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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 14-02-2002

PART #3/4 - From  LIBYA to  SOUTH AFRICA

* Libya. Lockerbie judges to hear new evidence — 9 February: Five judges say they are willing to hear new evidence in the appeal by the Libyan man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing. In a ruling at the Scottish Court in the Netherlands, they agree to allow former Heathrow security guard Ray Manly to appear on behalf of the defence. Abdelbasset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi’s lawyers claim the bomb could have been put on the plane in London, not Malta, as the prosecution said during the trial. 13 February: Two witnesses tell the court that they had uncovered what appeared to be a professional break-in at Heathrow Airport, hours before Pan Am Flight 103 took off for New York. The defence lawyers argue that the fresh evidence casts serious doubts on the prosecution’s claims that the accused was responsible for the bomb. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 14 February 2002)

* Madagascar. A la recherche d’un compromis — 7 février. L’opposant Ravalomanana s’est dit “prêt à rencontrer” le président sortant Ratsiraka, qui de son côté “ne refuserait aucune demande” de ce type. Par ailleurs, à la fin d’une nouvelle journée de manifestation massive et de grève générale, l’attention était rivée sur la venue, plusieurs fois retardée, d’une mission de parlementaires français et francophones. - Le vendredi 8 février, malgré les manifestations qui continuaient, le président Ratsiraka a annoncé qu’il maintenait le second tour de la présidentielle au 24 février prochain. Et durant le week-end, il a encore écarté catégoriquement l’idée d’un report pour force majeure de la date du second tour. Toutefois, le dimanche 10 février, le secrétaire général de l’OUA, Amara Essy, a mené des rencontres “cruciales” pour pousser au dialogue les deux protagonistes, Ratsiraka et Ravalomanana. Son objectif est de conduire les deux candidats à se rencontrer de “manière urgente”. - 11 février. Ravalomanana a affirmé devant des centaines de milliers de manifestants qu’il boycotterait la campagne pour le second tour, réaffirmant qu’il considérait avoir gagné le premier. Il a appelé à la poursuite de la grève générale et aux manifestations quotidiennes. Il semble que la plupart des entreprises fonctionnent de nouveau, mais les administrations restent fermées. Pour sa part, le directeur d’Air Madagascar a déclaré que sa compagnie aérienne, toujours confrontée à la grève de ses employés, était au bord de la cessation de paiement. Depuis le déclenchement de la grève générale, l’ensemble de la flotte de la compagnie reste immobilisé sur le tarmac, alors que bon nombre de ses avions sont en location. - 12 février. Le secrétaire général de l’OUA, M. Essy, a appelé à un report du second tour. “Il faut que l’on mette en place toutes les conditions pour des garanties crédibles de  transparence. Cela demande du temps. Il faut donc un report du scrutin”, a-t-il déclaré lors d’une conférence de presse, tout en reconaissant que le plus gros travail serait de convaincre Ravalomanana de participer à ce second tour. -13 février. Les deux rivaux, Ratsiraka et Ravalomanana, se sont rencontrés, prémices à une prochaine sortie de la crise politique. Les deux camps vont prolonger ce “premier pas important” par la création d’un “groupe de travail conjoint” pour régler la crise, a annoncé M. Essy, l’artisan de cette rencontre. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 14 février 2002)

