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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 14-10-1999      PART #1/

* Afrique. Madeleine Albright en visite  -  La secretaire d'Etat
americaine, Madeleine Albright, effectuera un voyage de 11 jours en
Afrique a partir du 17 octobre prochain. Sa premiere visite sera
pour le Nigeria, ou aucun representant americain ne s'est rendu
depuis 13 ans. Mme Albright se rendra ensuite au Kenya, en
Tanzanie, en Guinee et en Sierra Leone. L'itineraire africain se
concluera au Mali le 27 octobre, avant de rejoindre Washington.  
(Misna, Italie, 7 octobre 1999)

* Africa. Population  -  As the African population reached 766.6
million on 12 October and is expected to rise to 1,298.3 million in
2025, an African demographer said home-grown solutions will have to
be found to the myriad of population challenges facing the
continent in the coming century. Martin Bangha, a Cameroonian
working with the Dakar-based Union for African Population Studies,
added that "Africans will have to prepare their own project for the
future" to cope with the numerous problems they face. These include
civil strife, the scourge of AIDS, environmental degradation "and
bad interpretation of what democracy means. We thought that the
advent of multiparty democracy was a panacea but what prevails now
on the continent is total chaos with civil strife all over," Bangha
told PANA in an interview as the world population stood at 6
billion on 12 October. He said all efforts should be directed in
the search to end the conflicts in countries like Sierra Leone, the
two Congos, Sudan, Somalia and the Eritrea- Ethiopia border
conflict and others. "In all these problems, Africa has virtually
been left on its own by the international community, hence the need
for Africans to work out African solutions to their problems," he
emphasised. "We need to critically examine our fate under the
globalised economic system to see what can be done to prevent the
further marginalisation of Africa." On whether population planning
policies were working in Africa, Bangha said the international
community should realise that it is difficult to convince people
"striving for physical survival" to think of planning when their
children should be born. "There is a lot of talk of environmental
protection, but there is no alternative fuel given to enable the
peasant cook his food, other than firewood. There is need for
something concrete," he noted. Bangha said proposed solutions to
African population challenges will be discussed during the Third
African Population Conference from 6-10 December, in Durban, South
Africa.   (Peter Masebu, PANA, 12 October 1999)

* Africa, Action against the Media  -  Angola: The media Institute
of Southern Africa has confirmed the Folha 8's editor, William
Tonet, was released on bail of about US $500 by the police's
Criminal Investigation department on 4 October. Cameroon: Amnesty
International has criticised as fundamentally flawed the trial of
more than thirty English-speaking journalists sentenced to jail
terms last week. Congo RDC: Reporters sans Frontieres has protested
the sentencing of two journalists, Paulin Tusumba and Michel
Godefroid, to prison terms, and the threats levelled against one of
their colleagues. Gabon: On 11 October, the National Council of
Communications suspended four private radio and television stations
after accusing them of illegal broadcasting.Nigeria: On 7 October,
20,000 copies of Africa Today containing an interview critical of
President Obasanjo, were seized at Lagos Airport.   (ANB-BIA,
Brussels, 13 October 1999)

* Algerie. Les attentats continuent  -  Seize personnes, dont huit
d'une meme famille et un colonel de l'armee, ont ete tuees en
differents lieux d'Algerie les 6 et 7 octobre, dans cinq attentats
attribues a des islamistes armes. Cette serie d'attentats est la
plus sanglante depuis l'approbation, le 16 septembre par
referendum, de la loi sur la concorde civile.   (Liberation,
France, 9 octobre 1999)

* Algerie. Bouteflika menace de demissionner  -  Elu a la
presidence en avril dernier, M. Bouteflika n'a toujours pas forme
de nouveau gouvernement. Selon les observateurs, l'origine de ce
delai se trouverait dans le desaccord entre le president, qui
voudrait nommer des hommes bien a lui, et les generaux, qui
insistent pour qu'il choisisse ses ministres au sein des partis
politiques qui l'ont soutenu lors des elections. L'agence Reuters
annonce que, le 12 octobre, le president Bouteflika a menace de
quitter ses fonctions en janvier s'il n'obtient pas les coudees
franches pour mener sa politique. Il n'a pas precise qui faisait
obstacle a sa politique, mais il s'est engage a combattre ce qu'il
appelle les interets des monopoles.   (ANB-BIA, de sources
diverses, 12 octobre 1999)

* Algerie. Un religieux contre la polygamie  -  Abdelmadjid
Meziane, le president du Haut Conseil islamique, la plus haute
autorite religieuse d'Algerie, a denonce, le 12 octobre, la
polygamie et le retard de la legislation dans le domaine de la
famille. Il a estime "inconcevable que les femmes puissent encore
souffrir de la polygamie et des consequences du divorce arbitraire,
inspires d'une fausse interpretation du texte religieux". Cette
prise de position a ete desapprouvee par le ministre des Affaires
religieuses.   (Liberation, France, 13 octobre 1999)

* Angola. Proposition de treve  -  Jonas Savimbi, le chef du
mouvement rebelle Unita, a propose une treve au gouvernement,
rapporte l'agence portugaise de presse Lusa. M. Savimbi a fait
cette proposition dans une lettre au president angolais dos Santos
datee du 27 septembre. Jonas Savimbi y ecrit qu'un armistice
constitue "la premiere condition au reglement de la crise actuelle
en Angola".   (Le Monde, France, 8 octobre 1999)

* Angola. Reactions from UNITA  -  7 October: UNITA says a letter
purportedly from their leader Jonas Savimbi offering the government
an immediate ceasefire and a return to peace talks is a fake.
Savimbi allegedly made the peace overture in a signed letter to
Angolan President Dos Santos, as reported by the Portuguese news
agency, Lusa, on 7 October. Lusa said it had been shown the letter
by Angolan government officials in Luanda. 8 October: UNITA says De
Beers' decision not to buy diamonds from Angola will do little to
dent the movement's strength and the country's civil way could go
on for many years to come.   (CNN, 7-8 October 1999)

* Angola. Envoye du pape  -  Du 15 au 22 octobre, Mgr Zago,
secretaire de la Congregation pour l'evangelisation des peuples,
visitera l'Angola ou il inaugurera une universite catholique. Mgr
Zago portera en outre un message du pape au president dos Santos et
rencontrera le corps diplomatique a Luanda. L'initiative vient du
pape qui veut exprimer sa solidarite avec le peuple angolais qui
souffre, et son espoir de voir s'instaurer la paix le plus
rapidement possible a travers un dialogue entre les parties
impliquees dans le conflit.   (Fides, Rome, 12 octobre 1999)

* Angola. Situation humanitaire  -  La situation humanitaire deja
catastrophique en Angola s'aggrave encore. De 800.000 en septembre,
le nombre des Angolais qui ont besoin d'une aide d'urgence s'est
accru a 1,1 million, a annonce le PAM le 12 octobre. Une nouvelle
offensive gouvernementale a pousse des populations sur les routes. 
 (La Croix, France, 13 octobre 1999)

* Botswana. Elections  -  8 October: An estimated 500,000 voters go
to the polls on 16 October to elect a new National Assembly for the
next five years. Nine parties have registered, one of them being an
alliance of four parties. A total of 40 parliamentary seats are to
be contested.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 October 1999)

* Botswana. Airport crash "wipes out fleet"  -  An Air Botswana
pilot has crashed his plane in an apparent suicide mission,
destroying all but one of the airline's fleet. The pilot took off
from Gabarone's Sir Seretse Khama Airport on 11 October and circled
in an empty ATR-42 for several hours. Officials said he radioed the
control tower and announced: "I intend to kill myself". As the
plane ran short of fuel, the pilot threatened to crash it into an
Air Botswana office building to settle an apparent grudge with the
airline's management. The pilot had been grounded due to ill-
health, and took the plane without permission. After being told by
the control tower that there were people in the building, he
crashed the plane into two other ATR-42s on the tarmac, destroying
the aircraft and himself in a fireball. Air Botswana has been
crippled, as the airline has only one plane a left -- a BAe-146
which is grounded with technical problems. (Update: on 13 October,
Air Botswana said it will replace its fleet by the end of the
month.)   (BBC News, 11 October 1999)

