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Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs Integrated Regional Information Network for Southern Africa
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SOUTHERN AFRICA: IRIN-SA Weekly Round-up 35 covering the period 28 August - 3 September 1999
ANGOLA: Humanitarian situation remains dramatic
The UN Humanitarian Assistance Coordination Unit (UCAH) has warned that the humanitarian situation in Angola remains critical, despite the efforts of relief agencies to reach affected populations.
In their latest report UCAH said that between 23-29 August heavy fighting in several parts of the country had forced yet more people to flee their homes. In Malanje, about 340 km east of the capital Luanda, the report said that there had been "significant increases" in food distribution during August. But added that the "spectrum of hunger continues with daily reports of people dying from malnutrition-related causes." The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) said that it would distribute about 3,000 mt of food in September.
"Following the guarantee of food assistance to those internally displaced people who accept to be resettled for agricultural activities, a massive movement of populations towards Lombe corridor is now taking place in Malanje threatening the capacity in terms of availability of land," the report said.
In the central highland town of Huambo, about 520 km east of Luanda the nutritional situation has continued to worsen. According to UCAH catholic missionaries in the town have describe the situation as a "strange hunger never seen in our history with families drinking boiled water with salt as the only way to survive." According to traditional authorities and church members, on average there were two people dying daily from hunger in the outskirts of Huambo.
New influx of displaced
A new influx of displaced people fleeing fighting in Angola have arrived in the northern city of Uige and the town of Matala in the southern province of Huila, a UN humanitarian official told IRIN this week.
Carlos Velosa of UCAH said at the end of last week around 1,500 displaced had arrived in Uige from the Negage area south of the city, and more were still arriving. He described them as in "very bad shape." Heavy fighting around Dongo, close to the former UNITA rebel southern base of Jamba, has caused a separate exodus of people west to Matala. Velosa explained that poor nutritional levels among the new arrivals was exacerbated by the limited supplies of food in the countryside until the next harvest. "The lean period starts now, and the critical months are November, December and January," the UCAH official said.
The humanitarian situation in figures
Meanwhile, a report on the situation in Angola presented by the UN office for the cordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) shows that it now costs US $400 per mt to deliver emergency aid by air to hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people in Angola.
The report, presented to the UN Security Council last week said: "This is a direct result of the risks associated with the potential armed attacks on convoys and the threat of landmines, their number now estimated at 10 million."
It said it was significant that these mines included those laid since the beginning of 1998, both by the UNITA rebel movement and the Angolan Armed forces (FAA), some in areas that had been previously demined. "It is estimated there has been one mine incident for every 430 persons and that resultant amputations between 70,000 and 100,000," the report said.
The report also gave the following sectoral breakdown:
Health: Because of the prolonged period of conflict, only 24 percent of Angolans now had access to adequate health care.
Immunisation: The prevention and eradication of childhood diseases such as polio and measles had by the end of 1997 achieved an immunisation rate of 38 percent and 48 percent respectively.
Mortality rates: The child mortality rate under the age of five was 292 per 1,000, and infant mortality rates at 170 per 1,000. It said that the maternal mortality rate was 1,500 per 10,000.
Child risk: The report said that "a combination of health, nutrition and other factors affecting the quality of life for children, places Angola as the country at the top of the worldwide Child Risk Measure." It added: "Given the current situation and difficulties of access to vulnerable populations, these figures can hardly be expected to improve in the months ahead."
Water and sanitation: Only 31 percent of Angolans had access to potable water and 40 percent to adequate sanitation.
South Africans arming UNITA
South Africans have been involved in supplying arms to the UNITA rebel movement, South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad said in parliament this week. Pahad was quoted by 'Business Day' as saying: "There are those who had close links with UNITA in the past and they continue to violate UN sanctions." Pahad added that UNITA was currently better armed than at the time of the Lusaka peace accord. He said that the Pretoria government was "constantly giving attention to the situation in Angola and trying to re-establish peace in that country."
IMF and Luanda officials meet
Angolan officials and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) held meetings in Luanda, media reports said this week. According to the reports the meetings are to focus on the issue of exchange rates and transparency within the Angolan oil industry. Reports said that the meetings were also intended to provide some kind of basis for a possible structural adjustment programme. Angola's external debt is expected to reach an estimated US $13 billion, more than double its gross domestic product.
