U N I T E D N A T I O N S Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Integrated Regional Information Network for Central and Eastern Africa
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[The weekly roundup is based on IRIN daily updates and other relevant information from UN agencies, NGOs, governments, donors and the media. IRIN issues these reports for the benefit of the humanitarian community, but accepts no responsibility as to the accuracy of the original sources.]
Central and Eastern Africa: IRIN Weekly Round-up 25-98 covering the period 12 - 18 June 1998
BURUNDI: Buyoya sworn in as president, all-party talks start in Arusha
Military leader Major Pierre Buyoya has been sworn in as Burundi's president - two years after taking power in a coup. The swearing-in ceremony at the Kigobe Congress Palace in Bujumbura followed agreement between his government and the parliament on a new transitional constitution. The accord was designed to pave the way for the Tutsi-led government to share power with the country's mainly Hutu opposition.
Ahead of the start of all-party peace talks in Arusha on Monday, Buyoya then named two vice-presidents who, as part of the constitutional reform package, replace the premiership and gave 11 opposition members cabinet posts. However, the key ministerial posts of defence, finance and justice remain unchanged.
The two Vice-Presidents are Frederic Bamvuginyumvira, a Hutu who is currently president of the parliamentary group in the Frodebu party, and Mathias Sinamenye, an ethnic Tutsi who is currently the governor of the central bank. Despite the sweeping government changes, FRODEBU maintained reform of the Tutsi-dominated army would still be high on the agenda of the Arusha talks. "The army must be open to all ethnic groups," a senior official, Venerand Bakevyumusaya, told Reuters.
Regional leaders who attended the opening of the Arusha talks said sanctions against Burundi would be lifted "when irreversible progress has been made". Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa said sanctions would remain until the conflicting sides "show an interest in bringing about peace".
Nyerere pushes hard for ceasefire deal
At the talks themselves, peace process mediator Julius Nyerere pushed hard all week in separate meetings with all parties to agree a ceasefire as a first step towards an overall accord. News organisations reported that the government side reportedly agreed to put an end to hostilities and to continue negotiations, but the main CNDD (Conseil National pour la defense de la democratie) rebel group remained opposed. CNDD, however, is split on the issue.
Leonard Nyangoma attended the talks as CNDD president despite the announcement by the movement in May that he had been suspended and replaced by Jean-Bosco Ndayikengurukiye, formerly FDD's chief-of-staff. The organisation's spokesperson Jerome Ndiho said in a press release received by IRIN on Thursday that CNDD-FDD was not invited to the Arusha peace talks and warned against "those who continue to conclude agreements in the name of CNDD".
Informed sources told IRIN the CNDD split could be crucial to the success of attempts by mediator Nyerere to persuade all factions to agree a ceasefire.
Meanwhile, the leader-in-exile of FRODEBU (Front pour la democratie au Burundi) Jean Minani has called for "unconditional" talks to end armed struggle, Burundi radio reported. Minani, who was at first opposed to a recent "partnership" deal between his party and the Burundian government, said that as negotiations were in progress and as "everybody was committed to finding a solution" the armed struggle was no longer justified.
UNICEF reports "alarming" food situation
The state of food supplies for children in Burundi is alarming, UNICEF warned in a press release on Wednesday, adding that children under five were specifically affected. These represent 71 percent of some 35,839 people registered as suffering from chronic malnutrition. In total, more than 50,000 people are suffering from malnutrition in the country and are being treated through 248 feeding centres, including 24 therapeutic feeding centres. MSF has also reported high malnutrition rates in numerous provinces in Burundi.
RWANDA: Over 2,000 genocide suspects register to plead guilty
Some 2,086 genocide suspects held in two Rwandan prisons have indicated they are ready to confess their guilt, the Rwandan news agency (RNA) reported. The inmates made their wishes known to justice ministry officials visiting two prisons in Kibungo prefecture in the eastern part of the country. RNA said the new wave of confessions brought the number of genocide suspects who have applied for confessions since the public execution of 22 people last April to about 5,000.
Hutu rebels attack displaced camp, killing several
Hutu rebels massacred several people and injured dozens of others, some seriously, in an overnight raid on a displaced persons' camp in northern Rwanda, according to news reports. Quoting survivors, AFP reported some 23 people had been killed and a further 62 injured. Earlier, ARI, a private Rwandan news agency, gave lower provisional figures for the attack on Namira camp in northwestern Gisenyi prefecture.
