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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HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 98
20 - 26 July 2002


CONTENTS:

SOMALIA: Hundreds flee Mogadishu fighting
SOMALIA: Contact Group to hold first Nairobi meeting
SOMALIA: 30 killed as Mogadishu fighting continues
SOMALIA: Somaliland polls set for January
SOMALIA: UN tightens arms embargo
ERITREA: Government warns of looming humanitarian crisis
ERITREA: Mine education at risk, UN warns
ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Ethiopia told to withdraw settlement from Eritrea
ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Annan calls for adjusting UNMEE mandate
ETHIOPIA: Irish aid to tackle drought
ETHIOPIA: Government urged to forgo "draconian" press laws
ETHIOPIA: First signs of malnutrition in Afar region
ETHIOPIA: Hundreds of street kids reportedly dumped in a forest
ETHIOPIA: Cautious welcome for return of Axum Obelisk

See also:

ETHIOPIA: Interview with UNICEF head Ibrahim Jabr:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28964




SOMALIA: Hundreds flee Mogadishu fighting

Hundreds of families are fleeing fighting in Mogadishu's southwestern
Medina district, taking advantage of a relatively quiet day on Thursday, a
local resident told IRIN. The exodus follows two outbreaks of heavy
fighting in the last two days between opposing militias in the district.
"Many families are taking advantage of today's lull in the fighting to
reach safety," the resident, Nurta Hasan, said. "I have just taken my
children to Waberi [south Mogadishu]." She said residents were fleeing
because they believed that renewed clashes were imminent. "Everyone is
saying that [faction leader] Muse Sudi [Yalahow] will attack again, so we
are being careful." She added that most of those leaving were women,
children and elderly people. Most of the men were staying behind to look
after their houses. However, a local journalist told IRIN he doubted that
Yalahow, who had lost ground and at least six battle wagons during the
fighting, was in a position to mount an effective counterattack. "It may
not stop him from attacking, but I don't believe he has the capability now
for an immediate attack," he said. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=29010]

SOMALIA: Contact Group to hold first Nairobi meeting

A Somalia Contact Group (CG), established earlier this year by the UN
Secretary-General, is to hold its first meeting in the Kenyan capital,
Nairobi, on 25 July, a UN official told IRIN on Wednesday. Dr Babafemi
Badejo, the senior political officer of the UN Political Office for
Somalia (UNPOS), said the group has about 30 members. "It includes all
members of the Security Council, the co-chairs of the IGAD
[Inter-Governmental Authority on Development] Partners Forum [Italy and
Norway], as well as organisations Somalia belongs to, and countries that
have undertaken peace initiatives in Somalia, plus the EC, which has also
been actively involved in the peace process in the country", he said.
According to a UN Security Council presidential statement of 28 March,
which endorsed the establishment of the CG, the group is to operate in
both Nairobi and New York. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28985]


SOMALIA: 30 killed as Mogadishu fighting continues

At least 30 people have been killed and over 50 wounded in two days of
fighting in Mogadishu, with thousands displaced, local sources told IRIN
on Wednesday. The fighting, in the southwestern Medina district, broke out
early Tuesday morning, when militia loyal to Mogadishu faction leader Muse
Sudi Yalahow attacked a house belonging to his erstwhile ally, Umar Mahmud
Muhammad Finish. The clashes subsided later in the day, but resumed on
Wednesday at around 08:30 local time (05:30 GMT). Medina Hospital sources
told IRIN that they had 16 new cases of wounded people from Wednesday's
fighting. Most of the victims were women and children caught up in the
crossfire, they added. "We estimate that at least 30 have been killed and
over 50 wounded since yesterday [Tuesday]," said one doctor. The numbers
relate only to those reaching the hospitals, but exclude many people
buried where they died, or being cared for at home. "Once the real numbers
come out, I am certain the figures will be higher," the doctor said. The
latest round of fighting started when Yalahow's militia, which reportedly
lost ground in Tuesday's fighting, counterattacked the positions of
Finish's militia on Wednesday morning, a Medina resident told IRIN.
[Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28982]


SOMALIA: Somaliland polls set for January

The self-declared republic of Somaliland is to hold presidential elections
in January, sources close to the Somaliland government told IRIN on
Tuesday. An independent electoral commission will be established and about
10 candidates are expected to participate, the sources said. The election
date emerged during a three-day visit to Ethiopia by a Somaliland
delegation, led by the current president Dahir Riyale Kahin. The
delegation, which includes the foreign and trade ministers, is due to meet
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi later on Tuesday. The ministers are
expected to press Addis Ababa to increase its use of the Red Sea port of
Berbera. Informed sources told IRIN that the elections are another step
towards convincing the international community that Somaliland is
committed to peace and development in the region. It also follows visits
to the region by envoys representing Britain, Italy and a forthcoming
visit by Denmark. Two American congressional aides have also visited
Somaliland. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28957]


