africa news

west africa news-Search for Survivors of Sierra Leone Boat Accident Continues
Search for Survivors of Sierra Leone Boat Accident Continues
By Phuong Tran
Dakar
03 August 2007




Officials in Sierra Leone say at least seven people are confirmed dead and as many as 50 others are feared drowned after a boat capsized in rough seas near the country's northern coast.

An official with the Sierra Leone navy, Commander Moses Miller, says sailors were able to rescue eight survivors from the accident and are continuing to search for more. It is not clear how many passengers were on the boat when it sank on Thursday.

Phuong Tran has more from VOA's West Africa bureau in Dakar.


Authorities say the boat capsized in rough currents of the Great Scarcies River while it was heading north from Freetown on Thursday.

Naval commander Moses Miller says the search for survivors is taking place near the country's northern border. He says naval personnel left early Friday to join members of the local boat association in the search.

"We were able to rescue eight by the time my boys got there, and then we also discovered two corpses," he said. "The search is still going on."

Local journalist Kelvin Lewis says boating accidents are common between July and September during Sierra Leone's rainy season. He says August is the worst and that the boat was probably overloaded.

"Most of the people who travel with these boats are traders. They take foodstuffs like several bags of rice, onions, gallons of cooking oil," he explained. "They are loaded. These are just like a slightly bigger version of a canoe."

Lewis says it is almost impossible for such a boat to have carried the number of passengers authorities are estimating.

Last July, 25 drowned when a wave toppled their boat during heavy rains, also in the Great Scarcies River.

Officials say the heavy rains have washed away homes in Freetown during the past week, forcing about 500 people to flee.






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August 6, 2007
Zimbabwe President Mugabe Signs State Eavesdropping Law
Zimbabwe President Mugabe Signs State Eavesdropping Law By Blessing Zulu
Washington
03 August 2007

click="dcsMedia(event);" href="http://www.voanews.com/mediaassets/english/2007_08/Audio/ra/zim_communications_mtetwa_03Aug07.ra">Interview With Beatrice Mtetwa
click="dcsMedia(event);" href="http://www.voanews.com/english/figleaf/ramfilegenerate.cfm?filepath=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Evoanews%2Ecom%2Fmediaassets%2Fenglish%2F2007%5F08%2FAudio%2Fra%2Fzim%5Fcommunications%5Fmtetwa%5F03Aug07%2Era">Listen to Interview With Beatrice Mtetwa



Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on Friday signed into law the controversial Interception of Communications Bill, which gives his government the authority to eavesdrop on phone and Internet communications and read physical mail.

The legislation has drawn outspoken opposition from the political opposition and civil society organizations as trampling on the civil rights of Zimbabweans.

Spokesman Nelson Chamisa of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change faction of Morgan Tsvangirai called it an addition to "the dictator's tool kit."

Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Misheck Sibanda was quoted in the Government Gazette Friday as saying Mr. Mugabe has signed the bill.

Secretary General Welshman Ncube of the MDC faction led by Arthur Mutambara called it a "final straw to the curtailment to the liberties of Zimbabweans."

Human rights lawyer Otto Saki told VOA that the law interferes and undermines the enjoyment of rights enshrined in the constitution and is a sign Mr. Mugabe wants to consolidate his power by "any means necessary or unnecessary."

But Communications Minister Christopher Mushowe said Zimbabwe is not unique in the world in passing such legislation, citing electronic eavesdropping programs in the United States, the United Kingdom and South Africa, among other countries.

Under the law an interception of communication monitoring center will be set up. But Internet and other communications service providers will be required to ensure that their systems are technically capable of supporting lawful interception at all times.

Those authorized to make applications for the interception of communications include the chief of defense intelligence, the director general of the president's department of national security, the commissioner of the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the commissioner general of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority.

Law Society of Zimbabwe President Beatrice Mtetwa told reporter Blessing Zulu of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that the law is draconian and abusive.





