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Weekly anb01307.txt #7
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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 30-01-2003 PART #7/7
* Swaziland. Wasteful government spending - The International Monetary
Fund (IMF) has blamed wasteful government spending on luxury items for
Swaziland's inability to pull itself out of poverty. Based on an annual
survey of the economy, the IMF report to government said: "The serious
economic situation in Swaziland, with the food shortage and continued
spread of HIV/AIDS, exacerbates the already severe impact of persistent
high unemployment, income inequity and poverty." In general, the IMF found
the government's economic policies needed overhauling, and failure to do so
was "holding down Swaziland's growth prospects and preventing improvements
in the standard of living. Meeting these challenges would require a return
to fiscal discipline and reorienting spending toward critical social
sectors and humanitarian priorities," the report said. In particular, the
bank faulted government's pursuit of a US $72 million private jet for King
Mswati III. "The acquisition of a new airplane for the King would crowd out
social needs and deter donor support while depleting foreign exchange
reserves," the IMF said. Responding to the IMF's economic assessment
Minister of Finance Majozi Sithole told reporters: "We don't necessarily
have to be told by people from the outside how the country's economic
affairs should be managed." (IRIN, Kenya, 23 January 2003)
* Tunisie. Grèves de la faim - Le 24 janvier, 17 militants tunisiens des
droits de l'homme dans cinq pays européens ont entamé une grève de la faim
de deux jours par "solidarité" avec un journaliste et un dirigeant
islamiste détenus en Tunisie, annonce un communiqué du mouvement Ennadha
(parti islamiste interdit). "L'état de santé du journaliste et membre
dirigeant du mouvement Ennadha, Hammadi Jebali, condamné à 17 ans de
prison, continue de se dégrader après son douzième jour de grève de la
faim, ainsi que celui de Zouhair Yahyaoui", fondateur d'un site internet
dissident, souligne le texte. (Le Soir, Belgique, 25 janvier 2003)
* Uganda/Kenya. Former Ugandan rebels register for amnesty - A total of
358 Ugandans based in Kenya have registered with the International
Organisation for Migration (IOM) to take advantage of an amnesty offered by
the Ugandan government to former rebels. The programme -- funded by the US
government and the European Union -- is aimed at helping former rebels from
the Lord's Resistance Army, but could also incorporate people from other
rebel factions, he said. The Ugandan Amnesty Commission is interviewing the
former rebels in Nairobi, after which those who are found to be genuine
will be transported to Uganda by the IOM. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 28 January 2003)
* Western Sahara. 2 month MINURSO extension recommended - UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan has recommended the extension, by two months,
of the UN mission in Western Sahara in order to give time to the
conflicting parties to consider a recent UN-backed settlement plan. Annan's
recommendation was contained in his latest report to the Security Council
on the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). MINURSO's
mandate was set to end on 31 January, following a six-month extension in
July 2002. The Tuesday recommendation would extend the mandate to 31
March. (IRIN, Kenya, 22 January 2003)
* Zambie. Aide alimentaire française - La Zambie recevra un million
d'euros de la France pour l'achat de maïs destiné aux Zambiens menacés de
famine, a indiqué le 23 janvier à Lusaka, le secrétaire d'Etat français
chargé des Affaires étrangères, M. Renaux Muselier. Le don sera envoyé par
l'intermédiaire du PAM. Il a ajouté que la France allait offrir 600.000
euros à des ONG s'occupant des enfants défavorisés en Zambie. La Zambie est
un des six pays d'Afrique australe menacés par la famine. M. Muselier a
déjà visité le Malawi. Après la Zambie, il se rendra au Botswana. (PANA,
Sénégal, 23 janvier 2003)
* Zambie. Sida: femmes victimes - Les femmes de Zambie souffrent du virus
VIH à un niveau cinq fois supérieur aux hommes en raison du fait qu'elles
sont victimes d'abus sexuels, le plus souvent impunis, indique un rapport
publié le 28 janvier par l'organisation américaine Human Rights Watch.
L'Afrique noire est la région du monde la plus touchée par le sida. En
Zambie, plus d'un adulte sur cinq est infecté. (La Croix, France, 29
janvier 2003)
* Zimbabwe. Latest wave of arrests and torture signal bleak future - In a
Press release on 24 January, Amnesty International called on the Zimbabwean
authorities to end immediately the cycle of harassment, arrest and torture
of those who defend human rights and are critical of the government. The
organisation said: "Human rights defenders who expose human rights abuses
risk arrest and torture. Those who defend an independent judiciary or the
right to peacefully express opinions, are subject to intimidation or unfair
legal process". (Amnesty International, 24 January 2003)
* Zimbabwe. France scuppers EU/Zimbabwe sanctions - 23 January: France
has confirmed that it is inviting Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to take
part in a meeting of African leaders next month. Mr Mugabe is currently
banned from entering the European Union because of doubts about the
legitimacy of his re-election last year. But French Foreign Ministry
spokesman François Rivasseau said he was being invited in order to discuss
human rights and democracy. The EU travel ban, along with a freeze on his
assets, were imposed last February and the UK Government will seek to renew
it at a meeting of foreign ministers next week. If the sanctions are not
extended, Mr Mugabe would be able to attend the summit on 19 February, the
day after they are due to expire. Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) has condemned the French offer. "Any avenue granted
to Mugabe to attend international meetings at which he is treated as a
statesman and an equal is an affront to the feelings of the people of
Zimbabwe," said MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai. "It amounts to a recognition
and support of Mugabe's gruesome record at home." UK minister Peter Hain
said: "As far as we are concerned he is not welcome in Europe. Our views on
his odious regime are well known and the way he is devastating his country.
