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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 29-11-2001

PART #1/4 - From AFRICA to CAMEROON

* Africa. Experts warn of sleeping sickness growth — Health experts from seven central African countries have called for coordinated action against sleeping sickness, warning that the disease is on the rise in the region. The experts — from Angola, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Chad — said during a meeting in the Central African Republic that up to 300,000 people are infected by the disease every year in the region. They say that not enough has been done in the last decade to combat the tsetse fly, which carries the parasite responsible for sleeping sickness. Ministers from the seven countries are expected to sign an agreement on ways of cooperating to fight the disease. (BBC News, UK, 22 November 2001)

* Africa. The Kimberley Process — Global Witness says that industrialized countries have two standards where terrorism is concerned: one for themselves and another for Africa. That is the concern of NGOs that have been participating in the inter-governmental «Kimberley Process», initiated by the South African Government 18 months ago, in an attempt to end diamond-fuelled wars in Angola, Sierra Leone and Congo RDC. The Kimberley Process was mandated by a UN General Assembly resolution to give «urgent and careful consideration to devising effective and pragmatic measures to address the problem of conflict diamonds». After ten meetings in Africa and Europe, attended by as many as 38 governments, diamond industry executives and NGOs, the Kimberley Process could fail to meet its obligations as mandated by the UN resolution. There are still disagreements with key provisions by key governments in spite of an agreement «in principle» on general statements of intent. (Editor’s note: On 25 November, representatives from African diamond-producing countries and the diamond industry began gathering Botswana to begin discussing proposals to end the trade in conflict diamonds.) - (Global Witness, UK, 23 November 2001)

* Africa. Human Rights — 22 November: Human Rights Watch calls on the Southern African Development Community to speak out strongly on the need to ensure that the rule of law is respected in Zimbabwe. 25 November: Genocide survivors from across the globe gather in Rwanda to open a conference to share traumas and commemorate massacres they now must never be allowed to happen again. Rwandans, Armenians, Jews, Cambodians and Bosnians are among those invited to the «Life After Death» conference, where some 250 participants will discuss coping with post-genocide life. 27 November: Amnesty International has called on Togo’s president, Gnassingbe Eyadema, to release two prominent political prisoners. They were detained after publicly criticising the authorities there. It also urged the French authorities to exert pressure over their release, during Mr Eyadema’s week-long visit to France. Amnesty  said the imprisonment of the two political activists, an opposition party leader, Yawovi Agboyibo, and a Togolese student union leader, Hounjo Mawudzuro, were just two in a long line of human rights violations committed by Togolese authorities over the past 30 years. Mr Mawudzuro was jailed in November for publicly denouncing paramilitary police who are alleged to have tortured him during a brief detention in September. Mr Agboyibo who is also a lawyer and a past president of the country’s bar association is appealing a six month jail sentence for allegedly libelling Togo’s prime minister by linking him to election violence which erupted in 1998. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 November 2001)

* Africa. Action against the Media — Egypt: On 24 November, The Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights expressed its deep concern about the detention of Shohdy Nagib Soror, at the El Sayeda Zenab police station. Ethiopia: The Ethiopian Free Press Journalists’ Association reported on 22 November, that Tsegaye Ayalew, editor-in-chief of Genanaw, and Robel Mitiku, editor-in-chief of Gohe, were among several editors-in-chief or private newspapers who were ordered to report to the Central Investigation Department in Addis Ababa the week of 19-26 November. The Gambia: In a letter to the Minister of Justice (23 November), Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) called for the immediate release of Alhagie Mbye, a journalist from The Independent, and correspondent for the London-based magazine West Africa. He has been detained since 21 November after denouncing electoral fraud. Liberia: In a letter addressed to the Minister of Finances on 22 November, RSF called for the release of Wilson Tarpeh, chairman of the board of directors of the daily The News and the re-opening of this newspaper and of the Monrovia Guardian. Morocco: Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) protested on 22 November, the sentencing of Ali Lmrabet, publications director of Demain Magazine, and RSF‘s correspondent in Morocco, to four months’ imprisonment and a fine. Tunisia: In a letter to the Minister of the Interior, RSF urges the minister to put an end to the acts of intimidation against the journalist, Taufik Ben Brik’s family. Sudan: On 22 November, the Sudanese authorities were reported to have detained 30 journalists and other employees of the daily Al-Watan. Zimbabwe: The Government has approved the Public Order and Security Bill, which will replace the Law and Order Maintenance Act. The new bill has draconian provisions that will curtail the operations of the Media and the free flow of information. — On 23 November, the Zimbabwean government described six Harare-based journalists as «terrorists who had filed false reports on the violence sweeping the country». The same day, the international Federation of Journalists accused President Mugabe’s Government of a «hysterical and hateful campaign»  against press Freedom. — On 24 November, police raided the offices of Econet Wireless in search of information on the personal subscriber and communication information, of opposition Movement for Democratic Change officials. On 26 November, the International Federation of Journalists protested to President Mugabe over the accusation by a spokesman of the Government, that a number of named journalists are supporting «terrorists. The same day, the International Press Institute also issued a similar protest. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 November 2001)

