ANB-BIA - Av. Charles Woeste 184 - 1090 Bruxelles - Belg
TEL **.32.2/420 34 36 fax /420 05 49 E-Mail: anb-
bia@village.uunet.be
_____________________________________________________________
WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 09-03-2000 - PART #2/3 (Liberia => Rwanda)
	====>   (From Africa to Kenya     see 09a_03_2k)
	====>   (From Senegal to Zimbabwe see 09c_03_2k)    

* Liberia. Restructuring the army  -  The government has made
available one million US dollars to the defence ministry to
commence the restructuring of the national army, a defence
ministry spokesman said on 2 March. Philipbert Browne, assistant
minister for public affairs, said that with funds now provided,
the restructuring exercise is slated to commence next week with
the re-documentation of personnel of the Armed Forces of Liberia.
The issue of restructuring the national army was prompted by the
role it played during the civil war which bordered mainly
ethnicity, rather than holding protection of the state as
paramount duty. But implementation of the exercise, which formed
part of the Abuja accord that brought peace to Liberia in 1997,
had difficulty attracting international support after President
Charles Taylor declared it was the "constitutional duty of this
sovereign government" to re-build the army. Taylor's
restructuring plan, coming three years he became president and
drawn without input from the international community, has yet to
attract outside assistance. Perhaps, that development led him to
declare in a recent nation-wide radio broadcast that "the
Liberian army will be restructured with or without the help of
the international community."   (Peter Kahler, PANA, 2 March
2000)

* Libye. Abolition du gouvernement  -  Le 1er mars, le numero un
libyen Mouamar Kadhafi a ordonne l'abolition du gouvernement
central et le transfert de la majeure partie des prerogatives des
ministeres a des organismes provinciaux. Le Premier ministre a
ete limoge, ainsi que le chef de la diplomatie. Seuls les postes
dits de souverainete ont ete maintenus: les ministeres de la
justice et de la surete generale, des affaires etrangeres, des
finances et de l'information. "Tous les ministeres charges de la
production ou des services seront abolis et leurs fonctions
devolues aux cellules (provinciales) des congres populaires", a
declare Ahmed Ibrahim, vice-president de l'Assemblee nationale
libyenne, a l'issue d'une reunion du Congres general du peuple.
"C'est un nouveau pas dans la revolution populaire", a-t-il
estime.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 2 mars 2000)

* Libya. Gaddafi scraps ministries  -  1 March: Libya scraps most
ministries and transfers the bulk of their duties to the
provinces in a move reflecting Libyan leader Gaddafi's
dissatisfaction with the outgoing cabinet's economic policies.
The energy ministry is among the 12 to be scrapped and their
powers devolved to provincial committees or other bodies. The key
ministries of defence and foreign affairs will remain under some
form of central supervision. The defence ministry has always been
kept out of government control and is run by Colonel Gaddafi's
allies. Energy policy in the oil-producing state will be run by
the National Oil Company under the supervision of the General
People's Committee (prime ministry) (GPC), which will also
supervise the ministries of foreign affairs, African unity,
finance, information and tourism, justice and public order.
Colonel Gaddafi has demonstrated his displeasure with the
government when on January 28, he unexpectedly attended the GPC's
opening session and tore up the 2000 draft budget, ordering it
to be revised and the Congress postponed. 2 March: Gaddafi
springs another surprise by proposing a Head of State for Libya.
He says: "I would like that a constitutional reference be
established. the (present) General Coordinator of the Social
Popular Command could be the Head of State in a formal manner". 
 (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 3 March 2000)

* Madagascar. Gloria fait des ravages  -  130 personnes ont ete
tuees a Madagascar apres les passages du cyclone Eline et de la
tempete Gloria. Des milliers de sinistres se retrouvent sans
domicile, precise le comite national de secours dependant du
ministere de l'Interieur. Un responsable de l'Unicef a Nairobi
a estime, le 7 mars, que 10.000 personnes, dont 2.000 enfants,
sont sans domicile suite au passage du cyclone et de la tempete
tropicale. Les deux ont affecte au total une population de plus
de 600.000 habitants. Les operations de secours sont confrontees
a des difficultes d'acces aux zones sinistrees, en raison
notamment de problemes d'infrastructures.   (La Libre Belgique,
8 mars 2000)

