Weekly anb10114.txt #7

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

_____________________________________________________________
WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 11-10-2001      PART #4/7

* Côte d'Ivoire. Doubts over reconciliation  -  9 October: The government is holding a political reconciliation conference today, though it is far from clear if the main opposition leaders will attend. The conference was called to address the political crisis in what was once one of Africa's most stable countries. But a military coup in 1999 and the manipulation of ethnic differences by politicians has caused two years of unrest and several hundred deaths. The main opposition leader, Alassane Ouattara, in exile in France, has been excluded from standing in presidential elections on the grounds that he is a foreigner. His supporters, who say he is Ivorian, have said he will not attend the conference unless this policy is changed. Other political leaders have put different conditions on their attendance. 10 October: The much awaited national reconciliation forum in Côte d'Ivoire has had a disappointing start after key figures failed to attend the opening. The leader of the main opposition Rally of Republicans Party, Alassane Ouattara, is not present although delegates from his party are attending. Also absent are the former military leader General Robert Guei, and the man he toppled in a coup in 1999, former President Henri Konan Bedie. However, leaders in the region including the presidents of Ghana and Mali are in the country to back President Laurent Gbagbo's efforts. The conference was called to address the political crisis in what was once one of Africa's most stable countries. And the Malian and Ghanaian leaders made impassioned pleas to the politicians of Côte d'Ivoire to resolve their differences in the interests of the entire region.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 October 2001)

* Egypte. La lutte antiterroriste  -  Le président égyptien Hosni Moubarak a déclaré, le 4 octobre que son pays ne participerait pas à une action militaire dans le cadre de la coalition antiterroriste envisagée par les Etats-Unis après les attentats du 11 septembre. L'Egypte "appuie la lutte contre le terrorisme, mais ne prendra pas part avec des troupes" à une coalition avec les Etats-Unis, a déclaré M. Moubarak à quelques heures de l'arrivée en Egypte du secrétaire américain à la Défense, Ronald Rumsfeld. Selon M. Moubarak, M. Rumsfeld ne vient pas pour réclamer une participation militaire de l'Egypte, mais pour un échange de vues sur les événements dans la région. - D'autre part, une émission présentant une rétrospective des actes terroristes commis en Egypte dans les années 1990, diffusée le 10 octobre par la télévision d'Etat, a semé la panique au Caire. La présidente de la télévision, Mervat Ragab, a été licenciée.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 5-11 octobre 2001)

* Eritrea. Europe recalls envoys  -  The 15-member European Union has withdrawn all of its ambassadors from Asmara. The ambassadors have been recalled for consultations but other staff will remain and the missions will stay open. Earlier this month, Italy and Eritrea expelled each others' ambassadors. Italy was the former colonial power in Eritrea and ambassador Antonio Bandini represented the EU diplomatic corps in Asmara. He had delivered a letter to the Eritrean Government in which the EU protested at a recent crackdown on dissidents, students and journalists. The Eritrean Government had tried to play down the expulsion saying that the incident was unrelated to the EU or the Italian Government but was a personal matter, accusing Mr Bandini of meddling in domestic affairs. Diplomatic sources expect all the ambassadors to have left Eritrea by the weekend. Eleven former ministers have been arrested after criticising President Isaias Afewerki and calling for democratic reforms. The government has said they were engaged in treasonous activities. Eritrea's privately run newspapers have also been shut down and at least eight journalists arrested. The Eritrean government is yet to make an official response to the news of the recall.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 9 October 2001)

* Erythrée. L'UE rappelle ses ambassadeurs  -  Les Quinze ont décidé du rappel immédiat, pour consultations, des chefs de mission de l'Union européenne en Erythrée. "Le Conseil a exprimé sa préoccupation pour l'évolution autoritaire en Erythrée suite à l'arrestation de personnalités politiques, la suppression de la presse indépendante et l'expulsion du représentant à Asmara de la présidence de l'Union", ont déclaré les ministres européens des Affaires étrangères. L'ambassadeur italien à Asmara, qui est aussi le président des chefs de mission de l'UE en Erythrée, avait été déclaré "persona non grata" le 28 septembre. Les ministres européens ont demandé à la Commission européenne "d'examiner d'autres mesures que l'UE pourrait prendre".   (La Libre Belgique, 10 octobre 2001)

