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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 31-05-2001

PART #4/4 - From SUDAN to ZIMBABWE

* Sudan. Sudan to halt air strikes — The Sudanese Government says it is halting its air strikes against rebels in the south of the country and in the Nuba mountains. An announcement on state radio said the move is intended to promote peace, and the government hoped for an immediate response from the rebels, and support from the international community. The statement says that the ceasefire will come into force on 25 May. A spokesman for the rebel group the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army dismisses the government statement as a lie. The statement does say that the pledge will not violate «the rights of the armed forces to protect its members and their supply lines». Nevertheless the armed forces back the decision to end the bombing. However, on 24 May, the government bombs Tonj in the Bahr el Ghazal region. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 25 May 2001)

* Soudan. Offensive aux monts Nouba — Depuis le 24 mai, l’armée gouvernementale conduit une offensive dans la zone des monts Nouba (centre du Soudan, Kordofan méridional), rapporte l’agence Misna. L’attaque a été engagée à l’artillerie lourde. Il y aurait des victimes parmi les civils, contraints à fuir les villages et à trouver des abris de fortune. La situation reste confuse et la zone est quasiment isolée. La piste aérienne utilisée par les agences humanitaires, située dans la plaine entre Kauda et Gidel, aurait été conquise par les forces gouvernementales. Les rebelles du SPLA ne sont pas assez nombreux pour contrer l’attaque et ils se trouveraient dans l’impossibilité de recevoir des renforts. Des violents combats sont en effet également en cours dans la zone du Upper Nile, riche région pétrolifère située à quelque 200 km au sud-est des monts Nouba. (Misna, Italie, 28 mai 2001)

* Sudan. Peace talks planned — The Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir, and the main rebel leader, John Garang of the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), are to attend a summit aimed at ending the country’s 18 year civil war. The peace summit, organised by the regional Inter-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) is due to take place in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, in June. It will be the first such summit between the two leaders since 1997. They are expected to be joined by leaders from Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti. (BBC News, UK, 28 May 2001)

* Soudan. Campagne contre l’exploitation pétrolière — Le 28 mai, une cinquantaine d’organisations humanitaires européennes ont lancé une campagne pour la suspension immédiate des activités des compagnies pétrolières au Soudan, pour protester contre la guerre et les violations des droits de l’homme dans ce pays. Elles appellent les compagnies étrangères à s’abstenir de toute activité “jusqu’à ce qu’un accord de paix soit signé, et à dénoncer toute violation des droits humains, tels que les bombardements de cibles civiles et les déplacements forcés”. Les organisations demandent aussi à l’Union européenne de promouvoir l’interdiction temporaire de tout investissement d’entreprises européennes dans le secteur pétrolier au Soudan, et aux Etats membres de veiller à ce que les entreprises de leur pays n’investissent pas, tant que la paix ne sera pas revenue. “Les revenus du pétrole alimentent une guerre qui a déjà fait 2 millions de morts”, conclut le communiqué. Le groupe TotalFinaElf, mis en cause par le Secours catholique/Caritas France, a affirmé n’avoir aujourd’hui aucune activité industrielle au Soudan et que sa concession dans ce pays était gelée. (D’après AFP, France, 28 mai 2001)

* Soudan. El-Tourabi en résidence surveillée — Le 29 mai, l’opposant islamiste Hassan el-Tourabi a été libéré de prison, après plus de trois mois de détention, et assigné à résidence dans une maison appartenant à l’Etat. M. Tourabi avait été arrêté le 21 février, avec plusieurs cadres de son parti, et maintenu depuis cette date en détention dans la prison de Cooper, à Khartoum. (Le Figaro, France, 31 mai 2001)

* Tanzanie. Réfugiés burundais — Le HCR affirme que la meilleure solution pour les réfugiés est qu’ils rentrent chez eux et qu’ils recommencent leur vie, “mais ce rapatriement ne peut avoir lieu si les conditions dans leur pays d’origine sont incertaines et peu sûres”, a déclaré la responsable des relations extérieures du HCR à Dar es-Salaam. “Dans le cas du Burundi, nous continuons d’accueillir des réfugiés en provenance de ce pays, qui témoignent des combats, des attaques et du climat d’insécurité. Nous ne pouvons pas renvoyer des gens vers un tel contexte”. La semaine dernière, le président tanzanien Mkapa avait ordonné le rapatriement “à tout prix” des réfugiés burundais résidant en Tanzanie. Il avait déclaré à la délégation du Conseil de sécurité de l’Onu en visite à Dar es-Salaam qu’il en avait assez des accusations incessantes selon lesquelles son pays abritait des rebelles du Burundi. (IRIN, Nairobi, 29 mai 2001)