Growing food needs in northwest
A report by USAID, quoting local authorities, says there are an estimated 58,000 displaced people in northwest Gisenyi prefecture and 48,000 in Ruhengeri. According to the report, the Rwandan government has indicated it will be unable to provide for an increased and continued emergency response. The report points out WFP has begun transporting food aid into the region. The US embassy has intervened to allow monitoring of food deliveries in Gisenyi, the report said. It added that adequate monitoring is very difficult and negotiated on a daily basis.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: Kabila vows to go ahead with polls
President Laurent-Desire Kabila has pledged to go ahead with planned general elections next year, with or without foreign aid, Reuters reported. Kabila told a meeting in Kinshasa last Thursday evening the government was going "to stick to our timetable, even if no-one comes to our aid". In a continuing crackdown on corruption, the authorities also arrested 27 tax officials in Kinshasa for alleged illegal deals, involving the sale of driving licences, vehicle number plates and other documents.
Over 10,000 apply for proposed assemblies
Meanwhile, over 10,000 people have applied for membership to the proposed Constituent and Legislative Assemblies, Congolese television reported. The television quoted the first deputy chairman of the Constitutional Commission, Delphin Banza Kangakoloa, as saying there would be no extension of last Friday's deadline and ruled out "quotas" to ensure people from the provinces and abroad were represented. "We want to set up a body to prepare for the elections and work out modalities for putting in place all the institutions of the future republic," he was quoted as saying. In a 25 May presidential decree, Kabila declared any member of the new assembly had to be Congolese and not a "notorious dignatory" of the former regime of Mobutu Sese-Seko.
Meanwhile, DRC Information and Media Minister Didier Mumengi announced that Kinshasa will host the next COMESA Heads of State summit on 29 June. The summit will be preceded by a meeting of experts and ministers.
Human rights report to be sent to DRC, Rwanda
UN spokesman Fred Eckard has said a report by the UN team that investigated alleged human rights violations in DRC earlier this year will be sent to the governments of Rwanda and DRC for their "advance information". The report will then be transmitted to the Security Council on 21 June, and will consequently be made public.
Thousands of Angolans arrive in DRC
Approximately 3,000 Angolans have arrived in Katanga and another 1,500 have arrived in Bandundu, humanitarian sources in Kinshasa told IRIN. However, these figures are thought to be an underestimation. An inter-agency assessment mission will visit these two places over the next two days to assess the situation, the sources added.
Sacked Brussels envoy formally breaks with Kabila
Sacked DRC Ambassador to Belgium Justine Kasa-Vubu finally broke with the government headed by DRC President Laurent-Desire Kabila, accusing it of involvement in a plot to discredit opposition veteran leader Etienne Tshisekedi. Kasa-Vubu, daughter of the country's first post-independence president, was dismissed as ambassador to Belgium by Kabila at the beginning of this month, but refused to stand down. Kinshasa accused her of failing to support Kabila's government and of snubbing Foreign Minister Bizima Karaha on a recent visit to Brussels. For several years, Kasa-Vubu was the Brussels representative of the opposition UDPS (Union pour la democratie et le progres social) party headed by Tshisekedi, but joined Kabila's movement after he came to power in May 1997. In Kinshasa, Interior Minister Gaetan Kakudji issued a statement formally denying Kasa-Vubu's accusations.
Baby boom among Virunga mountain gorillas
The Virunga National Park in North Kivu, after suffering 18 months of civil unrest and damage caused by refugee movements, has registered a "baby boom" among the threatened mountain gorillas. According to a press release by the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP), received by IRIN, 10 baby gorillas have been born in the last 18 months, many of them in families which have been violently upset by events in recent years. Huge refugee camps on the park's border and the subsequent exodus had a devastating impact on the park and its wildlife. The statement goes on to say that despite enormous problems and challenges in the region, conservation efforts are making a difference and the mountain gorillas are continuing to survive.
UGANDA: Commanding officer faces court martial over rebel attack
The commanding officer and more than 20 soldiers in an army detachment which failed to repel an attack by rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) have been arrested and will be court martialled. Media reports alleged the officer, whose rank and identity were not revealed, and many of his men deserted their posts during the attack on Kichwamba technical school in western Uganda last week. At least 48 people died in the attack and over 100 students are still missing, many believed abducted.
