weekly anb03161.txt #7

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 16-03-2000      PART #1/7

* Afrique. L'Afrique victime de l'effet de serre  -  Alors que
l'Afrique australe est noyee sous les eaux, la Corne de l'Afrique
connait une secheresse exceptionnelle, notamment en Ethiopie ou les
feux de brousse se multiplient dans l'indifference generale.
Paradoxalement, l'Afrique qui produit chaque annee moins de 5% des
emissions de gaz a effet de serre, responsables du rechauffement
climatique, est frappee de plein fouet par ses effets. Les
inondations qui sevissent actuellement au Mozambique, au Zimbabwe
et a Madagascar pourraient, en effet, etre une nouvelle
manifestation exacerbee du phenomene climatique La Ni¤a. Celle-ci,
qui a l'effet oppose de son frere bien connu El Ni¤o, refroidit
l'ocean Pacifique, ce qui entraine un rechauffement de meme mesure
sur le sud de l'ocean Indien. En surface, l'eau de l'ocean Indien
a ainsi gagne au moins un degre centigrade, assez pour relancer
dangeureusement l'activite cyclonique. Au moment ou les cyclones
Eline et Gloria devastent l'Afrique australe, la Corne de l'Afrique
souffre de secheresse avec le deplacement des pluies plus au sud. 
 (Reuters, 8 mars 2000)

* Africa. Action against the Media  -  Angola: The trial of three
Angolan journalists charged with writing and publishing
"defamatory" articles against President Dos Santos, started in
Luanda's provincial court last week. The journalists are: Rafael
Marques, Antonio Freitas and Aguiar dos Santos. Cameroon: On 23
February, the authorities interrogated 3 journalists from the
provincial radio station Radio Buea, about a broadcast that
criticised the government's treatment of English-speaking
Cameroonians. Congo RDC: On 13 March, the Committee to Protect
Journalists sent a letter to President Kabila, expressing the
organisation's concern about journalist Freddy Loseka Lisumbu la
Yayenga's prolonged detention. Kenya: A journalist, Simba Kusimba,
working for The People daily, was arrested by police on 11 March.
His whereabouts remains unknown. He writes in relation to a report
by the newspaper which claims that part of a 4.7 ton hashish haul
had disappeared over a month ago. Journalists from other newspapers
who have been reporting on the narcotics story, are receiving
threats from anonymous callers telling them to back-off from the
drug story. Liberia: On 15 March, the authorities closed down the
independent Star Radio and suspended broadcasts by the Catholic-run
Radio Veritas, accusing them of abusing press freedom and freedom
of speech. Nigeria: On 9 March, security operatives swooped down on
newspaper stands in Bayelsa State, and impounded several copies of
the Independent Monitor and Banner News newspapers. Zambia: on 10
March, the State House barred the private media from covering a
meeting between President Chiluba and President Muluzi of Malawi.
Zimbabwe: On 8 March, the Postal Telecommunications Bill of 1999
was passed by Parliament with allegedly little opportunity for
public debate. On 15 March, it was reported that the two Standard
journalists, Mark Chavunduka and Ray Choto, have been scheduled to
appear before a full bench of judges of appeal, on 20 March.  
(ANB-BIA, Brussels, 16 March 2000)

* Afrique. Conference sur la proliferation des armes  -  Le
dimanche 12 mars, s'est ouvert a Nairobi une conference de quatre
jours sur la proliferation des armes en Afrique. Selon une enquete,
plus de 100 millions d'armes illegales circulent actuellement dans
le continent, concentrees principalement dans la region des Grands
Lacs et la Corne de l'Afrique. Dans son discours d'ouverture, le
ministre kenyan des Affaires etrangeres a indique que les conflits
dans ces deux regions etaient a l'origine de l'introduction massive
des armes dans les autres pays. "L'accumulation excessive et
destabilisatrice et le transfert d'armes legeres est egalement a
l'origine de la recrudescence des conflits internes, du grand
banditisme, de la violence et de l'instabilite", a-t-il affirme. -
Le 15 mars, a l'issue de la reunion, dix pays ont signe un texte
declarant la guerre a l'afflux d'armes legeres: l'Ethiopie et
l'Erythree (en conflit frontalier ouvert), la RDC et le Soudan (en
proie chacun a une guerre civile), le Burundi, le Kenya, la
Tanzanie, Djibouti, le Rwanda et l'Ouganda.   (ANB-BIA, de sources
diverses, 16 mars 2000)

* Afrique/France. L'aide francaise critiquee  -  Un rapport de
l'OCDE, publie le 14 mars, critique la dispersion de l'aide
francaise au developpement; en 1997-98, 44% de cette aide ont ete
disperses sur 130 pays. Par ailleurs, l'aide francaise accordee a
l'Afrique noire a chute de 53% a 44% entre 1997 et 1998. Les pays
les moins avances sont les plus durement touches; ils ne recoivent
que 22% de l'aide francaise et un seul d'entre eux, Madagascar,
figure parmi les dix principaux beneficiaires. En dehors des TOM,
c'est l'Egypte, la Cote d'Ivoire, le Cameroun et le Maroc qui
coiffent le palmares des meilleurs clients. On note encore que
l'aide aux secteurs sociaux primordiaux, tels que l'education de
base et la sante primaire, ne represente que 0,22% de l'aide
publique francaise au developpement.   (D'apres Liberation, France,
15 mars 2000)

