Weekly anb10034.txt #6

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 03-10-2002      PART #4/6

* Ethiopie. Aides diverses  -  Les Pays-Bas ont accordé une subvention de 
1,7 million d'euros à des entreprises éthiopiennes des secteurs de 
l'industrie manufacturière, de l'exportation et de l'agriculture, au titre 
de l'assistance technique. Cette subvention financerait aussi des 
programmes de formation. Les compagnies potentiellement bénéficiaires 
doivent soumettre des propositions de projet qui seront évaluées par une 
équipe technique. -- La Banque mondiale a approuvé une subvention de 132,7 
millions de dollars pour financer le Projet d'accès à l'énergie de 
l'Ethiopie, qui est destiné à élargir l'accès de la population à 
l'électricité. Et le FMI a approuvé le décaissement d'un prêt de 14 
millions de dollars dans le cadre de la Facilité pour la croissance et la 
réduction de la pauvreté. Ce montant fait part d'un prêt de $115 millions 
consenti à l'Ethiopie en mars 2001.   (PANA, Sénégal, 27/9-1/10 2002)

* Ethiopia. Unprecedented crisis  -  An early warning network financed by 
the United States says the failure of rains in Ethiopia has left the 
country facing the prospect of drought on an unprecedented scale. As many 
as 14 million people could need feeding by early next year. The US warning 
network says that "timely delivery and distribution of additional food aid 
is crucial for maintaining minimum nutritional levels". "Delivery of basic 
food aid now will avoid the need for widespread and expensive supplementary 
and therapeutic feeding later," it said. The World Food Programme (WFP) 
says that six million Ethiopians will need food aid in the next few months. 
WFP warns that it is facing a shortfall in its pledges of food from major 
donors of tens of thousands of tonnes.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 1 October 2002)

* The Gambia. The Gambian government to refund Jawara 400,000 
dollars  -  The Gambian government will pay former president, Sir Dawda 
Jawara, about 400,000 US dollars as a rent refund package on his landed 
properties, the Finance and Economic Affairs department disclosed on 25 
September. Jawara, who recently returned home from exile in Britain, was 
denied rental on his properties following his overthrow in 1994. The 
government's decision to effect the payment came shortly after Jawara 
announced his formal resignation from the Peoples' Progressive Party under 
which he ruled the Gambia for nearly three decades. Jawara's deal with the 
current administration, however, does not conclusively signify the return 
of all of his assets. After the last presidential election, the current 
head of state, Yahya Jammeh granted Jawara unconditional amnesty and asked 
him to return home.   (PANA, Senegal, 25 September 2002)

* Ghana. President Kufuor names Dagbon committees  -  President John 
Agyekum Kufuor has appointed 11-member committees to run the affairs of six 
Dagbon districts in northern Ghana, where a state of emergency has been in 
force since the murder of the Dagbon king, Ya-Na Yakubu Andani, in March. 
On 27 March, assailants overran the Dagbon palace in Yendi, killing Yakubu 
Andani II and other members of his Andani clan, after tension with the 
Abudu clan in the Dagbon traditional state spilt over. Elections for new 
district assemblies took place throughout most of Ghana in August but were 
postponed indefinitely in Tamale municipality assembly, Yendi, 
Tolon/Kumbungu, Savelugu/Nanton, Zabzugu/Tatale and Gushegu/Karaga 
districts due to the state of emergency prevailing there. However, 
assemblies in the six districts had been dissolved, creating a vacuum in 
district and local government administration, according to officials. It 
was to fill that vacuum that Kufuor issued an executive order appointing 
the committees, which have the same powers as elected district assemblies 
and are intended to help district mayors administer the affairs of the 
Dagbon area until elections can be held. Minister of Local Government and 
Rural Development, Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, said that major decisions taken in 
the interim -- the awarding of contracts, for instance -- would be declared 
null and void because mayors had acted "ultra vires" (against the law). 
Baah-Wiredu hoped that the state of emergency would end before long, 
allowing proper elections to be held. Once the emergency is lifted, he 
said, the election process in the Dagbon area would start all over again, 
and include fresh nominations.   (IRIN, Kenya, 30 September 2002)

* Guinée équatoriale. Recensement électoral  -  Le recensement électoral en 
vue de l'élection présidentielle, prévue au premier semestre 2003, a été 
lancé le 27 septembre à Malabo par le président Teodoro Obiang Nguema, 
candidat à sa propre succession. Ce recensement obligatoire, qui doit 
prendre fin le 16 octobre, concerne tous les Equato-Guinéens de plus de 18 
ans, ainsi que ceux qui auront atteint la majorité au moment du scrutin. 
D'après un récent recensement de la population, la Guinée équatoriale 
compte 1.014.999 habitants.   (PANA, Sénégal, 28 septembre 2002)