* Madagascar. 2nd round of elections contested — 7 February: Prime Minister Tantely Andrianarivo has said a second round of presidential elections will go ahead as planned at the end of this month. His statement came despite continuing mass demonstrations and a general strike in the capital city, Antananarivo. Opposition presidential candidate Marc Ravalomanana, still insists there should be no second vote until alleged irregularities in the first round are properly investigated. The prime minister was speaking for the first time since vast opposition protests became a daily routine on the streets of the capital. Mr Andrianarivo said he hoped reason would prevail and that the people would accept the second round of voting, which would be better run and more reliable. 8 February: Kofi Annan has telephoned Madagascar’s president and the main opposition leader to appeal for a resolution to the island’s political stalemate. His appeal came after opposition leader Marc Ravalomanana said he was prepared to meet President Didier Ratsiraka to discuss the crisis. The President confirms that the 2nd round of elections will go ahead. 10 February: The Organisation of African Unity’s (OAU) Secretary General, Amara Essy, is in Madagascar to help resolve the country’s political crisis. Earlier, the opposition leader, Marc Ravalomanana, said he would not attend a planned meeting with President Didier Ratsiraka, to discuss the deadlock over last month’s disputed election. Mr Ravalomanana said he saw no point after the president refused to postpone the second round of the poll. 12 February: Air Madagascar has resumed normal services. — The OAU‘s Secretary-General, says time is needed to allow more time to prepare for the second round of the vote. He is in talks with incumbent president Didier Ratsiraka and challenger Mr Marc Ravalomanana to bring to an end the mass protests and the general strike which is now in its third week. 13 February: President Ratsiraka has met with Marc Ravalomanana in a bid to break the deadlock. The talks are being mediated by the OAU‘s secretary-general. Following the talks, Marc Ravalomanana calls on his supporters to continue with the strike. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 14 February 2002)

* Malawi. Ancient lake’s climate secrets — Scientists are planning to drill into what could  be the longest and richest archive of Earth’s past climate. It could provide a year-by-year continuous record going back millions of years in a part of the world where it is thought humans first evolved. Using a newly developed drilling system, researchers will, for the first time, obtain sediments from the bottom of Lake Malawi. Situated at the southern end of the East African rift valley, Lake Malawi, is 750 metres deep and possibly seven million years old. Researchers say that the data they could obtain about past climatic variations might provide the environmental background needed to understand human origins and evolution. «Our goal is to get something on the order of a half-million to a million-year record on past climate and environment, taking advantage of the fact that these lake sediments are frequently annually layered,» said Professor Andrew Cohen of the University of Arizona, USA. From previous studies, scientists know that each annual layer of Lake Malawi sediment consists of a black zone — the sediment runoff from land deposited during the rainy season — and a light-coloured layer of single-celled algae that grow in abundance each dry season. The composition and variation in the layers can be used to infer climatic conditions — temperature, precipitation, etc — in the distant past. Because this information is not a direct record of climate behaviour, scientists refer to it as proxy data. Old trees, glaciers, even fossilised plankton shells hold clues to what the Earth’s climate was up to millions of years ago. (BBC News, UK, 7 February 2002)

* Malawi. On the brink of starvation — The Government of Malawi has said that thousands are at risk of dying of hunger-related diseases if food does not reach them in time. It has appealed to donor countries, private companies and non-governmental organisations for urgent assistance as food shortages have reached «dangerous levels». On 12 February, Vice President Justin Malewezi said the government did not know how many were at risk. Mr Malewezi recounted stories of babies dying on their mothers’ backs as they stood in long queues waiting to buy corn at Domasi Township in Zomba, the former capital city, 70 kilometres from Blantyre — the commercial capital. Less than half of the 315,000 metric tons of corn expected from South Africa and Tanzania has reached Malawi. Food distribution has been hindered by heavy floods in two successive years, damaging Beit Bridge on the South Africa-Zimbabwe border and a section of railway-line on the Nacala Corridor in Mozambique. (BBC News, UK, 12 February 2002)

* Malawi. Risques de famine — Le Malawi est confronté à de graves pénuries alimentaires, qui risquent de provoquer une famine sans précédent. Le 13 février, le pays a appelé la communauté internationale à lui venir en aide. Selon les autorités, plus de 2 millions de foyers ruraux, soit 76% des habitants du Malawi, dépendent de l’aide internationale, contre 31% l’an dernier à la même époque. (La Croix, France, 14 février 2002)

