United States Federal Government
America.gov
31 December 2008
The United States will provide $5 million to support formation of a joint security force in Somalia, a State Department spokesman said.
The announcement, issued in a December 29 press statement by acting deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid, came on the same day Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf announced his resignation.
The United States supports and respects Yusuf's decision to resign after four years as president of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) Duguid said. He said the United States acknowledges "President Yusuf's contributions to long-term peace and stability in Somalia."
Duguid said the United States welcomes Yusuf's commitment to continue supporting the Djibouti peace process. Members of the TFG and the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS), an opposition party, met in Djibouti in June 2008 and agreed to take concrete steps toward reducing hostilities, including establishing a joint security force.
Parties to the Djibouti agreement called for establishing a joint committee on security arrangements and a high-level committee on political issues related to justice and reconciliation. It also called for more efforts to ensure unhindered humanitarian access to affected populations in Somalia.
The United States has called on all Somali involved entities, whether party to the agreement or not, to abide by its provisions and support its implementation.
"We urge Parliamentary Speaker Madoobe, Prime Minister Nur Adde and the leaders of the [ARS] to intensify efforts to achieve a government of national unity and to enhance security through formation of a joint security force," Duguid said.
Duguid said the United States expects the Somali parliament to "act expeditiously" and select a new president within 30 days, in accordance with the procedures outlined in the Transitional Federal Charter. The charter is a United Nations-backed framework for restoring peace and good governance to Somalia.
Duguid also said the United States supports strengthening the African Union Mission in Somalia and would like to see a "rapid authorization and deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping force."
01 January, 2009
Ethiopia 'packing up in Somalia.'
BBC News
31 December 2008
Ethiopian troops have started to prepare to leave Somalia on the day they were supposed to complete their withdrawal, witnesses say.
The troops were packing mattresses, personal belongings and loading trucks with military supplies, they said.
But there was no sign that the Ethiopians had started to leave the capital Mogadishu, as they have promised to do by the end of the year.
Some fear the Ethiopian withdrawal could lead to a power vacuum.
But others say it could make it easier for a new government to be formed, including moderate Islamist forces.
The Ethiopian intervention to help government forces oust Islamists from the capital two years ago was deeply unpopular with many Somalis.
Various Islamist and nationalist groups now control much of southern Somalia. Government forces only control parts of Mogadishu and the town of Baidoa.
But hardline Islamist leader Sheik Muktar Robow said his forces would continue to fight government troops even after the Ethiopian troops leave.
"We will not stop fighting even if the Ethiopian troops withdraw because our aim is to implement Islamic law across Somalia," he said.
President Abdullahi Yusuf this week resigned after a power-struggle with his prime minister, partly over whether to negotiate with moderate Islamists.
31 December 2008
Ethiopian troops have started to prepare to leave Somalia on the day they were supposed to complete their withdrawal, witnesses say.
The troops were packing mattresses, personal belongings and loading trucks with military supplies, they said.
But there was no sign that the Ethiopians had started to leave the capital Mogadishu, as they have promised to do by the end of the year.
Some fear the Ethiopian withdrawal could lead to a power vacuum.
But others say it could make it easier for a new government to be formed, including moderate Islamist forces.
The Ethiopian intervention to help government forces oust Islamists from the capital two years ago was deeply unpopular with many Somalis.
Various Islamist and nationalist groups now control much of southern Somalia. Government forces only control parts of Mogadishu and the town of Baidoa.
But hardline Islamist leader Sheik Muktar Robow said his forces would continue to fight government troops even after the Ethiopian troops leave.
"We will not stop fighting even if the Ethiopian troops withdraw because our aim is to implement Islamic law across Somalia," he said.
President Abdullahi Yusuf this week resigned after a power-struggle with his prime minister, partly over whether to negotiate with moderate Islamists.
Bush to meet south Sudan president next week.
Reuters
31 December 2008
U.S. President George W. Bush is to meet next week with south Sudan's president to discuss his peace pact with the Khartoum government.
The White House said on Wednesday that Bush and Salva Kiir, a former rebel who is now president of the semi-autonomous south Sudan as well as national vice president, will meet at the White House on Monday to discuss the troubled 2005 peace agreement that ended two decades of civil war in Sudan as well as the situation in Darfur.
"This transformational peace agreement, which ended 22 years of devastating war, continues to face serious challenges in the lead up to national elections in 2009," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said in a statement.
Mr. Kiir was the leader of rebels who fought for greater autonomy for Sudan's mostly animist or Christian south from the Muslim north in a civil war that claimed 2 million lives.
He became first vice president in the Khartoum government after Bashir and the rebels made peace. Officials have said he plans to run for president in elections due in 2009.
Bush and Kiir will also discuss Darfur, Johndroe said.
(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky, editing by Mohammad Zargham)
31 December 2008
U.S. President George W. Bush is to meet next week with south Sudan's president to discuss his peace pact with the Khartoum government.
The White House said on Wednesday that Bush and Salva Kiir, a former rebel who is now president of the semi-autonomous south Sudan as well as national vice president, will meet at the White House on Monday to discuss the troubled 2005 peace agreement that ended two decades of civil war in Sudan as well as the situation in Darfur.
"This transformational peace agreement, which ended 22 years of devastating war, continues to face serious challenges in the lead up to national elections in 2009," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said in a statement.
Mr. Kiir was the leader of rebels who fought for greater autonomy for Sudan's mostly animist or Christian south from the Muslim north in a civil war that claimed 2 million lives.
He became first vice president in the Khartoum government after Bashir and the rebels made peace. Officials have said he plans to run for president in elections due in 2009.
Bush and Kiir will also discuss Darfur, Johndroe said.
(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky, editing by Mohammad Zargham)
Ethiopians primed to leave Somalia within 5 days.
By Ibrahim Mohamed
MOGADISHU, Dec 31, 2008 (Reuters) - Ethiopian troops propping up Somalia's Western-backed government are primed to withdraw in the next five days, officials said on Wednesday, potentially leaving a dangerous power vacuum in the Horn of Africa nation.
The end of Ethiopia's two-year presence in Somalia and this week's departure of President Abdullahi Yusuf are seen by diplomats and analysts as an opportunity to forge an inclusive government which can work for peace.
But some Islamist insurgents have vowed to keep fighting the government even when its military allies leave, and a hardline opposition group seen as key to any lasting peace said Somalia risked a new civil war.
"We remain in our bases, but we have been ordered to prepare for departure any hour in the coming five days," said an Ethiopian military official, who declined to be named because he was not authorised to talk to the media.
A senior government official also said the troops would go and that Somali Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein would discuss the withdrawal with African Union and Ethiopian officials in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa on Thursday.
"We so far have been informed that Ethiopian soldiers shall all leave Mogadishu the first week of January as already planned and I can confirm to you they will pull out," he told Reuters.
Ethiopian troops in Somalia are estimated at up to 3,000 and the international community has been scrambling to beef up a separate African Union force there of 3,200 troops, but the United Nations has ruled out any quick deployment.
African Union officials say some 2,500 soldiers from Uganda, Burundi and Nigeria are ready to deploy but financial and logistical obstacles have so far prevented them from effectively replacing those Ethiopian soldiers left.
ISLAMISTS TO FIGHT ON
Without central government since 1991, Somalia has become the epitome of a failed state and the chaos onshore has fuelled rampant piracy in the busy shipping lanes off the coast.
More than 10,000 civilians have been killed in a two-year Islamist insurgency, a million people have fled their homes and a third of the population rely on emergency aid.
Diplomats say the Ethiopian departure may take the sting out of the insurgency, which has become a nationalist cause and holds sway in much of southern and central Somalia.
Without the Ethiopians to fight, diplomats predict the Islamists will fracture into a small militant wing urging Jihad, or holy war, and moderate elements more open to talks.
A spokesman for the most hardline wing, al Shabaab, which is on Washington's terrorist list, said on Tuesday the group would wage war until Somalia became an Islamic state.
Diplomats in the region hope Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, leader of the hardline wing of the opposition Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia, can be encouraged to become part of a more inclusive administration.
But Aweys made clear in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday he would not join the peace process when the Ethiopians go, nor work with Transitional Federal Government (TFG)
"It is not in our plan and we shall never participate in the Djibouti peace process. If we were ready, we would follow our friends who defected to the TFG," he told Reuters from Asmara.
"If Ethiopia pulls out we may hold a conference for all Somalis -- save the criminals."
(Additional reporting by Abdi Sheikh in Mogadishu, Writing by David Clarke; Editing by Charles Dick)
MOGADISHU, Dec 31, 2008 (Reuters) - Ethiopian troops propping up Somalia's Western-backed government are primed to withdraw in the next five days, officials said on Wednesday, potentially leaving a dangerous power vacuum in the Horn of Africa nation.
The end of Ethiopia's two-year presence in Somalia and this week's departure of President Abdullahi Yusuf are seen by diplomats and analysts as an opportunity to forge an inclusive government which can work for peace.
But some Islamist insurgents have vowed to keep fighting the government even when its military allies leave, and a hardline opposition group seen as key to any lasting peace said Somalia risked a new civil war.
"We remain in our bases, but we have been ordered to prepare for departure any hour in the coming five days," said an Ethiopian military official, who declined to be named because he was not authorised to talk to the media.
A senior government official also said the troops would go and that Somali Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein would discuss the withdrawal with African Union and Ethiopian officials in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa on Thursday.
"We so far have been informed that Ethiopian soldiers shall all leave Mogadishu the first week of January as already planned and I can confirm to you they will pull out," he told Reuters.
Ethiopian troops in Somalia are estimated at up to 3,000 and the international community has been scrambling to beef up a separate African Union force there of 3,200 troops, but the United Nations has ruled out any quick deployment.
African Union officials say some 2,500 soldiers from Uganda, Burundi and Nigeria are ready to deploy but financial and logistical obstacles have so far prevented them from effectively replacing those Ethiopian soldiers left.