* Kenya. Teachers hold firm  -  30 September: Many students are starting a 
second week without lessons, as the country's state teachers continue to 
strike. The teachers are demanding that the government implement a 1997 
salary deal, but the Education Ministry has refused and declared the strike 
illegal. The press and public seem to be firmly on the side of the 
teachers. Newspapers are calling the government's strong-arm tactics 
detestable and illegal. Some 240,000 Kenyan teachers are observing what is 
a disciplined and well-coordinated protest. Classrooms across the country 
remain empty, with important exams coming up for hundreds of thousands of 
pupils. The teachers want the government to continue raising their salaries 
in line with the pay deal. But the Education Ministry says it simply does 
not have the cash, and points out that it has already doubled some 
teachers' wages. With a presidential election due in December, the 
authorities are anxious to end this strike and the bad publicity it is 
generating.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 30 September 2002)

* Kenya. Call to boycott courts  -  Kenya's law society has called for a 
total boycott of the country's courts as part of a growing campaign against 
establishment efforts to curtail debate on a new draft constitution. The 
constitutional review commission is expected that day to answer contempt 
charges for ignoring a recent court order against discussing the draft's 
calls for judicial reform. The draft constitution -- due to be discussed at 
a conference at the end of the month, ahead of general elections -- calls 
for a big overhaul of Kenya's system of government.   (Financial Times, UK, 
2 October 2002)

* Malawi. Opposition leader against third term  -  John Tembo, the leader 
of one of the factions of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) says the mood of 
the country is now against a third term in office for President Muluzi. He 
says that he had supported the bill for a third term in July, but the mood 
of the country has now changed and so he would now oppose it. Although the 
bill presented to Parliament in July failed to get the two-thirds majority 
to change the Constitution, the government plans to try once more to change 
the laws to allow Presidwent Muluzi to remain in office.   (ANB-BIA, 
Belgium, 2 October 2002)

* Mali. Lutte contre la pauvreté  -  Le 30 septembre, le Premier ministre 
malien Hamed Ag Hamani, entouré des membres de son gouvernement, a procédé 
à Bamako au lancement d'une vaste campagne de lutte contre la pauvreté et 
l'exclusion au Mali. Baptisée "Mois d'octobre, mois de solidarité et de 
lutte contre l'exclusion", cette campagne, d'un coût de 240 millions de 
FCFA, s'étalera sur les quatre semaines du mois d'octobre et ciblera les 
couches les plus vulnérables de la société (handicapés, indigents, 
personnes âgées). On a annoncé des consultations thérapeutiques gratuites 
en faveur des personnes cibles et la remise de dons en nature aux 
indigents. Faisant de la lutte contre la pauvreté une priorité absolue, le 
gouvernement a créé le 16 septembre une Banque malienne de solidarité, 
dotée d'un capital de 2,3 milliards de FCFA. L'institution, qui a pour 
mission principale la promotion des petites et moyennes entreprises, 
s'adresse à une clientèle constituée de petits entrepreneurs qui souvent ne 
bénéficient pas de crédit bancaire dans le système financier 
classique.   (PANA, Sénégal, 30 septembre 2002)

* Mali. Aide américaine  -  Le 1er octobre, le gouvernement des Etats-Unis 
a accordé au Mali une aide de près de 250 milliards de FCFA (quelque 375 
millions de dollars) entrant dans le cadre du nouveau programme de 
coopération 2003-2012. Cette aide américaine sera destinée aux secteurs de 
la santé, de l'économie, de l'éducation, de la décentralisation et de la 
communication.   (PANA, Sénégal, 1er octobre 2002)

* Morocco. Parliamentary elections  -  27 September: Moroccans go to the 
polls, today for parliamentary elections. 26 parties are standing. These 
are the first elections since King Mohammed VI came to the throne in 1999, 
and the authorities promise that the poll will be free of the corruption 
and interference of the past. But they fear voter apathy in a country 
suffering from high unemployment and growing poverty. 1 October: Final 
results confirm the ruling socialists as the biggest winners in the 
elections, but an Islamic party does unexpectedly well, tripling its seats 
in parliament. The socialists of Prime Minister Abderrahmane finish on top 
with 50 seats in the 325 seats of the lower house. It is followed by the 
conservative Istiqlal Party with 48 seats. In a measure of toughening 
Islamic sentiment, the Justice and Development Party post the biggest gains 
with 42 seats.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 1 October 2002)