* Mali. African Cup of Nations — 7 February: Mali’s hopes of reaching the Nations Cup final for the first time in 30 years have been crushed by a fired-up Cameroon side intent on revenge. Two first half strikes by Salomon Olembe and a late Marc-Viven Foe goal ended Mali’s dream but it was an incident before the match that became Cameroon’s inspiration. Just 90 minutes before the match started in Bamako police arrested the Cameroonian goalkeeping coach, Thomas Nkono. Nkono was handcuffed and lead away by police as he and head coach Winfried Schafer walked on to the pitch. Police reportedly recovered an object from the pitch which sparked speculation that it may have been some form of black magic charm. One of the stars of the Cameroon victory, Pius Ndiefi, said the incident had angered Schafer and the players and they were intent on getting revenge. The result: Mali 0 — Cameroon 3. In the other semi-final, the result was: Senegal 2 — Nigeria 1. Following the Cameroon-Mali match, Mali’s President Konare went to Cameroon’s dressing room and apologised to the team for what had happened before the game. 10 February: Cameroon have retained their African Nations Cup title in a pulsating encounter with Senegal which ended in a penalty shoot-out after extra-time. The match went to penalties after the two sides were deadlocked at 0-0 after 120 minutes of end-to-end football. Despite the lack of goals it was the highly-skilled affair that many had hoped for of the final, with both sides having their share of chances. In the end it was the Senegalese captain Aliou Cisse who had to bear the brunt of the defeat as his missed penalty sent the trophy back to Cameroon for the fourth time. Cameroon were in the end the most deserving of the victory but it was Senegal who started the stronger. Cameroon — 3. Senegal — 2. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 11 February 2002)

* Mali. Présidentielle le 28 avril — Le 13 février, le gouvernement malien a annoncé que l’élection présidentielle aura lieu le 28 avril prochain. Le 12 mai a été retenu pour la tenue d’un éventuel second tour. La campagne électorale se déroulera du 7 au 26 avril, et éventuellement du 3 au 10 mai. Ce scrutin verra le départ de l’actuel chef d’Etat, Alpha Oumar Konaré. Deux candidats sont déjà connus: Soumalia Cissé, de l’Alliance pour la démocratie au Mali (ADEMA, au pouvoir), et Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, du Rassemblement pour le Mali (RPM). Par contre, l’ancien président du Mali, le général Amadou Touré, qui a récemment démissionné de l’armée, maintient toujours le suspense sur sa candidature. (D’après PANA, Sénégal, 13 février 2002)

* Nigeria. Death Toll in Lagos explosion grows — A week after massive explosions ripped through Lagos, officials today revealed the extent of the disaster: More than 1,000 people, mainly children, died. The new death toll — which exceeds the previous estimate by 400 — was  announced as the Nigerian Red Cross suspended its aid operations after military officials ordered the organization to hand over its relief supplies. Home Affairs Commissioner Musiliu Obanikoro said the casualty count came after rescue efforts uncovered more bodies from a canal where hundreds of victims, many of them women and children, had fled in panic and drowned. Obanikoro, speaking on a private Lagos radio station, said the search for victims was tapering off. Families of the victims have directed their anger at Nigeria’s military for storing munitions in a heavily populated area. The army has promised to investigate, but many political leaders blame the military and are calling for an independent inquiry. (Washington Post, USA, 3 February 2002)

* Nigeria. Visite de Tony Blair — Le 6 février, le Premier ministre britannique Tony Blair, en visite au Nigeria, s’est engagé à aider ce pays à obtenir l’allégement de sa dette et le rapatriement des fonds détournés par les anciens dictateurs militaires. Depuis son investiture à la tête du pays en 1999, le président nigérian Obasanjo n’a cessé de faire campagne pour l’annulation des 28 milliards de dollars de dette extérieure de son pays afin de libérer des ressources essentielles à des projets de développement. Lors d’une conférence de presse, tout en éludant la question de l’annulation de la dette et insistant au contraire sur son allégement, M. Blair a indiqué que la campagne d’Obasanjo serait plus facile “si elle était placée dans le cadre général de l’engagement total du nouveau partenariat entre l’Afrique et les économies développées”. MM. Blair et Obasanjo ont également abordé le programme des réformes agraires et les prochaines élections au Zimbabwe, les points chauds en Afrique et le nouveau partenariat pour le développement en Afrique. (PANA, Sénégal, 7 février 2002)