* Botswana. Kamikaze  -  Le 11 octobre, un pilote de ligne d'Air
Botswana s'est suicide en precipitant son bimoteur sur deux avions
au sol, detruisant ainsi l'essentiel de la flotte commerciale de la
compagnie. Le pilote, qui etait interdit de vol depuis juillet,
etait seul a bord de l'avion qu'il avait "emprunte". Apres deux
heures de ronds dans le ciel au-dessus de la capitale Gabarone, il
s'est finalement ecrase sur les deux ATR-42 d'Air Botswana. Aucune
autre victime n'est a deplorer.   (Liberation, France, 12 octobre
1999)

* Burkina Faso. Nouveau gouvernement  -  Annonce le 12 octobre, le
nouveau gouvernement burkinabe, recommande en aout dernier par un
college de sages, n'a pas pu realiser l'ouverture attendue pour
resoudre la crise politique que connait le pays. Seuls les "Verts",
le parti ecologiste, et le Mouvement pour la tolerance et le
progres ont accepte l'ouverture proposee par le president Compaore.
La nouvelle equipe devrait favoriser le rapprochement entre
pouvoir, opposition et societe civile.   (ANB-BIA, de sources
diverses, 14 octobre 1999)

* Burundi. Hutus moved from camps  -  The government has moved
thousands of Hutus from makeshift camps north of Bujumbura where
they had gone to seek refuge and taken them to what are being
called protected villages, a military spokesman said on 7 October.
"The people asked for protection, and the only way we could protect
them is to group them together," said Lt. Col. Longin Minani.
Minani said the operation was organized by the government "and had
nothing to do with (the army)." But a man who witnessed the removal
early 6 October from the camp sites, said men were taken away in
army trucks while women and children were driven off in trucks
belonging to the Bujumbura public works department. Gilbert
Ndayizamvye, chief of Gihosha zone to where 4,000 people were to be
moved, said the government wanted to empty the camps because the
people were living in miserable conditions. The removal comes in
the wake of increased attacks in Bujumbura by Hutu rebels in which
several dozen people, including civilians, rebels and soldiers,
have been killed. Minani said he did not know how many people had
been moved, but according to the U.N. Office of Humanitarian
Affairs, 6,000 people were being taken to the Kamenge district,
4,000 to Gihosha and 4,000 to Rural Bujumbura, all located outside
the capital. The Tutsi-dominated army has herded an estimated
250,000 Hutus into camps controlled by Burundi army troops in Rural
Bujumbura province to deprive rebels of support and to clear the
way for counter attacks. The U.N. World Food Program says it is
distributing food to more than 270,000 people displaced by the
fighting in Rural Bujumbura. U.N. agencies stopped distributing
relief food to a site known as Johnson's and the other sites some
time ago. Johnson's, run by American Protestants, and the two other
camps sprang up following the slaughter of Hutus after Tutsi
paratroopers assassinated the country's first democratically
elected president, a Hutu, in 1993.   (AP, 7 October 1999)

* Burundi. L'armee tue des civils  -  Des soldats ont ouvert le feu
sur des civils hutu qui avaient ete regroupes de force dans un camp
situe a 13 km a l'est de Bujumbura, tuant treize personnes, a
declare le 9 octobre un des survivants. Au moins 250.000 personnes
auraient ete conduites vers les camps. "Pour assurer leur
protection", disent les autorites. Un porte-parole de l'armee a
reconnu sa responsabilite dans la mort de 6 civils, tues par un
soldat "indiscipline", qui aurait ete pris de panique.   (D'apres
AP, 9 octobre 1999)

* Burundi. Pourparlers de paix  -  On apprenait le 12 octobre que
les pourparlers de paix interburundais reprendront le 8 novembre a
Arusha, en absence de M. Nyerere, hospitalise a Londres. Les
pourparlers reuniront des representants du gouvernement et une
large representation de l'opposition et des factions armees actives
au Burundi. Des consultations reprendront le 18 octobre.   (D'apres
IRIN, Nairobi, 12 octobre 1999)

* Burundi. Representants de l'Onu assassines  -  Le 12 octobre,
deux representants de l'Onu, le representant de l'Unicef (Luis
Zuniga, Chilien) et la responsable de la logistique du PAM (Saskia
van Meijenfeldt, des Pays-Bas), ainsi que sept Burundais, dont le
directeur d'une compagnie sucriere, ont ete tues pas les rebelles
lors d'une mission humanitaire au sud du pays. Ils visitaient un
"site de protection" a Muzye, dans la province de Rutana, pour y
distribuer des vivres, lorsque les rebelles, "dissimules dans la
population" selon le porte-parole de l'armee, ont ouvert le feu.
Les deux representants de l'Onu ont ete abattus a bout portant. La
representante du PNUD a ete prise en otage un moment avant d'etre
relachee. L'attaque a fait aussi un nombre indetermine de blesses,
dont le gouverneur de la province et le commandant du district de
Rutana. Le 13 octobre, les Nations unies ont suspendu
temporairement toutes les missions en dehors de Bujumbura.   (ANB-
BIA, de sources diverses, 13 octobre 1999)

* Burundi. Attack on convoy  -  Nine people, including two senior
United Nations officials -- have been killed in an attack on a
humanitarian convoy in the south-east of the country. The dead
include the UN Children's Agency representative in Burundi, Luis
Manuel Zuniga, from Chile. Reuters news agency reports that the
other UN victim was 34-year-old World Food Programme logistics
officer Saskia Von Meijenfeldt, from the Netherlands. Seven people
are reported to have been injured and three vehicles destroyed. An
army spokesman said the incident happened as the convoy visited a
civilian camp at Muzye, 140km south-east of the capital Bujumbura.
Michele Quintaglie of the WFP told Reuters that six members of the
UN team had been put against a wall shortly after arriving at the
camp and robbed by the rebels, who then walked away. "One rebel
turned around and said "Why should we let these people live?'", she
said. "He took his gun, put it to the head of the UN worker and
executed him. Then he took his gun again, put it to the head of the
WFP worker, and executed her." The government is blaming rebels
operating from neighbouring Tanzania. The killings brought an angry
response from the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. In a statement
read by his deputy spokesman, Mr Annan said that the UN officials
had made the ultimate sacrifice in the cause of peace. Paying
tribute at the same time to a UN worker killed in Kosovo this week,
Mr Annan said the officials were dedicated to creating an
environment "where innocent victims will no longer be the first
victims of conflict. Let us insist that the killers be brought to
justice," he said. A BBC Correspondent in Burundi, Chris Simpson,
says the UN has a high profile in the country and is running many
aid projects throughout the region. (Update: On 13 October, the
United Nations said it has suspended all Burundi aid operations
outside Bujumbura, at least until 15 October.)   (BBC News, 13
October 1999)

* Cameroun. Prisons surpeuplees  -  Quinze bandits de grand chemin,
ecroues pour la plupart depuis 1994 au penitencier de Kondengui
(Yaounde), se sont evades le 9 octobre. Apres avoir force le depot
d'armes de la prison, ils se sont empares notamment de trois
mitraillettes. Bilan: 4 gardiens ont ete grievement blesses, un
bandit tue et deux autres repris. Construite en 1967 pour une
capacite de 1.500 prisonniers, cette prison en heberge actuellement
plus que le double. Elle souffre de la vetuste des locaux
inappropries et de l'insuffisance d'un personnel d'encadrement
vieillissant et mal equipe.   (Reporters associes, Cameroun, 13
octobre 1999)

* Cameroun. Inquietude sur le cacao  -  "Les pays de l'Union
europeenne devront mettre en place une methode d'analyse fiable de
detection de la teneur en beurre de cacao et de matieres grasses de
substitution". Cet appel a ete lance le 12 octobre par le ministre
du Developpement industriel et commercial a l'ouverture de la
nouvelle campagne cacaoyere. Le Cameroun est inquiet des directives
europeennes qui autorisent l'utilisation dans les produits
chocolatiers de tout type de matieres grasses de substitution. Le
Cameroun tire une partie substantielle de ses revenus du cacao.
Plus de 400.000 familles, soit environ 3 millions de Camerounais,
vivent de cette culture.   (Reporters associes, Cameroun, 13
octobre 1999)

* Centrafrique. Extension du mandat de l'ONU  -  Le secretaire
general de l'ONU, Kofi Annan, a prolonge le mandat de la Mission de
l'ONU en RCA (Minurca) pour lui permettre de continuer a apporter
son aide dans la mise en place de "grandes reformes" et dans la
poursuite de la reconciliation nationale. Le mandat de la mission
qui devait s'achever le 15 novembre, a ete prolonge jusqu'au 15
fevrier 2000. Toutefois, une reduction des effectifs de la Minurca
serait envisagee a partir de la mi-decembre 1999.   (IRIN, Nairobi,
12 octobre 1999)