ISLAMISTS TO FIGHT ON
Without central government since 1991, Somalia has become the epitome of a failed state and the chaos onshore has fuelled rampant piracy in the busy shipping lanes off the coast.
More than 10,000 civilians have been killed in a two-year Islamist insurgency, a million people have fled their homes and a third of the population rely on emergency aid.
Diplomats say the Ethiopian departure may take the sting out of the insurgency, which has become a nationalist cause and holds sway in much of southern and central Somalia.
Without the Ethiopians to fight, diplomats predict the Islamists will fracture into a small militant wing urging Jihad, or holy war, and moderate elements more open to talks.
A spokesman for the most hardline wing, al Shabaab, which is on Washington's terrorist list, said on Tuesday the group would wage war until Somalia became an Islamic state.
Diplomats in the region hope Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, leader of the hardline wing of the opposition Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia, can be encouraged to become part of a more inclusive administration.
But Aweys made clear in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday he would not join the peace process when the Ethiopians go, nor work with Transitional Federal Government (TFG)
"It is not in our plan and we shall never participate in the Djibouti peace process. If we were ready, we would follow our friends who defected to the TFG," he told Reuters from Asmara.
"If Ethiopia pulls out we may hold a conference for all Somalis -- save the criminals."
(Additional reporting by Abdi Sheikh in Mogadishu, Writing by David Clarke; Editing by Charles Dick)
US concern over Ethiopia opposition re-arrest.
AFP
31 December 2008
The US embassy in Addis Ababa on Wednesday voiced grave concern over the fate of an opposition leader who was jailed after her pardon from a life sentence was revoked.
Birtukan Midekssa, head of the Unity for Democracy Justice party, irked the regime when she reportedly claimed during a recent visit to Europe that she had never voiced remorse or acknowledged any mistake to obtain her pardon in 2007.
"The United States is concerned about the government of Ethiopia's arrest of Unity for Democracy and Justice Party leader Birtukan Midekssa," the embassy's information officer Darragh Paradiso told AFP.
"We are particularly concerned by reports that Birtukan's pardon has been revoked and she has begun a life sentence in prison."
The 35-year-old woman, who was detained with dozens of opposition figures and supporters in the aftermath of disputed 2005 elections, was last week given a three-day ultimatum by the authorities to confirm or deny the reports.
The justice ministry announced on Tuesday that she has resumed serving her life term.
The United States, a staunch Ethiopian ally and the country's top aid contributor, has called for more political freedom.
"A vibrant opposition, independent media, and a robust civil society are essential elements of any democracy," Paradiso said.
"The United States looks to the government of Ethiopia to provide the political space necessary for them to function. Steps that appear to criminalise dissent impede progress on democratisation," he added.
Birtukan's party made its most spectacular electoral gains ever in the 2005 polls and cried foul over reported fraud, claiming it was robbed of victory by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's ruling party.
The ensuing unrest left close to 200 civilians dead and drew international condemnation.
31 December 2008
The US embassy in Addis Ababa on Wednesday voiced grave concern over the fate of an opposition leader who was jailed after her pardon from a life sentence was revoked.
Birtukan Midekssa, head of the Unity for Democracy Justice party, irked the regime when she reportedly claimed during a recent visit to Europe that she had never voiced remorse or acknowledged any mistake to obtain her pardon in 2007.
"The United States is concerned about the government of Ethiopia's arrest of Unity for Democracy and Justice Party leader Birtukan Midekssa," the embassy's information officer Darragh Paradiso told AFP.
"We are particularly concerned by reports that Birtukan's pardon has been revoked and she has begun a life sentence in prison."
The 35-year-old woman, who was detained with dozens of opposition figures and supporters in the aftermath of disputed 2005 elections, was last week given a three-day ultimatum by the authorities to confirm or deny the reports.
The justice ministry announced on Tuesday that she has resumed serving her life term.
The United States, a staunch Ethiopian ally and the country's top aid contributor, has called for more political freedom.
"A vibrant opposition, independent media, and a robust civil society are essential elements of any democracy," Paradiso said.
"The United States looks to the government of Ethiopia to provide the political space necessary for them to function. Steps that appear to criminalise dissent impede progress on democratisation," he added.
Birtukan's party made its most spectacular electoral gains ever in the 2005 polls and cried foul over reported fraud, claiming it was robbed of victory by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's ruling party.
The ensuing unrest left close to 200 civilians dead and drew international condemnation.
30 December, 2008
Ethiopia, U.S. Billionaire's Titan Resources Signs Oil Accord.
Bloomberg
21 August 2008
By Jason McLure
Titan Resources Corp., owned by U.S. billionaire Nelson Bunker Hunt, won agreements to explore two areas in Ethiopia for oil and gas, the Mines Ministry said.
The Dallas, Texas-based company will invest as much as $60 million to explore tracts of Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden basin and the northern Blue Nile basin, Abiy Hunegnaw, director of petroleum operations at the Addis Ababa-based ministry, said in a telephone interview yesterday. The two blocks combined cover an area larger than 100,000 square kilometers (38,610 square miles), Hunegnaw said. Titan and Ethiopia agreed to a 25-year production-sharing agreement.
``We are very lucky to have them,'' Hunegnaw said.
Exploration in Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden region was suspended in April 2007 after separatist rebels from the Ogaden National Liberation Front were accused of attacking an exploration team for China's Zhongyuan Petroleum Exploration Bureau, killing 74 people. ZPEB was working under contract for Petronas Bhd, Malaysia's state-owned oil company, which controls three exploration zones in the Ogaden.
Hunegnaw said he was confident exploration will resume in the region in the near future.
``Hopefully in one to two months operations will restart,'' he said. ``We are doing our best to find some contractors.''
Ethnic Somali rebels from the ONLF are seeking independence for the arid region of eastern Ethiopia, and have warned foreign oil firms not to explore in the area. The April attack triggered an Ethiopian counteroffensive that has left much of the region under martial law and spurred reports of human rights violations by the Ethiopian army. Aid workers and journalists have been barred from the region.
Other companies with exploration licenses in the Ogaden include Sweden's Lundin Petroleum AB, Netherlands-based Pexco Exploration, and South West Energy, an Ethiopian-owned company registered in Hong Kong.
In the most famous attempt to corner the silver market in late 1970s, Hunt and his brother William hoarded the metal and forced the price to jump from to $50 an ounce to $6 in 1980. Eight years later, they were convicted of trying to manipulate the market.
21 August 2008
By Jason McLure
Titan Resources Corp., owned by U.S. billionaire Nelson Bunker Hunt, won agreements to explore two areas in Ethiopia for oil and gas, the Mines Ministry said.
The Dallas, Texas-based company will invest as much as $60 million to explore tracts of Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden basin and the northern Blue Nile basin, Abiy Hunegnaw, director of petroleum operations at the Addis Ababa-based ministry, said in a telephone interview yesterday. The two blocks combined cover an area larger than 100,000 square kilometers (38,610 square miles), Hunegnaw said. Titan and Ethiopia agreed to a 25-year production-sharing agreement.
``We are very lucky to have them,'' Hunegnaw said.
Exploration in Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden region was suspended in April 2007 after separatist rebels from the Ogaden National Liberation Front were accused of attacking an exploration team for China's Zhongyuan Petroleum Exploration Bureau, killing 74 people. ZPEB was working under contract for Petronas Bhd, Malaysia's state-owned oil company, which controls three exploration zones in the Ogaden.
Hunegnaw said he was confident exploration will resume in the region in the near future.
``Hopefully in one to two months operations will restart,'' he said. ``We are doing our best to find some contractors.''
Ethnic Somali rebels from the ONLF are seeking independence for the arid region of eastern Ethiopia, and have warned foreign oil firms not to explore in the area. The April attack triggered an Ethiopian counteroffensive that has left much of the region under martial law and spurred reports of human rights violations by the Ethiopian army. Aid workers and journalists have been barred from the region.
Other companies with exploration licenses in the Ogaden include Sweden's Lundin Petroleum AB, Netherlands-based Pexco Exploration, and South West Energy, an Ethiopian-owned company registered in Hong Kong.
In the most famous attempt to corner the silver market in late 1970s, Hunt and his brother William hoarded the metal and forced the price to jump from to $50 an ounce to $6 in 1980. Eight years later, they were convicted of trying to manipulate the market.
AFTER COUP, JUNTA APPOINTS CIVILIAN PRIME MINISTER.
MISNA
29 December 2008
Kabinet Komara was named Prime Minister of Guinea’s military junta that seized power in Conakry last week after the death of the President Lansana Conté. The appointment was announced this morning in a statement read out on national radio. Komara, former director of the Afrexim Bank, the African Import-Export Bank based in Cairo, was among four figures propose din February 2007 by opposition parties and unions as premier; various observers defined the official as a technocrat, with extensive experience in international bodies and without any particular ties to the local political scene.
The junta, headed by Capt. Moussa Dadis Camara and the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD), in the past days pledged to appoint a civilian premier to led the nation to elections within two years. Yesterday, the African Union (AU) suspended Guinea and said the nation would be excluded from the 53-nation continental body “until the return to constitutional order”, while the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States” rejected the two-year transition timetable and urged a period of 11 months at the most. From Conakry, where the coup appears to be widely supported in different sectors, reports arrive of a raid by soldiers loyal to the junta in the home of a close aide of Conte: according to the local press, Mamadou Sylla, was forced to handover keys of several vehicles “stolen from the state”.
29 December 2008
Kabinet Komara was named Prime Minister of Guinea’s military junta that seized power in Conakry last week after the death of the President Lansana Conté. The appointment was announced this morning in a statement read out on national radio. Komara, former director of the Afrexim Bank, the African Import-Export Bank based in Cairo, was among four figures propose din February 2007 by opposition parties and unions as premier; various observers defined the official as a technocrat, with extensive experience in international bodies and without any particular ties to the local political scene.
