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Weekly anb09131.txt #6
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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 13-09-2001 PART #1/6
* Africa. Durban Conference -- the final days - 6 September: South
African mediators are making frantic last-minute efforts to prevent a
United Nations global racism conference in Durban from ending in failure.
The European Union is threatening to join America and Israel in walking out
of the conference over Arab proposals for a statement on the Middle East.
And there is still deadlock over African demands for reparations for the
slave trade. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan says he regrets the lack of
balanced discussion at the conference but still thinks consensus can be
reached. A UN spokeswoman has suggested that talks may extend beyond
midnight on 7 September. The UN would desperately like some sort of
consensus document to emerge from this often fractious conference. More
gloom was cast over proceedings this evening when Arab states rejected a
compromise text on the Middle East aimed at preventing the European Union
walk-out. A Belgian Foreign Ministry spokesman says the revised text marks
real progress, although European delegates are still not entirely happy
with it. 7 September: European and African countries have reportedly
reached a compromise over the vexed issue of slavery. European countries
are to apologise for slavery as a "crime against humanity" says a South
African official. They will also offer a package of economic assistance to
Africa says South African minister, Geraldine Frasier-Moleketi. EU
spokesman Koen Vervaeke also says a deal had been reached, but declined to
give details. Another South African official says the form of words would
not imply any legal liability for slavery, so those making the apology
would not be liable to pay reparations. But an agreement has yet to be
reached on the Israeli-Palestine conflict. Amnesty International says that
despite serious problems and disputes which have marred the event, the
Conference has achieved some important successes. 8 September:The
Conference continues into an unscheduled extra day, to allow delegates to
reach a final agreement. Delegates finally manage to adopt a Declaration
and action plan to combat racism and xenophobia. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9
September 2001)
* Africa. Durban Conference -- Successes and failures - What has been
achieved: The Conference: 1. Puts on record in an international document
the full enormity of the slave trade, and confirms that the world owed the
victims of that trade, support and help, to restore their dignity and
repair the damage slavery did. -- 2. Endorses the principles that cultural
diversity should be valued and supported - that the children of minority
groups should be educated in their own language and their own culture. --
3. Urges countries to tackle racism in their criminal justice systems. -- 4
Addresses the question of migrants and asylum seekers, enshrining the
principle that countries should not discriminate between them on grounds of
race. Feelings of failure: 1. There was a last-minute wrangle between Arab
countries and Europe over three paragraphs that mentioned colonisation by
settlers and foreign occupation as a source of racism. -- 2. Few people
present in Durban are fully satisfied. The African group never got the
clear apology for slavery it wanted from the descendants of those who
profited. The Arab group did not get the platform they wanted to make their
point about Israel. Europe did not quite escape the notion that it was up
to them to make reparations for the past. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 September
2001)
* Afrique. Conférence mondiale sur le racisme - Le 6 septembre, l'Afrique
du Sud a soumis un nouveau projet de déclaration, dernier espoir pour
sortir la conférence de l'impasse. Concernant le Proche-Orient, il rappelle
que "l'holocauste ne doit jamais être oublié"; il reconnaît d'une part "le
droit inaliénable du peuple palestinien à l'autodétermination et à
l'établissement d'un Etat indépendant", mais d'autre part "le droit à la
sécurité de tous les Etats de la région, y compris Israël". Quant à
l'esclavage et le colonialisme, un nouveau texte de compromis a également
été rédigé. Toutefois, si l'Union européenne se dit prête à intensifier sa
collaboration avec l'Afrique dans le cadre d'une "nouvelle initiative pour
l'Afrique", certains pays européens craignent toujours que des "excuses"
n'engendrent des conséquences juridiques. Tard dans la soirée, ces efforts
pour sauver la conférence n'avaient toujours pas abouti. - 7 septembre. Le
vendredi soir, les participants s'acheminaient toujours vers un accord
minimal et l'adoption d'une déclaration finale était repoussée vers le
samedi. Et le 8 septembre, un compromis a finalement été obtenu à
l'arraché. Sur le Proche-Orient il mentionne le droit des Palestiniens à
l'autodétermination, le droit au retour des réfugiés et à la sécurité de
tous dans la région "y compris Israël". Le sionisme n'est pas condamné.
