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 #3/3 (Senegal => Zimbabwe)
	====>   (From Africa to Kenya   see 09a_03_2k)
	====>   (From Liberia to Rwanda see 09b_03_2k)    

* Senegal. Vers un 2e tour des presidentielles  -  Selon les
chiffres officiels mais provisoires du 1er tour des
presidentielles, le president sortant Abdou Diouf a obtenu 41,33%
des suffrages, Abdoulaye Wade 30,97%, Moustapha Niasse 16,76% et
Djibo Ka 7,08%. Ce scrutin fait apparaitre une forte volonte de
changement. Tous les autres candidats avaient appele a voter pour
l'alternance, et ils appellent maintenant a voter contre Diouf
au second tour. Lors d'une rencontre avec le chef de l'Etat, le
2 mars, Djibo Ka lui a demande de se desister. Mais pour le Parti
socialiste, il n'est pas question que son candidat se retire.  
(D'apres Le Monde, France, 4 mars 2000)

* Senegal. Towards a 2nd round of elections  -  3 March:
President Abdou Diouf won last week's presidential election,
though without the majority of more than 50% needed for an
outright victory. Diouf and his longtime rival, Abdoulaye Wade,
will square off on 19 March in a second round of balloting. Diouf
garnered 41.33% of the vote, compared to 30.97% for Wade. the six
other candidates trailed with smaller percentages. 6 March:
President Diouf has confirmed his intention to stand in the
second round of elections. At a news conference, he pledges to
work to reduce poverty and youth unemployment. 8 March: Abdoulaye
Wade looks set to receive a major boost in his bid for the
presidency. The senior opposition politician, Moustapha Niasse,
says that negotiations between him and Mr Wade to form an
alliance to contest the elections, are going well. President
Diouf says he will quit politics if he loses the election.  
(ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 March 2000)

* Sierra Leone. Consolidating peace  -  1 March: Various actors
in Sierra Leone's political scene are meeting in Bamako, Mali,
today, to discuss ways of consolidating peace in their country.
Zambia's President, Frederick Chissano, says he has agreed to
commit 800 troops to the UN peace-keeping mission in Sierra
Leone. 2 March: In a declaration released to the press agency
MISNA today by Bishop Giorgio Biguzzi (Makeni Diocese), the
Bishop says: "The decision of the diamond mining conglomerate,
De Beers, to only sell precious stones covered by a "rebel-free"
certificate, is undoubtedly a positive step towards eradicating
the violence that has for years had a strong hold over Sierra
Leone". The Bishop also underlined the absolute necessity of
guaranteeing local government authorities control over national
mining resources. 3 March: The meeting ends with a call on the
Revolutionary United Front to remove obstacles for the deployment
of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone. The meeting also agreed on a
series of military, security and political measures aimed at
bolstering the peace process. It should be noted that the same
day, Human Rights Watch called on the UN Mission in Sierra Leone,
to intensify efforts to end atrocities committed by the rebels
against civilians, in areas less than 40 kms outside Freetown. 
 (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 4 March 2000)

* Sierra Leone. Accord avec le RUFP  -  Une reunion speciale sur
la Sierra Leone, convoquee par le president malien Alpha Konare,
s'est conclue le 2 mars par un accord au termes duquel le Parti
du Front revolutionnaire uni (RUFP) s'engage a lever tous les
obstacles au deploiement des casques bleus des Nations unies, a
signale la mission de l'Onu, Minusil. Les troupes du RUF ont
recemment empeche les casques bleus du Minusil d'acceder a la
region diamantifere de Koidu, a l'est de la Sierra Leone. Les
anciens rebelles ont egalement convenu de rendre immediatement
les grandes quantites d'armes prises aux contingents guineen et
kenyan de l'Onu et d'enlever tous les barrages routiers du pays.
D'autre part, a la fin du sommet de Bamako, les presidents Kabbah
de Sierra Leone, Charles Taylor du Liberia et Lansana Conte de
Guinee se sont engages a garantir que leurs pays ne soient plus
utilises comme base pour en destabiliser un autre. - Dans un
rapport du 4 mars, l'organisation de defense des droits de
l'homme Human Rights Watch affirme toutefois que la rebellion en
Sierra Leone continue en toute impunite d'enlever, de mutiler et
d'assassiner des villageois malgre la presence de plus en plus
massive de casques bleus.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 6 mars
2000)