* Madagascar. Floods threaten thousands  -  6 March: Floods
brought on by heavy rains in the wake of two cyclones have
affected over half a million people, creating a major
humanitarian crisis. UNICEF says that an initial survey completed
at the weekend, shows that more than half a million people have
been displaced, half of them children. UNICEF, at the request of
the government, has dispatched a cargo plane from its supply
Copenhagen supply centre with 15mt of relief supplies. Cyclone
Gloria washed through the country on 2 March and was followed at
the weekend by heavy downpours, before moving westwards. 7 March:
Madagascar launches an appeal for international aid. At least 130
people have died in the floods. The government also requests
aircraft to help distribute the aid, particularly to the cyclone
victims sheltering in extremely remote areas of the island. The
government only completed its initial assessment of the crisis
on 6 March, when officials flew over the worst affected areas.
UN agencies, NGOs and the government meet in Antananrivo to
discuss ways of bringing relief. They decide to adopt a policy
of rapid intervention followed by ongoing assessment of the
destruction. "We cannot wait any longer for assistance. I have
stated that this disaster could become the next Mozambique", says
Dr Sergio Soro, UNICEF's representative in Madagascar. "I made
that statement last Friday because we have to cut the
bureaucratic red tape. We already knew many areas were in
trouble. In an emergency you cannot wait"   (ANB-BIA, Brussels,
8 March 2000)

* Malawi. On the brink of a religious feud  -  President Muluzi
has a problem about trying to sort out a religious conflict that
has arisen between Christians and Muslims, over the introduction
of a particular religious topic in Malawi's secondary schools.
All along, pupils have been following a course in Bible
Knowledge, but now there's a proposal to introduce a course on
religious and moral studies that would incorporate Islam and
other religions. Christians see the hand of President Muluzi in
this move (he is a Muslim) to indoctrinate young people in Malawi
into the Islamic faith. They claim that the new subject has a 50%
content of Islam, while Christianity and other African religions
share the other half. The Catholic Church, in the person of
Bishop Felix Mkhori, has confronted education officials
personally over this issue. The Ministry of Education decided to
consult further and the President, himself, directed the Ministry
to stop the implementation of the subject -- a move which has
angered the Muslim community, accusing Muluzi of selling-out to
the Christians. The Muslim Association of Malawi says if the
Ministry does not implement the new subject, then Bible Knowledge
should also be removed from the syllabus. Truth to say, the
President is in a fix! (4 March -- Editor's update: President
Muluzi has agreed to a compromise. He has assured Muslims that
he will speed up consultations among all religious stakeholders
in the country, to find common ground on the dispute.)  
(Hastings Maloya, ANB-BIA, Malawi, 3 March 2000)

* Maroc. Secheresse et exode rural  -  La campagne agricole de
1999-2000 est menacee par une secheresse faisant craindre une
acceleration d'un exode rural deja preoccupant, a-t-on appris le
7 mars aupres du ministere de l'Agriculture. Le deficit
pluviometrique serait de 27%. Les nombreux episodes de secheresse
qui frappent le Maroc depuis le debut des annees 70, accelerent
l'exode des paysans qui dependent totalement de l'exploitation
de leur lopin de terre. L'exode rural se traduit par un veritable
engorgement des bidonvilles en peripherie des grands centres
urbains du royaume. Selon le ministre de l'Agriculture, le Maroc
doit considerer desormais la secheresse comme une "donnee
structurelle".   (D'apres AP, 7 mars 2000)

* Maroc. Islamistes et condition feminine  -  Les islamistes
marocains de l'association Al Adl Wal Ihsane (Justice et
spiritualite), dirigee par Abdesslam Yassine, et du Parti de la
justice et du developpement (PJD) ont appele a une manifestation
massive le 12 mars a Casablanca. Ils y attendraient 600.000
personnes. Cette demonstration de force interviendra le jour
d'une autre manifestation organisee a Rabat par le reseau
associatif feminin pour defendre le plan gouvernemental
d'integration de la femme au developpement. Le PJD entend faire
de sa manifestation la demonstration du rejet par le peuple
marocain du plan de promotion de la condition feminine, qui
provoque depuis pres d'un an une veritable ligne de fracture dans
la classe politique et la societe marocaines.   (AP, 8 mars 2000)

