Weekly anb0522_4.txt #6

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

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 22-05-2003      PART #4/6

* Kenya. Menace terroriste  -  Un terroriste présumé, recherché par la 
police fédérale américaine comme un membre du réseau Al-Qaida, prépare un 
nouvel attentat au Kenya, a affirmé le chef de la cellule antiterroriste de 
la police kényane le jeudi 15 mai. Le terroriste en question serait Fazul 
Abdallah Mohammed (de nationalité comorienne), qui figure en quatrième 
position sur une liste de 13 personnes dont Oussama Ben Laden, recherchés 
par la police fédérale américaine FBI pour leur implication présumée dans 
les attentats du 7 août 1998 contre les ambassades des Etats-Unis à Nairobi 
et Dar es-Salaam. Tous les vols des compagnies britanniques entre la 
Grande-Bretagne et le Kenya ont été supendus à partir de jeudi 23h en 
raison de cette menace "imminente". Ces mesures seront revues "tous les 
jours", a précisé l'association des agents de voyage 
britanniques.   (ANB-BIA, de souces diverses, 16 mai 2003)

* Kenya. Tourists stranded by alert  -  16 May: Hundreds of stranded 
British tourists are trying to make arrangements to leave Kenya, after the 
UK Government banned all flights to and from the country. The action was 
taken amid fears that an al-Qaeda terrorist attack on a British plane was 
imminent. The last UK flight to leave Nairobi touched down at Heathrow 
Airport this morning, with 228 people on board. The British High 
Commissioner to Kenya says it is impossible to tell how long flights will 
be suspended between the two countries. The Kenyan Government has insisted 
that steps are being taken to protect those foreigners still in the 
country. It described the flight ban as an overreaction, saying it played 
into the hands of those who wanted to cause disruption. Kenya Airways is 
still flying between the UK and Kenya, but other Western airlines are said 
to be considering their position.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 16 May 2003)

* Kenya. Former freedom fighters angered by UK atrocities 
report  -  According to a report in the Daily Nation on 6 May, two former 
freedom fighters' organizations have reacted angrily to a report that 
investigations are under way over alleged atrocities committed against them 
by the former British colonialists. The War Veterans Association of Kenya 
and the Ex-Mau Mau War Council of Elders wants to know who ordered the 
statements to be made; who made them and when. "Our fear is that those who 
have appended their signatures might be ordinary opportunists who claim to 
be former Mau Mau," says the coordinator of the Ex-Mau Mau War Council, Mr. 
Mwangi Kaguma. The secretary of the War Veterans Association, Mr. Kabatha 
Muteru, and the other members of the two groups echoed Mr. Kaguma's 
sentiments. The members said in a statement that no one had consulted them 
over the matter and that they only read about it in the media on 15 May. 
The BBC is also reported to have said that police had started investigating 
claims that British officials committed murder, rape and torture in putting 
down the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya 50 years ago. According to the BBC TV 
report during its White Terror programme last year, more than 6,000 
statements had been taken from survivors of the Mau Mau movement, which 
were claiming human rights abuses. Meanwhile, Scotland Yard has confirmed 
that it is undertaking an initial inquiry into allegations of British 
atrocities. A spokesman for the Yard told the Nation that officers seconded 
from the anti-terrorist branch have started what it describes as 
"preliminary assessments" into whether or not colonial government officials 
or police officers breached the Geneva Convention in the way they conducted 
their activities during the Mau Mau insurgency.   (Thomas Omondi, ANB-BIA, 
Kenya, 16 May 2003)

* Liberia. Pourparlers de paix le 2 juin  -  Des négociations de paix entre 
le gouvernement libérien, les rebelles du LURD (Libériens unis pour la 
réconciliation et la démocratie) et le Mouvement pour la démocratie auront 
lieu le 2 juin au Ghana, a-t-on appris le 16 mai à Lagos de sources bien 
informées. La décision a été prise au cours de la 3e session du Groupe de 
contact international sur le Liberia, tenue le 12 mai à Bruxelles. L'ancien 
chef de l'Etat nigérian, le général Abdulsami Abubakar, servira de 
médiateur lors de ces négociations, qui devraient déboucher sur un 
processus de paix global avec un cessez-le-feu et des réformes électorales. 
Des élections présidentielle et législatives sont prévues au Liberia en 
octobre prochain pour mettre fin au mandat de six ans du président Taylor, 
mais les combats entre le gouvernement et les deux groupes rebelles ont 
touché plus de la moitié du pays et déraciné des centaines de milliers de 
civils.   (PANA, Sénégal, 16 mai 2003)

* Liberia. Fleeing rebel advance  -  20 May: Up to 10,000 people have 
escaped Liberia after the latest upsurge in fighting, the United Nations 
refugee agency has said. The newly-formed rebel Movement for Democracy in 
Liberia (Model) says it captured the south-eastern town of Harper over the 
weekend. Many of those fleeing were using dugout canoes to cross the 
Cavally River which forms the border between the two countries. UNHCR 
spokeswoman, Astrid van Genderen Stort, said the scene was chaotic but the 
agency was trying to provide basic aid for the refugees.   (ANB-BIA, 
Belgium, 20 May 2003)