* Afrique de l'Ouest. Vers une connexion ferroviaire?  -  Un projet
visant a relier les reseaux ferroviaires d'Afrique de l'Ouest
devrait commencer en juin 2003. La decision en a ete prise lors
d'une reunion de la CEDEAO et l'Union des chemins de fer africains.
Les donateurs seront approches pour financer une etude de
faisabilite. On a toutefois du constater que les chemins de fer de
la sous-region souffraient de "l'etat deplorable" des lignes et des
equipements. A la reunion participaient des representants du Benin,
du Burkina Faso, de Cote d'Ivoire, du Ghana, du Mali, du Nigeria et
de Sierra Leone.   (D'apres IRIN, Abidjan, 13 mars 2000)

* East Africa. Arms trade targeted  -  13 March: Ten nations from
the Horn of Africa, the Great Lakes and East Africa are targeting
the increasing flow of arms through their various regions. Over the
next few days, representatives are meeting in Nairobi to discuss
gun control in the wake of an upsurge in violent crime. The number
of assault rifles, grenades and pistols has brought violence to
alarming levels. Instead of wars, military hardware is being used
on cross-border cattle raids by tribesmen, and guns are routine
tools for street muggers. Western countries have supported the arms
conference with donations. 15 March: An agreement is signed aimed
at stopping the proliferation of small arms in the regions
targeted. The countries agree to greater co-operation between their
police, intelligence and customs officials, to combat the illicit
circulation and trafficking of arms.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 16 March
2000)

* Horn of Africa. Risk of severe hunger this year  -  An estimated
fifteen million people on the Horn of Africa are at risk of severe
hunger this year, warned USAID Administrator Brady Anderson in
Washington, DC on 7 March. Anderson says that "unreliable rainfall
has led to complete crop failure" and "significant aid is necessary
to prevent famine." The agency says 545,000 people in Eritrea,
2,744,580 in Kenya, 1,200,000 in Somalia, 2,400,000 in Sudan, and
730,270 in Uganda are at risk of starvation and disease. The crisis
is most severe in Ethiopia, with over 8 million people currently at
risk in the Tigray and Amhara regions as well as pastoral zones in
the Oromiya and Somali regions. The Gode and Afder zones of the
southeastern Somali Region have suffered poor rainfall for three
years, and rates of malnutrition, severe water shortages and loss
of livestock have been high. In some pastoral regions up to 90
percent of cattle and 65 percent of goats are reportedly dying from
lack of food and water. The USAID/Famine early Warning Systems
(FEWS) estimates that two thirds of aid beneficiaries in southern
Tigray, northern Amhara, and southern Oromiya may require
additional assistance next year. On January 21, Ethiopia's Disaster
Prevention Preparedness Committee (DPPC) began appealing for
emergency assistance. The agency expects to need 898,936 metric
tons of food aid -- and more if the beleg or rains of the secondary
season from March to May fail to come. In addition, the DPPC is
already reporting outbreaks of bloody diarrhoea and measles. The
Drought Monitoring Centre in Nairobi has already forecast below
normal rains for the March-to-May season in most of Somalia,
eastern Kenya, and southeastern Ethiopia. Roughly half of the
1,265,489 metric tons of food required by the region are being
planned for shipment by the US, but the transfer process faces
substantial logistical challenges. "The road system into the famine
area is very questionable," says Hugh Parmer, administrator of
USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Response. Other uncertainties
include port capacities and vehicles to transport aid.   (Charles
E. Cobb Jnr. PANA, 8 March 2000)

* Angola. Les diamants de l'Unita  -  Le 10 mars, le rapport d'une
commission de l'Onu a accuse les presidents du Togo, Gnassingbe
Eyadema, et du Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore, ainsi que le vice-
president du Rwanda, Kagame, et les anciens presidents Mobutu (ex-
Zaire) et Lissouba (Congo-Brazzaville) d'avoir aide le leader du
mouvement rebelle angolais Unita, Jonas Savimbi, a acquerir des
armes en echange de diamants, en violation des sanctions de l'Onu.
La commission met aussi en cause les "controles negligents" du
principal marche du diamant a Anvers (Belgique). Le ministre belge
des Affaires etrangeres a reaffirme que toutes les mesures etaient
prises pour renforcer ces controles, tout en soulignant la
difficulte de determiner l'origine des diamants. Le 12 mars, les
gouvernements du Burkina Faso, du Togo et du Rwanda ont tous
dementi categoriquement toute implication dans la violation des
sanctions imposees a l'Unita.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 13
mars 2000)

Weekly anb0316 - End of part 1/7