* Congo (RDC). Nouveau massacre au Sud-Kivu  -  Selon la SIC
(Source independante du Congo) de Bukavu, dans un communique du 7
octobre, un nouveau massacre a eu lieu, le 30 septembre, dans la
province du Sud-Kivu, a la mission protestante de Kalambi. Apres un
accrochage avec des miliciens mai-mai, un groupe de soldats du RCD-
Goma s'est venge sur les villageois de Kalambi, une localite ou se
trouve la mission et le seul centre de sante encore en fonction
dans la region. Selon les temoins, les victimes seraient plusieurs
dizaines (dont le communique donne une liste provisoire). Les
batiments de la mission et du centre de sante ont ete pilles et 25
maisons incendiees. Toujours d'apres les temoignages, les soldats
etaient diriges par un Munyamulenge, surnomme "Shetani" (Satan),
qui avait deja dirige le massacre a Makobola, le 1er janvier
dernier.   (ANB-BIA, Bruxelles, 8 octobre 1999)
* Congo (RDC). Rebel action  -  7 October: Rwandan army troops and
the Congolese rebel allies have killed more than 200 Rwandan Hutu
rebels in a sweep of the region along Congo's eastern border. The
killings occurred during a week long operation by the Rwandan army
to clear Hutu rebels from their bases near the Nyiragongo and
Nyamuragira volcanoes along the Congo-Rwanda border, the semi-
private Rwanda News Agency says. 8 October: The MISNA news agency
reports that another massacre has been carried out in the last few
days in Kivu by troops operating within the rebel Congolese Rally
for Democracy (RCD). Several dozen defenceless civilians were
massacred in the Kalambi village, mid-way between Kasika and
Mwenga. The massacre (continues MISNA's sources), was perpetrated
as a form of retaliation by soldiers under the command of a Colonel
well-known as "Shetani". The same day, the government army
denounced a fresh attack by rebels which, they say, took place on
7 October. The rebels targeted government positions in Kimalala on
a plateau overlooking Kabila's home town of Manono. There has been
no independent confirmation of the accusation.   (ANB-BIA,
Brussels, 9 October 1999)

* Congo (RDC)/Rwanda. Raids contre Hutu  -  Selon l'agence
rwandaise d'information ARI, des unites de l'armee rwandaise et
leurs allies congolais ont, au cours d'une operation de nettoyage
d'une semaine, tue quelque 200 rebelles hutu dans l'est du Congo.
Le but de l'armee rwandaise, selon Kigali, est de chasser les
rebelles hutu de leurs refuges en RDC ou ils se sont retires apres
le genocide de 1994. Quelque 4.000 rebelles rwandais se seraient
rassembles dans des bases situees entre les volcans Nyamuragira et
Nyiragongo pour se preparer a lancer des attaques sur Goma, Gisenyi
et Ruhengeri. Une centaine d'autres rebelles ont ete captures, a
rapporte ARI.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 9 octobre 1999)

* Congo (RDC). Reunion de la societe civile  -  Malgre de multiples
obstacles, plus de 300 representants d'associations de base, d'ONG
ou d'Eglises, venus de toutes les parties du pays et invites pour
debattre de l'accord de paix de Lusaka, se sont reunis a Kinshasa
du 6 au 9 octobre. Une bonne partie des delegues de l'est du pays
ont ete arretes ou retenus, mais d'autres ont pu arriver a la
capitale. La reunion, d'abord defendue, a cependant ete autorisee
par le ministre de l'Interieur, sur ordre du president Kabila lui-
meme. La demarche a ete appuyee par des bailleurs de fonds qui,
depuis des annees, soutiennent le processus de democratisation. Le
dialogue intercongolais rassemblant les rebelles, l'opposition non
armee et le gouvernement devrait commencer d'ici une quinzaine de
jours. La societe civile a voulu prendre les devants et se preparer
a une discussion qui devrait mener a un nouvel ordre politique.  
(ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 9 octobre 1999)

* Congo (RDC). Inquietudes europeennes  -  Le 11 octobre, l'Union
europeenne a critique la lenteur de la mise en oeuvre de l'accord
de cessez-le-feu en RDC. Les Quinze ont certes salue la premiere
reunion a Kampala de la Commission militaire mixte (chargee du
deploiement d'observateurs militaires pour surveiller le respect du
cessez-le-feu), la qualifiant d'element-cle de l'accord de paix.
Mais ils se sont surtout declares inquiets des retards de
l'application de cet accord et ont appele les parties a soutenir la
dynamique de paix et a eviter une reprise du conflit. - Par
ailleurs, le RCD-Goma a decide de reprendre le controle des
territoires controles par la faction dissidente de Wamba dia Wamba.
Il a declare, le 9 octobre, sa "determination a recuperer la partie
nord de la province du Nord-Kivu ainsi que le district de l'Ituri
dans la province orientale".   (D'apres La Libre Belgique, 12
octobre 1999)

* Congo (RDC). Overseeing the ceasefire  -  11 October: Military
officials from the countries involved in Congo's civil war, meet
for the first time to oversee the implementation of a ceasefire and
prepare the ground for peacekeeping operations. "Peace is something
that cannot wait", says Uganda's Minister for Regional Affairs. The
Joint Commission is made up of senior military officers from
Uganda, Rwanda, Angola, Congo RDC and Namibia. It is chaired by
General Rashid Lalani of Algeria.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 12 October
1999)

* Congo (RDC). Licenciements a Lubumbashi  -  Le licenciement de
quelque 6.000 employes de la compagnie miniere Gecamines a
Lubumbashi a affecte les conditions generales de securite
alimentaire dans la ville, a souligne un rapport de la FAO du 11
octobre. Par ailleurs, les restrictions monetaires imposees par le
gouvernement ont reduit les importations; la partie nord de la
province, grenier alimentaire, est toujours inaccessible; et la
presence de personnes deplacees exerce des pressions
supplementaires sur les ressources des familles locales, precise le
texte. D'autre part, le quotidien belge Le Soir a declare le 12
octobre que les entrepreneurs belges a Lubumbashi etaient "amers"
a l'egard du directeur zimbabween de Gecamines, Billy Rautenbach,
qu'ils accusent de privilegier ses propres interets au Zimbabwe.  
(IRIN, Nairobi, 13 octobre 1999)

* Cote d'Ivoire. La polemique autour de Ouattara  -  Le 6 octobre,
le ministre de la Justice, Jean Brou Kouakou, a annonce
l'annulation du certificat de nationalite ivoirienne de l'ancien
Premier ministre Alassane Dramane Ouattara. President du
Rassemblement des republicains (RDR), M. Ouattara, candidat a la
presidentielle d'octobre 2000, voit sa nationalite ivoirienne
contestee par le gouvernement et les partisans du president Henri
Konan Bedie. Faute de pouvoir prouver son "ivoirite", M. Ouattara
sera exclu de la course a la presidence. Le parti de M. Ouattara,
le RDR, a qualifie cette decision de "manoeuvre de diversion". -
Durant le week-end du 9 et 10 octobre, la polemique a degenere en
affrontements. Ces incidents, qui ont fait plusieurs blesses, se
sont produits a Boundiali, un fief de Ouattara, au cours d'une
manifestation de soutien au president Bedie, a laquelle des
militants du RDR ont tente de s'opposer. La presse gouvernementale
pour sa part a accuse Ouattara, qui est musulman, de mettre en
danger le pays en jouant la "carte religieuse".   (ANB-BIA, de
sources diverses, 12 octobre 1999)

* Egypt. Revitalizing the government  -  8 October: Egypt's new
prime minister plans to revitalize government by giving more power
to individual ministers to implement their policies and accelerate
economic reform. Announcement of a new cabinet is expected
tomorrow, four days after the appointment of Atef Ebeid as premier.
In his first interview since his appointment, Mr Ebeid says
decision-making and implementation of government policies are the
main areas in need of reform. 10 October: The Prime Minister
completes the formation of his government, with an emphasis on
economic and administrative reform rather than politics.   (ANB-
BIA, Brussels, 11 October 1999)