D'autre part, le texte "reconnaît que l'esclavage est un crime contre
l'humanité", mais les anciennes puissances coloniales ne présentent pas des
"excuses", mais seulement des "remords" et des "regrets". L'accord ne
comprend pas non plus le terme "réparations", mais il encourage la
communauté internationale à accroître l'aide au développement pour
compenser les "injustices historiques". La conférence condamne aussi le
fait que l'esclavage et des pratiques analogues existent encore aujourd'hui
et prie les Etats de prendre des "mesures immédiates" pour mettre fin à ces
pratiques. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 septembre 2001)
* Africa. Poor care is "killing babies" - Eight babies in the first month
of their lives die every minute world-wide, a report shows. The research by
the charity Save The Children blames inadequate health care. It has called
on governments to improve access to vaccinations, provide basic hygiene
equipment and promote breastfeeding. Causes of new-born death Infections
32% Birth complications 29% Prematurity 24% Birth defects 10% Global child
death rates have been reduced by 14% over the past decade. But Charles
MacCormack, Save The Children's president, said new-born death rates
remained "staggeringly high". The charity studied new-born babies in 163
countries. Its report is published a week before a United Nations Special
Session on Children in New York. Since the last UN children's meeting in
1990, deaths among children under five have been slashed by a third. But
Save The Children hopes this year's summit will focus on the four million
new-born babies who die each year. Mortality rates vary hugely around the
world. In the West African country of Mali, 60 new-born babies out of every
1,000 die, compared with only five in 1,000 in the United States. Part of
the problem is that around 53 million women give birth each year without
professional help. Save The Children has set up a project called Saving
Newborn Lives which aims to help improve care for mothers before, during
and after birth. The charity says all mothers should have access to a
simple delivery kit that would help limit infection at the birth. (BBC
News, UK, 11 September 2001)
* Africa. Action against the Media - Congo RDC: On 6 September,
Journalists in Danger (Kinshasa) said that Innocent Prospère Mbumba,
provincial director of the weekly, L'Eveil, was arrested on 30 August and
is being detained in one of the National Information Agency's provincial
bureau's underground cells. He was released the same day. Guinea-Bissau: In
a letter (11 September) to the Public Prosecutor, Reporters sans Frontières
(RSF) expressed concern over threats he made against journalists from the
private radio station Radio Pidjiquiti. Kenya: On 4 September, a High Court
in Kenya extended an interim injunction restraining Text Book Centre from
further distributing the book "Rogue Ambassador", by former US Ambassador
to Kenya, Smith Hemptstone. -- On 7 September, the Network for the Defence
of the Independent Media in Africa reported that on 4 September, prison
authorities at King'ong'o prison in Nyeri District, had prevented
journalists from covering the hearing of a case against the only survivor
of an incident in which six inmates died. The visit to the prison came
during the first anniversary of the incident which took place on 4
September 2000. Morocco: The government of Morocco seized the 6 September
issue of the Spanish newspaper El Mundo. Swaziland: On 30 August, Swaziland
senators lashed out against the Sunday edition of the Times of Swaziland,
accusing it of publishing derogatory articles which incite the population
to hate the monarchy. Sudan: On 11 September, the authorities ordered the
temporary suspension of Sudan's only English-language newspaper, the
Khartoum Monitor, because of inflammatory articles published by the paper.
Tanzania: On 4 September, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
reported that twelve journalists had been arrested by police in the Tarime
District of Mara in the space of eight days for attempting to report on
conflicts between two ethnic clans. The journalists have either now been
released and their equipment confiscated or are out on bail. Tunisia: On 6
September, the World Association of Newspapers wrote to President Ben Ali,
expressing serious concern at the authorities' refusal to permit journalist
Sihem Bensedrine from leaving the country. RSF has also protested against
the travel ban. Zimbabwe: On 11 September, MISA reported that on 8
September, two Bulawayo-based journalists were arrested and detained for an
hour for allegedly trespassing into a police station. (ANB-BIA, Brussels,
12 September 2001)
* Afrique/Etats-Unis. Consternation - Les attentats survenus le 11
septembre à New York et Washington, ont provoqué une condamnation générale
en Afrique de la part aussi bien des gouvernements que des citoyens
ordinaires qui ont exprimé leur profonde consternation. La plupart des
gouvernements, y compris la Libye, ont condamné cet acte sans réserves.
