Weekly anb04137.txt #8

[anb-bia <anb-bia at village.uunet.be>]

_____________________________________________________________
WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 13-04-2000      PART #7/8

* Tanzania/Zanzibar. Article 19 calls for pressure on Zanzibar  -  The
International community must adopt urgent steps to put concerted pressure on the
ruling party in Zanzibar to accept the Commonwealth-brokered peace agreement, the
press-freedom watchdog, Article 19, says in a report issued last week. Warning
that Zanzibar's democracy was now in crisis, Article 19's 30-page reported
entitled: "Democracy on Shaky Foundations" -- which is being sent to western
donors -- says that "greater pressure" should also be put on the Union government
to intervene. "Otherwise, there is the real possibility that the continuing donor
boycott of Zanzibar will simply exacerbate the grave economic crisis on the
island without achieving any political change -- the worst of all worlds for
ordinary Zanzibaris".   (The East African, Kenya, 3-9 April 2000)

* Tanzania. Debt reduction package  -  Tanzania, one of the world's poorest
countries, is to receive two billion dollars under the World Bank and
International Monetary Fund's Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC),
officials said on 6 April. "The IMF and the World Bank's International
Development Association agreed to support a comprehensive debt reduction package
for Tanzania under the enhanced HIPC," the World Bank said in a statement. They
said Tanzania qualified for the HIPC initiative for its steady implementation of
western-backed economic reforms. "Total relief from all of Tanzania's creditors
is worth more than $2 billion, which is equivalent to more than half of the net
present value of total debt outstanding after the full use of the traditional
debt mechanisms," the statement added. Tanzania's external debt stands at an
estimated $7.23 billion of which 57.6 percent is owed to multilateral donors. The
debt reduction operation will translate into debt service relief over time of $3
billion, or half Tanzania's debt service obligations during the 2001-2003 fiscal
years and about one third of the country's debt service obligations thereafter.
Funds that would have been used to service its external debt will now be freed
up to fund poverty reduction programmes in critical sectors like health and
education. Tanzania's steady implementation of economic reforms has brought
inflation down to its lowest level in at least 25 years to around 6.6 percent as
of January. The government has been repaying domestic debt after many years of
borrowing in excess of three percent of the gross domestic product annually.  
(Reuters, 6 April 2000)

* Tunisie. Les funerailles de Bourguiba  -  Le 6 avril vers 10 heures locales,
la radio officielle tunisienne a interrompu ses programmes et diffuse des versets
du Coran. Un communique de la presidence de la Republique a annonce la mort, a
96 ans, de l'ancien president Habib Bourguiba, le "pere de l'independance" de la
Tunisie, sur laquelle il a regne trente ans. Le pouvoir, qui a decrete une
semaine de deuil, a organise des funerailles nationales qui se tiendront le 8
avril. Il sera inhume a Monastir, sa ville natale. Plusieurs chefs d'Etat ont
annonce leur presence, dont les presidents francais Chirac et algerien
Bouteflika. - Le 8 avril, des dizaines de milliers de Tunisiens se sont masses
dans les rues de Monastir pour un dernier adieu a leur ancien president. D'apres
les autorites, entre 100.000 et 200.000 personnes ont assiste aux funerailles. 
 (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 avril 2000)

* Tunisia. Human rights  -  11 April: In a Press Release, Amnesty International
says it has written to President Ben Ali to express its concern at recent arrests
and intimidation of human rights defenders in Tunisia. The increasing harassment
to which Tunisian human rights defenders have been subjected to on a daily basis,
is a source of grave concern. The organisation calls on the Tunisian authorities
to immediately put an end to such practices and to take the necessary measures
to ensure that human rights defenders are allowed to carry out their activities,
as required by international human rights standards to which Tunisia is a state
party.   (Amnesty International, 11 April 2000)

* Tunisie. Le journaliste Ben Brik deloge  -  Taoufik ben Brik, le journaliste
tunisien en greve de la faim depuis neuf jours, a ete deloge le 10 avril de la
maison d'edition Aloes a Tunis, ou il menait son action de protestation. Il a
decide de poursuivre sa greve de la faim, en vue d'obtenir un passeport qui lui
est refuse, au siege du Conseil national pour les libertes en Tunisie. L'immeuble
des editions Aloes a ete mis sous scelles sous pretexte de "trouble a l'ordre
public". Taoufik ben Brik a par ailleurs comparu le 10 avril devant un juge
d'instruction pour deux de ses articles parus en Suisse et en France, une affaire
pour laquelle il risque six ans de prison. Deux autres opposants, Fathi Chamkhi
et Mohamed Habib, animateurs de la section tunisienne de l'organisation Attac,
arretes le 8 avril, ont ete deferes le 11 avril devant un juge d'instruction.  
(Liberation, France, 12 avril 2000)

