they need to face the full effect of the laws of that land and not escape responsibility for any harm that they cause directly and indirectly to those who now seek peace.  As reported in the article “according to Alain Le Roy, under-secretary-general of the U.N. Department of Peacekeeping Operations "there are pockets of resistance here and there."  The return to normalcy is what is requested by those residents still there in the country which has witnessed a civil war like no other that they have ever seen but former President Gbagbo said it best "I hope that people lay down their weapons and return to a normal state of civil rule so that the crisis can conclude as quickly as possible.”