Museveni defends himself on chat show
President Yoweri Museveni, fed up with two hours of criticism on a radio talk show, personally called up the station to defend himself. Reuters said he delivered a 20-minute monologue, thanked listeners and then hung up. Responding to the criticism in the 'Your Parliament' programme, broadcast by the private Central Broadcasting Service, Museveni defended his controversial land bill, the presence of Rwandan minorities in Uganda and the suspension of political party activities.
Insecurity hinders humanitarian activities
The recent upsurge of rebel activities has led to a significant reduction and, in some cases, suspension of relief activities, including emergency food distributions, in northern and western Uganda, WFP reported in its weekly emergency report. Humanitarian sources told IRIN that some humanitarian organisations had relocated their staff from the field, notably from the Kitgum region.
SUDAN: Khartoum pledges cooperation with UN on children in armed conflict The Sudanese government has pledged cooperation with the United Nations on the issue of children in armed conflicts, local press reports said on Monday. They quoted Sudanese First Vice President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha as telling visiting UN envoy Olara Otunnu that Sudan was prepared to cooperate in protecting and guaranteeing the safety of minors in combat zones. Otunnu, the UN Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict, arrived in Khartoum on Saturday for talks with Sudanese officials on the issue. Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed a new Special Envoy for Humanitarian Affairs for Sudan. Annan named Tom Vraalsen, who is currently Norway's Ambassador to the US, to the job. Vraalsen succeeds Robe Schaik who has announced his resignation, effective 15 June 1998.
Government plane bombs World Vision feeding centre
A Sudanese government Antonov bomber dropped six bombs around an emergency feeding centre, run by World Vision International (WVI), at Panacier in southern Sudan's Gogrial County, the NGO said in a statement in Nairobi last Friday. The WVI statement said the attack took place the previous day at 11:30 a.m. local time. There were no casualties.
Government claims successes in Blue Nile and Kassala provinces
A pro-government newspaper 'Alwan' claimed that government forces had killed 100 rebels and wounded 180 others in southeastern Blue Nile province, AFP reported from Khartoum. The report did not specify where the clash took place, but said "on the way to Kurmuk". Rebel-held Kurmuk is on the Ethiopian border. Two locations occupied by SPLA rebels in Kassala have been retaken by government forces, according to a provincial official quoted by the 'Akhbar Al-Youm' newspaper, AFP reported on Tuesday.
Clashes in western Sudan
Hundreds of people have been killed in clashes western Sudan between the Fur and Messelit ethnic groups, the governor of western Darfur province said on Wednesday. The governor, Ibrahim Abdel-Rahman told the 'Akhbar Al-Youm' newspaper that 235 people were killed and 43 injured recently. Thousands of other Sudanese are reported to have fled into neighbouring Chad to escape the fighting.
KENYA: Screening of Rwandans and Burundians starts in Nairobi
Screening of Rwandan and Burundian asylum seekers started last week in Nairobi, UNHCR told IRIN on Wednesday. Similar screenings aimed at determining the status of asylum seekers have or are taking place in other central African countries, such as the Central African Republic and Angola. UNHCR estimates there are a total of some 8,000 Rwandans and Burundians in Kenya.
East African-US military exercises begin
A joint military exercise between East African and US troops was launched this week in Lodwar, Turkana District, the 'Daily Nation' reported. It said more than 100 Kenyan and US paratroopers began the operation on Wednesday with a drop from a US C130 military transport plane about 10 km from the town. They were welcomed by Kenya's Chief of Staff General Daudi Tonje and his counterparts in the Ugandan and Tanzanian armed forces, Alhaji Abubakar Jeje Odongo and Robert Mboma respectively.
UNITED NATIONS: Holbrooke named new US ambassador to the United Nations
The United States has appointed Richard Holbrooke, the architect of the Dayton peace accords which ended the Bosnian war, as the country's new ambassador to the United Nations. Holbrooke, renowned for a "straight-talking, no-nonsense" approach to diplomacy, takes over from Bill Richardson. Richardson was recently appointed the new US Energy Secretary.
Nairobi, 19 June 1998 11:00 GMT
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