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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e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org


HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN Weekly Round-up 34
21 - 27 April 2001


CONTENTS:

ETHIOPIA: Hijackers say Ethiopia "lacks freedoms"
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Buffer zone marks "progress"
SUDAN: Government says drought problem needs action
SOMALIA: Aydid accuses states of arming interim government
DJIBOUTI: Port capacity increased by WFP


ETHIOPIA: Hijackers say Ethiopia "lacks freedoms"

The hijacking of an Ethiopian military aircraft by five military academy
students ended peacefully in the Sudan capital, Khartoum, at 0400 local
time on Friday, official Sudanese radio reported on the same day. The
aircraft was on an internal flight, carrying 50 passengers and crew, when
it was hijacked on Thursday. It landed at Khartoum airport at 1820 local
time, the radio said. The hijackers were armed with guns and hand
grenades, and demanded to meet the British and US ambassadors in Khartoum.

The four men and one women, who surrendered to Sudanese authorities, first
freed all their hostages unharmed. According to news agency reports, the
hijackers first freed five children and six women, and later released 33
military personnel, and six crew members. The civilians on the plane were
relatives of military personnel, Sudanese officials said. Sudanese
Information Minster Ghazi Salah al-Din al-Atabani told journalists that
the hijackers gave up after realising that no third country would admit
them, and after receiving assurances that Sudan would not return them to
Ethiopia. However, Atabani told the BBC that the hijackers had not been
given political asylum, and would be tried according to international
laws. Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Uthman Isma'il told Qatar's
Al-Jazeera television that the hijackers had landed in Khartoum because
they were running out of fuel, and that their intended destination was not
known. The Sudan government - which enjoys good relations with Ethiopia -
formed a committee to deal with the hijackers, Sudan local media said.

One of the hijackers was allowed to talk to journalists as he left the
plane. He identified himself as Bagemberhan Tebegne, a member of
Ethiopia's air force. He said his group had hijacked the plane to "draw
international attention to the terrible economic and political situation
in Ethiopia and the lack of freedoms", according to Associated Press (AP).

Whereabouts of opposition detainees unknown

Security forces have continued to arrest and detain opposition leaders and
political activists in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. Security
sources told IRIN on Friday that police were known to have made more
arrests on Thursday, including late night house arrests. The whereabouts
of more than 40 opposition politicians arrested during widespread riots
and demonstrations last week were still unknown, the source said.

Addis Ababa was reported "quiet", but many students at the university
still seemed reluctant to return to class, protesting against the
conditions imposed for re-entry. University authorities had demanded that
returning students sign a form apologising for the disruptions, and
requiring students' parents to take responsibility for actions by
students, local sources said.

On Thursday, following more protests at the university gates, Ethiopian
police released about 1,200 students from a holding centre about 20 km
outside the capital.

Meanwhile, local sources in Mekele, capital of Tigray State, said that
Mekele University had been reopened after student demonstrations last
week. One student was found dead in Mekele, the pro-Ethiopian government
Walta Information Centre said last week. Political tensions relating to
the split in the prime minister's Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF)
continued to affect Mekele, but were "not being seen directly", local
sources said. The sources said there had been no known arrests in Mekele
following a student hunger strike in Mekele University last week.

Meles says opposition "miscalculated" on TPLF rift

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has said that Ethiopia could forge ahead with
building up a democratic order once the rift in his party, the TPLF, was
solved. Meles said the ruling coalition government of the Ethiopian
People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) had set out to "rectify
its mistakes and speed up the development activities in the country", the
official Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) said on Tuesday April. Meles made the
remarks during his visit to Saudi Arabia, where he met members of the
Ethiopian community living in Jiddah. Asked about the riots and
demonstrations which had affected Ethiopia last week, the prime minister
said "full consensus" had been reached on 10 of the 11 questions raised by
students in Addis Ababa university. Meles said the government had
responded positively to the students' demands, according to ENA. He said
some political organisations had "miscalculated" and had assumed that the
EPRDF had been weakened by a recent rift, and had attempted to exploit the
situation.

Addis Ababa University reopened on Tuesday, after student demonstrations
escalated into riots last week. By Wednesday, few people had returned to
the university, the BBC said. Local media report that hundreds of people,
including students, remain in detention following a government crackdown
after the riots.