Ainsi, le président sénégalais a exprimé sa consternation et son
indignation; le colonel Kadhafi a qualifié l'attaque de "terrible" et a
présenté ses condoléances; le secrétaire exécutif de la SADC a condamné
tous les actes de terrorisme; le président ghanéen a exprimé sa sympathie
au peuple américain; le président sud-africain a appelé la communauté
internationale à s'unir contre le terrorisme international; la Tanzanie, le
Nigeria, le Malawi, le Niger, le Mozambique, le Congo-Kinshasa, le Soudan,
le Kenya, la Mauritanie, l'Algérie, le Maroc ont condamné les attentats
terroristes. Dans divers pays, les dispositifs de sécurité ont été
renforcés autour des ambassades américaines. (D'après PANA, Sénégal, 12
septembre 2001)
* Africa. Reactions to USA attacks - From the BBC News: Many Africans
have condemned the attacks on the USA (11 September) but some Muslim groups
in northern Nigeria have been celebrating. The BBC's Ibrahim Dosara in
Zamfara says that groups opposed to the US policy in the Middle East say it
is now paying the consequences. But Kenyans are being reminded of the 1998
bombing of the US embassy in Nairobi and the BBC's Grey Phombeah says they
have received the news with shock. Other Africans are concerned about
friends and family who are now living in the USA. Sierra Leone's
Information Minister told the BBC's Focus on Africa that: "People are
flabbergasted." He said that people are crowded around radio sets and
televisions for the latest news. Kenya's President Daniel arap Moi said
that terrorism can never be the basis for the solution of any conflict. But
some Kenyans who feel that the USA should pay compensation for the injuries
they suffered will watch closely how US victims are treated. "Maybe the
Americans will now get a taste of what we went through," said Consolata
Wanjiru Mugo, who was injured in the Kenyan blast. "They will feel what it
was like as innocent people to be attacked in this way. It will be quite
interesting to see how they treat their own people, compared to the way
they have treated us." In recent years, South Africa has also been hit by
terrorist attacks and South Africa Airways has responded by immediately
cancelling all flights to the USA. The militant Muslim group, People
Against Gangsterism and Drugs, PAGAD, which has been accused of
responsibility for some of the bombings, declined to comment on the US
attacks. Tanzania: The Foreign Minister says: "Having suffered terrorist
attacks ourselves, we feel and understand what the Americans must be
experiencing". Egypt: President Mubarak has sent his condolences to the
American people, calling the attacks "horrific" and "unimaginable". The
Governments of Ghana and Sierra Leone have also expressed their
condolences. From Panapress: Libya's leader, President Gaddafi, has
described the bombings in the USA as "terrifying". He has appealed to the
entire world to put humanitarian ahead of political considerations during
conflicts, and has called for the mobilisation of humanitarian assistance
towards the bombing victims. President Wade of Senegal has expressed shock
and indignation at the presumed terrorist strike in the USA. Congo RDC:
President Kabila has sent a condolence message to President Bush. Burkina
Faso: The Inter-Parliamentary Union currently meeting in Ouagadougou has
expressed "consternation" following the terrorist attacks. Also President
Compaore has condemned the terrorist attacks. Mozambique: Mozambique has
strongly condemned the terrorist attack and offered its solidarity with the
US and people, particularly with the victims and their families. Cape
Verde, Sudan, Mali, Benin, Morocco and many other countries have offered
their condolences. (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 13 September 2001)
* Afrique. Sommet en octobre - Un sommet des quatre chefs d'Etat
africains qui ont lancé la "Nouvelle initiative africaine" se tiendra à
Bruxelles le 10 octobre prochain, a annoncé le porte-parole du ministère
belge des Affaires étrangères le 12 septembre. Les présidents Obasanjo du
Nigeria, Bouteflika d'Algérie, Mbeki d'Afrique du Sud, Wade du Sénégal,
ainsi que Konaré du Mali (invité), devraient participer à la réunion
organisée par la Belgique qui assure la présidence de l'Union européenne, à
laquelle ils présenteront la nouvelle initiative. Le sommet aura lieu à la
veille de la réunion ministérielle conjointe euro-africaine qui préparera
le 2ème sommet Afrique-Europe en 2002 à Athènes. En juillet dernier, l'UE a
décidé de soutenir cette Nouvelle initiative africaine. (PANA, Sénégal,
12 septembre 2001)
Weekly end of file anb09131.txt on 6