* Sierra Leone. 150 morts dans une mine  -  Le 5 mars, quelque
150 mineurs ont trouve la mort dans une mine de diamants de la
region de Kono dans l'est de la Sierra Leone, ont indique des
correspondants de presse. La mort des mineurs serait due a un
eboulement souterrain de sable a l'interieur de la mine. La
region de Kono est toujours tenue par l'ancienne rebellion du RUF
et la plupart des tues seraient des membres de ce mouvement.  
(La Libre Belgique, 8 mars 2000)

* Somalie. Affrontements a Qoryolei  -  Le 5 mars, au moins 22
miliciens ont ete tues lors d'affrontements dans la zone de
Qoryolei (120 km au sud-ouest de Mogadiscio), a annonce le porte-
parole de l'Armee de resistance Dighil. Des sources independantes
ont fait etat d'une bataille sanglante entre des partisans de
l'Armee de resistance Dighil, soutenus par leurs allies
Rahanweyn, contre des formations des Cours islamiques de la
region du Bas Scebeli. A Qoryolei, des centaines d'habitants, en
proie a la terreur, quittent la petite ville pour fuir ces
combats.   (Misna, Italie, 6 mars 2000)

* South Africa. "Media racism" inquiry begins  -  6 March: South
Africa's Human Rights Commission has begun a public hearing into
allegations of racism in the country's media. The hearing began
with testimony from a researcher, Claudia Braude, who charged in
a report for the Commission, that South African newspapers
reinforced racial stereotypes through images and news selections.
The Commission issued subpoenas to compel editors to appear
before the hearings, but these were later withdrawn amid
controversy. Editors and news agencies will have the chance to
reply to allegations of racism, at the hearings.   (BBC News, 6
March 2000)

* South Africa. "Dial-A-Teacher"  -  Help is now at hand for
students in South Africa who are facing a last minute homework
crisis. A scheme called "Dial-a-Teacher" allows schoolchildren
to phone a special number and ask for help from qualified
teachers. The scheme operates from a call centre in Cape Town in
the evenings from 1700 to 2100 between Sunday and Thursday. It
is the brainchild of a former Miss South Africa, who is also a
teacher. She is using the call centre, outside of its normal
working hours, to meet the needs of young people. "I realised
these facilities weren't being used and had the idea of getting
teachers in the call centre in the evening when children are
doing their homework, to give them help".   (BBC News, 8 March
2000)

* Sudan/Uganda. Talks open in Nairobi  -  Negotiations began on
1 March between delegations of Uganda and Sudan concerning the
accord of principle, signed on 8 December by Uganda's President
Museveni and his Sudanese counterpart, President Al-Bashir. The
talks, due to conclude on 4 March, are principally aimed at
finding concrete solutions to the mounting difficulties in the
normalisation of relations between the two countries. Uganda's
support for the SPLA (Sudan People's Liberation Army) and Sudan's
backing of the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army), will undoubtedly be
the main topic of discussion.   (MISNA, Rome, 2 March 2000)

* Soudan. 11 ONG quittent le Sud  -  Le 29 fevrier, 11 ONG sur
les 42 presentes dans les zones du Sud-Soudan controlees par la
rebellion ont quitte la region, apres avoir refuse de signer avec
le mouvement rebelle Armee de liberation des peuples du Soudan
(SPLA) un accord revoyant l'organisation de l'aide humanitaire.
Les associations World Vision, Care International, Oxfam, Save
The Children et Medecins sans frontieres-Hollande, cinq des
principales ONG a operer au Sud-Soudan, figurent parmi les
associations ayant refuse de signer l'accord. Ce memorandum
prevoit notamment que les ONG agissent en accord avec les
objectifs de la branche humanitaire de la guerilla. Mais selon
plusieurs ONG, il n'assure pas que l'aide sera distribuee aux
populations dans le besoin. La Commission europeenne a decide de
suspendre ses financements pour les operations humanitaires dans
les zones controlees par le SPLA, considerant que les conditions
de livraison de l'aide selon les principes humanitaires ne sont
pas reunies. - Le 3 mars, selon l'agence Misna, le directeur
executif de la section humanitaire du SPLA, M. Elijah Malok, a
affirme que l'Eglise et les organisations qui operent sous son
egide (Malteser, Diakonia et Memisa) ne sont pas tenues a signer
la declaration dite Memorandum of Understanding. On leur
demandera cependant de se soumettre a certaines conditions,
telles que l'enregistrement des vehicules et des equipements, le
paiement de certaines taxes, etc. Les eveques se sont dit surpris
de n'avoir pas ete consultes ni informes.   (ANB-BIA, de sources
diverses, 4 mars 2000)