* Mozambique. Un pays ruine  -  1er mars. Les inondations ont
pris l'allure d'une veritable catastrophe nationale au
Mozambique, un des Etats les plus pauvres du monde, qui
commencait a se redresser apres seize ans de guerre civile (1976-
1992). Selon le president Chissano, pres d'un million de
personnes se retrouvent sans abri. Le bilan pourrait atteindre
plusieurs milliers de morts. La montee des fleuves a noye villes
et villages, betail et recoltes. Les operations de deminage
consecutives a la guerre civile sont enrayees et l'on craint que
les eaux aient emporte des mines n'importe ou. L'aide
internationale commence a se concretiser, mais elle reste encore
tres limitee pour l'instant. Les inondations constituent "un coup
devastateur pour les Mozambicains au moment ou leur economie
etait sur la pente ascendante", a dit le secretaire general de
l'OUA, ajoutant que "le minimum que la communaute internationale
pourrait faire est de supprimer la dette du Mozambique" (ce que
la Grande-Bretagne vient de decider pour sa part). L'Union
europeenne a annonce qu'elle allait accorder une aide d'urgence
d'au moins 2 millions d'euros et qu'elle envisage egalement de
fournir des fonds pour la reconstruction economique du pays au
cours des 3 ou 4 prochaines annees, afin de "restaurer le taux
de croissance rapide pour lequel le Mozambique avait travaille
si dur". - 2 mars. Les secours internationaux s'organisent, mais
on estime que plus de 100.000 personnes seraient toujours
bloquees par les inondations. D'autre part, on craint l'arrivee
d'un nouveau cyclone, Gloria, qui devrait frapper le pays de
plein fouet la semaine prochaine. Le secretaire general de l'Onu,
Kofi Annan, a annonce que des representants de plusieurs
gouvernements africains doivent se reunir en Afrique du Sud afin
de repondre de facon globale aux inondations au Mozambique et
dans les pays voisins. Le 3 mars, les quatre pays touches par les
inondations (Mozambique, Afrique du Sud, Botswana et Zimbabwe)
ont mis sur pied une cellule de coordination de l'aide. La Banque
mondiale et le FMI ont annonce un accroissement de leurs credits
au Mozambique. Par ailleurs, on notait une forte baisse des eaux
dans la vallee du fleuve Limpopo, mais entre 12.000 et 15.000
personnes restaient bloquees dans la vallee de la riviere Save. -
 5 mars. La communaute internationale s'est partagee le travail
en divisant le pays en zones operationnelles: les militaires sud-
africains, britanniques et francais concentreront leurs efforts
dans le sud, les equipes allemandes, bientot rejointes par les
Americains, interviendront dans le nord. Apres les operations de
secours, l'accent est desormais mis sur la reunification des
familles et la surveillance epidemiologique. Selon les services
meteorologiques, le cyclone Gloria a retrograge en depression
tropicale, mais de fortes precipitations sont neanmoins prevues.
- 6 mars. La pluie s'est remise a tomber sur le pays inonde et
devrait durer trois jours, eveillant les crainets d'une nouvelle
tragedie. Les pluies sur les pays voisins gonflent les cours
d'eau qui traversent le Mozambique avant de se jeter dans l'ocean
Indien. - 7 mars. Les secours internationaux ont deploye une
cinquantaine d'helicopteres et une centaine de bateaux pour
distribuer vivres et medicaments. Avec 700 militaires et 13
appareils, les Americains viennent d'arriver en renfort. Le PAM
exhorte les populations des zones inondees a ne pas revenir pour
l'instant. Les Etats-Unis ont exprime leur intention d'annuler
la dette bilaterale du Mozambique.   (ANB-BIA, de sources
diverses, 8 mars 2000)

