Weekly anb10105.txt #7

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 10-10-2002  PART #5/7

* Maroc. Moralisation de la vie publique - Dix jours après les élections 
marquées par une poussée des islamistes "légaux", une mesure touchant à la 
moralisation de la vie publique vient d'être annoncée. Le 7 octobre, seize 
cadres du Crédit immobilier et hôtelier (CIH, grand établissement financier 
du secteur public), accusés de "détournement de deniers publics", ont été 
écroués à Rabat après leur comparution devant la Cour spéciale de justice. 
Un rapport accablant sur la gestion du CIH avait été publié en janvier 2001 
par la Chambre des représentants, révélant de "graves irrégularités" 
portant sur 1,34 milliard de dollars. Divers scandales financiers sur la 
gestion d'organismes publics et semi-publics ont été révélés en 1998. La 
semaine dernière, la même Cour avait écroué l'ex-PDG de la Banque populaire 
du Maroc et deux de ses collaborateurs soupçonnés de "détournement de 
fonds". -- Pendant ce temps, le champ politique au Maroc vit une véritable 
effervescence, avec des alliances et des regroupements entre formations 
politiques en prévision de la constitution de la future coalition 
gouvernementale, aucun parti ne disposant de la majorité requise pour 
gouverner seul. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 9 octobre 2002)

* Maroc. Nouveau Premier ministre - Le 9 octobre, on annonçait de source 
officielle à Marrakech que le roi Mohammed VI avait nommé Driss Jettou, 
actuel ministre de l'Intérieur, au poste de Premier ministre. La nomination 
de ce "technocrate" de 57 ans, sans appartenance politique, devrait être 
bien accueillie après que sa gestion des législatives a fait l'unanimité au 
Maroc. Elle met en outre fin à l'ère du consensus, souvent synonyme 
d'immobilisme, toute décision devant obtenir l'approbation de l'ensemble 
des partis de la coalition. Mais surtout, l'arrivée d'un homme venu du 
privé et de l'économie, indique une volonté de donner la priorité au 
développement. Enfin, l'entrée des islamistes "légaux" du parti justice et 
développement (PJD) au gouvernement est désormais presque acquise, Driss 
Jettou n'ayant jamais caché la nécessité de "les confronter à la réalité". 
(Libération, France, 10 octobre 2002)

* Mozambique. A decade of peace - 4 October: Celebrations are taking place 
across Mozambique to mark the 10th anniversary of the end of the civil war. 
The Renamo opposition party, formerly the rebels, decided to take part in 
the ceremonies when the government agreed to free 14 opposition supporters 
jailed two years ago for their part in anti-government riots. The war 
between Renamo, which was backed by white South Africa, and the then 
Marxist government, devastated the country but Mozambique has made a 
remarkable recovery since the peace treaty was signed. Mozambique now has 
one of the fastest growing economies in Southern Africa, although 70% of 
the people still live in absolute poverty -- a situation made worse by the 
fact that the country is hit by a region-wide drought. President Chissano 
says he is convinced that life has improved for all, and that there are no 
grudges between former enemies. "No one asks who is who in markets, 
churches and the workplace, they are all working together. You can find 
clashes in parliament, of course, but it's a natural thing." Renamo leader 
Afonso Dhlakama agrees Mozambique has changed for the better, but he 
believes it is because he fought for democracy. "Before we fought, 
Mozambique was a Marxist system, a communist one: the Cubans were here, the 
Russians, the East Germans," he said. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 4 October 2002)

* Namibia. Major freight road to be upgraded - A Namibian government 
project to improve one of the country's main transport routes received a 
boost on 3 October with a US $54 million loan from Germany. The 
rehabilitation of the 61 km road from Ondangwa to Oshikango was expected to 
improve the transportation of goods, services and people in the area and 
enhance trade between Namibia and Angola. Roads Authority Chief Executive 
Justin Runji said the surface of the road had been badly damaged in the 
more than 10 years since it was built. The project would involve the 
breaking up of the old road surface and the laying of a new 
asphalt-concrete layer which was expected to last at least 15 years, Runji 
said. "It is hoped that in the long run increased economic activities will 
lead to improved standards of living for our people, especially in the 
north. Some areas which are not serviced properly will now be reachable 
over a shorter period of time," acting permanent secretary of the National 
Planning Commission, Master Kiiyala, said. (IRIN, Kenya, 3 October 2002)

