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HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 138
26 April - 02 May 2003


CONTENTS:

ERITREA: Opposition alliance says it has military wing
ERITREA: Government denies religious persecution
ERITREA: Malaria cases down by 60 percent
ETHIOPIA: Election board chief arrested on corruption charges
ETHIOPIA: Plans to boost non-formal education
ETHIOPIA: More must be done for children's health, conference told
ETHIOPIA: Government aims to halve malaria outbreaks by 2010
SOMALIA: Floods destroy property, land
SOMALIA: UN concerned over plight of IDPs
SOMALIA: Premier denies reports of TNG split
SUDAN: Opposition groups call for widening peace process
SUDAN: Rights groups condemn government action in Darfur
SUDAN: UN secures key humanitarian access corridor


ALSO SEE:

ETHIOPIA: Interview with Dr Mahendra Sheth of UNICEF at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33784

ETHIOPIA: Feature - Pitfalls of resettlement at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33742

ERITREA: Opposition alliance says it has military wing

The opposition Eritrean National Alliance (ENA) says it has set up a
military wing aimed at toppling President Isayas Afewerki. General
Secretary Hiruy Tedla Bairu told IRIN the 13 opposition groups comprising
the ENA had agreed to set up a single military force at a key meeting in
Khartoum early last month. He added that after at least two months'
training inside Eritrea, the military unit would then target
"institutional centres" connected with the government. "It is not going to
be against individuals, it is not going to be used against personnel, but
things like institutions and the economy," Hiruy said, "like for example
the television and radio centres." "Our strategy is to build an army
capable of giving a good left hook whenever that possibility is available
to us," added Hiruy, the son of Eritrea's first leader under the
federation with Ethiopia. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33810]

ERITREA: Government denies religious persecution

The Eritrean government has issued a statement on freedom of religion amid
criticism by human rights watchers that it is restricting the right to
worship. In its statement outlining the "basic facts" of religious freedom
in Eritrea, the government said "all religions are equal and no religion
is more equal than others". It noted that according to the
(still-to-be-implemented) constitution, "every person shall have the
freedom to practise any religion and to manifest such practice". "No
groups or persons are persecuted in Eritrea for their beliefs or
religion," the statement said. "People are free to worship according to
their wish, or to refrain from worshipping or practising religion."
However, in a report on religious freedom in Eritrea, the US State
Department said it had "deteriorated" during 2002 and the government had
closed religious facilities not belonging to the country's four main
faiths - Orthodox Christian, Muslim, Catholic, and Evangelical Christian.
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33809]

ERITREA: Malaria cases down by 60 percent

The Eritrean government says the number of malaria cases in the country
has dropped by 60 percent. In a summary of its national malaria control
strategy, the health ministry said the number of deaths from the
mosquito-borne disease had decreased from 13.3 percent in 1999 to 4.2
percent in 2002. The statement noted that 57 percent of the country's
population of about 3.8 million lived in malaria-risk areas. But it
attributed the downturn to initiatives such as the wide distribution of
insecticide-treated nets, spraying vulnerable areas, community
participation and sensitisation. Future challenges, it said, included
sustaining community participation and community-based interventions. The
programme also faces shortages of human resources and lack of transport to
rural areas. Dr Yohannes Ghebrat, Disease Prevention and Control Adviser
for the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Eritrea, told IRIN that the WHO
still had to make its own assessment before it could confirm the figures.
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33753]

ETHIOPIA: Election board chief arrested on corruption charges

The head of Ethiopia's National Election Board has been arrested on
charges of corruption and is expected to appear in court on Wednesday.
Assefa Birru was held on Monday at the central police department in the
capital, Addis Ababa, after being accused of abuse of power by the Federal
Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission. This is one of the most
high-profile arrests by the anti-corruption task force. Assefa is also the
first person in the country to be charged with "obstructing" its work.
"Let this be a warning to other officials," Abraham Gozguze from the
commission told IRIN. "Unless we fight corruption we will not build this
country." Assefa faces a single charge of abuse of power and also
obstructing the work of the two-year-old anti-corruption commission. If
convicted on both charges, he could face a maximum of 25 years in jail and
a fine of 40,000 Ethiopian birr (US $4,600). "We are also investigating an
embezzlement, fraud in his office," Abraham added. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33779]