* Mozambique. Appeal by the Pope as disease stalks  -  6 March:
The press agency MISNA said that on 5 March, Pope John Paul 11
spoke about the tragic flooding in Mozambique, to the crowds
gathered in St. Peter's Square, Vatican City, before the
recitation of the Angelus. He said: "My thoughts are with the
people of Mozambique who are living a tragedy of unspeakable
proportions, due to the floods that have struck a vast part of
the territory. The international solidarity in these days has
been unlimited, though there is still much to be done. I
encourage rescue efforts to continue, in order to alleviate in
every way possible, the dramatic situation of our brothers
there". 7 March: Foreign troops and aid workers are fighting a
race against time as the threat of hunger and disease grows. In
some parts of the country, the bodies of victims are lying
unburied and people have only dirty water to drink. Medical
workers have noticed an increase in cholera cases and skin
infections. The WHO has warned that malaria has risen sharply
after the flooding. The UN Secretary-General urges "massive"
foreign assistance to Mozambique to minimise the long-term impact
of the floods which have devastated much of the country. 8 March:
Heavy rain is falling over the south. Some helicopter flights
have been suspended hampering the multi-nation relief operation.
The UN now estimates that nearly half a million people will need
emergency food for at least another six months.   (ANB-BIA,
Brussels, 8 March 2000)

* Mozambique. Starting again  -  With the flood waters subsiding,
the resurrection of this country has begun. Construction crews
are rebuilding stretches of washed-out roads and railways. The
airport in Maputo, Mozambique's capital city, is buzzing with
more traffic than it has ever seen, with constant takeoffs and
landings of helicopters and airplanes carrying enough rice and
beans to feed the 650,000 refugees left homeless by nearly a
month of heavy rains and Cyclone Eline. A thousand body bags have
been delivered, and mortuary workers are burying the dead. Ten
days after perhaps southern Africa's worst floods in a century,
normality is a long way off, even by this desperately poor
country's standards. But the preoccupied hum of a nation at work
has returned, as Mozambique begins the painfully long process of
reclaiming all that was lost. "We're limping," said Francisco
Pereira, a street peddler, "but we're moving again." Relief
workers said food is beginning to reach the famished people who
endured days without nourishment while marooned atop trees, roofs
and utility poles. The seven South African helicopter crews that
almost single-handedly rescued more than 14,000 stranded people
last week have been joined by 43 helicopters, 12 airplanes and
100 boats sent by the United States, Britain, Malawi, France, the
Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Libya, Lesotho and Zambia. More
than 200 tons of food has been delivered to refugee camps near
flooded areas in the past two days, aid workers said today. And
that figure should climb dramatically as more help arrives and
construction workers rebuild a key stretch of road that connects
Maputo to the country's biggest refugee camp in Chokue, 126 miles
north.   (The Washington Post, 8 March 2000)

* Niger. Opposition forms Common Front  -  5 March: At the end
of a general meeting held on 5 March, eleven opposition parties
in Niger have set up a structure called the Co-ordination of
Democratic Forces (CFD). In a declaration, the eleven parties
affirmed that the CFD will, from now on, be the framework through
which they will take joint action.   (PANA, Dakar, 5 March 2000)

* Niger. Un front de l'opposition  -  Le 5 mars, onze partis
politiques d'opposition au Niger ont cree un cadre d'action
commune appele Coordination des forces democratiques (CFD), a
rapporte l'agence PANA. Ces partis se sont engages a collaborer
pour la promotion de la culture de solidarite, la defense de
l'Etat de droit, la lutte contre l'exclusion, le controle de
l'action gouvernementale et la bonne gouvernance.   (IRIN,
Abidjan, 6 mars 2000)