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August 6, 2007
africa news-Attack on Somali Funeral Procession Leaves 1 Dead, 3 Injured
Attack on Somali Funeral Procession Leaves 1 Dead, 3 Injured
By VOA News
04 August 2007




Witnesses in Somalia say one person was killed and three others injured when Ethiopian and Somali troops were attacked during a funeral procession for a slain city official.


A Somali man lies on the cart to be taken to hospital, after he was wounded in an explosion in Mogadishu, 4 Aug 2007


Reports from the scene earlier Saturday say the troops were traveling in a convoy for the funeral of district Commissioner Haji Ali Fidow when an explosion occurred near one of the vehicles. It is unclear whether the blast was caused by a grenade or a roadside bomb.

Fidow was killed late Friday when attackers forced their way into his home and shot him. He was commissioner of the Yaqshid district.



He is the second commissioner from that district to be killed and one of several slain by insurgents since the Somali government and Ethiopian troops ousted a rival Islamist movement in December.

Islamist hard-liners are blamed for the Iraq-style insurgency that has plagued the capital.

The United Nations reports the heavy fighting in the last two months in Mogadishu has forced 27,000 people to flee the city.

Somalia's government opened a national peace conference last month in hopes of ending the country's violence and chaos. So far, there has been no sign that the talks between Somalia's many clans and factions are making progress.





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August 6, 2007
africa news-UN, AU Meet on Peace Talks For Darfur
UN, AU Meet on Peace Talks For Darfur
By VOA News
04 August 2007





A general view shows delegates at the AU-UN sponsored conference in Arusha, 3 Aug 2007
Representatives of the United Nations, the African Union and Darfur rebel factions are meeting in Tanzania, with the goal of establishing a platform and timeline for peace talks.

Representatives from some 12 rebel factions are expected to take part in the three-day meeting that began Friday in the resort city of Arusha.

Congolese envoy Pascal Gayama has said the talks in Tanzania will focus on the political settlement needed for peace in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.

Diplomats hope to establish common ground among the rebel groups before the start of negotiations with the Khartoum government. No date for those talks has been set, but AU Darfur envoy Salim Ahmed Salim says they are expected within two months.

Yahia Bolad, a spokesman for one of the key rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), tells VOA it is not taking part in the talks because the group feels it is pointless to talk politics while violence persists. He says the SLM will start the political process when it sees U.N. troops on the ground.

Separately, the African Union's commissioner for peace and security, Sa'id Djninnit, says five African nations (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt and Ethiopia) have offered troops for a joint U.N.-AU peacekeeping mission authorized Tuesday by the U.N. Security Council.

French troops also are expected to join the 26,000-strong force.

Since the conflict between Darfur rebels and the Sudanese government broke out in early 2003, U.N. officials estimate it has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced over two million others.

Khartoum is accused of supporting militias blamed for atrocities that include murder, rape and the destruction of villages. Sudanese officials deny those allegations and also claim a much lower death toll.





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August 6, 2007
africa news-安理會本週內出臺達爾富爾決議？
安理會本週內出臺達爾富爾決議？ 記者： 何宗安
華盛頓
2007年7月29日




美國駐聯合國大使哈利勒扎德說，他估計，聯合國在這個星期內就能出臺一份決議，派遣聯合國和非洲聯盟的混合維和部隊進入蘇丹戰亂不斷的達爾富爾地區。

*美政府優先考慮蘇丹問題*

哈利勒扎德大使說，蘇丹西部大省達爾富爾出現的危機，是布希政府優先考慮的問題。

他說：“這是布希政府最重要的工作之一。我本人去了蘇丹，我和聯合國安理會各成員國一起表明，我們非常重視正在達爾富爾所發生的戰爭。”

