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

Tel: +254 2 622147
Fax: +254 2 622129
e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org


HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 37
12 - 18 May 2001


CONTENTS:

SOMALIA: North-south economic divide growing
SOMALIA: Death toll in Mogadishu fighting "more than 50"
SOMALIA: No external funding for Somaliland referendum
ETHIOPIA: Security chief assassinated in Addis Ababa
ETHIOPIA: Detained academics produced in court
ETHIOPIA: More than two million face food shortages
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: UN ends arms embargo
ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Eritrea protests against Ethiopian presence in TSZ
DJIBOUTI: Peace agreement signed with radical Afar wing
SUDAN: "Time running out in Darfur" - SCF
SUDAN: Rebel offensive in Bahr al-Ghazal
SUDAN: Food supply precarious and likely to worsen
SUDAN: SPLM/A rejects government account of ICRC attack
SUDAN: Army denies bombing civilians


SOMALIA: North-south economic divide growing

The combined effects of the continuing livestock ban and high inflation
are leading to a growing "north-south economic divide" in Somalia,
according to a joint report by the USAID Famine Early Warning System
(FEWS) and the European Union funded FAO/Food Security Assessment Unit
(FSAU). The north and central parts of the country continue to suffer the
impact of lost livestock exports to the Gulf states, whereas the ban has
had a "negligible impact" in the south, FSAU said in its April monthly
food security report (www.unsomalia.org).
 
Internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the urban poor in Bosaso
(commercial capital of the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland,
northeastern Somalia) were "struggling to maintain a viable existence in
the continuation of the ban and inflation", FSAU/FEWS said. Urban markets
throughout Puntland were reportedly closed by mass demonstrations, after a
steep fall in the value of the Somali currency pushed up food prices.  
The seasonal Gu rains are also late, and expensive water trucking has
begun in many areas, further restricting the ability of families to buy
food.

In the northwest, the price of imported rice has jumped as a result of the
rapid currency depreciation. In Burao in the self-declared independent
state of Somaliland, northwestern Somalia, FSAU/FEWS said that one day's
labour could buy nearly eight kilogrammes of rice 12 months ago, but only
bought about two kilogrammes in April. In other parts of Somaliland, the
high inflation rates had made it difficult for farmers to access credit,
and they have been unable to prepare land for cultivation. Many
agro-pastoralists in these areas had resorted to feeding their cattle on
"dry stalks" in order to survive, the report said.

Southern regions have been able to partly offset the effects of high
inflation and the livestock ban with good local harvests and access to the
Kenyan livestock market. However, the inflation rate was in April at its
highest point since the early 1990s, and markets and consumers were
experiencing "extreme financial instability" as newly printed Somali
shillings continued to enter the market, the report said. Reports from
Mogadishu's main Bakara market indicate that the Somali shilling
depreciated from 14,000 shillings to the US dollar in March to 20,000 to
the dollar in one month. In April, about 4 million dollars' worth of
Somali shillings had been imported into the country, FSAU/FEWS said.

SOMALIA: Death toll in Mogadishu fighting "more than 50"

At least 50 people died in fighting which broke out in Mogadishu from 11
to 12 May, with up to 100 wounded, local sources told IRIN. The bloodiest
fighting in Somalia in the last few years erupted after militia at the
Mogadishu port attacked faction leader Husayn Aydid's forces. A fierce
battle ensued between Aydid's forces and pro-government militia, until the
faction leader managed to return to his base in Villa Somalia, southern
Mogadishu on the morning of 12 May.

Most of the dead and wounded were civilians hit by stray bullets, Dr
Shaykhdon Salad Ilmi, director of Madina hospital told IRIN. When the
fighting subsided at noon on 12 May, the number of wounded in the various
hospitals stood at 89, said a local doctor involved in compiling the data.
Most of the wounded were taken to the privately owned Shifo, Al-Hayat,
Hasan Jis and Mogadishu hospitals, all in south Mogadishu, he said.