I am sure the French share that view." A total of 72 people closely linked
to Zimbabwe's leaders are subject to EU sanctions. The United States has
also imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe's leaders following Mr Mugabe's
controversial re-election. 27 January: European Union foreign ministers are
meeting shortly to decide whether to renew sanctions against the government
of President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe. Current sanctions include a travel
ban on senior government figures. France argues that EU sanctions against
Zimbabwe allow officials to attend meetings in Europe if the focus is on
human rights and democracy. -- The EU's policy on Zimbabwe is in disarray
later in the day, as foreign ministers fail to agree on a new package of
sanctions. Another attempt will have to be made to forge consensus. EU
ambassadors are expected to meet on the issue later in the
week. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 27 January 2003)
* Zimbabwe. Mugabe à Paris? - 23 janvier. Le président français Jacques
Chirac a invité son homologue zimbabwéen Robert Mugabe à se rendre au
sommet France-Afrique qui se déroulera du 19 au 21 février à Paris. Mais à
la demande du Royaume Uni, Mugabe avait été sanctionné par l'Union
européenne et interdit de séjour dans l'UE. Cette sanction arrive à
échéance le 18 février. Le 27 janvier, les ministres des Affaires
étrangères des Quinze doivent décider à l'unanimité s'ils reconduisent la
mesure. Selon The Guardian, Paris menacerait d'exercer son droit de veto si
Londres maintient son opposition à la venue de Mugabe. Paris assure que le
texte prévoit des dérogations "pour conduire un dialogue politique visant à
promouvoir la démocratie, l'Etat de droit et les droits de l'homme au
Zimbabwe". - Le 25 janvier, la Grande-Bretagne, la Suède, les Pays-Bas et
l'Allemagne ont officiellement émis des objections à l'invitation lancée à
Mugabe. Le 27 janvier, les ministres européens des Affaires étrangères,
réunis à Bruxelles, se sont séparés sans avoir pu s'entendre ni sur une
prolongation des sanctions contre le Zimbabwe, ni sur l'octroi d'une
dérogation à la France pour inviter M. Mugabe à Paris en
février. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 28 janvier 2003)
* Zimbabwe. England team revolt on Harare - English cricket was plunged
into its deepest crisis since the rebel tours of South Africa yesterday
when Nasser Hussain and his players called for their controversial World
Cup match in Zimbabwe to be rescheduled. In a statement that raises the
possibility of a boycott by the 15-man squad and places them in conflict
with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the players called on the
International Cricket Council to relocate the game to South Africa. In
marked contrast with the ECB, which has repeatedly said it can consider
only financial, security and "cricketing" issues, the players said moral
and political doubts over the match had informed their decision. "The
England players urgently request the Zimbabwe match on February 13 be moved
to South Africa," the statement said. "Without doubt the issues have been
weighing heavily on the players' minds, taking into account the moral,
political and contractual aspects." In the statement the players cited
increasing unrest in Zimbabwe and concerns that the match could be a focus
for protests against Robert Mugabe's government. "The players are greatly
concerned for the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe and especially for
opposition supporters, who may be targeted by the police using brute force
as indicated by the FCO [Foreign and Commonwealth Office]. It is very
important that no Zimbabwean, or any individual, comes to any harm because
of a cricket match in Harare." The players' opposition to the game, decided
at a team meeting in Melbourne on 25 January, is far more entrenched than
the ECB anticipated and leaves the squad in direct conflict with their
employer. (The Guardian, UK, 28 January 2003)
* Zimbabwe. Call for UN force to check food distribution - Zanu-PF
membership cards have been in such demand over the past few weeks in Harare
they have run out. There is no mystery behind the sudden popularity of the
ruling party in Zimbabwe's capital, notoriously an opposition stronghold.
The "Green Bombers", a new Zanu-PF youth militia that has taken to
presiding over the long queues for food, now demand to see people's party
cards. Those without them are given a simple choice: they can enrol on the
spot and keep their place in the queue, along with their hope of being able
to buy enough to feed their families; or they can refuse and be beaten up
for their defiance. At most, they can hope to be allowed to leave the queue
unharmed. Small wonder the Green Bombers' unorthodox enrolment campaign has
been such a success. People are vulnerable. The food shortages, until
recently confined to the rural areas, have spread to the cities. The World
Food Programme (WFP), which has been co-ordinating relief efforts for
nearly a year, is now starting urban feeding schemes. Until now, the WFP
has endeavoured not to be drawn into Zimbabwe's increasingly bitter
political crisis. It has engaged with the government of President Robert
Mugabe, accepting the decline of the rule of law in exchange for being
allowed to operate unhindered. But now even the tolerant WFP has had
enough. In his meeting with Mr Mugabe last weekend in Harare, James Morris,
WFP director, suggested bringing a United Nations taskforce in to monitor
the government's food distribution to verify its impartiality. (Financial
Times, UK, 28 January 2003)
* Zimbabwe. Harare police break up mayor's meeting - 29 January: The
police fired tear gas at hundreds of residents of the capital, Harare,
yesterday, as they entered the office of the mayor. Mayor Elias Mudzuri,
who is from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), says he
was trying to inform his constituents about water shortages. He said this
was the only way he could communicate with rate-payers because state-owned
media refuse to interview him or even carry his adverts. (ANB-BIA,
Belgium, 29 January 2003)
Weekly anb0130.txt - #7/7 - THE END
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Un homme meurt chaque fois que l'un d'entre nous se tait devant la tyrannie
(W. Soyinka, Prix Nobel litterature)
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Everytime somebody keep silent when faced with tyranny, someone else dies
(Wole Syinka, Nobel Prize for Literature) *
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