* Africa. A striking end for Air Afrique — Even its glory days, when it ran an impressive network of flights around the region, Air Afrique had the occasional wobble. The French flag carrier is taking over both the name and routes of Air Afrique, once a proud symbol of African independence. But ground staff providing services such as cleaning and catering at airports throughout French-speaking West Africa want a better deal when the airline goes into liquidation. Six planes have now been repossessed for non-payment, and hotel reception desks in the region, instead of referring you to the timetable, stick up little hand-written notices to announce that Air Afrique might be planning to run a flight to Paris on Friday.  (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 27 November 2001)

* Afrique. Congrégation pour l’évangélisation — Au Vatican, le nouveau secrétaire de la Congrégation pour l’évangélisation des peuples (la “Propaganda Fide”) est un Africain: Mgr Robert Sarah, archevêque de Conakry. Il succède dans ses nouvelles fonctions à Mgr Marcello Zago. Mgr Sarah, 56 ans, a été ordonné prêtre en 1961 et évêque en 1979. Il est considéré comme un évêque proche du laïcat et des nouvelles communautés. Le préfet qui dirige la Congrégation depuis avril 2001 est le cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, un Italien. (DIA, Kinshasa, 28 novembre 2001)

* Africa. Tourism — Hundreds of African tourism officials meet in Cameroon to discuss prospects for US tourism to the continent following the 11 September attacks. Tourism is a major foreign income earner for many African countries, despite under investment in the sector. Following the US attacks «they did not get many cancellations from groups and people who were travelling,» said the Africa Travel Association (ATA) s’ executive director, Mira Berman. «The bookings for next year and the year after are what is in question,» she said. The World Tourism Organisation (WTO) and the ATA have been «pounding at the governments» to stress importance of investment in tourism, she said. «The problem is convincing the international investors that there is a potential in Cameroon, there is a touristic potential which can bring tourists, so that they are not afraid when they are investing their money,» Many tourists have been deterred from visiting Africa by domestic security fears. Recent  troubles in Zimbabwe have seen the number of visitors plunge from an estimated 1.4 million visitors in 1999 to a quarter of that last year. Mira Berman points out that it is possible for African countries that experience trouble to woo tourists again. «Tanzania, although they had the embassy bombing, came right back and stayed as the number one destination for east Africa,». The week-long conference has been organised by the Africa Travel Association, a body funded by the industry and African governments. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 November 2001)

* Afrique. Durban: toujours pas de conclusion — Près de trois mois après la fin de la conférence de l’Onu sur le racisme à Durban, les pays participants n’ont toujours pas adopté de déclaration finale, faute d’accord sur la façon de mentionner l’un de ses principaux thèmes, l’esclavage. Ainsi, les documents finaux n’ont pas pu être présentés à l’Assemblée générale de l’Onu. (Libération, France, 28 novembre 2001)

* Afrique. Sida — A trois jours de la Journée mondiale de lutte contre le sida, célébrée le 1er décembre, Onusida et l’OMS ont rendu public le rapport 2001, faisant le point région par région sur l’épidémie qui ne cesse de gagner du terrain. C’est toujours l’Afrique subsaharienne qui détient le triste record avec 28,1 millions d’habitants vivant à ce jour avec le virus du sida. L’Onusida met en garde contre le fait que si les Africains touchés par le virus “ne disposent pas d’un traitement et d’une prise en charge appropriés, la plupart d’entre eux ne survivront pas à la décennie”. Il y a cependant des améliorations radicales dans des pays comme l’Ouganda et la Zambie. Par contre, dans des pays jusqu’ici moins touchés, l’épidémie s’étend de manière catastrophique: au Burkina Faso, Cameroun, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria et Togo la prévalence chez les adultes a dépassé les 5%. Elle s’étend plus lentement, mais de façon marquée en Afrique du Nord. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 29 novembre 2001)

