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["Silvia Contessi" <SilviaContessi@tiscalinet.it>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "anb-bia" <anb-bia@village.uunet.be>
To: <anb-weekly@ntlist.online.be>
Sent: Thursday, June 13, 2002 4:17 PM
Subject: Weekly anb06135.txt #7


> _____________________________________________________________
> WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 13-06-2002      PART #5/7
>
> * Libya. Mandela goes back to jail  -  The prison visitor arrived at
> Barlinnie (Scotland) mid-morning in a flurry of cars and police outriders.
> He bypassed the bleak waiting room with its metal benches and chipped
> linoleum and was led, without being searched, straight to a suite of cells
> deep within the grim Victorian fortress on Glasgow's eastern edge. The
> inmate he had come to see greeted him with a handshake. They sat and
talked
> for more than an hour. The statesman and the convicted mass killer: Nelson
> Mandela and the Lockerbie bomber. For Mr Mandela, it was a defining
> experience. Emerging to talk to the press, the former South African
> president called immediately for a fresh appeal and for Abdel Baset
> al-Megrahi to be transferred from Britain to a Muslim prison. The Libyan's
> solitary confinement in Scotland's toughest jail was nothing short of
> "psychological persecution", he said. And too many questions had been
> raised about his conviction to let the matter rest. An urgent meeting
would
> be sought with both Tony Blair and the US president, George Bush, to plead
> Megrahi's case. Mr Mandela, 83, has long been troubled by Lockerbie. He
> played a crucial role in persuading the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar
> Gadafy, to hand over the two men suspected of involvement in the 1988
> atrocity which left 270 people dead, and has followed events closely. Last
> week he announced he intended to travel to Glasgow to check on Megrahi's
> welfare.   (The Guardian, UK, 11 June 2002)
>
> * Madagascar. Rivals meet on neutral turf  -  9 June: Madagascar's two
> rival presidents are meeting in Senegal, in an internationally mediated
> attempt to resolve a violent power struggle. Marc Ravalomanana and Didier
> Ratsiraka hold talks separately with regional heads of state who are
trying
> broker a settlement. Today, the two leaders meet face to face for the
first
> time. Participants decline to comment on the progress of negotiations. The
> diplomatic push follows a surge in fighting between forces loyal to Mr
> Ravalomanana, who was sworn in as president last month, and militants
> aligned with Mr Ratsiraka, who led Madagascar until a disputed election
> last December. The fighting appears to signal the start of a new, more
> violent, turn in the six-month dispute that has split Madagascar between
> rival presidents, governments and armies. 10 June: The talks end without
> agreement, but African heads of state have drawn up a plan aimed at ending
> the crisis. The document calls for parliamentary elections to be held
> before the end of the year and for a balanced transitional government. The
> two presidents were not on hand at the end of the talks to give their own
> opinions on what had been discussed.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 June 2002)
>
> * Madagascar. Après Dakar II, affrontements  -  9 juin. Les deux
présidents
> rivaux, Ravalomanana et Ratsiraka, se sont de nouveau rencontrés à Dakar,
> sous l'égide du président du Sénégal, qui a réuni pour l'occasion quatre
> autres chefs d'Etat. Chacun d'eux a rencontré séparément les deux
> présidents malgaches. Finalement, le dimanche soir, les deux hommes se
sont
> séparés sans avoir conclu un accord, mais avec un "plan de sortie de
crise"
> proposé par les chefs d'Etat facilitateurs. Ce plan propose
"l'organisation
> d'élections législatives anticipées avant la fin de l'année" ou, en cas de
> difficulté, "à l'échéance normale des mandats des députés, en mai 2003".