* Nigeria. Réunion de la Conférence épiscopale — La guérison des blessures infligées au pays (“Healing de wounds of our Nation”) est le thème de l’assemblée plénière de la Conférence épiscopale nigériane, qui se tiendra à Abuja du 18 au 22 février. Les tragédies qui ont récemment affligé le pays seront au coeur des débats, indique un communiqué. De nombreux chefs musulmans et chrétiens, de différentes confessions, participeront à la rencontre. (Misna, Italie, 11 février 2002)

* Nigeria. $1.3bn telecoms deal in jeopardy — On 12 February, Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest telecommunications deal, the $1.3bn sale of a controlling stake in Nitel, Nigeria’s state telecoms company, was in danger of collapsing after the chosen bidder failed to meet a payment deadline. The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) said Investors International (London) (IIL) had failed to make an outstanding payment of $1.17bn by 11 February. However, the consortium of Nigerian business interests, traditional leaders, state  governments and banks was given an extra six weeks to pay up. This was after the reserve bidder, Telnet, a Nigerian company backed by Korea Telecom and the consulting arm of Sweden’s Telia, declined yesterday to enter negotiations on a transaction with the BPE. (Financial Times, UK, 13 February 2002)

* Rwanda. Father Seromba in Arusha — Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, Nuncio in Rwanda, voiced «admiration and satisfaction» at the news that Fr Athanase Seromba has presented himself spontaneously to the International Court for Rwanda which is set up in Arusha (Tanzania). Fr Athanase has been charged of complicity in the massacre of at least 2,000 people in Nyange parish in Kibuye prefecture, during the 1994 genocide in which 800,000 people were killed in clashes between Hutu and Tutsi. «This was an act of responsibility and courage. It will give him an opportunity to respond to the serious charges brought against him». Mgr. Pennacchio also said he trusted that the «authorities would heed Fr Seromba’s request for a speedy trial. «This is important in view of what is most urgent in Rwanda today: reconciliation», the Nuncio explained. Since 1997 Fr Seromba has been a guest of the diocese of Florence, at San Mauro parish. Fierce criticism of Fr Seromba by Rwandan press led international procurator Carla del Ponte to demand the priest’s extradition. In a letter to the Archbishop of Florence, Fr Seromba said he had decided to go to Arusha to answer the accusations in person. Fr Seromba is not the only Rwandan clergyman to be accused of genocide. Archbishop Augustin Misago, of Gikongoro was arrested, imprisoned, tried and found innocent. In prison in Rwanda at the moment facing genocide charges there are 5 priests, 2 nuns and one seminarian. Four priests have been tried and found not guilty. In June 2001 two nuns were tried and found guilty by a court in Belgium. (Editor’s update: 8 February — Father Seromba appeared before the tribunal and denies the charges made against him). (Fides, Vatican City, 7 February 2002)

* Rwanda/Uganda. Discuss defusing tension — Ugandan Defence Minister Amama Mbabazi is in Kigali for talks with his Rwandan counterpart, Emanuel Habyarimana. Correspondents say the two men will discuss how to defuse the growing tension between their countries. Relations between the former allies have soured in the past two years following clashes between their troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they were deployed to support two rival rebel groups. (BBC News, UK, 10 February 2002)

* Sahara occidental. Permis pétroliers critiqués — Les deux compagnies pétrolières internationales (TotalFinaElf et Keer-McGee) qui, en octobre, ont obtenu du Maroc des permis d’exploration-production au large des côtes du Sahara occidental, vont y regarder à deux fois avant de se lancer dans des travaux de prospection. A la demande du Conseil de sécurité, lui-même sollicité par le Front Polisario, le conseil juridique de l’Onu, Hans Corell, a en  effet estimé en début de semaine que si les permis octroyés ne sont pas “illégaux en soi”, des travaux d’exploration-production qui ne se feraient pas dans “l’intérêt” ou selon les “voeux” du peuple du Sahara occidental “violeraient les principes de la loi internationale” en la matière. Ce jugement mitigé rend peu probable la mise en oeuvre de travaux dans la mesure où il est quasiment impossible de prouver que les populations locales, dont l’évaluation pose des problèmes politiques, bénéficieront des retombées en cas de découverte. (Le Monde, France, 8 février 2002)