* Niger. Rentrée scolaire - Le gouvernement nigérien a mobilisé au total 
3,566 milliards de FCFA pour créer les conditions d'une rentrée scolaire 
acceptable, effectuée le 1er octobre, a affirmé le ministre de l'Education 
de base. 2,450 milliards ont été investis au titre des fournitures et 
manuels scolaires. Les investissements ont permis de construire 1.029 
classes neuves et de réhabiliter 150 autres. 476 volontaires de l'éducation 
ont été recrutés. Le nombre d'enseignants qualifiés est passé de 720 en 
2000-2001, à 1.929 en 2001-2002, pour être porté à 2.500 pour l'année en 
cours. L'objectif est de former 3.000 enseignants par an. Le Niger a 
élaboré un programme décennal de développement de l'éducation (2002-2012), 
qui doit permettre d'assurer la promotion de la scolarisation et 
d'améliorer la qualité de l'enseignement. (PANA, Sénégal, 6 octobre 2002)

* Nigeria. Textile imports banned - 3 October: The government has banned 
imports of all printed fabrics in order to protect its own ailing industry. 
The number of local textile factories in Nigeria has fallen to just 40, a 
quarter of the number seen in the mid-1980s. The government said it took 
the decision in order to protect against dumping -- when exported goods are 
sold below their normal value. "It's a matter of the survival of Nigeria," 
said Information Minister Professor Jerry Gana. "This administration has 
the political will to sustain the fight," he said, stressing the importance 
of the industry in terms of job creation. The government hopes to generate 
a yearly income of $1bn (£640m) from local textile production, according to 
Nigeria's Guardian newspaper. (BBC News, UK, 3 October 2002)

* Nigeria/Angola. US military plans - Nigeria and Angola, Africa's two 
biggest oil producers, are meeting in Luanda, Angola's capital on 4 October 
to discuss shared concern over reports that the US is considering setting 
up a new military base in the region. Rilwanu Lukman, special adviser on 
oil to the Nigerian head of state and also president of the Organisation of 
Petroleum Exporting Countries, will meet José Eduardo dos Santos, the 
Angolan leader, and senior members of his administration, officials in Mr 
Lukman's office said on 3 October. The two countries together produce 3m 
barrels of oil a day and have attracted billions of dollars in US 
investment in recent years. The region is increasingly regarded as a 
strategic energy reserve by a US administration anxious to diversify its 
sources for oil imports away from the Middle East. General Carlton Fulford, 
deputy commander-in-chief, US European Command, visited Sao Tomé & 
Principe, an island cluster in the Atlantic midway between Nigeria and 
Angola, in July in connection with the proposed base. He was welcomed by 
Fradique de Menezes, the country's president, who said such a facility 
would help protect Sao Tomé, one of the poorest countries, which has 
ambitions to build its own oil industry. "This will be good for Sao Tomé as 
it will ensure the future of the country in relation to those that are 
ambitious and are looking to come to the country when oil is extracted from 
our waters," said Mr Menezes. "It [the base] is at a pre- positioning 
stage. The aim would be [protection of] the Gulf of Guinea and oil 
interests. It would be handy to have a staging point," said Richard 
Cornwell, an analyst at the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies. 
(Financial Times, UK, 4 October 2002)

* Nigeria. Projet pétrochimique - Durant le week-end, le président Obasanjo 
a inauguré un projet pétrochimique de 2,5 milliards de dollars, déclarant 
que sa politique qui consiste à attirer des investissements étrangers 
massifs pour relancer une économie chancelante, commençait à porter ses 
fruits. Le projet est sponsorisé par Eurochem Technologies Corporation de 
Singapour et est situé dans la zone franche industrielle de Lekki, à Lagos. 
Le Nigeria dépend à plus de 90% de ses exportations de pétrole pour ses 
recettes en devises étrangères, mais le président Obasanjo s'est engagé à 
diversifier la base financière du pays en attirant des investisseurs 
étrangers. (PANA, Sénégal, 6 octobre 2002)

