Weekly anb01234.txt #7

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 23-01-2003      PART #4/7

* Guinée-Bissau. L'Onu se dit préoccupée  -  Le Conseil de sécurité des 
Nations unies s'est montré préoccupé par l'impasse constitutionnelle et 
l'instabilité politique croissante en Guinée-Bissau et a plaidé la 
nécessité d'accélérer les préparatifs pour la tenue d'élections. Les 
membres du Conseil appuient la position de M. Kofi Annan qui désire qu'on 
organise le plus rapidement possible les élections pour choisir une Cour 
suprême de justice. Ils ont exhorté le gouvernement à créer les conditions 
pour que les élections législatives anticipées du 20 avril prochain soient 
"transparentes, justes et crédibles" et ont souligné l'importance de la 
promulgation, sans plus tarder, de la nouvelle Constitution revue par le 
Parlement. Le Conseil s'est également montré préoccupé par la difficile 
situation économique dans laquelle se trouve la Guinée-Bissau, appelant la 
communauté internationale à fournir l'assistance nécessaire pour tirer le 
pays de la crise.   (PANA, Sénégal, 16 janvier 2003)

* Kenya. Somali peace talks' bounty  -  For more than three months, the 
residents of Eldoret, in western Kenya, have been host to more than 1,000 
Somali delegates attending the ongoing peace talks. The delegates include 
warlords, politicians, intellectuals, elders and representatives of civil 
society from Somalia or living outside the country. Factional differences 
have hindered the talks, but for Eldoret's business people and hotel 
owners, business is booming. "Things are actually doing very well, this is 
a windfall business," Eric Ochoo, operations manager of the Sirikwa Hotel 
says. "The turnover is good, it has been 100% occupancy for the last three 
months." But he says that the rooms where the delegates have been staying 
will need redecorating. "The rooms have been messed up. Maybe 60% of the 
Somali delegates are smokers -- even the non-smoking floor has been 
tampered with. After their departure, we will actually need to make some 
service so we can bring the rooms back to the normal status." Many Somali 
delegates say they are enjoying their stay. "The climate is quite OK, 
people are very hospitable, they welcome us very nicely," one of the 
customers, Abdullahi Mohammed, from Mogadishu, says. The delegates' busy 
social life in Eldoret has also led to a number of marriages with local 
women. "It is not the first time. Kenyans and Somalis are already married, 
they have good relations," Mr Mohammed says. Others in Eldoret hope the 
Somali guests will stay as long as possible, for financial reasons. "It has 
really increased my business," says Morris Abuto, a taxi driver. "If they 
go, our business will go down."   (BBC News, UK, 14 January 2003)

* Kenya. Lutte anti-corruption  -  Le ministre kényan de la Justice et des 
Affaires constitutionnelles, M. Kiraitu Murungi, a annoncé trois projets de 
lois qui visent notamment à mettre sur pied une commission anti-corruption. 
Celle-ci devrait remplacer l'Unité anti-corruption de la police (ACPU). M. 
Murungi a déclaré que le nouveau gouvernement était déterminé à éliminer la 
corruption du service public. La Commission aura le pouvoir d'arrêter, 
d'enquêter et de poursuivre les coupables. Un des projets de lois 
recommande de lourdes peines pour les coupables, notamment une amende 
allant jusqu'à un million de shillings kényans (environ $12.500) et une 
peine de 10 ans de prison. Les coupables devront également rembourser 
jusqu'à deux fois la valeur des biens détournés.   (PANA, Sénégal, 16 
janvier 2003)

* Kenya. New anti-corruption measures  -  15 January: Kenya's 
three-week-old government pressed on with its anti-corruption crusade by 
trimming the office of the president and naming an anti-graft czar. The 
move coincides with the publication of three bills to set up an 
anti-corruption commission and enact a law requiring all public servants to 
declare their wealth. The Central Bank of Kenya is also moving to recover 
controversial payments made by the past government in the run-up to the 
general elections. As senior officials of the International Monetary Fund 
(IMF) begin talks with the new government in Nairobi, President Kibaki 
announces that he had reduced the number of staff in his office from 48 to 
25. He also appoints the former executive director of Transparency 
International in Kenya, John Githongo, as the new permanent secretary of 
governance and ethics in his office. Mr Githongo, 37, will spearhead the 
fight against corruption and advise the president on the clean-up campaign. 
At the same time, the new Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister, 
Kiraitu Murungi, has published three bills in a further attempt to crack 
down on corruption. The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill will create 
an anti-graft authority to investigate and prosecute cases of corruption in 
the public and private sectors.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 16 January 2003)

