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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 20-09-2001

PART #4/4 - From RWANDA to ZIMBABWE

* Rwanda. Reboisement — Les autorités rwandaises envisagent de planter 48 millions d’arbres, fin octobre, dans leur pays ravagé par la déforestation. Ils reboiseront une superficie de 30.000 hectares dans les régions du Bugesera (sud) et de l’Umutara (est). (La Croix, France, 14 septembre 2001)

* Rwanda. Major ICTR genocide trial opens — 17 September: After a series of false starts, the trial is opening on Monday of a Rwandan Adventist clergyman and his son accused of helping organise the 1994 genocide. The two men have been indicted on six counts of genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and crimes against humanity by the International Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in the Tanzanian town of Arusha. In April 1994, Elizaphan Ntakirutimana, an Adventist pastor, and his son Gerard, a doctor, allegedly led the attack on Tutsis whom they themselves had encouraged to take refuge in their church and hospital complex in Mugonero. Hundreds of men, women and children were killed there by bullets and grenades; the survivors were flushed out with tear gas -when the gas made them cough, the killers could locate them and finish them off. Some survivors of the first attack say they fled to a second Adventist church in the region of Kibuye only to encounter Mr Ntakirutimana and his son leading another assault. Other Adventist clergymen asked Mr Ntakirutimana to intercede with the authorities on behalf of the people inside the church. Witnesses say that the pastor replied either, «A solution has been found for you — you must die», or: «You must be eliminated. God doesn’t want you any more.» One Hutu woman whose Tutsi husband was killed in the attack testified that what upset her most was that the pastor, having had hundreds of people killed, ignored old traditions of respect for the dead and left the corpses outside to be eaten by dogs and carrion crows. (BBC News, UK, 17 September 2001)

* Rwanda/RDC. Evaluation de Lusaka — Les 14 et 15 septembre, des représentants de toutes les parties du conflit armé au Congo-Kinshasa se sont réunis à Kigali pour évaluer les progrès de la mise en place des accords de paix de Lusaka. La réunion s’est penchée notamment sur le rapport de la commission militaire mixte, selon le chef de la délégation rwandaise M. Mazimpaka, qui présidait la conférence. A côté des délégations du Rwanda, de l’Ouganda et des mouvements rebelles congolais soutenus par ces deux pays, étaient présents des représentants du gouvernement congolais, de la Namibie, du Zimbabwe, du Burundi, du Kenya et de la Zambie, qui joue un rôle de médiateur dans cette crise régionale. A l’issue de la réunion, M. Mazimpaka a notamment déclaré que les parties impliquées dans le conflit demandent aux Nations unies d’envoyer rapidement des casques bleus plus nombreux au Congo pour aider à désarmer les milices dans l’est du pays. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 17 septembre 2001)

* Rwanda. TPIR: procès d’un pasteur rwandais — Le procès d’un pasteur rwandais, arrêté aux Etats-Unis, et de son fils s’est ouvert le 18 septembre devant le Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda à Arusha. Les deux hommes sont accusés d’avoir abrité des Tutsi en 1994 et d’avoir ensuite demandé à des miliciens hutu de venir les tuer. Elizaphan Ntakirutimana, 76 ans, un ancien pasteur de l’Eglise adventiste du septième jour à Kibuye, et son fils Gerald, 44 ans, qui fut médecin dans un hôpital situé à proximité, ont plaidé innocents des chefs d’accusation de génocide, complicité de génocide, conspiration de génocide et crimes contre l’humanité. (AP, 18 septembre 2001)

* Rwanda. Banque coopérative pour femmes — L’Union des banques populaires du Rwanda (UBPR) va inaugurer le 31 septembre une banque coopérative pour femmes, qui comptera dans un premier temps 2.000 associées, a rapporté le 17 septembre le bimensuel “La Nouvelle Relève” (gouvernemental). Les hommes pourront aussi y adhérer mais ne pourront avoir que la qualité de membres associés. Cette initiative vise à promouvoir l’entreprenariat féminin. Pour l’heure, les femmes ne représentent que 12% des sociétaires dans l’ensemble des succursales de l’UBPR et les crédits octroyés aux femmes ne dépassent pas 4% du total des encours. Les banques populaires sont la principale source de crédits pour les petits commerçants, les artisans, les fonctionnaires et autres salariés appartenant aux classes moyennes. (La Libre Belgique, 19 septembre 2001)