* Nigeria. The National Council of State meeting  -  On 29
February, Vice-President Atiku Abubakar told State House
correspondents in Abuja that Sharia, the Islamic law, has been
suspended as a state law by Zamfara, Niger and Sokoto States in
Northern Nigeria. His press conference followed a National
Council of State meeting attended by all the State Executive
Governors. The meeting presided over by President Obasanjo
charged other States planning to implement Sharia law, to revert
to the status quo as contained in the Penal Code which had
operated in the northern part of the country since independence.
Abubakar said: "Government is particularly alarmed and is quite
saddened with what has taken place. Again, we call on all
Nigerians, and appeal to community religious leaders and
traditional rulers, to prevent all Nigerians living in their
areas, from taking the law into their hands, and to avoid any
vengeful actions". In his Press Conference, the Vice-President
was flanked by the Governors of Zamfara, Borno, Kwara, Anambra,
Plateau, Kaduna, Rivers, Niger, Bauchi and Ogun States. He said
that the Council also discussed the remote and immediate causes
of the present crisis. The discussion were very sincere, frank
and courageous, and the government observed that the Sharia has
been part of our legal system since independence and therefore,
it should not and ought not to be a reason for the present crisis
in the country.   (Peter Ajayi Dada, Nigeria, 1 March 2000)

* Nigeria. Biotechnology Workshop  -  President Olusegun Obasanjo
has called for collaboration among countries in sub-Saharan
Africa, to legislate on the control of risks emanating from
biodiversity exploitation, with a view to safeguarding the health
and the environment of the people in the continent. The President
was speaking at the opening ceremony of the international
training course on biodiversity, biotechnology and law which
started at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
(IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria, on 2 March. He said: "Gone are the days
when environmental protection is considered a luxury to the
poor". He added: "These days, the poor have a life-and-death
stake in the sustainable management of the earth's resources,
because they (the poor) are dependant on the surrounding
environment for their income and survival". Referring to the
resolutions of the Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro in 1992, the
President said the global plan of action of the Earth Summit,
recognized that the impact of the world's rapidly growing
population with consequent increasing demands for food, water and
industrialization, are the main causes of loss of species and
impoverishment of our ecosystems. The President further
emphasized that with an annual population growth rate of 3.1
percent in sub-Saharan Africa, the poor in the sub-region have
become more vulnerable to all forms of pollution. He warned that
"poverty, underscored by food insecurity and socio-economic
under-development, may escalate, if our diverse plant and animal
resources are not effectively harnessed and maximally utilized". 
 (Taye Babaleye, ANB-BIA, Nigeria, 7 March 2000)
* Nigeria. Nouvelles violences  -  1er mars. Le bilan des
victimes a Aba (sud-est) est bien plus important qu'on ne l'avait
d'abord evalue. Selon des sources policieres, le nombre de morts
depasse les 400, majoritairement des Haoussas du nord, presque
tous musulmans, qui ont ete tues par les Ibos, majoritairement
chretiens, en represailles contre les victimes Ibos a Kaduna la
semaine passee. Toutefois, le couvre-feu impose dans l'Etat a pu
etre leve, la situation chaotique ayant ete maitrisee, selon la
radio. Le soir, dans un discours diffuse sur toutes les chaines
nationales de television et de radio, le president Obasanjo s'est
adresse a la nation soulignant la necessite du retrait de la
sharia. - 2 mars. Les Etats du nord restent cependant divises sur
la question du retrait ou du maintien de l'application de la
sharia. Selon un haut responsable du gouvernement local de Gusau,
les gouverneurs de trois Etats (Zamfara, Kebbi et Sokoto) ont
decide d'ignorer la demande de retrait de la loi islamique. Par
contre, les autorites de l'Etat de Niger ont annonce le retrait
de la sharia sur leur territoire. D'autres Etats, comme celui de
Yobe, n'ont pas encore rendue publique leur position. A Kano, des
representants des autorites locales ont fait savoir que leur
gouverneur avait approuve la sharia avant que les gouverneurs des
Etats du nord renoncent a appliquer la loi islamique. - 7 mars.
De nouveaux affrontements ont eu lieu a Sokoto, ou l'Etat avait
finalement decide de se plier a la decision presidentielle.
L'universite a du etre fermee a la suite d'une manifestation
violente d'etudiants reclamant l'introduction immediate de la
sharia. Au moins une personne a ete tuee, deux eglises auraient
ete saccagees.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 8 mars 2000)

