Weekly anb03066.txt #7

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 06-03-2003      PART #6/7

* Rwanda. Twagiramungu announces his candidacy for presidency  -  On 3 
March, Former Rwandan Prime Minister Faustin Twagiramungu, announced in 
Brussels his candidacy for his country's next presidential election. He 
vowed in a press statement to defeat incumbent President Paul Kagamé in the 
poll. The date for the presidential election has not been set and a 
constitutional referendum, initially slated for early March, has been 
postponed to 26 May. Twagiramungu was first appointed Prime Minister in 
1993 under an Arusha accord, and was confirmed in 1994 with the coming into 
power of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (FPR) of President Kagame shortly 
after the genocide following the death of Juvénal Habyarimana in a plane 
crash. He occupied the position until 1995 before he resigned following 
disagreement with Kagamé, and now lives in exile in Belgium.   (PANA, 
Senegal, 3 March 2003)

* Rwanda. Tourist death arrests  -  Three Rwandans have been arrested and 
flown to the United States over the 1999 killing of western tourists in 
Uganda. Eight tourists from the USA, the UK and New Zealand were allegedly 
killed by Hutu Rwandan rebels because of US and British support for the 
Tutsi government in Rwanda. They were killed as they tracked rare mountain 
gorillas in Uganda's Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. On 1 March, the 
three men were flown from Rwanda to Puerto Rico, where they are due to be 
charged before being transferred to Washington. The indictment was kept 
secret until 3 March and also includes the alleged murder of one of the 
park's guards. It was made public as President Kagame began a four-day 
visit to Washington.   (BBC News, UK, 4 March 2003)

* Rwanda/USA. Exemption de poursuites  -  Le 4 mars, les Etats-Unis et le 
Rwanda ont signé un accord sur l'exemption réciproque de poursuites à 
l'encontre des citoyens de l'autre pays devant la Cour pénale 
internationale (CPI) sans le consentement du gouvernement concerné. Un tel 
accord est connu comme l'article 98 du traité instituant le CPI. Les 
Etats-Unis, qui ont signé le traité créant le CPI sous la présidence de 
Bill Clinton mais ne l'ont jamais ratifié ensuite, cherchent à signer des 
articles 98 avec un maximum de pays, afin d'éviter que des citoyens 
américains soient poursuivis devant la Cour internationale. Le Rwanda est 
le 22e pays à signer un tel accord avec les Etats-Unis.   (La Libre 
Belgique, 5 mars 2003)

* Sénégal/Suisse. Accord de transit annulé  -  Le gouvernement sénégalais a 
décidé de se retirer de l'accord de transit convenu avec les autorités 
helvétiques et consistant à permettre à la Suisse d'envoyer au Sénégal des 
immigrants africains en situation irrégulière pour un examen plus 
approfondi de leur situation. Dans un communiqué rendu public le 3 mars, le 
ministère des Affaires étrangères annonce que devant la désapprobation 
générale suscitée par cette initiative, le gouvernement sénégalais "a 
décidé (...) de se retirer d'un tel accord". Signé le 8 janvier dernier, 
cet accord a fait l'objet de sévères critiques de la part de nombreuses 
organisations sénégalaises et étrangères de défense des droits de 
l'homme.   (PANA, Sénégal, 3 mars 2003)

* Sierra Leone. Commission vérité et réconciliation  -  Des milliers de 
personnes se sont adressées à la Commission vérité et réconciliation (TRC) 
pour raconter les crimes et vexations subis au cours de la guerre civile en 
Sierra Leone. Plus de 3.500 déclarations ont déjà été recueillies. Cette 
"récolte" menée en janvier et février, se poursuivra tout au long du mois 
de mars. "Nous nous préparons à commencer les audiences", a dit le 
secrétaire du TRC. Cette commission, confiée par le gouvernement à sept 
experts en droits de l'homme pour reconstruire la vérité sur les violences 
et essayer de recomposer le tissu social du pays, travaille en parallèle 
avec le Tribunal spécial, institué il y a un an par les Nations 
unies.   (Misna, Italie, 27 février 2003)

* South Africa. Loosening controls on capital flows  -  On 26 February, the 
South African government announced a wide-ranging restructuring of its 
exchange control regime to reflect its greater confidence in the 
performance of the post-apartheid economy. In the national budget, Trevor 
Manuel, finance minister, allowed local companies and financial 
institutions to invest more outside Africa. He also released funds of South 
Africans who have left the country but could not take their savings with 
them because of exchange controls. The government's decisions are an 
attempt to match the country's political freedom with a more open economy. 
The African National Congress government has followed a policy of gradually 
relaxing exchange controls, first introduced during the apartheid era in 
1961. But it fears that a total relaxation might provoke a wave of capital 
flight and leave the economy vulnerable to emerging market volatility. The 
collapse of the rand two years ago to record lows gave greater 
justification for the protection afforded by exchange controls. But the 
subsequent strengthening of the currency and steady growth levels have 
boosted confidence to grant greater freedom to capital flows in and out of 
the country. "It's a very good idea. The government said before that 
[emigrants'] blocked rands would be one of the last things in terms of 
priorities, so it looks like we are near the end of the road [on 
controls]", said Charles de Kock, head of asset allocation, at Old Mutual 
Asset Managers.   (Financial Times, UK, 27 February 2003)

