Weekly anb03216.txt #7

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 21-03-2002      PART #6/7

* Nigeria. Government declares Sharia illegal  -  About two years since the 
Islamic legal code the Sharia, was adopted for implementation by some 
northern states of Nigeria, the civilian regime of President Olusegun 
Obasaanjo has formally declared the move illegal. "Indeed, according to the 
government, further implementation of the Sharia will amount to questioning 
the very existence of Nigeria", the Attorney- General of Nigeria and 
Minister of Justice, Mr. Kanu Agabi, SAN, stated in a letter circulated to 
all the state governors in the northern part of Nigeria practicing the 
Sharia. The Minister's letter dated March18, 2002 read, "the fact that the 
Sharia law applies to only Moslems or those who elect to be bound by it 
makes it imperative that the rights of such persons equally with other 
citizens under the constitution be not infringed. A Moslem should not be 
subjected to a punishment more severe than would be imposed on other 
Nigerians for the same offence.'' The letter stated further that equality 
before the law means Moslems should not be discriminated against. And as 
elected state governors, I am certain that you would not tolerate such 
disparity in the allocation of punishments. It is not only against the 
constitution but also against equity and good conscience." Minister Agabi 
who declared that the letter to the governors were necessitated by several 
hundreds of petitions from Moslems resident in the states where Sharia is 
in practice added that punishments imposed by the religious law on 
offenders violate some sections of the 1999 constitution. Therefore, 
"states and individuals must comply with the constitution," he said, while 
decrying any legal system which imposes discriminatory punishments as 
deliberately flouting the constitution" and that, "the stability, unity and 
integrity of the nation is threatened". Mr Agabi appealed to the governors 
to secure a workable panacea of all criminal laws in their states so that 
the courts will not be obliged to impose punishments which derogate from he 
rights of Moslems under the constitution. He also urged them "not to allow 
your zeal for justice and transparency to undermine the fundamental law of 
the nation which is the constitution'. The Catholic Bishops of Nigeria, 
CBCN, during their last audience with President Obasanjo in February had 
reaffirmed as they have done many times before that "the non- adoption of 
any religion as a state religion or giving preferential treatment to one 
religion, promotes the principle of equality of all religions before the 
law. Given the existence of the multi religious groups with divergent 
interests in the country, the violation of the secular nature of our nation 
cannot occur without grave threats to peace and stability". The Bishops in 
their memo to the president emphasized also that, "the adoption and the 
full implementation of Sharia law by some states in the northern part of 
Nigeria is a flagrant violation of the secular nature of the Nigerian 
nation. Its introduction and extension into the domain of criminal law have 
given rise to the trampling of the rights of innocent and law abiding 
citizens, who cannot seek redress in law courts on accounts of well-founded 
fear of threats to their lives and property, and those of their families". 
They appealed that in the interest of national peace and harmony, the 
federal government should heed the "loud and just opposition of many 
Nigerian Christians and others to the imposition of the Sharia as state 
law". In an interview with the Director of Communications of the Catholic 
Secretariat of Nigeria, Fr Emmanuel Badejo after the news broke the 
President of CBCN Most Rev. John Onaiyekan, Archbishop of Abuja wondered 
why it took the Government two full years to see what every honest Nigeria 
saw right from the beginning. In those two years he said lives and limbs 
have been lost and property destroyed while government waited. He however 
welcomed the development saying that there is some consolation in the 
feeling that the fight and sacrifice of the past twenty-four months have 
not been in vain. He urged the government to be more courageous in living 
up to its responsibilities in future.   (Peter Ajayi Dada, ANB-BIA, 
Nigeria, 21 March 2002

* Sao Tome e Principe. Former Marxists win vote  -  A former Marxist party 
has won a majority of seats in elections in the West African archipelago of 
Sao Tome e Principe, the country's supreme court has ruled. Preliminary 
results had put the former Marxist Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome 
e Principe (MLSTP) neck and neck with the Democratic Movement of Forces for 
Change (MDFM) of President Fradique de Menezes, with 23 seats each in the 
55-seat parliament. But the supreme court said the MLSTP had taken an extra 
seat thanks to a re-run of the ballot in a small district where the 
original vote had had to be cancelled. The party's victory means that the 
next prime minister in the former Portuguese colony is now expected to come 
from its ranks. The MLSTP was the country's sole political party between 
1975 and 1991. It had an absolute majority in the outgoing parliament, but 
was excluded from government after President de Menezes was inaugurated 
last year. Correspondents say the result is a blow to Mr de Menezes, who 
had set his hopes on forming his own government. The president, a wealthy 
cocoa exporter, was elected in July 2001 with 65% of the vote.   (BBC News, 
UK, 19 March 2002)

