Africa

Burundi

Reuters 2 Mar 2003 Burundi's Buyoya, Rebels Try to Bolster Shaky Truce DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (Reuters) - Burundi's government and main Hutu rebel group agreed to speed up implementation of a truce agreed last December when they held talks in the Tanzanian capital on Sunday, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said. Museveni, chairman of the Great Lakes regional initiative on Burundi, told reporters after the one-day summit the two sides had made ``good progress,'' but declined to give more details. Burundian President Pierre Buyoya and representatives of the rebel Forces for the Defense of Democracy (FDD) met to try to start work on setting up a joint cease-fire commission to monitor their shaky and often broken truce. They called for the quick deployment of an African peacekeeping force by the African Union to monitor the cease-fire and oversee rebel activity in the central African country. ``Both parties welcomed the progress already made in the establishment of the African Mission in Burundi and pledged their full support,'' the two sides said in a statement. The talks were hosted by Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa, vice-chairman of the Great Lakes initiative, and attended by South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma as mediator. FDD leader Pierre Nkurunziza accused the government last month of not respecting the truce and said he would suspend all direct contact with Buyoya. Nkurunziza's fighters also stand accused of frequent violations of the accord. The truce was agreed last December with the aim of ending the war between Tutsi-led government forces and Hutu rebels that has raged since 1993, killing some 300,000 of Burundi's 6.5 million people, most of the casualties civilians. Fighting continues despite attempts at cease-fires and a three-year transitional plan to share power between Buyoya's minority Tutsi government and the majority Hutus. The FDD and two other rebel groups have signed up for the truce but another rebel group, the Forces for National Libewration, has refused to take part. Under the peace accord signed in August 2000, Buyoya is due to hand over power to his Hutu deputy, Vice President Domitien Ndayizeye on May 1 after 18 months in office. On Friday he asked parliament to debate whether he should carry out the handover, raising fears in the main Hutu political party that he might try to stay in power.

European Union 6 Mar 2003 Declaration by the EU Presidency on the judicial follow-up to the Itaba massacre in Burundi In the Declaration by the Presidency, on behalf of the EU, on Burundi of 25 September 2002 concerning the massacre in Itaba, the EU called for a neutral and independent enquiry to establish the facts rapidly and identify the guilty parties, so that they can be prosecuted and judged in accordance with due judicial process. The recent trial of two army officers with respect to the mass killings of civilians by the army in Itaba on 9 September 2002 did not meet minimum judicial standards. The EU therefore urges the Transitional Government of Burundi to apply those standards to the full to all individuals who are responsible for this massacre of civilians by the army as soon as possible, as was underscored by the UN High Commissioner for human rights during his visit to Bujumbura. The EU wishes to remind all parties to the conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian law to respect civilians. The Acceding Countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia, the Associated Countries Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey and the EFTA countries, members of the European Economic Area, align themselves with this declaration.

AFP 9 Mar 2003 Burundi rebels accuse govt of seeking to prolong war BUJUMBURA, March 9 (AFP) - The main rebel group in Burundi on Sunday accused the government of seeking to prolong civil war by imposing new conditions on the provisions of a December ceasefire accord. The Forces for the Defence of Democracy (FDD) was reacting to Bujumbura's announcement on that it would resume supplies to the rebels only if they withdrew to the positions they held before the accord was signed on December 3 and if they halted all acts of violence and looting against civilians. "These conditions are an excuse by the interim government, of the army, to pursue the war. They reflect a desire not to put into effect the accord," FDD spokesman Gelase Daniel Ndabirabe told AFP. The army began to provide supplies to the FDD in December, but very quickly stopped doing so. Nbabirabe also recalled that the government had prevented the FDD gaining access to radio airwaves, and that this and the new conditions on supplies were evidence of its belligerance. Although three of the four rebel groups in Burundi signed ceasefire accords with the government last year, fighting has continued, as foes accuse each other of violating the truce. The FDD is active in at least seven of Burundi's 15 provinces. Ndabirabe said his movement would continue supplying itself in the way it has done so in the past. This generally involves appropriating cattle and other goods from the civilian population. Burundi's civil war has claimed some 300,000 lives since 1993. One of the Hutu rebel groups involved, the main wing of the National Liberation Forces (FNL), has not entered into negotiations with the government. Local government officials, the army and civilians blamed the FNL for the death of one civilian the wounding of 10 others Saturday evening in a "punitive operation" near the capital. "The FNL came around 8:00 pm and gathered almost all the inhabitants of Kinyinya," local official Daniel Nsanzurwimo told AFP. "They executed one man with bayonet blows, injured 10 others and looted about 200 homes," he added. "They wanted to teach people a lesson," he said. One resident said the dead man had first been tortured and was only targetted because he had a Tutsi wife and was suspected of betraying the rebels. .

PANA 11 Mar 2003 Military tension rises in central, eastern Burundi Bujumbura, Burundi (PANA) - Ambushes and clashes followed by looting have been reported in Burundi's provinces of Gitega (centre) and Ruyigi (east), where the regular army has been battling with rebels for several months. The military said that on Monday three lorries ran into an ambush attributed to the rebellion on a Ruyigi road. Carrying traders, the vehicles were travelling to Bujumbura, the Burundi capital, when the rebels ambushed them on the outskirts of the administrative centre of the Ruyigi Province, said commander of the second military region, Colonel Cyprien Hakiza. The attackers robbed the passengers of their money and clothes, Hakiza said. Hakiza indicated that some fierce fighting has been raging of late in the Gishubi, Giheta and Butaganza communes between his troops and elements of the Forces for the Defence of Democracy (FDD), the main rebel movement in the country. Generally, the army abstains from issuing any death toll figures. President Pierre Buyoya's regime has toughened its stance against the rebels in the past few days by refusing to authorise any food supplies to the FDD troops donated by the European Union, unless the fighters ended armed attacks and looting. Buyoya is expected to step down by 1 May to make way for Vice President Domitien Ndayizeye, in compliance with the Inter- Burundian peace agreements.

IRIN 28 Mar 2003 Government, AU sign agreement on peacekeeping force NAIROBI, 28 Mar 2003 (IRIN) - The African Union (AU) and the government of Burundi signed an agreement on Wednesday on the statutes for the AU peacekeeping force due for deployed to Burundi, the country news agency, APB, reported. Burundi's minister of external relations and cooperation, Terence Sinunguruza, and the AU secretary-general's special envoy, Mamadou Bah, signed the agreement in the Burundi capital, Bujumbura. APB reported that Bah was, however, unable to confirm the strength and arrival date of the force. Burundi has experienced political upheaval and war since the assassination in October 1993 of its first democratically elected president, Melchoir Ndadaye. Approximately 200,000 Burundians have died since the civil war began. Based on the Arusha Peace Agreement of August 2000, a transitional government, made up almost equally of Hutus and Tutsis, was inaugurated on 1 November 2001. However, fighting has continued despite the ceasefire accords signed in Arusha, Tanzania, on 7 October and 2 December 2002 between the government and all rebel factions, except the Forces nationales de la liberation led by Agathon Rwasa. APB reported on Thursday that the agreement on the statutes related to the rights and duties of the peacekeeping troops and the logistic details of getting the mission's equipment into Burundi. The AU force is expected to supervise the implementation of the ceasefire accords and help with the stabilisation of the country, ABP reported. It will also help in disarmament and reintegration of displaced people and refugees. When the AU pledged in February to provide peacekeeping troops, Ethiopia, Mozambique and South Africa offered contingents but they have not yet arrived. However, the AU has sent observers to Burundi to shore up the ceasefire agreements. The first of the observers arrived in Bujumbura on 12 February. On 12 March, eight Gabonese soldiers arrived in Bujumbura, bringing to 43 the number of AU ceasefire monitors in country. Their arrival brought the force to its full complement. Burkina Faso, Gabon, Togo and Tunisia are the other countries that contributed personnel to the AU observer mission.

AFP 29 Mar 2003 Burundi peace force deploying in coming week: vice president BUJUMBURA, March 29 (AFP) - Domitien Ndayizeye, vice president of the war-torn African state of Burundi, said Saturday a South African peace mediator had assured him an African peacekeeping force would be deployed in Burundi in the coming week. "The last obstacles have been cleared, the mediator hopes this force will be dispatched next week," Ndayizeye told journalists on his return home to Burundi's capital Bujumbura after talks in South Africa. The two main political parties in Burundi on Saturday signed a political and security agreement in Pretoria, witnessed by South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma in his mediation role. "We insisted on the arrival of the African Mission which is indispensable to begin the process of encampment (of the various troop and rebel units) and the introduction of a true ceasefire," Ndayizeye said on his return. The peacekeeping force is to be made up of troops from Ethiopia, Mozambique and South Africa, together with 43 military observers already deployed in Bujumbura by the African Union. The African force was originally scheduled to be deployed by December to supervise Burundi's ceasefire accords, signed last year by three of the four rebel movements which have been involved in civil war in the country. The security pact was signed in Pretoria by Alphonse Kadege, president of the Tutsi-dominated Unity for National Progress (UPRONA), and Ndayizeye, who is also president of the Hutu-dominated Burundi Democratic Front (FRODEBU). Ndayizeye, a Hutu, is due to take over as president from Pierre Buyoya, a Tutsi, on May 1 in a transition designed to end an ethnically based civil war which has claimed more than 250,000 lives in the small central African country since October 1993.

Central African Republic

AFP 16 Mar 2003 Central African rebels seize capital, dissolve government by Christian Panika BANGUI, March 16 (AFP) - Renegade former army chief Francois Bozize suspended Central Africa's constitution and dissolved government and parliament after his supporter seized control of the capital Bangui while President Ange-Felix Patasse was on a trip abroad. In a radio broadcast, rebel spokesman Parfait Mbaye described Bozize as the "president of the republic." Bozize himself went on radio to address the nation, saying he was suspending the constitution and dissolving the government and the National Assembly. "However, I will meet with political parties and social leaders of the nation as soon as possible to agree on a programme of transition," he said. His spokesman said Bozize supporters were now in charge and that the military should return to barracks. The regime change was a "fait accompli." He said the new leader wanted Bangui residents to stop looting and stay at home. Bozize ordered a curfew Sunday following wild scenes of looting. The CAR, rich in minerals including gold, diamonds and uranium, has been plagued by coups and frequent changes of government since independence from France in 1960. Proclaiming a mission "of peace and national reconciliation" with a "temporary interruption of the democratic process," Bozize in his radio address announced a period of national recovery under a transitional government backed by a special council to include former heads of state. Patasse sacked Bozize as head of the armed forces in October 2001. Fighting erupted in Bangui, capital of the poverty-stricken state of some 3.5 million people, on Saturday while Patasse was in Niger at a pan-African summit. At least five people were killed in the coup, according to updated reports, and dozens were wounded. Patasse's plane was shot at as it tried to land Saturday at Bangui airport. It was then diverted to neighbouring Cameroon. African diplomats said Patasse was not expected to remain in Cameroon for long. Talks were under way to find a country which would take him in temporarily, with Gabon and Libya being mentioned. Bangui streets were relatively calm Sunday, though sporadic gunfire could be heard following a night of looting of government buildings, including Patasse's residence. Government forces appeared to have offered little resistance. Many Bangui residents welcomed the rebels, applauding passing patrols. "There was food in this country, but it was destined for certain categories of people, but not for us," said a housewife rummaging through the house of former first vice president of the ruling party, Hugues Dobozendi. Saturday's coup attempt was the second in five months. Bozize's supporters tried to topple Patasse in October, but the attempt failed when Libyan forces dispatched by Colonel Moamer Kadhafi to put down a rebellion in May 2001 defended Patasse. He also used fighters sent by a rebel leader in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo. Patasse has accused neighbouring Chad of backing the latest attempts to oust him. Long-running tensions between Chad and the CAR, said to be founded on rival claims to oil-rich territory near their border, were heightened when Bozize sought refuge in Chad in 2001. Libya's troops in the CAR, believed to number around 200, left in December and were replaced by a 350-strong regional peacekeeping force dispatched by the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC). According to reports three Congolese troops with CEMAC were killed in Saturday's fighting. CEMAC issued a statement condemning the coup, saying it undermined its efforts to bring about a peaceful national dialogue to resolve the country's political crisis. Gabon, which has troops in the CEMAC contingent, warned Bozize's supporters not to attack them. The curfew imposed Sunday does not apply to CEMAC, the rebels' statement said. Among long-term plans, Bozize Sunday identified "reunification and restructuring" of the armed forces and a "vast programme of disarmament in all regions of the country", plus the restructuring and revitalising of the administration, the rehabilitation of the country's finances and reinforced efforts to fight AIDS. France, which denounced the coup on Saturday, evacuated 40 of its citizens from Bangui on Sunday aboard two military planes, and warned those remaining to stay indoors.