* South Africa. Winnie Mandela trial resumes  -  3 March: The fraud trial 
of Nelson Mandela's ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, has resumed in 
South Africa after months of delays and postponements. The well-known and 
controversial character, known as "the mother of the nation" in South 
Africa, is facing 85 charges of theft and fraud relating to a bank loan 
scam. She could be imprisoned if convicted. It was back in July last year 
when her trial began in Pretoria. After a postponement for a broken foot 
and delays as her co-accused was recovering from a car accident, the 
prosecution has now finally resumed its case against her. She and her 
financial broker, Addy Moolman, face 60 charges of fraud, and 25 of theft, 
relating to a $100,000 bank loan scam, allegedly run by Madikizela-Mandela 
through the African National Congress Women's League, of which she is 
president. The trial is one of a series of scandals surrounding the hero of 
the liberation movement, who is still incredibly popular with poor, black 
South Africans. She is refusing to pay a fine levied by parliament for 
financial irregularities and has only just settled a legal battle with a 
bank over money owed on a loan for her luxury home in Soweto. The fraud 
trial is expected to last two more weeks.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 3 March 2003)

* South Africa. Host nation out of Cricket's World Cup  -  South Africa 
have been knocked out of the World Cup in the cruellest of circumstances as 
their final rain-affected group match against Sri Lanka ended in a tie. 
Four years after they were eliminated from the last World Cup following a 
semi-final tie with Australia, the South Africans were again left cursing 
after putting themselves in with a good chance of beating Sri Lanka to 
claim a place in the next round of the Cup, the Super Sixes. Worse still, a 
clearly devastated Shaun Pollock later conceded that a dressing-room 
miscalculation contributed to the defeat after the South African batsmen 
were told 229 runs would be enough to win if the rain led to a revised 
target. The hosts, chasing Sri Lanka's 268 for nine, ended on 229 for six 
after 45 overs when, in fact, 230 were needed for the victory which would 
have taken South Africa through from Group A. "It's got to rank up there as 
possibly the most disappointing thing," South Africa captain Pollock said. 
"Two ties in the last two World Cups and out of both of them. The players 
are gutted, I felt we deserved better on the day." South Africa's 
misfortune -- and calculation blunder -- left them on 14 points, allowing 
New Zealand (16 points) to progress, the Kiwis joining Sri Lanka, Kenya, 
Australia and India in the Super Sixes. The last place will be decided on 4 
March when Zimbabwe play Pakistan in Group A, with those two sides and 
England still in contention to advance.   (CNN, USA, 3 March 2003)

* South Africa. Anger at water charging  -  A scheme in South Africa to 
charge people for using water is continuing to arouse controversy. Since 
its introduction, the scheme -- which involves metering the water taken 
from stand pipes -- has raised enough revenue to allow a million extra 
households each year access to clean water. But there are many who are 
unhappy with paying for such a basic essential -- and some who are unable 
to pay. "We don't want to pay for water because water is life," one 
resident of SA's Orange Farm said. "Most of the community are unemployed, 
and if you don't have money it means you don't have water." Eddie Coppell, 
director of Rural Development Services in South Africa, admitted that while 
the scheme had benefited some, it was those most in need of water who were 
denied it. "We agreed that the government has done a lot in terms of 
infrastructure, but people are not seeing this water," he said.   (BBC 
News, UK, 4 March 2003)

* South Africa/Zimbabwe. South Africa's silent diplomacy  -  South Africa's 
attempts to find a solution to the political and economic crisis in 
neighbouring Zimbabwe with "quiet diplomacy" is stoking the fury of 
ordinary Zimbabweans who cannot see any benefits of the intervention, and 
believe that President Thabo Mbeki has sold them out. "President Mbeki is a 
collaborator with Robert Mugabe in the crimes perpetrated against the 
people of this country," explodes Job Sikhala, member of parliament for the 
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), and a recent victim of 
torture by state police. "What "quietness" are they talking about? When we 
supported the African National Congress in their fight against apartheid, 
it wasn't "quiet diplomacy". And we are fighting a worse system than the 
apartheid regime," he says. As the food shortages mount, and the queues 
grow longer, with the spectre of famine stalking the rural areas, 
Zimbabweans are getting angrier over what they perceive as South Africa's 
complicity with the ruling Zanu-PF government. Earlier this week South 
Africa's Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlaminini Zuma said South Africa would 
"never" condemn its Zimbabwean counterpart. "It is not going to happen as 
long as this government is in power," she told journalists.   (BBC News, 
UK, 5 March 2003)