Meanwhile, interim Prime Minister Ali Khalif Galayhd - in Nairobi to hold
talks with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank - called the
recent battle in Mogadishu "unfortunate" and said he abhorred the loss of
life. In an interview with IRIN, he said the Transitional National
Government (TNG) had been "pursuing a policy of use of non-violence and
peaceful constructive dialogue... [which] some people might see as a sign
of weakness". Galaydh admitted that the TNG had "not accomplished as much
as we should have done" in terms of reconciliation, but had created
important institutions, particularly a parliament. He dismissed the
referendum planned at end of May in Somaliland, saying he believed the
administration "might resort to stuffing ballot boxes" to achieve a
favourable vote on secession.  
http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/somalia/20010514.phtml]

SOMALIA: No external funding for Somaliland referendum

The self-declared independent state of Somaliland, northwestern Somalia,
is gearing up for the forthcoming referendum on 31 May, Agence
France-Presse (AFP)said on Wednesday.

Abdiqadir Haji Ismail Jirdeh, Somaliland's deputy parliamentary Speaker
and vice-chairman of the national constitutional commission, was quoted by
AFP as saying: "Everything is ready. All we have to do is transport voting
materials to 600 polling stations across the country. It will definitely
not be postponed." Jirdeh said the referendum "requires a lot of money to
stage", and said that "the international community, especially the United
Nations, are not willing to sponsor it". Jirdeh said Somaliland would
welcome international observers.

ETHIOPIA: Security chief assassinated in Addis Ababa

The head of Ethiopia's security and intelligence forces, Kinfe
Gebremedhin, was assassinated in Addis Ababa on the morning of 12 May as
he entered the armed forces officers' club on official business, news
agencies reported. The assailant was identified as Tsehaye Woldeselase, a
major in the Ethiopian army and a fellow-member of the Tigray People's
Liberation Front (TPLF). Tsehaye was reported to have greeted Kinfe, and
then shot him several times from behind. He was arrested on the spot the
pro-Ethiopian government Walta Information Service said.

Kinfe was a politburo member and key figure in the central committee of
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's TPLF, the dominant group in the governing
Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). He was
described by Walta as being "highly respected and esteemed by the TPLF
rank and file", and was at the forefront of attempts to resolve the recent
disputes within the TPLF. Thousands attended his funeral on Monday in
Addis Ababa, including Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the army chief of
staff, Lt-Gen Tsadkan Gebretensae, and other senior ministers and
officials, news agencies said.

Kinfe had reportedly voted against Meles earlier in the year during a
series of disagreements over Meles's liberal economic policies and stance
on relations with Eritrea, but swung back behind Meles in March when 12 of
the 28 central committee members walked out, a regional analyst said.

ETHIOPIA: Detained academics produced in court

Two academics arrested on suspicion of inciting students to riot have
appeared before a court in Addis Ababa. Professor Mesfin Woldemariam, 71,
and Dr Berhanu Nega were ordered to remain in police custody until 18 May,
as they would "be an obstacle in the evidence collection process" if
released on bail, news agencies said. Police also told the court that
additional time was needed to complete the investigation into the riots of
17 and 18 April.

Local media reported that Mesfin, founding head of the Ethiopian Human
Rights Commission, had gone on hunger strike in protest against his
continued detention.

Meanwhile, Ethiopian police and security forces were continuing to arrest
and detain opposition leaders and party activists, the 'Addis Tribune'
reported on 11 May. The head of foreign affairs of the Ethiopian
Democratic Party (EDP), Isac Kifle, said the police had rounded up 110 EDP
members, and was holding them "incommunicado". The All Amhara People's
Organisation (AAPO)  said in a statement that 30 of its members had been
arrested, and called for their unconditional release. AAPO was quoted as
saying that most of those taken into custody were candidates in the
council and district elections.

ETHIOPIA: More than two million face food shortages

More than two million people in Amhara State, northern Ethiopia, are
facing serious food shortages and have not yet received their food aid
entitlements for April, the pro-government Walta Information Centre
reported. The Amhara Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission
(DPPC) said it had not received the 361,612 quintals of food aid requested
from the federal DPPC last month. Walta quoted Amhara DPPC public
relations head, Chalachew Tarekagne warning that the people of Amhara
State were "selling their cattle at throw-away prices to cope with the
situation." Chalachew expressed concern that the situation could become
worse if food was not sent before the onset of the rainy season.

ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: UN ends arms embargo

The United Nations Security Council has decided to lift the embargo on
arms sales to Ethiopia and Eritrea. A statement read by the Council's
president, James Cunningham of the United States, said that under the
current circumstances the embargo would be allowed to expire, but warned
that the UN would again take action if tension between the two countries
threatened peace and security in the Horn.