AFP 17 Mar 2003 Coup leaders tighten grip on Central African Republic BANGUI, March 17 (AFP) - Central African Republic coup leader Francois Bozize on Monday tightened his grip on the country as France urged an all-inclusive national dialogue to end its former colony's long history of coups and unrest. The African Union meanwhile condemned the putsch which was mounted at the weekend during a trip abroad by President Ange-Felix Patasse. Bozize, the country's former army chief, said in a statement read on national radio that searches would be carried out "to unmask the thieves and other looters, as well as their middlemen" who had ransacked the capital Bangui after the coup. The fighting and looting was said Monday to have claimed 13 lives and left many more injured in the mineral-rich but impoverished country that has been plagued by coups and mutinies since Jean-Bedel Bokassa came to power in a military uprising in 1965. Bozize called for more troops from nations belonging to the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) to be drafted in to stabilise the volatile situation. A 310-strong CEMAC force was deployed in the Central African Republic in December to protect President Patasse after earlier coup attempts, but only troops from Gabon, Congo and Equatorial Guinea took part. "I am proposing the following solution: that the reinforcement of CEMAC forces be extended to all countries without exception... with the support of the French forces who have been sent to Bangui to evacuate foreign nationals," Bozize told Radio France Internationale. He added the coup was the "only solution" for the country and said it had "passed off without any real problems." Bozize suspended the constitution and dissolved the government and parliament after his backers seized the capital. France on Monday deployed 300 soldiers to Bangui to assist in the evacuation of foreign nationals and control access to the main airport of the nation landlocked in the heart of Africa between Cameroon, Chad, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo. Eighty people, including 60 French nationals, were flown to Gabon on a French army plane on Sunday, the French foreign ministry said. The former colonial power meanwhile called for full and comprehensive dialogue as the only real means of pulling the country out of its seemingly unending cycle of unrest. Bozize has been behind at least two earlier attempts to topple Patasse, the target of at least seven coup bids during a decade in power. "Only a true, all-inclusive dialogue will bring a return to legality, to national cohesion and peace," said French foreign ministry spokesman Francois Rivasseau. Patasse had proposed in November that the Central African Republic (CAR) hold a national dialogue that would bring together all of the country's key political and military players. He made his proposal after a coup bid launched in October by backers of Bozize was put down by government troops, backed by rebels from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Libyan soldiers. In a speech broadcast late Sunday, Bozize reassured Central Africans that the coup at the weekend was only "a temporary suspension of the democratic process". Rivasseau on Monday reiterated France's condemnation of the coup against "a democratically elected government". The acting head of the African Union, Amara Essy, and the AU's current president, South Africa's Thabo Mbeki, strongly condemned the coup, as did regional African bodies, including CEMAC and the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD). But Bozize rejected the chorus of criticism and attacked "10 years of democratic meanderings" by Patasse. Patasse has sought refuge in neighbouring Cameroon, after the plane in which he was returning to the CAR from a regional conference in Niger was fired on Saturday above Bangui.

BBC 18 Mar 2003 Fear grips looted Bangui Bozize (r) once put down a coup against Patasse (l) Initial euphoria has turned to fear in the Central African Republic where the rebel leader General Francois Bozize has seized control of the country. "The shooting has stopped this morning but there is still looting. Rebels have been shooting the looters dead," a Bangui resident told BBC News Online by telephone. "Administrative buildings, shops and schools remain closed. There are very few cars on the streets." The BBC's Joseph Benamse in Bangui says 15 people have died since rebels marched into Bangui on Saturday afternoon. France has sent 300 soldiers to protect foreign citizens in the country and reinforce peacekeepers sent by the Central African Economic Community (Cemac) last year. Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of Gabon and Congo have arrived in Bangui for talks with General Bozize and the Cemac force, reports the French news agency, AFP. General Bozize has called for more Cemac troops to be sent to Bangui in order to stabilise the station. A spokesman for the African Union said it was recommending that CAR be suspended from the body. Stranded president Ousted President Ange-Felix Patasse remains in Cameroon after his plane was fired upon in Bangui as he returned home from a conference in Niger. He has not yet issued a statement. General Bozize, who has declared himself the new president, has suspended the constitution and dissolved both government and parliament. According to local sources, he has met with the head of the army Colonel Antoine Gambi, the head of the police and the para-military gendarmerie, which indicates the military may be willing to back the rebel leader. Meanwhile, locals are wondering whether General Bozize has backing from outside the CAR. Witnesses say there are Arabic-speaking turbaned Chadian nationals among his supporters who are currently patrolling the streets. 'Dialogue' The United States has asked France to help protect its citizens and backed a French call for "a real, all-inclusive dialogue" as a necessary step to end the cycle of unrest in the CAR. A spokeswoman for the US State Department urged General Bozize "to take steps toward national reconciliation that will lead to a democratically elected government". Mr Patasse, who was democratically elected in 1993, has weathered numerous coup attempts. Following an outbreak of fighting last October, the country was divided into two - between rebels loyal to Mr Bozize, and government troops. Government troops regained control of the country this year, but the rebels remained at large in rural areas in the north, and in southern Chad.

IRIN 18 Mar 2003 New leader consolidates power, France sends troops , 18 Mar 2003 (IRIN) - The leader of the coup in the Central African Republic (CAR), Francois Bozize, met army and police chiefs on Monday in an attempt to impose law and order in the capital. "Our top priority is the capital's security," Parfait Mbaye, Bozize's spokesman, told IRIN. Mbaye added that there was "no animosity" between the leaders of ousted President Ange-Felix Patasse's security forces and the new administration, and that many soldiers, gendarmes and policemen had resumed their duties. However, the looting that started when Bozize's fighters entered Bangui and overthrew the government on Saturday continued through Monday. Youths armed with weapons stolen from Patasse's official home bound their heads with turbans, to look like Chadians, and went on looting sprees, targeting vehicles and other property. The ousted government had often accused Chad of supporting Bozize. In a communique on state-owned Radio Centrafrique, Bozize, the CAR former army chief of staff, promised that searches would be carried out to "unmask the thieves and other looters" who had pillaged the capital after the coup. Eight alleged looters were shot dead by soldiers on Monday in various suburbs of Bangui. Offices, schools and shops remained closed on Tuesday, despite Bozize's call for a resumption of normal activities. Looters also gutted petrol stations, making transport more difficult. Meanwhile, 150 French soldiers, redeployed from the Gabonese capital, Libreville, arrived in Bangui on Monday. They were the first of 300 troops sent by France to evacuate French nationals and to secure the main M'poko airport, AFP reported. Sixty French women and children were flown to Gabon on a French army plane on Sunday, the French foreign ministry said. Around 100 French nationals have taken refuge at the French embassy in Bangui, while others gathered at various sites after their homes were looted. Bozize, who was until the coup in exile in France, has called on Paris and member states of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community to send more troops to help stabilise his country. The African Union (AU) has condemned the coup and called for the reinstatement of Patasse's democratically elected government. The AU's Central Organ of the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution in the African Union has recommended CAR's suspension from the continental body.

IRIN 24 Mar 2003 Bozize appoints prime minister BANGUI, 24 March (IRIN) - The new leader of the Central African Republic (CAR), Francois Bozize, has appointed Abel Goumba as prime minister of a transitional government. Goumba, 76, who is one of the founding fathers of the CAR in the 1950s, said it would take him at least a week to form his government. "I cannot form a government without first having consultations with all the political forces, all the stakeholders, and the diaspora," he told IRIN on Sunday, just hours after his appointment. He said the Concertation des partis politiques d'opposition, an alliance of 12 opposition parties, should perform an important role in the new administration. Bozize, who seized power in a coup on 15 March, immediately engaged in intense consultations with political actors inside the country, including ousted President Ange-Felix Patasse's Mouvement de liberation du peuple centrafricain (MLPC). He enacted a transitional constitution, which does not set a time-frame for the transition. A leading MLPC figure and former interior minister, Jacquesson Mazette, said on Saturday that his party's executive board would meet to decide whether it would be in the opposition or join the new government. Meanwhile, hundreds of soldiers registered over the weekend to resume service on Monday, after a week of uncertainty. At least 1,000 soldiers - some in uniform, others in civilian clothes - registered on Saturday at one centre, the Ecole superieure d'administration et de magistrature. At the same time, the military authorities organised door-to-door searches in Bangui's various suburbs for goods stolen during the massive looting that engulfed the capital in the aftermath of the coup. Soldiers, policemen and peacekeepers of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central African States (CEMAC)loaded trucks with recovered property for return to its owners. A similar operation to recover and return stolen vehicles has been ongoing since Thursday, led by the 100 Chadian soldiers reinforcing the 303-strong CEMAC force. Life in the capital began returning to normal on Monday, with the reopening of shops and markets. Small numbers of cars appeared on the streets after the reopening of two petrol stations, selling rations of up to 10 litres to each vehicle. Bozize conducted a number of meet-the-people tours in different parts of the city over the weekend, seeking to reassure local residents, business people and traders, and members of various religious denominations.