The junta, headed by Capt. Moussa Dadis Camara and the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD), in the past days pledged to appoint a civilian premier to led the nation to elections within two years. Yesterday, the African Union (AU) suspended Guinea and said the nation would be excluded from the 53-nation continental body “until the return to constitutional order”, while the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States” rejected the two-year transition timetable and urged a period of 11 months at the most. From Conakry, where the coup appears to be widely supported in different sectors, reports arrive of a raid by soldiers loyal to the junta in the home of a close aide of Conte: according to the local press, Mamadou Sylla, was forced to handover keys of several vehicles “stolen from the state”.
NORTH KIVU: CALM ON GROUND, FORCED RECRUITMENTS IN REBEL LINES.
MISNA
29 December 2008
The Christmas holidays passed without reports of clashes, skirmishes or fighting in North Kivu, east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for months theatre to an offensive launched by the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) headed by the renegade General Laurent Nkunda, local sources confirmed. The calm of the past days in fact increased the number of civilians returning to the towns from where they had fled amid violent fighting. Reports however continue arriving of forced recruitments in the Rutshuru area, around 70km north of Goma (capital of North Kivu) and now stronghold of the CNDP rebels in east DR-Congo. According to Radio Okapi of the United Nations mission in Congo (MONUC), yesterday five youths (including a minor) were taken away forcefully by the CNDP while working in the fields in an area near Kiwanja.
According to local rights groups, the youths abducted yesterday (as the dozens before them in the zone) will be transported to a CNDP training camp near the border with Rwanda. The Rwanda-linked anti-government movement denied the allegation of forced recruitments, claiming that they are volunteers interested in creating self-defence militias. The Security chief of the North Kivu province however told the radio that he has proof of the forced recruitments. Also recent UN reports accuse the CNDP of forced recruitments and the illegal use of minors.
29 December 2008
The Christmas holidays passed without reports of clashes, skirmishes or fighting in North Kivu, east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for months theatre to an offensive launched by the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) headed by the renegade General Laurent Nkunda, local sources confirmed. The calm of the past days in fact increased the number of civilians returning to the towns from where they had fled amid violent fighting. Reports however continue arriving of forced recruitments in the Rutshuru area, around 70km north of Goma (capital of North Kivu) and now stronghold of the CNDP rebels in east DR-Congo. According to Radio Okapi of the United Nations mission in Congo (MONUC), yesterday five youths (including a minor) were taken away forcefully by the CNDP while working in the fields in an area near Kiwanja.
According to local rights groups, the youths abducted yesterday (as the dozens before them in the zone) will be transported to a CNDP training camp near the border with Rwanda. The Rwanda-linked anti-government movement denied the allegation of forced recruitments, claiming that they are volunteers interested in creating self-defence militias. The Security chief of the North Kivu province however told the radio that he has proof of the forced recruitments. Also recent UN reports accuse the CNDP of forced recruitments and the illegal use of minors.
Claudine Vidal is Not Forbidden From Entering Country (Correction).
Hirondelle News Agency
29 December 2008
Claudine Vidal, a French sociologist, Research Director at CNRS, is not forbidden from entering Rwanda, contrary to what we had written last week.
"I was never refused entry into Rwanda", she wrote to the Hirondelle Agency.
"It is true that I did not have the chance to request a visa, it is not a reason to say that they refused my entry", she added.
She was responding to an article circulated by Hirondelle Agency last week over entry refusal into Rwanda of Human Rights Watch Senior Adviser on Africa, Dr Alison Des Forges. The Hirondelle Agency mentioned that others researchers had known the same problem, including Mrs Vidal.
29 December 2008
Claudine Vidal, a French sociologist, Research Director at CNRS, is not forbidden from entering Rwanda, contrary to what we had written last week.
"I was never refused entry into Rwanda", she wrote to the Hirondelle Agency.
"It is true that I did not have the chance to request a visa, it is not a reason to say that they refused my entry", she added.
She was responding to an article circulated by Hirondelle Agency last week over entry refusal into Rwanda of Human Rights Watch Senior Adviser on Africa, Dr Alison Des Forges. The Hirondelle Agency mentioned that others researchers had known the same problem, including Mrs Vidal.
29 December, 2008
PRESIDENT RESIGNS, FIGHTING IN CENTRAL REGION.
MISNA
29 December 2008
Somalia’s President Abdallahi Yusuf, in the past weeks protagonist of a political and institutional standoff within the weak transitional government, announced his resignation in a speech before the parliament in Baidoa. In his address, Yusuf reminded that at the start of his term he pledged he would step down if not able to “restore peace, stability and democracy”. The President also said that he would hand power to the parliament speaker, until legislators elect a new Head of State within 30 days. The internal crisis in the transitional government, for two years in power in some areas thanks to the support of Ethiopian troops, emerged in mid December with the removal by the President of the Prime Minister Nur Assan Hussein ‘Adde’; a move deemed unconstitutional and rejected by the parliament.
Beyond the juridical aspects, the tension in Baidoa is fuelled also by an impasse in negotiations with armed opposition groups that control a large part of Somalia. The exiting President, increasingly isolated over the past months even on an international level, never really supported the peace accords signed in October following a difficult United Nations-mediated negotiation. The transitional government crisis however appears to have limited significance in respect to the humanitarian crisis and peace issue in a nation torn by violence and conflicts since 1991. According to Radio Shabelle, some twenty people were killed yesterday in renewed clashes between armed groups in the central Galgadud region, north of Mogadishu, with the heaviest fighting in the capital Dhusamareb and city of Gelinsor.
29 December 2008
Somalia’s President Abdallahi Yusuf, in the past weeks protagonist of a political and institutional standoff within the weak transitional government, announced his resignation in a speech before the parliament in Baidoa. In his address, Yusuf reminded that at the start of his term he pledged he would step down if not able to “restore peace, stability and democracy”. The President also said that he would hand power to the parliament speaker, until legislators elect a new Head of State within 30 days. The internal crisis in the transitional government, for two years in power in some areas thanks to the support of Ethiopian troops, emerged in mid December with the removal by the President of the Prime Minister Nur Assan Hussein ‘Adde’; a move deemed unconstitutional and rejected by the parliament.
Beyond the juridical aspects, the tension in Baidoa is fuelled also by an impasse in negotiations with armed opposition groups that control a large part of Somalia. The exiting President, increasingly isolated over the past months even on an international level, never really supported the peace accords signed in October following a difficult United Nations-mediated negotiation. The transitional government crisis however appears to have limited significance in respect to the humanitarian crisis and peace issue in a nation torn by violence and conflicts since 1991. According to Radio Shabelle, some twenty people were killed yesterday in renewed clashes between armed groups in the central Galgadud region, north of Mogadishu, with the heaviest fighting in the capital Dhusamareb and city of Gelinsor.
NATION SUSPENDED FROM AFRICAN UNION, NEW JUNTA NOMINATIONS.
MISNA
29 December 2008
“The African Union (AU) decides to suspend the participation of Guinea in the activities of the African Union until the return of constitutional order in that country”, said the Pan-African body in a move already announced on December 24, threatening severe sanctions against the coup leaders in the case of confirmation of “the illegitimate takeover” after the death of the elderly President Lansana Conté. No reaction has arrived yet from the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD), the junta headed by Moussa Dadis Camara, which appointed General Mamadouba Toto Camara as Security and Civil Protection minister. It was the second nomination by the CNDD after that of Colonel Sekouba Konaté as Defence minister. The ‘second in command’ of the junta also demoted around ten top army officers, including the chiefs of the country’s army, navy and air force. According to the local press, the junta is also expected to appoint a prime minister, who Camara pledged would be a civilian and therefore not a member of the junta.
29 December 2008
“The African Union (AU) decides to suspend the participation of Guinea in the activities of the African Union until the return of constitutional order in that country”, said the Pan-African body in a move already announced on December 24, threatening severe sanctions against the coup leaders in the case of confirmation of “the illegitimate takeover” after the death of the elderly President Lansana Conté. No reaction has arrived yet from the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD), the junta headed by Moussa Dadis Camara, which appointed General Mamadouba Toto Camara as Security and Civil Protection minister. It was the second nomination by the CNDD after that of Colonel Sekouba Konaté as Defence minister. The ‘second in command’ of the junta also demoted around ten top army officers, including the chiefs of the country’s army, navy and air force. According to the local press, the junta is also expected to appoint a prime minister, who Camara pledged would be a civilian and therefore not a member of the junta.
$2.8 Billion Siemens Bribes - Atiku Denies Link.
Daily Trust
29 December 2008
By Musa Simon Reef
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday denied any link with bribes offered by Siemens to some prominent officials of the Obasanjo government, stressing that it amounted to a reckless conclusion for persons to assume that he was involved in receiving bribes from the company through a member of his family.
Atiku was reacting to a story carried by a national newspaper (not Sunday Trust) that Atiku and former President Olusegun Obasanjo benefited from $2.8 million bribes paid by Siemens to Nigerian officials through the account of the wife of a former vice president.
According to statement signed by Garba Shehu of the Atiku Campaign Organisation and made available to Sunday Trust, "The SEC report alleges that an amount of USD 2.8 million was paid as bribes to Nigerian officials "through a bank account in Potomac, Maryland in the name of the wife of a former Nigerian Vice President. The Vice President's wife is a dual U.S-Nigeria citizen". Although no further specific details were supplied, the Punch reached the hasty, fatal and reckless conclusion that this must be Atiku and his family. They are wrong on this and we are ready to stake everything to show that the former Vice President and his family are in no way connected, directly or indirectly with the odious business practices that characterised Siemens in Nigeria.