* Egypte. Nouveau gouvernement  -  Le nouveau gouvernement egyptien
a prete serment le 11 octobre, vingt-quatre heures apres sa
formation par le Premier ministre Atef Ebeid. Il comprend 33
membres, dont seulement treize nouveaux, les ministeres cles de la
defense, de l'interieur, des affaires etrangeres et de l'economie
ne changeant pas de titulaires. Les Egyptiens s'attendaient a un
changement plus profond, notamment la mise a l'ecart de Safouat El
Cherif, eternel ministre de l'Information. L'opposition esperait
par la une ouverture des medias, monopole de l'Etat comme la radio
et la television.   (Le Monde, France, 13 octobre 1999)

* Eritrea/Ethiopia. The forgotten war  -  11 October: Eritrea has
accused Ethiopia of destroying six Eritrean villages in a border
area which Ethiopian troops have been occupying since fighting in
February. The 4,000 inhabitants had already fled before the
Ethiopians arrived. The Eritreans say the damage was done in the
past few days.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 12 October 1999)

* Ethiopia. Global Network  -  The Chamber of Commerce from more
than 90 Countries resolved to form a global chamber network which
would enable even the smallest and most remote companies to tap
into and thereby reach potential business partners throughout the
world. The move for greater cohesion among the world's 10,000
Chambers of Commerce came at their first World Congress in
Marseille, France, coordinated by the International Chamber of
Commerce (ICC) and the Marseille Chamber, which was celebrating its
400th anniversary. Ato Aschallew Haile, President of the Ethiopian
Chamber of Commerce, and Ato Hussein Shibeshi, acting secretary
General of the Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce attended the
Congress. They said that a key tool for establishing the network is
already in place and an electronic data-base on the internet into
which chambers and their member companies can feed information
about products and business opportunities is established. They
further noted that speakers and participants of the congress had
emphasized that the chambers of commerce mainly serve small and
medium sized enterprises that form the backbone of national economy
for the are the main generators of employment and wealth. The
acting secretary general noted that the ICC had announced that the
world congress henceforth would take place every two years in a
different continent.   (Addis Tribune, Addis Ababa, 8 October 1999)

* Ghana. Cholera a Kumasi  -  Kumasi, la seconde ville du Ghana, a
interdit la vente de nourriture cuite et d'eau glacee par les
vendeurs de rue, pour tenter de freiner l'extension du cholera. Le
ministre de la Sante, les autorites locales et celles de la region
Ashanti, ont decrete cette interdiction le 11 octobre, apres que
deux personnes soient mortes du cholera et 41 autres aient ete
hospitalisees. L'epidemie qui s'est declaree dans cette ville de
plus de 400.000 habitants, serait due a une mauvaise hygiene
publique et a de la nourriture contaminee. En juillet, on a
enregistre 21 cas de cholera et 7 deces provoques par de l'eau
contaminee.   (IRIN, Abidjan, 12 octobre 1999)

* Guinee. Manifestations: deux morts  -  Le 11 octobre, deux
lyceens ont ete tues par des balles tirees par la police dans la
banlieue de Conakry, lors de manifestations contre la hausse des
prix des transports. Plusieurs autres eleves ont ete blesses par
des grenades lacrymogenes.   (Liberation, France, 12 octobre 1999)

* Guinee Bissau. Processus de paix  -  Le 6 octobre, les membres du
Conseil de securite de l'Onu ont lance un appel aux contributions
a un fonds pour la Guinee Bissau et ont invite les pays qui se sont
deja engages a mettre leurs promesses en application. Le president
du Conseil, Sergey Lavrov, a declare que les membres ont pris note
des developpements positifs en Guinee Bissau, en particulier la
stabilisation du climat politique et le mouvement pacifique et
ordonne vers l'organisation d'elections le 28 novembre. Ils ont
appele le gouvernement et toutes les forces politiques du pays a
poursuivre de bonne foi la mise en application du programme de
desarmement et de demobilisation. - D'autre part, pour la premiere
fois depuis qu'ils ont fui leur pays en 1998, les refugies de
Guinee Bissau en Guinee-Conakry ont declare qu'ils souhaitaient
rentrer chez eux, a rapporte le HCR le 8 octobre. Un sondage
effectue aupres de 1.800 refugies dans la ville frontaliere de
Boke, a enregistre 600 refugies volontaires au rapatriement.  
(D'apres IRIN, Abidjan, 7-11 octobre 1999)

* Equatorial Guinea. Oil find  -  The announcement this week of a
"significant" oil discovery of the mainland coast of Equatorial
Guinea is likely to boost international oil company in interest in
Equatorial Guinea. Few details of the find were announced, but it
is thought that La Ceiba deepwater field may contain as much as 300
million - 500 million barrels of oil.   (Financial Times, UK, 8
October 1999)

* Kenya. Constitutional Review Process  -  26 September: In their
Pastoral Letter entitled: "For the Truth Shall Set You Free", the
Catholic Bishops of Kenya call for constitutional reform to be
"people-driven". They urge the President to stop crusading for the
transfer of the Constitutional Review to Parliament. 27 September:
A new programme to restart the Constitutional review Process is
announced by the Law Society of Kenya. The Programme is called:
"Towards Reinstating the Constitutional Reform Process". 3 October:
Muslim leaders ask President Moi to let Kenyans participate in the
Constitutional Review Process. They claim that the Head of State
will be "an obstacle to the aspirations of Kenyans if he insists
that the process be taken back to Parliament". Speaking to
journalists at the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslim Headquarters,
the Council's chairman, Professor Abdulghafur El-Busaidy says a new
Constitution should be in place before the next General Elections
in 2002 "to steer the country away from looking anarchy".   (ANB-
BIA, Brussels, 8 October 1999)

* Libye/France. Plainte contre Kadhafi  -  Le juge d'instruction
parisien Jean-Louis Bruguiere a donne satisfaction aux familles des
170 victimes de l'attentat perpetre contre un DC10 d'UTA, le 19
septembre 1989, au-dessus du desert du Tenere (Niger). Contre
l'avis du parquet, le magistrat antiterroriste a decide, le 6
octobre, d'instruire la plainte pour "complicite d'homicide
volontaire" contre le colonel Kadhafi. L'enquete sur l'attentat
n'avait pas mis en cause le chef de l'Etat libyen, mais elle avait
conduit a la condamnation par contumace, le 10 mars, de six
ressortissants libyens. Dans un entretien publie dans Le Figaro du
20 aout, le colonel Kadhafi a conteste la responsabilite de son
pays dans cet attentat.   (D'apres Le Monde, France, 8 octobre
1999)

* Malawi. President Muluzi weds  -  9 October: Some 3,000 guests,
including Presidents Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Frederick Chiluba
of Zambia, Joachim Chissano of Mozambique and King Mswati III of
Swaziland attend the wedding feast for Malawi's President Bakili
Muluzi and his long-time companion and friend, Patricia Fukili. The
wedding procession was led by some of the five children Patricia
has borne President Muluzi since they were first married in a civil
ceremony in 1987. The President had been married to his first wife,
Annie, for 30 years and had never publicly acknowledged Patricia as
his second wife. He separated from his first wife in May, but did
not divorce her. The President is a member of Malawi's 30% Islamic
minority.   (BBC News, 9 October 1999)

* Malawi. Fish industry bleak  -  Malawi's already endangered fish
industry faces a new crisis with the news that thousands of fish in
Lake Malawi are dying from apparent poisoning or infection.
Southern African Development Community (SADC) project manager for
fisheries in Malawi, Alexander Bulilani said investigations had
been launched to determine the cause of the massive deaths. He said
preliminary reports indicated the fish may be dying from
temperature changes in the water caused by unprecedented strong
winds blowing on the lake. "The strong winds have caused an
upwelling of water that has mixed water from the well oxygenated
shallow regions with "dead" water from the lake's deeper areas.
Fish appear to have been deprived of vital oxygen in the process,"
he said. Large quantities of dead fish were first discovered in the
central lake districts of Nkhota Kota and Salima late last month
but similar reports have since been received from the northern lake
district of Karonga, which borders Tanzania, and the southern
resort district of Mangochi. Bulilani dismissed speculation that
the deaths might be connected to pollution. "It's a natural
phenomenon, not poisoning by pollution," he said. Documentation
released by Bulilani's office confirm that at least 500 kilogrammes
of dead fish were collected in one day alone between Livingstonia
Beach and Chipoka in Salima. The report says the most affected
species appear to be Kampango, Malawi's most popular fish after the
Chambo of the tilapia family. Authorities are already warning
villagers living around the lake not to eat any fish found laying
on the shore or floating on the lake as there are still no concrete
indications what killed them.   (African Eye Service, South Africa,
11 October 1999)