Côte d'Ivoire - Also read News Monitors for Côte d'Ivoire from 2002 and 2001

NYT 9 Mar 2003 As Peace Accord Is Fleshed Out, Ivory Coast Fighting Resumes By SOMINI SENGUPTA BIDJAN, Ivory Coast, March 8 — The ink had not yet dried on another promise for peace in this country as fighting broke out in its unruly west overnight, with civilians fleeing their ransacked villages and men firing at French soldiers who are here to enforce a cease-fire in what was once the jewel of their empire. In Accra, the capital of neighboring Ghana, officials representing the Ivoirian government of President Laurent Gbagbo, and the rebels who have sought to overthrow him since September, agreed to the composition of a national reconciliation government, as envisioned by a peace accord signed nearly six weeks ago. Rebels dropped their most contentious demand — control of the Interior and Defense Ministries in exchange for seats on what is to be a newly established national security council. The proposed council is to have authority over all matters relating to the country's defense. The mediators of the Ghana talks, which began on Thursday, sounded an optimistic note today, saying that a new government would be announced before March 14. "Let us start," Albert Tevoedjre, the United Nations envoy to the Ivory Coast, said in an interview. "We are already late, and the country is suffering." The final communique from the Accra talks called for "the cessation of massacres and killings," though, as Mr. Tevoedjre acknowledged, a number of issues were still left for the new government to tackle, among them the disarmament of both rebel and government forces. Judging from the stalemates of the past, whether this latest deal will hold is anyone's guess. Since agreeing to a peace accord nearly six weeks ago, Mr. Gbagbo has been repeatedly accused of equivocating, and, in recent weeks, he has faced a growing chorus of international pressure to keep his promise. The peace accord, agreed to in late January in Marcoussis, France, envisioned a power-sharing deal between Mr. Gbagbo and the rebels who now effectively control half the country. The peace accord also called for both sides to lay down their arms and promised an investigation of charges of atrocities in the more than five-month-old civil war. As if on cue, with yet another peace deal in hand, fighting broke out in the west this morning. Unidentified armed men clashed with French peacekeepers near the western town of Duékoué. Two French soldiers, there to enforce the cease-fire line, suffered minor wounds, said the French Army spokesman, Lt. Col. Philippe Perret. More than 100 armed men, all Liberians who claimed to be fighting on behalf of the Ivoirian government, were taken into French custody late last night. The Ivoirian government has long denied recruiting refugees to serve as soldiers. The Liberians were disarmed and detained by the French, awaiting the arrival of Ivoirian authorities and relief workers.

WP 10 Mar 2003 For Now, Ivory Coast's Relaxed Rebels Enjoy Goodwill Northern Group Noted for Politeness, If Not Administration By Emily Wax Page A12 BOUAKE, Ivory Coast -- Lounging on rickety plastic chairs, the sweaty rebels with their fabulous hairstyles -- curvy cobras shaved into close-cropped hair -- swat away the mosquitoes, surf the Internet and let out a series of yawns. They laze away a sweltering Tuesday afternoon checking out the "R&B Diva" page on MTV's Web site, reading the international news and huddling as they launch an Internet search to see whether their rebel group -- the Patriotic Movement of Ivory Coast -- has made headlines. As the sun melts away and darkness falls, women in painted-on jeans and camouflage tank tops float over and flirt, offering steaming pots of goat, rice and tomato stew and invitations to go to a bar and dance. All around Ivory Coast, which has been mired in civil war since September, the rebels are understood to be hard at work, administering the northern part of the country and planning their march to take over Abidjan, the commercial capital 210 miles south. But here in Bouake, the rebel headquarters, it's clear that they are not doing much at all. "We are fatigued. We are too famous now," explained Saki Seraphin, a wiry man in his twenties with a video camera who is the director of the rebels' Web site, radio station and closed-circuit television operation in Bouake, called Radio Mutineer. "We are just always in demand." These rebels, who have more satellite phones than battle scars, have had a packed schedule since they captured half the nation after a failed coup on Sept. 19. With creamy new suits and a fresh dose of political confidence, the rebels jetted off to Togo in December for a peace summit, then to Paris in January for more talks. The talks produced a peace agreement that has yet to be implemented. In February, the rebels were off on a whirlwind tour of West Africa to huddle with leaders in Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria and Burkina Faso. "Being respectable rebels isn't easy," Seraphin said with a laugh, as his friends attacked the pots of rice and apologized for eating so much. "French portions in Paris were too small. We Africans, we need more." It seems almost like a reality television show. Seraphin, in fact, said he intends to submit what he calls his cinema verite footage to MTV -- after the war ends and the rebels win, of course. The question that hovers unanswered over Bouake, aid workers and analysts say, is what happens if the rebels, known as the MPCI, actually do win? With a deadlocked peace pact and the country on the verge of battle again, Ivorians, analysts and diplomats wonder whether the northern rebels could run a functioning government. "They are not just guys in army boots running around. They make a good presentation," said Jeff Drumtra, Africa policy analyst for the U.S. Committee for Refugees. "But the question remains: How much is superficial and how much substance remains? It will be a very important answer." Government leaders have accused the rebels of rape and other violent crimes, and a recent report by Amnesty International said that the insurgents executed at least 52 paramilitary police officers and eight of their sons during the initial days of the war. Rebel leaders deny the accusations, saying the police died in battle. Independent human rights groups and people who live in Bouake have vehemently dismissed similar allegations as propaganda fabricated by a government that the United Nations has accused of death-squad activity. As the rebels jetted around the globe, dining on goat cheese salads and miniature steaks with world leaders, they were treated well. Ghanaian President John Kufuor, head of the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States, now refers to them as "new forces" instead of rebels. Much of the goodwill can be attributed to the sharp contrast between the MPCI and the two other rebel groups fighting the government of Ivory Coast. The latter two, from the western part of the country, emerged relatively late in the war and are known to have Liberian guerrillas among their ranks. While the MPCI rebels have been polite to civilians, organized and calm -- paying cash for cars they commandeer and shooting any looters in their ranks, witnesses say -- the western rebels have been violent and rapacious. Yet after five months in rebel hands, Bouake has hardly become a paradise. Government offices are not functioning. Businesses are boarded up. Children have not been able to attend school. Half the town's population has left. Because banks are not open, money is scarce and residents barter household items for food. From time to time, even the rebels have had to trade a goat for a case of orange soda, or swap a bunch of sneakers for cigarettes. Their leaders live in abandoned government buildings; most sleep on the floor or on thin mats. They say they have enabled the impoverished, mostly Muslim north to break away from the more prosperous south and that they are creating a government of their own. But half the country is still waiting and worrying that dwindling food reserves will soon run out. "Of course, all of the official systems are not there," said Michele Page, who is working in Bouake with the U.N. World Food Program. "And there is a real sense from the people that the community wants to get back to normal. But there is also a real belief that the MPCI group is allowing them to do that." Aid agencies said the rebels have encouraged leaders in the north to organize temporary schools, return to prayer services and shop at the market. On Jan. 27, a local aid group called School for All started 12 pilot programs of several hours of school a day. There are few books or in-depth lessons, but parents say it is better than having their children sit around all day in the heat. "The rebels aren't bad to us at all," said Marie Songo, who sells eggs in the market and has three children. "We actually prefer them to anyone else." Some express worry that the rebels lack the skills to run a government -- though they say the same about President Laurent Gbagbo and his administration. "We are unsure what skills the rebels have, but we're also unsure what skills the Ivorian government has," said Drumtra of the U.S. Committee for Refugees. "This was brewing for a number of years." The rebels say their agenda and motives are sincere and that they want only what they have asked for since Sept. 19: better representation of southerners in the government. Their television station, which broadcasts news from both their network and the government's, has been lauded for presenting a balanced picture in a country where journalism is often combined with political views. "We want an end to xenophobia. We want the Ivory Coast to be one again," said Sgt. David Konate , a founding member of the MPCI, who invited everyone to go out dancing. "We will go to America and fight for our beliefs if we have to. We don't mind." While he spoke, Seraphin's camcorder was rolling. A group of women were cheering. But the town was silent and waiting.

AFP 10 Mar 2003 At least 60 killed in fighting in western Ivory Coast: sources ABIDJAN, March 10 (AFP) - At least 60 civilians were killed in fighting on Friday in western Ivory Coast, diplomatic and military sources in Abidjan said Monday, as a new "security council" set up to end a six-month war prepared to meet for the first time on Tuesday. Diplomatic and military sources in Abidjan said most of the bodies in the town of Bangolo, where clashes took place on Friday, were mutilated or had their throats cut. Earlier Monday, an international committee monitoring the implementation of a French-mediated peace in Ivory Coast confirmed several deaths in a statement. The statement said that the commander of French peacekeeping forces in Ivory Coast, General Emmanuel Beth, had confirmed "that serious clashes in Bangolo (on March 7 and 8) had claimed numerous civilian lives." French forces enforcing a shaky ceasefire in Ivory Coast had disarmed and apprehended several people after the fighting, said the statement by the committee, which is led by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special envoy to Ivory Coast, Albert Tevoedjre. Meanwhile, a 15-member "security council" set up to monitor the sensitive defence and interior ministries in a new power-sharing government to end the war which has split the world's leading cocoa producer was set to meet in the political capital of Yamoussoukro, the president's office said. Ivory Coast's new Prime Minister Seydou Diarra said the composition of a new government would be revealed in Yamoussoukro on Thursday. President Laurent Gbagbo -- a member of the council which includes Diarra, members from the three rebel movements and seven political parties and the police, gendarmerie and army -- were scheduled to attend the meeting. The main rebel group said the three insurgent movements would be represented at the meeting. "Security for the meeting will be assured conjointly by the French and Ivorian armies," said Lieutenant-Colonel Philippe Perret, head of the 3,000-strong French peacekeeping force in Ivory Coast. At talks in the Ghanaian capital Accra at the weekend, the main rebel group dropped its claims to the security posts, opening the way to an agreement on a unity government in line with a French-brokered peace accepted by President Gbagbo in January. During two days of talks, seven Ivorian political parties and the three rebel movements, who between them control the north and west of Ivory Coast, hammered out an agreement on the government, the creation of which is seen as crucial to restoring peace in the west African nation. On Saturday, they agreed to give rebels two posts, including the communications ministry, in the new government, and to set up the "security council" in charge of the security ministries. "

Mar. 10, 2003 Ivory Coast Army Denies Alleged Massacre AUSTIN MERRILL Associated Press ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast - After the discovery by French forces of "numerous dead" in a disputed region in the western part of the country, the Ivory Coast's army Monday rejected rebel claims that they were responsible for a massacre there. The claims came as the government said it was close to forming a unity government called for in the West African nation's shaky January peace deal. French army spokesman Lt. Col. Philippe Perret said French soldiers dispatched to Bangolo, in the cocoa- and coffee-rich western reaches of the former French colony, had seen "numerous dead" and evidence of significant violence. The region is contested by several rebel and pro-government groups. Perret could not confirm the number of casualties or the parties responsible. "We had nothing to do with that," Ivorian army spokesman Lt. Col. Jules Yao Yao said. "The chaos out west worries all of us, but we don't know who" is responsible for the killings. Western rebel commander Felix Doh, reached via satellite telephone in the area of Man, about 30 miles north of Bangolo, accused government forces of killing hundreds of civilians, calling it a `criminal" act. Western Ivory Coast has grown increasingly unstable over the past weeks as fighters from neighboring Liberia - notorious for their drug use and indiscriminate violence - have joined in the fighting. About 3,000 French troops are stationed in Ivory Coast to monitor a shaky cease-fire and protect foreign nationals. The front between the Ivorian army and rebels from the north has been largely quiet in recent months, although sporadic fighting continues to be reported in the country's west. A 1999 coup in Ivory Coast shattered decades of prosperity and calm in the West African nation. Since then the country has been plagued by political and economic instability. The current rebellion, which began on Sept. 19 with a failed coup attempt, has displaced more than 1 million people, according to the United Nations. Presidential spokesman Toussaint Alain said Monday the government estimates the war has killed at least 3,000 people, blaming Liberian fighters in the west for the most serious violence. Meanwhile, in the commercial center Abidjan, Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo met Monday with officials from the United Nations, African Union and a West African economic bloc to discuss an agreement reached over the weekend concerning the allotment of ministry posts in a reconciliation government. A coalition government was first proposed in a Jan. 24 French-brokered peace accord, but has yet to be implemented. Prime Minister Seydou Diarra - appointed as part of the peace accord - said the new government would be revealed in the political capital, Yamoussoukro, on Thursday. Rebel leader Guillaume Soro said late Monday that all rebel movements would be represented in meetings with Ivorian government officials in Yamoussoukro starting on Tuesday to begin selecting individuals for ministry posts. It would be the first official trip for rebel leaders into government-held territory since the conflict began. "

