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> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "anb-bia" <anb-bia at village.uunet.be>
> To: <anb-weekly at ntlist.online.be>
> Sent: Thursday, June 13, 2002 4:17 PM
> Subject: Weekly anb06135.txt #7
>
>
> > _____________________________________________________________
> > WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 13-06-2002      PART #5/7
> >
> > * Libya. Mandela goes back to jail  -  The prison visitor arrived at
> > Barlinnie (Scotland) mid-morning in a flurry of cars and police
outriders.
> > He bypassed the bleak waiting room with its metal benches and chipped
> > linoleum and was led, without being searched, straight to a suite of
cells
> > deep within the grim Victorian fortress on Glasgow's eastern edge. The
> > inmate he had come to see greeted him with a handshake. They sat and
> talked
> > for more than an hour. The statesman and the convicted mass killer:
Nelson
> > Mandela and the Lockerbie bomber. For Mr Mandela, it was a defining
> > experience. Emerging to talk to the press, the former South African
> > president called immediately for a fresh appeal and for Abdel Baset
> > al-Megrahi to be transferred from Britain to a Muslim prison. The
Libyan's
> > solitary confinement in Scotland's toughest jail was nothing short of
> > "psychological persecution", he said. And too many questions had been
> > raised about his conviction to let the matter rest. An urgent meeting
> would
> > be sought with both Tony Blair and the US president, George Bush, to
plead
> > Megrahi's case. Mr Mandela, 83, has long been troubled by Lockerbie. He
> > played a crucial role in persuading the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar
> > Gadafy, to hand over the two men suspected of involvement in the 1988
> > atrocity which left 270 people dead, and has followed events closely.
Last
> > week he announced he intended to travel to Glasgow to check on Megrahi's
> > welfare.   (The Guardian, UK, 11 June 2002)
> >
> > * Madagascar. Rivals meet on neutral turf  -  9 June: Madagascar's two
> > rival presidents are meeting in Senegal, in an internationally mediated
> > attempt to resolve a violent power struggle. Marc Ravalomanana and
Didier
> > Ratsiraka hold talks separately with regional heads of state who are
> trying
> > broker a settlement. Today, the two leaders meet face to face for the
> first
> > time. Participants decline to comment on the progress of negotiations.
The
> > diplomatic push follows a surge in fighting between forces loyal to Mr
> > Ravalomanana, who was sworn in as president last month, and militants
> > aligned with Mr Ratsiraka, who led Madagascar until a disputed election
> > last December. The fighting appears to signal the start of a new, more
> > violent, turn in the six-month dispute that has split Madagascar between
> > rival presidents, governments and armies. 10 June: The talks end without
> > agreement, but African heads of state have drawn up a plan aimed at
ending
> > the crisis. The document calls for parliamentary elections to be held
> > before the end of the year and for a balanced transitional government.
The
> > two presidents were not on hand at the end of the talks to give their
own
> > opinions on what had been discussed.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 June 2002)
> >
> > * Madagascar. Après Dakar II, affrontements  -  9 juin. Les deux
> présidents
> > rivaux, Ravalomanana et Ratsiraka, se sont de nouveau rencontrés à
Dakar,
> > sous l'égide du président du Sénégal, qui a réuni pour l'occasion quatre
> > autres chefs d'Etat. Chacun d'eux a rencontré séparément les deux
> > présidents malgaches. Finalement, le dimanche soir, les deux hommes se
> sont
> > séparés sans avoir conclu un accord, mais avec un "plan de sortie de
> crise"
> > proposé par les chefs d'Etat facilitateurs. Ce plan propose
> "l'organisation
> > d'élections législatives anticipées avant la fin de l'année" ou, en cas
de
> > difficulté, "à l'échéance normale des mandats des députés, en mai 2003".