* Sudan. Rebels leaving civilians in the lurch  -  Sudanese
rebels should go back to the negotiating table with international
aid agencies to avoid massive civilian suffering, Human Rights
Watch said today. Hundreds of thousands of civilians in southern
Sudan face the cutoff of essential services, including food,
because the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army
(SPLM/A) refused to extend the deadline for negotiations with
non-governmental organizations (NGO)s. The rebels set March 1,
2000 as the deadline for negotiating the Memorandum of
Understanding and threatened the safety of relief agencies who
did not evacuate by that date. As a result some eleven agencies
handling about 75 percent of the humanitarian aid evacuated their
staff and equipment on or before the deadline. Human Rights Watch
also criticized a rebel demand raised during negotiations that
the aid agencies make their assets, such as vehicles and other
equipment, available to the SPLA for its use. Such a provision
would blur the line between civilian relief work and military
activity and make aid agencies vulnerable to government attack,
Human Rights Watch said. "The SPLA is behaving irresponsibly,"
said Jemera Rone, Sudan researcher for Human Rights Watch. "It
has imposed an artificial and unnecessary deadline that puts
many, many civilian lives at risk." Rone noted that a personal
telephone call from US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to
SPLA Commander-in-Chief John Garang had evidently failed to
persuade the SPLA to drop its artificial cutoff date.   (Human
Rights Watch, 7 March 2000)

* Soudan/USA. Contacts diplomatiques  -  Un emissaire americain,
Harry Johnston, a ete depeche a Khartoum pour examiner la
possibilite de rouvrir l'ambassade des Etats-Unis fermee depuis
1996. Le 4 mars, il s'est entretenu avec le chef de la diplomatie
soudanaise, Moustafa Osmane Ismail, qui a dit que son
gouvernement est "pret a repondre a toutes les questions sur les
relations bilaterales, la situation regionale ou [les efforts]
de paix" au Soudan. Les Etats-Unis accusent le Soudan de soutenir
le terrorisme et condamnent sa politique dans la guerre civile
dans le sud du pays. M. Johnston, qui rencontrera le president
El-Bechir, devra etablir si les conditions existent pour
"maintenir par rotation une presence diplomatique a l'ambassade"
a Khartoum, selon le departement d'Etat.   (Le Monde, France, 7
mars 2000)

* Swaziland. Swazi women have nothing to celebrate  -  While
women around the world celebrated Women's Day on 8 March, the
majority of Swazi women have nothing much to celebrate in the
male-dominated society, one women's organisation said. Women and
Law in Southern Africa Research Trust representative, Doo Aphane-
Zulu, only lauds the women's rights groups and activists for
having managed to create awareness of gender inequality since the
Beijing Declaration. She hastily adds that not much has been done
by the country's decision-makers, to address the core issues of
gender inequality so deeply steeped in Swazi culture and
tradition. Aphane-Zulu says women were encouraged by the fact
that people are now becoming gender sensitive. She, however,
points out that women's rights groups and activists are faced
with the daunting challenges of changing the Swazi culture and
tradition which always give males absolute power of control over
the family. "Male power is embedded in the maintenance of
patriarchal social relations and institutions which are
underpinned by the ideology which defines the adult male as the
ultimate decision maker, controller of material resources and
controller/user of women's productive and reproductive
capacities," Aphane-Zulu notes. Women in Swazi tradition, even
in adulthood, are considered as minors. As minors, they still
remain a vulnerable, marginalised group that is yet to enjoy
equality in status, and access to services and resources with
their male counterparts. They are, in fact, denied any access to
resources in their own right except through fathers, husbands,
brothers, sons and other male relatives. "For example, women gain
access to land on basis of patronage and the largesse of their
husbands," she says. Aphane-Zulu decries the fact that Swaziland
has not ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all forms
of Discrimination Against Women, and complains that makes it
difficult for women rights activist to argue against gender
imbalances with the government.   (Vuyisile Hlatshwayo, PANA, 8
March 2000)

