Weekly anb09266.txt #8

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 26-09-2002      PART #6/8

* Kenya. Kenyan leaders want elections held under new 
constitution  -  Leaders from Kenya's ruling Kanu party faction, that 
Rainbow Alliance, and those from the opposition, are demanding the holding 
of the country's presidential, parliamentary and civic elections under a 
new constitution whose draft was revealed last week. The document, drafted 
by a body known as the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC), was 
launched on 18 September and was currently being debated before it is taken 
to parliament for enactment. However, there is fear about lack of goodwill 
on the part of the government, and that the new constitution may not be in 
place before the elections due at the end of the year, after two of 
President Daniel arap Moi's cronies dismissed it as "a fertile imagination 
of the CKRC". Cabinet ministers Julius Sunkuli and Isaac Ruto said the 
draft was "imaginative and not what Kenyans want." However, tourism and 
information minister Kalonzo Musyoka, while addressing an historic 
political meeting in Nairobi on 22 September, said Kenyans were eagerly 
awaiting the new constitution. "Some people have started talking badly 
about the constitutional draft. This can put our anticipation in great 
jeopardy. We need to address this problem and we hereby declare that 
elections be held under the new constitution. We demand the new 
constitution because we do not want to commit a monumental fraud. A lot of 
money has been spent in drafting the constitution," Musyoka said.   (PANA, 
Senegal, 23 September 2002)

* Kenya. Grève des enseignants  -  Le lundi 23 septembre, les quelque 
240.000 enseignants du primaire et du secondaire du Syndicat national des 
enseignants du Kenya (KNUT) ont déclenché une grève générale illimitée pour 
obtenir une augmentation de salaire. Ils reprochent au gouvernement d'avoir 
failli à sa promesse d'une hausse des rémunérations de 200%.   (La Libre 
Belgique, 24 septembre 2002)

* Kenya. Opposition fears reform will be "scuttled"  -  Kenyan opposition 
politicians have threatened mass action if proposals for a radical overhaul 
of the country's constitution are, as many fear, "scuttled" by the ruling 
establishment. Kenya's constitutional review commission last week called 
for fundamental changes to the country's system of government, transferring 
executive powers from the president to a prime minister, decentralising 
authority and reforming the judiciary. It was welcomed by opposition 
groups, which want it in place before this December's elections. But 
powerful cabinet ministers have condemned the text and on 24 September, two 
judges sought a High Court writ to prevent its proposals for judicial 
reform being debated at a national constitutional conference. Opposition 
figures also fear parliament will be dissolved before the proposals are 
discussed.   (Financial Times, UK, 26 September 2002)

* Kenya. Reviving the cotton industry  -  The US government has offered 
assistance to Kenya's once thriving cotton industry. The US Trade and 
Development Agency says it will provide aid worth more than $300 million, 
as well as advice from American cotton industry experts. Ten years ago 
cotton was a major foreign exchange earner for Kenya, providing jobs for 
thousands of people either growing the commodity or working textile 
factories. But farmers suffered as world cotton prices fell to their lowest 
for years and the country's garment manufacturers started buying cotton 
from other nations.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 24 September 2002)

* Liberia. Nouveaux combats  -  Le 21 septembre, de nouveaux combats 
opposaient les forces gouvernementales et le mouvement rebelle des 
Libériens unis pour la réconciliation et la démocratie (LURD) pour le 
contrôle d'au moins trois villes (Gorlu, Salayea et Belle Balloma) du nord 
et du nord-ouest du pays, près de la frontière guinéenne. Ces nouveaux 
affrontements interviennent une semaine après la levée par le président 
Taylor de l'état d'urgence qui était en vigueur depuis huit mois. Il avait 
alors affirmé avoir pratiquement écrasé la rébellion du LURD. - Le 24 
septembre, le Conseil de sécurité de l'Onu a demandé un arrêt immédiat des 
affrontements armés au Liberia et invité les parties à recourir au dialogue 
pour aboutir à un règlement pacifique du conflit.   (ANB-BIA, de sources 
diverses, 25 septembre 2002)