* Sierra Leone. Torture boy’s surgery success — A 10-year-old boy who suffered severe burns in Sierra Leone when he was tortured by rebels has undergone four hours of surgery at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital in UK. Issa Kamara moved his right hand for the first time in two years after the treatment. The hospital said surgeons had almost straightened out his hand, which had been held over a campfire by rebels in his home country. Issa will remain in hospital for the next two weeks to allow skin grafts time to take. Consultant plastic surgeon Allan Bardsley said: «We were very pleased how the fingers came out. If anything it was better than we expected.» He said he and his team had opened up the 10-year-old’s welded hands to reveal a large area where the tendons and nerves were completely exposed by the attack. The operation involved taking a skin graft from his thigh to cover part of the damaged hand and then attaching the hand to his groin where a «flap» of skin now covers the worst of the scarring. The hospital said Issa exclaimed his latest English word «Enjoy, enjoy», when he moved his hand for the first time since the accident happened two years ago. Issa will remain in hospital with the hand, which is partially pinned to maintain straightness, attached to the groin flap for the next two weeks to give the grafts a chance to take. He will then have intensive physiotherapy but it is hoped he will be able to use his hand for everyday tasks. In 1998, Issa was captured by rebels of the Revolutionary United Front with his mother Mabinty. She was raped and forced to clap and sing while rebels held Issa over a fire. (BBC News, UK, 18 September 2001)

* Sierra Leone. Disarmament process — 14 September: There has been further progress in the disarmament process in Sierra Leone. Troops from the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone, UNAMSIL, have been deployed for the first time in the diamond-rich town of Tongo in the Kenema district. 18 September: The Security Council extends the mandate of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone for a further six months. At the same time, the Council urged the Sierra Leone Government to restore its authority across the country. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 19 September 2001)

* Sierra Leone. Réunion tripartite — Le 18 septembre, le Front révolutionnaire uni (RUF), qui avait boycotté une réunion fixée le 6 septembre, a indiqué qu’il participera à la rencontre tripartite organisée par la mission de l’Onu (Minusil) à Makeni. Parmi d’autres questions, les participants discuteront de la libre circulation des personnes et des biens à travers le pays, un programme relatif à la tenue d’une conférence nationale consultative et l’extension à six mois du mandat du gouvernement actuel du Parti populaire sierra-léonais. La délégation gouvernementale est conduite par le ministre de la Justice Solomon Berewa, et celle du RUF par Mike Lamin, un combattant récemment libéré. -Par ailleurs, le 18 septembre, le Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies a prolongé de six mois, à partir de fin septembre, le mandat des 16.600 casques bleus déployés en Sierra Leone. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 20 septembre 2001)

* Afrique du Sud. Sida — Selon un rapport à paraître du Conseil de la recherche médicale, le sida est devenu la principale cause de mortalité en Afrique du Sud, avec 40% des décès des personnes âgées entre 15 et 49 ans dus à la pandémie. Ce rapport prévoit que, si aucune mesure efficace de traitement ou de prévention n’intervient en Afrique du Sud, il aura fait 6 millions de morts d’ici à 2010. Fin août, la Treatment Action Campaign, principale ONG sud-africaine d’aide aux malades du sida, a attaqué le gouvernement en justice pour son inaction, alors que les compagnies pharmaceutiques sont désormais prêtes à fournir gratuitement des traitements. (Libération, France, 17 septembre 2001)