* Tchad. Violents combats  -  Au terme de 17 mois de rebellion
dans le massif montagneux au nord du Tchad, la bataille du
Tibesti s'est engagee, voici dix jours, entre l'armee du
president Deby et les partisans de Youssouf Togoimi, l'ancien
ministre de la Defense entre en dissidence en octobre 1998.
Depuis le 24 fevrier, des "combats d'une rare violence", reconnus
par les deux parties, se deroulent non loin de la frontiere
tchado-libyenne et notamment autour de la palmeraie de Guizinti,
l'un des postes de commandement de la rebellion. Celle-ci fait
etat d'une "defaite generalisee de l'armee de Deby", alors que
le gouvernement pretend desormais "controler totalement la
situation" dans le grand nord. Le 3 mars, la radio de N'Djamena
a confirme que le chef de l'Etat se trouve depuis cinq jours a
Faya-Largeau, le chef-lieu septentrional, pour suivre de pres
l'offensive declenchee contre les rebelles. Ces derniers ont
refuse la "main tendue" d'Idriss Deby, qui avait depeche en
decembre un emissaire a Tripoli pour ouvrir des negociations.  
(Liberation, France, 4 mars 2000)

* Togo. Mecontentement etudiant  -  Le 2 mars dans la matinee,
des affrontements ont eu lieu entre etudiants et policiers a
l'universite de Lome. Les etudiants reclament logements et
bourses d'etudes, qu'ils ne recoivent plus depuis plusieurs mois.
La police a tire des coups de feu en l'air et lance des bombes
lacrymogenes pour disperser les manifestants. Les desordres
avaient commence la veille, quand la police etait intervenue
lorsque les etudiants tentaient de renconter le directeur de
l'universite. Le climat reste tendu.   (Misna, Italie, 2 mars
2000)

* Togo. Grand axe routier  -  Le Fonds de l'OPEP pour le
developpement international a accepte de preter au gouvernement
togolais 5,625 millions de dollars pour ameliorer une route
utilisee par les transporteurs entre la Cote d'Ivoire, le Ghana,
le Togo, le Benin et le Nigeria, ont rapporte les agences de
presse. Ce pret servira a rehabiliter les 53 km de route reliant
Aflao, a la frontiere du Ghana, a Hillacondji, a la frontiere du
Benin. Portant un interet de 1%, le pret sera rembourse en 17
ans.   (IRIN, Abidjan, 6 mars 2000)

* Tunisia. Hotel expansion  -  In Tunisia, conference space for
up to 400 delegates will be available at a new Inter-Continental
Hotel planned to open later this year in the seaside resort of
Hammamet. The hotel, which will also offer smaller meeting rooms,
will have 233 double rooms and 20 suites, indoor and outdoor
pools, a fitness room and tennis courts, a main restaurant for
up to 300, and an a la carte alternative with space for 200. It
will be one of three new properties in Tunisia to be operated by
the Inter-Continental's brand's owner, Bass Hotels and Resorts. 
 (Financial Times, UK, 6 March 2000)

* Tunisie. Bourguiba hospitalise  -  Le 5 mars, l'ancien
president tunisien Habib Bourguiba, 96 ans, a ete admis a
l'hopital militaire de Tunis. Il souffre d'une pneumopathie et
a ete place sous perfusion. M. Bourguiba, pere de l'independance,
a ete le premier president de la Tunisie et a gouverne le pays
pendant trente ans. Il avait ete destitue en novembre 1987 pour
incapacite physique et remplace par l'actuel president Ben Ali. 
 (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 7 mars 2000)

* Tunisie. Emeute a Tunis  -  Chaouki Chihi, etudiant en lettres
a Tunis, avait declame, le 3 mars, un poeme contestataire. La
police l'a arrete. Pour protester, une centaine de condisciples
ont occupe la faculte. La garde nationale a charge et passe a
tabac les jeunes gens. Plusieurs sont hospitalises. On est
toujours sans nouvelles du poete.   (Liberation, France, 7 mars
2000)