* Maroc. Elections législatives  -  Le 27 septembre, 14 millions de 
Marocains étaient appelés à élire 325 membres de la Chambre basse du 
Parlement pour un mandat de cinq ans. Au total, 5.855 candidats de 26 
partis politiques se présentaient dans 91 circonscriptions électorales. Les 
élections se sont généralement déroulées dans le calme, malgré quelques 
incidents locaux et quelques tentatives de fraude dénoncées. - 28 
septembre. Selon les premiers résultats annoncés par le ministre de 
l'Intérieur, la participation au scrutin pourrait s'établir dans une 
fourchette de 52 à 55% des inscrits. Les islamistes du Parti justice et 
développement (PJD) auraient enregistré une "importante progression", 
doublant au moins le nombre de 14 députés qu'ils avaient dans la Chambre 
des représentants sortante. L'Union socialiste des forces populaires (USFP) 
de l'actuel Premier ministre Youssoufi, qui comptait 57 sièges, devrait 
s'en tirer raisonnablement. - 30 septembre. Le PJD a cherché à rassurer le 
pays quant au rôle politique qu'il entend tenir. "Nous défendons un islam 
modéré", a expliqué son chef de file, Saad Eddine Othmani, cherchant ainsi 
à démentir les affirmations de nombreux hommes politiques marocains qui ont 
vu dans la percée du PJD le spectre d'une dérive fondamentaliste au Maroc. 
- 1er octobre. Le ministre de l'Intérieur a donné les résultats officiels 
exprimés en nombre de sièges obtenus sur un total de 325. Voici les 
résultats des principaux partis présents à la Chambre des représentants: 
l'USFP 50 sièges; l'Istiglal 48; le PJD 42; le Rassemblement national des 
indépendants (RNI) 41; le Mouvement populaire (MP) 27; le Mouvement 
national populaire (MNP) 18; et l'Union constitutionnelle (UC) 16. Au 
total, 22 partis seront représentés à la Chambre.   (ANB-BIA, de sources 
diverses, 2 octobre 2002)

* Namibia. Pressure on foreign TV shows  -  Namibian state television 
station, NBC, has replaced imported programmes with local wildlife 
documentaries, after a presidential directive. On 1 October, President Sam 
Nujoma told NBC to stop broadcasting foreign soaps, films and series that 
"have a bad influence on the Namibian youth", according to The Namibian 
newspaper. Instead, the president, who is also the Minister of Information 
and Broadcasting, asked staff members at the state broadcaster to show 
films that portray Namibia in a positive light. Immediately after the order 
local productions made several years ago began being aired. A staff member 
told The Namibian that they were confused about how to carry out the order 
and "began pulling old tapes off the shelves almost at random". NBC were 
then reportedly bombarded with telephone calls from angry viewers 
complaining about the non-showing of regular programmes like the US-made 
soap Bold and the Beautiful and the sci-fi series Dune.   (BBC News, UK, 1 
October 2002)

* Nigeria. Ruling party clears Obasanjo of alleged misrule  -  An 11-member 
panel set up by Nigeria's ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to examine 
allegations of constitutional breaches against Olusegun Obasanjo has given 
the President a clean bill of health. The committee was set up following 
allegations by the lower legislative chamber, the House of Representatives, 
that President Obasanjo had committed 17 constitutional breaches and should 
be impeached. But in a report submitted to PDP national chairperson Audu 
Ogbe this week, the panel said the President was not guilty of any 
misconduct as alleged by the House.   (PANA, Senegal, 26 September 2002)

* Nigeria. Annulation des lapidations?  -  Le 1er octobre, le président 
Olusegun Obasanjo a assuré que les plus hautes juridictions du Nigeria 
annuleraient les peines de mort par lapidation prononcées par les tribunaux 
islamiques contre les personnes convaincues d'adultère. Le chef de l'Etat a 
indiqué que plusieurs personnes condamnées à mort en vertu de la charia, la 
loi coranique, pourraient faire appel devant la Cour suprême du 
Nigeria.   (Le Figaro, France, 2 octobre 2002)

* Rwanda. Genocide suspect arrested  -  29 September: A leading Rwandan 
genocide suspect, the former prefect of the city of Kigali, has been 
arrested in Congo RDC. Colonel Tharcisse Renzaho was immediately 
transferred to the International Tribunal for Rwanda in the Tanzanian city 
of Arusha. In his capacity as prefect of Kigali, Colonel Renzaho had 
control over the city's police force and local councillors. It is alleged 
that, far from using his position to prevent the genocide, he was zealous 
in coordinating the planning of the slaughter in the city. After fleeing to 
Congo RDC at the end of the genocide, Colonel Renzaho is reported to have 
been among the most active of the Rwandan genocide suspects in exile. He 
served as divisional commander of the former Rwandan army in exile until 
1996. The following year the colonel seems to have spent time in Nairobi 
where he dodged a big round up of genocide suspects conducted by the Kenyan 
police. He is also reported to have been active in supplying his men with 
arms during his time in the Kenyan capital.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 29 
September 2002)

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