* Chad. Mass Media centre gutted by fire — A raging fire has gutted the Audio-Visual Centre (SAVE) of the diocese of Sarh (Southern Chad). There were no casualties, but the origin of the fire is unclear. It seems it may have been a short circuit and there is significant damage. Precious video documentation, including recent footage of various festivals such as the Fespaco of Ouagadougou, was lost. SAVE is also home to Chad’s only digital registration studio, where numerous local musicians record their work. (Misna, Italy, 24 May 2001)

* Tchad. Déby, réélu, accusé de fraude — 24 mai. Selon ses partisans, le président Idriss Déby serait arrivé en tête dès le premier tour de l’élection présidentielle avec un score de 65 à 70% des voix. Un quasi-plébiscite, annoncé triomphalement par le parti de Déby et les 28 partis qui lui sont alliés. Ils ont cependant reconnu quelques “difficultés d’ordre technique et organisationnel”. La veille, les six candidats de l’opposition avaient dénoncé “une fraude massive” et des intimidations fréquentes au cours du scrutin, tout en annonçant la victoire du président de la Fédération action pour la République (FAR), le député Ngarledjy Yorongar. La commission électorale a jusqu’au 3 juin pour proclamer les résultats officiels. - Le 27 mai, huit membres de la Commission électorale nationale indépendante (CENI ), proches de l’opposition, ont démissionné à quelques heures de la proclamation des résultats de l’élection présidentielle, qui devait intervenir dans la soirée. Ils entendaient protester ainsi contre les irrégularités du scrutin. – Dans la nuit, la CENI a annoncé que le président Déby avait été réélu dès le premier tour avec 67,35% des suffrages exprimés. M. Yorongar a obtenu 13,94% des voix. Le matin du 28 mai, les six candidats de l’opposition, qui s’étaient réunis pour déterminer leur stratégie face à cette élection entachée selon eux de “fraude massive”, ont été interpellés par la police, puis relâchés quelques heures plus tard. Selon AP, quatre jeunes militants de l’opposition ont été tués. Dans la soirée, une certaine tension était encore perceptible dans quelques quartiers de la capitale. Le Conseil constitutionnel a jusqu’au 18 juin pour valider les résultats, qui peuvent faire l’objet de recours par les candidats dans un délai de cinq jours. - Le 30 mai, la tension restait vive à N’Djamena. Les six candidats malheureux ont à nouveau été interpellés par la police en compagnie de leurs directeurs de campagne, alors qu’ils se préparaient à organiser une marche à l’occasion des obsèques d’un jeune militant. Au total, les interpellations se chiffreraient à une trentaine, dont le président de l’Union des syndicats du Tchad. La France a appelé les responsables à faire preuve de retenue. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 31 mai 2001)

* Chad. Opposition say elections fraudulent — 24 May: The six opposition candidates who took part in the 20 May elections in the central African state of Chad have issued a joint statement saying the result will be tarnished by what they claim was massive fraud. The candidates are threatening to call for an annulment because they say electoral constituencies and voter lists were drawn up inaccurately to favour President Idriss Deby. Foreign observers say the vote appeared fair, despite problems delivering election materials in a country which has few metalled roads outside the capital. President Deby who seized power in a military coup in 1990 looks set to win a second five-year term, during which Chad is expected to reap the benefits of new oil fields in the south-west of the country. Results are still being counted but the process could take up to another week. 28 May: The Independent National Electoral Commission says Idriss Deby has taken 67.35% of the vote, well ahead of his nearest rivals. Ngarlejy Yorongar, of the Republic Action Federation, wins 13.94% of the vote, while journalist-turned-politician Saleh Kabzabo takes 6.53%. Opposition candidates have five days to appeal the results. The country’s constitutional council has until 18 June to confirm the electoral commission’s figures. Turnout was just over 80% in the 20 May election. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 May 2001)

* Tunisie. Opposants libérés — Deux membres de formations politiques tunisiennes interdites ont été élargis ces derniers jours, a-t-on appris le 29 mai auprès de leur avocate Me Radhia Nasraoui. L’étudiant Béchir Abid, condamné en juillet 1999 à un an et demi de prison ferme pour appartenance au Parti communiste ouvrier tunisien, a bénéficié d’une mesure de libération conditionnelle. Haroun Mbarek, membre du mouvement islamiste Ennahda (dissous), a été libéré le 26 mai sous condition. Ces mesures font suite à la libération, il y a une dizaine de jours, de l’avocat Nejib Hosni qui, condamné à huit ans de prison, avait bénéficié d’une mesure de grâce présidentielle. (AP, 29 mai 2001)

