Weekly anb02282.txt #7

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 28-02-2002      PART #2/7

* Angola. Savimbi killed  -  22 February: There are unconfirmed report that 
the rebel UNITA's leader, Jonas Savimbi, has been killed today. The Angolan 
authorities say they will provide evidence that the veteran rebel leader 
Jonas Savimbi is dead. A government spokesman said pictures would be 
broadcast of the body of Mr Savimbi, who he said had been killed in 
fighting between Angolan army forces and his UNITA rebels on Friday. There 
has been no independent confirmation of the reported death of Mr Savimbi 
who has led UNITA for more than 30 years. A UNITA representative in 
Portugal dismissed the reports of Mr Savimbi's death, saying they were 
simply propaganda. However the BBC's Justin Pearce in Luanda says that 
while in the past the Angolan army has exaggerated its reports of military 
victories, it would be unlikely to issue a false report on a matter of such 
importance. The Angolan Government said Mr Savimbi had been killed in the 
rural eastern province of Moxico -- about 700 kilometres south-east of the 
capital, Luanda. A spokesman for President Jose Eduardo dos Santos said the 
army is holding Mr Savimbi's body in Moxico. He says: "We're going to 
broadcast television footage of the body". 23 February: Reporters in 
Lucusse, a remote town in Moxico province, eastern Angola, are shown 
Savimbi's body. Television footage of the body ends any lingering doubts 
about his fate. Angola's official news agency says he was buried in the 
afternoon in the presence of senior officers of the Angolan Armed Forces. 
24 February: The Angolan Government says it is ready to take "decisive and 
rapid steps" to secure a ceasefire following Savimbi's death. Portuguese 
Foreign Minister Jaime Gama says he had been given the assurance by 
Angola's President Dos Santos. Gama says: "I was convinced that the Angolan 
authorities are aware of the need to act quickly to restore the peace 
process and achieve a ceasefire." UNITA issues a statement warning that 
"anyone who thinks the ideals of UNITA died with its leader are mistaken". 
26 February: Lisbon's Diario de Noticias reports that international 
telephone calls by Savimbi and another UNITA member helped the Angolan 
government forces track him down. 27 February: MISNA reports that Armando 
Dembo is UNITA's new interim leader.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 February 2002)

* Angola. Peace talks in Washington  -  25 February: The prospect of 
lasting peace in Angola is expected to dominate a meeting in Washington 
between US President George W Bush and three African leaders. Angolan 
President Jose Eduardo dos Santos is due to hold talks with President Bush 
and the presidents of Mozambique and Botswana, Joachim Chissano and Festus 
Mogae. The talks were arranged before the political landscape of Angola 
changed with the death of Jonas Savimbi. Before leaving for the US, 
President dos Santos said he wanted to bring about the rapid normalisation 
of politics in Angola. He was restrained in his first statement on the 
death of his long-standing foe, avoiding any sense of triumphalism. He said 
Mr Savimbi had fought for his ideals right until the end, but had finally 
misjudged his situation and capabilities. Mr dos Santos said urgent steps 
were now needed, including a ceasefire with Unita. If this was achieved by 
the end of this year, elections could be held in Angola within two years. 
26 February: President George W. Bush has called on Angola's leaders to 
seize the opportunity presented by the death of Unita rebel leader Jonas 
Savimbi and bring an end to the country's long-running civil war. The 
Angolan Government says it is still committed to negotiating a ceasefire 
despite the first attack by Unita rebels since the death of Mr Savimbi. The 
attack on 25 February killed nine people and injured another 15 near 
Malanje, a city 300 kilometres east of Angola's capital Luanda. 27 
February: The Angolan Government is to maintain its military pressure on 
UNITA.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 28 February 2002)

* Burkina Faso. Call for social integration of Africa's blind persons  -  A 
five-day international seminar for blind women in leadership positions 
opened in Ouagadougou on 26 February under the auspices of the African 
Union for the Blind (UAFA). Speaking to journalists before the start of the 
seminar, UAFA president Paul Tezanou from Gabon asked African governments 
to promote the welfare of blind persons through their integration in public 
services. He also called on the media to contribute toward achievement of 
the same goal. He said blind persons need access to all services provided 
by the public and the private sectors as well as the fundamental human 
rights. "We are asking to exercise our right of decision-making in our 
countries", he stressed, noting that physically handicapped people were 
increasingly considered as normal people. Tezanou said his organisation had 
"fruitful cooperation" with the Norwegian Agency for International 
Development (NORAD) which provides grants to the 46 member countries of 
UAFA.   (PANA, Senegal, 26 February 2002)