BBC 10 Mar 2003 Ivory Coast deaths confirmed President Laurent Gbagbo has the final say on any peace deal French troops in Ivory Coast say they have found evidence of extensive killings in the town of Bangolo, in the west of the country. A French army spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Philippe Perret, said the evidence of violence was very visible and had clearly affected many people. But he would not confirm a statement by rebel forces in the area that more than 200 civilians had been killed. News of the violence could put at risk an agreement on power-sharing reached between the government and rebel forces on Saturday. The leader of the Mpigo rebel group, Felix Doh, whose troops control Bangolo, claimed that the massacre specifically targeted civilians and blamed loyalist militia fighting alongside Liberian mercenaries for committing it. The Ivorian army has denied these claims. They have sugegested Liberian rogue groups may be to blame. Threat to peace process Rebel commander Ousmane Coulibaly said the victims were mostly foreigners and Ivorians from the mainly Muslim north. IVORY COAST CONFLICT Hundreds killed More than a million displaced 3,000 French peacekeepers Nation divided in two Power sharing deal still to work Who are the rebels? "I asked the French to come and see the dead. There is an entire Dioula neighbourhood that was decimated. All the houses are full of bodies, only the imam escaped alive," he told Reuters news agency from Bangolo. "There are more than 200 bodies, maybe 300. And there are more corpses in the bush," he said. Shortly after the attack, late on Friday night, French troops based on the road south of Bangolo detained 110 armed men. The group, made up of Ivorian militia and Liberian mercenaries, admitted to being pro-government forces called the "Lima" group. Mr Doh now says that his troops may now be obliged to respond. In an ambiguous statement, he said that if the international community did not react effectively, then he would. It was a direct threat to the peace process that up until now has been making positive strides forward. Less than 48 hours ago rebels agreed with ruling party politicians on the formation of a new unity government. The deal gives nine out of the 41 portfolios to the three rebel factions and seven to the main opposition party RDR. A key aprt of the agreement is the creation of a 15-member security council which will take responsibility for defence and interior issues. However, the deal has still to be approved by President Laurent Gbagbo.

AFP 12 Mar 2003 Ivory Coast to take atrocity cases to new world court YAMOUSSOUKRO, Ivory Coast, March 12 (AFP)- Ivory Coast decided Wednesday to take alleged atrocities committed during its six-month war to the new UN permanent war crimes court, by way of the UN Security Council, a source close to President Laurent Gbagbo said. The government will press the Security Council to bring a suit before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague regarding human rights abuses committed in Ivory Coast since a rebel war began there on September 19 last year, the source said. The aim would be to have the ICC "identify, track down and try those who ordered and perpetrated atrocities committed on Ivorian territory and falling within its senior jurisdiction," said an official statement, the content of which was made known to AFP. The demand was issued by Ivory Coast's permanent representative to the United Nations, Philippe Djangone Bi. Numerous serious abuses of human rights have been reported behind both rebel and government lines since the conflict began, dividing the west African country in two. In Ghana at the weekend, the rival Ivorian sides sealed a breakthrough agreement lifting obstacles barring the formation of an interim government by Prime Minister Seydou Diarra, who formally took office on Monday. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Tuesday attended a ceremony in The Hague where 18 ICC judges were sworn in to sit on the new UN court, established as the world's first permanent tribunal for war crimes. International rights group Amnesty International recently issed a report on the summary execution of 60 pro-government gendarmes on Ivorian rebel territory, while the United Nations released a report that said there were possible links between "death squads" active in Abidjan and Gbagbo's entourage. Gbagbo has denied any links with the so-called "death squads" and alleged that accusations were part of a smear campaign to discredit him and his wife Simone, a powerful force in the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) ruling party. Ivory Coast is not among the 89 countries which have ratified the Rome Treaty of 1998 setting up the ICC. Thus, rather than lodging a case directly with the ICC as other countries have done, it must initially go through the UN Security Council, which is also empowered to file suits. The ICC's prosecutor, yet to be appointed, will also be entitled to initiate legal proceedings. Late February, Ivory Coast said it would file a suit at the ICC against what it claims is a politically motivated and biased United Nations report denouncing government-backed death squads. "The Republic of Ivory Coast has decided to file a suit at the ICC in the wake of persecution committed after a coup bid on September 18 against the legally and democratically elected government," lawyers Pierre Haik and Eric Sossah stated. The communique said Ivory Coast would "seek a complete and impartial probe ... into all human rights violations". A report following a visit by UN Deputy Human Rights Commissioner Bertrand Ramcharan said the "death squads in Ivory Coast comprised people close to the government, the presidential guard and a tribal militia" from Gbagbo's Bete ethnic group. The United Nations, United States and France have criticised the existence of the death squads and warned that they were liable for prosecution and punishment in international courts.

BBC 18 Mar 2003 Ivorian opposition return home Ouattara is yet to return to Ivory Coast Senior members of the main opposition party in Ivory Coast have returned to the country to take their places in the new government aimed at ending the six-month civil war. Rally for Republicans (RDR) members landed in the commercial capital Abidjan on Tuesday morning, amidst tight security provided by West African peacekeepers. Amongst the group of returning politicians were the newly appointed Ministers of Justice and Agriculture, Henriette Diabate and Amadour Gon Coulibaly. They are due to take their posts in a new unity government which includes rebels and political opposition parties. Only half the members of the new government, attended its first meeting last week, citing security concerns and logistical problems. The next cabinet meeting is on 20 March in the capital, Yamoussoukro. 'Significant breakthrough' The leader of the party and former prime minister, Alassane Ouattara, who fled the country when his house was torched, has not returned to the Ivory Coast. A spokesman for the RDR in the UK told the BBC's Network Africa programme that their concern now is for the security of their ministers. Diarra has been asked to ensure the security of ministers He said: "We ask the prime minister to take all necessary precaution. We want to make sure that after their cabinet meetings our ministers can go home without anyone knocking on their doors during curfew hours, take them away and kill them". However, the BBC's correspondent in Abidjan Kate Davenport said their arrival is a very significant breakthrough and it shows that the RDR seemed "satisfied with the security arrangements". The formation of the new government, lead by Prime Minister Seydou Diarra, had hung in the balance until peace talks in Ghana two weeks ago. At that meeting the main northern rebel group agreed to give up the controversial positions of defence and interior as stated in the French-brokered peace plan in January. "Security council" A new 15-member "security council" has been agreed to oversee the running of the army, the police and the para-military gendarmerie. NEW GOVERNMENT Gbagbo's FPI: 10 seats Former ruling PDCI: 10 seats RDR: 7 seats Main MPCI rebels: 7 seats Western rebels: 2 seats Others: 5 seats Q&A: Why the fighting? Our correspondent says rebels have in recent days been appearing on state television, something which she adds, would have been unthinkable at the height of the violent pro-government protests two months ago. The arrival of the main opposition leaders comes as the government of President Laurent Gbagbo rejected a UN report blaming its forces for the massacre of about 100 people in the town of Bangolo earlier this month. Deputy Defence Minister Bertin Kadet said there was no link between regular Ivorian forces and Liberian guerrillas who are believed to have carried out the killings. He accused French forces of deliberately trying to blame his forces for massacres committed by Ivorian rebels. Million displaced The report, which was presented to the United Nations on Friday, was based on statements given by French troops, who arrested over a hundred Liberians on the night of the killings. The main MPGI rebels, who took up arms against President Gbagbo last September, control the largely Muslim north, where support is strong for the RDR. The south remains under the control of Mr Gbagbo. During the rebellion, several Muslims and opposition sympathisers have been killed in government-controlled areas. Hundreds of people have been killed and more than a million displaced in the conflict, which has worsened ethnic and religious rivalries in Ivory Coast. Former colonial power France has some 3,000 peacekeepers monitoring a ceasefire.

ICRC 19 Mar 2003 Press Release 03/17 Côte d'Ivoire: Four Red Cross volunteers found dead Geneva (ICRC) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was deeply shocked to learn of the death of four volunteers of the Red Cross Society of Côte d'Ivoire who worked for the local branch in Toulepleu, a town in the western part of the country. The bodies of Gonzreu Kloueu, his son Thierry, Te Goue and Vally Camara, all missing since 12 January 2003, have just been found and identified. According to initial reports, the four volunteers were abducted by armed men while carrying out their duties. The ICRC extends its deepest sympathy to the families of the deceased and to all the volunteers of the Red Cross Society of Côte d'Ivoire. The organization calls for an immediate investigation into the circumstances of this tragic incident and for new security guarantees enabling Red Cross personnel to pursue their efforts to meet the urgent needs of people living in the Toulepleu area.