* South Africa. AIDS named as South Africa’s biggest killer — AIDS has become the biggest single cause of death in South Africa, according to a report by the country’s Medical Research Council (MRC). Last year 40 per cent of adult deaths and 25 per cent of total deaths were AIDS-related. The report, titled «The impact of HIV/AIDS on adult mortality in South Africa», predicts that between 4m and 7m people will die from the disease by 2010 if no effective treatment is provided. Population growth will be halted, it adds. «This is a landmark report that has enormous policy implications,» Malegapuru William Makgoba, the council’s president, said on 17 September. «It is authentic, scientifically rigorous research: we looked at the pattern over a 12-year period.» In a letter published last week and written in early August to Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, the health minister, Thabo Mbeki, the South African president, questioned government spending on AIDS, based on 1995 mortality figures he had found on the World Health Organisation’s website. According to these figures, «external causes», meaning violent deaths or accidents, were the biggest cause of death, while the «HIV disease» only ranked 12th. «Needless to say, these figures will provoke a howl of displeasure and a concerted propaganda campaign among those who have convinced themselves that HIV/AIDS is the single biggest cause of death in our country,» Mr Mbeki wrote. The president’s letter provoked an outcry from opposition parties, doctors and AIDS activist groups. Even UNAIDS, the United Nations AIDS agency, said Mr Mbeki had used outdated figures and that the number of AIDS deaths had increased exponentially since 1995. According to the MRC report, adult AIDS-related deaths have increased from 9 per cent in 1995 to 40 per cent last year. (Financial Times, UK, 18 September 2001)

* Soudan. Tourabi: peines prolongées — Le 13 septembre, la Cour criminelle de Khartoum a prolongé de 15 jours l’assignation à résidence surveillée de l’opposant islamiste Hassan al-Tourabi et la détention de quatre cadres de son parti, le Congrès national populaire. Le président de la cour a pris cette décision à la suite d’une demande du parquet, qui veut poursuivre son enquête. M. Tourabi, qui était l’inspirateur du régime islamiste soudanais et tout puissant à l’époque, a été arrêté le 21 février, emprisonné, puis assigné à résidence le 29 mai dans une maison appartenant à l’Etat, une mesure considérée comme une détention. (La Libre Belgique, 14 septembre 2001)

* Sudan. Nothing to fear — 18 September: Sudan’s Vice President has said that his country is not at risk from attack by the US. Osama Bin Laden, held responsible in the US for last week’s terrorist strikes, used to be based in Sudan. In 1998 a pharmaceutical factory in Khartoum was destroyed by US missiles following the blowing up of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. But Bin Laden is now thought to be in Afghanistan and the Sudanese authorities say he has taken all his supporters with him. Vice President Ali Osman Taha said: «We have nothing to fear and there is no organisation in Sudan, whether official or otherwise, that is connected with what happened in the US.» He was also quoted as welcoming a speech in which President Bush said that the US would not react indiscriminately to the terrorist attacks. — Uganda has taken the first step towards reopening its embassy in Sudan by sending an acting consul to the Sudanese capital Khartoum. A Sudanese official said the diplomat Paul Mukumbya would be joined by a new Ugandan Charge d’Affaires Abubakar Nadduli later this month. Ties between the two countries were severed in 1995 with each accusing the other of supporting rebel groups. Two years ago they signed an agreement aimed at restoring diplomatic relations. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 18 September 2001)

* Chad. Former president expelled from opposition coalition — Former Chadian President Goukouni Oueddei has been expelled from an overseas-based opposition coalition, leaving its ranks divided, Radio France Internationale (RFI) reported. Antoine Bangui, chairman of the Coordination of Opposition Armed Movements and Political Parties, blamed Goukouni Oueddei for going it alone, RFI reported the group as saying in a communique. Bangui said the ex-president had made contact with other Chadian politicians without informing him and was playing into the government’s hands. There was no immediate reaction from Goukouni. Goukouni, a former leader of the rebel Forces Armées Populaires (FAP), became president in 1979 at the head of a provisional government made up of a coalition of factions. Internal conflict and divisions plagued the government and Goukouni fled Chad in 1982 after Hissene Habre’s Forces Armées du Nord — for a time part of the coalition — captured the capital, N’Djamena, and Habre declared himself head of state. (IRIN, 18 September 2001)

* Western Sahara. Polisario rejects UN peace plan — The Polisario movement, which has been campaigning for an independent state in the Western Sahara for 26 years, has formally rejected a new United Nations peace plan. The plan, proposing political autonomy for the region, was intended to replace an earlier proposal to resolve the issue of sovereignty by a referendum. The latest UN proposals were presented in detail just under three weeks ago by the special envoy on the Sahara issue, former US Secretary of States James Baker. The key proposal was to replace the long-running idea of a referendum by a political arrangement whereby for the next five years the Western Sahara would operate as a semi-autonomous territory. Morocco would keep its sovereignty and hold onto many of the key portfolios, including security, justice and economic affairs. But a statement issued on 16 September by the Polisario national secretariat states that Mr Baker’s draft agreement was unacceptable and a waste of time. It called on Saharans to continue the resistance struggle in all its forms. That struggle has included over a decade of all-out war, though the guns have been mostly silent since 1991 when both sides agreed in principle to resolve the issue through the referendum of self-determination, a policy which Polisario insists must be maintained. The vote has never been held because of persistent disputes on who should be allowed to take part. The UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, has put his weight behind the Baker plan, but he is apparently at odds with some key members of the UN Security Council. (BBC News, UK, 16 September 2001)