Angola needs peace for health
And Angolan health minister Manassas Neto has urged the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, to back peace efforts in his country for the sake of the Angolan people's health. Neto was speaking in Windhoek, Namibia, at the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Africa meeting.
"We ask all the countries and organisations here to help Angola achieve peace, because without peace there is no way we can have health," Neto said. The minister said that the nation's health was "getting worse" and that "with war comes the problem of financing health, when there is a war all the finance goes to the war and not to social affair
NAMIBIA: Fresh Caprivi attack "suicidal"
Namibian security forces killed three men suspected to be Caprivi separatists in the remote northeast region, the defence ministry said on Thursday. The security operation took place some 60 km west of the regional capital Katima Mulilo, uncovering a hideout of 10 alleged Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA) rebels.
Meanwhile, the Namibian government this week vowed to crush any fresh attack by CLA secessionists in Caprivi. Defence ministry spokesman Vincent Mwange told IRIN on Thursday that a repeat of last month's raid by the CLA on Katima Mulilo could not be ruled out, "but all we can say is that it would be suicidal for them."
He added that Namibia is "receiving cooperation from all our neighbours not to harbour separatist forces" and that they have been "helping to flush out these people." But he acknowledged that Caprivians had fled into the bush after the Katima Mulilo raid, presumably to join the rebels, and "we can't safely say they have all been destroyed and can't make a come back."
Mwange could not confirm the level of support the CLA had allegedly received from the Angolan rebel movement, UNITA, from across the northern border. The spokesman said "we are still establishing that fact" but there "were indications" of UNITA backing.
On reports of human rights violations by the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) in Caprivi against suspected CLA sympathisers, Mwange said: "We have already instituted internal investigations into these allegations. Disciplinary measures will be taken, but this is an internal issue (of the NDF)."
MALAWI: Eritrea demands compensation
Eritrea has demanded compensation from Malawi and lodged a complaint with the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) following the death of one of its citizens who was among a group of Eritrean nationals deported from the country earlier this month, news organisations reported this week.
A South African-based Eritrean official said Malawi's deputy foreign minister had undertaken to hand over the Eritreans to their mission, which in turn would have paid the refugees expenses to be flown back home. However, the official said, he was disappointed to learn that the Malawi government had decided to send the refugees to Ethiopia without consulting him.
The 25 Eritrean nationals had arrived in Malawi from Ethiopia on 14 August and were immediately arrested on charges of possessing fake entry visas pending their deportation. The Eritreans, however, claimed they had each paid US $1,000 for their visas at the Malawian embassy in Ethiopia, a claim refuted by Malawi's immigration officers. The Eritreans were bundled into an Ethiopian-bound plane by Malawi's immigration officials and armed policemen a week later.
The operation reportedly turned violent when the refugees allegedly resisted being put on the Ethiopian plane, arguing they would be arrested on arrival in Addis Ababa. One of the refugees was killed during the fracas, prompting the Eritrea to demand an explanation and compensation from Malawi's authorities.
Supreme court judge says laws are too harsh
A Malawi supreme court judge says that some of the country's laws are "too harsh" and outdated. Justice Leonard Unyolo, chairman of the Criminal Justice arm of the state-run Law Commission, which is currently reviewing the laws of Malawi, has said that some of the laws "are not consistent with democratic dispensations."
Upgrade for telephone network
Malawi's Posts and Telecommunications Corporation plans to spend US $58 million to connect 44,000 new subscribers in the central region districts of Salima and Dedza this month to ease current telephone problems, PANA reported on Friday.
According to PANA, the corporation will replace the analogous exchanges with modern digital equipment as well as replace the local cable networks linking customers to exchanges. The corporation will also build additional telephone exchanges in townships in Blantyre, the commercial city.
Malawi, which has a capacity of 65,000 lines, currently has only 36,000 operational lines while the rest are reportedly faulty. The corporation, according to PANA, said Malawi needs 300,000 new lines to overcome problems in its network.
Women recruits for the army
The Malawi army will for the first time recruit women into its ranks this year. Reports quoted Lieutenant-General Joseph Chimbayo as saying that about 35 young women will be enlisted before the end of this year to join the 9,400-strong uniformed forces, including the police. Malawi spends about 1.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) on defence. Malawi is the only country in southern Africa without women soldiers. Chimbayo said female soldiers would not be involved in combat.