Former Tigray president says dismissal was "unconstitutional"

Gebru Asrat, the former president of Tigray State, northern Ethiopia, has
complained that the meeting convened to remove him was illegal. In an open
letter, carried by local media, Gebru Asrat said the Tigray State Council
meeting that dismissed him was called without his knowledge, and that he
had not received the petition by council members allegedly calling for an
extraordinary session. He said he was notified by his deputy, Tsegaye
Berhe, only one day in advance of the meeting. Gebru said convening the
meeting in such a manner violated the constitution of Tigray.

Accused of failing to live up to his duties, Gebru rejected accusations of
corruption. In the letter, he said he would remain opposed to what he
called "the flagrant violation of the country's constitution". He also
accused members of the TPLF central committee of violating Tigray's
regional constitution and TPLF bylaws. Gebru was removed as president of
Tigray, along with three other prominent officials, following a split in
the TPLF. After dissident central committee members staged a walkout,
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi narrowly retained control of his dominant TPLF
party.


ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Buffer zone marks "progress"

In a briefing to the UN Security Council, the Under-Secretary General for
Peacekeeping, Jean-Marie Guehenno, said there had been significant
progress in the Ethiopia-Eritrea peace process. On 18 April the
establishment of the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) had been announced,
which marked the formal separation of the forces of Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The establishment of the TSZ allowed for the immediate restoration of
Eritrean civil administration and the return of displaced persons to the
buffer zone. The Security Council was told that both parties had sought
adjustments to the Southern Boundary of the TSZ, and Ethiopia was
criticised for not communicating "the full nature of its redeployment
plans in the Irob area". Discussions with Ethiopia on redeployment were
"ongoing", Guehenno said. He said that the UN was expected to reach
agreement on the clarification of the redeployment lines provided by
Ethiopia and "gain a more accurate understanding of the differences
between the parties on the ground in specific locations".

According to the 18 June Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, the
establishment of the buffer zone would permit the restoration of Eritrean
civilian administration, including police and local militia. Preparations
for the return of the displaced population could then start, Guehenno
said. He said the return of displaced populations was the most immediate
challenge facing Eritrea. Eritrean President Isayas Afewerki had told the
UN Special Representative that Eritrea considered the return of the
displaced persons prior to the rainy season a top priority. So far, only a
few thousand had returned, most to areas of the TSZ which were under
Eritrean control during the hostilities, Guehenno told the Security
Council.


SUDAN: Government says drought problem needs action

The Sudan government has said that it is essential to act quickly on a
serious problem of drought in a number of affected regions. In a
high-level meeting between government officials, diplomats and
humanitarian agencies this week in Khartoum, the government called for
"swift action domestically and at the international level". Senior
officials said erratic rains, long dry spells and a bad distribution of
rains had led to a critical "food gap" in many areas, including the Darfur
states, the Kordofan states, the Red Sea, Kassala and White Nile states,
as well as some parts of southern Sudan. The government said that while
assistance provided so far by the government and the international
community had helped to stabilise the situation, it was time to act
quickly "to prevent a human crisis".

The government had established a high-level committee under the
chairmanship of the first vice-president, charged with maintaining food
security. A technical committee under the chairmanship of the humanitarian
aid commissioner had also been established to deal with "emergency
situations related to food security". Affected states, provinces and
localities had also formed committees, an official source said. Measures
taken had included mobilising food and cereals from areas of surplus for
dispatch to areas of need, providing drinking water, encouraging
importation of cereals and wheat flour by the private sector, and
initiating projects in cooperation with humanitarian agencies. Government
officials told diplomats and humanitarian agencies that one of the
necessary measures taken over the crisis was "recognition of the fact that
there is an actual problem created by drought".

Humanitarian sources told IRIN that it was "very good news" that the Sudan
government had acknowledged the extent of the crisis, and that it would
hopefully encourage donors to commit more urgently needed funds.

Malnutrition rates in Bentiu "among the highest"

A group of about 53,000 displaced people in Bentiu, capital of Wahdah
State in southern Sudan, is affected by some of the highest malnutrition
rates reported in southern Sudan. World Food Programme (WFP) information
officer Lindsey Davis, who has just returned from Bentiu, told IRIN that
there was a 24 percent global malnutrition rate among the displaced, due
to chronic malnutrition. The number of displaced in Bentiu has recently
increased, Davis said. In April 1999, there were about 20,000 displaced
people, which increased to 60,000 in August 2000. Some of the displaced
had returned to their homes, mainly around Ler and Jikaing, south of
Bentiu, causing figures to drop, until another increase last October. A
new wave of arrivals started in February-April this year, Davis said.
People interviewed said their homes had been attacked, burnt and looted by
militia.

