Weekly anb0612-6.txt #6

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WEEKLY NEWS ISSUE of: 12-06-2003      PART #6/6

* Zambia. 1,000 oil tankers go missing in fuel controversy  -  One thousand 
oil tankers with US $13.5 million worth of fuel destined for Zambia's oil 
refinery from neighbouring countries never reached their destination 
between 1999 and 2000, said an auditor general's report tabled in 
parliament earlier this week. The report also noted that an examination of 
the supplier's records showed that more than double the amount of oil 
approved by the Zambia National Tender Board was sold to procurer the 
Zambian National Oil Company (ZNOC). There was also a discrepancy in 
official records between the amount of oil loaded by the supplier and the 
amount actually received in Zambia, news reports said. ZNOC, the national 
oil purchaser, was put into receivership in 2001 with vast debts. Zambia's 
oil procurement procedures have become part of a wider anti-corruption 
probe by President Levy Mwanawasa. Donald Chanda, former president 
Frederick Chiluba's economic advisor, who is currently being questioned by 
parliament's public accounts committee on the contents of the report, was 
previous board chairman of ZNOC, the Indeni oil refinery and transporter 
Tanzania Zambia Mafuta. The auditor general linked Chanda to the irregular 
supply of oil. In April this year, Zambia faced serious fuel shortages as a 
result of procurement problems. The crisis was attributed to Mwanawasa's 
decision to cancel a fuel supply contract with Trans Sahara Trading (TST), 
a subsidiary of the Canadian mining firm, Diamondworks. Mwanawasa cited 
unnamed irregularities when he ended the deal with TST as the sole supplier 
of fuel to Zambia in March. The then vice-president, Enoch Kavindele, 
awarded the supply contract to TST in August last year, cutting out 
TotalFinaElf, the main company supplying crude in the region. Kavindele's 
son, Junior, has reportedly been linked to TST, but Kavindele denied any 
personal connection to the firm. The controversy led to Kavindele's sacking 
last week for ignoring Mwanawasa's decree terminating TST's supply 
contract. He also allegedly failed to follow accounting procedures when he 
received a US $100,000 donation from TST for the ruling Movement for 
Multiparty Democracy.   (IRIN, Kenya, 5 June 2003)

* Zambie. Chiluba dans de sales draps  -  Le 6 juin, la police zambienne a 
failli procéder à l'arrestation de l'ancien président Frederick Chiluba, 
qui doit répondre de nouveaux chefs d'accusation de détournement de plus de 
32 millions de dollars américains du gouvernement qu'il a dirigé pendant 10 
ans. Toutefois, la procédure a été suspendue à la dernière minute après que 
les enquêteurs ont fourni une nouvelle pièce importante permettant de 
reconstituer le puzzle et d'accéder à un faisceau d'indices essentiels 
susceptibles de révéler comment l'argent public a été détourné. Chiluba est 
accusé avec six autres complices. Deux d'entre eux ont été arrêtés en mai, 
mais libérés sous caution, en attendant que Chiluba et les autres soient 
obligés eux aussi à rendre des comptes.   (PANA, Sénégal, 6 juin 2003)

* Zambia. Chiluba facing new corruption accusations  -  Zambian authorities 
plan to re-arrest former President Frederick Chiluba over allegations he 
used public funds to buy an apartment block in Belgium, a government 
anti-corruption taskforce said Monday. Chiluba already faces dozens of 
counts of theft under a wide-ranging crackdown launched last year by 
President Levy Mwanawasa, Chiluba's chosen successor who turned against his 
sponsor once voted to power in the poor southern African state. "There is 
one block of flats (apartments) which has been discovered in Belgium and 
seized which we suspect belongs to Chiluba and was bought using public 
funds by (former intelligence chief) Xavier Chungu,"Betty Mumba, 
spokeswoman for the Anti-Corruption Taskforce, told Reuters. She said the 
Belgian property had been valued at $1 million, but gave no further 
details.   (CNN, USA, 9 June 2003)