DR Congo

IRIN 7 ar 2003 Kampala, Kinshasa say UPC claims of Bunia massacres "are false" - The Uganda People's Defence Forces and the Kinshasa government have dismissed claims by the leader of the Union des patriotes congolais (UPC), Thomas Lubanga, that they massacred residents of Bunia in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as the Ugandan military and allied Lendu militias drove out the UPC from the city on Thursday. "Of course these allegations are false - he [Lubanga] is the one who attacked us," Maj Shaban Bantariza, the Ugandan military spokesman, told IRIN on Friday from Kampala. "There were no massacres. There is no trouble at present in Bunia. You can walk around town freely." As for the Lendu militias, Bantariza said the Ugandan military had stopped them from pillaging. Lubanga told IRIN on Friday that after his troops had withdrawn from Bunia, Ugandan soldiers, among whose ranks he alleged were members of the Forces armees congolaises (FAC), "went on to massacre the population and pillage the town" as Ugandan tank crews who had been mobilised for the attack sat and watched. Lubanga said the killings targeted UPC collaborators and people of the Hema community, to which he belongs. "They pillaged basically all of the merchants of our ethnic group who were sustaining the bulk of economic activity in the city," he said. Lubanga, whose fighters were routed after several hours of intense combat, said he was camped eight kilometres outside Bunia, from where he planned "to continue to fight the foreign occupation". No independent figures regarding numbers of killed and wounded are yet available. However, UPC allies, the Rwandan-backed Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD-Goma), reported on Friday a preliminary toll of the fighting in Bunia as 500 deaths, most of whom were of civilians. Lubanga accused the Ugandan military of covering-up the killings. "This morning, Ugandan troops forced the population to gather all corpses and load them on trucks which brought them to the airport. This was done to erase all evidence [of killings]," he said. Bantariza, however, dismissed these accusations. "There are no dead in town, because there was no resistance," he said. "The UPDF suffered only one fatality while the UPC was shelling our positions outside of Bunia." Lubanga also denounced the reported arrival of several large cargo aircraft bringing additional Ugandan troops. For its part, the RCD-Goma concurred with Lubanga's allegations that Kinshasa had sent forces to Bunia. "Beginning at 04:20 GMT, the Ugandan army deployed its arsenal of heavy artillery and tanks and other armoured vehicles mounted with heavy armaments from the National Airport of Bunia and began to pillage the city," Jean-Pierre Lola Kisanga, an RCD-Goma spokesman, said in a communique issued on Friday. At the same time, he added, along the axis of Bogoro, south of Bunia, a government army regiment that included elements of the Armee du peuple congolais (the army of Mbusa Nyamwisi’s RCD-Kisangani/Mouvement de liberation) and ethnic Ngiti-Lendu fighters launched attacks on UPC positions 17 km south of Bunia. Kisanga said several public and private buildings were also destroyed. Because of this fighting in Bunia, RCD-Goma withdrew from peace talks that were nearing conclusion on Thursday in Pretoria, South Africa. However, they returned later in the evening and added their signature to two agreements - one on a transitional constitution, the other on the formation of a unified national army - that had been signed by all other parties to the inter-Congolese dialogue. Meanwhile, the Kinshasa government said its army was not even present in Bunia. "There are no government troops in Ituri or Bunia," Luaba Ntumba, the minister for human rights, told IRIN on Friday. He recalled that the Luanda agreement of 6 September 2002 signed by presidents Joseph Kabila of the DRC and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda accorded responsibility for security in Bunia to the Ugandan military. "It is for this reason that Uganda maintained two battalions there," he said. "However, according to the most recent agreement reached on 11 February in Dar es Salaam, Ugandan forces must leave the city by the end of March, to be replaced by the national police." Bantariza expressed a similar point of view. "We are doing what we can to see the IPC [Ituri Pacification Commission] is put in place as per the Luanda accord signed by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and DRC President Joseph Kabila, so that we can withdraw from the Congo," he said. "If stability and peace can be brought to this region, we can then begin the nationwide peace process," Ntumba added. The UPC, however, feels that this process cannot take place for so long as it is not taken into account. "They want to unify all of the armed factions without us, but what will become of the 12,000 armed men under our control?" Lubanga said. He was reacting to the agreement reached on Thursday by all parties to the inter-Congolese dialogue on the transitional constitution and unified national army. UPC was not a party to these talks, nor was it a signatory of the 17 December 2002 peace accord reached in Pretoria.

AFP 11 Mar 2003 UN rights rapporteur wants special court for DR Congo KINSHASA, March 11 (AFP) - The United Nations' rapporteur on human rights in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Julia Motoc, has pressed the government to set up a special court for crimes against humanity committed between 1996 and 2002. "The time has come to put an end to impunity in Democratic Republic of Congo and I believe that a special court for the Congo will be important in judging those responsible for crimes," Motoc said late Monday. In a three-day trip to the vast country emerging from a war which embroiled half a dozen African nations at its height, Motoc on Saturday had talks with President Joseph Kabila. She then headed eastwards to Kisangani in Orientale province, Bukavu in Sud-Kivu and Goma in Nord-Kivu, which lie more than 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) from the capital, in territory controlled by Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) rebels. Motoc said she had pressed Kabila to go ahead with a plan to scrap by the end of March the country's Court of Military Order, set up under his late father's regime and which fails to meet the standards of international law. The tribunal, whose judgements are without appeal apart from presidential clemency, in January sentenced 30 people to death in a mass trial of suspects in the murder of president Laurent Kabila in January 2001. The office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is already working on proposals for a DRC court which would "try to punish those who committed crimes against humanity," Motoc said. Under the proposal, judges appointed by the Kinshasa government would sit alongside others selected by the international community, added Motoc, who comes from Romania. Setting up such a tribunal would call for a complete reform of the justice system and training schemes for judges, the rapporteur said, but "programmes are already in hand to reform the Congolese judiciary". Motoc added that these programmes had Kabila's support, but the UN was still urging his government to reverse a decision to suspend a moratorium on the death penalty. Major DRC players in the war that began in August 1998, the year after then rebels led by Laurent Kabila toppled the kleptocratic dictatorship of Mobutu Sese Seko, have accused each other of war crimes, including the massacres of civilians and cannibalism.

Guardian UK 11 Mar 2003, Congo cannibalism claim provides first challenge, James Astill in Nairobi The first case likely to be heard by the international criminal court involves allegations of cannibalism. A UN investigation found evidence that the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC), which controls much of the north of the country, had massacred and eaten civilians. It was referred to the international criminal court by Congo's government and the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), a French non-governmental organisation. A second complaint deals with the MLC's incursion into the Central African Republic last year, at the invitation of its besieged president, Ange-Felix Patasse. The FIDH has accused both Mr Patasse and Jean-Pierre Bemba, the leader of the MLC, of sponsoring war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the massacre of civilians outside the Central African Republic's capital, Bangui. The MLC's alleged crimes in Ituri province were reported by UN investigators in language framed to suggest genocide: in an operation codenamed "Clean the Slate", its fighters swept through the province, murdering, raping and putting more than 150,000 people to flight. "The operation was presented to the people almost like a vaccination campaign, envisioning the looting of each home and the rape of each woman," said Patricia Tome, a spokeswoman for the UN ceasefire monitoring mission in Congo. "They cut out the hearts and other organs of their victims and forced families to eat them. One little girl was executed, cut into little pieces and then eaten." With Congo's government exerting little control outside the capital Kinshasa, and its legal system incompetent, Mr Bemba's case may seem a perfect curtain raiser for the new international criminal court. Yet Congo analysts remain sceptical. Few of the nine national armies, six main rebel groups, and hordes of local militias who have fought in Congo's four-year war have avoided accusations of similar atrocities - raising questions over why Mr Bemba should be singled out. The government referred Mr Bemba to the court this year while in the middle of fraught power-sharing negotiations, but since he agreed to trade his territory for a vice-presidency last week it has been suspiciously silent on the matter. Moreover, even if charges are filed against Mr Bemba, it is unclear who would bring him to justice. He is almost as powerful in Congo as President Joseph Kabila. The UN mission in Congo, meanwhile - which has proved the most expensive in history, costing around pounds 375m a year - has shown no appetite for confrontation.

AFP 17 Mar 2003 Civilians bear the brunt of conflict in DR Congo by Vincent Mayanja BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo, March 17 (AFP) - Marie Dwagani, 24, whose foot was recently blown off when she stepped on a landmine in this Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) town, sat groaning in what must be excruciating pain. The mother of two stepped on a landmine as she ran for her life on March 6 when fighting erupted between Ugandan troops and the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC), a small rebel group. "We decided to dip her leg in salt solution so that it does not become septic and remove the shrapnel and dirt in her flesh," said a member of staff in Bunia hospital. Aid agencies said this week that up to 60 people were killed during the fighting and 200 others were wounded. Thirteen-year-old Rehema Milka escaped death narrowly when two bullets hit her. "I was in the house when gunshots started then I felt a sharp thing hitting me on the head and the other on the shoulder," she said. Antoinette Manyosi, 47, also lost her leg when she stepped on a landmine in January. Forty people were admitted in Bunia hospital on March 6 with bullet wounds and more than 200 others were treated and discharged. The sprawling hospital lacks facilities, medicines and trained personnel. Bunia lies in the Ituri province, a strife-torn region which borders on Uganda. Despair has left some people nostalgic of the calm that prevailed during the regime of Mobutu Sese Seko, the dictator who reigned over what was then called Zaire from 1965 to 1997. "Mobutu gave us peace, but now people are suffering and the situation is catastrophic," said Mileyo Lotiyo Misaka, the governor of Ituri. "We have no schools, roads have broken down, hospitals have no medicine and we have lots of diseases," Misaka told a group of visiting Ugandan journalists. Typhoid, meningitis, malaria and cholera have become major killers in the area, he added. Hospital superintendent Pascal Mbokawa said he has not received his salary from Kinshasa for several years and that to keep the facility running, each patient is charged a fee. "Some relief agencies help by providing some medicines to the hospital so that we can handle cases here," said Mbokawa. Tribal clashes have made it impossible for relief agencies to have access to people outside Bunia town. in Ituri, where people had been living together more or less peacefully for generations, recent years have seen the ethnic groups' disputes over land and power escalate into raids and counter-raids that claimed thousands of lives and forced many thousands more to flee their homes. Most of the fighting in the region has pit ethnic Hema against their Lendu rivals. Kampala first sent troops to the area in 1998, to back a rebellion against the regime of late DRC president Laurent Kabila and to counter the threat of Ugandan Allied Democratic Forces insurgents who reportedly had bases in the region.

IRIN 18 Mar 2003 Ituri ceasefire deal signed KINSHASA - Delegates of the Ugandan and Congolese government, different rebel groups, and ethnic militia operating in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) signed a ceasefire accord on Tuesday in Bunia, the principal city in Ituri District of Orientale Province. The ceremony was presided over by Amos Namanga Ngongi, the UN secretary-general's special representative to the country. Diplomats accredited to the DRC were also present, including the envoy of Angola, which mediated the 6 September 2002 accord between presidents Joseph Kabila of the Congo and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda. The UN Mission in the DRC, known as MONUC, said the ceasefire would be followed on Thursday by the establishment of a preparatory committee for the establishment of the long-awaited Ituri Pacification Commission. Formation of the commission has been delayed several times by fighting between various rebel factions and militias. The withdrawal from the DRC of all Ugandan troops, who now control Bunia after booting out its erstwhile allies of the Union des patriotes congolais (UPC), is only expected after a Congolese local administration is established in the city. This is an issue due to be discussed by the Ituri commission. "Ethnic [community] leaders and the representatives of different armed movements will be involved in this process," Hamadoun Toure, the MONUC spokesman, told IRIN. The issue of Uganda's troop withdrawal has been a source of mounting tension between Kampala and Kigali, which supports the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie-Goma and its new ally, the UPC. Describing the Ugandan troops in the DRC as a threat to Rwanda's security, Kigali has threatened to redeploy its troops to eastern DRC. That possibility has prompted DRC Foreign Minister She Okitundu to describe the Rwandan threat as a maneouvre to provoke a "remake of the battle of Kisangani" that began there between Ugandan and Rwandan troops on 4 June 2000, thereby creating a split between once very close allies.