WFP said the displaced were receiving monthly food distributions, and that
therapeutic and supplementary feeding centres had been set up.

Humanitarian sources told IRIN that the displacement was believed to be
linked to the fact Bentiu was "in the heart of the oil concession area".
The Sudan government has strenuously denied that it has caused civilian
displacement in oil areas in conflict-affected southern Sudan.

Government "in full control" of Blue Nile

Sudanese armed forces are in full control of the Blue Nile area,
southeastern Sudan, despite rebel claims to the contrary, according to the
official spokesman of the armed forces, Staff Lt-Gen Muhammad Bashir
Sulayman. The rebel forces had "collapsed" because of a successful
security operation carried out by the army in the area, official Sudanese
media quoted him as saying on Tuesday. According to Sulayman, a rebel
"infantry platoon" had surrendered to the army with all its equipment in
the Yaradda area [11.15N 34.55E], after the government had taken control
of Mantopia, Mahayliq and Mazbaqah. A number of field commanders from the
rebel movement had defected or surrendered, and would be treated well, the
army spokesman said.

The spokesman of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in Nairobi,
Samson Kwaje, rejected the government statement, saying that the SPLA had
repulsed a government offensive in Blue Nile. He told IRIN that the SPLA
remained in control of the key towns of Kurmuk, Qaysan and Ulu, held since
January 1997. According to Kwaje, government action in Blue Nile was
linked to oil concessions in Adar Yill, northeastern Upper Nile, recently
given to a Chinese company. The SPLA spokesman said the government wanted
to "cleanse" the area, which borders southern Blue Nile, for oil purposes.
The Sudan government has denied that it has a "displacement policy" in oil
areas.

Humanitarian situation in Darfur "serious"

Humanitarian agencies warn that food and water shortages are most severe
in West Darfur, western Sudan, where livestock prices have fallen against
grain prices, and food-for-work schemes are attracting large numbers of
people from distant areas. The UN-OCHA Sudan Report for March, released
this week, said the majority of people arriving at the food-for-work sites
were women. An assessment mission in West Darfur by Medecins Sans
Frontieres-Holland in March revealed a poor harvest, due to pests,
insecurity and insufficient rainfall. People were surviving by reducing
meals, selling their assets, eating wild food, migrating to find labour,
and seeking income-generating activities like collecting grass, and
cutting wood. The assessment mission found that the state health structure
was largely not functional, that primary health care was unavailable, and
that secondary health care was limited. Low vaccination coverage of
meningitis and measles had left the area vulnerable to outbreaks of
epidemics. Four teams, with government, World Food Programme (WFP) and NGO
representatives, carried out a needs assessment mission of West Darfur
from 31 March. A nutrition survey in North Darfur has also been conducted.
Relief food has so far been distributed through food-for-work schemes
only.

Last month WFP warned that as many as three million people faced disaster
in Sudan unless food assistance reached them. On 29 March 2001, WFP stated
that it would run out of food by mid-April unless immediate action is
taken.

A government source told IRIN that officials were working closely with
humanitarian agencies, and had last month dispatched 30,000 mt of wheat to
the area. The humanitarian situation was considered "serious", the source
said.


SOMALIA: Aydid accuses states of arming interim government

Mogadishu faction leader Husayn Muhammad Aydid on Thursday accused Yemen,
Saudi Arabia, Libya and Sudan of arming the Mogadishu-based Transitional
National Government (TNG) of Somalia, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Aydid said Sudan and Yemen had "sent weapons" and that Saudi Arabia "had
provided US $7.5 million for the purchase of equipment for a new army",
said AFP. Aydid also accused neighbouring Djibouti of buying weapons for
the TNG "on behalf of certain Arab states", AFP said. Aydid is the current
chairman of the opposition Somali Reconciliation and Restoration Council
(SRRC) that was recently set up following Ethiopia-hosted talks. It brings
together most of the southern faction leaders opposed to the TNG.

Aydid returned to Mogadishu on Tuesday from the south-central town of
Baidoa, where the SRRC has been meeting. He told news agencies that he and
other faction leaders would hold a national reconciliation conference
within six months to bring about the setting up of a "truly representative
and legitimate government". He said the SRRC would draft a charter
outlining the agenda of the conference, which would be held in held in
Somalia, "to minimise foreign influence", said AFP.