"Atiku has not had any, repeat for emphasis" has not had " business links to Siemens neither did he have a direct responsibility for telecoms projects in office to warrant the attention of bribe givers throughout his years in office as the Vice President of Nigeria. Atiku has equally confirmed with every emphasis at his disposal that his wife, who is usually a very prudent and meticulous person had not entered into any form of relationships with Siemens or contractors of whatever hue. She denied receiving any payments from Siemens or any contractors or businessmen covering the period before, during, and after her husband left public office. Nobody made any such payments into her accounts or that of any family members. In fact, it is important to stress here that throughout the period covered by the report, which is 2000-2001, Mrs Abubakar had no bank account in Maryland, USA.The former V.P's U.S lawyers are top on the situation."
Promising the unmask the forces behind the attempt to tarnish the image of the former Veepee, the statement said that, "In the light of the foregoing the former Vice President, who is now becoming a regular victim of such hoaxes has challenged anyone with specific information or provable facts on the beneficiaries of the alleged bribes parading themselves as a former Vice President or his family to not to hesitate to come forward and present them before the competent security agencies and he, for his part, is willing, as he did in the past, to present himself and cooperate fully with any agency that is genuinely committed to unraveling the identities of the persons involved in the latest scandal. He pleads that the public should not rush its decision on the matter.
"The former Vice President is aware, as is a majority of Nigerians that the toga and nomenclature of the Nigerian Vice President had at some point in the last eight or nine years of our history become something like a borrowed uniform that was worn all around by the many shady characters that were paraded by the Presidency who went about committing all manner of inequities. Each time Atiku faced these challenges, he came out clean and even better. As he had dealt with many of these in the past, this too shall come to pass."
29 December 2008
By Musa Simon Reef
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday denied any link with bribes offered by Siemens to some prominent officials of the Obasanjo government, stressing that it amounted to a reckless conclusion for persons to assume that he was involved in receiving bribes from the company through a member of his family.
Atiku was reacting to a story carried by a national newspaper (not Sunday Trust) that Atiku and former President Olusegun Obasanjo benefited from $2.8 million bribes paid by Siemens to Nigerian officials through the account of the wife of a former vice president.
According to statement signed by Garba Shehu of the Atiku Campaign Organisation and made available to Sunday Trust, "The SEC report alleges that an amount of USD 2.8 million was paid as bribes to Nigerian officials "through a bank account in Potomac, Maryland in the name of the wife of a former Nigerian Vice President. The Vice President's wife is a dual U.S-Nigeria citizen". Although no further specific details were supplied, the Punch reached the hasty, fatal and reckless conclusion that this must be Atiku and his family. They are wrong on this and we are ready to stake everything to show that the former Vice President and his family are in no way connected, directly or indirectly with the odious business practices that characterised Siemens in Nigeria.
"Atiku has not had any, repeat for emphasis" has not had " business links to Siemens neither did he have a direct responsibility for telecoms projects in office to warrant the attention of bribe givers throughout his years in office as the Vice President of Nigeria. Atiku has equally confirmed with every emphasis at his disposal that his wife, who is usually a very prudent and meticulous person had not entered into any form of relationships with Siemens or contractors of whatever hue. She denied receiving any payments from Siemens or any contractors or businessmen covering the period before, during, and after her husband left public office. Nobody made any such payments into her accounts or that of any family members. In fact, it is important to stress here that throughout the period covered by the report, which is 2000-2001, Mrs Abubakar had no bank account in Maryland, USA.The former V.P's U.S lawyers are top on the situation."
Promising the unmask the forces behind the attempt to tarnish the image of the former Veepee, the statement said that, "In the light of the foregoing the former Vice President, who is now becoming a regular victim of such hoaxes has challenged anyone with specific information or provable facts on the beneficiaries of the alleged bribes parading themselves as a former Vice President or his family to not to hesitate to come forward and present them before the competent security agencies and he, for his part, is willing, as he did in the past, to present himself and cooperate fully with any agency that is genuinely committed to unraveling the identities of the persons involved in the latest scandal. He pleads that the public should not rush its decision on the matter.
"The former Vice President is aware, as is a majority of Nigerians that the toga and nomenclature of the Nigerian Vice President had at some point in the last eight or nine years of our history become something like a borrowed uniform that was worn all around by the many shady characters that were paraded by the Presidency who went about committing all manner of inequities. Each time Atiku faced these challenges, he came out clean and even better. As he had dealt with many of these in the past, this too shall come to pass."
Libyan leader begins a three day visit to Sierra Leone.
African Press Agency
29 December 2008
Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gadaffi, is expected Monday in Sierra Leone on a three-day official visit, Information and Communication minister, Ibrahim Ben Kargbo has confirmed to APA.
“The visit of the Libyan leader is a routine one, a bilateral affair aimed at strengthening the cordial relations between Sierra Leone and Libya and to explore areas of cooperation between the two countries,” Kargbo, who is the official government spokesperson, says.
Col. Gadaffi last visited Sierra Leone just before the 2007 general and presidential elections, a visit that was shrouded in controversy. There was widespread condemnation of the Libyan strong man’s presence in the country, especially from the then opposition All People’s Congress [APC] party which is now in power.
The colonel has long been accused of backing the then rebel outfit, the Revolutionary United Front [RUF], which waged a brutal war against the government of Sierra Leone, in 1991, lasting 12 years.
Reactions to the impending visit have been mixed. Some have been calling for the Libyan leader to make a public apology to the people of Sierra Leone for his alleged involvement in the war, while others want him to use some of his country’s petro-dollar wealth to help the impoverished West African nation.
“Col. Gadaffi must apologise to the people of this country for his backing of the RUF which destroyed this country. This is the only way he would be welcomed,” opines Mohamed Kamara, a civil society activist.
Michael Davies, an engineer says: “Gadaffi should help with developing our country’s ailing economy and infrastructure. That way, we’ll forget the atrocities and destruction caused by the RUF which he patronised.”
Meanwhile, an advanced team of Libyan officials has already arrived in town, including business people. Government sources here say they will explore areas of future investment in Sierra Leone.
29 December 2008
Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gadaffi, is expected Monday in Sierra Leone on a three-day official visit, Information and Communication minister, Ibrahim Ben Kargbo has confirmed to APA.
“The visit of the Libyan leader is a routine one, a bilateral affair aimed at strengthening the cordial relations between Sierra Leone and Libya and to explore areas of cooperation between the two countries,” Kargbo, who is the official government spokesperson, says.
Col. Gadaffi last visited Sierra Leone just before the 2007 general and presidential elections, a visit that was shrouded in controversy. There was widespread condemnation of the Libyan strong man’s presence in the country, especially from the then opposition All People’s Congress [APC] party which is now in power.
The colonel has long been accused of backing the then rebel outfit, the Revolutionary United Front [RUF], which waged a brutal war against the government of Sierra Leone, in 1991, lasting 12 years.
Reactions to the impending visit have been mixed. Some have been calling for the Libyan leader to make a public apology to the people of Sierra Leone for his alleged involvement in the war, while others want him to use some of his country’s petro-dollar wealth to help the impoverished West African nation.
“Col. Gadaffi must apologise to the people of this country for his backing of the RUF which destroyed this country. This is the only way he would be welcomed,” opines Mohamed Kamara, a civil society activist.
Michael Davies, an engineer says: “Gadaffi should help with developing our country’s ailing economy and infrastructure. That way, we’ll forget the atrocities and destruction caused by the RUF which he patronised.”
Meanwhile, an advanced team of Libyan officials has already arrived in town, including business people. Government sources here say they will explore areas of future investment in Sierra Leone.
New Belgian leader seeks solution.
BBC News
28 December 2008
The speaker of Belgium's parliament has accepted a request from King Albert to form a new government in an effort to break the country's political deadlock.
Mr. Herman Van Rompuy, a Flemish Christian Democrat (CD&V), is expected to maintain the existing five-party coalition of the outgoing prime minister, Mr. Yves Leterme.
Mr Leterme's government collapsed 10 days ago amid allegations of political meddling in the Fortis bank bail-out.
The global economic downturn has added to Belgium's woes.
The BBC's Oana Lungescu in Brussels claims Mr Van Rompuy, 61, is widely seen as the ideal candidate to help Belgium cope with the economic malaise. But until now, he had insisted he did not want the top job.
A former budget minister, he brought down the public debt in the 1990s.
Mr Leterme only took office in March, nine months after a general election had resulted in political deadlock.
He tendered his resignation in June after he failed to push through plans to devolve more power to the regions, but King Albert rejected it at that time.
28 December 2008
The speaker of Belgium's parliament has accepted a request from King Albert to form a new government in an effort to break the country's political deadlock.
Mr. Herman Van Rompuy, a Flemish Christian Democrat (CD&V), is expected to maintain the existing five-party coalition of the outgoing prime minister, Mr. Yves Leterme.
Mr Leterme's government collapsed 10 days ago amid allegations of political meddling in the Fortis bank bail-out.
The global economic downturn has added to Belgium's woes.
The BBC's Oana Lungescu in Brussels claims Mr Van Rompuy, 61, is widely seen as the ideal candidate to help Belgium cope with the economic malaise. But until now, he had insisted he did not want the top job.
A former budget minister, he brought down the public debt in the 1990s.
Mr Leterme only took office in March, nine months after a general election had resulted in political deadlock.
He tendered his resignation in June after he failed to push through plans to devolve more power to the regions, but King Albert rejected it at that time.
28 December, 2008
Glencore to seize Democratic Republic of Congo copper giant.
Sunday Times
By Danny Fortson
28 December 2008
commodities giant Glencore has tightened its grip on mining assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) after it injected an emergency loan into one of the war-torn country’s biggest operators.
Under a deal quietly announced on Christmas Eve, Glencore extended $265m (£182m) in convertible debt to Katanga Mining. This will keep the company afloat for the first half of the new year and could lead to Glencore taking control.
For Katanga, the terms are harsh. The injection extends a previous $165m Glencore loan and adds $100m in fresh capital to tide it over through the start of 2009.