* Liberia. Reprise des combats  -  Depuis le dimanche 18 mai, les combats 
ont repris à Ganta, ville située à la frontière avec la Guinée, entre le 
mouvement rebelle du LURD et les forces loyalistes, a-t-on appris le mardi. 
Selon le ministre libérien de la Défense, des troupes guinéennes, 
lourdement armées, y seraient impliquées. Celles-ci voudraient venger la 
mort de certains de leurs collègues qui se battaient aux côtés des rebelles 
du LURD. D'autre part, le nouveau groupe rebelle, le Mouvement pour la 
démocratie au Liberia, s'est emparé lundi de la ville de Harper, dans le 
sud-est du Liberia. Suite à ces combats, quelque 10.000 personnes ont pris 
la fuite et ont afflué en Côte d'Ivoire, a indiqué le HCR à Abidjan. Par 
ailleurs, M. Ruud Lubbers, haut commissaire de l'Onu pour les réfugiés, a 
affirmé à l'issue d'une visite trois jours en Guinée, que le partage du 
pouvoir au Liberia serait la meilleure alternative pour mettre fin à la 
violence dans ce pays. Mais le président libérien Charles Taylor a rejeté 
la proposition de formation d'un gouvernement comprenant des représentants 
des rebelles, faisant ainsi planer des menaces sur les pourparlers de paix 
prévus le 2 juin à Accra (Ghana). Toutefois, le 21 mai, l'archevêque 
catholique de Monrovia, Mgr Michael Francis, a annoncé qu'une rencontre 
entre le gouvernement et le LURD est prévue à Freetown (Sierra Leone) en 
prévision des pourparlers du 2 juin à Accra.   (ANB-BIA, de sources 
diverses, 21 mai 2003)

* Libya. Signs of opening up  -  19 May: After years of isolation, Libya is 
showing signs of opening up - both internally and towards the international 
community. This year the country is hosting both the first pan-African oil 
conference and the UN Human Rights commission - indicators of increased 
international involvement in both the economic and political spheres. But 
internally, the signs of more openness are much more obvious in Libya's 
economy - there is still, for example a large amount of internal 
censorship. "The economy is changing in Libya - this is why I'm here [in 
this post]," Libya's Minister for Economics, Shukri Muhammad Ghanim, said. 
"We are trying to work as much as we can to enable the private sector to 
take its part in the economy." But then with unemployment at 30% in Libya, 
some reform would seem to be essential anyway - not least because some 
international sanctions, predominantly from the US, still remain in place. 
The lifting of these sanctions - which, some hope, would come as a result 
of the reforms - would undoubtedly be a boost.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 19 May 
2003)

* Madagascar. Human bones trial ends  -  19 May: People across Madagascar 
are reacting with horror to the news of a massive trade in human bones. A 
court in the east of the country has sentenced 42 people to life 
imprisonment for violating tombs and trying to sell human remains. The 
investigating police say they seized more than two tonnes of bones stolen 
from over 300 tombs. Entire container loads of human bones were discovered 
at the eastern port of Tamatave, but it is not clear what their intended 
destination was, nor what the bones would be used for. It seems this 
macabre practice has been going on for some time. The first arrests of 
grave robbers were made back in 1997. In all, 75 suspects were tried, 
including a doctor and a mayor, and 42 people were convicted. They were all 
from peasant communities surrounding the shores of Lac Alaotra, 
Madagascar's biggest lake. The traffickers apparently believed they could 
make a lot of money out of the sale of bones, up to $4,000 a kilo, and that 
there would be willing customers. Most desirable apparently were ribs, 
vertebra and collar-bones. No-one seems to know what they were being sold 
for. There have however been some suggestions that the bones might have 
been used for some sort of traditional medicine. Grave-robbing goes against 
all established norms in Madagascar, where respect for the dead is a 
fundamental part of the country's tradition and culture.   (ANB-BIA, 
Belgium, 19 May 2003)

* Malawi. Journalists scrutinise the media laws  -  Journalists in Malawi 
view some of the current media laws as being archaic and in need of urgent 
review. They are especially concerned that it is the President of the 
Republic who appoints board members to the broadcasting regulatory body, 
the Malawi Regulatory Authority (MACRA) and to the national Malawi 
Broadcasting Corporation (MBC). This concern was emphasised during a recent 
meeting of lawyers, journalists and politicians to review the 
Communications Act. Participants said the present arrangement was a key 
obstacle to the spirit of unbiased coverage. They noted that the current 
situation results in political interference in the Media by the party in 
government, censorship, unfair dismissals and intimidation of staff at the 
MBC. Participants said the appointments should be left to media 
practitioners, media houses and associations. The President should simply 
endorse the names as he does with judges and the ombudsman. They also 
recommended that the post of director-general at the MBC should be governed 
by a fixed term.   (Frank Jomo, ANB-BIA, Malawi, 15 May 2003)