LESOTHO: Soldier's widow sues
A Lesotho widow is claiming damages amounting to US $125,000 following the death of her husband during an air strike by the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) on the Katse military base last September, media reports said.
The reports said Matokelo Chaka claims her husband Sergeant Makhooane Chaka of the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) "was wrongfully and unlawfully killed by SANDF soldiers acting on the authority, and/or instructions, and/or consent of the Lesotho government." Chaka has cited the respondents as Lesotho's Minister of Defence and Prime Minister, Pakalitha Mosisili, the Commander of LDF Lieutenant-General Makhula Mosakeng and the Attorney-General Fine Maema.
According to the reports, Chaka's widow argues that the respondents "were aware and/or should reasonably have foreseen that the soldiers at the base would resist the attackers and may be killed in the action". She adds that the respondents "were negligent in not warning the soldiers of the attack or ensuring that they were arrested or removed without danger to their lives". Chaka adds: "The respondents should have foreseen that the deceased may be killed in their operation and by taking no reasonable precautions caused the deceased's death."
ZAMBIA: UNICEF worried about plight of children
UNICEF Zambia representative Peter McDermott said that the situation of Zambia's children and youth "was threatened as never before," local media reports said this week.
McDermoot was quoted as saying that nearly 40 percent of children were chronically malnourished, with an infant mortality rate estimated at 112 in every 1,000 children. He said that the under five mortality rate was about 202 for every 1,000. "Most children in Zambia never reach their sixth birthday. The government, in fact, estimates that between 20-50,00 children are born with HIV/AIDS each year," he said. McDermott said that over 600,000 children who manage to reach the age of five never attend primary school. "Hundreds of thousands of others are brought up in household of chronic sickness and death doing untold psychological damage to the young child. May I say that the situation is stark and getting worse," he said.
Tazara rail line to be privatised
The governments of Tanzania and Zambia are reported to be considering privatising the 1,760km-long Tazara railway line that they jointly own. The parastatal's profits have been dwindling over the last 10 years, whereby its tonnage declined from 1.2 million in 1992/93 to 550,000 mt in the 1996/97 financial year.
The railway line, built between 1976 and 1980 by the two governments with a US $5 billion loan from China, reportedly employs about 9,000 workers and links the Tanzanian capital, Dar-es-Salaam, with Kapiri-Mphoshi, about 350km north of Lusaka. This year alone, more than US $5 million has been lost through derailments and vandalism.
MOZAMBIQUE: Election date finalised
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano made a formal announcement this week that the country's second general election will take place on 3-4 December. Endorsing the recommendation made by the National Elections Commission, Chissano said: "It is of great importance that the second general elections be held this year, and the dates proposed by the commission are the best possible."
Female illiteracy worry
More than 70 percent of Mozambican women are illiterate, with little prospect of learning to read and write before the new millenium, Mozambican news reports said.
Quoting the Mozambican education minister, Arnaldo Nhavoto, the reports said the country's overall literacy rate is at about 60 percent, with only a fractional increase in the number of adults attending literacy classes. Nhavoto said an estimated 27,000 adults attended literacy classes in 1994, while only 29,000 people attended these in 1999.
"We should promote women's literacy because by doing so we would be educating the entire nation," Nhavoto said. He however added that his government's primary school building programme has been successful. "The programme has seen a 12.2 percent increase in the number of primary schools over the past five years, with 6,605 schools now teaching pupils from grades one to five," Nhavoto said.
ZIMBABWE: Shock fuel price hike
Motorists in Zimbabwe, are being forced to pay 16 percent more for fuel. According to news reports motorists were largely unaware of the price hike, although there were rumours that an increase was imminent. Communications manager of Mobil, one of the largest fuel companies in Zimbabwe, Margaret Magadza, was quoted as confirming a price hike, but she did say by how much. According to media reports the government had no alternative but to increase the price of fuel, so that it could salvage the country's sole fuel procurement company, the National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (Noczim) which has incurred debts amounting to estimated US $5 billion.
SOUTH AFRICA-ZIMBABWE: New dawn for SADC
A just-concluded meeting between South Africa's president Thabo Mbeki and Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe might signal efforts by Mbeki to close the gap in the way the two countries approach pressing problems within the Southern African Development Community (SADC), analysts told IRIN on Friday.
According to Claude Kabemba of the South African-based Centre for Policy Studies, now that a ceasefire is in place in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the region will have to start seriously addressing the raging war in Angola through SADC's security organ, currently chaired by Mugabe.
