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NEWS FROM AFRICA: 01/11/02

EVENING REPORT 01/11/02

D.R.C. POWER-SHARING SIGNING CEREMONY CANCELLED

PRETORIA: The signing of a preliminary power-sharing agreement between the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo and its main rebel foes has been cancelled. The signing was supposed to have taken place in the South African capital, Pretoria, after a meeting between President Thabo Mbeki and his Congolese and Rwandan counterparts, Joseph Kabila and Paul Kagame. Mbeki's spokesman Bheki Khumalo says the documents are not yet ready for endorsement. Under the interim agreement, Kabila will govern along with four vice-presidents selected from the ranks of the government, the rebels and the unarmed opposition.

U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY PROTESTS AT RWANDAN EXPULSIONS FROM D.R.C.

GENEVA: The United Nations refugee agency has protested to the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo over the forced repatriation to neighbouring Rwanda of several members of a rebel group. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says this constitutes a grave violation of the basic refugee principles enshrined in the 1951 refugee convention. The complaint from the U.N. agency came amid claims from both the D.R.C. and Rwanda that the repatriations were carried out by South Africa, which plays a key role as mediator in efforts to bring about a political settlement in the Congo after the end of more than three years of war.

IVORY COAST PEACE TALKS RESUME IN TOGO

LOME: Peace talks aimed at ending six weeks of bloody unrest in Ivory Coast have resumed in Togo's capital, Lome, without two members of the rebel negotiating team. Sources say Sergeant Sherif Usman and Master Sergeant Tuo Fozie returned to their stronghold of Bouake in central Ivory Coast to update their supporters on the negotiations and to deal with the administration of the territory under their control. The two Ivorian sides issued a statement late yesterday, after their second day of negotiations, reaffirming their commitment to a ceasefire by pledging to refrain from what they called aggressive acts.

BURUNDI TUTSI OPPOSITION LEADERS ARRESTED

BUJUMBURA: Security forces in Burundi have arrested top officials of the main Tutsi opposition party and searched and cordoned off the house of its leader. Party officials say the spokesman of the Party for National Recovery, Zenon Nimubona, was arrested last week. They say the Secretary General Leonidas Ntakaye, Permanent Secretary Christophe Hicintuka and Political Bureau member Beniot Ndorimana were arrested this morning. Witnesses say gendarmes also threw a cordon around the house of PARENA leader Jean-Baptiste Bagaza this morning. Bagaza ruled Burundi for more than 10 years after a coup in 1976. A security force source says PARENA was trying to organise a mutiny in the army.

SOMALI FACTION LEADER URGES RIVALS TO AGREE TO LANDMINE BAN

ELDORET: Somali faction leader Hussein Mohamed Aidid has urged rival warlords in Somalia to agree to a total ban on the use of landmines. Aidid says mostly women and children are the victims of landmines, adding it has brought terrible human losses to nomads in war affected areas. He said the International Committee of the Red Cross gave little help to landmine victims. Somalia has not had a fully functional government and has been ruled by clan warlords since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991. Observers say weapons of all kinds can be purchased freely at Mogadishu's weapons markets, while thousands more are imported into the country by the major clan and sub-clan warlords.

UGANDA ACCUSED OF WORSENING PLIGHT OF CIVILIANS

KAMPALA: New York-based Human Rights Watch, or HRW, has accused the Ugandan government of worsening the plight of civilians affected by an insurgency in the country's north by forcing them into squalid camps. The HRW says where the security of civilians is at stake or if military reasons require them to be displaced, they must be held under satisfactory conditions. According to Ugandan government figures, about 800-thousand people in the northern districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Pade, Apach and Lira have been forced to move into camps where the government says it can better protect them from attacks by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army.