SOMALIA: UN tightens arms embargo

In an effort to tighten the arms sanctions against Somalia, the UN
Security Council has approved the establishment of a panel to gather
information on violations of the 10-year-old embargo. In a resolution
unanimously adopted on 22 July, the Council asked UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan to set up a "three-person panel within one month". The panel
will be based in Nairobi and operate from there for a period of six
months. Under this resolution, the panel will "pursue all relevant
sources, including states, international law enforcement bodies,
nongovernmental organisations (NGOs), financial institutions and the
business community". The Security Council resolution also instructed the
panel to carry out field research in Somalia and other states, "including
through a review of national customs and border control regimes, and to
recommend measures to strengthen the weapons ban". [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28960]


ERITREA: Government warns of looming humanitarian crisis

The Eritrean government has warned of an unfolding humanitarian crisis due
to the complete failure of vital rains expected in April-May. An alert,
issued by the Eritrean Relief and Refugee Commission (ERREC), said the
country was facing an "exceptionally severe and prolonged drought" which
was threatening the survival of people and animals. It said the
"unprecedented" dry spell had continued into June and July - the prime
planting months. "As a result, a humanitarian emergency that will have
serious consequences - unless urgent preventive measures are taken by the
international community - is unfolding," the ERREC statement said. It
pointed out that the 'Azmera' or spring rains are not only important for
the growth of long cycle crops, but also for the pasture that provides
fodder and water for livestock. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=29011]


ERITREA: Mine education at risk, UN warns

The United Nations has warned of the dangers to displaced people and
returnees if mine awareness experts are forced to carry out national
service in Eritrea. The UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said
vital mine awareness work could be put back some six months by the
national service requirements. "UN agencies have indicated that this will
severely hamper and endanger the return of IDPs [internally displaced
people] and refugees into western Eritrea and have asked for a review of
the situation," said acting UNMEE spokeswoman Gail Bindley Taylor-Sainte
in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. The Mine Risk Education (MRE) teams
work with displaced people and families who fled their homes to avoid the
fighting in the two-year border war with Ethiopia. They teach them how to
spot landmines and recognise infested areas. Dave Edwards, a mine expert
with UNMEE, said if the MRE teams were discharged, the programme would go
back to square one and they would have to start re-training new staff.
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28954]


ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Ethiopia told to withdraw settlement from Eritrea

The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) has ordered the Ethiopian
government to stop a resettlement programme on Eritrean territory. The
statement, received by IRIN on Monday, said an EEBC investigation team had
found "evidence of a recent tent settlement housing some 90 persons at a
place called Dembe Mengul" in the western sector. It said Dembe Mengul was
situated "0.4 km to the west of the delimitation line" established by the
Commission's border ruling of 13 April. The order, issued on 17 July, was
in response to an Eritrean letter dated 7 June urging the Commission to
adopt interim measures telling Ethiopia to stop settling its nationals on
"territory that has been determined by the 13 April 2002 decision to fall
within Eritrean sovereignty". "Each Party shall ensure that no further
population resettlement takes place across the delimitation line," the
EEBC statement said. It was issued after the two sides had met Commission
officials in The Hague to discuss matters related to demarcation. Ethiopia
was ordered to "arrange for the return to Ethiopian territory of those
persons in Dembe Mengul who have gone there from Ethiopia pursuant to an
Ethiopian resettlement programme since 13 April 2002". [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28929]


ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Annan calls for adjusting UNMEE mandate

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called for adjusting the mandate of
the UN peacekeeping mission in Eritrea and Ethiopia so that it can help in
implementing the recent ruling on the border between the two countries. In
his latest report to the Security Council, Annan said the UN Mission in
Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) could help with the "expeditious and orderly"
implementation of the decision, issued on 13 April by an independent
Boundary Commission based in The Hague. This would entail mine clearance,
agreeing with the parties on technical modalities for transferring
territorial control, and providing administrative and logistical support
to the Boundary Commission. Annan's comments were echoed by his Special
Representative Legwaila Joseph Legwaila. "We are here on the ground and we
have proven that we can do it," Legwaila told a video-linked press
briefing in Asmara and Addis Ababa on Friday. "We have the human resources
to do demining, if anything we have to get money to do that and the
international community seems to be very keen to finance demining for
demarcation as well as demarcation itself," he said.
[Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28924]