Egypt

Al-Ahram 27 Feb. - 5 March 2003 Pulling the carpet Hani Mustafa speaks to Atom Egoyan, the director celebrated in Cairo's first Canadian Cinema Festival Though described by El-Sayed El-Desouqi, its director, as a forum for Canadian-Egyptian exchange, the first Canadian Cinema Festival, held in Cairo last week, offered only the work of the Armenian- Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan. Screenings were held at the Artistic Creativity Centre, Opera House Grounds, often in the presence of Egoyan, who arrived in Cairo from Germany where he headed the Berlin Film Festival. In this sense the event was a celebration of the director in the city of his birth (Egoyan was born in Cairo in 1960, living in Heliopolis until he emigrated with his family in 1963). With a more expansive programme upcoming rounds of the festival could better serve the purpose of introducing the work of Canadian filmmakers, though for the time being we must be content with a programme featuring only Egoyan, the highlight of which was the screening the director's latest film, Ararat. This opened the festival on 16 February -- it was screened in Cannes, outside the official competition, in 2002. The Sweet Hereafter, which won the special jury award at Cannes in 1997, and Exotica, which won the Cannes critics' award in 1994, were also included in the programme. Ararat would at first sight seem to be about the Armenian holocaust, an initial impression reinforced by the initial titles, displayed against the backdrop of an oil painting of a mother and child that gradually metamorphoses into a sepia tinted photograph of the same figures. Yet Egoyan, rather than undertake any form of documentation, extends instead a complex web of dramatic lines, each of which pursues the fate of one family, weaving a human narrative that is at odds with the opening scene. "The structure of the film is not confusing," Egoyan told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Actually, it is quite clear. But at the beginning you are not sure that these pieces are going to connect. The most complex part is about the relationship between the mother and the step daughter. There are a lot of relationships and each one has to be analysed. If you don't analyse the film it becomes difficult, but if you are willing and curious, it begins to resemble a carpet -- distinct strands woven together." The film opens at a Canadian airport with Edward (played by Armenian-French singer Charles Aznavour) intercepted by the customs officer, David (Christopher Plummer), who objects to Edward entering the country with a pomegranate -- symbol of Armenia -- since it is prohibited to import foodstuffs; Edward responds by eating the pomegranate in front of the officer. Many characters are then presented separately, without Egoyan giving any indication of the connection between them. One dramatic strand concerns Ani, an Armenian- Canadian woman in her 40s (played by Egoyan's wife Arsine Khanjian) and her relationship with her son Raffi (David Alby), from her first marriage, whose relationship with Celia, the daughter of her late (second) husband, is worrying her. This strand of the drama is in itself extremely complex. Ani, an art historian who has written a monograph on the Armenian-American painter Arshile Gorky, teaches art history and during lectures on Gorky, who committed suicide in 1948, is confronted by Celia who believes that it was Ani's relationship with her father that drove him to suicide. It is not a plot line that seems integrated with the rest of the film: apart from the link Celia forges between her father's suicide and that of Gorky, who lost his family in the holocaust in 1915, connections with the Armenian tragedy are barely developed. Raffi himself becomes the focus of several dramatic strands, as his step-sister's lover, desperately searching for the reasons why his father should have been killed during an aborted attempt to assassinate a Turkish diplomat. Egoyan's determination to weave a single carpet results in the forcing of connections: Edward, for example, is in Canada to work on a film about the holocaust. He solicits the help of Ani as an expert on Gorky, who witnessed events in Van as a child. Through Ani's intervention Raffi becomes part of the film team, working as a driver and deputy producer. David's son, meanwhile, is a security officer at the art museum where Gorky's double portrait of himself and his mother, based on the photograph in the opening sequence, is exhibited; in one scene he prevents Celia from slashing the painting following a clash with Ani. And David's son's half- Turkish friend, Ali, is cast as the head of the Turkish forces in Edward's film. The intermeshing of so many narrative strands is an attempt by the director to avoid turning what is obviously a film about the genocide into an unmediated piece of propaganda: "I am very aware that if the film just showed the genocide, and showed it for emotional reasons, it would be very easy to say it's propaganda. Now propaganda is simple, repetitive and doesn't generate questions, so I did the opposite. Maybe I went too far in showing that this is not propaganda, that it isn't necessarily the Armenian point of view. I wanted to create a form that would allow the issue to be discussed with some degree of distance, critical distance, but also with an understanding of the reality of living with the issue today. My biggest fear, and the easiest thing that could have happened would have been for the film to be dismissed as propaganda. If you look at the film Aznavour is making you will see what I mean. But having it within the larger setup shows how his generation, the survivors' children who were told such stories by their mothers, might come to see it that way." In seeking to make a film that might transcend both static violence and political statement Egoyan opted to allow the unravelling of the narrative threads non-chronologically. Scenes at the airport serve as an anchor within this complex structuring, as scenes shift from a filmed recreation of events in 1915 to Gorky painting in New York in the 1940s, to the encounters of the contemporary characters as they pass through customs. That between Raffi and David, which occurs midway through the film, is used both as an opportunity to illuminate related aspects of the narrative and as introduction to the eventual denouement. Raffi is holding film canisters that he tells David are exposed and cannot be opened. Their conversation clarifies several points, not least the nature of Raffi's involvement in Edward's project, and allows David a final act of magnanimity on his final day as a customs official. When, later in the film, it is clear that the canisters are full of heroin, David opts to let Raffi walk free, convinced that he did not know what he was carrying. Eschewing melodrama, Egoyan uses Edward's documentary to present historical scenes and though, on occasion, it is made deliberately obvious that the massacres are happening on a set, this does not render them any less harrowing. "I think I wanted to show how four generations interact," Egoyan says, "and even within each generation there are complicated stories. It is very ambitious, but it was necessary for me to tell the story this way. Maybe someone else would have found a simpler way of doing it."

Ethiopia

Reuters 27 Feb 2003 Ethiopia drought may be worst since 1984 - US envoy By David Brough ROME (Reuters) - Ethiopia is probably facing its worst drought since the great famine of 1984 and will need a huge mobilisation of food aid to prevent famine again this year, Tony Hall, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. food agencies, said. Hall, a former Democrat congressman of Dayton, Ohio, has recently returned to his Rome base following a visit to Ethiopia with assistant administrator for the U.S. Agency for International Development Roger Winter between February 15-21. "My visit there with Roger Winter confirmed that this year Ethiopia will experience probably its worst drought since 1984/85," Hall said in an open letter sent to Reuters and other organisations late on Wednesday. "I am strongly convinced, after visiting the Ethiopian countryside and seeing literally thousands of acutely malnourished children, that the international community must move immediately to provide the large quantities of food and non-food emergency assistance that will be necessary to prevent famine in Ethiopia again this year." Hall's remarks contrasted sharply with an interview he gave to Reuters in November in which he said Ethiopia was unlikely to be facing a crisis on the scale of the 1984 famine that killed nearly one million Ethiopians. According to Hall's report, 11.3 million victims of drought will require about 1.4 million tonnes of food aid in 2003, and an additional three million people will need to be closely monitored. "With 20 percent of Ethiopia's population at risk, unless deftly handled, 2003 could well become a crisis of similar magnitude to the catastrophe of 1984," Hall said. "Given the depth and wide geographic spread of the hunger, greater leadership and involvement of the United Nations at the country level is required," he added. "And donors need to be seized with a heightened sense of urgency." The scenes at feeding sites were ones of despair and tragedy, Hall said. "Mothers had nothing to offer their hungry children," he said. "Children who should have been playing had no energy to even move. Senior citizens looked decades older than they actually were." Ethiopia is once again faced with the threat of famine, Hall said. "It is even worse than I expected," he said. "There is a tremendous amount of malnutrition, and I am numbed by the sheer numbers of acutely malnourished children." The famine of 1984-85 was followed by serious food shortages in 1992, 1994, 2000 and 2002. Of the country's 67.2 million people, almost half -- 28 million -- live in deep and long-term poverty, and are vulnerable to drought, acute malnutrition and even starvation, Hall said.

IRIN 12 Mar 2003 Government blamed for ethnic conflict ADDIS ABABA, 12 Mar 2003 (IRIN) - Ethnic conflict is “spreading like wildfire” in Ethiopia because the government is failing to tackle the problem, according to a national human rights organisation. The Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO) urged the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) to crack down on tribal clashes. In its latest report, the organisation laid the blame for recent troubles between the Surma and Dizzi tribes who live in southwest Ethiopia at the door of the government. The latest clashes in the Bench and Maji zone occurred after a member of the Dizzi tribe was killed. In a revenge attack, two Surma were killed. The nomadic Surma then carried out another attack on Dizzi groups living in at least four local districts. More than 1,000 Dizzi tribe members fled their homes and some 31 people were killed in the clashes which broke out last July, according to the report. “The ethnic policy pursued by the EPRDF government badly undermined the culture and tradition of mutual respect and concern that held the two tribes together for years on end,” the report said. EHRCO said that groups carrying guns in areas where ethnic clashes occur should be disarmed and that elders should be used to calm down tensions. It also said that talks between the Dizzi and Surma tribes could ensure “an environment of mutual respect, peace and tranquility”

Ghana

Accra Mail 14 Mar 2003 Ghanaian Elected Vice President of ICC, Mrs. Akua Kunhyehia, Dean of the Faculty of Law of the University of Ghana, Legon, who was recently elected to serve on the International Criminal Court (ICC), has also been elected as the first Vice President of the court. Nana Akuffo-Addo, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, on Monday made this known to newsmen on his arrival at the Kotoka Airport, Accra, from The Hague, Netherlands. He was in that country to attend the inauguration of the ICC as well as the induction of an 18-member, including Mrs Kunhyehia to serve on the court, where a Canadian was elected as president of the ICC. Nana Akuffo-Addo said the election of Mrs Kunhehyia had given Ghana's legal system a boost, adding that the government is determined to ensure that the rule of law is adhered to and that those who would violate the concept would be made to face the law. Mrs. Kunhyehia, who accompanied the Attorney-General back home, said when President Kufuor informed her of his intention, she quickly accepted it. "I feel humbled but challenged. This is a honour to Ghana, my family and President Kufuor who nominated me." She said the court would try only individuals and not states, adding that she would work hard to make Ghana proud.