Katanga hopes new investors will be found to stump up 75% of the new $100m instead of Glencore. Anu Dhir, vice president of corporate development at Katanga, said the company is in talks with strategic and financial investors.
Katanga has until February 9 to sign up other backers. If it does not, Glencore will be issued new shares, giving it a total holding of 83.7%, handing it control of the group.
Dhir said the deal was the company’s only option. “Glencore has stepped in to provide a lifeline. When there aren’t a lot of options out there and our company may not continue as a going concern, we’re very fortunate to get this,” she said.
Glencore, a Swiss commodities trader whose stakes in other miners like Xstrata have plummeted in value, is already heavily involved in Katanga. Interim chief executive Steven Isaacs, a Glencore managing director, has been running the company since October, when his predecessor stepped down as its problems worsened.
Katanga will hold an investor meeting on January 12 to authorise an increase in the number of shares it can issue to allow the financing to go ahead. In addition, the company said it needs to raise an additional $250m within the first six months of 2009 to fund the business.
The terms of the cash injection reflect the difficulties that have hit many small and mid-sized miners that not long ago were riding high.
Both cobalt and copper prices have nosedived in recent months, taking the share price of Katanga and other mining groups with them. In the past year 98% of Katanga’s stock-market value has evaporated. It halted cobalt-concentrate production in November because the low price meant it no longer made economic sense.
Just over a year ago it took over rival Nikanor in a $3.3 billion deal to create the world’s largest cobalt miner and the biggest copper producer in Africa.
This came after the DRC government stymied a hostile offer for Katanga by Camec, a rival miner run by Phil Edmonds, the former England cricketer.
The company has also been hobbled by the slow pace of talks with the DRC’s state-owned Gécamines. The government ordered a review of 61 mining contracts this year, seeking a greater share of the spoils, including those from the Kamoto copper mine, one of the world’s largest.
Katanga is not alone. Coal producer Cambrian Mining, which is listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market, last week agreed a merger with rival Western Canadian Coal. The deal values Cambrian at only £29m, less than 10% of what it was worth in June.
By Danny Fortson
28 December 2008
commodities giant Glencore has tightened its grip on mining assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) after it injected an emergency loan into one of the war-torn country’s biggest operators.
Under a deal quietly announced on Christmas Eve, Glencore extended $265m (£182m) in convertible debt to Katanga Mining. This will keep the company afloat for the first half of the new year and could lead to Glencore taking control.
For Katanga, the terms are harsh. The injection extends a previous $165m Glencore loan and adds $100m in fresh capital to tide it over through the start of 2009.
Katanga hopes new investors will be found to stump up 75% of the new $100m instead of Glencore. Anu Dhir, vice president of corporate development at Katanga, said the company is in talks with strategic and financial investors.
Katanga has until February 9 to sign up other backers. If it does not, Glencore will be issued new shares, giving it a total holding of 83.7%, handing it control of the group.
Dhir said the deal was the company’s only option. “Glencore has stepped in to provide a lifeline. When there aren’t a lot of options out there and our company may not continue as a going concern, we’re very fortunate to get this,” she said.
Glencore, a Swiss commodities trader whose stakes in other miners like Xstrata have plummeted in value, is already heavily involved in Katanga. Interim chief executive Steven Isaacs, a Glencore managing director, has been running the company since October, when his predecessor stepped down as its problems worsened.
Katanga will hold an investor meeting on January 12 to authorise an increase in the number of shares it can issue to allow the financing to go ahead. In addition, the company said it needs to raise an additional $250m within the first six months of 2009 to fund the business.
The terms of the cash injection reflect the difficulties that have hit many small and mid-sized miners that not long ago were riding high.
Both cobalt and copper prices have nosedived in recent months, taking the share price of Katanga and other mining groups with them. In the past year 98% of Katanga’s stock-market value has evaporated. It halted cobalt-concentrate production in November because the low price meant it no longer made economic sense.
Just over a year ago it took over rival Nikanor in a $3.3 billion deal to create the world’s largest cobalt miner and the biggest copper producer in Africa.
This came after the DRC government stymied a hostile offer for Katanga by Camec, a rival miner run by Phil Edmonds, the former England cricketer.
The company has also been hobbled by the slow pace of talks with the DRC’s state-owned Gécamines. The government ordered a review of 61 mining contracts this year, seeking a greater share of the spoils, including those from the Kamoto copper mine, one of the world’s largest.
Katanga is not alone. Coal producer Cambrian Mining, which is listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market, last week agreed a merger with rival Western Canadian Coal. The deal values Cambrian at only £29m, less than 10% of what it was worth in June.
Congo to begin coltan certification in 2009 - minister.
25 March 2008
Reuters
By Joe Bavier
KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo hopes to set up a scheme to certify columbite-tantalite produced within its borders in 2009, the country's Deputy Mines Minister Victor Kasongo said on Tuesday.
The illegal traffic of the rare metal, used in mobile phone chips and commonly referred to as coltan, helped fuel a 1998-2003 war and resulting humanitarian crisis in the central African country that killed an estimated 5.4 million people.
But a new G8-backed and German-financed pilot initiative aimed at creating a mineral fingerprint for coltan could soon help developing countries trace ore that is illegally exported and boost their profits from legal exports.
Kasongo said he hoped a global certification process aimed at ethically-minded consumers would follow.
"All the large companies are fighting for this. They'll be able to display a certificate to prove fair trade. You'll begin seeing many machines, many iPods, that are certified," he said.
Congo plans to use the data to set up its own certification process within the next eight months, which should help the creation of a global system similar to the Kimberley Process set up to end the trade in "blood diamonds" from war zones.
"We believe that in 2009 we should be able to enforce certification ... early next year," Kasongo told Reuters in an interview. "Licences. Centralised control. Certification. More revenues to Congo. More peace and stability. Those are the things we are aiming for."
A team from Germany's Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources is due to arrive in Congo on April 2.
Researchers will map the country's coltan producing areas and isolate unique characteristics of local ore samples to create mechanisms for tracing ore to its origin.
"BLOOD COLTAN"
Congo, believed by many experts to possess the world's largest coltan reserves, was one of the principal suppliers of the ore as demand from the mobile phone and electronics industries spiked in the late 1990s.
Much of the so-called "blood coltan" originating in Congo was illegally smuggled into Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi during a five-year war that saw the plunder of its natural resources by neighbours and foreign-backed militias.
Congo's coltan-rich eastern borderlands remain a patchwork of militia-controlled zones and rebel fiefdoms, where a United Nations Security Council-commissioned report recently said illegal armed groups still buy weapons with mining revenues.
Ethical concerns and more efficient industrialised mining have now made Australia the world's leading producer and exporter of coltan.
Congo hopes the certification process will rehabilitate the image of its coltan and help to stabilise its eastern reaches.
"We'll make sure that the coltan is not linked to any military activities. We understand that once we have control of the coltan itself, we'll have some control over the stability of the area," Kasongo said.
Reuters
By Joe Bavier
KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo hopes to set up a scheme to certify columbite-tantalite produced within its borders in 2009, the country's Deputy Mines Minister Victor Kasongo said on Tuesday.
The illegal traffic of the rare metal, used in mobile phone chips and commonly referred to as coltan, helped fuel a 1998-2003 war and resulting humanitarian crisis in the central African country that killed an estimated 5.4 million people.
But a new G8-backed and German-financed pilot initiative aimed at creating a mineral fingerprint for coltan could soon help developing countries trace ore that is illegally exported and boost their profits from legal exports.
Kasongo said he hoped a global certification process aimed at ethically-minded consumers would follow.
"All the large companies are fighting for this. They'll be able to display a certificate to prove fair trade. You'll begin seeing many machines, many iPods, that are certified," he said.
Congo plans to use the data to set up its own certification process within the next eight months, which should help the creation of a global system similar to the Kimberley Process set up to end the trade in "blood diamonds" from war zones.
"We believe that in 2009 we should be able to enforce certification ... early next year," Kasongo told Reuters in an interview. "Licences. Centralised control. Certification. More revenues to Congo. More peace and stability. Those are the things we are aiming for."
A team from Germany's Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources is due to arrive in Congo on April 2.
Researchers will map the country's coltan producing areas and isolate unique characteristics of local ore samples to create mechanisms for tracing ore to its origin.
"BLOOD COLTAN"
Congo, believed by many experts to possess the world's largest coltan reserves, was one of the principal suppliers of the ore as demand from the mobile phone and electronics industries spiked in the late 1990s.
Much of the so-called "blood coltan" originating in Congo was illegally smuggled into Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi during a five-year war that saw the plunder of its natural resources by neighbours and foreign-backed militias.
Congo's coltan-rich eastern borderlands remain a patchwork of militia-controlled zones and rebel fiefdoms, where a United Nations Security Council-commissioned report recently said illegal armed groups still buy weapons with mining revenues.
Ethical concerns and more efficient industrialised mining have now made Australia the world's leading producer and exporter of coltan.
Congo hopes the certification process will rehabilitate the image of its coltan and help to stabilise its eastern reaches.
"We'll make sure that the coltan is not linked to any military activities. We understand that once we have control of the coltan itself, we'll have some control over the stability of the area," Kasongo said.
U.S. ambassador arrives in Libya.
Los Angeles Times
28 December 2008
The first U.S. ambassador to Libya in more than three decades arrived in Tripoli on Saturday, in a further sign of the two nations' improving ties.
Gene Cretz, a career U.S. diplomat whose foreign postings have included Tel Aviv, Cairo, New Delhi and Beijing, said he would strive to broaden links between Tripoli and Washington.
"I'm happy to be in Libya," he told reporters on his arrival here in the Libyan capital, naming business and tourism among his priorities for expanded cooperation.
U.S.-Libyan ties have improved dramatically since Libya's decision five years ago to abandon the pursuit of nuclear and other weapons and the subsequent resolution of disputes over bombings for which Washington blamed Libya.