* Sénégal/UE. Pêche: reprise des négociations  -  Les négociations pour un 
éventuel renouvellement des accords de pêche entre le Sénégal et l'Union 
européenne devaient rependre le 19 mars à Bruxelles. Le précédent accord, 
qui avait expiré le 31 décembre 2001, n'avait pas été prorogé en raison de 
divergences entre le Sénégal et l'UE, notamment sur les limites des zones 
de pêche et la période de repos biologique.   (Le Figaro, France, 20 mars 2002)

* Sudan. Garang in Washington  -  16 March: The commander of the Sudan 
People's Liberation Army, John Garang -- on his first visit to Washington 
in three years -- has met the American Secretary of State, Colin Powell. 
The two men said they were optimistic about the prospects of ending the two 
decades of civil war in Sudan. But Mr Garang said that, while he felt there 
was a momentum for peace, he did not trust the Sudanese government to stick 
to various agreements to limit the conflict. He said it was important that 
the US remained engaged in Sudan, both in political negotiations for peace 
and with its humanitarian aid.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 16 March 2002)

* Soudan. Un dirigeant d'Al-Qaida détenu?  -  Un haut responsable 
d'Al-Qaida, qui figure sur la liste des 22 terroristes les plus recherchés 
par les Etats-Unis, Abou Anas Ali-Libi, est détenu au Soudan, a rapporté, 
mardi 19 mars, le Washington Post, confirmant ainsi l'information publiée 
ce week-end par le Sunday Times de Londres. Dans un premier temps, 
dimanche, une source anonyme de la présidence soudanaise avait démenti 
cette révélation. Selon le quotidien américain, Washington, qui tient 
Ali-Libi pour responsable de deux attentats meurtriers perpétrés en 1998 
contre deux de ses ambassades en Afrique de l'Est, négocierait "depuis un 
mois" le transfert en Egypte de l'islamiste capturé, pays où il serait plus 
accessible aux enquêteurs américains. Ali-Libi est également soupçonné 
d'avoir organisé une tentative d'assassinat en 1995 contre le président 
égyptien Hosni Moubarak, indique le journal. Il serait le premier homme 
figurant sur la liste dressée le 10 octobre par George Bush à être arrêté 
et le plus haut responsable du réseau d'Oussama Ben Laden à être capturé 
depuis le début de la "guerre antiterroriste" engagée par les Etats-Unis. 
(Ndlr -Dans son édition du 20 mars, le Washington Post a toutefois affirmé 
que le militant détenu au Soudan n'est pas Abou Anas Ali-Libi, mais bien 
une personne relativement haut placée dans l'entourage de Ben Laden).   (Le 
Monde, France, 20 mars 2002)

* Swaziland. Threatened by starvation  -  Swaziland has appealed for urgent 
food aid for 200,000 people who are on the verge of starvation. The 
country's National Disaster Task Force says that nearly 40% of the 
population are at risk of dying following this year's poor 
harvest.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 20 March 2002)

* Tanzania. Radar sale threatens aid  -  A £10 million aid payment to 
Tanzania has been withheld by the UK's International Development Secretary, 
Clare Short, because of its plans to buy a UK-built military air traffic 
control system. The decision threatens to re-open a cabinet row over he 
sale of the £28 million BAe Systems device, which was approved with the 
reward of an export licence last December. Ms Short said Tanzania could 
have opted for an adequate alternative which cost a quarter of the 
price.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 20 March 2002)

* Togo. President frees opposition leader  -  15 March: The authorities in 
Togo have released a leading opposition figure, Yawovi Agboyibo, from 
prison where he has spent most of the past nine months. Mr Agboyibo looked 
well but thin when he returned home to be greeted by friends and 
supporters. He said he had been taken completely by surprise when the state 
prosecutor came to the jail on the night of 14 March, and drove him home 
himself. President Gnassingbe Eyadema said he had decided to free Mr 
Agboyibo in the interests of national reconciliation.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 
16 March 2002)