ETHIOPIA: Plans to boost non-formal education

Ethiopia is aiming to harness alternative basic education as a way of
tackling the millions of children left out of school, a conference heard
on Tuesday. Dereje Terefe, the deputy minister of general education, told
the two-day conference that non-formal education was vital if the
government was to achieve education for all by 2015. Experts argue that
education is one of the key weapons for reducing poverty and inequality
and boosting economic growth. Dereje said that by decentralising the
heavily structured education system, Ethiopia had ensured improved access
in remote areas of the country. Some 20 languages were now being taught in
schools, he told the conference which is sponsored by Save the Children
Alliance. He said the ministry "realises and recognises" the need to use
alternative basic education as a way of achieving educational goals and
attracting marginalised children. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33780]

ETHIOPIA: More must be done for children's health, conference told

One in five African children die before they reach their fifth birthday, a
conference in Addis Ababa heard on Tuesday. Experts warned that many of
the children died simply because of the poor environment they were forced
to live in. The alarming statistic was spelt out to mark World Health Day
under the theme 'Healthy Environment for Children'. Angela Benson, who
heads the WHO in Ethiopia, told delegates that one third of global
diseases were caused by poor environments. "Diseases linked to unhealthy
and unsafe environments in homes, schools, and neighbourhoods kill
millions of children each year," she noted. She added that over 70 percent
of childhood deaths in Africa were due to six causes - acute respiratory
infection, diarrhoea, measles, malaria, HIV infections and malnutrition.
Dr Demissie Tadesse, Ethiopia's deputy health minister, said safeguarding
a child's environment was fundamental to ensuring they lived healthy
lives. [Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33749]

ETHIOPIA: Government aims to halve malaria outbreaks by 2010

Ethiopia is aiming to cut malaria outbreaks by half by 2010, an official
from the health ministry told IRIN on Monday. Dr Daddi Jima said that
around 100,000 people die each year in the country from the disease. "It
is a major problem for Ethiopia - it is the first cause of admissions to
hospitals and the third-biggest killer in the country," he said. His
comments come after the launch of Africa Malaria Day last week which
revealed that an African child dies every 30 seconds from the disease. The
ministry aims to specifically target children and pregnant women who are
most at risk from malaria. Daddi, from the malaria and vector-borne
diseases prevention and control team, said the government was using a
three-pronged strategy, which involves using chemical sprays and
delivering 800,000 insecticide-treated mosquito nets in malaria-prone
areas. He said they were also using disease management, such as early
diagnosis. More than 40 million people are estimated to be at risk of
malaria in Ethiopia, with 5-6 million estimated cases occurring annually.
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33714]

SOMALIA: Floods destroy property, land

Large areas of the Horn of Africa, particularly in Somalia, are likely to
be affected by flooding due to recent heavy rains, a report has warned.
According to the Weather Advisory for the Greater Horn of Africa (WAGHA) -
published by the US government's Famine Early Warning System and partners
- the areas most likely to be affected in the next three days include the
Juba and Shabelle river basins in southern Somalia, and the Nyando, Nzoia
and Migori river basins in Western and Nyanza provinces of Kenya. Abdi
Egal, a Somali businessman in Kismayo, told IRIN on Thursday that the Juba
valley had already been flooded, with thousands of hectares of farmland
inundated. He said the floods had destroyed farms and properties in both
the Lower Juba and Middle Juba regions. "We are experiencing rains not
seen for years," he added. "If it continues at the current rate, the
situation will worsen and a lot more people will be seriously affected in
areas close to the [Juba] river." WAGHA said that in Lower Shabelle, with
the river "already at full-level discharge", there was a high risk of
flooding in the towns of Beled Weyne, Jowhar and Afgoi - all on the banks
of the river. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33812]

SOMALIA: UN concerned over plight of IDPs

The United Nations has said it is concerned over the plight of internally
displaced persons (IDPs) throughout Somalia. In a open letter last week to
Somali leaders attending the peace talks in Kenya, Maxwell Gaylard, the UN
Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, expressed "increasing
concern about the often appalling conditions in which internally displaced
persons in Somalia live". "Throughout Somalia, IDPs often do not have
access to even the most basic of social services, and many suffer
violations of their human rights, including denial of access to basic
services, and sexual violence against women and girls," he said. The UN
estimates that there are 350,000 IDPs throughout Somalia, most of them
women and children. Of this number, about 150,000 live in the capital,
Mogadishu, with another 15,000 in the southern port city of Kismayo, while
the rest are scattered around the country. Gaylard appealed to the Somali
leaders to urgently "reaffirm publicly your commitment and accountability
for the protection of IDPs who are located in areas under your control".
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33745]