* Burundi. Levée de la suspension de NetPress  -  Le 21 février, le 
ministre de la Communication, M. Albert Mbonerane, a levé la mesure de 
suspension de l'agence d'information "NetPress". Le ministre a consulté des 
professionnels des médias, qui ont confirmé que les écrits de NetPress 
étaient souvent contraires à l'éthique et à la déontologie journalistique, 
mais ont demandé une mesure de clémence. Le directeur de NetPress s'est 
engagé au strict respect de l'éthique et de la loi qui régit la presse au 
Burundi.   (Agence burundaise de presse, 22 février 2002)

* Burundi. 20 dissidents rejoin main party  -  Some 20 dissidents of the 
Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU), have rejoined the majority 
political party in the country, party sources said. The development comes 
four months after the return of the FRODEBU leader Jean Minani, from a 
five-year exile in Tanzania. Since his return, Minani has been reorganising 
the party through meetings. "It can be said today that the dialogue bore 
fruit," Minani told the press on 26 February, adding that the reunited 
party "will recover all its support and conduct its fight for peace, 
national reconciliation, development, democracy and human rights". Former 
Communal Development Minister, Denis Nshimirimana, is among those who 
returned to the party after a stint with Augustin Nzojiwami's faction. 
Nshimirimana has invited other deserters to the return to the fold. FRODEBU 
was founded by Melchior Ndadaye, who was elected Burundi President in 1993, 
but assassinated three months later in a military coup. Meanwhile, the 
FRODEBU renegade members have formed PADER, the Party for Democracy and 
Reconciliation, which has also pledged "to restore and perpetrate" 
Ndadaye's ideals.   (PANA, Senegal, 27 February 2002)

* Cape Verde. Children's Parliament  -  Top officials of the National 
Assembly, the ministry of Education and the Cape Verde institute of minors, 
have signed a protocol aimed institutionalising a children's parliament in 
the country, sources in Praia disclosed. Since June 1999, a Parliament 
composed of children and young persons representing the whole country holds 
meetings in the National Assembly to discuss problems confronting Cape 
Verde youth. The project includes study trips, research avenues and 
debates. The parliamentary year of children and the youth ends in June with 
a national parliamentary session in the capital, to be attended by pupils 
elected by their schools.   (PANA, Senegal, 19 February 2002)

* Centrafrique/UE. Accord de coopération  -  Le 27 février à Bangui, 
l'Union européenne et la République centrafricaine ont signé un nouvel 
accord de coopération d'un montant de 106,5 millions d'euros pour la 
période 2002-2007. Selon un communiqué de l'UE, ces crédits serviront à 
financer des programmes dans le secteur routier et celui de la santé, et à 
appuyer le programme macro-économique du gouvernement de Bangui, ainsi 
qu'au renforcement de la bonne gouvernance. Le Premier ministre 
centrafricain, M. Ziguélé, avait indiqué en octobre que 70% des crédits 
octroyés serviront à des projets visant à désenclaver le pays, en bitumant 
des routes vers l'extérieur, et à l'entretien de près de 15.000 km de 
pistes rurales à l'intérieur du pays.   (PANA, Sénégal, 27 février 2002)

* Congo-Brazza. Campagne électorale  -  Le 23 février, l'Union panafricaine 
pour la démocratie et le progrès social (UPADS, opposition) de l'ancien 
président Lissouba, en exil à Londres, a appelé ses sympathisants à 
l'abstention lors de la présidentielle du 10 mars prochain. Ce parti, en 
proie à des dissenssions internes, n'a pas présenté de candidat officiel à 
la présidence. Cependant il appelle ses sympathisants à s'inscrire sur les 
listes électorales en vue des élections législatives. - Pendant ce temps, 
au quatrième jour de la campagne présidentielle, les habitants de la 
capitale Brazzaville dénoncent la partialité des médias publics dans le 
traitement de la propagande électorale et les gros moyens du camp 
présidentiel, indique l'agence PANA. - Le 25 février, on apprenait que 
l'Union européenne se propose d'envoyer 18 observateurs à Brazzaville d'où 
ils seront déployés dans toutes les régions du Congo pour suivre le 
déroulement de l'élection présidentielle.   (PANA, Sénégal, 23-25 février 2002)