* Ethiopie. Election d'un nouveau président  -  Le 8 octobre, la Chambre des représentants d'Ethiopie a élu un nouveau président pour le pays, à l'expiration du mandat de Negaso Gidada. Après ses désaccords avec le parti au pouvoir et le Premier ministre Zenawi, M. Gidada avait déclaré qu'il ne cherchait pas à se faire réélire. Selon la Constitution éthiopienne, le président est élu par les membres de la Chambre des représentants. Le Parlement a donc élu comme nouveau président M. Girma Woldegiorgis, 71 ans, un capitaine de l'armée en retraite qui avait encore été législateur pendant le règne de l'empereur Hailé Sélasié. Le poste de président en Ethiopie est symbolique. Selon la Constitution, le Premier ministre est le chef du gouvernement. Une nouvelle loi stipule que le président ne doit appartenir à aucun parti politique.   (D'après PANA, Sénégal, 5-8 octobre 2001)

* Ethiopia. "Unknown" elected President  -  Ethiopia's parliament has elected a surprise new president. Lieutenant Girma Wolde Giorgis, who is unknown to much of Ethiopia's population, was unanimously elected by both houses of parliament. Lieutenant Wolde Giorgis, a 76-year-old independent member of parliament and businessman, will replace Dr Negasso Gidada who has ended his six-year term. Lieutenant Wolde Giorgis is from the majority Oromo ethnic group which make up more than 30% of Ethiopia's 63 million people. Many believe this is an attempt by the ethnic Tigrayan-led government to appease the Oromo population. In recent months, the private media has been speculating as to who would succeed Dr Negasso Gidada, listing various cabinet members and other senior officials. But at no time could anyone have predicted Lieutenant Wolde Giorgis. The elderly businessman-turned-politician has survived three successive regimes. Under Emperor Haile Selassie, he served as one of the first officers in the Ethiopian air force, later becoming director general of civil aviation authority. Also under the emperor, he joined parliament and became president of the lower chamber. In this role, he established the first international parliamentary committee and developed a flair for international relations. When the military regime of Mengistu Haile Mariam overthrew the emperor in 1974, Lieutenant Wolde Giorgis worked with the "dergue" regime in many different roles including as president of the Red Cross in Eritrea, which was then a province of Ethiopia. When the military dictatorship was overthrown in 1991 by the present day ruling EPRDF party, Lieutenant Wolde Giorgis embarked on several private business ventures. He is now a stakeholder in several banks and is an independent MP in a constituency in the western Shoa region.   (BBC News, UK, 8 October 2001)

* Ethiopia. Court clears Mengistu followers  -  Official newspapers in Ethiopia say a further 23 people accused of crimes under the leadership of Haile Mengistu Mariam have been acquitted and released from jail. However, two others were jailed, for 16 years each, on charges of carrying out summary executions, torture and arbitrary imprisonment. The Supreme Court of Amhara said that, in the case of the 23 acquittals, there was not enough evidence. The trials of Mengistu followers, for crimes of genocide during what has been called the Red Terror period, in 1977 and 1978, began in 1994 and are expected to conclude in 2004. Mr Mengistu, who's being tried in absentia, now lives in exile in Zimbabwe.   (BBC News, UK, 9 October 2001)