Ethiopian officials visit Somaliland

The Ethiopian deputy minister of aviation on Monday visited Hargeysa,
capital of the self-declared independent state of Somaliland, northwestern
Somalia. The visit follows the start of twice-weekly flights by Ethiopian
Airlines to Hargeysa last month. This week's ministerial visit comes close
on the heels of a high-level Ethiopian delegation, which visited
Somaliland from 18 to 19 April. That delegation, led by Ethiopian Deputy
Foreign Minister Tekeda Alemu, visited the Somaliland capital and the
mutual border, AFP said. Talks between the Ethiopian delegation and
Somaliland President Muhammad Ibrahim Egal focused on trade and bilateral
links, AFP said. Other issues included plans to open branches of the
Ethiopian Trade Bank, and of the Ethiopian official shipping company.
Local sources told IRIN that plans to increase commercial and trade links
between Ethiopia and Somaliland included the possibility of Ethiopia
providing a telephone exchange.

UN training Somaliland police

An intake of 350 new recruits has begun a four-month training course at
Madera police training school, in the self-declared independent state of
Somaliland, northwestern Somalia. The Somalia office of the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) said in a statement that the new recruits
were part of a larger programme aimed at training 1,000 new recruits this
year. "Most of the recruits are former militiamen, and this programme
gives them an opportunity to get back to work in a productive way," Luca
Rajola, chief technical adviser for the law enforcement component of
UNDP's Somali Civil Protection Program (SCPP), said.

The recruits comprise 300 police trainees and 50 prison guards. They will
be taught the penal code, and how to uphold respect for human rights and
gender rights. According to the statement, a first intake of trainees
graduated in January, and a third group of 300 trainees will enter the
school towards the end of the year.

Businessmen meet president over inflation crisis

The president of the TNG, Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, on Tuesday met and held
talks with 45 Mogadishu-based business leaders to discuss the economic
crisis in the Somali capital. Talks focused on ways of tackling the
spiralling inflation brought about by the importation of fake currency,
Abdirahman Dinari, TNG director of information, told IRIN. Hassan told the
business leaders that the government would start collecting taxes, and
urged them to be cooperative. He told the businessmen that the government
could not provide services to the public without revenue. The group also
discussed the formation of a chamber of commerce, said Dinari.

Abdikarim Shaykh Ibrahim, chairman of the Mogadishu business community,
told IRIN that the business community would work with the government to
tackle the illegal importation of new currency. A committee of businessmen
had been set up to devise a formula and set recommendations on how to deal
with rogue businessmen importing the fake currency, said Ibrahim.

However, other business leaders who attended the meeting expressed
caution. Paying taxes would "depend on how the government tackles the
security situation", one businessman told IRIN. He said there was
frustration among some sections of the business community that the
government was "not doing all it can" to bring the situation under
control. The business community in Mogadishu has provided crucial economic
and political support for the interim government.


DJIBOUTI: Port capacity increased by WFP

The WFP has completed its renovation of the port of Djibouti, increasing
its original capacity by at least 50 percent. WFP said on 18 April that
the "special operation for infrastructure and equipment support" was
launched in November 1999 and cost roughly US $1 million. WFP
representative in Djibouti Fatma Samoura told IRIN renovations meant the
port now had a capacity "at least 50 percent greater" than before the
outbreak of the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war, and was capable of dealing
with up to 7,000 mt of cargo per day.

Samoura said the during last year's famine, WFP managed to deliver more
than 600,000 mt of food aid to Ethiopia through Djibouti in only 10
months. Until 1998, the main route for food aid going to Ethiopia was
through the Eritrean ports of Assab and Massawa but, following the
outbreak of war between the former allies, it was switched to Djibouti.

According to Samoura, WFP forecasts that between April and December of
this year, 235,000 mt of food aid will pass through Djibouti on its way to
the drought-stricken regions of southern and southeastern Ethiopia.
Although the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia was gradually improving,
many areas were still struggling to recover from the effects of last
year's drought, WFP warned. On 10 April, WFP launched an operation to feed
two and a half million pastoralists and small-scale farmers in the
pastoral lowlands of southern and southeastern Ethiopia and the
agricultural areas of Welo, Tigray, North Shewa, Harerge and Welayita.

Nairobi, 27 April 2001


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