U.S. officials said the last big obstacle to normal ties was removed in October, when Libya paid $1.5 billion into a fund to settle claims by the families of U.S. citizens killed in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, a 1986 attack on a West Berlin disco and some other incidents.
After Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi seized power in 1969 in a coup, ties became increasingly strained because of his support for what the United States considered international terrorism.
The United States withdrew its ambassador from Tripoli in 1972, and all U.S. diplomats left after a mob attacked and set fire to the U.S. Embassy in 1979.
The two countries reopened lower-level missions in each other's capitals in 2004 and upgraded them to full embassies in 2006.
28 December 2008
The first U.S. ambassador to Libya in more than three decades arrived in Tripoli on Saturday, in a further sign of the two nations' improving ties.
Gene Cretz, a career U.S. diplomat whose foreign postings have included Tel Aviv, Cairo, New Delhi and Beijing, said he would strive to broaden links between Tripoli and Washington.
"I'm happy to be in Libya," he told reporters on his arrival here in the Libyan capital, naming business and tourism among his priorities for expanded cooperation.
U.S.-Libyan ties have improved dramatically since Libya's decision five years ago to abandon the pursuit of nuclear and other weapons and the subsequent resolution of disputes over bombings for which Washington blamed Libya.
U.S. officials said the last big obstacle to normal ties was removed in October, when Libya paid $1.5 billion into a fund to settle claims by the families of U.S. citizens killed in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, a 1986 attack on a West Berlin disco and some other incidents.
After Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi seized power in 1969 in a coup, ties became increasingly strained because of his support for what the United States considered international terrorism.
The United States withdrew its ambassador from Tripoli in 1972, and all U.S. diplomats left after a mob attacked and set fire to the U.S. Embassy in 1979.
The two countries reopened lower-level missions in each other's capitals in 2004 and upgraded them to full embassies in 2006.
Somali deputy minister killed.
The Penninsula
28 December 2008
Gunmen yesterday killed a deputy minister in Somalia’s country’s south-central town of Baidoa, witnesses said.
Ismail Hassan Timir, the deputy minister for reconciliation, was shot as he stepped out of his car in Baidoa, the seat of the country’s transitional parliament, a correspondent who saw his body reported.
“We don’t know the identity of the attackers and the motive behind it,” said Mohamed Abdi, a businessman.
“He came out of his car and gunmen sprayed him with bullets,” he added.
Meanwhile, 12 people were killed yesterday when an Islamist group seized control of a central Somali trading town in a battle with hardline Al Shabaab militants, residents said.
Al Shabaab, which means youth in Arabic, captured Gurael, 370km north of the capital Mogadishu on December 6, after three days of fighting with a government-allied moderate Sunni Islamist group in the area.
Locals said the Sunni Islamist group ousted by Al Shabaab three weeks ago had been regrouping and launched their attack yesterday morning.
“I have counted 12 dead fighters lying in the alleys of Gurael,” witness Ali Aden said.
28 December 2008
Gunmen yesterday killed a deputy minister in Somalia’s country’s south-central town of Baidoa, witnesses said.
Ismail Hassan Timir, the deputy minister for reconciliation, was shot as he stepped out of his car in Baidoa, the seat of the country’s transitional parliament, a correspondent who saw his body reported.
“We don’t know the identity of the attackers and the motive behind it,” said Mohamed Abdi, a businessman.
“He came out of his car and gunmen sprayed him with bullets,” he added.
Meanwhile, 12 people were killed yesterday when an Islamist group seized control of a central Somali trading town in a battle with hardline Al Shabaab militants, residents said.
Al Shabaab, which means youth in Arabic, captured Gurael, 370km north of the capital Mogadishu on December 6, after three days of fighting with a government-allied moderate Sunni Islamist group in the area.
Locals said the Sunni Islamist group ousted by Al Shabaab three weeks ago had been regrouping and launched their attack yesterday morning.
“I have counted 12 dead fighters lying in the alleys of Gurael,” witness Ali Aden said.
Key Somali official says president to quit Monday.
AFP
28 December 2008
Somalia's president will resign Monday to try to end government infighting before the country's Ethiopian allies leave, a senior ally said Sunday in the latest in a series of conflicting statements on the leader's future.
President Abdullahi Yusuf will address a special session of the country's parliament to announce his retirement from politics, said Abdirashid Sed, a confidant of Yusuf and the most senior figure to comment so far on the president's plans.
"He decided to step down because he does not want to be seen as an obstacle to peace in Somalia," Sed told The Associated Press. "He wants to give a chance to the younger generation."
The announcement came as 19 people died in clashes in the Horn of Africa nation that has been ravaged by 18 years of civil war.
The president's position has been in doubt since parliament last week blocked his attempt to fire Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein.
The political infighting has crippled the Somali government, which came to power two years ago after Ethiopian troops attacked an Islamic administration that had ruled much of the south and the capital for six months.
Islamist insurgents have hit back and now hold most of southern and central Somalia. Yusuf's administration only controls a few pockets of territory in the capital and one other town.
The Ethiopian allies are due to pull out within days and the government will be forced to rely on their own unpaid and ill-disciplined fighters to tackle the insurgency.
Hussein, a former humanitarian worker with broad international support, has welcomed talks with factions fighting in the civil war. He backed a peace deal signed with Islamic moderates that was criticized by Yusuf, a former warlord from one of Somalia's biggest clans.
Some analysts hope Yusuf's expected resignation and the departure of the Ethiopians — largely Christians in a Muslim country — may persuade the strongest and most hardline Islamic militia, al-Shabab, to enter peace talks.
But some analysts say al-Shabab's territorial gains have put it in a strong position and would have little incentive to talk with the government.
Al-Shabab fought with a moderate local Islamist group Sunday in the central Somali town of Dusamareeb, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) north of Mogadishu, leaving 10 dead, said witness Mohamud Jama Aden. The local militia accuses al-Shabab of harassing its members and destroying temples and tombs of respected clerics.
A separate clash between rival militias left five dead Sunday in the central town of Galinsoor, said clan elder Guhad Yusuf Aw-nure. Meanwhile, Ethiopian troops in southern Mogadishu shot dead four civilians following a bomb blast near one of their bases, according to resident Abdi Haji Isaq.
In Merka, a southern port city under al-Shabab control, armed men raided the office of the U.N. World Food Program and an Italian aid agency and took cash and equipment, an employee said. He asked that his name not be used for fear of reprisals. Nairobi-based WFP spokesman Peter Smerdon said they were investigating the reports.
Any political solution would also depend on the powerful clan warlords and the businessmen who have profited from the chaos in Somalia, with its government riven with corruption and squabbling.
Associated Press Writers Salad Duhul in Mogadishu, Somalia, and Malkhadir M. Muhumed in Nairobi, Kenya contributed to this report.
28 December 2008
Somalia's president will resign Monday to try to end government infighting before the country's Ethiopian allies leave, a senior ally said Sunday in the latest in a series of conflicting statements on the leader's future.
President Abdullahi Yusuf will address a special session of the country's parliament to announce his retirement from politics, said Abdirashid Sed, a confidant of Yusuf and the most senior figure to comment so far on the president's plans.
"He decided to step down because he does not want to be seen as an obstacle to peace in Somalia," Sed told The Associated Press. "He wants to give a chance to the younger generation."
The announcement came as 19 people died in clashes in the Horn of Africa nation that has been ravaged by 18 years of civil war.
The president's position has been in doubt since parliament last week blocked his attempt to fire Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein.
The political infighting has crippled the Somali government, which came to power two years ago after Ethiopian troops attacked an Islamic administration that had ruled much of the south and the capital for six months.
Islamist insurgents have hit back and now hold most of southern and central Somalia. Yusuf's administration only controls a few pockets of territory in the capital and one other town.
The Ethiopian allies are due to pull out within days and the government will be forced to rely on their own unpaid and ill-disciplined fighters to tackle the insurgency.
Hussein, a former humanitarian worker with broad international support, has welcomed talks with factions fighting in the civil war. He backed a peace deal signed with Islamic moderates that was criticized by Yusuf, a former warlord from one of Somalia's biggest clans.
Some analysts hope Yusuf's expected resignation and the departure of the Ethiopians — largely Christians in a Muslim country — may persuade the strongest and most hardline Islamic militia, al-Shabab, to enter peace talks.
But some analysts say al-Shabab's territorial gains have put it in a strong position and would have little incentive to talk with the government.
Al-Shabab fought with a moderate local Islamist group Sunday in the central Somali town of Dusamareeb, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) north of Mogadishu, leaving 10 dead, said witness Mohamud Jama Aden. The local militia accuses al-Shabab of harassing its members and destroying temples and tombs of respected clerics.
A separate clash between rival militias left five dead Sunday in the central town of Galinsoor, said clan elder Guhad Yusuf Aw-nure. Meanwhile, Ethiopian troops in southern Mogadishu shot dead four civilians following a bomb blast near one of their bases, according to resident Abdi Haji Isaq.
In Merka, a southern port city under al-Shabab control, armed men raided the office of the U.N. World Food Program and an Italian aid agency and took cash and equipment, an employee said. He asked that his name not be used for fear of reprisals. Nairobi-based WFP spokesman Peter Smerdon said they were investigating the reports.
Any political solution would also depend on the powerful clan warlords and the businessmen who have profited from the chaos in Somalia, with its government riven with corruption and squabbling.
Associated Press Writers Salad Duhul in Mogadishu, Somalia, and Malkhadir M. Muhumed in Nairobi, Kenya contributed to this report.
Rwanda/Mandats d'arrêt : la France recule, l'Espagne avance.