* Gabon. Campagne sucrière satisfaisante  -  Le directeur général de la Société sucrière africaine du Gabon (Sucaf-Gabon), Henri Guinier, a qualifié de satisfaisante la campagne sucrière 2001, qui avoisinerait les 25.000 tonnes. "Notre objectif est d'arriver à baisser le prix de revient de notre sucre et de porter notre production annuelle à 25.000 tonnes", a déclaré M. Guinier. Sucaf-Gabon jouit du monopole dans la fabrication et la distribution du sucre au Gabon. Au cours des dernières années, la production annuelle avait difficilement atteint 14.000 tonnes. Le groupe américain Coca-Cola vient de décerner à Sucaf-Gabon le certificat de "meilleure qualité de sucre" pour sa production de boissons dans ses installations à Franceville. Sucaf-Gabon est une société à 100% privée, issue de la privatisation en 1998 de la Société sucrière du Haut-Ogooué. Le 7 octobre, le ministre du Commerce a informé le gouvernement que le département américain de l'Agriculture a décidé d'acheter au Gabon plus de 7.000 tonnes de sucre au titre de l'année 2001.   (A. Lawson, ANB-BIA, Gabon, 10 octobre 2001)

* The Gambia. Violence mars election campaign  -  The opening week of campaigning for the 16 October presidential election in The Gambia has been marred by violence. Police say there have been at least nine complaints of violent incidents since campaigning began on 26 September. According to state television the latest incident was a battle between supporters of the ruling Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) and the opposition alliance which left several people injured. The trouble, which took place in Farafeni in the central part of the country, resulted in the destruction of two shops and injuries to a number of people, the report said. The election is the first since the incumbent President Yayah Jammeh last July lifted a ban on political parties. He had imposed the ban when he seized power in a military coup in 1994. The trouble on 3 October was allegedly started when the APRC's supporters threw stones at a convey taking the opposition candidate Ousainou Darboe to a rally in the town.   (BBC News, UK, 4 October 2001)

* Gambie. Campagne électorale violente  -  Des violents incidents caractérisent la campagne électorale de la présidentielle du 18 octobre. Les derniers incidents ont eu lieu à Farafeni, au centre du pays, entre sympathisants du parti au pouvoir et ceux de l'opposition. Plusieurs personnes ont été blessées et des magasins détruits. Cinq candidats sont en lice pour ce scrutin.   (Misna, Italie, 5 octobre 2001)

* Guinea. President Conte plans third term  -  Guinea's Head of State, General Lansana Conte, has said he would support a referendum to change the constitution to allow him a third term in office. The 1992 constitution, which ushered in multi-party democracy after 26 years of former President Sekou Toure's dictatorship, limits the presidential mandate to not more than two five-year terms. Mr Conte was elected as a civilian president in 1993 after he had served 10 years as the country's military head. The opposition alliance, Codem, has accused Mr Conte of wanting to be president for life. In a banquet to mark the country's 43rd independence anniversary, he urged MPs, members of civil society groups and other interested parties, to work towards a referendum to be held by the end of October. "Such a decision can and will only be made by Guineans and not foreigners or international institutions," the President said. He added: "It is only Guineans that have the right to say yes or no to this".   (BBC News, UK, 4 October 2001)

* Guinée. "Respecter la Constitution"  -  L'hypothèse d'une modification de la Constitution pour permettre au président Lansana Conté d'être candidat à sa propre succession s'est très nettement confirmée cette semaine. Conté, au pouvoir depuis 1984, vient d'admettre qu'il envisage un référendum pour modifier la Constitution adoptée en 1990, qui limite à deux le nombre de mandats présidentiels. Aussitôt connue, la nouvelle a provoqué une levée de boucliers parmi l'opposition guinéenne. Celle-ci s'organise pour empêcher toute modification et imposer la création d'une Commission électorale nationale indépendante, a déclaré le 5 octobre M. Alpha Condé, président du Rassemblement pour le peuple de la Guinée (RPG). Pour sa part, le président de l'Association des Guinéens de l'étranger, M. Lanciné Camara, a demandé au président Conté de "respecter la Constitution", soulignant qu'une telle modification aurait des répercussions négatives sur le processus démocratique en cours en Afrique.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 5 octobre 2001)

Weekly News - anb1011.txt - End of 4/7