* Sénégal. Visite de Tony Blair — Le 9 février, le Premier ministre britannique Tony Blair était de passage à Dakar, dernière étape d’une tournée de quatre jours qui l’a conduit au Nigeria, au Ghana et en Sierra Leone. S’exprimant en français, il s’est déclaré “étonné” d’être le premier Premier ministre britannique à effectuer une visite officielle en Afrique francophone. “Il faut changer nos méthodes. Il faut travailler ensemble, Français et Britanniques, parce que nous avons maintenant les mêmes intérêts”, a-t-il lancé. Les premiers à se réjouir de cette nouvelle “entente cordiale” sont les Africains. M. Blair en Afrique et M. Chirac à Paris se sont faits les défenseurs du “Nouveau partenariat pour le développement en Afrique” (Nepad), une initiative africaine qui tend à éviter toute marginalisation du continent. (La Croix, France, 11 février 2002)

* Sierra Leone. Refugee poll concession — Voter registration ahead of May’s general elections in Sierra Leone, has been extended for three days until 10 February. Election officials say it is to overcome what they called organisational problems in getting the process up and running. A scheme has also been announced to ensure thousands of Sierra Leoneans who fled the civil war will also be able to vote. Sierra Leone electoral commissioner, Walter Nicol, said that refugees returning to Sierra Leone before mid-April will still be able to register if they show their UNHCR card as proof of identity. It follows an aborted plan to let refugees register and vote in host countries, such as Guinea and Liberia. Mr Nicol said that the two nations rejected the request, claiming that the whole electoral process may invite violence. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 8 February 2002)

* Sierra Leone. Les besoins sont énormes — Le 8 février, une délégation de donateurs de douze pays a achevé une mission d’une semaine en Sierra Leone en déclarant que, bien que la paix soit rétablie, les problèmes et les besoins auxquels le pays est confronté sont “énormes”. Un représentant des Pays-Bas a indiqué qu’il a été “choqué” par l’ampleur de la dévastation et par les besoins humanitaires énormes dans les régions visitées par l’équipe, ajoutant que la communauté internationale allait continuer à appuyer la Sierra Leone. Alan Doss, représentant du secrétaire général de l’Onu, a informé que la réponse des donateurs était extrêmement positive. L’objectif de la visite, a expliqué M. Doss, ne consistait pas à prendre des engagements financiers, mais à discuter avec le gouvernement au sujet des perspectives et des priorités en vue de la réinsertion et du redressement. (IRIN, Abidjan, 11 février 2002)

* Sierra Leone. Refugees go home — The first batch of Sierra Leonean refugees has returned home from Liberia under a United Nations voluntary repatriation programme which started on 13 February. About 300 refugees crossed the border, one month after Sierra Leone declared an end to its brutal 10-year civil war. UNHCR said groups of 300 to 400 refugees would be repatriated from now on alternate days. There are about 70,000 Sierra Leonean refugees still left in Liberia, where fighting between the government and rebels has recently escalated near the capital Monrovia. Many Sierra Leoneans now feel insecure in Liberia and are anxious to leave. Thousands of Sierra Leoneans, as well as some Liberians, have already fled across the border because of the surge in fighting the in Liberian town of Klay. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 14 February 2002)

* Somalie. Attaque de la radio gouvernementale — Le lundi soir, 11 février, une vingtaine de miliciens équipés de fusils d’assaut et de lance-roquettes ont attaqué les locaux de la radio gouvernementale, poussant la “Voix de la République somalienne” à cesser d’émettre. Cette radio était le seul vecteur de communication avec les habitants de la capitale pour le fragile gouvernement de transition du président Salad Hassan. Il s’agit du deuxième coup dur pour le gouvernement cette semaine, après que trois chefs de faction ont menacé de lui retirer leur soutien. Mise sur pied en 2000, cette équipe transitoire n’a que peu d’influence hors de Mogadiscio, et elle a contre elle nombre de seigneurs de guerre somaliens soutenus par le grand voisin éthiopien. (AP, 12 février 2002)