* Africa. Africa devastated by AIDS — AIDS is the biggest threat to the continent’s development, according to the United Nations, because of the large numbers of people in key roles who are dying: teachers; farmers; health-workers; civil servants and young professionals. «AIDS Epidemic Update» — released ahead of World AIDS Day on 1 December — makes extremely depressing reading. It says there were 3.4 million new HIV infections in Africa in 2001, almost 70% of the global total. This brings to 28.1 million the number of Africans now living with HIV/AIDS. Within the continent, Southern Africa is hardest-hit, with life-expectancy shrinking rapidly. In Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique and Swaziland, the average person now dies before their 40th birthday. Without AIDS, they would live until at least 60. The one bright spot is the experience of  Uganda, which through widespread public information, has managed to turn the tide. HIV prevalence in pregnant women in urban areas has fallen for eight consecutive years — from 29.5% in 1995 to 11.25% in 2000. But elsewhere, ignorance is still the norm. Unicef says that more than 70% of young girls in Somalia and more than 40% in Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone have not heard of the disease. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 29 November 2001)

* Afrique. Message pour la fin du ramadan — Le 29 novembre a été rendu public le message du Cardinal Arinze, président du Conseil pontifical pour le dialogue interreligieux, pour la fin du ramadan. Rappelant “les événements dramatiques que notre monde connaît”, le message affirme que “les fidèles qui adorent le Dieu unique sont appelés à être dans le monde des artisans d’une civilisation fondée sur les valeurs impérissables de la paix et de la justice, de l’unité et de l’amour, du dialogue et de la liberté, de la coopération et de fraternité entre les personnes et entre les peuples”. Et il conclut en disant: “L’action commune à laquelle nous sommes invités concerne l’humanité tout entière, considérée comme une grande famille, ayant en Dieu son origine et sa fin. La référence à Dieu et la recherche constante de sa volonté sont d’une importance fondamentale dans nos efforts pour promouvoir les valeurs humaines”. (ANB-BIA, Bruxelles, 29 novembre 2001)

* Africa. Message to Muslims for the end of Ramadam — In his Message to Muslims for the end of Ramadam, Cardinal Francis Arinze, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, said: «I cannot forget in the first place, the dramatic events which our world is experiencing, events which affect in a particular way the hearts of believers belonging to the monotheistic religions...May expressions of solidarity and fraternity among believers and all people of good will, lead society along new paths, in full respect for human values and in the promotion of these values». The Cardinal then dwelt of the theme of human values and their promotion in an era marked by great technological progress: transport, communications, information, medicine, genetics, etc. «The most exciting and at the same time controversial field of technology is genetics which touches human nature directly...Another area is that of information technology, which through the Internet, makes possible widespread and paid communication». Cardinal Arinze concluded his Message by pointing out it is through dialogue, that human values are protected and promoted. «And this could lead naturally to collaboration in the fields already mentioned». (Vatican City, 29 November 2001)

* Africa. The Church and elections — Cameroon: Douala’s Catholic Archbishop, Cardinal Christian Tumi has called for transparency in Cameroon forthcoming elections, saying the country’s future depended on it.In an interview with the independent paper,  Le Messager, the Cardinal stated that «there is need for the elections to be organised in such a way that any Cameroonian can hope to be elected and that those defeated will accept the voters’ verdict.» He regretted that Cameroon has never organised free and fair elections since independence. He urged the authorities in Yaounde to ensure the next polls would be democratically organised. «No matter what the structure of the supervisory body, we priests would like this body to be neutral,» Cardinal Tumi pointed out. He doubted the neutrality of some of the members appointed by the president recently to join the National Elections Observatory whose duty would be to ensure transparency in the next elections. Zambia: The Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) in the Diocese of Solwezi has scheduled a meeting on 1 December to acquaint the local electorate with parties and candidates running in Zambia’s general and council elections due 27 December. Citing a CCJP statement, the Zambian News Agency said the meeting is aimed at giving the electorate an opportunity to meet Solwezi candidates across the board. Solwezi CCJP coordinator Frederick Nabanda stressed that it was important for voters to see and talk with candidates before election time so as to be in a position to make a good choice. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 29 November 2001)