* Maroc. Le roi contre "l'immobilisme"  -  Le 8 octobre a Rabat, a
l'occasion de l'ouverture solennelle de la session d'automne du
Parlement marocain, le roi Mohamed VI a vivement critique
l'immobilisme de l'administration, veritable entrave au
developpement et donc a la creation d'emplois. Devant les deux
chambres reunies, il a insiste sur la necessite de resoudre les
problemes urgents de l'emploi et de l'enseignement. Le jeune
souverain a toutefois evite les grands sujets sur lesquels il etait
attendu, a savoir la lutte contre la pauvrete et les inegalites
sociales, le dossier du Sahara occidental et les relations avec
l'Algerie.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 9 octobre 1999)

* Maroc. Delegation aupres des Sahraouis  -  Le roi Mohamed VI a
depeche, le 6 octobre, une delegation a El Ayoun, principale ville
du Sahara occidental, pour ecouter la population a la suite des
violences policieres qui ont eu lieu fin septembre dans cette
ville. Dans la semaine du 22 au 30 septembre, des manifestations
d'etudiants sahraouis, qui reclamaient une augmentation de leur
bourse et une amelioration de leurs conditions de transport,
avaient degenere en actes de violence, de pillage et de vandalisme,
et avaient ete violemment reprimees par la police marocaine. Les
ministres composant la delegation ont rassure les notables et les
jeunes, a qui ils ont promis notamment la gratuite de leurs
transports terrestres et l'octroi de bourses a ceux qui n'en ont
pas. Les jeunes Sahraouis ont insiste sur le fait qu'ils
souhaitaient etre representes au sein de la "Commission royale" sur
le Sahara, destinee a etudier tous les problemes de la province, et
que les autorites sont actuellement en train de mettre en place. Le
8 octobre cependant, la cour d'appel d'El Ayoun a condamne 26
personnes reconnues coupables d'actes de vandalisme a de lourdes
peines de prison, suceptibles toutefois, selon des sources
judiciaires, de faire l'objet d'une grace royale.   (D'apres Le
Monde, France, 10 octobre 1999)

* Maroc. Groupe parlementaire islamique  -  Le parti islamique du
developpement et de la justice (PJD) a cree son groupe
parlementaire au sein de la Chambre des deputes, devenant ainsi le
premier parti islamiste a se doter d'une telle representation.
Selon la loi marocaine, un parti peut constituer un groupe
parlementaire s'il compte au moins 12 deputes. C'est le cas,
puisque le PJD a beneficie du ralliement d'un depute du Mouvement
democratique et social (MDS-droite) et du Mouvement populaire
(berberiste).   (La Libre Belgique, 11 octobre 1999)

* Maroc. La famille Ben Barka peut rentrer  -  La famille de
l'opposant marocain Mehdi Ben Barka a obtenu des papiers marocains
pour pouvoir retourner au Maroc. Ben Barka avait ete enleve a
Paris, le 29 octobre 1965, par des policiers francais et porte
disparu. L'affaire Ben Barka, impliquant autorites marocaines et
policiers francais, n'a jamais ete totalement elucidee. Le fils de
Ben Barka, qui se bat depuis des annees pour connaitre la verite
sur la disparition de son pere, espere maintenant faire rapidement
la lumiere sur cette affaire.   (La Libre Belgique, 14 octobre
1999)

* Mozambique. Justice system robs citizens of basic human rights  -
  Rampant corruption within Mozambique's crumbling justice system
has robbed thousands of citizens of their right to a fair trial,
non-government organisation (NGO) researchers warned this week. A
damning report issued by the Human Rights and Development
Association (DHD) cautioned that Mozambique's Constitution itself
was being undermined by the crisis. The Constitution guarantees
citizens the right to a speedy and fair trial with legal
representation. Suspects are, however, instead detained for months
at a time before appearing in court without any formal defence.
They are then also tried only in the official language, Portuguese.
DHD believes that the crisis can be traced to Mozambique's chronic
shortage of qualified lawyers, reporting that there are less than
500 legal practitioners in the country. The majority of these
advocates and attorneys are based in the capital of Maputo.
Mozambique also has only 170 judges or magistrates in the entire
country and an estimated 200 defence lawyers. The report adds that
the problems are compounded by bureaucratic red tape that slows the
justice system to "gridlock". DHD also expressed concern at the
number of cases that were hampered or thrown out because vital
evidence and other documentation simply vanished. The report
accuses Mozambique's Bar Association for failing to fight
corruption in the justice system and for failing to exercise
tighter control over the country's lawyers. "Lawyers regularly fail
to honour promises made to clients and often simply fail to arrive
for court hearings but still demand their fees," the report reads. 
 (Africa Press Bureau, Johannesburg, 9 October 1999)

* Mozambique. Support for Angolan journalists  -  An international
seminar held in Maputo on the theme, "For A Pluralist Media In
Portuguese-Speaking African Countries", ended on 8 October with a
resolution pledging solidarity with Angolan journalists. The
seminar participants were mostly from the five Lusophone African
states of Mozambique, Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde and Sao
Tome and Principe. They noted that "coercive measures" against the
Angolan media, including "systematic detentions and interrogations"
of journalists had prevented some media professionals from
attending the Maputo seminar. The best known case is that of
William Tonet, editor of the independent publication Folha, who was
detained last week, and only released on 5 October. The seminar
condemned the Angolan police "campaign of harassment and
intimidation" against journalists, and urged the Angolan
authorities "to guarantee the independent press security in its
professional activities, in accordance with the legal norms in
force in the country." Participants exhorted the Angolan government
to respect the press freedom provisions in the country's
constitution, press law and journalists' statute, and "not to link
the exercise of the profession of journalism to the law on crimes
against state security." A final declaration from the seminar urged
governments of the five countries not only to respect press
freedom, but to draw up complementary legislation that would assist
journalists, particularly as regards access to public sources of
information. It called for legislation "to strengthen editorial
independence and transparency in appointments to management
positions in the state-owned media," and to ensure that the
attribution of radio and television operating licences and
frequencies is undertaken by an independent body.   (PANA, Dakar,
9 October 1999)

* Namibia. Shock price increases  -  Namibian consumers received unpleasant news
on 7 October, when it was announced that the prices of petrol and
diesel will be increased substantially for the third time in five
months. The Ministry of Mines and Energy announced that the pump
price of leaded petrol will go up by 28 cents per litre while
unleaded fuel will rise by 27 cents per litre from Wednesday. The
diesel price will go up by 20 cents a litre. This will mean that
petrol and diesel prices will have increased by 33 per cent and 27
per cent since the beginning of this year. In July, the price of
leaded petrol went up by 15 cents per litre and unleaded 16 cents
per litre while the cost of diesel was hiked by 10 cents per litre.
In May leaded petrol went up by 20 cents per litre, unleaded by 21
cents per litre and diesel by 19 cents per litre. The Ministry of
Mines and Energy attributed the increases to higher crude oil
prices. In March this year a significant amount of crude oil output
was reduced worldwide leading to an imbalance between supply and
demand and the subsequent rapid rise in oil prices. Crude oil is
now trading at US$22.45 per barrel. The Ministry said the higher
crude prices have translated into higher refined product prices.
"It should also be borne in mind that the fuel tax increased quite
significantly in April 1999, further exacerbating the fuel price
situation. The other major elements of the price structure have
remained unchanged since January 1999, although there is continuous
pressure from the oil industry to increase margins," the Ministry
said.   (The Namibian, Windhoek, 8 October 1999)

* Niger. Election presidentielle  -  Le premier tour de l'election
presidentielle au Niger est prevu le dimanche 17 octobre. Sept
candidats se disputeront les suffrages, mais selon les observateurs
aucun d'entre eux ne devrait emporter la majorite absolue. Un
deuxieme tour est prevu le 24 octobre. L'election presidentielle
sera suivie d'elections legislatives en novembre, et doit consacrer
le retour a un regime civil apres l'assassinat du president
Mainassara et la prise de pouvoir d'une junte militaire en avril
dernier.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 14 octobre 1999)