* Kenya. President Kibaki back in hospital  -  20 January: President Mwai 
Kibaki has been taken to hospital in Nairobi with a blood clot in his leg. 
Mr Kibaki, 71, was injured in a traffic accident during the campaign for 
last month's elections. Vice-President Michael Wamalwa is also expected to 
visit hospital shortly. Mr Kibaki's personal doctor says he will still be 
able to act as president while in hospital for the next seven days. 
Following his car accident, he finished the campaign in a wheelchair and 
cast his vote from the back seat of his Mercedes Benz. Dr Dan Gikonyo says 
that Mr Kibaki should not stand up or wave his arms. He says the president 
is still able to carry out his official functions from the Nairobi National 
Hospital, except that he should not get over-stressed. The blood clot was 
discovered when the plaster was taken off his leg. He is also suffering 
from high blood pressure. Mr Wamalwa is in London, where both he and Mr 
Kibaki were treated last month. He is expected to return to the hospital 
for a check up after suffering from gout.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 20 January 2003)

* Kenya. Clare Short à Nairobi  -  Ce 21 janvier, Clare Short, ministre 
britannique du Développement international, entame une visite officielle au 
Kenya, au cours de laquelle elle aura des entretiens avec le président Mwai 
Kibaki et des membres de son gouvernement. Elle devrait officiellement 
offrir l'appui de la Grande-Bretagne en faveur de l'application de 
l'engagement pris par le nouveau gouvernement kényan pour accroître la 
croissance et réduire la pauvreté. Elle discutera également de l'aide 
bilatérale britannique au Kenya et de la manière dont Londres peut aider 
Nairobi à obtenir une reprise des prêts auprès des institutions financières 
internationales.   (PANA, Sénégal, 21 janvier 2003)

* Kenya/Rwanda. Kenyan dead in Rwanda genocide trap  -  21 January: A 
Kenyan businessman who was working with police to arrest a Rwandan national 
suspected of genocide, has been found dead. William Mwaura Munuhe, 27, was 
discovered when police forced open the door of his Nairobi flat after he 
failed to answer his phone. He had been shot dead. Mr Munuhe was killed 
last week, 24 hours before he was supposed to meet Felicien Kabuga, who is 
accused of funding ethnic Hutu militias responsible for much of the killing 
during the genocide. Mr Kabuga has been on the run from the Rwandan War 
Crimes Tribunal for eight years. The United States Government has put a $5m 
bounty on his head. Mr Munuhe had agreed to lure Felicien Kabuga, the 
former head of the Radio Television Mille Collines, which broadcast 
anti-Tutsi hate propaganda, into his home for a fake business deal so that 
Kenyan police and the US FBI could arrest him. Police became suspicious 
when Mr Kabuga failed to turn up for the meeting. Mr Munuhe's murder had 
been made to look like suicide, police said. A burning charcoal stove had 
been placed next to his bed to imply he had died of carbon monoxide 
poisoning, the Daily Nation reported. But in fact, he was shot in the head, 
with the bullet entering through an ear, the newspaper said. A police 
official has denied reports by some observers that police insiders betrayed 
Mr Munuhe to Mr Kabuga, who is a millionaire. But police did not say why 
they did not announce the death of Mr Munuhe last week.   (BBC News, UK, 21 
January 2003)

* Kenya. Students riot  -  22 January: About 5,000 students have 
demonstrated in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, to demand the reinstatement of 
their union, banned two years ago after the authorities accused it of 
organising violent marches. Students broke shop windows and robbed 
passers-by near the university. Police used tear gas to try to force the 
students back into their halls of residence, but the demonstration only 
ended when an education ministry official promised that the ban on the 
union would be lifted. This is the first case of social unrest in Kenya 
since President Mwai Kibaki was elected last month. The students said the 
demonstration was the only way for them to be heard.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 
22 January 2003)

* Liberia. Catholic Commission concerned about election security  -  The 
Liberian Catholic Justice and Peace Commission (JPC) on 16 January 
expressed concerns over the "enabling security environment for the conduct 
of a free, fair, transparent and tension-free general and presidential 
elections" scheduled for October. In a statement on the eve of the release 
of its annual report on the human rights situation, JPC National Executive 
Director Francese Johnson-Morris called for the security of all opposition 
political parties and independent candidates especially during the 
campaigning period. "Given the unprecedented multiplicity of armed security 
agencies in the country, with most of them having no legal status and 
defined command structures, coupled with their track records of gross human 
rights abuses, we are inclined to believe that the 2003 elections will be 
marred by the worse forms of security brutality, molestation, and 
intimidation of opposition political parties and candidates ever recorded 
in the country's history," he said. The commission noted that the 
deployment of a joint United Nations and Economic Community of West African 
States (ECOWAS) stabilization force to provide elections security was 
necessary to serve as both sufficient security guarantee and the basis for 
having a credible election results.   (IRIN, Kenya, 16 January 2003)