* Nigeria. "End this slaughter"  -  1 March: President Obasanjo
makes a sombre appeal for national reconciliation, following two
weeks of religious and ethnic violence that has left many
hundreds of people dead. He says: "We must rid ourselves of
murderousness that stems from fear and suspicion of the other
person...We must rediscover the value of dialogue". He describes
the recent violence as "one of the worst instances of
bloodletting that this country has witnessed since the civil
war". 2 March: At least two northern states say they will go
ahead with plans to implement the Sharia Law -- in defiance of
the wishes of the federal government. Zamfara and Sokoto States
have indicated that they are standing by their decision to adopt
the Islamic legal code. the governments of Niger and Kebbi states
are reported to have similar views. 3 March: Muslim leaders in
Kano State have vowed to push for the implementation of strict
islamic law with all the legal force at their disposal. The
Council of the Muslim Umma has called on the Kano State
authorities to ignore the decision of the Federal Government. 6
March: Muslim and other traditional rulers from the northern
states meet with President Obasanjo and pledge to uphold the
country's unity. The Sultan of Sokoto, who is the supreme head
of Muslims in Nigeria said the meeting "viewed the events of the
last few days with grave concern, noting that peace and stability
is crucial to any progress and socio-economic development in any
nation".   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 8 March 2000)

* Nigeria. New clashes  -  6 March: About 30 people are reported
to have been killed and about 200 injured in Ife, south-western
Nigeria, during three days of fighting between rival communities.
The fighting broke out between residents of two neighbouring
towns, Ife and Modakeke, over disputed ownership of land. Police
and members of both communities say the violence is unrelated to
the wave of religious unrest between Christians and Muslims. 7
March: Fresh religious violence erupts in the north, after new
calls in Sokoto for the introduction of Sharia law. Some reports
say three people have been killed and two churches have been
burnt down, after students of the Usman Dan Fodio University go
on a demonstration to demand the introduction of Sharia law in
Sokoto state. 8 March: Police restore order in Sokoto after
rioting in which three people were killed and a church burned
down. Many people from the minority Christian community have
sought refuge in army barracks and police stations. The people
of Kaduna are now trying to pick up the pieces following last
month's riots there. Market stalls destroyed in the violence are
now being rebuilt.   (BBC News, 6-8 March 2000)

* Rwanda. Condamnations  -  Le 29 fevrier, a l'issue d'un proces
collectif de 40 accuses, le tribunal de Cyangugu a condamne a
mort 4 accuses declares coupables de genocide et crimes contre
l'humanite, pour leur participation dans le meurtre de 120
personnes dans l'eglise paroissiale de Mwezi en 1994. Le tribunal
a egalement condamne 13 personnes a la reclusion a perpetuite,
et d'autres ont recu des peines variables. 8 accuses ont ete
declares non coupables.   (IRIN, Nairobi, 1er mars 2000)

* Rwanda. Kigeli V attend  -  Dans une interview a la BBC,
l'ancien roi du Rwanda exile aux Etat-Unis, a declare ne pas
vouloir etre "l'instrument" des groupes opposes au gouvernement
actuel qui cherchent a restaurer la monarchie. Les evenements
survenus recemment au Rwanda, tels que la demission du Premier
ministre et la fuite du president de l'Assemblee nationale,
auraient ete lies a des initiatives entreprises pour tenter de
ramener l'ancien roi au pouvoir, y compris la formation presumee
d'une force armee. Kigeli V a declare qu'il ne rentrerait pas de
force. Il a dementi egalement avoir rencontre des groupes exiles
pour discuter des moyens de restaurer la monarchie, bien que bon
nombre de personnes lui aient demande de revenir. D'autre part,
au Rwanda, apres la demission du Premier ministre, un nouveau
gouvernement devrait etre annonce la semaine prochaine, selon le
ministre a la presidence.   (IRIN, Nairobi, 2 mars 2000)