50 INMATES DIE, 89 INJURED IN A PRISON FIRE IN MOROCCO

EL JADIDA: A fire has ripped through an overcrowded Moroccan prison, killing at least 50 inmates and injuring 89 people. Government officials say six of the injured are in intensive care and are reported to be in a critical condition. This is believed to be the worst fire ever at a Moroccan jail. The Communication Ministry says the cause of the blaze at Sidi Moussa prison, on the northern outskirts of the Atlantic coast city of El Jadida, is not immediately known. El Jadida is about 170 kilometres south of the capital Rabat. The jail, which has a capacity for one-thousand inmates, was holding more than one-thousand prisoners at the time of the blaze.

LIFE IN CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC CAPITAL PICKS UP

BANGUI: Residents of the Central African Republic capital, Bangui, have cautiously resumed their routine activities, two days after rebels were driven out by pro-government forces. The government in neighbouring Chad yesterday, urged President Ange Felix Patasse to halt the mass arrests of Chadian nationals living in his country. The Ndjamena government alleged that Patasse's presidential guards yesterday massacred between 80 and 120 Chadians amid allegations that Chad had been involved in the six-day uprising. The rebellion was launched last Friday by supporters of renegade former army chief General Francois Bozize, who was dismissed by Patasse last year and has gone into exile in France after fleeing to Chad.

U.N. AGENCY WARNS OF DETERIORATING CONDITIONS IN D.R.C

GENEVA: The United Nations relief coordination body says relief agencies are being kept out of parts of northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo where the humanitarian situation is deteriorating rapidly. The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has appealed to the international community to press for better access to the region. This comes as the Congolese government and rebel groups in the area inch towards a power-sharing pact. The Congolese government and two rebel groups started fighting in the northeast in 1998. They have agreed in principle to set up an interim government to take the country to democratic elections.

ERITREA SAYS NO TROOPS MASSING ON SUDAN BORDER

ASMARA: Eritrea has denied accusations it is massing forces near its border with Sudan, which Khartoum says are preparing for an attack and supporting rebels in eastern Sudan. The director of the president's office Yermane Gebremeskels says the accusations are baseless. Sudan says Eritrea is directly supporting the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army, or SPLA, despite a ceasefire agreement between Khartoum and the rebels. The truce is supposed to last for the duration of peace talks in the Kenyan town of Machakos aimed at ending Sudan's 19-year-old war between the government in the north and the southern SPLA.

S.A. MINISTER CALLS ON PEOPLE TO HELP APPREHEND BOMBERS

BISHO: South Africa's Justice Minister Penuell Maduna has called on members of the public to assist police in catching the perpetrators of nine bomb blasts in Soweto outside Johannesburg, and another in Bronkhorstspruit outside Pretoria. Asked about progress into the investigations surrounding the bombings, Maduna said the authorities were hoping for a speedy breakthrough.

BURUNDIAN POLICE SEARCH HOUSE OF FORMER MILITARY RULER

BUJUMBURA: Burundi's former military ruler says police have searched his home accusing him of stockpiling weapons in preparation for a coup attempt. Colonel Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, who currently leads a Tutsi opposition party, says no weapons or documents linking him to a planned coup were found by the police, who allegedly forced him aside and searched his house despite his objections. Bagaza says however, police did confiscate his mobile phone and some documents. Neither police nor government officials were immediately available for comment.

FOUR RARE MOUNTAIN GORILLAS KILLED IN EASTERN CONGO

KIGALI: Rwandan officials and conservationists say four rare mountain gorillas have been killed and a young female orphaned in eastern Congo. Rwandan police say two of the gorillas were discovered when two poachers led Rwandan and Congolese authorities to the dead animals. The poachers - who have admitted to killing the gorillas and snatching a young female - were arrested early last month after three men were caught by police attempting to sell the young primate for 20-thousand dollars. There are only about 650 mountain gorillas in the world. Some 350 of these are found in the national parks in the Virunga Mountains. The others live in a separate national park in Uganda.