* Libya. Human rights record spotlighted  -  17 January: Human Rights Watch 
says that the likely election of Libya as chairman of the UN Commission on 
Human Rights, will put a spotlight on its human rights record and on the 
efforts by abusive governments to undermine the international human rights 
system. The Africa regional group has nominated Libya to chair the 
commission on a rotational basis. 20 January: Libya is elected chairman of 
the UN Human Rights Commission, despite opposition from the United States. 
In a secret ballot, Libyan Ambassador Najat Al-Hajjaji is backed by 33 
members, with three countries voting against and 17 members 
abstaining.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 20 January 2003)

* Libye. Commission des droits de l'homme  -  Le 20 janvier, la Libye a été 
élue à la présidence de la Commission des droits de l'homme de l'Onu, 
malgré l'opposition des Etats-Unis. Quelques jours auparavant, le 17 
janvier, Human Rights Watch (HRW) avait demandé à la Libye d'améliorer ses 
performances en matière de droits humains, en prélude à cette élection, 
puisque ce pays avait reçu l'aval des pays africains. La représentante de 
HRW, Mme Weschler, a dit que l'élection de la Libye était un grand défi 
pour la Commission, ajoutant que "les gouvernements répressifs ne devraient 
pas être autorisés à prendre en otage le système des droits humains des 
Nations unies". Selon elle, la situation des droits humains en Libye, pour 
ces trois dernières décennies, a été "épouvantable". Cependant, les Libyens 
ont pris des engagements positifs durant leur candidature. La Libye a été 
proposée par le Groupe africain, qui exerce cette année la présidence 
tournante de la Commission. La présidence de session est assurée à tour de 
rôle par un pays appartenant à l'un des cinq groupes régionaux. Rompant 
avec la tradition de l'Onu (habituellement le président est élu par 
acclamation), les Etats-Unis ont réclamé un vote public. Najat Al-Hajjaji, 
ambassadrice de Libye auprès de l'Onu à Genève, a été élue par 33 voix sur 
53. Trois Etats ont voté contre (Etats-Unis, Canada et Guatemala) et 17 se 
sont abstenus. Les familles des 170 victimes de l'attentat de Lockerbie se 
disent "indignées". Pour Tripoli, il s'agit de la "reconnaissance mondiale 
historique du dossier vierge de la Libye dans le domaine des droits de 
l'homme".   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 21 janvier 2003)

* Madagascar. Vers une amnistie?  -  Le 17 janvier, le président 
Ravalomanana a appelé la justice à faire diligence dans le procès des 
prisonniers politiques détenus à la suite de la crise socio-politique qu'a 
connue son pays. Il a même laissé entrevoir la possibilité d'une amnistie 
pour ces personnes. Alice Rajaonah, ministre de la Justice, a indiqué que 
le tribunal s'attelait à respecter ces consignes, précisant que plusieurs 
de ces prisonniers avaient déjà été jugés.   (PANA, Sénégal, 17 janvier 2003)

* Madagascar. Nouveau gouvernement  -  Réduction du nombre de ministres, 
création d'un super ministère pour la programmation économique, et entrée 
dans l'exécutif d'experts de haut niveau à la place des politiques, telle 
est la recette à la base du nouveau gouvernement du président Ravalomanana, 
présenté un mois après son éclatante victoire du 15 décembre dernier. 
Jacques Sylla garde son poste de Premier ministre. Les sièges ministériels 
passent de 32 à 22. 17 membres du précédent gouvernement ont été confirmés 
aux postes clés de l'administration. Mais la vraie nouveauté est l'entrée 
en fonction de 5 personnalités civiles. Ainsi, Z. M. Ramandimbiarison, 
ingénieur, expert en planification et développement, déjà haut 
fonctionnaire de la Banque mondiale, a reçu la charge de coordonner un 
ministère qui comprend le programme économique, les transports, les travaux 
publics et l'aménagement du territoire. Un autre secteur très important, 
celui de l'industrie, du commerce et du développement du secteur privé, a 
été confié à M. Razafinihary, expert des marchés internationaux.   (Misna, 
Italie, 18 janvier 2003)

* Madagascar. Montée des eaux  -  Après des journées de pluies, la cote 
d'alerte de la montée des eaux est atteinte. Le 22 janvier, le Comité 
national de secours a lancé un plan d'assistance d'urgence dans plusieurs 
régions, notamment dans la capitale Antananarivo, à Fianarantsoa et à 
Antsiranana, où des milliers de personnes sont sinistrées. Le mauvais temps 
devrait encore continuer pendant plusieurs jours, ce qui aggravera encore 
la situation.   (D'après PANA, Sénégal, 23 janvier 2003)

Weekly anb0123.txt - #4/7