* Mali. Cotton subsidies squeeze Mali  -  African cotton producers are 
joining Brazil in their official complaint to the World Trade Organization 
about subsidies paid to their counterparts in the United States and Europe. 
In the US, for example, some 25,000 cotton producers receive almost $4bn a 
year in subsidies. According to the World Bank, this has had a substantial 
influence on the world price for cotton, which has been hovering at 
all-time lows in the past two years. At least 10 million small-scale cotton 
growers in West and Central Africa are suffering dramatically from the 
plummeting prices. In a good year, in the village of Konseguila, southern 
Mali, small-scale farmers can earn about up to a $1,000 a year by growing 
cotton. That is about three times the average annual income in this 
impoverished country in West Africa. But this is not a good year. 
Restaurant owner Alima Kone says the cotton crisis is slicing into the bone 
of an already skeletal local economy. She says people rarely come to eat at 
her establishment any more as they have no money. Hunger is everywhere and 
the next harvest is several months away. Cheik Kone, who has been growing 
cotton for three decades says he has never suffered like this before. He 
says this year he lost. He did not get back the money he put into his nine 
hectares of cotton - the seed, pesticides and fertiliser and that is not 
counting the back-breaking months of sweat and toil he and his family put 
into the fields they work entirely by hand.   (BBC News, UK, 19 May 2003)

* Maroc. Casablanca: série d'attentats  -  Le vendredi soir, 16 mai, une 
série d'attentats à l'explosif a causé la mort "d'au moins 24 personnes et 
au moins une soixantaine de blessés" dans le centre-ville de Casablanca, 
selon le ministre de l'Intérieur. Selon des témoignages, une série de cinq 
explosions, commises par des "voitures piégées ou des kamikazes", a été 
entendue entre 21h et 21h30 locale. Le Cercle de l'alliance israélite, qui 
possède un cimetière juif, la "Casa Espana" et un restaurant à proximité du 
consulat de Belgique, distant d'une centaine de mètres du consulat 
américain, ont été visés par cette vague d'attentats. Le consulat belge a 
été fortement endommagé. "Ce sont des actes qui visent à intimider et 
déstabiliser une démocratie", a estimé le ministre marocain. -18 mai. Selon 
les autorités marocaines, le bilan se chiffre à 41 morts et une centaine de 
blessés. Le Maroc est sous le choc. Une dizaine de kamikazes ont trouvé la 
mort dans ces attentats. Trois suspects, tous de nationalité marocaine ont 
été arrêtés. La police multiplie les opérations d'interrogatoires et 
d'interpellations dans les rangs de la mouvance islamiste radicale 
salafistre. Parmi ces groupes figurent prioritairement Salafiya Jihadia 
("le salafisme combattant") et Attakfir wal Hijra ("excommunication et 
retranchement"), dont les services de sécurité estiment qu'ils ont des 
"liens opérationnels" avec Al-Qaïda. Mais le ministre de la Communication a 
dit qu'il est "prématuré" d'affirmer qu'il s'agit d'Al-Qaïda. Le 
porte-parole de la plus importante association islamique du Maroc, Al Adl 
wal Ihassane ("Justice et bienfaisance"), a condamné le carnage. Le 
dimanche soir, près d'un millier de militants islamistes ont défilé dans le 
centre de Rabat pour dire "non au terrorisme". Le lundi soir, le ministre 
de l'Intérieur a déclaré que tous les membres du commando de 14 kamikazes, 
tous Marocains, dont 12 sont morts, avaient été identifiés. "L'arrestation 
de deux terroristes vivants nous a permis de confirmer nos présomptions sur 
l'existence de connexions avec le terrorisme international", a-t-il 
ajouté.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 19 mai 2003)

* Morocco. Two suspects held in Morocco  -  20 May: Morocco has announced 
that the suicide attacks which killed 29 people in Casablanca on 17 May are 
linked to "international terrorism". Interior Minister Mustapha Sahel went 
on TV to say that 14 people and their "network" had been identified as 
playing a part in the attacks, 12 of whom were also killed in the attacks. 
The remaining two were under arrest, the minister said as US Federal Bureau 
of Investigation agents arrived in the city to help the investigation. 
Agents from Spain and France - who both lost nationals in the attacks - and 
Belgium, whose consulate was among the targets, have also sent intelligence 
experts to the country. Mr Sahel said that one suspect was arrested on the 
same day as the bombings while the second had been picked up on the evening 
of 18 May. 21 May: The authorities have moved quickly to scotch claims that 
the attacks have damaged Morocco's reputation for religious harmony. They 
insist that Moroccan Islam upholds democratic principles and that the 
country's Jewish community has nothing to fear. Tourist authorities say the 
immediate impact of the attacks on tourism is slight. few visitors were 
cancelling bookings, or cutting short their holidays.   (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 
21 May 2003)

Weekly News anb0522.txt - #4/6