S.A. GROUP PREPARES NEW DIAMOND SALES STRATEGY

LONDON: South African diamond giant De Beers is preparing to introduce a new sales system making its dealings more transparent as part of a strategy to transform itself into a modern competitive player. The South African group, which controls more than 60 percent of the rough diamond trade, is awaiting the green light from the European Commission for its so-called supplier-of-choice strategy. The strategy seeks to modernise the group's secretive dealings with established diamond distributors, known as sightholders. By doing so, the South African company also hopes to shed its image as a cartel, which means that it is banned from selling directly in the United States because of anti-trust concerns.

ZIMBABWE'S PRESIDENT ORDERS PRIVATE COMPANIES TO IMPORT FUEL

HARARE: President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe says his government will no longer procure fuel for the country, in a move analysts have dubbed an admission of failure of fuel procurement policies. The Herald newspaper has quoted Mugabe as telling a gathering of businessmen that his government will no longer crack their heads over procuring fuel for resale by foreign companies. The secretary of economic affairs in the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, Eddie Cross, has said that Mugabe's statement was an admission of failure. Cross said Mugabe's statement signalled the government's special relationship with Libya was no longer functioning. Zimbabwe currently receives 70 per cent of its fuel imports from Libya.

ZAMBIAN POLICE LAUNCH MANHUNT FOR FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER

LUSAKA: Zambian police have launched a manhunt for the former foreign minister after he failed to testify before a task force investigating the plunder of government money. Former Foreign Minister Katele Kalumba had been given until midnight last night to appear before the task force after he failed to show up for a week. Kalumba, a holdover from former president Frederick Chiluba's administration, resigned as foreign minister in July amid allegations he illegally used more than 625-thousand dollars of government money to finance a ruling party convention. Zambia's President Levy Mwanawasa has pressed investigations into corruption in his predecessor's administration.

MALAWI POLICE FIRE TEARGAS TO STOP PROTEST MARCH

BLANTYRE: Malawi riot police have fired teargas to stop a protest march in the commercial capital, Blantyre, against a third term bid by President Bakili Muluzi. This came after rival supporters appeared to be heading for a clash with the marchers. Officials say the demonstration was organised by the new political grouping, the Forum for the Defence of the Constitution, or FDC. The FDC said it had received a nod from the police to go ahead with the demonstration. The FDC seeks to mobilise the masses against Muluzi's bid for a third term in office. It also wants to engage the Malawian government in dialogue over practices that threaten the constitution, democracy and human rights.

ISLAMIC REBELS IN ALGERIA KILL 8 PEOPLE

ALGIERS: Suspected Islamic rebels in Algeria have killed eight people at the village of BOUKAAT SIDI BOUAISSA in CHLEF province, about 170-kilometres west of the capital of Algiers. Officials gave no details about the massacre. The atrocity is the second in Chlef in six days. More than a hundred-thousand people have been killed in civil strife in Algeria since 1992.

YUGOSLAV MINISTER CONFIRMS ONE ARMS DELIVERY TO LIBERIA

BELGRADE: Yugoslav's interior minister has confirmed that at least one illegal delivery of weapons was made to Liberia in August in breach of United Nations sanctions. Minister Zoran Zivkovic says he is aware that a local private company has sent one plane-load of weapons to Liberia. However, he could not confirm UN allegations that six shipments of weapons had been made between June and August. Zivkovic says an investigation into the company is underway. An arms embargo was imposed on Liberia more than two years by the UN Security Council.

Prepared in Johannesburg, South Africa, by Mbulelo Dlamini Maqhubu and Micel Schnehage.


MIDDAY REPORT 01.11.2002

ISLAMIC REBELS KILL EIGHT PEOPLE IN ALGERIA

ALGIERS: Suspected Islamic rebels in Algeria have killed eight people at the village of BOUKAAT SIDI BOUAISSA in CHLEF province, about 170-kilometres west of the capital of Algiers. Officials gave no details about the massacre. The atrocity is the second in Chlef in six days. More than a hundred-thousand people have been killed in civil strife in Algeria since 1992.