> Le
> > plan prévoit que M. Ravalomanana nomme le Premier ministre de la
> > transition, les autres ministres devant être nommés partiellement par
les
> > deux protagonistes. La proposition des chefs d'Etat sera soumise à
l'OUA,
> > qui devra déterminer une position commune africaine. Elle reste
cependant
> > vague sur la question essentielle, consistant à désigner le véritable
> > président de Madagascar. - 10 juin. Pendant ce temps, de nouveaux fronts
> > militaires se dessinent. Selon des sources journalistiques, les troupes
> > fidèles à Ravalomanana avanceraient vers Tuléar (sud). Ils chercheraient
> > l'affrontement à plusieurs endroits du pays pour diviser les forces de
> > Ratsiraka, mieux armées et entraînées. M. Ravalomanana a rallié sous son
> > autorité la très grande majorité des effectifs de l'armée malgache mais
> > plusieurs unités d'élite, très bien entraînées et armées, sont restées
> > fidèles à M. Ratsiraka. Il multiplie le recrutement de jeunes pour
gonfler
> > les rangs de ses milices. Ses troupes resserrent leurs tenailles autour
> > d'Antsiranana, dans l'extrême-nord, grand port-arsenal tenu par les
> > militaires d'élite pro-Ratsiraka. Elles ont lancé une offensive depuis
la
> > région de Sambava, dans le nord-est, et d'Antsohihy, dans le nord-ouest,
> et
> > s'apprêtaient à ouvrir un nouveau front dans le sud, vers Tuléar. Des
> > combats entre partisans de Ratsiraka et fidèles de Marc Ravalomanana ont
> > éclaté mardi sur l'île Nosy-be, la principale destination touristique de
> > Madagascar. De partout, on pouvait entendre les échanges de tirs qui ont
> > éclaté sur "l'île aux parfums" située dans le nord-ouest de cet Etat de
> > l'océan Indien. - 12 juin. L'armée de Ravalomanana a réussi à briser le
> > blocus de la capitale en prenant un barrage stratégique sur le pont de
la
> > rivière Betsiboka (barrant la route entre Antananarivo et le port de
> > Mahajanga) et elle continue son avancée sur Mahajanga. Elle a progressé
> sur
> > tous les fronts, à l'exception de la petite île de Nosy-be, où un de ses
> > généraux a été encerclé et capturé.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 12
> > juin 2002)
> >
> > * Malawi. High Court decision upholds Muluzi's ban on demonstrations  -
> In
> > an about-turn, a Malawian High Court on 6 June overturned a previous
court
> > ruling declaring unconstitutional a ban by President Bakili Muluzi on
> > public protests over his third term in office. The move is seen as a
boost
> > for Muluzi, who said on Monday he would ignore the previous court ruling
> as
> > it was "irresponsible and insensitive". On 3 June, Malawi's High Court
had
> > ruled that Muluzi could not ban demonstrations over a controversial
> > campaign urging him to stand for a third term in office. The court
ruling
> > came after influential religious groups, including the Roman Catholic
> > Church and the law society of Malawi, applied for an injunction against
> > Muluzi's threat to stop demonstrations around the third term issue.
Judge
> > Dunstain Mwaungulu ruled that Muluzi's ban violated the constitutional
> > rights of freedom of expression and assembly. But that ruling was
> > overturned following an application by Justice Minister and
> > Attorney-General Henry Phoya, who accused lawyers representing groups
> > opposing Muluzi's controversial third-term of shopping for sympathetic
> > judges.   (IRIN, 6 June 2002)
> >
> > * Malawi. Permis d'interdire  -  Le 5 juin, un juge du tribunal de
grande
> > instance du Malawi, Antanazio Tembo, a annulé le jugement prononcé le 3
> > juin par un de ses collègues contre l'interdiction par le président
Muluzi
> > des manifestations contre sa tentative de se présenter à un troisième
> > mandat. Le juge Tembo a pris cette décision, suite à l'introduction
d'une
> > demande par le ministre de la Justice, qui a accusé les avocats d'être
> > impliqués dans une coalition hostile au 3e mandat. Viva Nyimba, un
célèbre
> > avocat de Blantyre, a accusé le ministre de s'ingérer dans les affaires
de
> > la justice et d'utiliser sa position pour intimider les magistrats.