* Nigeria. Inondations catastrophiques  -  Des pluies torrentielles
se sont abattues sur le nord du Nigeria. Elles ont provoque des
crues et une montee critique des eaux dans le gigantesque bassin de
retenue du barrage hydroelectrique de Kanji. Plus de 100.000
hectares de terres de la vallee du Niger ont ete submerges. Les
villages ont ete engloutis, les troupeaux emportes, les recoltes
devastees et des dizaines de milliers de personnes se sont
retrouvees sans abri. Ces inondations sont les pires que le pays
ait connu depuis 30 ans. Et la saison des pluies semble loin d'etre
finie. Le gouverneur de l'Etat du Niger a lance un appel a l'aide.
Les risques d'epidemies sont eleves a cause du manque d'eau
potable. Un bilan provisoire estime le nombre de morts a une
cinquantaine.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 12 octobre 1999)

* Rwanda. Ministres forces de demissionner  -  Le 6 octobre, le
Parlement a vote une motion de censure a l'encontre du ministre des
Affaires sociales, Charles Ntakirutinka, et le ministre a la
presidence, Anastase Gasana, pour leur participation dans une
affaire de corruption qui a coute pres d'un million de dollars au
gouvernement, a indique l'agence de presse rwandaise ARI. Le
ministre du Commerce, Mark Rugenera, a echappe de justesse a la
motion de censure. Le president du Parlement a declare qu'une telle
motion "indiquait clairement que les membres de l'executif seront
controles et que des sanctions seront prises contre eux".   (IRIN,
Nairobi, 7 octobre 1999)

* Rwanda. Minister resigns  -  One of the three ministers accused
of corruption in Rwanda, has resigned. Mr Charles Ntakirutinka, the
Minister of Social Affairs told the BBC that he had no choice as he
obviously failed to convince parliament of his innocence. On 6
October, a majority of MP'S passed a vote of no confidence in him
and one of the other ministers involved, but cleared the third
accused man. Mr Ntakirutinka was accused of processing a
questionable payment when acquiring vehicles for the government
when he was the Minister for Public Works.   (BBC News, 7 October
1999)

* Rwanda. TPIR: aveux d'un ancien journaliste  -  Le journaliste
belge d'origine italienne Georges Ruggiu, ancien animateur de la
radio Mille Collines accusee d'avoir incite a la haine et au
genocide en 1994, serait passe aux aveux au cours de 35 heures
d'interrogatoire enregistrees par les enqueteurs du tribunal penal
international pour le Rwanda. L'information a ete publiee par le
bimensuel Ubutabera, dans son edition du 11 octobre. L'acte
d'accusation contre Ruggiu comprend deux charges, dont l'incitation
directe et publique a commettre le genocide et crimes contre
l'humanite. Son cas est susceptible de faire l'objet d'un maxi-
proces visant les medias de la haine.   (Agence Hirondelle, Arusha,
11 octobre 1999)

* Rwanda. Programme de "villagisation"  -  Le gouvernement rwandais
poursuit ses efforts controverses de "villagisation", qui aura
vraisemblablement un impact tres profond sur la societe rwandaise.
"Dans les zones rurales, chaque Rwandais doit s'installer dans un
village pour exploiter les terres agricoles et fournir des services
de base, a explique la secretaire generale du ministere des terres.
C'est la seule alternative que nous ayons". Mais de nombreux
donateurs, citant des transferts "obligatoires", des experiences
decevantes de villagisation dans d'autres pays et un manque de
participation de la population, restent sceptiques a l'egard de ce
programme.   (IRIN, Nairobi, 13 octobre 1999)

* Sierra Leone. Demobilisation initiative  -  Residents of Bo in
southern Sierra Leone, impatient at the delays in the national
demobilisation programme, have launched their own scheme with
international help. Local officials and church leaders appealed for
donations to what they called the Citizens' Fund for Disarmament,
and collected the equivalent of twenty-thousand dollars. One
resident said he had contributed to the fund not, he said, to pay
the rebels for their wrong-doing but to help ensure peace. A BBC
correspondent in Bo says that many people are afraid that delays
could lead to a revival of the nine-year civil war. Two weeks ago,
the people of Bo launched a citizens' initiative to repair the
damage to their town by contributing money or labour every
Saturday.   (BBC News, 7 October 1999)

* Sierra Leone. The road to peace  -  8 October: Rebel leader Foday
Sankoh calls on disarmed rebel fighters to stand by the peace
accord that is bringing him into a power-sharing government. "Now
the people are crying for peace. Now is the time to give peace to
the people", he tells a cheering crowd of nearly 800 demobilized
fighters from his Revolutionary United Front. 10 October: Bad roads
and bureaucratic red tape have prevented tens of thousands of
Sierra Leonean refugees in Liberia from returning home. Although
Liberia's President Taylor had announced on 4 October that
Liberia's border with Sierra Leone was being re-opened, up to 5,000
refugees were turned back at the Liberian border town of Bo,
pending a re-opening ceremony involving officials from the two
countries.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 11 October 1999)

* Sierra Leone. Rebels release 100 child combatants  -  At least
100 child combatants were released by rebels of the Revolutionary
United Front last Tuesday, officials at the Caritas International
Relief Agency (CARITAS) disclosed today. CARITAS says a hundred of
the former child combatants were handed over to them at the
northern town of Port Loko during a ceremony graced by ECOMOG
troops, UNOMSIL officials, religious elders including the Catholic
Bishop of Makeni, and local authorities. A rebel spokesman at the
occasion, called on the civilians to forgive them for the
atrocities they committed during eight years of armed conflict.  
(The Progress, Freetowm, 13 October 1999)

* South Africa. Boer War Commemoration  -  South Africa launched a
three-year commemoration on 9 October of the 1899 Anglo-Boer War in
ceremonies that underscored the sweeping national changes that have
taken place in the last decade. The 1899-1902 war broke out on
October 11, 1899, when the white Boer farmers and thousands of
their black workers resisted British attempts to secure control of
South Africa's gold mines. South African President Thabo Mbeki paid
tribute to the courage of the Boers, who unsuccessfully fought to
escape rule by Britain 100 years ago. Britain's Duke of Kent, a
cousin of Queen Elizabeth, acknowledged Britain's "shameful" role
and "dreadful abuses." About 70,000 people died in the war -- more
than half in British concentration camps. Most of the victims were
blacks. Women and children of all racial groups perished. Mbeki and
the Duke of Kent together visited British, Boer and black
cemeteries around the central city of Bloemfontein, where they
addressed a largely black crowd at the site of a British
concentration camp for blacks. "No one who has read the history of
the time could fail to be moved and shocked by the shameful
neglect, particularly of women and children, that occurred in those
places," the Duke said. With hindsight, the Duke said, "the South
African or Anglo-Boer war looks more pointless than most." Long
known as the "white man's war," the role and suffering of blacks
during the conflict is only now getting attention. "Never again,
the dreadful abuses caused by the war," the Duke told the crowd.
"Never again the disregard of the rights of black South Africans
that took place during the war."   (CNN, 9 October 1999)

* Afrique du Sud. Conference contre la corruption  -  Le 10
octobre, le president sud-africain Thabo Mbeki a ouvert a Durban la
9e Conference internationale contre la corruption (IACC), qui doit
durer six jours. C'est la premiere fois que l'IACC, instituee en
1983, se deroule en Afrique, ou trois pays (le Cameroun, le Nigeria
et la Tanzanie) sont classes parmi les plus corrompus au monde.  
(La Croix, France, 11 octobre 1999)

* South Africa. Deal with EU in danger  -  8 October: The European
Union (EU) and South Africa are in talks to rescue the ceremonial
signing of their long-awaited free trade agreement, which is
threatened by a dispute over wines and spirits. Spain, Portugal,
France, Italy and Greece have demanded, as a condition of their
signing the overall trade agreement, additional written guarantees
from South Africa that it will phase out the use of the terms
"sherry" and "port". There is a flurry of diplomatic activity to
break the deadlock. 11 October: A report from the BBC says the
treaty is still hanging in the balance. Talks went on through the
night in Pretoria but there is still uncertainty as to whether a
deal has been agreed. South Africa's Trade and Industry Minister
Alec Erwin says: "We've had an absolutely remarkable, and in our
view, disgraceful process. We now find that the agricultural lobby
in Europe really holds the EU hostage."   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 11
October 1999)

* Afrique du Sud/UE. Accord de libre-echange  -  Le 11 octobre,
apres plus de quatre ans de negociations, l'Afrique du Sud et
l'Union europeenne ont finalement signe un accord de libre-echange,
malgre les hesitations de derniere minute des representants
francais. Les Quinze ont accepte de signer apres que des problemes
sur l'utilisation des denominations "porto" et "sherry" aient ete
resolus. L'accord propose l'abolition des tarifs douaniers sur
environ 90% du commerce bilateral qui atteint plus de 17 milliards
de dollars chaque annee. D'ici 12 ans, l'Afrique du Sud eliminera
les tarifs douaniers sur 86% des produits importes de l'UE. Ceux
sur 90% de ses exportations vers l'UE seront supprimes d'ici dix
ans.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 12 octobre 1999)