* Uganda. "Uganda in Congo RDC to steal"  -  Outspoken MP for
Samia Bugwe North, Aggrey Awori has said that Uganda has no
serious security interests in Congo except to steal the country
dry. "We no longer have serious interests in the Congo, we are
not there on a security mission but to steal. We are raping the
hapless Congolese orphans who are grappling with administrative
problems left by the Mobutu government," Awori said. Awori said
this on 6 March, at a symposium on the referendum organised by
the Nkumba University students guild. He was discussing a paper
entitled: "Presence of foreign troops in Congo as an infringement
of the sovereignty of the RDC, an independent state". He alleged
that Uganda is only in Congo to steal minerals and loot
Congolese's riches. Awori said that Uganda's actions in Congo can
be equated to raping hapless orphans. He said that last year's
clash between the RPA and the Uganda People's Defence Force
(UPDF<D)> was caused by the differences on how to share the loot
from Congo. Awori said that the UDPF's presence in Congo has
failed to stop the Allied Democratic Forces' (ADF) attacks on
Bundibugyo and other areas of western Uganda.   (The Monitor,
Uganda, 7 March 2000)

* Uganda. Rebels attack refugees  -  Rebels in northern Uganda
have killed 12 people and wounded 30 in an attack on a refugee
camp. The head of the Ugandan army, General Jeje Odongo, said the
Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) had attacked Padibe camp in Kitgum
District. A missionary priest told the New Vision newspaper that
two of the dead were Ugandan army soldiers and the rest were
civilians. General Odongo said the rebels had also attacked a
Catholic mission but he had no details of casualties.   (BBC
News, 7 March 2000)

* Zambia. More Angolan refugees  -  The number of Angolan
refugees in Zambia has risen to 26,000 and more were pouring into
Zambia since the war between UNITA rebels and Angolan government
forces intensified last October, a UN spokesman said on 1 March.
Dominik Bartsch of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)
said 9,000 refugees were stranded at Sinjembela close to the
Angolan border and another 2,800 were stuck at the town of Kalabo
waiting for transportation to established refugee camps at Maheba
in the northwestern province of Solwezi and Kaoma in the western
province. Bartsch said efforts to transfer the refugees to safer
areas have been hampered by the rising waters of the Zambezi
river, flooding the vast Zambezi plains which was only accessible
by boats not readily available in Zambia. He said alternative
arrangements were underway to transport stranded refugees to a
newly established semi-permanent refugee camp at Nangweshi near
Sinjembela. The refugees, mostly women and children, arrived in
Zambia critically afflicted by chronic malnutrition in emaciated
conditions. Basic human needs have been provided to lessen the
impact of hunger and human suffering although delivery of
essential necessities like food, medicine and drinking water were
a little bit slow. Western diplomats in Lusaka said the Angolan
government sentiments of vanquishing Unita rebels, was far from
over because the rebels were currently using guerrilla warfare
tactics, occasionally ambushing the Angolan forces with heavy
casualties.   (Africa Press Bureau, Johannesburg, 1 March 2000)

* Zambia. World Bank to provide more assistance  -  The World
Bank on 2 March announced plans to provide additional development
assistance to Zambia worth more than US$375 million over the next
three years. The World Bank's resident representative in Zambia,
Laurence Clarke, said the planned level of additional support was
based on the assumption that the privatisation of the Zambian
copper mines would be concluded before the end of the year and
that the economy would continue to grow. Currently, the Bank has
a portfolio of 14 ongoing projects in Zambia at various stages
of implementation, including agriculture, road repairs,
education, energy, health, mining and finance. Clarke said over
the past three years, disbursements on these existing projects
has amounted to 400 million dollars over and above the proposed
375 million programmed new assistance to the people of Zambia.
He noted that the long term objectives of the Bank's program on
new and ongoing assistance would be to continue to assist in the
generation of increased incomes and better living standards for
Zambians, and to support efforts to reduce poverty as a central
element of the strategy. Indications were that the Bank's
programmed support over the next three years would be evenly
divided between investment-type projects and programs and the
balance of payment support credits.   (Africa Press Bureau,
Johannesburg, 2 March 2000)

* Zambia. Kariba Dam causes floods  -  6 March: More than 12,000
people in Zambia are at risk of starvation in the Lower Zambezi
area, following the opening of the Kariba Dam gates more than a
week ago. A year's supply of food for thousands of people who
farm along the banks of the Zambezi River was wiped out in just
nine hours after the dam gates were opened. Crops of maize,
bananas, pumpkins and ground nuts were submerged by the rising
water levels. Local people have been so desperate to salvage any
of the precious food that they have been diving from canoes to
try to harvest the underwater crops. However, this has proved to
be a risky undertaking -- at least one farmer has been attacked
and seriously injured by a crocodile. 7 March: The first
consignment of emergency food supply has arrived in the lower
Zambezi Valley. In places the river has swollen into a lake,
islands have been submerged, and only the tops of banana and
pawpaw trees are visible. 8 March: The Government has sent
emergency food to the Luangwa district where floods have
displaced about 7,000 people whose homes were washed away after
the opening of the Kariba Dam spillway gates. The World Food
Programme has sent an assessment team to south-east Zambia to
investigate flood reports.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 March 2000)