In the statement, delivered on Tuesday, Cunningham said: "The Security
Council urges the parties to ensure that efforts are redirected from
weapons procurement and other military activities towards the
reconstruction and development of both economies, and regional
reconciliation, with a view to achieving stability in the Horn of Africa."

Cunningham said the Council was encouraging UN member states "to exercise
the highest degree of responsibility in discouraging arms flows to
countries and regions emerging from armed conflicts". The arms embargo was
imposed a year ago in an effort to end the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war,
and will expire at midnight on Wednesday.

ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Freedom of movement "fundamental" for peace

The UN Security Council has called on Ethiopia and Eritrea to allow the UN
Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) free and unrestricted access in
and around the 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone (TSZ). Current Council
President James Cunningham said in a statement on Tuesday that free and
unhindered access for UNMEE was "a fundamental condition for the success
of the peacekeeping operation". He said the buffer zone, which is designed
to separate the armed forces of the two countries, "must be completely
demilitarised". Cunningham added that civilians inside the zone should be
supported by an "appropriate but limited" number of Eritrean civilian
militia and police.

In accordance with the Algiers Peace Agreement, UNMEE is granted complete
freedom of movement in and around the TSZ. Head of UNMEE Legwaila Joseph
Legwaila has been quoted as saying that freedom of movement for UN
peacekeepers within the TSZ is "the most serious problem" in the peace
process.

Meanwhile, both Ethiopia and Eritrea have formally protested to the
Security Council about the continued presence of each others troops in the
buffer zone.

DJIBOUTI: Peace agreement signed with radical Afar wing

The Djibouti government and the radical wing of the Front for the
Restoration of Unity and Peace (FRUD) signed an agreement on 12 May, which
observers say aims to put an end to the uneasy aftermath of the Afar
insurgency in northern and southwestern Djibouti. The agreement was signed
by Djibouti Interior Minister Abdallah Abdillahi Miguil and FRUD leader
Ahmed Dini. Dini told journalists that the agreement centred on
"decentralisation", in which the government had promised to set up more
representative local bodies. He said the government had also promised to
introduce an "unrestricted multiparty system" by September. Local sources
told IRIN that part of the deal involved the reconstruction and
rehabilitation of areas and populations affected by the insurgency, which
ran from 1991 to 1994. [See DJIBOUTI:
www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/djibouti/20010514.phtml]

SUDAN: "Time running out in Darfur" - SCF

Save the Children (UK) has this week warned that "time is running out to
prevent a major disaster in west Sudan". In the worst-affected areas, the
nutritional status of children had hit alarming levels, all coping
mechanisms were breaking down, and children were already dying due to lack
of food, water and emergency medical treatment, it stated in a press
release. The failure of the donor community to heed warnings since
November about the developing drought situation meant it was already too
late to avoid substantial loss of life; an immediate response was vital
now to minimise further unnecessary mortality and destitution, according
to SCF.

"We are now facing a serious humanitarian crisis in Darfur," said SCF
programme director in Sudan, Robert Folkes. "With the prospect of rains in
July, we must move fast to ensure that the food gets in before roads
become inaccessible. Urgent steps are needed before then to prevent
measles spreading, and to contain diseases such as diarrhoea which
threaten children's lives during the rain," he added. [for further
details, go to: www.savethechildren.org.uk]

Food insecurity also persisted in southern Sudan, with physical insecurity
as the most important determinant, USAID's Famine Early Warning System
(FEWS) reported. Food options remained limited, households food stocks
were exhausted and markets were bare, so there was "increasing dependence
on [food] relief and hard-to-find wild foods", it said. Cereal prices were
on an upward trend, and food security prospects in areas currently
experiencing shortages remained precarious, it added. [for full Southern
Sudan Update, go to: www.fews.net]

SUDAN: Rebel offensive in Bahr al-Ghazal

The rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) on Thursday
claimed to have overrun the government garrisons of Alok and Kubri Kuom,
between the towns of Aweil and Wau in Bahr al-Ghazal. It also claimed to
have made several attacks on Wau, the capital of Bahr al-Ghazal and a
well-defended government garrison town. Fighting was still continuing in
the area, according to the SPLM/A. The rebel movement said it had launched
the assault to pre-empt a government offensive, and because pro-government
forces had been attacking villages around Aweil and Wau, abducting
children and driving away livestock. The offensive was also timed to
coincide with the eighteenth anniversary of the establishment of the SPLA,
news agencies reported.