* South Africa. Trade deal with EU signed  -  11 October: South
Africa accuses the European Union (EU) of "disgraceful" negotiating
tactics and naked self-interest, just hours before a wide-ranging
trade agreement, under negotiation for four years, is signed in
Pretoria. The agree is signed after a crisis meeting in Luxembourg
decided to put the issue of wines and spirits on hold once again.
Earlier, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy and France had effectively
said they did not trust South Africa to implement the agreement to
stop its winemakers using the names "port" and "sherry". The EU is
demanding additional guarantees, and had added a new list of names
it wants the South African wine industry to drop.   (The Guardian,
UK, 12 October 1999)

* Soudan. 4.300 esclaves liberes  -  L'organisation non
gouvernementale protestante Christian Solidarity International
(CSI), basee a Zurich, a rachete la liberte de 4.300 esclaves noirs
au Soudan du 1er au 6 octobre, a-t-elle annonce le 7 octobre a
Geneve. Depuis 1995, CSI a obtenu la liberation de 15.447 esclaves. 
 (Liberation, France, 8 octobre 1999)

* Sudan. National Congress Party  -  10 October: Sudan's ruling
National Congress has elected President Lt.Gen. Omar Hassan al-
Bashir as its president, quelling reports of rivalry between him
and Parliament Speaker Hassan al-Turabi. The party has also named
Bashir as its candidate in the 2001 presidential election.   (CNN,
10 October 1999)

* Tanzania. Finance awards  -  7 October: About 15,000 former civil
servants of the defunct East African Community from Tanzania are to
be paid their benefits, 22 years after its integration. The Finance
Minister says the money is to be channelled to the former civil
servants, through the departments or institutions where they
presently work. Also, the World Bank has approved a grant of US
$61.5 million for Tanzania. Part of the money will be deployed in
foreign debt reduction while the rest will be directed to the
strengthening of public financial institutions.   (ANB-BIA,
Brussels, 8 October 1999)

* Tanzania. Julius Nyerere  -  8 October: In hospital in London,
Julius Nyerere is reported to be in a "very critical condition"
after a relapse in his battle against leukaemia. 10 October:
Kenya's President Moi calls on all Kenyans to offer special prayers
for the speedy recovery of Julius Nyerere. 12 October: Julius
Nyerere is to undergo a brain test today to determine whether he
will wake up from a slumber induced by sedation. Tanzanians in
their millions, continue to offer prayers for him. Stalled
negotiations to end the civil war in Burundi will resume on 8
November, despite the absence of the chief mediator, Julius
Nyerere. 13 October: Results of a brain test carried out on Nyerere
have not been divulged, but State House says "he is in a very
critical condition. Several of his vital organs are very weak. He
is still on a life-support system". Also, it was reported that
Nyerere has had a massive stroke and is not expected to recover. 14
October: Julius Nyerere dies in London.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 14
October 1999)

* Tanzanie. Deces de Julius Nyerere.  -  L'ancien president
tanzanien Julius Nyerere, qui fut l'un des dirigeants les plus
charismatiques de l'Afrique post-coloniale, est decede d'une
leucemie, jeudi, a l'age de 77 ans. Sa mort a ete annoncee par
l'actuel chef de l'Etat tanzanien Benjamin Mkapa. "Chers
Tanzaniens, c'est profondement choque et attriste que j'annonce que
le pere bien-aime de la nation, Julius Kambarage Nyerere, est
mort", a-t-il dit dans une allocution radiotelevisee. "Il est
decede a 07h30 GMT a l'hopital St. Thomas de Londres ou il avait
ete admis pour suivre un traitement contre la leucemie le 24
septembre", a-t-il precise. La radio et la television ont
immediatement interrompu leurs programmes pour diffuser des marches
funebres et des images d'archives de l'ancien Mwalimu (terme qui
signifie professeur en langue kiswahili et etait devenu le surnom
de Julius Nyerere). Il avait garde un role de mediateur dans tout
le centre et l'est de l'Afrique. Sa derniere mission avait concerne
la preparation de pourparlers de paix au Burundi apres six ans de
guerre civile. A Londres, Tony Blair a fait l'eloge du defunt, de
son role de fondateur de la Tanzanie independante et de
conciliateur sur le continent africain: "Il etait un grand homme
d'Etat africain et le fondateur de la Tanzanie moderne", a dit le
Premier ministre britannique.   (D'apres Reuter, 14 octobre 1999)

* Tchad. L'oleoduc Tchad-Cameroun  -  Le president de la Banque
mondiale, James Wolfensohn, ne pense pas que la construction de
l'oleoduc entre le Tchad et le Cameroun puisse causer des problemes
a l'environnement et l'ecosysteme. Il s'est declare convaincu que
le projet pourra faciliter le relancement de l'economie tchadienne,
une des plus pauvres d'Afrique. L'oleoduc devrait permettre au
Tchad un rendement annuel d'un milliard et demi de dollars. M.
Wolfensohn a affirme que la Banque mondiale a acheve les procedures
pour un rapide financement du projet. Ces affirmations sont en net
contraste avec les declarations de la societe civile. "L'oleoduc
devrait aider au developpement, mais je ne crois pas en la capacite
du gouvernement actuel de tenir un discours de ce genre, puisqu'il
gere ce projet comme une propriete privee", a dit Julien Beasemba,
directeur de l'association tchadienne pour la non-violence, en
ajoutant que ce projet controverse "aggrave la situation du pays
qui, depuis l'independance en 1960, n'a jamais ete en paix".  
(Misna, Italie, 7 octobre 1999)

* Tunisia. Elections campaign  -  A two-week presidential campaign
for the 24 October election took off in Tunisia on 10 October
involving more than one candidate for the first time since
independence in 1956. The presidential and legislative poll will be
held on the same day. Tunisia has organised six presidential
ballots in the past 43 years with a single candidate each time.
Former president Habib Bourguiba stood alone four times, before
declaring himself "life president" in 1975. He was subsequently
elbowed out in 1987. His successor, Zine el Abidine ben Ali,
cancelled the life presidency and was elected, also without a
challenger, in 1989 and 1994. To change matters, in June, Ben Ali
introduced a constitutional amendment in parliament to widen the
number of presidential aspiring candidates. The president said his
objective was to move Tunisia into "a new stage in the
democratisation process which has been gradually but decisively
implemented (over several years)". Following the amendment, two
leaders of moderate opposition parties have come forward to
challenge the 63- year old Gen. Ben Ali.   (Bouaza ben Bouaza,
PANA, 10 October 1999)

* Tunisie. Campagne presidentielle  -  Le president Ben Ali a donne
le coup d'envoi pour la campagne des scrutins legislatif et
presidentiel du 24 octobre. Pour la premiere fois, deux dirigeants
de partis moderes d'opposition sont autorises a rivaliser avec le
president Ben Ali qui, toutefois, est presque certain de se faire
reelire pour un troisieme mandat, tout comme son parti le RCD
(Rassemblement constitutionnel democratique) est sur de rafler les
148 sieges, laissant les 6 partis de l'opposition se partager les
33 qui lui sont reserves. M. Ben Ali veut soumettre a la nouvelle
Chambre une reforme du code de la presse et stimuler le debat
democratique. La creation d'emplois sera sa priorite absolue.   (La
Libre Belgique, 11 octobre 1999)

* Ouganda. HRW brise le tabou  -  Dans une etude sur l'Ouganda,
l'organisation humanitaire americaine Human Rights Watch, tout en
reconnaissant les realisations de Museveni depuis sa prise du
pouvoir en 1986, met en cause le manque d'ouverture democratique du
regime. Le rapport "Hostile to Democracy" adresse un appel aux
autorites ougandaises pour qu'elles mettent fin a la repression de
leurs opposants politiques et de changer le systeme "sans partis"
en un regime plus democratique. D'apres la Constitution ougandaise
de 1995, les partis politiques n'existent plus que sur papier.
Selon HRW, la theorie politique de Museveni est avant tout un
pretexte pour legitimer son pouvoir absolu.   (D'apres De
Standaard, Belgique, 13 octobre 1999)