過去4年來，親政府的阿拉伯民兵在達爾富爾同非洲族裔的反政府組織交戰。外界指控阿拉伯民兵恐嚇村民，並且對他們施暴，包括進行謀殺和強姦。已經有20多萬人在衝突中死亡。另有200多萬人被迫離開家園。

聯合國安理會一直在研究一項決議草案，計劃授權一支國際維和部隊進入達爾富爾，幫助已經在那裏的7000名來自非洲聯盟的觀察人員，這些觀察人員沒能制止達爾富爾的暴力。聯合國和非洲聯盟將派遣一支2萬6千人的部隊，蘇丹政府也表示支援這項計劃。

哈利勒扎德在有線新聞網的“最新版本”節目中表示，安理會成員國即將在這項決議上達成共識。

他說：“我相信，我們很快就能達成一致意見。我估計，本週之內就能出臺一項決議。”

*不斷施壓喀土穆當局*

美國總統布希把達爾富爾的衝突稱作是種族滅絕罪行。從2006年11月開始，美國和其他西方國家一直對蘇丹施壓，要求蘇丹政府接受國際社會向達爾富爾派遣更多部隊。

美國國務卿賴斯最近批評喀土穆當局採取拖延策略，阻止聯合國和非洲聯盟部署混合維和部隊。一些國家幫喀土穆當局辯護，其中主要的一個就是中國。中國不僅在安理會擁有否決權，而且是蘇丹最大的外國投資者。北京當局反對對蘇丹進行嚴厲的經濟制裁措施，但是，今年早些時候，北京幫助說服蘇丹接受聯合維和人員。

*北京為蘇丹開脫會招指責*

但是，中國上星期五再次呼籲，國際社會應在達爾富爾問題上保持耐心。中國政府達爾富爾問題特別代表劉貴今對官方的中國日報說，強壓會“引向歧途”。他還說，各方“不能繞開蘇丹政府，畢竟，蘇丹政府是一個理應得到尊重的合法政府。”

今年8月，中國將為距離2008年北京奧運會還有1年舉行倒計時慶祝活動。外國活動人士警告說，如果中國不動用更多影響力，幫助達爾富爾恢復和平，他們就將把2008年奧運會稱為“種族滅絕運動會”。







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August 6, 2007
africa news-蘇丹稱將遵守安理會達爾富爾決議
蘇丹稱將遵守安理會達爾富爾決議 記者： 瓦德漢
內羅畢
2007年8月1日





蘇丹外長阿庫勒答記者問
蘇丹政府說，它將遵守安理會的決議，為聯合國和非洲聯盟在該地區部署兩萬六千人的維和部隊鋪平道路。但是，達爾富爾的主要反政府力量對喀土穆當局的承諾仍舊懷有疑慮。

聯合國安理會的決議是在蘇丹達爾富爾地區實現和平的最新努力。官員們估計，在歷經4年的戰亂中有20多萬人被打死。

蘇丹外交部長拉姆.阿庫勒宣佈，蘇丹政府正式接受安理會1769號決議。這項決議的最後版本的內容被削弱，比如，它沒有提出如果蘇丹拒絕遵從決議、安理會將予以制裁的警告。

*反叛力量對當局承諾仍有疑慮*

達爾富爾的主要反政府力量--蘇丹解放運動說，他們為決議的強硬措辭感到鼓舞。但是，該組織的發言人博拉德說，解放運動將保留最後做出判斷的權利，看維和部隊究竟有無能力執行這項決議。

博拉德告訴美國之音記者，蘇丹解放運動另外一個主要的關切是，很多當地人放棄的土地已經被蘇丹政府支援的阿拉伯人佔有。他說，蘇丹解放運動將在攻擊行動停止、安置難民的問題獲得解決時開始重新考慮達成一項有力的達爾富爾政治協議。

博拉德說：“我們要看到我們的人民得到保護。我們要看到空襲轟炸停止，然後我們會尋求一個政治進程。我們知道，說到底，只有政治進程才能解決這些問題。”