"While Mugabe will be more inclined to favour a militaristic intervention in Angola on the side of Eduardo Jose dos Santos' government, as he did in the DRC on the side of Laurent Kabila, South Africa is known to favour engaging protagonists in negotiations," Kabemba said. He added: "Mbeki, therefore, needs Mugabe on his side to ensure there is consensus within SADC on how to resolve intractable problems in the region."
Shortly after addressing a press conference with Mugabe in Pretoria on Thursday, Mbeki flew to Maputo to confer with President Joaquim Chissano, who is the current chairman of SADC. Media reports said Mbeki's trip to Maputo was meant to add substance to SADC's plans to boost regional integration.
SOUTHERN AFRICA: South Africa calls for regional defence pact
South African Minister of Defence Patrick Lekota has welcomed the idea of a regional Southern Africa defence pact to protect countries from foreign aggression.
Lekota was quoted in the South African newspaper 'Business Day' this week as saying that it was no longer appropriate for the region to have an "ad-hoc" response to threats to national sovereignty in the region. "Without an instrument that provides guidelines to protect legitimate governments in the region from foreign armed aggression, peace can not be guaranteed." Lekota added that a regional defence effort could come in to being before the next SADC heads of state summit next year.
In a separate interview with the weekly magazine the 'Financial Mail', Lekota said that South Africa "is ready to make a contribution" towards peace efforts in the DRC. But he added: "We don't want the image of a bull in a china shop rushing in as the old South African Defence Force did." Lekota said that South African security was intrinsically linked to stability among its neighbours. "The principle that we must stabilise the region immediately surrounding us can not be in doubt."
He added: "Major explosions of conflict in the Great Lakes could spill over into this country. Right now people are running away from Angola, DRC and Rwanda and they end up here, adding to pressure on facilities and employment. "On the question of Angola Lekota said: "The Angolan situation is slightly different. There is legitimately elected government in Angola. It is up to President Eduardo Dos Santos to invite his countrymen to the negotiation table to try and find a solution." He added: "Angolans must sit down and confront their country's problems."
SOUTH AFRICA: Export trade with Africa booms
South Africa's exports to Africa now total about US $3.3 billion a year, indicating an expansion of 335 percent since 1992 when trade sanctions against South Africa were lifted, a report released by a research firm this week said. The report, compiled by Whitehouse and Associates for South Africa's export promotion conference to be held in October, showed that most of South Africa's export trade was in manufactured goods. The figures, however, excluded exports to South Africa's partners in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) that comprise Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland.
However, the figures also showed a sharp slowdown in the growth of this trade in the last three years. In 1995, for example, the export trade had grown by 61 percent from 1992, while in 1996 the figure stood at only 27 percent increase. In 1997 export trade grew by only 11 percent and last year a mere 3 percent growth was recorded. This decline, according to the report, was partly because of the worldwide recession and also because of the unresolved trade dispute with South Africa's main neighbouring market of Zimbabwe. The trade dispute between the two countries revolves around the trade deficit which favours South Africa whereby Zimbabwe imports goods worth about US $325 million per annum from South Africa, while South Africa imports from Zimbabwe goods worth only about US $75 million.
Zimbabwe's trade and industry officials have been negotiating amendments to the terms of this 1964 bilateral trade agreement with their South African counterparts since 1995. This agreement expired in 1992 and has not been renewed, but trade and industry sources indicated that the status quo has remained, leading to tension between the two neighbours. At the same time, added the report, last year saw a fall of 15 percent in South Africa's imports from the rest of Africa, which is bound to create political tensions within the region.
AFRICA: Health ministers discuss policy
A range of key health issues for the next millennium have been discussed by African health ministers in Windhoek, at WHO's annual regional meeting.
A WHO official told IRIN that the topics raised at the 49th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa which started on 30 August and ended on Friday, included reproductive health; the quality of healthcare; polio eradication and measles control; community-based rehabilitation; regional information and education strategies for health promotion; epidemiological surveys, and HIV/AIDS.
At the meeting, the health ministers also re-elected Dr Ebrahim Samba as WHO regional director for Africa, WHO announced in a communique on Wednesday. The election has to be ratified by the WHO board of directors in January 2000. Samba became WHO's Africa regional director in 1995 after heading its programme for the eradication of river blindness for 14 years.
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