SUDAN: Food supply precarious and likely to worsen

The food supply outlook for parts of Sudan was "highly precarious" after
two successive years of reduced cereal harvests and depletion of stocks,
the FAO's Global Information and Early Warning System on Food and
Agriculture (GIEWS) reported on Monday. Despite government efforts to
mitigate food shortages by lifting customs duties on food imports and
other measures, the food supply situation was likely to tighten further in
the coming months with the start of the 'lean season' (before the
October/November harvest), it said. The cereal requirement after
commercial imports was estimated at 240,000 mt, but the latest estimates
of emergency food aid - in pipeline and under mobilisation - amounted to
only 55,000 mt, leaving an uncovered gap of about 157,000 mt, it warned.

Lower harvests and stock levels had led to a sharp rise in cereal prices
and reduced access to food for poorer sections of the population,
according to GIEWS. "The purchasing power of large numbers of people,
particularly pastoralists, has been seriously eroded," it said, adding
that vulnerable groups had started migrating for work and joining
food-for-work schemes in dramatic numbers. With the 'lean season' just
starting and only a fraction of the food aid requirement pledged so far,
"the situation is likely to worsen in the coming months", it added. The
GIEWS cited the latest estimates of people in need of urgent food
assistance because of drought or famine or both, at some 2.97 million
people.

Meanwhile, humanitarian agencies have reported an influx of
internally-displaced people (IDPs) into Wau in recent weeks, due partly to
the drought situation, but also attributed to increased insecurity arising
from raiding by pro-government Murahilin militia forces. USAID's Famine
Early Warning System (FEWS) reported that there and elsewhere in southern
Sudan food options remained limited, households food stocks were exhausted
and markets were bare, so there was "increasing dependence on [food]
relief and hard-to-find wild foods", it said. [For full Southern Sudan
Update, go to: www.fews.net]

SUDAN: SPLM/A rejects government account of ICRC attack

The Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) on Thursday
reiterated its denial of having had anything to do with the shooting of an
ICRC pilot on 9 May, and said the government-controlled media in Sudan
were "peddling lies" when they accused it of involvement. The
Khartoum-based 'Akhbar al-Yawm' newspaper, among others, had reported that
the rebel movement was secretly carrying out investigations into the
attack on the ICRC aircraft, which claimed the life of its Danish
co-pilot. The plane was halfway between Lokichoggio (the Kenyan base for
most relief operations in southern Sudan) and a stage stop at Juba when
the attack occurred. SPLM/A spokesman Samson Kwaje said the accusations
were "false and malicious", and that the movement had no reason to shoot
at an ICRC plane that was clearly marked. Kwaje said the SPLM/A had
reliable information that the incident occurred west of the Didinga Hills
(4.05 N; 33.31 E), some 65 km south of Kapoeta town in southeastern Sudan,
over territory mostly controlled by pro-government militias under the
leadership of Captain Peter Lorot.

SUDAN: Army denies bombing civilians

The Sudanese army on Monday said that "the outlaws' movement [the SPLM/A]"
and "known foreign circles", in order to incriminate Sudan and distort its
image internationally, were mounting a propaganda campaign to the effect
that Khartoum was bombing civilian targets in southern Sudan. Denying the
accusation, the army said it had, on the contrary, been assisting in the
delivery of relief to the needy, displaced and war-affected population,
the official news agency, Suna, reported. The military would continue to
be vigilant in order to "abort all the plots aimed at undermining Sudan's
unity and its adherence to the morals of fighting", the report added. The
army also accused the "outlaws"  of laying land mines, abducting and
recruiting children, looting and burning towns and villages, using the war
as a means of acquiring personal gain, and being an agent for circles
hostile to Sudan.

Aid agencies and human rights groups have accused the government of Sudan
of indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets. [For more details:  
http://www.hrw.org/wr2k1/africa/sudan.html]


Nairobi, 18 May 2001


[IRIN-HOA: Tel: +254 2 622147 Fax: +254 2 622129 e-mail:  
irin-hoa@ocha.unon.org ]


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