* Zambia. Muslims call for introduction of Sharia  -  The
increasing number of crimes, cases of HIV/AIDS, and prostitution
-- plus the onslaught of corruption, adultery, injustice and
general immorality -- have forced Zambia's Muslims to call for
the introduction of Sharia Law to curb the current high level of
moral decadence. The National Islamic Propagation Centre's
director, Sheikh Shaban Phiri, told journalists that Muslims have
embarked on an ambitious and intensive programme of enlightening
the masses on what is taking place. Phiri said that the secular
law, as used in Zambia, has failed to adequately address the
country's social needs as it has been borrowed from and tailored
around Western situations. He said that Zambia's young democracy
is under threat because of a lack of justice and order in
society. On the other hand, human rights activists have condemned
the call by Muslims for Sharia Law.   (Gideon Thole, ANB-BIA,
Zambia, 7 March 2000)

* Zimbabwe. Who deals with the land problems?  -  There is no
government office specifically delegated to distribute land. It
seems that the President with his Ministers without Portfolio
have taken over the responsibility. For example, at one time,
former Minister without Portfolio Joseph Msika was dealing with
the land issue, but he got the job of Vice-President in place of
the late Dr Joshgua Nkomo. (It should be noted that Zimbabwe has
two vice-presidents!) The Minister of Land and Agriculture also
deals with land questions, as does the Minister of Public
Service, Labour and Social Welfare, and the Minister of Local
Government and National Housing. As pressure on land issues is
becoming a nationwide problem, politicians are confusing the
people by telling them to "grab" land, otherwise they will get
nothing.Land custom is changing rapidly under the influence of
new conditions -- increase in population and spread of a market
economy. These changes will eventually involve official
intervention, both legislative and executive. For example, there
is need to register titles to land; to regulate conditions
regarding the leasing of land.   (Dumisano Khumalo, ANB-BIA,
Zimbabwe, 24 Feb. 2000)

* Zimbabwe. 200 fermes occupees  -  Les conflits agraires au
Zimbabwe ont connu une nouvelle deterioration avec l'occupation
par d'anciens combattants de la guerilla noire de plus de 200
fermes appartenant a des Blancs, a annonce un dirigeant des
agriculteurs blancs le 6 mars. Le 2 mars, le president Mugabe,
contredisant son ministre de l'Interieur, avait cree une certaine
confusion en declarant que le gouvernement n'agirait pas contre
les manifestants, mais le chef de la police a declare que
desormais il etait d'accord avec l'evacuation. La police a donne
ordre aux occupants d'evacuer les fermes le 6 mars a l'aube, mais
ceux-ci ont ignore l'instruction. Le porte-parole de
l'association des anciens combattants a declare que les
manifestants ne se laisseraient pas expulser.   (D'apres La Libre
Belgique, 7 mars 2000)

* Zimbabwe. Occupation of white-owned farms  -  2 March: The
Government has begun the process of amending the Constitution to
allow it to acquire white-owned farms without paying
compensation. The proposed change was part of the draft
Constitution which was rejected in a national referendum last
month. Opposition groups denounce the planned amendment as a
gimmick, designed to win support for the government ahead of the
elections. The government orders thousands of black squatters to
leave the white-owned farms they have invaded, promising them
that it will soon have the constitutional power to seize the land
for them. 3 March: Protestors have stepped up their occupation
of white-owned farms, despite initial instructions by the
government that they should leave. The Commercial Farmers Union
(CFU), which represents most of the country's 4,000 white
farmers, says the number of farms occupied has doubled since 2
March. 5 March: The Home Affairs Minister repeats his call for
veterans of the liberation war who are occupying the farms, to
end their occupation. 6 March: Police say they still have no
government instructions to evict those people occupying the
farms. 8 March: Thousands of war veterans and government
supporters have now begun peacefully leaving hundreds of white-
owned farms. According to the CFU, the war veterans have now
moved off most of the farms they occupied. International donors
are said to have put enormous pressure on the government to end
the occupations.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 March 2000)

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