LIBERIA IS BREAKING UN SANCTIONS: UN

UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations has accused the Liberian government of violating an arms embargo. The sanctions were imposed on Liberia by the U.N. Security Council more than two years ago. The U.N. said the country received ammunition and weapons totalling over two-hundred tonnes in July, August and September this year. The arms had originated from Yugoslavia. The U.N. also found that weapons continue to reach the rebel group, Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy. The U.N. said the arms could only have come via the neighbouring states of Guinea, the Ivory Coast or Sierra Leone. The rebels are engaged in a war against the Liberian government.

US CLOSES ITS EMBASSY IN BANGUI

BANGUI: The American State Department has closed the U.S. embassy in Bangui in the Central African Republic and has ordered its diplomats to leave. The State Department said it had taken the steps because of a fluid and uncertain security situation in Bangui, despite the retaking of the capital by government troops backed by Libyan forces. The department said that looting, including intrusions into private homes, had been reported during the fighting for the capital and the telephone service was unreliable.

DEBATE CONTINUES ABOUT PEER REVIEW MECHANISM

JOHANNESBURG: Observers say there is still debate around statements by South African President Thabo Mbeki and his Deputy-President, Jacob Zuma, on the peer review mechanism among African states. The Office of the Presidency issued a statement to clarify what some saw as a contradiction between the two leaders. It said political reviews would be conducted within the African Union, while economic governance would be reviewed under the New Partnership for Africa's Development, or NEPAD. However, the Director of the Centre for Africa's International Relations at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, Dr Chris Landsberg, says more clarity is necessary. He says peer review is almost the hallmark of NEPAD.

NO PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE IN SOUTH AFRICAN SCHOOLS

CAPE TOWN: The South African Department of Education has rejected a proposal that pupils take an oath of national allegiance at schools, similar to the practice in America. South African Education Minister Kader Asmal says the recommendation that pupils vow loyalty at school assemblies is contained in the report of a working group of values in education. However, he says his department decided not to take it up, as some feel that such practices do not elicit appreciation of the values of the Constitution. However, Asmal says South African schools are free to have pledges, which they can write themselves.

NEW TECHNICAL DIRECTOR FOR SOUTH AFRICAN FOOTBALL

JOHANNESBURG: A Brazilian professor, Marcos Falopa, has been appointed Technical Director of football by the South African Football Association, or SAFA. He is a former technical director of football at the Confederation of the North, Central American and Caribbean Football Association. He is also a FIFA Technical Adviser and has conducted coaching courses for the world body. Falopa believes he will work beyond his four-year contract with SAFA which expires in 2006.


MORNING REPORT 01.11.2002

CENTRAL AFRICAN TROOPS HAVE KILLED CHADIANS: N'DJAMENA

N'DJAMENA: The Chadian government has alleged that between 80 and 120 Chadians have been massacred by presidential guards in Bangui in the Central African Republic. It said the slaughter was led by Central African Army Colonel, Abdoulaye Miskine. The alleged massacre came as the army in Bangui crushed a rebellion. The uprising erupted on Friday last week. It was conducted by supporters of renegade army chief Francois Bozize. The government in Bangui has accused neighbouring Chad of being involved in the rebellion, an allegation Ndjamena denies. Relations between the two countries have been tense since Bozize fled to Chad late last year, after being dismissed from his key army post.

LIBERIAN CONFLICT COULD SPREAD

BRUSSELS: The International Crisis Group, says the Liberian civil war is threatening to spread to neighbours Sierra Leone and Guinea. It says Liberia's internal situation is key to ending regional instability, with continued fighting there putting the hard-won peace in Sierra Leone in jeopardy. It says while pressure, including extended United Nations sanctions, should be maintained on Monrovia, the international community should also seek a negotiated solution aimed at ending Liberia's conflict.