Le
> plan prévoit que M. Ravalomanana nomme le Premier ministre de la
> transition, les autres ministres devant être nommés partiellement par les
> deux protagonistes. La proposition des chefs d'Etat sera soumise à l'OUA,
> qui devra déterminer une position commune africaine. Elle reste cependant
> vague sur la question essentielle, consistant à désigner le véritable
> président de Madagascar. - 10 juin. Pendant ce temps, de nouveaux fronts
> militaires se dessinent. Selon des sources journalistiques, les troupes
> fidèles à Ravalomanana avanceraient vers Tuléar (sud). Ils chercheraient
> l'affrontement à plusieurs endroits du pays pour diviser les forces de
> Ratsiraka, mieux armées et entraînées. M. Ravalomanana a rallié sous son
> autorité la très grande majorité des effectifs de l'armée malgache mais
> plusieurs unités d'élite, très bien entraînées et armées, sont restées
> fidèles à M. Ratsiraka. Il multiplie le recrutement de jeunes pour gonfler
> les rangs de ses milices. Ses troupes resserrent leurs tenailles autour
> d'Antsiranana, dans l'extrême-nord, grand port-arsenal tenu par les
> militaires d'élite pro-Ratsiraka. Elles ont lancé une offensive depuis la
> région de Sambava, dans le nord-est, et d'Antsohihy, dans le nord-ouest,
et
> s'apprêtaient à ouvrir un nouveau front dans le sud, vers Tuléar. Des
> combats entre partisans de Ratsiraka et fidèles de Marc Ravalomanana ont
> éclaté mardi sur l'île Nosy-be, la principale destination touristique de
> Madagascar. De partout, on pouvait entendre les échanges de tirs qui ont
> éclaté sur "l'île aux parfums" située dans le nord-ouest de cet Etat de
> l'océan Indien. - 12 juin. L'armée de Ravalomanana a réussi à briser le
> blocus de la capitale en prenant un barrage stratégique sur le pont de la
> rivière Betsiboka (barrant la route entre Antananarivo et le port de
> Mahajanga) et elle continue son avancée sur Mahajanga. Elle a progressé
sur
> tous les fronts, à l'exception de la petite île de Nosy-be, où un de ses
> généraux a été encerclé et capturé.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 12
> juin 2002)
>
> * Malawi. High Court decision upholds Muluzi's ban on demonstrations  -
In
> an about-turn, a Malawian High Court on 6 June overturned a previous court
> ruling declaring unconstitutional a ban by President Bakili Muluzi on
> public protests over his third term in office. The move is seen as a boost
> for Muluzi, who said on Monday he would ignore the previous court ruling
as
> it was "irresponsible and insensitive". On 3 June, Malawi's High Court had
> ruled that Muluzi could not ban demonstrations over a controversial
> campaign urging him to stand for a third term in office. The court ruling
> came after influential religious groups, including the Roman Catholic
> Church and the law society of Malawi, applied for an injunction against
> Muluzi's threat to stop demonstrations around the third term issue. Judge
> Dunstain Mwaungulu ruled that Muluzi's ban violated the constitutional
> rights of freedom of expression and assembly. But that ruling was
> overturned following an application by Justice Minister and
> Attorney-General Henry Phoya, who accused lawyers representing groups
> opposing Muluzi's controversial third-term of shopping for sympathetic
> judges.   (IRIN, 6 June 2002)
>
> * Malawi. Permis d'interdire  -  Le 5 juin, un juge du tribunal de grande
> instance du Malawi, Antanazio Tembo, a annulé le jugement prononcé le 3
> juin par un de ses collègues contre l'interdiction par le président Muluzi
> des manifestations contre sa tentative de se présenter à un troisième
> mandat. Le juge Tembo a pris cette décision, suite à l'introduction d'une
> demande par le ministre de la Justice, qui a accusé les avocats d'être
> impliqués dans une coalition hostile au 3e mandat. Viva Nyimba, un célèbre
> avocat de Blantyre, a accusé le ministre de s'ingérer dans les affaires de
> la justice et d'utiliser sa position pour intimider les magistrats. "C'est
> honteux et c'est un jour triste pour l'indépendance de la justice au
> Malawi", a-t-il dit. - 7 juin. L'Eglise catholique du Malawi a ouvertement
> pris position dans la dispute politique concernant la possibilité d'un
> troisième mandat pour le président Muluzi, indique l'agence Misna. Dans un
> communiqué, la Commission pour la paix et la justice (CCJP) a dit être
> "absolument contraire à un troisième mandat", appuyant ainsi le mouvement
> populaire luttant contre une révision de la Constitution.   (ANB-BIA, de
> sources diverses, 8 juin 2002)
>