* Uganda. Museveni’s final tasks — Having been sworn in for a second five-year term of office as President, this is, constitutionally, Mr Museveni’s last term, and two days before he was sworn in, the President promised that he would not have the Constitution amended to give himself another term. The President had made the same promise while campaigning for the Office. In the next five years, more efforts will have to be made to raise the level of growth. Uganda achieved high growth rates between 1986 and 1996/97, but it has now somewhat stagnated. Secondly, a special focus needs to be made on corruption because it can undermine all the achievements so far recorded. Alongside this, President Museveni needs to address the question of unemployment. As for rebel activities in the mid-west and in northern Uganda, everything must be done to restore normalcy and save resources being spent fighting the rebels. (The East African, Kenya, 14-20 May 2001)

* Uganda. The NRM seeks ANC advice — The National Resistance Movement (NRM) is seeking South African African National Congress (ANC) expertise to help it in institutional reforms and develop it as a viable political organisation. A delegation from the NRM led by its Director of International Affairs, Ali Kivejinja, held three days of talks from 14 May, with his counterpart in the ANC, Mavivi Myakayaka Manzini. The NRM visited various ANC departments, including the Elections Unit, the Independent Election Commission and the Bureau of International Affairs. According to a press statement released by the ANC‘s media liaison office, Nomfanelo Kota, both groups discussed the strategy of building and developing political organisations. Both wanted to harmonise their positions on global issues, such as debt relief, improving terms of trade, improving the access of developing countries to developed countries and democracy. This is the first of a series of consultative meetings which will develop into more high level contacts between, the NRM‘s National Political Commissar, and the ANC‘s Secretary-General. (Crespo Sebunya, ANB-BIA, Uganda, 22 May 2001)

* Ouganda/Congo-RDC. 2ème phase de retrait — La seconde phase du retrait de l’armée ougandaise de la RDC devait commencer le 29 mai dans la ville de Gemena, au nord-ouest du pays, a rapporté le journal semi-officiel New Vision. “Nos unités stationnées à Gemena sont en cours de retrait. Le dernier contingent pourrait se retirer plus tard cette semaine”, a déclaré le porte-parole de l’armée. En février dernier, le septième bataillon s’était retiré de Gemena, mais quelques unités étaient restées sur place pour garder l’aéroport. “L’opération de retrait progresse selon le calendrier”, a ajouté le porte-parole. (IRIN, Nairobi, 29 mai 2001)

* Uganda. Ugandan captives fly home — A group of young Ugandans, who had been held captive by Ugandan rebels in southern Sudan, has been flown home after several years in captivity. Thousands of Ugandan children have been abducted over the past 20 years by the Ugandan rebel group, the Lord’s Resistance Army. And many children have been forced to carry arms and work as sex slaves. Today’s repatriation has again highlighted the problems facing African children in war-torn regions. The 18 adults and nine children repatriated today are part of a deal between Sudan and Uganda signed two years ago to normalise relations and repatriate abducted Ugandans. (BBC News, UK, 30 May 2001)

* Zambia. Ruling party splits — Political divisions in Zambia have led to the formation of a new political party to challenge President Frederick Chiluba’s Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD). About 80 senior members of the MMD have resigned from the party’s executive national committee and say they will eventually switch to the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD). The split has come about as a result of the damaging debate about whether President Chiluba should stand for a third term. The FDD will challenge the MMD in the presidential elections later this year. Responding to the move, MMD national secretary Michael Sata said it was time for faithful members of the party to stand up and be counted. (BBC News, UK, 25 May 2001)

* Zambie. Mgr Milingo se marie — L’ancien archevêque catholique zambien, Mgr Emmanuel Milingo, 71 ans, s’est marié le dimanche 27 mai à New York, au cours d’une cérémonie présidée par le chef de la secte Moon, tout en réaffirmant son attachement à la religion catholique. Il a épousé une Sud-Coréenne de 43 ans, médecin, qui a été choisie pour lui par le révérend Moon Sun Myung. Ancien archevêque de Lusaka, guérisseur et exorciste, Mgr Milingo avait été rappelé à Rome en 1983. Relevé en 1999 d’un poste de responsable d’un organisme vatican, il n’avait plus aucune charge. Réaction du Vatican: “Mgr Milingo s’est mis lui-même hors de l’Eglise catholique”. (D’après AFP, France, 27-30 mai 2001)

