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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Fax: +254 2 622129
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HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 47
21 - 27 July 2001


CONTENTS:

SUDAN: Ruling party endorses Egyptian-Libyan peace proposals 
SUDAN: SPLM/A says government bombing forcing IDPs into the bush
SUDAN: Natsios voices concern over Nubah crisis 
SUDAN: WHO plans urgent action on Ruweng polio outbreak
SUDAN: South African oil firm says "no plans for Sudan"
SOMALIA: Puntland elders name chief justice as "acting president"
SOMALIA: Baidoa tense after reported RRA split
SOMALIA: UN projects will help rebuild lives
ETHIOPIA:  Poor rains confirmed for Somali region
ETHIOPIA: Oromiya president suspended from party
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Peacekeepers insist on freedom of movement
ERITREA: 200,000 war-displaced return home
ERITREA-SUDAN: Agreement reached on border security


SUDAN: Ruling party endorses Egyptian-Libyan peace proposals

The leadership council of the ruling National Congress party on 21 July
gave its approval of the nine points of an Egyptian-Libyan peace
initiative memorandum on Sudan, and gave the go-ahead for the government
to take part in a proposed peace conference to be based on them, AFP on 22
July quoted Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Uthman Isma'il as saying.  
Isma'il said Khartoum would be "very flexible" in the talks, "as the
priority will be for halting the war and reaching a political settlement
that leads to national unity". However, President Umar Hasan al-Bashir,
speaking in Wad Madani, south of Khartoum, at the end of last week said
his government would welcome peace "without separating religion from the
state and partitioning the country in exchange for peace", the official
SUNA news agency reported.

However, the concept of self-determination for the south had been accepted
in the regional peace initiative of the Inter-Governmental Authority on
Development (IGAD), which involves the Sudanese government and the SPLM/A,
regional analysts told IRIN. The Libyan-Egyptian initiative makes no
reference to self-determination and, indeed, reaffirms the unity of Sudan
as a fundamental. Libya and Egypt have repeatedly declared their
opposition to self-determination. The opposition umbrella National
Democratic Alliance had agreed in principle to the Libyan-Egyptian
initiative, and to attend a proposed follow-up conference, but had
introduced three additional recommendations on: the separation of religion
and state; respect for the right to self-determination of southern Sudan;
and, the need to unify the Egyptian-Libyan and IGAD initiatives on Sudan,
the sources added.

SUDAN: SPLM/A says government bombing forcing IDPs into the bush

The Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) claimed on Tuesday
that the Khartoum government had intensified bombing raids on civilians in
Eastern Equatoria, southern Sudan. The rebel group said in a press release
that, since 22 July, Antonov bombers had attacked four towns in the area,
and that internally displaced persons (IDPs) had been forced to flee into
the bush without food or shelter. According to the statement, a bombing
raid on Magwe Centre on Monday killed four people and seriously injured
three others. On the same day, eight bombs were dropped on Keyala in Torit
County. Government aircraft had also carried out a bombing raid on 22 July
on an IDP centre at Ngaluma, and another on Tuesday at Parajok in Magwe
County, the statement said. Humanitarian sources told IRIN on Wednesday
that bombing raids had taken place in Eastern Equatoria with varying
frequency and severity throughout this year.

SUDAN: Natsios voices concern over Nubah crisis

US Special Humanitarian Coordinator Andrew Natsios on 21 July warned that
a failed harvest in Sudan could result a humanitarian disaster such as
that in the mid-1980s, when about a quarter of a million people died from
drought, starvation and disease. Natsios said failed rains threatened
starvation in parts of the north, while government attacks were
exacerbating hunger in the south, Reuters reported. Natsios said he had
raised as a particular concern the issue of government attacks on the
Nubah Mountains in the south, allegedly to clear the way for oil drilling.
He cited reports from aid workers, who had claimed that military attacks
in May had displaced 40,000 to 50,000 people, Reuters reported.