EURAC
28 December 2008
Lu dans "Points Focaux" N°359
Ce lundi 8 décembre, un journal congolais proche du pouvoir, L’AVENIR, se fait l’écho d’un débat qui vient d’avoir lieu au parlement espagnol. Selon lui, la majorité des députés espagnols se sont exprimés en faveur des poursuites judiciaires contre les 40 militaires rwandais accusés par le juge Fernando Andreu Merelles de crimes de guerre et crimes contre l’humanité commis depuis 1990, jusqu’au début des années 2000, au Rwanda et dans l’ex Zaïre. Rappelons aussi que la justice espagnole soupçonne des militaires rwandais d’avoir tué 9 ressortissants espagnols, sur le sol rwandais ou dans l’actuelle Rd Congo. Les élus espagnols sont même allés plus loin en demandant que les accusés soient jugés par des tribunaux de ce pays. Un véritable pavé dans la mare quand on sait où en sont les relations entre la France et le Rwanda à cause de l’arrestation de Rose Kabuye ! Quelle était donc la teneur des discussions au parlement espagnol ?
« Au courant de la semaine passée, les groupes parlementaires espagnols ont approuvé à l’unanimité, dans la Commission des Affaires Étrangères du Congrès, une proposition d’arrêté qui demande au gouvernement de déclencher les mécanismes nécessaires pour que les militaires accusés dans ces massacres au cours des années 90 aussi bien au Rwanda que partout dans la région de Grands Lacs soient traînés devant la justice espagnole.
Dans ce cadre, il nous revient que le Tribunal espagnol chargé des procès initiés à l’étranger : " La Audiencia Nacional ", a déjà dans son collimateur 40 personnes présumées responsables de génocide. Au nombre des victimes, on compte qui neuf ressortissants espagnols tombés entre 1994 et 1997. La Commission des Affaires Étrangères du Congrès a approuvé, avec la voix favorable de tous les groupes politiques, un amendement transactionnel sur la proposition d’arrêté originaire de la fédération des partis sur la conduite au Rwanda et aux Grands Lacs. Pour ce faire, il est demandé au gouvernement Zapatero de ‘‘continuer à soutenir une enquête complète, objective et indépendante sur cet atroce assassinat de neuf sujets espagnols ainsi que d’autres personnes victimes de ces massacres’’. Le 6 février 2008, le juge de " l’Audiencia Nacional ", Fernando Andreu, a ordonné l’arrêt de 40 militaires de l’Armée Patriotique Rwandaise comme responsables présumés de crimes internationaux de génocide, crimes contre l’humanité et de guerre ainsi que de torture. L’Interpol et le système européen Sirène ont déjà annoncé des mandats d’arrêts internationaux contre eux... »
Les députés espagnols restent fermes dans leur engagement, mais ils ne veulent pas couper tous les liens avec Kigali, notamment dans le cadre de la coopération. Un désir qui a peu de chances d’être respecté par la partie rwandaise si la justice espagnole va jusqu’au bout de sa logique judiciaire.
«… Il nous revient que neuf de ces accusés occupent actuellement "des postes clé et d’une certaine importance politique et diplomatique en dehors des frontières de Rwanda", a annoncé le député de CiU Jordi Xuclà. On trouve également parmi les suspects, l’ambassadeur rwandais en Inde ainsi que les soldats qui participent actuellement à la Force Hybride de maintien de la paix de l’Onu et de l’Union Africaine au Darfour. Un député du parti socialiste espagnol, Eduardo Madina, a expliqué que cette initiative traite "d’un des grands trous noirs" de la fin du XXème siècle. C’est pour cela, a-t-il estimé, que le Gouvernement doit "continuer à agir afin que les assassins soient amenés en justice " afin que leurs crimes ne demeurent pas impunis. Quant au député du parti de centre-droit, le PP, José Ignacio Landaluce, il a lui aussi garanti le soutien de son groupe à la proposition. Il a en plus insisté sur le besoin de réaliser une enquête "exhaustive" sur ces faits afin que les coupables soient capturés. Cependant, a-t-il fait remarquer, il faut des mesures pour que les coopérants espagnols au Rwanda puisent rester en place. C’est, a-t-il estimé, une façon de rendre hommages aux six des neufs Espagnols tués au Rwanda qui travaillaient dans le domaine humanitaire. Aitor Esteban, député du parti nationaliste basque PNV, partage la même idée. Il a demandé en plus la comparution du général espagnol Vicente Díaz de Villegas, qui était à la tête militaire de la Mission de l’Onu au Congo pendant cinq semaines, et dont le témoignage pourrait "éclairer" la situation. Quant à Gaspar Liamazares, du parti politique de gauche IU, il partage aussi l’esprit de cette initiative au nom de la justice universelle. C’est cette justice qui a été exigée, avant la session de la Commission, par Jordi Palau, avocat des neuf victimes espagnoles et d’autres victimes rwandaises. Comme on devrait s’y attendre, l’avocat des victimes a manifesté sa pleine satisfaction pour l’initiative des parlementaires. Il est même allé, révèle www.elpural.com, jusqu’à estimer que le gouvernement espagnol peut demander l’extradition des responsables ainsi désignés des crimes pour être jugés en Espagne. »
Jusque là, le gouvernement Zapatero avait refusé d’entrer dans le jeu du juge Fernando Andreu, déclarant même qu’il n’avait pas son soutien. Mais restera-t-il indifférent face à cette demande, sans équivoque, de ses propres députés ? L’avenir nous le dira. Une chose est certaine, après l’arrestation de Rose Kabuye en France, Kigali a encore d’autres batailles politico-judiciaires à mener.
28 December 2008
Lu dans "Points Focaux" N°359
Ce lundi 8 décembre, un journal congolais proche du pouvoir, L’AVENIR, se fait l’écho d’un débat qui vient d’avoir lieu au parlement espagnol. Selon lui, la majorité des députés espagnols se sont exprimés en faveur des poursuites judiciaires contre les 40 militaires rwandais accusés par le juge Fernando Andreu Merelles de crimes de guerre et crimes contre l’humanité commis depuis 1990, jusqu’au début des années 2000, au Rwanda et dans l’ex Zaïre. Rappelons aussi que la justice espagnole soupçonne des militaires rwandais d’avoir tué 9 ressortissants espagnols, sur le sol rwandais ou dans l’actuelle Rd Congo. Les élus espagnols sont même allés plus loin en demandant que les accusés soient jugés par des tribunaux de ce pays. Un véritable pavé dans la mare quand on sait où en sont les relations entre la France et le Rwanda à cause de l’arrestation de Rose Kabuye ! Quelle était donc la teneur des discussions au parlement espagnol ?
« Au courant de la semaine passée, les groupes parlementaires espagnols ont approuvé à l’unanimité, dans la Commission des Affaires Étrangères du Congrès, une proposition d’arrêté qui demande au gouvernement de déclencher les mécanismes nécessaires pour que les militaires accusés dans ces massacres au cours des années 90 aussi bien au Rwanda que partout dans la région de Grands Lacs soient traînés devant la justice espagnole.
Dans ce cadre, il nous revient que le Tribunal espagnol chargé des procès initiés à l’étranger : " La Audiencia Nacional ", a déjà dans son collimateur 40 personnes présumées responsables de génocide. Au nombre des victimes, on compte qui neuf ressortissants espagnols tombés entre 1994 et 1997. La Commission des Affaires Étrangères du Congrès a approuvé, avec la voix favorable de tous les groupes politiques, un amendement transactionnel sur la proposition d’arrêté originaire de la fédération des partis sur la conduite au Rwanda et aux Grands Lacs. Pour ce faire, il est demandé au gouvernement Zapatero de ‘‘continuer à soutenir une enquête complète, objective et indépendante sur cet atroce assassinat de neuf sujets espagnols ainsi que d’autres personnes victimes de ces massacres’’. Le 6 février 2008, le juge de " l’Audiencia Nacional ", Fernando Andreu, a ordonné l’arrêt de 40 militaires de l’Armée Patriotique Rwandaise comme responsables présumés de crimes internationaux de génocide, crimes contre l’humanité et de guerre ainsi que de torture. L’Interpol et le système européen Sirène ont déjà annoncé des mandats d’arrêts internationaux contre eux... »
Les députés espagnols restent fermes dans leur engagement, mais ils ne veulent pas couper tous les liens avec Kigali, notamment dans le cadre de la coopération. Un désir qui a peu de chances d’être respecté par la partie rwandaise si la justice espagnole va jusqu’au bout de sa logique judiciaire.
«… Il nous revient que neuf de ces accusés occupent actuellement "des postes clé et d’une certaine importance politique et diplomatique en dehors des frontières de Rwanda", a annoncé le député de CiU Jordi Xuclà. On trouve également parmi les suspects, l’ambassadeur rwandais en Inde ainsi que les soldats qui participent actuellement à la Force Hybride de maintien de la paix de l’Onu et de l’Union Africaine au Darfour. Un député du parti socialiste espagnol, Eduardo Madina, a expliqué que cette initiative traite "d’un des grands trous noirs" de la fin du XXème siècle. C’est pour cela, a-t-il estimé, que le Gouvernement doit "continuer à agir afin que les assassins soient amenés en justice " afin que leurs crimes ne demeurent pas impunis. Quant au député du parti de centre-droit, le PP, José Ignacio Landaluce, il a lui aussi garanti le soutien de son groupe à la proposition. Il a en plus insisté sur le besoin de réaliser une enquête "exhaustive" sur ces faits afin que les coupables soient capturés. Cependant, a-t-il fait remarquer, il faut des mesures pour que les coopérants espagnols au Rwanda puisent rester en place. C’est, a-t-il estimé, une façon de rendre hommages aux six des neufs Espagnols tués au Rwanda qui travaillaient dans le domaine humanitaire. Aitor Esteban, député du parti nationaliste basque PNV, partage la même idée. Il a demandé en plus la comparution du général espagnol Vicente Díaz de Villegas, qui était à la tête militaire de la Mission de l’Onu au Congo pendant cinq semaines, et dont le témoignage pourrait "éclairer" la situation. Quant à Gaspar Liamazares, du parti politique de gauche IU, il partage aussi l’esprit de cette initiative au nom de la justice universelle. C’est cette justice qui a été exigée, avant la session de la Commission, par Jordi Palau, avocat des neuf victimes espagnoles et d’autres victimes rwandaises. Comme on devrait s’y attendre, l’avocat des victimes a manifesté sa pleine satisfaction pour l’initiative des parlementaires. Il est même allé, révèle www.elpural.com, jusqu’à estimer que le gouvernement espagnol peut demander l’extradition des responsables ainsi désignés des crimes pour être jugés en Espagne. »
Jusque là, le gouvernement Zapatero avait refusé d’entrer dans le jeu du juge Fernando Andreu, déclarant même qu’il n’avait pas son soutien. Mais restera-t-il indifférent face à cette demande, sans équivoque, de ses propres députés ? L’avenir nous le dira. Une chose est certaine, après l’arrestation de Rose Kabuye en France, Kigali a encore d’autres batailles politico-judiciaires à mener.