* Zambia. Archbishop Milingo «exchanges vows» — Emmanuel Milingo, 71, former Archbishop of Lusaka, has exchanged vows with a Korean acupuncture practitioner in the ballroom of a prominent New York hotel. «After a lifetime of devotion to the church and to my priestly vows, the Lord has called me to take a step that will change my life forever,» he said. With uncharacteristic understatement he added: «I expect [it] will alter my relationship with the Roman Catholic church as well.» The former archbishop of Lusaka and Maria Sung, 43, were one of 60 couples joined in wedlock by the Rev Sun Myung-moon, whose Unification church, also known as the Moonies, has been accused of tax evasion and brain-washing. Milingo did not convert to the Unification church and said he would remain a Catholic: «I offer my eternal gratitude and respect to the holy father, Pope John Paul II. I am and always will be devoted to the church that I love.» Hours before the ceremony a Vatican spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, appealed to the bishop not to go ahead and, trying to limit the damage, stressed that Milingo had not held posts in the dioceses or in the Holy See’s civil service for some time. He plans to take his bride to Africa to work with the sick and poor. He said his heart was heavy for those who did not understand his decision but that he was filled with joy at the opportunity to «freely use all of the gifts God has given me in his service once again». (The Guardian, UK, 28 May 2001)

* Zambia. «A Reminder to us of our own fragility in faith» — The following is a Statement by the Catholic Bishops in Zambia on the defection of the former Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo from the Catholic Church. «We, the Catholic Bishops in Zambia are deeply saddened and pained by the defection of Archbishop Milingo in his attempt to marry in the Moon Sect. For a long time we have tried to reach out to Archbishop Milingo, who has unfortunately rejected our regular and honest advice. Other people in the Church, including the Holy Father, have tried to reach out to him, but he took this advice as a form of persecution. In spite of all the efforts made by us and others, he decided to go on with his plan to marry, thereby turning his back on the Catholic Church. By doing this, the former Archbishop has put himself outside the Catholic Church. This implies that he is no longer a Bishop nor part of the Catholic Church. The former Archbishop has betrayed his vows by attempting marriage while still under his priestly commitments. The defection of the former Archbishop should not come as a surprise to us. Even among the apostles one of them did fall. His act portrays his failure to abide by sound apostolic tradition, which suddenly induced him not to perceive the advice from so many and not to discern the truth. He rather portrayed the others as not understanding his actions. We feel deep sympathy for the many people who put their trust in the former Archbishop and now feel betrayed and abandoned by his action. A challenge for them now is to make a right choice by committing themselves to follow Jesus Christ, who has the words of eternal life, rather than anyone else. The action by the former archbishop is a reminder to us of our own fragility in faith. It should therefore make us humble. Left to ourselves, without deep faith in Christ, we remain fragile and open to sin. However, the defection of any one of us does not change the Church of Jesus Christ, as it continues to bring His teaching and sacraments to the world. Finally, we invite all Christians to continue praying for the former Archbishop in the hope that he will decide to repent and come back to the Church». (Bishops of Zambia, 29 May 2001)