"C'est
> > honteux et c'est un jour triste pour l'indépendance de la justice au
> > Malawi", a-t-il dit. - 7 juin. L'Eglise catholique du Malawi a
ouvertement
> > pris position dans la dispute politique concernant la possibilité d'un
> > troisième mandat pour le président Muluzi, indique l'agence Misna. Dans
un
> > communiqué, la Commission pour la paix et la justice (CCJP) a dit être
> > "absolument contraire à un troisième mandat", appuyant ainsi le
mouvement
> > populaire luttant contre une révision de la Constitution.   (ANB-BIA, de
> > sources diverses, 8 juin 2002)
> >
> > * Malawi. Churches pray for term limits  -  Thousands of people prayed
on
> 9
> > June for divine intervention to thwart the ruling party's bid to abolish
> > presidential term limits. At the interdenominational prayer session,
> church
> > leaders condemned efforts by the ruling United Democratic Front to
change
> > the constitution in order to allow President Bakili Muluzi to run for a
> > third term in 2004. The session, organized by church and civil rights
> > groups, and a protest the day earlier defied a ban called by Muluzi
> against
> > gatherings relating to the third term bid. Felix Chingota, one of the
> > church leaders, said changing the constitution, which limits a president
> to
> > two five-year terms, amounted to criminal treason. Muluzi, speaking to a
> > political rally, the same day, dismissed the prayer session as being
> > motivated by politics, not democracy. "My government is for peace but
some
> > opposition leaders are using churches to fuel political and religious
> > tension in the country," Muluzi said.   (CNN, USA, 10 June 2002)
> >
> > * Mali. New President sworn in  -  8 June: For the first time in Mali's
> > history, one elected president has handed over power to an elected
> > successor. After 10 years in power, Alpha Oumar Konare welcomed
> > president-elect, retired General Amadou Toumani Toure, to the
presidential
> > palace on a cliff overlooking the capital, Bamako. The two men consulted
> > for 40 minutes behind closed doors. Then Konare vacated the palace
> > graciously, heading off to a new palatial residence built for him by the
> > Chinese Government, on the outskirts of Bamako. Konare was not present
at
> > the Congress Palace two hours later for the official swearing-in
ceremony.
> > The official explanation was that protocol could not handle two
presidents
> > at a time. His absence did not dampen enthusiastic attendance at the
> > ceremony. Many thousands of invited dignitaries and Malian citizens
tried
> > to squeeze into the main auditorium of the Congress Palace, which holds
> > only 1,000 people. The official ceremony was delayed by an hour as
> > organisers tried to convince Malians to cede their places to foreign
> > guests. The congestion in the Congress Palace was exacerbated by the
> > presence of 11 African heads of state from Mali's neighbours -- Côte
> > d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea, Mauritania and Guinea, as well
as
> > Gabon, Chad, the Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville and Congo
> RDC.
> > It was shortly before midday that Amadou Toumani Toure arrived with his
> > spouse, Lobo Toure, and the ceremony could begin. Mali's attorney
general
> > reminded the incoming president that he was "an ordinary man in
> > extraordinary circumstances" and that the country faced serious social
and
> > economic problems, with the youth "refusing to respect their elders".
The
> > Supreme Court then officially declared Toure president of Mali.   (BBC
> > News, UK, 8 June 2002)
> >
> > * Mali. Touré prête serment  -  Le 8 juin, le nouveau président malien,
> > Amadou Toumani Touré, élu le 12 mai, a prêté serment à Bamako, lors
d'une
> > cérémonie d'investiture, en présence de onze chefs d'Etat africains. Il
> > s'est engagé à "construire un pays qui n'exclue personne, travailler
dans
> > l'intérêt du peuple et travailler à l'unité africaine". La veille au
soir,
> > le président sortant Alpha Oumar Konaré avait fait ses adieux au peuple
> > malien après ses dix années passées à la tête du pays. Il n'a pas manqué
> de
> > faire une auto-critique, mais a laissé entendre qu'il ne se retirerait
pas
> > de sitôt de la politique. "Je ne prendrai pas ma retraite", a-t-il
> affirmé.
> > - 9 juin. L'ancien ambassadeur du Mali à Rabat et à Bruxelles, Mohamed
Ag
> > Amani, a été nommé Premier ministre selon un décret signé par le
président
> > Touré. Le nouveau Premier ministre, 60 ans, est économiste-statisticien
de
> > formation. Il fut plusieurs fois ministre sous Moussa Traoré. On ne lui
> > connaît aucune appartenance politique.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses,
10
> > juin 002)
> >
> > * Morocco. Al-Qaeda plot  -  10 June: Reports from Morocco say three
Saudi
> > members of al-Qaeda have been arrested as they prepared attacks on
> American
> > and British naval ships in the Straits of Gibraltar. There has been no
> > formal announcement from the Moroccan authorities, but officials are
> quoted
> > as saying the three had been arrested in May with the help of the
> > intelligence services of several friendly countries. The men, aged
between
> > 25 and 35, are reported to have links to the al-Qaeda, the organisation
> > suspected of carrying out the 11 September attacks in the United States.
> > Officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the suspects
> > planned to sail inflatable dinghies loaded with explosives alongside
ships
> > patrolling the straits. The suspects were planning to sail the dinghies
> > from Ceuta and Melillia, the Spanish enclaves on Moroccan territory, the
> > officials said.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 June 2002)
> >
> > * Maroc. Cellule Al Qaida démantelée  -  Le ministre marocain de
> > l'Intérieur a confirmé, le 12 juin, le démantèlement d'une cellule d'Al
> > Qaida infiltrée au Maroc et qui "préparait des actes terroristes contre
> les
> > navires de l'OTAN" dans le détroit de Gibraltar. Les membres de la
> cellule,
> > trois Saoudiens, comptaient mener des opérations à l'intérieur du Maroc
et
> > à partir des deux enclaves espagnoles dans le nord du Maroc, Ceuta et
> > Melilla. L'enquête de la police judiciaire se poursuit.   (PANA,
Sénégal,
> > 12 juin 2002)
> >
> > * Mozambique. Hunger and Aids stalk Mozambique  -  6 June: The great
> > Zambezi flows lazily by the town of Tete, on its way to the Indian
Ocean.
> > But a mere 40-minute drive away, rivers have dried to a trickle, some
are
> > mostly mud or reduced to stagnant pools, or simply filled with sand.
> Hunger
> > or drought is stalking southern Africa and Mozambique has not escaped
it.
> > It has already set in here, right in the province of Tete, wedged in by
> > colonial-era frontiers of Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia. Withered stalks
of
> > maize and sorghum litter the dusty fields. Malaria is rampant and
cholera
> > killed many here in the first three months of the year. In the village
of
> > Cachembe, in Changara district, people are desperately scouring the bush
> > for wild fruit and nuts as they try to stay alive. But, with everyone
> doing
> > the same, even this source of food is becoming scarcer by the day. Many
> > children have bloated stomachs, a classic tell-tale sign of
malnutrition.
> > The Mozambican Government has already appealed for emergency aid and the
> > UN's World Food Programme is sounding the alarm, saying that at least
12.8
> > million people in six countries across southern Africa need help.
> According
> > to their latest estimates 515,000 people in Mozambique need food aid.
The
> > drought in Mozambique has been catastrophic, but thankfully it has not
> > covered the whole country, parts of which have had good rains and
> harvests.
> > But the rains have failed in much of the centre and south of the
country.
> > Many of these areas were already devastated by massive floods at the end
> of
> > 2000 and beginning of 2001. The floods washed away crops, houses,
bridges
> > and infrastructure and also drowned cattle and other farm
> > animals.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 6 June 2002)
> >
> > * Mozambique. Menace de famine  -  Les Nations unies attirent
l'attention
> > sur la situation de disette dans le sud et le centre du Mozambique. Une
> > analyse réalisée par la FAO et le PAM relève que plus d'un demi million
de
> > personnes aura besoin d'une assistance alimentaire avant les récoltes de
> > 2003. A l'origine de la chute de la production agricole, il y a la
> > sécheresse de cette année qui a frappé particulièrement les zones
rurales
> > du centre et du sud du pays. Dans les aires de Zambezia, de Tete, de
> > Manica, de Sofala et dans les provinces au sud de Maputo, le manque
d'eau
> > aura pour conséquence un déficit de 70 mille tonnes de récolte. Pour le
> > moment, plus de 150.000 personnes nécessitent une intervention
> humanitaire.
> > Mais ce nombre, signalent les deux agences onusiennes, est destiné à
> > augmenter dans les mois qui viennent, quand les familles auront épuisé
> > leurs réserves de denrées alimentaires.   (Misna, Italie, 7 juin 2002)
> >
> > Weekly News - anb06135.txt - #5/7
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>