* Uganda. Doomsday religious cult  -  6 April: The authorities in Uganda have
issued warrants for the arrest of six leaders of the doomsday religious cult on
charges of murder. The six are blamed for the death of almost 100 followers, but
it is not known where they are or even if they are still alive. The six leaders
targeted include Joseph Kibwetere, known as the prophet of the cult, Credonia
Mwerinde, a former prostitute known as its programmer, and Dominic Kataribabo,
a former Catholic priest. Each has initially been charged with 10 counts of
murder, although more charges are expected to follow.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 7
April 2000)

* Ouganda. Secte: mandats d'arrets  -  Le 6 avril, des mandats d'arrets
internationaux ont ete emis a l'encontre de six dirigeants de la secte de la
Restauration des dix commandements de Dieu, dont le fondateur du mouvement Joseph
Kibwetere, sa prophetesse Credonia Mwerinde et quatre autres personnes. Les six
dirigeants, responsables de la mort d'environ 1.000 personnes, ont ete inculpes
pour dix accusations de meurtres. Ces dirigeants n'ont plus ete vus depuis
l'incendie dramatique du 17 mars, mais "nous pensons qu'ils sont en vie", a
declare le directeur de la division d'enquete criminelle de Kampala. Mais la
justice ougandaise reste circonspecte: carbonises, beaucoup de cadavres n'etaient
pas identifiables.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 7 avril 2000)

* Uganda. 100,000 displaced in Kitgum  -  About 100,000 people have been
displaced by Karimojong warriors who have made several raids into Kitgum district
over the last month. The displaced lack water, food, shelter, medicine and other
essential facilities. There is fear of a disease outbreak as a result of poor
sanitation in the camps. The insecurity has also led to the closure of 34 primary
schools, affecting a lot of people living in the east and north-eastern parts of
Kitgum town bordering the Karimpja region.   (Sunday Vision, Uganda, 9 April
2000)

* Uganda. Police offer reward for cult leaders  -  11 April: The police have
offered a reward of about $1,300 for information leading to the arrests of six
cult leaders whose followers were killed across southwest Uganda. A police
spokesman says the reward is available to anyone -- inside or outside Uganda --
who helps track down the cult leaders. It remains how many of the six are alive. 
 (CNN, 11 April 2000)

* Zambia. Political leaders to retire  -  On 2 April, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, former
President of Zambia, announced his retirement from active politics after 40 years
at the helm on the United National Independence Party (UNIP). He said his
decision to retire is neither as abrupt nor as sudden as it appears, as he has
been having wide consultations both within and outside the country. His
consultations have included opposition politicians including the National
Citizens Coalition (NCC), on the possibility of forging a strong opposition
alliance or a merger. In March, President Fredrick Chiluba stated that all is set
for him to quit as head of state and leader of the ruling Movement for Multiparty
Democracy (MMD) by December 2001. He has reiterated that he will not be in State
House by the end of next year. The President will soon name his successor.  
(Gideon Thole, ANB-BIA, Zambia, 7 April 2000)

* Zambia. Refugee numbers increase  -  More than 2,000 refugees from Congo RDC,
fleeing fighting in that country, have entered northern Zambia since the
beginning of the year. A UNHCR official says there is an average of 50 RDC
refugees a day entering Zambia through Kaputa and Sumbu. Many of them arriving
in the transit camp are in bad shape, weak from the long distances they walked
across the border. However, they are put under therapeutic feeding schemes on
their arrival in the transit camps.   (IRIN, Southern Africa, 12 April 2000)

* Zimbabwe. A country in disarray  -  6 April: The US has suspended assistance
to Zimbabwe's land reform plan because of the government's inaction against farm
squatters. State department spokesman, James Rubin, says that both Zimbabwe's
future and reputation are being threatened by a display of political intolerance.
The American move follows the passing of legislation allowing the Zimbabwean
government to seize land without payment. The bill, passed by the bare minimum
after only two-thirds of MPs turned up for the vote, seeks to make the UK, as the
former colonial power, responsible for compensating landowners. But Britain has
made it clear it won't be bound by the bill. The wording of the bill, which now
requires only the approval of President Mugabe to become law, is identical to a
clause in the draft constitution which was recently rejected in a referendum. The
army is deployed ahead of a rally tomorrow in Karoi, by the opposition Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC), led by Morgan Tsvangirai. 7 April: Manhando Zindoga,
acting general secretary of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) says:
"We're in a situation that is going through some turmoil and this is because
we're running towards the elections. The politicians in my country must all
commit themselves openly to a non-violent political process". The same day,
President Mugabe says that those whites who do not agree with the new
constitutional reform permitting the seizure and redistribution of their farmland
without compensation, should leave Zimbabwe. 10 April: The white farmers are due
to take the police to court today over their refusal to evict the squatters. The
CUF which represents those white-owned farms under siege, is asking the court to
order the police to enforce the rule of law.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 April 2000)

Weekly News anb0413 -  END of PART 7/8