* Zimbabwe/UE. Gel des avoirs de Mugabe? — Le Parlement européen a demandé aux Etats membres de l’Union européenne de “répertorier et geler” tous les avoirs détenus en Europe par le président Robert Mugabe, sa famille et ses proches collaborateurs, indique un communiqué rendu public le 13 septembre à Bruxelles. Le Parlement européen invite par ailleurs le Zimbabwe à résoudre le problème de la distribution des terres par des mécanismes “légaux, démocratiques et transparents”. Il demande aussi à la Commission européenne de veiller à ce que l’aide humanitaire et alimentaire ne soit pas détournée par les vétérans de la ZANU-PF, et de suspendre l’aide au développement jusqu’à ce que la démocratie soit pleinement rétablie au Zimbabwe. Le Parlement invite enfin la Banque mondiale et le FMI à suspendre tous leurs prêts au gouvernement de Harare. -D’autre part, le 14 septembre, deux semaines après avoir accepté de mettre un terme à l’acquisition obligatoire de nouvelles fermes appartenant à des Blancs, le gouvernement du Zimbabwe a cité 234 fermes commerciales à acquérir de force pour la réinsertion des Noirs. Un geste qui risque de provoquer le courroux de la Grande-Bretagne. Par ailleurs, le gouvernement a accusé ceux qui s’opposent à la réforme agraire de faire de faux rapports sur les saisies récentes pour tenter de tromper l’opinion internationale; il a aussi accusé les fermiers blancs de fomenter de nouveaux actes de violence dans les fermes pour ternir la réputation du gouvernement. (PANA, Sénégal, 13-14 septembre 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Inflation — Le taux d’inflation au Zimbabwe a augmenté de près de 6% en août dernier par rapport au mois précédent, faisant ainsi passer le taux annuel de 70,1 à 76%, selon les chiffres du Bureau cental des statistiques. La semaine dernière, le prix du pain, un des aliments de base, a augmenté pour la huitième fois depuis le début de l’année. (La Libre Belgique, 15 septembre 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Violence continues — 15 September: Workers’ houses on a white-owned farm in Zimbabwe have been burnt down, less than a week after President Robert Mugabe endorsed a deal designed to end such violence. Offices of the Beta farm were also targeted in an attack which left several people seriously injured, and possibly two dead, according to the white Commercial Farmers’ Union (CFU). The CFU says the attacks were carried out by self-styled war veterans, who started white farm invasions early last year as part of an aggressive land redistribution campaign. The destruction of properties on the Beta Farm, in the rural district of Hwedza, 100 kilometres southeast of Harare, follows a pact brokered in Nigeria by Commonwealth leaders to end the violent seizures of Zimbabwean farms in exchange for funds from former colonial power Britain for land reform. Fearing for his safety, the farm owner had locked himself inside the fence surrounding his house, and could not say how many of his 180 workers had lost their homes, the CFU said. The Government has listed more than 230 commercial farms for take-over. 18 September: The ruling ZANU-PF has unanimously approved the land deal. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 19 September 2001)

* Zimbabwe. Judge stays on case — On 19 September, Zimbabwe’s black chief justice refused to rescue himself from a court case after rejecting charges that he was biased against white farmers who are fighting seizure of their land. Godfrey Chidyausiku dismissed an application by the white Commercial Farmer’s Union (CFU) that he should not be one of five Supreme Court judges to hear a government appeal on the legality of President Robert Mugabe’s land reforms. The CFU said in an affidavit, and its lawyers argued in court on 19 September that Mr Chidyausiku’s public profile, his close political association with Mr Mugabe and his statements endorsing Mr Mugabe’s land policy called his impartiality into question. (Financial Times, UK, 20 September 2001)