* Togo. Libération d'Agboyibo  -  Le président du Comité d'action pour le 
renouveau (CAR, un des partis d'opposition), Me Yaowi Agboyibo, emprisonné 
depuis le 3 août 2001 à Lomé, a été libéré le jeudi 14 mars dans la soirée, 
à la demande du président Eyadema. Le 3 août 2001, Me Agboyibo avait été 
condamné à six mois de prison ferme dans une affaire en diffamation qui 
l'opposait au Premier ministre Kodjo. Le 29 août, il avait été inculpé de 
nouveau dans une autre affaire de "complicité et regroupement de 
malfaiteurs". Le premier jugement avait été cassé le 10 janvier dernier par 
la cour d'appel pour vice de procédure, mais Me Agboyibo avait déjà purgé 
la totalité de sa peine. Il a été cependant maintenu en prison dans le 
cadre de la deuxième affaire. Ralliant l'opposition togolaise, des voix 
s'étaient élevées dans le monde entier pour réclamer sa libération. Le 15 
mars, Me Agboyibo s'est déclaré prêt à reprendre sa place au sein du Comité 
paritaire de suivi (CPS) "pour oeuvrer à débloquer la situation politique 
au Togo". Le CPS est une structure de concertation mise en place par la 
médiation internationale pour rapprocher les points de vue entre le régime 
d'Eyadema et son opposition en vue de l'organisation d'élections 
législatives anticipées. Le 18 mars, on apprenait de sources concordantes 
dans la capitale togolaise, que des timides tractations étaient en cours à 
Lomé entre la majorité présidentielle et l'opposition en vue de la reprise 
du dialogue.   (PANA, Sénégal, 14-18 mars 2002)

* Tunisie. Condamnation à Strasbourg  -  Le 14 mars, le Parlement européen 
a adopté à l'unanimité une résolution qui demande aux autorités tunisiennes 
de mettre un terme à toutes les mesures d'intimidation vis-à-vis des 
défenseurs des droits de l'homme et de leurs familles et de lever toutes 
les entraves aux libertés de circulation, d'expression, d'information, 
d'association et au droit à l'engagement politique au sein d'un parti. Dans 
une allusion au procès expéditif de trois militants du Parti communiste des 
ouvriers tunisiens, le Parlement européen exprime son soutien aux 
personnalités, associations et organisations tunisiennes ainsi que les 
avocats qui ont pris position en faveur du droit. -- De son côté, rapporte 
l'AFP, dans un discours à la Nation marquant la célébration du 46e 
anniversaire de l'indépendance, le président Zine El Abidine Ben Ali a 
souligné mercredi 20 mars sa détermination à conforter les libertés et les 
droits de l'homme en Tunisie. Alors que son régime fait régulièrement 
l'objet de critiques de la part de plusieurs ONG de défense des droits de 
l'homme, le chef de l'Etat tunisien considère que "la démocratie et le 
pluralisme constituent aujourd'hui une réalité palpable dans notre 
pays".   (Le Soir, Belgique, 16 mars, et AFP, 20 mars 2002)

* Ouganda. Mise en garde contre fraude électorale  -  M. Eriya Kategaya, 
premier vice-Premier ministre et ministre de l'Intérieur, a averti le 
président Museveni que la violence et la fraude électorales persistantes 
pourraient ternir la réputation du système de gouvernement de l'Ouganda. 
Cette déclaration de M. Kategaya, un confident de longue date de M. 
Museveni, intervient à la suite de nombreuses pétitions déposées contre les 
membres du Parlement qui soutiennent le système de "non-parti". "Ce que 
nous avons combattu, se manifeste à nouveau de façon systématique", a dit 
M. Katagaya. "Les gens du mouvement doivent se battre contre ce fléau qui 
mine les valeurs de la démocratie que nous avons restaurée depuis 1986". La 
semaine dernière, le Parlement ougandais a mis sur pied une commission 
d'enquête qui a commencé à se pencher sur plusieurs cas de fraude présumée 
lors de l'élection présidentielle de mars 2001 et les élections 
législatives de juin 2001.   (PANA, Sénégal, 19 mars 2002)

Weekly anb0321.txt - #6/7