* Madagascar. La production de vanille  -  Ce week-end, le président 
Ravalomanana, en visite dans la région, a encouragé les producteurs de 
vanille de Sambava, Andapa, Vohémar et Antalaha, les quatre grandes 
localités productrices de vanille, a intensifier leurs efforts en vue de 
reprendre leurs parts de marché perdues. La vanille est la principale 
source de devises de Madagascar, mais elle connaît actuellement de sérieux 
problèmes de production. M. Ravalomanana a fait des promesses aux 
populations afin de les inciter à reprendre le travail. L'Union européenne 
finance les associations paysannes.   (PANA, Sénégal, 22 septembre 2002)

* Madagascar. Police capture "most wanted" man  -  Military police in 
Madagascar have captured a notorious former army officer accused of having 
led a campaign of terror under former president, Didier Ratsiraka. Colonel 
Ancelin Coutiti, the country's most wanted man, had a price of more than 
$100,000 on his head. He went on the run, continuing to cause widespread 
alarm, after the country's bitter power struggle ended in July. He was 
finally arrested on the north-east coast of Madagascar.   (ANB-BIA, 
Belgium, 24 September 2002)

* Madagascar. Législatives anticipées  -  Le 24 septembre, le président 
Ravalomanana a annoncé une prochaine dissolution de l'Assemblée nationale, 
et a demandé le soutien de la communauté internationale pour les élections 
législatives anticipées qui s'ensuivront. Celles-ci devraient avoir lieu 
avant la fin de l'année, a-t-il déclaré.   (La Croix, France, 26 septembre 
2002)

* Malawi. Opposition politician arrested over third-term dispute  -  An 
opposition leader has been arrested in Malawi, accused of inciting people 
to demonstrate against President Bakili Muluzi's alleged bid for a third 
term. Danga Mughogho, the northern region chairman of the Malawi Forum for 
Unity and Development, was denied bail on Wednesday after his arrest the 
night before. He had allegedly distributed leaflets that called on 
Malawians to rise up against renewed efforts to change the constitution to 
allow Muluzi to run for a third term. Mughogho's arrest has flown in the 
face of an appeal by Malawi's four major donors for the government to allow 
wider consultation, before going to parliament with a third-term bill. 
There has been mounting pressure from churches, human rights NGOs and the 
international community over the third-term issue. In a joint statement on 
16 September, issued from the capital Lilongwe, the envoys of Germany, 
Norway, Britain and the European Union said they were aware the bill on 
presidential term limits was gazetted for debate during the October session 
of the National Assembly. "We would again strongly urge that such an 
important constitutional amendment be considered only after a consultation 
process that encourages the free expression of views by all interested 
Malawians, without fear of intimidation or retribution and in accordance 
with democratic principles," the envoys said.   (IRIN, Kenya, 19 September 
2002)

* Mali. Un millier de poids-lourds bloqués  -  Plus d'un millier de 
poids-lourds, en partance pour la Côte d'Ivoire, sont bloqués au Mali, à 
Sikasso (380 km au sud de Bamako) en raison de la situation ivoirienne, a 
constaté mercredi 25 septembre un correspondant de l'AFP. Sur les conseils 
des autorités locales, les chauffeurs des semi-remorques et des 
camions-citernes, bloqués au poste-frontière de Zégoua, à 100 km de 
Sikasso, sont revenus dans cette ville. La frontière est fermée depuis le 
22 septembre. Selon les mêmes sources, les semi-remorques transportent des 
balles de coton, du bétail et des pommes de terre à destination de la Côte 
d'Ivoire. Les camions-citernes, vides, devaient se rendre à Bouaké, en Côte 
d'Ivoire, pour s'approvisionner en hydrocarbures. La Côte d'Ivoire est le 
principal fournisseur du Mali, qui n'a pas d'accès à la mer. Par ailleurs, 
plusieurs centaines d'enfants maliens sont bloqués dans les villes 
ivoiriennes de Bouaké et Korhogo, où ils ont été surpris par le soulèvement 
militaire du 19 septembre, alors qu'ils étaient en vacances.   (D'après 
AFP, France, 25 septembre 2002)