* Zimbabwe. Human rights conditions have deteriorated  -  In a new briefing 
paper published on 9 June, Human Rights Watch says that human rights 
conditions have deteriorated markedly in Zimbabwe over the last few months. 
The briefing paper, "Under a Shadow: Civil and Political Rights in 
Zimbabwe", details the government's policy of repression and the harassment 
of opposition party members by state institutions and supporters of the 
rulung party. The direct involvement of ranking government officials and 
state security forces marks a new and worrisome trend in Zimbabwe's ongoing 
political crisis.   (Human Rights Watch, 9 June 2003)

* Zimbabwe. Tsvangirai en garde à vue  -  Le vendredi 6 juin, au dernier 
jour d'une semaine de manifestations contre le régime du président Mugabe, 
la situation était plutôt calme au Zimbabwe. Les partisans du Mouvement 
pour le changement démocratique (MDC) ne sont pas descendus dans la rue, 
comme l'avait demandé leur parti, craignant la répression de la police et 
de l'armée. Par ailleurs, le leader du MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai, a été arrêté 
pour la seconde fois dans la semaine, inculpé d'avoir violé les lois de la 
sécurité nationale en appelant au renversement de M. Mugabe. Selon son 
avocat, il devra passer le week-end dans les locaux de la police. -- Par 
ailleurs, le même jour, le FMI a décidé de suspendre le Zimbabwe de ses 
droits d'adhérent. A la fin mai 2003, les arriérés de paiement du Zimbabwe 
auprès du FMI se montaient à environ 200 millions d'euros. L'organisation a 
déclaré qu'elle étudierait à nouveau la situation dans six mois. -- Le 7 
juin, Morgan Tsvangirai a été présenté devant un tribunal pour trahison, 
mais l'audience a été reportée à lundi. Washington a condamné l'arrestation 
de Tsvangirai et appelé le pouvoir au dialogue avec l'opposition. - Le 
lundi 9 juin, le secrétaire général du MDC, Welshman Ncube, a été arrêté, 
mais il a été relâché dans l'après-midi. Par contre, le tribunal a ordonné 
le maintien en garde à vue de M. Tsvangirai jusqu'au 10 
juillet.   (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 juin 2003)

* Zimbabwe. MDC under pressure  -  6 June: The main Zimbabwe opposition 
party has urged its supporters to turn out in force on what it calls D-Day, 
the end of a week of protests against President Robert Mugabe. The Movement 
for Democratic Change (MDC) called on its supporters to stage the biggest 
mass demonstrations in the country since independence, despite state 
repression. The five-day general protest called by the MDC was billed as an 
attempt to end President Mugabe's authoritarian grip on power and address 
the country's deep political, economic and social crises. But planned 
street protests failed to take off as government security forces cracked 
down, arresting about 500 MDC supporters, according to the opposition. The 
United States State Department has described Mr Mugabe's response to the 
protests as an ongoing wave of intolerance and brutality. However, there 
has been some criticism in Zimbabwe of the opposition's alleged lack of a 
credible strategy. -- In Harare, police, the army and ruling party 
militants are deployed throughout the city. Police arrest opposition 
leader, Morgan Tsvangirai. 7 June: The United States has condemned the 
Government's decision to charge opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai with 
treason. A spokesman for the US State Department said "continued 
intimidation and repression" was not conducive to the dialogue between 
President Robert Mugabe and his opponents which he said the country needed. 
Mr Tsvangirai spent the night of 6-7 June in a police cell, and his lawyer 
believes he will appear in court today. He is already facing another 
treason charge over an alleged plot to assassinate Mr Mugabe. 9 June: 
Morgan Tsvangirai appears in court today, charged with a second count of 
treason. The charges related to recent protests, which Mr Tsvangirai and 
his party described as the final push against President Mugabe's 
government. The MDC has threatened to renew the protests unless its leader 
is released. But Mr Mugabe says he is determined to serve his full term and 
face down the demonstrators. The MDC leader will spend a fourth night in 
jail after failing to be released on bail. MDC secretary-general, Welshman 
Ncube, is also arrested today and has been charged with treason for 
encouraging the protests. Mr Ncube is also already on trial for plotting to 
kill Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe. 10 June: Morgan Tsvangirai has been 
remanded in custody for a month. A magistrate tells him to remain in police 
custody until 10 July although he will be able to seek bail from a higher 
court later tomorrow. -- Welshman Ncube is released today.   (ANB-BIA, 
Belgium, 10 June 2003)


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