* Congo (RDC). Goma: réouverture des écoles  -  A Goma, les écoles 
rouvriront le lundi 25 février comme prévu, après une fermeture de cinq 
semaines suite à l'éruption volcanique du Nyiragongo. Environ un tiers des 
écoles de Goma a été détruit par les coulées de lave, mais les élèves 
seront accueillis dans les écoles épargnées. On veut accroître leur 
capacité d'admission en construisant de nouvelles salles de classe et en 
mettant en place un système de classes alternées. Un grand travail reste 
toutefois à faire, a indiqué le chef du bureau de l'Unicef. Il déplore 
notamment que la réouverture ne concernera que 55% des enfants de Goma, où 
une grande partie des habitants est trop pauvre pour payer les frais 
scolaires obligatoires.   (D'après IRIN, Nairobi, 22 février 2002)

* Congo (RDC). Radio Okapi  -  Radio Okapi, la radio créée en RDC par la 
Monuc (Mission de l'Onu) et la Fondation Hirondelle, commence ses 
programmes le 25 février, symboliquement le matin même de l'ouverture du 
dialogue intercongolais en Afrique du Sud. Trois studios sont ouverts 
simultanément à Kinshasa, Kisangani et Goma. Pour le démarrage, le 
programme principal en semaine comporte des journaux d'information en 
français, lingala, swahili et tshiluba. La radio émet 24 heures sur 24, 
sept jours sur sept, avec de larges tranches musicales. Dans les prochains 
mois, le programme sera enrichi et de nouvelles stations régionales seront 
ouvertes à Kananga, Mbandaka, Kalemie, Gbadolite, Bukavu, Kindu et Bunia. 
Radio Okapi pourra être captée dans la plus grande partie du territoire de 
la RDC sur la fréquence 9550 Kh, dans la bande des 31 mètres, et en 
fréquence modulée à Kinshasa (103,5), Kisangani (94,8) et Goma (105,2). 
Radio Okapi est destinée à accompagner le processus de paix sur l'ensemble 
du territoire de la RDC.   (Agence Hirondelle, Kinshasa, 24 février 2002)

* Congo (RDC). Goma: One month on  -  Omar Suleiman sits on the balcony of 
the Lumamba hotel, watching the cars drive down Goma's main street. Each 
vehicle churns up a thick cloud of brown dust which shimmers in the heat 
haze that still envelops the centre of this ravaged town. The hotel balcony 
used to be on the first floor. Today it is the new ground floor. The rest 
of the building, and the entire neighbourhood, lie submerged beneath a sea 
of lava. The main street is nothing more than a groove in the lava, 
smoothed by a bulldozer. Black waves, now rock hard, seem to lap against 
the balcony railings where Omar and his family sit and ponder their future. 
"Everything is destroyed," says Omar, the hotel's manager, showing me the 
incinerated beds and mattresses inside. Lava has even forced its way 
through the pipes into the upstairs toilets. One month after Mount 
Nyiragongo exploded, the lava field in Goma has stopped moving, but the 
crust is still warm to the touch. Young boys in thin plastic sandals run 
across the hottest patches pushing the cheapest form of local transport 
--home-made wooden bicycles -- piled high with vegetables. Every few 
metres, sulphurous smoke seeps from cracks in the lava. Push a stick into 
the hole and, within seconds, it will catch fire. "This must be the most 
hazardous place in the world," says Professor Dario Tedesco, an Italian 
vulcanologist brought in by the United Nations to monitor the volcano and 
other seismic activity. Mr Tedesco says the earth tremors have moved from 
Mount Nyiragongo, down towards Goma itself and on under Lake Kivu. He is 
worried that the lava in town is taking so long to cool -- a sign perhaps 
of new volcanic activity under Goma. As for the lake, "it could be a major 
tragedy," he says. Over the centuries, huge quantities of poisonous gases 
have built up on the lake floor. Increased seismic activity has already 
pushed the lake floor down by half a metre this year alone. The danger is 
that the gas will be destabilised, and forced to the surface.   (BBC News, 
UK, 26 February 2002)

Weekly anb0228.txt - #2/7