Kenya

Daily Nation (Kenya) News Analysis Sunday, March 9, 2003 Does Kenya really need a reconciliation commission? By SUNDAY NATION Team "And You Shall Know the Truth, And the Truth Shall Set You Free." The ringing words of the Gospel of John (8:32) were, in our time, echoed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who wrote in the foreword to the report of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which he chaired: "There can be no healing without truth". True enough, in Kenya, a national conversation - a debate - is taking shape about the propriety of holding a similar process here. The pressure has been welling up from human rights groups, pro-democracy activists and civil society groups. A common theme is that the wounds of the ethnic clashes and of the Mwakenya trials, and the truth of political murders like those of Dr Robert Ouko and J.M. Kariuki can best be confronted through the "moral carthasis" of a truth and reconciliation commission. The pressure for it has intensified with the grisly disclosures about the torture chambers at Nyayo House. The victims want their voices to be heard, and one of the twists they have pushed into the debate is whether they are merely owed some financial compensation for their sufferings, or whether the country owes itself a "collective healing" through a public forum where such evils would be openly confronted. And how about the victims of the ethnic clashes? What do we do about those who lost their lives? And what of those who lost their land? Do they get compensated, or should they be given alternative land? Truth and Reconciliation Commissions are not new. They have been established before in countries as disparate as Sierra Leone and East Timor, where the common denominator is a compelling imperative to exorcise and come to terms with an unpleasant past. The most famous precedent, one which Kenyan activists look most to, is the post-apartheid South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which was chaired by Archbishop Tutu, winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace. These are countries with a unique past of repression and impunity, and the question has been raised whether the Kenyan experience, however deplorable, mirrors the extraordinary situation created by apartheid. In other words, is Kenya so badly torn that it needs a truth and reconciliation commission? Could we be setting ourselves up for a process of revenge and witch-hunting in the name of national healing? The argument is by no means settled. But for people like Mr George Kegoro, the Law Society of Kenya secretary, a truth commission is a necessity. "We have had some extraordinary happenings in our past history, like the ethnic clashes, and even perhaps Goldenberg. I think the Narc government, despite their own internal contradictions, will have to set up such a commission. The question is, is there an overwhelming public demand for it?" Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Kiraitu Murungi, under whose docket the establishment of such a panel would fall, has yet to give a categorical direction to this question although, in fairness, he has not ruled out its formation either. He has met some of the groups agitating for a truth commission, and the impression he has given them is that the matter is definitely on the cards. "He is quite serious about it," according to constitutional lawyer Kathurima M'Inoti, a partner in a legal firm where Mr Murungi, before his induction to government, was a senior partner. Subukia MP Koigi wa Wamwere is one of those figures who went through the brutal baptism of the Nyayo House chambers. He has also in the past found himself on the receiving end of the repressive legal regime that surrounded ethnic clashes in his native Nakuru District. Not surprisngly, he has been among the most vocal proponents of an all-inclusive mechanism of transitional justice. "There can never be reconciliation without justice," Mr Wamwere says. "Victims will acknowledge equality with, and concede humanity to, their former oppressors, torturers and killers of their children, parents, brothers and sisters only if justice is given." How will this justice be ensured? Mr Wamwere draws from the classic underpinning of Archbishop Tutu's commission when he says: "A person can never seek forgiveness if he clings to what he stole. That can never be an expression of remorse. To express genuine remorse, a wrongdoer must admit crime, express sorrow and ask for forgiveness." This view is not a new one. It is widely shared among those who consider themselves victims, and those others who have taken up the debate. Neither is it a new view that certain crimes of the past simply defy straightforward prosecution. For the converted, they are looking ahead to actual mechanisms and modes of restitution. Mr Nzamba Kitonga, a senior counsel and a former Law Society of Kenya chairman, expresses a widely shared view within the legal fraternity that there should be a two-tier system of transitional justice. "There are those injustices that happened a while ago, and where tracing back the evidence would not be easy. For example, there have been the past political murders. One might form a general idea of government culpability, but actual details of who ordered what, who pulled the trigger, might not come that easily. For these, we need a mechanism for redress like a truth commission, even if the redress is [only] emotional." For the second tier, he puts "those other crimes which can't wait for such a commission and must be dealt with through criminal justice. Those who have stolen public funds, or grabbed land, must be dealt with through criminal prosecution. Nobody should get this idea that you can steal and escape through a truth and reconciliation commission." A similar line was taken by NCCK general secretary, the Rev Mutava Musyimi, who told the Sunday Nation: "Maybe the thing to do is to separate economic crimes from human right crimes. With the latter, you get an entry point for a truth and reconciliation commission. Issues sorrounding the Wagalla Massacre [in North Eastern Province in 1984] or the Nyayo torture chambers are better dealt with in a non-prosecutorial way. Up to a point, you need some space for amnesty. If we have learnt anything from Arusha and Nuremberg, it is that restitution and prosecution do not always bring healing." Resolving these painful issues The Rev Musyimi was referring to the ongoing Arusha tribunal on the Rwandan genocide and the post-World War II Nuremberg trials set up by the victors to punish top Nazi figures. The uniqueness of the South African Truth Commission was that it granted amnesty to applicants who were ready to make full disclosure of their political crimes. Thus, the commission was able to draw up a rounded picture from the information supplied not just by victims but the perpetrators as well. But could there be another mechanism of resolving these painful issues of the past that does not necessarily involve creating a new-fangled commission? Mr P.L.O. Lumumba, the secretary to the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission, points to the Eighth Schedule of the Draft Constitution prepared by the CKRC which, under the heading Transitional and Consequential Provisions, provides a mechanism for handling the issues of truth and reconciliation. "That provides a framework, based on the views given by Kenyans, to confront the issue of transitional justice, of ethnic clashes, of human rights abuses, and of land ownership," he told the Sunday Nation. To lend support to this view is Mr Gibson Kamau Kuria, a senior counsel who has written prolifically on the issue of truth and reconciliation. Dr Kuria agrees that the Draft Constitution's provisos can be used towards the same end. His point of divergence, however, is that the draft approaches the complex question of restitution and recompense too narrowly and legalistically as one of simply charging culprits, resettling victims of ethnic clashes, and so on. "A truth and reconciliation commission is based on the view that large-scale violations have taken place which the existing legal process is inadequate to confront. People are focusing on criminal justice while the issue is much wider," argues Dr Kuria. Indeed, it can be said that the approach adopted by the Akiwumi Commission on Tribal Clashes [which was appointed in June in 1998] with regard to reconstitution was similarly legalistic. The whole debate concerning a truth commission rests on the argument that much as the issue of ethnic clashes raised inescapable questions of criminal culpability, there is also the need to look at the problem from the wider, political level. In other words, while victims expect first and foremost the perpetrators to be punished, they also expect a measure of compensation and restitution. Wider issues of amnesty Above all, the the country is assumed to be ready for a climate of general reconciliation and forgiveness. But Mr Lumumba does not contest this argument. If anything, he is the first to agree that the Draft Constitution is legalistic, but only because the drafting of such documents takes this hue. "First of all, you need a legal framework, a legal organ to operate under. From there you can enact and confer powers to that organ to enable it to deal with those wider issues of amnesty and reconciliation. It is the nature of constitutions not to be written in fine detail. One can always enact special legislation to give relevant constitutional provisos meat." In the end, the lawyer, who has a reputation for oratorical flourish, says his commission and the crusaders for a truth and reconciliation panel are speaking the same language, essentially. "It doesn't have to be called a truth and reconciliation commission. That nomenclature was South African. You can have a structure that deals with the same issues but which has been created differently." Dr Kuria makes more or less the same point that once the crucial aspect of disclosure and reconciliation is factored into the review draft, the whole issue of creating a truth and reconciliation commission could well become redundant. There may well be a problem in having a truth commission which is seen not to jell with the overall work of the constitutional review. The Rev Musyimi would prefer a timetable where the ongoing constitutional review work is first brought to closure. According to him, "you don't want two major national processes crowding each other. You don't want to go into an overkill and set up something that will try to do everything." Inevitably, the question of a truth commission's composition would have to be dealt with. There is wide consent within the concerned fraternity that such a commission must be quasi-legal in structure. It need not comprise exclusively judges and lawyers and advocates, but it must have a strong legal capacity nonetheless. The very fact that its scope is beyond the law, it must bring in other eminent players, be they clergymen or politicians who command wide respect. If it is reconciliation the country truly seeks, then such a commission must have a really powerful symbol, like Archbishop Tutu was for the South African Commission. A while back, the Kenya Human Rights Commission had floated well-known names of clergymen it thought could chair such a commission. There was no unanimity on the list. The Rev Timothy Njoya was there, too, but some of the people felt he is either too partisan or too clouded by the immediate past to be a fair mediator. Interestingly, the KHRC list did not include the Rev Musyimi. Despite [or perhaps because of] busying himself with matters of political and constitutional reform, the clergyman did not appeal to many fellow activists as suitable for that role. Matters touching on the gross financial scam called Goldenberg have now been put under a special tribunal headed by Appellate Judge S.E.O. Bosire. It is not quite clear how far a truth commission that is given unfettered remit would want to touch on this scandal, assuming the commission concluded the massive looting Goldenberg represented was part of the crimes it was probing. The tribunal earlier appointed to probe the conduct of immediate former Chief Justice Bernard Chunga was similarly expected to bring out some dark skeletons of the Mwakenya inquisition that Chunga prosecuted. In any truth and reconciliation process, Mwakenya torture victims have made it plain that they will seek that the issue be made a priority.

East African Standard (Nairobi) 8 Mar 2003 Officials Hid Genocide Suspects, Says Kalonzo Francis Openda Nairobi Foreign Affairs Minister Kalonzo Musyoka yesterday accused some top officials of the former Kanu government of shielding suspects of the Rwanda genocide. He expressed regret that some Government officials aided and assisted Rwanda's genocide suspects to evade justice. A top suspect in the genocide, Felicien Kabuga has been in the country since the genocide but last week Kalonzo said Kabuga had fled after the search for him was intensified. "We have every reason to believe he is no longer in the country. We are unable to catch him," said Kalonzo when he met a team of top US officials in the country for bilateral talks. Speaking in his office yesterday when he met Rwanda's Ambassador to Kenya, Seth Kamanzi, Kalonzo said the previous government mishandled the genocide tragedy. Similarly, he said, the precious regime did not adequately support the ongoing Arusha-based genocide tribunal. "The Narc Government is determined to correct the mistakes of the past by doing everything possible to assist the Rwanda people reconstruct their country," he said. Kamanzi said his country will support Kenya's bid for membership of the Nepad implementing committee. He equally sought Kenya's support for Rwanda's efforts to join the East African Community (EAC). Kamanzi said Rwanda's membership in EAC will be of benefit to the entire region. The envoy called for easy issuance of visas to Rwandese nationals travelling to Kenya. He added Kenya was Rwanda's leading trading partner in the region hence the need to ease travel. "Kenya is the number one source of imports from Rwanda accounting for 26 per cent of Rwanda's global imports," he said. Earlier Kalonzo bade farewell to outgoing Indonesia High Commissioner to Kenya Tupuk Sutrisno. Surutsino appealed to the Kenya Government to open an Embassy in Indonesia.

Liberia

IRIN 17 Mar 2003 Civilians flee key central town MONROVIA, 17 Mar 2003 (IRIN) - An exodus of civilians from the central Liberian town of Gbarnga, 150 km north of the capital, Monrovia, began on Sunday as clashes intensified in nearby Gbalatua between government forces and Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) rebels. The exodus caused panic among other civilians in Kakata, the provincial headquarters of Margibi County on the Gbarnga-Monrovia highway, fleeing civilians told IRIN. Several roadblocks, they said, had been mounted by government soldiers on the highway to screen the displaced civilians. Several vehicles carrying heavily armed soldiers headed towards Gbarnga from Monrovia. At Monrovia's Paynesville and Red Light suburbs, some of the displaced said they heard heavy artillery fire as they fled, and that it had sounded nearby. The displaced included students from a Roman catholic minor seminary and health workers from Phebe Hospital, the only referral health institution in the area. They told IRIN on Monday that many of them had walked the whole distance after failing to get scarce public transport. A driver who usually travels on the route said commercial vehicles could not reach Gbarnga due to the "confusing situation" there. Gbarnga has been a military and political stronghold of President Charles Taylor. It was captured by the LURD in May 2002 but retaken by government soldiers within a month. The LURD have since been trying to recapture it again. Meanwhile, the Liberian government has asked its defence ministry to expand a team that is to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths of three aid workers of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) during a recent attack on Toe Town, near the Ivorian border. The government blamed the attack on Liberian mercenaries from nearby Cote d'Ivoire. The dead aid workers included Emmanuel Sharpolu and Musa Kita, Liberian nationals, and Kaare Lund of Norway. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan last week demanded a full inquiry into their deaths. Representatives of the European Union, the UN system in Liberia, the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission, the National Bar Association and the Female Lawyers Association of Liberia are to be included on the team, a government statement said.