* Nigeria. No respite for couple sentenced to death by stoning - 8 October: 
A Nigerian couple is to remain in jail, convicted of adultery and sentenced 
to death by stoning. A bail hearing today is adjourned at which their 
lawyers were hoping to get Fatima Usman and her alleged lover, Ahmadu 
Ibrahim, released pending an appeal. The couple was not brought from jail 
in the northern state of Niger for the hearing, nor are they aware of the 
severe punishment they are facing. This is the latest in a series of 
judgments handed out by Islamic or Sharia courts in Nigeria and which have 
provoked concern amongst human rights groups around the world. This case 
involves a couple originally imprisoned for the offence of adultery. But at 
an appeal hearing, the judge imposed the death sentence, arguing that the 
earlier court had used the wrong penal code to try the case. The woman, 
Fatima Usman, has a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, allegedly fathered by 
the man, Ahmed Ibrahim, outside marriage. Both are currently in jail 
serving the earlier five-year sentence. The court has set a new date of 22 
October for the bail hearing. (BBC News, UK, 8 October 2002)

* Rwanda/Zimbabwe. Troop withdrawals - 5 October: Rwanda has withdrawn the 
last of its troops from neighbouring Congo RDC, four years after they went 
in to support Congolese rebels against the government of Laurent Kabila. 
The last 1,000 soldiers, deployed around the border town of Goma, marched 
across the frontier into Rwanda, today. The withdrawal was agreed under a 
deal signed in July by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his Congolese 
counterpart Joseph Kabila. Rwandan army chief Major General James Kabarebe 
said in return for the withdrawal, his country now expected the UN and the 
Congolese government to disarm Rwandan Hutu extremists still hiding in 
Congo. -- The same day, Zimbabwe says it has completed troop withdrawals 
from the diamond city of Mbuji Mayi in Congo, where some of the fiercest 
battles took place. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 5 October 2002)

* Sao Tome e Principe. USA builds links with Sao Tome - A high-ranking US 
official met leaders of the tiny West African nation of Sao Tome and 
Principe on 8 October to discuss oil and military ties. The US Assistant 
Secretary of State for African Affairs, Walther Kansteiner, met President 
Fradique de Menezes and Prime Minister Maria das Neves. The assistant 
secretary told the leaders that US companies were interested in searching 
for oil off the coasts of the two-island nation. The visit underscores 
America's interest in West Africa's increasingly important oil region. 
(ANB-BIA, Belgium, 8 October 2002)

* Senegal. Overloading blamed for ferry disaster - 3 October: Two official 
investigations into last week's Senegalese ferry disaster have concluded 
that overloading, failure to observe safety procedures and bad weather 
conditions caused the vessel to capsize. The two separate reports, ordered 
by Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade, said the ferry, the Joola, was 
built for 550 passengers but carried about twice that amount. It capsized 
when hundreds of people on the top deck rushed to one side to take cover 
from a sudden gale. The reports say the crew was taken by surprise and 
unable to release rescue equipment. Only 64 of more than 1,000 passengers 
survived. Hundreds of bodies have been found, but only 32 could be 
identified because so many or the victims' corpses had decomposed. Hundreds 
more bodies remain trapped inside the ferry. President Wade has accepted 
the resignations of his transport and armed forces chiefs. The Senegal 
authorities have put up a website about the Joola disaster, which includes 
lists of passengers and survivors. The army-operated vessel was on a 
regular route to Senegal's capital Dakar from the southern province of 
Casamance when it overturned. Corpses of victims have been washing ashore 
while a salvage effort to recover bodies from the upturned hull has been 
abandoned. The government, which has accepted blame for the tragedy, is now 
considering whether to sink the ferry with its dead inside. In an address 
to the nation on 1 October, the president gave a strong message of 
condolence and a firm promise to find out exactly what happened to the 
ferry. Abdoulaye Wade said that it was one thing to talk of destiny and the 
work of the almighty, but God also gave people the freedom to act and the 
responsibility to go with it. He promised a full technical inquiry 
involving a French maritime expert and relatives of the victims. 4 October: 
Interior Minister Mamadou Niang says the ferry will be brought ashore in 
order to recover a number of bodies thought to be inside it and give them a 
proper burial. Mr Niang says that so far about 500 bodies have been 
recovered. 8 October: Experts from the United States and The Netherlands 
are due, today, to give the Senegalese Government their assessment of plans 
to tow ashore the ferry. On 7 October, the three maritime specialists 
visited the site off the Gambian coast where the Joola capsized on 26 
September. Senegalese Interior Minister Mamadou Niang has said the ship is 
stuck on a sandbank by its mast and smokestacks. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 8 
October 2002)

Weekly anb1010.txt - #5/7