Natsios said the lowlands in the Nubah Mountains had been turned into a
"no-man's-land", the report said. "There are people dying, not in large
numbers at this point, but if there is no humanitarian access, the
analysis that has been done indicates there will be a rapid deterioration
in food security, and the death rates will go up," Associated Press (AP)
quoted him as saying. Natsios said he had addressed, at the highest level
in Khartoum, human rights concerns, including government bombings,
restricted humanitarian access, and the alleged condoning of slavery in
the south, AP reported.

SUDAN: WHO plans urgent action on Ruweng polio outbreak

The presence of wild polio virus has been confirmed in a stool sample
collected by MEDAIR's mobile and response team (MRT) operating in Ruweng
County, Western Upper Nile/Unity (Wahdah) State, southern Sudan, WHO
official Jeff Partridge told IRIN on Tuesday. The sample came from a two
year-old girl, originally from Akot-weng village in Gul Dit Payam
(district), Partridge said. At the time of the onset of acute flaccid
paralysis (AFP) in April, which ultimately drew attention to the polio
outbreak, the girl's family was living in the toich (wetlands) area two to
three hours walk from Padit, where people live with their cattle during
the dry season (January-May). Due to insecurity elsewhere, Ruweng was the
only county accessible to the inter-agency Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS)
where WHO had been able to establish surveillance staffing for polio on
the ground, Partridge added. For the same reason, no immunisation of the
under-five population has been done this year, although Ruweng has five
districts with an estimated under-five population of 12,800.

This is the first P1-type wild poliovirus to be isolated from southern
Sudan since the start of the polio eradication programme there in 1998,
according to Partridge. WHO was "very concerned" about the incident,
because one could presume that there were many more infected carriers, due
to inadequate vaccination cover among others reasons, he said. "We look at
this as an outbreak, because it's proof that the virus is there, that
polio is circulating in south Sudan," he added. WHO plans to send
emergency teams, complete with cold-chain requirements, into Pagol, Padit
and Biem between 28 July and early August to find the polio-positive
patient in order to do a detailed case investigation, as well as to
collect samples from contacts of the positive case, and from random
children in the surrounding households and villages, WHO added.

SUDAN: South African oil firm says "no plans for Sudan"

The South African oil parastatal, Soekor, has issued a statement saying
that the company is not about to enter into any agreement with the
Sudanese government that would allow it to conduct oil prospecting in the
southern parts of that country. "Reports to this effect are inaccurate,"
said Acting Chief Executive Kevin Stallbom. To put the record straight,
Stallbom said Soekor shared the concerns of the Southern African Catholic
Bishops' Conference (SACBC) "that an insensitive pursuit of oil interests
in the Sudan might contribute to the escalation of the civil war in that
country".  The SACBC said in a press release on 20 July that it was
"gravely concerned" that Soekor was in the advanced stages of negotiating
expansion activities in Sudan. Cardinal Wilfred Napier, the president of
SACBC, called on South African Mineral and Energy Minister Phumzile
Mlambo-Ngcuka "to intervene to stop this overt support for a party to the
Sudan conflict that is seriously alleged to have committed serious
violations of human rights".

SOMALIA: Puntland elders name chief justice as "acting president"

Senior traditional elders in the self-declared autonomous region of
Puntland, northeastern Somalia, who were debating the controversy
surrounding the extension of the mandate of President Abdullahi Yusuf and
his administration, have come out in support of new elections and named an
acting president, local sources told IRIN. The elders, who have been
meeting in Garowe, the regional capital, since 18 July, decided on
Wednesday to confirm Puntland Chief Justice Yusuf Haji Nur as "acting
president of Puntland until 31 August" when he is to call a general
congress of representatives of all Puntland regions to a elect a new
administration, the sources said.