IRIN 24 MAr 2003 UNHCHR concerned about protection of civilians ABIDJAN, 24 Mar 2003 (IRIN) - The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) on Monday expressed profound concern at the continuing armed conflict in Liberia, its consequences and toll on the civilian population, the UNHCHR reported. In a statement, Sergio Vieira de Mello, urged all parties to the conflict "to commit themselves immediately to the protection of civilians, especially their physical integrity and the means necessary for their survival and exhorts them to resolve their differences peacefully within the context of the rule of law and democratic principles." The High Commissioner, the statement said, had continued to receive credible reports of serious abuses and violations of human rights and humanitarian law by both parties, including extrajudicial killings, torture, rape, deliberate targeting of civilians, abductions and forcible recruitment of children and displaced persons in camps. "Parties to the conflict should ensure respect for human rights and humanitarian law in areas under their control and in the conduct of hostilities. Where these abuses and violations occur, parties have an obligation to bring perpetrators to justice," UNHCHR said. "The High Commissioner underlines that there can be no impunity for violations of human rights and humanitarian law." UNHCHR endorsed an appeal by the Security Council and International Contact Group on Liberia to the Government of Liberia and the rebels of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), to enter into cease fire negotiations. The Liberian conflict has pitted government forces against the LURD since 1999 when the rebels took up arms to try and topple President Charles Taylor. Fighting has escalated in recent weeks, displacing thousands of people.

IRIN 26 Mar 2003 IDPs panic as fighting nears capital MONROVIA, (IRIN) - Fighting between Liberian government troops and rebels of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) group was reported on Tuesday at Kley junction, 35 km from the capital, Monrovia, as the rebels moved closer to the capital. The sound of gunfire, which started at midday, caused panic among thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in several nearby camps including Ricks, Jah Tondo and Water-in-the-Desert. Residents of Monrovia were also worried and the main markets of Duala and Waterside were closed down. Cellular communication was interrupted briefly. Humanitarian sources said their staff were stopped by loyalist forces from driving out of the capital. Defence Minister Daniel Chea was quoted by Reuters as confirming the attack on Kley junction, which is the closest the rebels have come to Monrovia in recent weeks. Last week, fighting escalated in central Liberia as government forces attempted to retake Gbarnga, provincial capital of Bong County, from the rebels. Large numbers of government troops headed towards Gbarnga, 150 km north of Monrovia, on Saturday. Residents of the town and surrounding areas had fled earlier to Monrovia and Totota, and also to Ganta, 55 km north of Gbarnga on the Guinean border, the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported. Displaced people continued to arrive in Totota, 50 km southeast of Gbarnga, where an estimated 42,000 IDPs were being assisted. The IDPs, most of whom were from upper Bong and neighbouring Lofa County were being accomodated mainly in four camps. "These camps are overwhelmed by the new influxes and aid agencies are constructing new reception centres in a bid to accommodate the new arrivals. As of 18 March, 6,480 persons have been registered in camps," OCHA said in a situation report. LURD has been fighting since 1999 to topple President Charles Taylor.

Nigeria

Reuters 5 Mar 2003 Nigeria assassination raises oil region tensions By Daniel Balint-Kurti LAGOS, March 5 (Reuters) - The killing of a major opposition leader in Nigeria on Wednesday has raised fears of growing turbulence in the oil-rich southern Niger Delta area ahead of presidential elections due to take place next month. Marshall Harry, a key Niger Delta politician and opponent of President Olusegun Obansanjo, was shot at close range by unidentified gunmen at his house in the capital Abuja. The killing was the latest in a string of assassinations that have plagued Nigeria since its return to democracy from 15 years of military rule in 1999. Chima Ubani, the head of Nigeria's Civil Liberties Organisation, said Harry's killing was a bad omen for April's scheduled presidential and local elections. "I believe his killing, if not properly handled, could spark off reprisal violence and other sorts of violence within Rivers State," he said. Throughout the Niger Delta, indigenous people are demanding a greater share of the oil drilled in the region, which makes Nigeria the world's seventh largest oil producer and the fifth biggest supplier to the United States. The issue has dramatically raised political tensions in recent months and was a factor in violent riots last month in the oil city of Warri. "We are acutely worried about what appears to be the emerging pattern that killings such as this, suspected to be politically motivated, seem to be beyond the powers of the police to unravel," four non-governmental organisations in the Rivers State capital of Port Harcourt said on Wednesday. The groups said in a statement they would "refuse to accept any excuse" from police for not bringing the killers to justice. "MASS ACTION" THREATENED In last month's riots in Warri more than 20 people were killed, including members of the security forces. The riots were sparked by a row over delineation of local electoral wards, but were closely linked to distribution of government funds. Last week, militant youths from the Ijaw ethnic group in Warri threatened unspecified "mass action" by this Sunday if the government did not meet demands including the resolution of a long-running dispute over the sharing out of oil revenues. In the past, mass action by Ijaw youths has included kidnapping local and expatriate oil workers, seizing vehicles for ransom and disrupting the operations of oil firms. The major multinational oil companies operating around Warri are ChevronTexaco and Royal Dutch/Shell group. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in a peaceful protest against the killing of Harry in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, witnesses said. Sam Idah, a spokesman for Harry's All Nigeria People's Party, claimed the assassination was aimed at preventing its candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, from winning the April 19 presidential election. He said the party would launch his presidential campaign in Port Harcourt on Saturday despite the murder.

This Day (Lagos) 12 Mar 2003 CAN Appeals for Calm Over Ethnic Clashes Onwuka Nzeshi Warri The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) yesterday rose in condemnation of the perennial ethnic conflicts in Warri with an appeal to the Delta State Government to address the issues in order to avoid further bloodshed and destruction of property. Executive members of CAN in Warri at a news conference, accused some unnamed elite members of the society of financing the fratricidal wars. CAN appealed to the war lords to desist from the inglorious act. Chairman of CAN in Warri and Bishop of the Warri Dioceses (Anglican Communion), Rev. Nathaniel Enuku, who addressed the press conference expressed dismay over the incessant ethnic clashes which had affected economic fortunes of the state. "Apart from the loss of lives and properly, we are losing our position of fame as the 'oil city'. Many companies are relocating to other places. Our once booming city has become a ghost city." If nothing is down to check the excesses of this daylight mass destruction and killing, the glory of God in Warri will be gone. "We have often blamed the youth for the destruction going on but the truth is that it is not only the youth themselves who raise money with which the sophisticated weapons, the sound of which we hear, are being purchased, the clergy alleged." Meanwhile, the CAN has commenced the distribution of relief materials to the families of those displaced by the last ethnic conflict in the city. Food stuffs with over a hundred thousand naria was conveyed to different refugee camps maintained by the churches yesterday.

Vanguard (Lagos) 12 Mar 2003 Wealthy Individuals Behind Warri Crises, Can Alleges Sola Adebayo Warri THE Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) (Warri and Environs) Delta State chapter, alleged yesterday that some unidentified wealthy persons were financing the unending Warri war. CAN at a news conference in Warri over the recent crisis in the oil city said some wealthy individual raised money to buy sophisticated weapons with which they equipped the youths to unleash terror on the defenseless and law abiding residents of the city. The branch CAN chairman, the Rt. Revered N. A. Enuku and acting Secretary, Reverend Eddy Ote - Bebor at the news conference on behalf of the body said "there are those who are financing the war. "We appeal to them to please channel their God - given wealth to other more profitable ventures with God's blessing." We also appeal to those who are making business with war, and those who believe that they are relevant only when there is war, especially those who engage in the purchase of arms and will like the war to go on, so that they can continue to make money out of human blood". Consequently, CAN asked the government to take a decisive action to prevent a recurrence of the inter-ethnic crisis in the oil city.Enuku and Eddy-ote - Bebor recalled that "not too long ago, we wrote a letter to the governor to call on the various groups to a peace meeting. "We are so glad to note that he did so, according to an announcement from Delta Radio Television (DRTV). But we are still using this medium to appeal to the Governor of the State - Chief James Ibori not to relent in his efforts in this direction until permanent peace is guaranteed in Warri." They restated the readiness of the church to be part of the peace process. CAN pleaded with the Warri warriors to put a halt to the senseless destruction of lives and property, saying that "we have watched how our own people have been involved in wanton destruction of lives and property. "Our hearts bleed when we think of the atrocities committed in this city since 1997. We appeal to all, in the name of God, to halt this senseless destruction, please let enough be enough. Let us think peace, let us support peace, let's close our ranks for lasting solution, let us co-operate with the authorities put in place so that peace can reign". The Christian Association lamented that Warri city was losing it's fame as the oil city, due to the perrenial ethnic clash in the city, saying many companies were relocating to other places. Further regretted that "our once booming city has become a ghost city. We appeal to all and sundry to sincerely seek and pursue peace." We specially appeal to the state government and call our state governor - Chief James Ibori to approach the matter with great desire for peace and use his good offices to call all groups that are involved to see reasons why we need peace. If nothing is done to check the excesses of this daylight mass destruction and killing, the glory of God in Warri will be gone". They warned. Similarly, the CAN warned the victims of the war against any retaliatory moves, appealing to them to exercise restraint. Their words "it is also very important to observe that in a situation such as this, there are people who will feel disgraced and feel they have lost more than others in the war and may therefore be tempted to retaliate; we sincerely appeal to them to exercise restraint. They must know that vengeance is for God, retaliation is opening up another battle line, which will cause further destruction. God knows how to pick you up again".

Vanguard 15 Mar 2003 WARRI: 7 feared dead, as Ijaw youths, security agents clash By Sola Adebayo Saturday, March 15, 2003 WARRI, DELTA — SEVEN persons, including two soldiers were feared dead in Okerenkoko village in Warri South West Local Government Council of Delta State, last Thursday evening. The deceased lost their lives in clash between security agents and Ijaw Youths at Okerenkoko end of Warri/Escravos waterways. Also, three policemen were being held hostage by the Ijaw Youths at Okerenkoko village at press time. Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) which engaged the services of the security agents had raised an alarm over the lives of the hostages in a letter to the police high command in Warri. In the letter, SPDC requested the quick intervention of the Warri Police Area Commander, Mr. Joseph Abiona to save the lives of the policemen. Already, the waterways of Delta State, particularly Warri/Escravos had become a no go area as the armed Ijaw Youths and soldiers engaged in ceaseless gun duel between Thursday and early hours of yesterday. Two soldiers and five Ijaw youths were reported dead in the clash. Vanguard learnt that trouble started when Ijaw Youths mounted blockades at Okerenkoko end of the Warri/Escravos waterway to protest alleged non-challant attitude of the Federal and Delta State Governments to alledged lopsidedness in the composition of electoral Wards in the Warri South West Council in favour of their Itsekiri neighbours. The Ijaw Youths who had earlier given a seven day ultimatum to the Federal Government to address the issue allegedly