* Rwanda. Kagame a l'origine de l'assassinat d'Habyarimana?  - 
Si l'on en croit le quotidien canadien National Post du 1er mars,
qui cite un document confidentiel des Nations unies, Paul Kagame,
l'homme fort du Rwanda, serait a l'origine de la destruction en
vol de l'avion du president rwandais Juvenal Habyarimana,
assassinat qui devait declencher en represaillles le genocide de
1994. Le Post cite un rapport date du 1er aout 1997, dans lequel
trois soldats d'elite tutsi auraient declare a des enqueteurs de
l'Onu avoir contribue a abattre l'avion du president rwandais,
dans lequel se trouvait egalement le chef de l'Etat burundais de
l'epoque, Cyprien Ntaryamira. Ces hommes affirment avoir obei aux
ordres de Paul Kagame, actuel vice-president du Rwanda. La
decision aurait ete prise parce que les pourparlers d'Arusha ne
progressaient pas assez vite (ce qui est assez surprenant, etant
donne que les extremistes hutu etaient ulceres de voir
Habyarimana resolu a partager le pouvoir avec le Front
patriotique rwandais, tutsi). En tous cas, si cette information
s'averait exacte, elle aurait des repercussions immenses. La
question de la destruction de l'avion, abattu par deux missiles,
n'a jamais ete eclaircie. Au Nations unies, on se refusait a tout
commentaire. Le rapport de 1997 a ete maintenu sous le boisseau
par le procureur du Tribunal penal international pour le Rwanda,
Louise Arbour, aujourd'hui juge a la Cour supreme du Canada,
parce que "sortant du mandat du TPIR". Elle aurait en fait agi
parce que les trois temoins mettaient en cause "l'assistance d'un
gouvernement etranger", que le journal canadien veut identifier
comme les Etats-Unis.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 3 mars
2000)

* Rwanda. Tutsi group behind President's death  -  2 March: A
Canadian newspaper, reports that Tutsi informants told UN
investigators they helped shoot down a plane carrying Rwanda's
president in 1994, an attack sparking a genocidal war that
claimed 500,000 lives. National Post newspaper quoted from a UN
report dated 1 August 1997, that said the informants cited Paul
Kagame, now vice-president of Rwanda, and an unidentified foreign
government as being behind the attack on the airplane carrying
President Juvenal Habyarimana.(...) The newspaper declined to
disclose any information about the source of the UN report.
Managing Editor Hugo Gurdon said his paper's reputation for
scrutinizing the United Nations has attracted information from
people "willing to tell you things". UN officials contacted by
The Associated Press declined to discuss the newspaper's report.
3 March: The Rwandan government has dismissed press speculation
that the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) shot down President
Habyarimana's plane in April 1994 as "baseless propaganda".  
(ANB-BIA, Brussels, 4 March 2000)

* Rwanda. Assassinations  -  6 March: The World Food Programme's
Executive Director, Catherine Bertini, expresses outrage at the
killing of a UN volunteer working for the agency in Rwanda. The
volunteer, Samuel Sargbah, a Liberian national, was shot dead on
4 March in his car in Kigali by an unknown assailant. "I am
deeply shocked and saddened by the senseless murder of yet
another humanitarian worker", Bertini says. She calls for a
thorough investigation and the bringing to justice of the
murderer. Also, a senior official has been shot dead outside his
home in Kigali in what correspondents say could be a political
assassination. Presidential adviser Assiel Kabera was killed by
three men in military uniform. Mr Kabera is reported to have told
relatives recently that he feared for his life because he thought
he was being linked with the former parliamentary speaker, Joseph
Sebarenzi, who fled the country recently after being accused of
treason.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 6 March 2000)

* Rwanda. Nouveau Premier ministre  -  Le 8 mars, M. Bertrand
Makuza a ete nomme Premier ministre du Rwanda, pour succeder a
Pierre-Celestin Rwigema qui, accuse de corruption, a demissionne
le 28 fevrier. Ambassadeur en Allemagne, M. Makuza devrait
revenir ce week-end pour former son gouvernement, selon Radio
Rwanda. Bernard Makuza est membre du principal parti hutu, le
Mouvement democratique republicain, dont est issu le Premier
ministre, alors que le Front patriotique rwandais (FPR), a
dominante tutsi, detient la plupart des postes du pouvoir. Le
titre de Premier ministre est dans une large mesure honorifique. 
 (AP, 9 mars 2000)

     End of PART #2/3 (Liberia => Rwanda  = 09b_03_2k)
	====> (From Africa to Kenya     see 09a_03_2k)
	====> (From Senegal to Zimbabwe see 09c_03_2k)