ETHIOPIA: Irish aid to tackle drought

Ireland has pledged Euros 250,000 to tackle drought in eastern Ethiopia,
the Irish embassy in Addis Ababa said on Thursday. The money will be used
to help Kereyou pastoralists whose livelihoods are in danger from the lack
of rain. The funding is part of Ireland's Euros 3.69 million Africa-wide
programme to tackle emergencies across the continent. Irish charge
d'affaires, Pauline Conway, told IRIN a swift response was needed to deal
with emergencies. She added that Ireland Aid - the Irish government's
overseas development arm - should address long-term development but always
be aware of potential emergencies. "Ireland Aid is committed to the
long-term development of Ethiopia but recognises the need to respond
rapidly to this kind of emergency situation," she said. The money will
help more than 58,000 people and their livestock in Fentale Woreda
(district) of East Shewa Zone in Oromiya Region, which has not seen rain
for almost a year. The Irish charity, GOAL Ethiopia, which received the
funds, will work alongside the federal and regional Disaster Prevention
and Preparedness Commission (DPPC) to distribute food aid. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=29006]


ETHIOPIA: Government urged to forgo "draconian" press laws

An international press freedom watchdog on Thursday called for Ethiopia to
abandon new "draconian" media laws which could result in more journalists
being jailed. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
also urged the authorities to "stop harassing" reporters in the country
and allow them more freedom to work. It said that journalists working for
private newspapers were not allowed access to the same information as
journalists working for government-run publications. The CPJ also called
on the government to release three journalists who are currently jailed in
Ethiopia. A further 37 journalists have criminal charges pending against
them. Josh Friedman, a Pullitzer Prize winner for his 1985 report about
the famine in Ethiopia and director of the CPJ board, urged the
authorities to scrap criminal penalties for journalists. He said that
jailing journalists for getting facts wrong but not allowing those same
journalists access to information was absurd. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=29007]


ETHIOPIA: First signs of malnutrition in Afar region

The United Nations in Ethiopia has stepped up warnings over the drought in
Afar region, saying a "major emergency" could be just weeks away. The UN
Emergencies Unit for Ethiopia (UN-EUE) said the first signs of
malnutrition were being reported from the region and neighbouring areas in
northeastern Ethiopia. It urged "all agencies" to plan for emergency
assistance after weather experts predicted below-normal rainfall for Afar.
The EUE also quoted the US Agency for International Development's Food
Early Warning System (FEWS) as saying that malnutrition was expected at
the end of the month. Rising food prices in the main towns - maize has
jumped by some 200 percent - have already hit families. The EUE said the
region had "now reached the first step of what could be in a few weeks'
time a major emergency". "Compared to the situation one month ago, sudden
changes are being observed as the situation quickly starts to
deteriorate," the report said. "The turning point occurred in mid-June
when livestock started to die." It noted that non-food interventions to
prevent livestock from dying could help suffering families. [Full story
at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=29008]


ETHIOPIA: Hundreds of street kids reportedly dumped in a forest

Hundreds of street children and homeless people were last month forced out
of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa and dumped in a forest outside the
city, the Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO) has said. It said
security forces took them to the Gorfu forest, some 55 km from the
capital. Some of the children were reportedly only 11-years-old. The
round-up, which has only come to light a month after it happened, took
place during the World Cup last month. The homeless and the children were
rounded up from the centre of the city where a huge television screen had
been erected so people could watch the football matches. "Although the
police have warned and intimidated the individuals whom they have rounded
up and dumped not to come back to Addis Ababa, they have come back to the
city because they have no other place to go," EHRCO said. "Ethiopia's
unresolved economic, social and political problems have continued to
plunge the country deep into the morass of poverty, hardship and misery,"
said an EHRCO spokesman. "This critical situation has assumed extremely
serious dimensions."
[Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28961]


ETHIOPIA: Cautious welcome for return of Axum Obelisk

Ethiopia on Monday cautiously welcomed moves by Italy to return the
ancient Axum Obelisk which was plundered 65 years ago. A government
statement said the decision by Italy was "encouraging", but it also warned
that the Italians had promised to return the monument before. The move by
the Italian government comes after the obelisk - which is about 2,000
years-old and weighs 160 tons - was damaged after being hit by lightning
the Italian capital Rome earlier this year. The obelisk was taken from the
holy city of Axum in 1937 by Italian troops under the orders of dictator
Benito Mussolini when Ethiopia was under Italian occupation. "The
Ethiopian government would trust the commitment of the Italian government
only when the obelisk is dismantled in Rome and restored to its original
place," the statement said. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=28932]


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