SOMALIA: Premier denies reports of TNG split

The prime minister of the Transitional National Government (TNG) of
Somalia, Hasan Abshir Farah, has admitted there are "minor differences"
between himself and the TNG president, but stressed this did not amount to
a split within the interim administration. The differences concerned "the
prime minister's wish to dismiss certain ministers, which the president
has refused to agree to", a TNG source told IRIN. The ministers in
question are reported to be Finance Minister Husayn Mahmud Shaykh Husayn,
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Abdikarim Ahmad Ali and Education Minister
Hasan Muhammad Jumbur. All three are seen as loyal supporters of President
Abdiqassim Salad Hassan. "These are differences of opinion on minor issues
which we are now in the process of resolving," Abshir told IRIN on
Tuesday. "This is not something that will lead to a split within the TNG
at this stage. We are engaged in consultations and will resolve the matter
soon." [Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33744]

SUDAN: Opposition groups call for widening peace process

A meeting of Sudanese opposition groups, which ended this week in the
Eritrean capital, Asmara, has endorsed Sudan's ongoing peace process, but
warned that lasting peace could not be achieved without a broad-based
national consensus. In a communiqué, the umbrella opposition National
Democratic Alliance (NDA) - which includes the rebel Sudan People's
Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) - stated that the meeting culminated
with "sound visions" for realising the aspirations of the Sudanese people.
It said although NDA leaders were in support of the peace talks, the
"bilateral parameters" currently pursued by negotiators left out many
political forces in the country. This risked throwing the conflict into
"unrealistic dimensions" by presenting it only as a problem between north
and south Sudan. "The NDA affirmed their willingness to conduct
face-to-face negotiations with the government," the statement said. "The
meeting exalted the stubbornness of the Sudanese people in rejecting all
forms of absolutism." The ongoing Sudanese peace process involves the
Khartoum government and SPLM/A, under the facilitation of the regional
Inter-Governmental Authority on Development and other international
mediators. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33791]

SUDAN: Rights groups condemn government action in Darfur

International human rights organisations have condemned what they say are
increasing cases of arbitrary arrests and torture by the Sudanese security
forces in the Darfur State of western Sudan. The London-based rights
organisation Amnesty International cited the case of 24 people on murder
charges who, it said, were tried by Special Courts whose procedures were
"grossly unfair". "The state has a duty to punish those who commit such
crimes but they must be given a fair trial and not be sentenced to death,"
Amnesty said. "The government of Sudan must ensure that those sentenced
are given a fair hearing during the appeal process." The Swiss-based World
Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) said it was concerned by the increased
arbitrary mass arrests and risk of torture directed against members of the
Zaghawa tribe in Darfur. "OMCT is gravely concerned by this most recent
wave of arbitrary arrests that have been carried out by the National
Security Agency and the intelligence services," it said. "OMCT calls for
their immediate release unless there are valid legal charges against them
that are in line with the international law." [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33789]

SUDAN: UN secures key humanitarian access corridor

The UN has secured an undertaking by Sudan's warring parties to open a new
corridor in southern Sudan that would not only allow enhanced humanitarian
access to the region but also drastically reduce the cost of transporting
supplies. The agreement - reached at a meeting hosted this week by the UN
in Nairobi, Kenya, under the auspices of the Tripartite Committee on
Access and Crossline Corridors - allowed the opening of the Nile River
Corridor. This would enable the use of water barges which cost much less
than airlifts and airdrops, the Office of the UN Resident and Humanitarian
Coordinator for Sudan said in a statement. According to the statement,
representatives from the Sudanese government and SPLM/A reiterated their
full commitment to allowing humanitarian access to all needy areas
throughout Sudan. The UN was requested to send a barge convoy to deliver
urgently needed food to the Kosti, Malakal, Bor and Juba regions along the
river, by 12 May. The meeting also agreed on the need to open more road
corridors to enable more effective and efficient humanitarian delivery,
the statement said. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=33747]


IRIN-CEA
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Email: IRIN@ocha.unon.org

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Copyright (c) UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2003


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