* Morocco. Hollywood heads for Marrakech  -  The second Marrakech 
international film festival opened on 18 September in Morocco's southern 
city. Leading Hollywood film directors Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford 
Coppola will be guests of honour and Scorsese will receive a major Moroccan 
award. The organisers hope that, in time, the Marrakech Film Festival will 
grow to become Africa's version of the Cannes Festival -- despite an 
inauspicious start. It was launched last year only days after 11 September 
and as a result many participants did not attend. Cinema is important to 
Morocco as a source of earnings -- many films are made on location there. 
For such a new film festival, the organisers have struck quite a coup by 
attracting such big name guests as Scorsese and Coppola along with David 
Lynch. Scorsese will also receive Morocco's highest honour from the King, 
the Alaouite Medal, for his work. This year, nine feature films will be in 
competition and the jury will be presided over by legendary French actress 
Jean Moreau. There will also be a competition for short films, a spotlight 
on African and East Asian cinema, as well as tributes to Scorsese, Lynch 
and Coppola and to Indian Bollywood actor Aamir Khan. Marrakech's famous 
central square, the Place Jemaa el-Fna, normally home to snake-charmers and 
story-tellers, will be turned into an open-air cinema for the four-day 
festival. Cinema is an important industry for Morocco, not because the 
country makes many films of its own, but because it earns millions of 
dollars as the location. A second huge new film studio is currently being 
built in the south of the country, near Ouarzazate. Next year filming is 
due to begin there of Alexander the Great, billed as the biggest historic 
epic since Titanic. It will have a budget of $150 million dollars, $60 
million of which will be invested in Morocco.   (BBC News, UK, 18 September 
2002)

* Morocco. Talks with Spain cancelled  -  23 September: Morocco has 
cancelled talks its foreign minister was due to have with his Spanish 
counterpart in Madrid, today. The Moroccans say they took the decision 
after a Spanish military helicopter landed on a disputed island off the 
North African coast. The territorial issue had already strained relations 
between the two sides, and was to have been discussed during the Madrid 
meeting. The island, known to the Spanish as Perejil and the Moroccans as 
Leila, became an international flashpoint when Moroccan troops landed on it 
in July. The island, only a few hundred metres off the Moroccan coast, 
belongs to Spain, but has been uninhabited for many years. US Secretary of 
State Colin Powell had intervened to settle the dispute, and today's 
meeting was to have discussed the issue. Moroccan Foreign Minister Mohamed 
Benaissa told his Spanish counterpart Ana Palacio that the talks were 
called off.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 23 September 2002)

* Maroc. Nouvelle tension avec l'Espagne  -  Le dimanche 22 septembre, les 
relations hispano-marocaines se sont de nouveau tendues au sujet de l'îlot 
inhabité de Persil (Leila en arabe), situé à 200 mètres de la côte 
marocaine. Rabat a annulé une rencontre, prévue le lundi, entre les 
ministres des Affaires étrangères des deux pays, pour protester contre 
l'atterrissage d'un hélicoptère militaire espagnol, qualifié de "violation 
inacceptable de l'espace national aérien et terrestre". "La réaction est 
disproportionnée", répond Madrid, en soutenant que l'hélicoptère n'a fait 
qu'un vol de reconnaissance à faible altitude. La réunion annulée visait à 
tenter de normaliser les relations entre les deux pays, après la crise 
survenue le 17 juillet, lorsque l'armée espagnole était intervenue pour 
déloger le "poste d'observation" établi par des soldats marocains sur 
l'îlot.   (Libération, France, 24 septembre 2002)

* Maroc. Elections le 27 septembre  -  Les Marocains sont appelés aux urnes 
le 27 septembre pour des élections législatives qui visent à élire 325 
députés de la Chambre des représentants. Il s'agit du premier rendez-vous 
électoral depuis l'accession au trône, en juillet 1999, du roi Mohammed VI. 
26 partis politiques, dont un islamiste, sont en lice. Le vote, et surtout 
le taux de participation, des 14 millions d'électeurs aura valeur de 
jugement sur cinq ans de gouvernement dit "d'alternative démocratique" du 
Premier ministre Youssoufi. Le gouvernement et le roi se sont 
solennellement engagés à un scrutin honnête et transparent, en rupture avec 
les multiples fraudes électorales du passé. Mais les Marocains restent 
sceptiques, et les partis ont bien du mal à mobiliser la population. La 
campagne électorale, ouverte le 14 septembre, a été plutôt 
terne.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 25 septembre 2002)

Weekly anb0926.txt - Part #6/8