PIERRE PÉAN WILL BE TRIED IN APPEAL FOR HIS BOOK.
Hirondelle News Agency
24 December 2008
The French writer Pierre Péan who, in his book "Black Furies, White Liars (Noires Fureurs, Blancs Menteurs)" had mentioned that Tutsis were affected by a "lying culture" and especially called into question the historiography of the Rwandan genocide, will again be tried before an appeal chamber at the request of the association S.O.S Racisme and of the Paris prosecution.
On 7 November, the 17th chamber of the first instance criminal court had acquitted him of the accusations of slander and provocation to racial hatred. Freedom of expression, a fundamental principle set up by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, can only be sanctioned for attacks envisaged by the law, it had reminded while affirming even if certain remarks of the investigating journalist were shocking his formulations do not constitute, therefore, public and racial slander, nor a provocation to racial discrimination.
Following the publication in 2005 of the book “Black Furies, White Liars”, S.O.S Racisme, a French association, filed a complaint. Other organizations such as the Human Rights League did not take this step. S.O.S Racisme, argues that Péan, by claiming Tutsis “to resort systematically to lying and dissimulation, while employing doubtful and fraudulent manoeuvres, with the only aim of misleading the international community relating to the accuracy of its cause”, attacked “the honour and the consideration of this ethnicity”.
The offences of slander and provocation to commit discrimination are governed in France by the law on the freedom of the press of 1881. Article 29 of this law, which has never been modified, states that “any allegation or charge of a fact which attacks the honour or the consideration of the person or the body to which the fact is charged is slander”. The fact that this allegation is made against a “group of people due to their origin or their membership or their non-membership to an ethnic group, a nation, a race or a given religion” worsens the incurred sentence.
The 17th chamber of the first instance criminal court, called "chamber of the press", estimated that to be so the infringement would have needed that the allegation be presented “as a precise articulation of facts likely to be, without difficulty, the object of evidence and a contradictory debate”. It noted that, “placed in its context, the culture formulation of the lie and dissimulation cannot be regarded as the charge of a precise fact aiming at discrediting the whole of Tutsis”. It also believed that the remarks do not target Tutsis as a whole.
Péan, according to the chamber, would have badly translated the term ubwenge. Certain witnesses considered that he even interpreted in a “summary and ambiguous” way.
As for the provocation to racial discrimination against a person or a group as described above, it is article 24 of the law of 1881 which sanctions it. The chamber defines provocation as “the incitement of the public to discrimination, hatred or violence towards the group considered”. While admitting that the formulation employed “can legitimately hurt those he targeted”, it does not constitute, therefore, such an incitement. The French law imposes that these offences, called violations of the press laws, were committed by the way of the publication whose various means are enumerated in article 23 of the law of 1881.
The chamber, however, rejected Péan’s motion for abusive prosecution estimating that he “had been naturally exposed to criticism, the survivors of the genocide who have been able to believe in good faith that the discredit was thrown upon the reality of the dramas and the suffering lived (…); that consideration for the victims of the genocide should have led Pierre Péan to take more precautions in the formulation of his remarks”.
The documents which authorize breaches to liberty of expression expressly use a concise terminology with an aim of posing a precise framework to the possible limits. These limits do not relate to the “obviously shocking” remarks.
24 December 2008
The French writer Pierre Péan who, in his book "Black Furies, White Liars (Noires Fureurs, Blancs Menteurs)" had mentioned that Tutsis were affected by a "lying culture" and especially called into question the historiography of the Rwandan genocide, will again be tried before an appeal chamber at the request of the association S.O.S Racisme and of the Paris prosecution.
On 7 November, the 17th chamber of the first instance criminal court had acquitted him of the accusations of slander and provocation to racial hatred. Freedom of expression, a fundamental principle set up by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, can only be sanctioned for attacks envisaged by the law, it had reminded while affirming even if certain remarks of the investigating journalist were shocking his formulations do not constitute, therefore, public and racial slander, nor a provocation to racial discrimination.
Following the publication in 2005 of the book “Black Furies, White Liars”, S.O.S Racisme, a French association, filed a complaint. Other organizations such as the Human Rights League did not take this step. S.O.S Racisme, argues that Péan, by claiming Tutsis “to resort systematically to lying and dissimulation, while employing doubtful and fraudulent manoeuvres, with the only aim of misleading the international community relating to the accuracy of its cause”, attacked “the honour and the consideration of this ethnicity”.
The offences of slander and provocation to commit discrimination are governed in France by the law on the freedom of the press of 1881. Article 29 of this law, which has never been modified, states that “any allegation or charge of a fact which attacks the honour or the consideration of the person or the body to which the fact is charged is slander”. The fact that this allegation is made against a “group of people due to their origin or their membership or their non-membership to an ethnic group, a nation, a race or a given religion” worsens the incurred sentence.
The 17th chamber of the first instance criminal court, called "chamber of the press", estimated that to be so the infringement would have needed that the allegation be presented “as a precise articulation of facts likely to be, without difficulty, the object of evidence and a contradictory debate”. It noted that, “placed in its context, the culture formulation of the lie and dissimulation cannot be regarded as the charge of a precise fact aiming at discrediting the whole of Tutsis”. It also believed that the remarks do not target Tutsis as a whole.
Péan, according to the chamber, would have badly translated the term ubwenge. Certain witnesses considered that he even interpreted in a “summary and ambiguous” way.
As for the provocation to racial discrimination against a person or a group as described above, it is article 24 of the law of 1881 which sanctions it. The chamber defines provocation as “the incitement of the public to discrimination, hatred or violence towards the group considered”. While admitting that the formulation employed “can legitimately hurt those he targeted”, it does not constitute, therefore, such an incitement. The French law imposes that these offences, called violations of the press laws, were committed by the way of the publication whose various means are enumerated in article 23 of the law of 1881.
The chamber, however, rejected Péan’s motion for abusive prosecution estimating that he “had been naturally exposed to criticism, the survivors of the genocide who have been able to believe in good faith that the discredit was thrown upon the reality of the dramas and the suffering lived (…); that consideration for the victims of the genocide should have led Pierre Péan to take more precautions in the formulation of his remarks”.
The documents which authorize breaches to liberty of expression expressly use a concise terminology with an aim of posing a precise framework to the possible limits. These limits do not relate to the “obviously shocking” remarks.
ALISON DES FORGES IS PROHIBITED FROM ENTERING RWANDA.
Hirondelle News Agency
24 December 2008
Alison Des Forges, an expert witness at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the coordinator for Africa for the organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), is prohibited from entering Rwanda, her organization just confirmed in an official statement.
According to this text forwarded to the office of the Agence France Presse in Nairobi, it is the first time that Rwanda excludes a member of HRW since 1991, since the organization has been paying attention to human rights in that country.
Alison Des Forges had notably coordinated the collective work of HRW entitled “Leave None to Tell the Story”. She testified for the prosecution in the majority of the trials at the ICTR.
Already in September, she had been denied entry in the country as she arrived by road from Bujumbura, the capital of neighbouring Burundi. On 2 December, arriving by plane from Brussels at the invitation of the British embassy, she was prohibited from disembarking from the plane, which set out again with a delay.
No explanation was provided to HRW on the reasons for this measure. The organization, which maintains a permanent mission in Rwanda, published last June a very critical report on justice and the judiciary in this country. Previously, she has been opposed to the ICTR transfering defendants to Rwanda. More recently, HRW has in an official statement requested the United Nations try members of the RPF for crimes allegedly committed in 1994.
Before Alison Des Forges, several other researchers, historians and sociologists, like Filip Reyntjens, Claudine Vidal and André Guichaoua, saw themselves refused entry into Rwanda after the publication of works critical of the RPF regime.
24 December 2008
Alison Des Forges, an expert witness at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the coordinator for Africa for the organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), is prohibited from entering Rwanda, her organization just confirmed in an official statement.
According to this text forwarded to the office of the Agence France Presse in Nairobi, it is the first time that Rwanda excludes a member of HRW since 1991, since the organization has been paying attention to human rights in that country.
Alison Des Forges had notably coordinated the collective work of HRW entitled “Leave None to Tell the Story”. She testified for the prosecution in the majority of the trials at the ICTR.
Already in September, she had been denied entry in the country as she arrived by road from Bujumbura, the capital of neighbouring Burundi. On 2 December, arriving by plane from Brussels at the invitation of the British embassy, she was prohibited from disembarking from the plane, which set out again with a delay.
No explanation was provided to HRW on the reasons for this measure. The organization, which maintains a permanent mission in Rwanda, published last June a very critical report on justice and the judiciary in this country. Previously, she has been opposed to the ICTR transfering defendants to Rwanda. More recently, HRW has in an official statement requested the United Nations try members of the RPF for crimes allegedly committed in 1994.
Before Alison Des Forges, several other researchers, historians and sociologists, like Filip Reyntjens, Claudine Vidal and André Guichaoua, saw themselves refused entry into Rwanda after the publication of works critical of the RPF regime.
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