* Somalia. Eight killed in fighting — Eight people were killed in fighting between rival militias armed with truck-mounted heavy machine guns in southern Somalia on 12 February, witnesses said. Witnesses said fighters from both sides were killed in the 90-minute clash in the Bardhere district of Gedo region 400 km west of Mogadishu. Gunmen used more than 20 of the battle wagons known as technicals in the encounter. The fighting pitted a faction friendly with neighbouring Ethiopia known as the Somali Restoration and Reconciliation Council (SRRC) against the Juba Valley Alliance, aligned to Somalia’s fledgling transitional national government (TNG). The SRRC is an Ethiopian-backed coalition of warlords united mainly by their opposition to the TNG, chaotic Somalia’s first attempt at a central administration in a decade. The SRRC accuses the TNG, formed in 2000 and largely funded by Gulf Arab states, of harbouring armed Islamic militants linked to  Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda group. The TNG denies this and says it would welcome visits by US military investigation teams to assess the SRRC‘s allegations. Residents said about 60 families had fled the area to try to escape the fighting. (CNN, USA, 13 February 2002)

* Somalia. Seeking help to fight terror — In a report circulated on 13 February, the government said the United Nations has two choices: watch the country slide back into anarchy and chaos or lend active support to the government in its struggle against terrorism. President Abdiqasim Salad Hassan’s transitional government is Somalia’s first central authority since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. In the following years, faction leaders fought with each other, turning the nation of 7 million into battling fiefdoms protected by heavily armed militias. Abdiqasim and his government are struggling financially and have little influence outside the capital, and clan-based factions still rule much of the Horn of Africa nation. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 13 February 2002)

* South Africa. Mandela «clean» of cancer — Former South African President Nelson Mandela has said he has been successfully treated for prostate cancer. Mr Mandela, 83, announced last July that he had prostate cancer and underwent seven weeks of radiotherapy. But he has told an audience in Cape Town that doctors had given him the all-clear. Speaking at a ceremony to present the Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human Rights, he said he was delighted at the news. «As a result of the treatment, the doctors took a blood sample and said “your blood is clean of the cancer”». AFP quoted him as saying. In 1985, while in prison, Mr Mandela was hospitalised for prostate surgery and had some tumours removed. They proved to be benign. He then returned to jail, where he remained until his release in February 1990, a pivotal moment in South Africa’s history. Now retired from active politics, he still maintains a punishing travel schedule, often to collect achievement awards. Mr Mandela remains a fit and generally healthy man, but is starting to appear more frail. Four years ago, the Nobel peace prize winner married Graca Machel, the widow of the former president of Mozambique. He told his Cape Town audience it had been a pity she was not in the country when doctors gave him the good news. «Because had she been here I would have said: “Darling, let’s go and dance”,» he said. (BBC News, UK, 7 February 2001)

* South Africa. Tutu spreads Olympic message — The Olympics attracts all manner of personalities from across the world. But one face I was not expecting to see braving the freezing temperatures in Salt Lake City was Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The former Nobel Peace prize winner is in town to give an address at the 2002 Reebok Human Rights awards — but will also be spreading the Olympic spirit at the same time. The Archbishop says: «I’m excited to be here — it’s exhilarating. But I’ll definitely be wrapping up very warm». The famous grin swept across the Archbishop’s face when I asked him which events particularly caught his eye. «I’m quite keen to see the ice dancing,» he quipped. «But as for trying any sports out, noooo, I’m way too old.» Perhaps, but for a 70-year-old, Tutu is still bright as a button. And the man who was for so long the face of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa is only too aware how sport can help fight human rights abuses around the world. «Sport helped trigger a great deal of change in our country, and we learned how it was possible to use sport in a positive way to bring about change. The Olympics are the perfect chance to celebrate diversity because there are so many nationalities here. It is so good to see human beings testing their abilities, competing in a way that is not lethal, and enjoying themselves. At the end, athletes will congratulate one another whether they have won or lost, and that sort of fellowship must be cherished. We will witness so many extraordinary things at this extravaganza, so while there is still a great deal of evil around the world, it will be nice to enjoy the good as well.» (BBC News, UK, 8 February 2002)