這些評論顯示，蘇丹解放運動仍然決心抵制預定在本週晚些時候在坦尚尼亞的阿魯沙舉行的會談。這項會談的宗旨是為達爾富爾新的和平進程打下基礎。

前不久，蘇丹解放運動的領導人努爾對英文的蘇丹論壇報說，達爾富爾的暴力活動終止以後他才會出席這個會談。

*政府警告維和部隊不可任意行事*

儘管蘇丹政府接受了安理會的決議，它仍然警告說維和部隊不要以為他們可以任意行事。蘇丹政府對安理會過去的決議都沒有理睬。目前的決議不允許國際維和部隊和民兵對抗，也不允許沒收那些非法持有的武器。聯合國只授權維和部隊保護平民。

去年，蘇丹政府拒絕服從安理會的一項決議，那項決議要在達爾富爾部署兩萬兩千人經過充分授權的聯合國維和部隊。目前在達爾富爾的七千人非盟維和部隊經費不足，也無力杜絕暴力事件的發生。

星期二通過的安理會決議在安理會中蘇丹的盟友、包括中國的壓力之下，內容被削弱。



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africa newsUgandan Government Ready to Protect Citizens

Ugandan Government Ready to Protect Citizens
By Peter Clottey
Washington, D.C.
03 August 2007

Clottey Interview With Ruth Nankabirwa
Listen to Clottey Interview With Ruth Nankabirwa


In Uganda, President Yoweri Museveni’s government has assured the public that it would do everything in its power to find a lasting solution to the over 20-year insurgency by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. The government says it has an alternative strategy to maintain peace and stability if the current peace talks with the LRA in the southern Sudanese capital of Juba collapses.

Ruth Nankabirwa is Uganda’s minister for defense. From the capital Kampala, she tells reporter Peter Clottey that the government has been constitutionally mandated to protect and defend the people of Uganda against any aggression.

“My colleague was just restating what is in the constitution of Uganda. The constitution of Uganda gives the mandate to Uganda People Defense Forces to defend and protect the people of Uganda, their property and the sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Uganda. So, by mentioning that he was re-assuring Ugandans that we have prepared the Uganda People’s Defense Forces to take on the mantle with or without the peace talks,” Nankabirwa said.

She said the defense forces are ready in all aspects to achieve their objective.

“We are supposed to make sure that Uganda is peaceful. We have trained; we have engaged in civil military relations in northern Uganda, we have brought on board civilians in northern Uganda to work with Uganda People’s Defense Forces. And we think that this is a foundation for stability and tranquility in that part of the country,” she pointed out.

Nankabirwa denied speculation that the government’s alternative peace plan would have a negative effect on the ongoing negotiations between the government and the LRA rebels.

“No, no, it wont damage it because we are not saying we are pulling out of the peace talks. We have made a commitment to the peace talks and we in fact engaged ourselves into assuring the LRA that the issue of the indictments by the International Criminal Court can be handled after they have fully come out and signed the final document, which would handle justice and accountability. That has been put into writing. It is just not words, but the government has put it into writing through Honorable Ruhakana Rugunda, who is the chairman of the negotiating team,” Nankabirwa said.

She said the government is just taking precaution in providing security for Ugandan, if the current peace talks in Juba collapse.

“We are committed to the peace talks, but in case they pull out, what do we do? IF the LRA pulls out of the peace talks we have no choice, but to make sure that we work around the clock to bring stability in northern Uganda,” she noted.

Nankabirwa said Ugandans wanted to ascertain if the government has the capacity to protect civilians.

“We have come from very far. Where we are now in Juba, we are handling agenda item number three, which is handling justice and accountability. But at the same time Ugandans are becoming impatient, they want a statement from the government whether government will continue with the protection of the people. And this is what Honorable Kiyonga submitted in parliament. So the two can compliment each other, as far as I’m concerned,” Nankabirwa said.


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