> * Malawi. Churches pray for term limits  -  Thousands of people prayed on
9
> June for divine intervention to thwart the ruling party's bid to abolish
> presidential term limits. At the interdenominational prayer session,
church
> leaders condemned efforts by the ruling United Democratic Front to change
> the constitution in order to allow President Bakili Muluzi to run for a
> third term in 2004. The session, organized by church and civil rights
> groups, and a protest the day earlier defied a ban called by Muluzi
against
> gatherings relating to the third term bid. Felix Chingota, one of the
> church leaders, said changing the constitution, which limits a president
to
> two five-year terms, amounted to criminal treason. Muluzi, speaking to a
> political rally, the same day, dismissed the prayer session as being
> motivated by politics, not democracy. "My government is for peace but some
> opposition leaders are using churches to fuel political and religious
> tension in the country," Muluzi said.   (CNN, USA, 10 June 2002)
>
> * Mali. New President sworn in  -  8 June: For the first time in Mali's
> history, one elected president has handed over power to an elected
> successor. After 10 years in power, Alpha Oumar Konare welcomed
> president-elect, retired General Amadou Toumani Toure, to the presidential
> palace on a cliff overlooking the capital, Bamako. The two men consulted
> for 40 minutes behind closed doors. Then Konare vacated the palace
> graciously, heading off to a new palatial residence built for him by the
> Chinese Government, on the outskirts of Bamako. Konare was not present at
> the Congress Palace two hours later for the official swearing-in ceremony.
> The official explanation was that protocol could not handle two presidents
> at a time. His absence did not dampen enthusiastic attendance at the
> ceremony. Many thousands of invited dignitaries and Malian citizens tried
> to squeeze into the main auditorium of the Congress Palace, which holds
> only 1,000 people. The official ceremony was delayed by an hour as
> organisers tried to convince Malians to cede their places to foreign
> guests. The congestion in the Congress Palace was exacerbated by the
> presence of 11 African heads of state from Mali's neighbours -- Côte
> d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea, Mauritania and Guinea, as well as
> Gabon, Chad, the Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville and Congo
RDC.
> It was shortly before midday that Amadou Toumani Toure arrived with his
> spouse, Lobo Toure, and the ceremony could begin. Mali's attorney general
> reminded the incoming president that he was "an ordinary man in
> extraordinary circumstances" and that the country faced serious social and
> economic problems, with the youth "refusing to respect their elders". The
> Supreme Court then officially declared Toure president of Mali.   (BBC
> News, UK, 8 June 2002)
>
> * Mali. Touré prête serment  -  Le 8 juin, le nouveau président malien,
> Amadou Toumani Touré, élu le 12 mai, a prêté serment à Bamako, lors d'une
> cérémonie d'investiture, en présence de onze chefs d'Etat africains. Il
> s'est engagé à "construire un pays qui n'exclue personne, travailler dans
> l'intérêt du peuple et travailler à l'unité africaine". La veille au soir,
> le président sortant Alpha Oumar Konaré avait fait ses adieux au peuple
> malien après ses dix années passées à la tête du pays. Il n'a pas manqué
de
> faire une auto-critique, mais a laissé entendre qu'il ne se retirerait pas
> de sitôt de la politique. "Je ne prendrai pas ma retraite", a-t-il
affirmé.
> - 9 juin. L'ancien ambassadeur du Mali à Rabat et à Bruxelles, Mohamed Ag
> Amani, a été nommé Premier ministre selon un décret signé par le président
> Touré. Le nouveau Premier ministre, 60 ans, est économiste-statisticien de
> formation. Il fut plusieurs fois ministre sous Moussa Traoré. On ne lui
> connaît aucune appartenance politique.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10
> juin 002)
>
> * Morocco. Al-Qaeda plot  -  10 June: Reports from Morocco say three Saudi
> members of al-Qaeda have been arrested as they prepared attacks on
American
> and British naval ships in the Straits of Gibraltar. There has been no
> formal announcement from the Moroccan authorities, but officials are
quoted
> as saying the three had been arrested in May with the help of the
> intelligence services of several friendly countries. The men, aged between
> 25 and 35, are reported to have links to the al-Qaeda, the organisation
> suspected of carrying out the 11 September attacks in the United States.
> Officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the suspects
> planned to sail inflatable dinghies loaded with explosives alongside ships
> patrolling the straits. The suspects were planning to sail the dinghies
> from Ceuta and Melillia, the Spanish enclaves on Moroccan territory, the
> officials said.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 10 June 2002)
>
> * Maroc. Cellule Al Qaida démantelée  -  Le ministre marocain de
> l'Intérieur a confirmé, le 12 juin, le démantèlement d'une cellule d'Al
> Qaida infiltrée au Maroc et qui "préparait des actes terroristes contre
les
> navires de l'OTAN" dans le détroit de Gibraltar. Les membres de la
cellule,
> trois Saoudiens, comptaient mener des opérations à l'intérieur du Maroc et
> à partir des deux enclaves espagnoles dans le nord du Maroc, Ceuta et
> Melilla. L'enquête de la police judiciaire se poursuit.   (PANA, Sénégal,
> 12 juin 2002)
>
> * Mozambique. Hunger and Aids stalk Mozambique  -  6 June: The great
> Zambezi flows lazily by the town of Tete, on its way to the Indian Ocean.
> But a mere 40-minute drive away, rivers have dried to a trickle, some are
> mostly mud or reduced to stagnant pools, or simply filled with sand.
Hunger
> or drought is stalking southern Africa and Mozambique has not escaped it.
> It has already set in here, right in the province of Tete, wedged in by
> colonial-era frontiers of Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia. Withered stalks of
> maize and sorghum litter the dusty fields. Malaria is rampant and cholera
> killed many here in the first three months of the year. In the village of
> Cachembe, in Changara district, people are desperately scouring the bush
> for wild fruit and nuts as they try to stay alive. But, with everyone
doing
> the same, even this source of food is becoming scarcer by the day. Many
> children have bloated stomachs, a classic tell-tale sign of malnutrition.
> The Mozambican Government has already appealed for emergency aid and the
> UN's World Food Programme is sounding the alarm, saying that at least 12.8
> million people in six countries across southern Africa need help.
According
> to their latest estimates 515,000 people in Mozambique need food aid. The
> drought in Mozambique has been catastrophic, but thankfully it has not
> covered the whole country, parts of which have had good rains and
harvests.
> But the rains have failed in much of the centre and south of the country.
> Many of these areas were already devastated by massive floods at the end
of
> 2000 and beginning of 2001. The floods washed away crops, houses, bridges
> and infrastructure and also drowned cattle and other farm
> animals.   (ANB-BIA, Brussels, 6 June 2002)
>
> * Mozambique. Menace de famine  -  Les Nations unies attirent l'attention
> sur la situation de disette dans le sud et le centre du Mozambique. Une
> analyse réalisée par la FAO et le PAM relève que plus d'un demi million de
> personnes aura besoin d'une assistance alimentaire avant les récoltes de
> 2003. A l'origine de la chute de la production agricole, il y a la
> sécheresse de cette année qui a frappé particulièrement les zones rurales
> du centre et du sud du pays. Dans les aires de Zambezia, de Tete, de
> Manica, de Sofala et dans les provinces au sud de Maputo, le manque d'eau
> aura pour conséquence un déficit de 70 mille tonnes de récolte. Pour le
> moment, plus de 150.000 personnes nécessitent une intervention
humanitaire.
> Mais ce nombre, signalent les deux agences onusiennes, est destiné à
> augmenter dans les mois qui viennent, quand les familles auront épuisé
> leurs réserves de denrées alimentaires.   (Misna, Italie, 7 juin 2002)
>
> Weekly News - anb06135.txt - #5/7
>
>
>