* Algérie. Nouveau bilan des inondations — 752 personnes ont été tuées, dont 700 à Alger, dans les inondations catastrophiques qui ont touché le nord de l’Algérie le 10 novembre, selon un nouveau bilan du ministère de l’Intérieur. La distribution des aides, qui continuent à affluer de l’étranger et des autres régions d’Algérie, semble plus organisée, après avoir connu les premiers jours une période de flottement, entraînant des détournements de la part de “faux sinistrés”. Par ailleurs, les Algérois sont toujours rationnés en eau, malgré les pluies diluviennes du 10 novembre. Le directeur du barrage de Keddara, alimentant la capitale, a affirmé que “pas une seule goutte d’eau n’est tombée sur le barrage”, un ouvrage gigantesque qui était censé régler les problèmes d’eau d’Alger. - D’autre part, selon la presse algérienne du 24 novembre, huit personnes ont été assassinées les deux jours précédents lors d’attaques menées par des islamistes armés dans diverses régions. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 27 novembre 2001)

* Angola. Retrait du Congo? — Le 22 novembre, lors du passage d’une délégation européenne à Luanda, le président Dos Santos a assuré que l’Angola avait bien l’intention de retirer “une grande partie de ses troupes” du Congo-RDC, où elles appuient Kinshasa. Mais il n’a dit ni combien, ni quand. -D’autre part, une attaque perpétrée par un groupe armé dans la province de Bengo (nord) a fait onze morts, dont six Portugais, membres d’une même famille (dont deux garçons de 3 et 14 ans), a annoncé l’agence de presse portugaise Lusa.  Les victimes, qui passaient leurs vacances, campaient dans la zone d’Onzo, sur la côte atlantique, qui est le théâtre de combats entre les rebelles de l’Unita et l’armée. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 24 novembre 2001)

* Burundi. EU promises massive aid — The European Union has promised a $57 million grant to Burundi to help reconstruct the country’s shattered economy. This comes just three weeks after a new, ethnically mixed government took office in Bujumbura. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 24 November 2001)

* Burundi. Visite de la troïka européenne — La visite au Burundi de la mission européenne, conduite par le ministre belge des Affaires étrangères, M. Michel, s’est achevée le 24 novembre à Bujumbura avec l’engagement des deux parties à reprendre une coopération économique plus soutenue. M. Michel a rappelé la signature récente d’un programme d’aide pour un montant de 65 millions d’euros pur les trois prochaines années, et a annoncé la reprise de la coopération entre l’UE et le Burundi, qui avait été suspendue en 1997. Le ministre belge a toutefois exprimé la vive préoccupation de l’UE face à la situation de violence qui persiste au Burundi. Il a lancé un appel pressant à la rébellion pour qu’elle cesse les hostilités et rejoigne la table des négociations. D’autre part, le 23 novembre, le nouveau gouvernement burundais avait réaffirmé sa disponibilité “immédiate” à rencontrer, sans conditions préalables, la rébellion pour des négociations d’un cessez-le-feu. (PANA, Sénégal, 24-25 novembre 2001)

* Burundi. ICRC supports HIV/AIDS prevention drive — Prison inmates in three Burundi towns are due to begin a series of plays, song and dance skits, as well as poetry recitations designed to heighten their awareness of the problems of HIV/AIDS, The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Burundi announced. The ICRC said the activities, due to end on 6 December, will be conducted in the capital, Bujumbura, and in the towns of Gitega (90 km to the east) and Ngozi, 101 km northeast of the capital. The shows are to form part of its programme this year to raise AIDS awareness. The ICRC‘s main partners in this effort include Burundi’s National Programme in the War Against AIDS (Programme National de Lutte contre le SIDA), the Society for Women and AIDS in Africa (Le SWAA) and the National Programme in the War Against Tuberculosis. This year’s effort consists of provision of information on HIV/AIDS prevention, AIDS testing and medical support for those suffering from opportunistic diseases linked to the disease. (IRIN, 26 November 2001)