* Zambia. Chief Justice to probe ministers over graft — On 29 May, Chief Justice Matthews Ngulube said he would appoint a tribunal to investigate allegations of corruption against three ministers. The ministers are alleged to have used 2 billion kwacha ($700,000) meant for road repairs to finance elections within the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy in April. Those involved are Finance Minister Katele Kalumba, Home Affairs Minister Peter Machungwa and Works and Supply Minister Godden Mandandi. The case is a major embarrassment to President Frederick Chiluba, who is still trying to reunite the country after a divisive campaign by his supporters to keep him in office beyond the legal mandate of 10 years, which expires later this year. The case is already being probed by the Anti-Corruption Commission, which does not have prosecution powers, at the request of Speaker of the National Assembly Amusaa Mwanamwambwa. The tribunal will determine whether the ministers breached the parliamentary and ministerial code of conduct in their handling of the cash. They will lose their parliamentary seats and cabinet posts if they are found guilty, law experts said. (CNN, USA, 29 May 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Le problème des expropriations — Le 24 mai, les fermiers blancs et des financiers privés associés ont proposé de donner un million d’hectares de surfaces agricoles pour qu’elles soient distribuées à des familles noires sans terre, dans l’espoir de sortir de l’impasse sur le projet agraire. Le groupe qui s’est baptisé “Initiative conjointe pour le repeuplement du Zimbabwe”, a affirmé que ces terres étaient immédiatement disponibles, promettant que les fermiers aideraient les familles concernées par leurs conseils techniques et leur matériel. Il a aussi promis que le Syndicat des fermiers blancs (CFU), qui représente quelque 4.500 personnes, abandonnerait toutes les poursuites judiciaires contre le gouvernement concernant les projets d’expropriation de 3.000 fermes appartenant à des Blancs. L’offre a été soumise au vice-président Joseph Msika, président de la commission gouvernementale de repeuplement. (AP, USA, 24 mai 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Moving to break deadlock over land — A group calling itself the Zimbabwe Joint Resettlement Initiative said on 17 May it had offered the government 1m hectares of uncontested white-owned farmland for resettlement in an effort to break a deadlock over seizure of farm land. The group says 20,000 families could be resettled on the land offered while it would provide Z$60m (US$1m) in finance to support resettlement. Tim Henwood, president of the Commercial Farmers Union, was not at the meeting but Nick Swanepoel, a former president of the CFU who tried to oust Mr Henwood earlier this year, was. Also there was Greg Brackenridge, Zimbabwe chief executive of the Standard Bank of South Africa, which is supporting the initiative. The group also proposed the creation of a Z$1.375bn revolving fund to help fund resettlement. It is to launch an international public relations campaign to demonstrate that Zimbabweans are solving the land problem internally. Observers are puzzled by both the timing and content of the initiative. In April, President Robert Mugabe announced that the government had already resettled 70,000 families on 2.8m hectares of land. It is not clear how the offer of 1m hectares of «uncontested land», some of which has already been taken over by the state — will get the government to change its mind on the compulsory acquisition, without compensation, of 5m hectares. Joseph Made, agriculture minister, has repeatedly ruled out fresh negotiations with farmers on the issue and in the last few weeks the government has continued to list new farms for takeover, including corporately-owned fruit, flower, tea and coffee estates. (Financial Times, UK, 25 May 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Second minister dies in a car crash — Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe’s government has been thrown into disarray by the death of the defence minister, Moven Mahachi, the second cabinet minister to die in a car accident in the past month. Mr Mahachi, 53, was killed late on the afternoon of 26 May in a car accident in Zimbabwe’s eastern mountain district of Nyanga. He had been one of Mr Mugabe’s longest serving and most trusted allies. In 1975 he helped Mr Mugabe escape Rhodesian authorities by sneaking across the eastern border to Mozambique. Robert Mugabe was so shaken by Mr Mahachi’s death that he cancelled a trip to Indonesia where he was to attend the G-15 summit of leaders of developing countries. As defence minister, Mr Mahachi was an important supporter of Zimbabwe’s involvement in the Congo war, where the country has more than 12,000 troops supporting the Congolese president, Joseph Kabila. In January 1999 Mr Mahachi ordered the arrest of two Zimbabwean journalists who had reported opposition within the army to the Congo war. Army agents severely tortured the two journalists before releasing them. Mr Mugabe said the torture of the journalists was justified. Despite identification of the torturers and considerable evidence, police have not arrested anyone for the crimes. Mr Mahachi is the second Zimbabwean cabinet minister to die in a month. Four weeks ago the employment minister, Border Gezi, was also killed in a car accident. Mr Gezi was a key organiser of the invasions of white-owned farms and the often violent election campaigns in rural areas. (The Guardian, UK, 28 May 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Reports of plot against Mugabe denied — 29 May: A report published in The Guardian (UK) states that senior army officers in Zimbabwe have secretly warned the South African government that they may launch a coup against Robert Mugabe if the growing political and economic crisis results in violence. Pretoria has strongly advised against any move to overthrow the Zimbabwean president by force but has been made aware of the circumstances in which it may be attempted. According to senior sources in Pretoria, Zimbabwean military commanders believe the looming failure of the maize crop this year will create a food crisis and prove a critical flashpoint. Zimbabwe has all but run out of foreign exchange to import maize if, as looks likely, supplies of the staple and a partial failure of the wheat crop begin to take hold in and about October. 30 May: The BBC says that South Africa has denied being secretly warned by senior military officers in Zimbabwe that they would be prepared to mount a coup against President Mugabe. The Pretoria Government says it does not know of any coup threat and would inform the Zimbabwean Government if it heard of any. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 30 May 2001)