* Sudan. Sudan Ecumenical Forum  -  Sudan's Bishop Paride Taban says: "The 
war in Sudan must stop now -- our people have suffered enough". He goes on 
to stress the urgent need to conclude nearly twenty years of civil war in 
Sudan with a just and sustainable peace agreement for the entire country. 
The Bishop was speaking at the Sudan Ecumenical Forum, held from 24-26 
February, near Pretoria in South Africa. The meeting brought together more 
than 60 senior representatives of the Churches in Sudan and their 
international church partners. Participants affirmed their support to the 
ongoing peace process in Sudan and acknowledged the significant progress 
made in the talks between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's 
Liberation Movement.   (MISNA, Italy, 27 February 2003)

* Soudan. Forum oecuménique pour la paix  -  Du 24 au 26 février, s'est 
tenu à Bronkhorstspruit (Afrique du Sud) une rencontre du Forum oecuménique 
du Soudan, une initiative réunissant les Eglises qui oeuvrent dans ce pays. 
Les participants ont unanimement encouragé les négociations de paix entre 
le gouvernement et les rebelles du SPLA, soulignant l'importance de la 
reconnaissance du principe d'autodétermination pour les populations du Sud. 
Ils ont également souhaité que la société civile soit directement impliquée 
dans ces négociations. Les Eglises ont aussi demandé que les opérations 
d'extraction de pétrole et la recherche de nouvelles nappes dans le 
Sud-Soudan soient interrompues tant qu'un accord de paix n'est pas 
officiellement signé. Quant au respect des droits de l'homme, elles ont 
demandé un renouvellement du mandat des rapporteurs spéciaux des Nations 
unies.   (Misna, Italie, 27 février 2003)

* Soudan. Rébellion au Darfur  -  Une amnistie générale a été déclarée en 
vue d'aider à mettre un terme à la rébellion dans la région de Darfur, dans 
l'ouest du Soudan, où un groupe armé a attaqué et pris le contrôle de la 
capitale de la province, annonce la presse locale à Khartoum le 27 février. 
Toutefois, les rebelles "impliqués dans les crimes en matière de droits de 
l'homme" ne bénéficieront pas de cette amnistie. Un groupe de quelque 3.000 
rebelles armés, se faisant appeler "Front de libération du Darfur", aurait 
attaqué en début de semaine la province de Jebel Marra dans l'Etat du 
Sud-Darfur et pris le contrôle de Gulu, la capitale de la province. Le 
groupe a déclaré qu'il luttait pour mettre un terme au désintérêt politique 
et économique du gouvernement central par rapport à cette région. Ces 
derniers temps, la région de Darfur, frontalière au Tchad et à la RCA, est 
le théâtre de tensions tribales et de troubles.   (PANA, Sénégal, 27 
février 2003)

* Sudan. Tackling north-south divide  -  4 March: Peace talks on the status 
of three disputed regions of Sudan have begun between the government and 
Sudan People's Liberation Army rebels. The discussions focus on the central 
Sudanese regions of Blue Nile, Abyei and Nuba Mountains, which the 
government maintains are all part of northern Sudan. The three areas were 
not covered by a deal agreed last July to give autonomy to rebel-held parts 
of southern Sudan for six years ahead of a referendum on independence. The 
government says they control 90% of the three regions, but the SPLA says 
that local people regard them as their representatives at the 
talks.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 4 March 2003)

* Swaziland. Les syndicats défient le roi  -  2 mars. Les syndicats du 
Swaziland annoncent qu'ils iront en grève générale les 4 et 5 mars, malgré 
les menaces du roi Mswati III les mettant en garde contre tout mouvement 
revendicatif. Le roi a dit qu'il condamne cette action, rappelant que le 
Parlement a recommandé le dialogue comme unique solution. Les travailleurs 
protestent contre "le manque de respect du gouvernement pour les décisions 
du tribunal". Ils contestent également l'achat par le gouvernement d'un jet 
privé pour leur monarque. -- 4 mars. Les manifestations ont commencé 
pacifiquement à Manzini et Mbabane, sous surveillance de la police. Les 
syndicats et les associations de la société civile ont par ailleurs demandé 
au Premier ministre de démissionner, estimant qu'il se trouve dans 
l'incapacité de répondre aux attentes des citoyens.   (PANA, Sénégal, 2-4 
mars 2003)

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