IVORIAN REBELS AND GOVERNMENT TO CONTINUE TALKS

LOME: Ivorian rebels and government negotiators are due to return to peace talks in the Togolese capital today. The parties to the talks have been holding negotiations for two days that observers say have consolidated a 15-day-old truce, but have achieved little else. Yesterday, the two sides were expected to discuss weighty problems such as rebel disarmament and the demand by the insurgents for new elections. But the two sides did not even hold a planned face-to-face meeting. Instead, they remained in separate rooms at the negotiating venue, wrangling over a list of items to be addressed. They were eventually able to sign a statement saying they would avoid warlike acts which could threaten the ceasefire.

SOUTH AFRICA TO COMBAT URBAN TERROR

CAPE TOWN: The South African parliament has approved of four bills that will enhance the operations of the South African intelligence services. Officials say the government has invested a great deal of time to help the country cope with urban terrorism. The passing of the bills comes after a spate of bomb blasts in Soweto, near Johannesburg and outside of Pretoria. Right-wingers are believed to be behind the blasts. South African Explosives expert Mark Hofmeyr says the bombs used were not sophisticated and are easy to manufacture.

CONGOLESE GOVERNMENT AND REBELS TO SIGN ACCORD

PRETORIA: The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo and its main rebel foes, the Congolese Liberation Movement and the Congolese Rally for Democracy, are due to sign a preliminary agreement on power-sharing today. The parties to the talks have agreed to establish an interim government to take Congo into elections. Under that consensus, President Joseph Kabila will govern along with four vice-presidents selected from the ranks of the government, the rebels and the unarmed opposition. The Congolese government and rebels have been holding talks in South Africa under the auspices of the United Nations. Negotiations are due to resume in South Africa on the 15th of this month. Meanwhile, the Mai-Mai rebel faction in Congo has joined other groups in accepting the proposed power-sharing deal for a transitional government. They say they want one of four vice-presidency posts.

SUDAN COY ABOUT ROTATING PRESIDENCY

KHARTOUM: Sudan's first vice president has played down the prospects of a rotating presidency for an interim period as part of a peace deal between the government and southern rebels. Ali Osman Taha had been asked about the prospects of a rotating presidency between incumbent Omar al-Beshir and Sudan People's Liberation Army leader John Garang during a six-year interim period. A senior presidential aide on the peace process, Dhieu Mathok, meanwhile, said the ongoing talks in Machakos, Kenya had moved on to the issue of the sharing of resources between Khartoum and southern Sudan.

GRAIN HARVESTS IN CENTRAL AFRICA TO FALL

LAGOS: A regional drought monitoring group says grain harvests in seven countries along the southern edge of the Sahara desert are expected to fall by three percent this year. The Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought says despite the small drop, it is satisfied overall with the current growing season. It says Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad managed to grow a grain surplus because of good rains. Cape Verde, Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania have suffered a long drought, hurting their harvests. Burkina's agriculture ministry said the return of thousands of its citizens who are fleeing unrest in neighbouring Ivory Coast should not affect the country's food situation.

NURSES LEAVE SOUTH AFRICA IN DROVES

JOHANNESBURG: South African Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang says emigration of South African nurses has increased dramatically since 2000, resulting in a serious shortage locally. Tshabalala-Msimang says certain developed countries have launched active recruitment drives and the emigration of qualified nurses now poses a threat to service delivery in South Africa. According to existing posts, there is a 24 percent shortage of nurses in South Africa. The nurses have left South Africa in search of better pay and working conditions abroad.

SOUTH AFRICA WANTS TO HOST THE 2010 FOOTBALL WORLD CUP

JOHANNESBURG: The South African Football Association has formally endorsed plans to bid for the right to host the 2010 Football World Cup finals. The decision follows reports that Egypt were to enter the race to host the games, despite previously having agreed with the South Africans that they would stay out of the bidding process. Libya and Morocco have also indicated they will enter the bidding process. Africa is due to host the tournament under FIFA's rotation policy.

Source: Channel Africa


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