* Burundi. Big push against rebels — The army in Burundi says it has begun a big operation to drive Hutu rebels from their stronghold in the  Tenga forest, just north-east of the capital, Bujumbura. Loud explosions were heard by city residents on Monday morning and a spokesman for the rebels of the National Liberation Forces, (FNL), said the military were using aircraft to bomb their positions. Hutu rebels have continued their campaign of violence, with a series of new attacks since an interim power-sharing government was formed in Burundi at the beginning of the month. The latest rebel position is that they are prepared to negotiate a ceasefire, but only with the Tutsi-dominated army. All schools in Kinama and Kamenge neighbourhoods which border the forest were closed throughout the day. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 27 November 2001)

* Burundi. Les institutions se mettent en place — Le 26 novembre, les membres du comité de suivi des accords de paix interburundais ont tenu leur première réunion de travail à Bujumbura, où ils vont s’installer définitivement. Les réunions précédentes s’étaient tenues toutes à Arusha (Tanzanie) en raison de la crainte de certains membres pour leur sécurité physique. Le déménagement à Bujumbura a été rendu possible par la présence d’un contingent militaire sud-africain chargé de la sécurité des personnalités politiques burundaises rentrant d’exil. - D’autre part, une commission juridique indépendante chargée d’étudier la question des conditions de détention des prisonniers politiques et leur identification, vient de voir le jour. La commission, prévue par les accords de paix, comprend 12 experts juristes, dont 8 burundais et 4 étrangers. La présidence revient à un juriste français, M. Schmitt, secondé de deux Burundais. Les trois autres juristes étrangers proviennent du Sénégal, de Mauritanie et de Djibouti. (D’après PANA, Sénégal, 27 novembre 2001)

* Burundi. Recherche d’aide humanitaire — Le système des Nations unies au Burundi et ses organismes partenaires lancent, ce 27 novembre, un appel de fonds de 107.865.224 dollars américains pour faire face aux besoins humanitaires immédiats. Le Burundi est dans une situation critique. 432.000 Burundais vivent dans des sites de déplacement à l’intérieur du pays, et on estime à plus de 200.000 les personnes “dispersées” qui s’organisent comme et où elles peuvent pour survivre. 412.000 personnes se sont réfugiées dans les pays voisins, essentiellement en Tanzanie; vu la situation générale imprévisible, il est important qu’on soit prêt à faire face à un rapatriement massif. L’insécurité alimentaire reste critique. En 2002, plus de 711.000 personnes vulnérables auront besoin d’une aide alimentaire et plus de 2,5 millions de personnes auront besoin de semences. Une grande partie de la population souffre des suites d’une période de malnutrition (surtout dans de nord et le nord-est du pays) et d’une épidémie. “Il est fondamental d’obtenir de la part des bailleurs un soutien financier généreux pour répondre à la crise humanitaire en cours”, a estimé M. Georg Charpentier, coordinateur humanitaire de l’Onu au Burundi. (Agence burundaise de presse, 27 novembre 2001)

* Burundi. Moves towards peace and reconstruction — 24 November: The European Union has promised a $57 million grant to Burundi to help reconstruct the country’s shattered economy. 27 November: In a further move towards peace in Burundi, parliament in Bujumbura has voted to establish a new transitional Senate. The President, Pierre Buyoya, said a transitional Parliament and Senate should be functioning by the end of the year, in line with the Arusha peace accord. The parliament also voted to allow parliamentarians who fled the country after 1993 to return to take up their original seats. Most belong to the largest Hutu party, Frodebu, and those who replaced them in the House will have to make way. 28 November: An independent commission in charge of studying conditions of detention and identifying political prisoners in Burundi has been set up. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 29 November 2001)

* Cameroun. Appel du cardinal Tumi — L’archevêque de Douala, le cardinal Christian Tumi, s’est livré à un véritable plaidoyer en faveur d’élections transparentes au Cameroun, soulignant que l’avenir du pays en dépendait. Dans une interview parue le 26 novembre dans le journal privé Le Messager, le cardinal estime qu’“il faut que les élections soient organisées de sorte que (...) les vaincus acceptent le verdict des urnes”. “Depuis l’indépendance, on n’a jamais organisé d’élections transparentes au Cameroun”, a-t-il soutenu, avant de souhaiter que les autorités prennent les dispositions nécessaires pour garantir les conditions d’une élection véritablement démocratique. (PANA, Sénégal, 26 novembre 2001)