* Uganda. Missions abroad strapped for cash  -  The Ugandan
parliament has approved a US $7 million package to rescue Ugandan
foreign missions and stop an embarrassing situation that may result
in numerous court actions against Ugandan missions abroad. The
parliamentary committee on presidential and foreign affairs, led by
Elly Karuhanga, has told Parliament of the urgent need to carry out
repairs on the 26 cash-strapped missions which are in a dilapidated
state with leaking roofs. The Ministry of Finance and Economic
Planning said Uganda's 26 missions have an annual budget of $17
million, but of late, the government has been falling behind with
its obligations towards the maintenance of the missions. The
government plans to close nearly a quarter of its missions as cost-
cutting measures, and reduce staff in the remainder.   (Crespo
Sebunya, Uganda, 5 October 1999)

* Uganda. Hundreds of alleged rebels acquitted  -  Uganda's High
Court has acquitted 241 alleged members of the rebel West Nile Bank
Front who were facing charges of treason. The suspects, including
194 Congolese and four Sudanese, were released by the court during
a special session held in the eastern town of Jinja, according to
the state-owned New Vision newspaper. They had been taken prisoner
by the Ugandan army between 1995 and 1997 in northern Uganda, Sudan
and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Justice PKK Onega said in
a three-hour ruling that the prosecutors had not proved that the
accused had been involved in rebel acts aimed at overthrowing the
government. Lawyers representing the suspects, who had been in
prison for two and a half years already, argued they had no case to
answer. The New Vision reported that many broke into tears on
hearing that they were to be released. The West Nile Bank Front was
active in north-west Uganda from 1996-97 but was effectively
crushed by a joint force of Ugandan troops and Sudanese rebels. One
report says that about 1000 alleged rebels are still being detained
on treason charges. The Ugandan government has faced attacks from
rebel groups in the north for the past 12 years and is still facing
incursions from the Lord's Resistance Army in the districts of Gulu
and Kitgum.   (BBC News, 7 October 1999)

* Uganda. "Hostile to Democracy"  -  In a lengthy report entitled:
"Hostile to Democracy -- The Movement System and Political
repression in Uganda", Human Rights Watch says that since taking
power in 1986 on a platform promising a "fundamental revolution"
and not "a mere change of the guard", the National Revolutionary
Movement (NRM) has enjoyed a virtual monopoly on political power in
Uganda. Through a carefully managed political system, the NRM has
been able to effectively neutralize political opposition which it
characterizes as sectarian, divisive, and at odds with national
unity. The report says that although in some areas, the human
rights record of Uganda has improved significantly since the NRM
took power, organized political activity has been outlawed for the
past twelve years. Human Rights Watch says that in the year 2000,
the NRM-dominated government plans to have a public referendum on
whether to continue with the "movement" system or return to a more
pluralist political system. Because the referendum would
effectively put internationally recognized human rights of freedom
of association and assembly up for a vote, it is incompatible with
human rights standards.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 12 October 1999)

* Zambia. Getting ready for Y2K  -  With less than three months
before the end of the century, three of Zambia's major service
providers: The Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation (Zesco);
Zambia Telecommunication Company (Zamtel) and Bank of Zambia (BOZ),
say they are ready for the Y2K bug. The three organisations
presented papers on how prepared they were for the year 2000
problem during a BOZ-organised workshop for managers and other
senior personnel in the financial sector in the next millennium.
The BOZ, which has been mandated to ensure that all financial
institutions and service providers comply with Zambia's Y2K
guidelines, called for improved communication between it and
commercial banks to avoid negative perceptions in the market place.
Officiating the opening of the workshop on 8 October BOZ deputy
governor Abraham Mwenda said that poor communication between the
central bank and commercial banks could lead to irrational
behaviour by financial market participants. He said it was in the
power of participants to ensure that the transition into year 2000
was incident free. "The information you are going to exchange here
is very important. This information will most likely have a bearing
on the financial sector's contingency plans and related costs",
Mwenda said. He appealed to providers of key external services to
the financial sector represented to be open and factual in their
responses to the issues which participants raised.   (Africa Press
Bureau, Johannesburg, 11 October 1999)

* Zambia. Artifacts from Victoria Falls removed  -  Zambia's
National Heritage Conservation Commission (NHCC) has started
removing pre-historic artifacts near the world renowned Victoria
Falls on the site where the Sun International hotel chain, is to
build ultra-luxury modern hotels and villas as first class world
tourist resorts. NHCC executive director Nicholas Katenekwa on 11
October is quoted by the Zambian media that the Sun International
had released US $5,000 of the US $15,000 needed for excavating and
removing the pre-historic artifacts from the hotel site. Katenekwa
said his team was currently involved in removing the remains of all
the pre-historic materials of people who lived in the middle ages,
dating back between 10,000 and 60,000 years ago. The Sun
International has set aside US $15,000 for the preservation of the
pre-historic artifacts. The NHCC team was expected to accomplish
its work by 18 October so that the demolition of the Musi-oa-Tunya
and the adjacent Rainbow Lodge could start in earnest on 1
November. Contractors for the Sun International have since moved on
site and were only waiting for the NHCC to complete its work of
collecting important artifacts from the site. Katenekwa said what
has been removed from the hotel site could fill a van and would be
distributed to various museums.   (Africa Press Bureau,
Johannesburg, 13 October 1999)

* Zimbabwe. Reform programme unwinds  -  6 October: Zimbabwe's
usually docile legislators shock their political masters in
government, by demanding the country immediately pull out its
troops from Congo RDC. They say the money the government was
spending on the war in Congo should instead be used to revitalize
the country's faltering health delivery system which has been badly
affected by a three-week doctors' strike over pay. 8 October: When
an IMF team arrives in Harare over the next few days to review the
country's 14-month $193 million standby facility loan, it will find
a reform programme, approved just 10 weeks ago has unravelled. Cost
overruns in military spending on Zimbabwe's involvement in the war
in Congo RDC are only part of the story. The World Bank, which this
week postponed its plan to reconsider Zimbabwe's request for a $140
million structural adjustment credit, now admits that as well as
military overspending, at an annualized rate of 50%, other fiscal
targets have been missed, along with a number of monetary and so-
called structural benchmarks.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 8 October 1999)

* Zimbabwe. Government "sees red"  -  The Zimbabwe government and
its spin doctors are seeing red over what they believe is the
lenient sentence passed on three Americans -- Garry George
Blanchard, Joseph Wendell Pettijohn and Lamonte Dixin -- members of
the organisation Harvest Field Ministries, who were arrested at
Harare Airport on 7 March for carrying offensive weapons. on 13
September, High Court Judge Justice Adams sentenced the three
Americans to a total of 27 months each in jail, to include the six
months already served since their arrest on 7 March, plus two
concurrent six-month terms. Nine months were suspended, leaving the
three to serve an effective six months each in prison. This means
they could be home by Christmas. In passing judgement, Justice
Adams took into account that the three had been subjected to
torture while being held by the police and prison authorities.
Attorney-General Patrick Chinamasa has attacked the ruling, saying
it trivialised the seriousness of the offenses under which the
Americans were charged. He said the government will be appealing to
the Supreme Court for a review of the sentences.   (Tendai Madinah,
Zimbabwe, 6 October 1999)

* Zimbabwe. Visit of IMF team  -  Zimbabwe's hopes of rescuing
International Monetary Fund and World Bank support packages worth
billions of dollars now hinge on a visit by an IMF audit team next
week. Its primary aim will be to establish whether what Finance
minister Herbert Murerwa says are expenditure estimates by the
Ministry of Defence on the Congo RDC war for the period January to
June were merely projections or whether the money - amounting to US
$166 million -- was actually spent. Scepticism about the
government's transparency over the issue of expenditure on the war
-- rife for much of this year -- now appears to have come to a head
as pressure mounts on Harare to explain exactly how it has managed
to massage the huge amounts in question. The IMF team will be
investigating the Zimbabwe government's military costs in Congo. At
the core of the fund's concern is uncertainty surrounding
Zimbabwe's withdrawal of its over 10,000 troops from the vast
central African republic following its recent announcement of an
inter-state agreement to manage the marketing of minerals by a
company set up by the ministries of defence of the two countries.
"We have asked for clarification from the Zimbabwean authorities on
the amount of the spending overrun in general," an IMF spokesman
said this week.   (The Zimbabwe Independent, Harare, 8 Oct 1999)

THE END