The administration of Abdullahi Yusuf subsequently dismissed the elders'
move and accused them of encroaching on areas outside their mandate.
Isma'il Warsame, the chief of cabinet of the Puntland president, told IRIN
on Thursday that the administration was not bound by the outcome of the
elders' meeting, and "will ignore their call". "We have already stated
that whatever decisions they reach will change nothing. Abdullahi Yusuf is
still the President and all branches of government are reporting to him",
insisted Warsame. [For more details see IRIN Separate: Puntland elders
turn down new term for president]

SOMALIA: Baidoa tense after reported RRA split

The town of Baidoa, 240 km southwest of Mogadishu, is reported to be
tense, local sources told IRIN. The tension follows a reported split
within the executive committee of the Rahanweyn Resistance Army (RRA). The
split affecting the RRA, which controls much of Bay and Bakol regions in
south-central Somalia, was over whether the RRA should support the attempt
by General Muhammad Sa'id Hirsi Morgan of the Somali Patriotic Front to
attack and recapture Kismayo, sources in Baidoa told IRIN. "The split is
between those who want to support General Morgan and those who oppose
this," they said. In recent days, there have been numerous local media
reports of an impending attack on Kismayo, 500 km south of Mogadishu, by
Morgan's forces. Morgan was expelled from Kismayo in June 1999 by an
alliance of Marehan, Ogadeni and Habar Gedir militia, which recently set
up an administration in the town.

An informed source told IRIN that Colonel Hasan Muhammad Nur Shatigadud
had promised Morgan the support of the RRA without consulting the
executive committee. Over 20 members of the 37-member committee were
reportedly opposed to the idea, the source said. The committee had been
deliberating the issue since last week, it added. "The RRA has no business
going to Kismayo, or supporting Morgan," it said. Morgan is currently in
Dhinsoor, some 110 km southwest of Baidoa, awaiting RRA reinforcements.
The executive committee meeting would continue until the issue of support
for Morgan and leadership questions were dealt with, local sources told
IRIN. Meanwhile, some executive members were said to be using the split to
challenge Shatigadud's leadership of the RRA.

SOMALIA: UN projects will help rebuild lives

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Somalia last week
launched three new initiatives which will do much to help Somalis rebuild
their economy, society and livelihoods, according to a UNDP statement
issued in New York on Monday. The three projects were the Poverty
Reduction and Economic Recovery Programme, the Capacity Building for
Governance Programme, and a joint initiative with UNHCR for reintegration
of returnees and IDPs, said the statement.

The poverty reduction programme will help vulnerable populations generate
income from agriculture and livestock, offer job skills training and set
up micro-credit projects. The programme will also help communities design
development plans, while providing advice to authorities on ways of
improving economic planning and policies aimed at helping the poor. The
capacity building programme will support the approach that governance is a
shared responsibility among authorities, the private sector and civil
society. It will support public administration and Somali representatives,
strengthen access to information technologies and cooperate with civil
society organisations, according to the statement. The reintegration
programme is part of a subregional initiative launched by UNDP, UNHCR, and
the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD). It aims to
provide returnees with basic social services such as water, education,
health care and shelter. The programme would also help create social and
economic opportunities for returnees and their communities, said the
statement. It quotes UNDP Resident Representative Randolph Kent as saying:
"These programmes taken together show what our mission in Somalia is all
about."

ETHIOPIA: Poor rains confirmed for Somali region

Optimistic projections that food security in the Ethiopian Somali region
would continue improving have been tempered by confirmation of poor
main-season Gu rains. In their joint report for July, the USAID-Famine
Early Warning System and Local Food Security Unit of the European Union
say the Gu rains, which normally extend from March to May, were poorly
distributed, especially along the borders with Kenya and Somalia.
Movements of people and animals searching for water and pasture had
commenced sooner than normally expected in the dry season, humanitarian
sources told IRIN.  [For more details, see separate IRIN story of 24 July:
"Well below average rains in Somali region"]

ETHIOPIA: Oromiya president suspended from party

Kuma Demeksa, the president of the Oromiya Regional State and
secretary-general of the Oromo People's Democratic Organisation (OPDO),
has been suspended from the OPDO central committee after being accused of
corruption, antidemocratic practices and abuse of power, the official
Ethiopia News Agency reported on Monday. In a statement issued that day,
entitled "ODPO is committed as ever before to continue the struggle for
the rights and privileges of the Oromo people", the organisation said
central committee members Chala Hordofa, Diriba Arkona and Yasin Husayn
had also been suspended from the leadership.

Kuma's dismissal was announced at the conclusion of a series of
"self-evaluation" meetings during which the OPDO leadership was
scrutinised for its performance and conduct over the past 10 years since
the organisation was formed and became a member of the ruling Ethiopian
People's Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition. The meetings were held
over a period of more than four weeks.

ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: Peacekeepers insist on freedom of movement

International peacekeepers deployed under the mandate of the United
Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) still faced problems of
access to the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ), UNMEE said in a statement
issued at its regular press briefing, held on 20 July. Although both the
Ethiopian and Eritrean governments guaranteed access and freedom of
movement for the peacekeeping operation in the December 2000 cessation of
hostilities agreement, the Eritrean government had repeatedly "argued
against our right to unrestricted freedom of movement outside the TSZ and
supply routes to the zone", said the statement, adding: "We must be able
to observe what is happening outside the zone, as well as inside it."  
UNMEE spokesman Jean Victor Nkolo said it was important that all concerned
adhered to UN Security Council Resolution 1320 and permitted free movement
and access for UNMEE and its supplies throughout the territories of the
two parties without any restrictions, including within the TSZ and the 15
km-wide adjacent area.

Routes to Sabalita and Harsile in Eritrea were cited as areas where UNMEE
peacekeepers had been encountering movement difficulties, "contrary to the
letter and spirit of the peace agreement". Nkolo told journalists that
solving the issue of access throughout the operational area was essential
to UNMEE's ability to fulfil its mandate. On Wednesday, however, the
Eritrean government reiterated that UN peacekeepers would have to consult
with Asmara before leaving the TSZ for other areas within Eritrea, AFP
reported. "The UN cannot just move anywhere without giving us prior
notice. That would be a violation of Eritrean sovereignty," Yemane
Gebremeskel, spokesman for the Eritrean presidency, told AFP.

ERITREA: 200,000 war-displaced return home

The return of 200,000 civilians displaced as a result of the border war
with Ethiopia has been completed, AFP quoted the Eritrean Relief and
Refugee Commission (ERREC) as saying on Tuesday. The last truck carrying
such people, many of whom fled to relief camps when war broke out in 1998,
delivered them to their homes on 22 July, ERREC official Ibrahim Said told
AFP. Many of the IDPs are from the Gash Barka and Debub regions,
considered the "bread-basket" of Eritrea, a humanitarian source in Asmara
told IRIN. "Last year there was very little farm production, but with the
majority of people now home and the rains starting, prospects for a good
harvest this November are much improved," the source said, though warning
that even with improved production this year, the country was expected to
remain food-deficit and in need of continued aid.

While most of the IDPs had returned to their villages in and around the
TSZ, some 50,000 others were unable to return because of uncleared land
mines or the presence of Ethiopian troops in some areas, Ibrahim told AFP.
These people had been moved to seven temporary camps located as close as
possible to their places of origin. UN humanitarian agencies and a number
of international NGOs are working with the Eritrean government to assist
the returnee IDPs. The UNDP is helping to mobilise international resources
and support for the operation through its Postwar Emergency Recovery
Programme. In a complementary initiative, the Italian government is
funding the resettlement of IDPs in Gash Barka Region. So far, however,
the Eritrean government has received less than half of the US $223 million
estimated as needed to assist people affected by both drought and conflict
in the country.

ERITREA-SUDAN: Agreement reached on border security

Sudan and Eritrea have agreed to cooperate to curb smuggling and illegal
infiltration, and to ensure the safe passage of people and goods across
the common border, AFP reported on Tuesday, quoting a report in the
Egyptian independent 'Al-Ayyam' daily. Officials from the northeastern
state of Kassala in Sudan and Eritrea's Gash Region, brokered the deal
after two days of meetings in Kassala, a border town 400 km east of
Khartoum.

The two sides also agreed to coordinate security, exchange information,
and regulate border trade by recording imports and exports, the paper
said. They further agreed to establish joint programmes for pest control,
livestock vaccination and flood control measures along the Gash river.
However, the Eritreans had reservations regarding the inclusion of a
provision on halting "hostile" activities between the two neighbouring
regions in the communiqué, which was signed by Kassala State Governor
General Adam Hamid Musa and Gash representative Michael Gebre, the paper
is quoted as saying.

Nairobi, 27 July 2001


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