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IRIN-WA Update 119 of Events in West Africa, (Thursday) 8 January 1998
[As a supplement to its weekly round-ups of main events in West Africa, IRIN-WA will produce a daily synopsis of reports on the region. IRIN issues these reports for the benefit of the humanitarian community but accepts no responsibility as to the accuracy of the original source.]
SIERRA LEONE: Fresh clashes between AFRC and Kamajors
Kamajor militia loyal to Sierra Leone's ousted civilian President Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah clashed again this week with troops from the ruling Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), sources told IRIN on Thursday. The fighting occurred in the south and the east of the country. Sources in Kenema, 235 km south-east of Freetown, reported fighting in the nearby districts of Bo, Zimmi and Tongo Fields throughout the week. Kenema itself, however, was calm.
Basic food commodities in parts of east Sierra Leone remained in short supply where ongoing fighting has disrupted road movement. One of the sources said: "The road to Freetown is still just open but I would not send anyone myself."
UN sends technical team to Sierra Leone
A UN survey team was due in Sierra Leone on Friday, UN Central News reported. The team will be led by UN Special Envoy to Sierra Leone Francis Okelo who will submit recommendations to the UN Secretary-General on how the UN can help implement a peace accord signed in Conakry last year. The peace deal provides for the restoration of civilian rule to Sierra Leone in April 1998.
MALI: Government closes schools as tension rises
The government closed all state and private schools in Mali on Thursday after student demonstrations for higher grants, Malian radio reported. Earlier in the week, students set fire to the headquarters of the ruling party at Markala, 320 km north of Bamako, AFP reported. On Wednesday, security forces also used tear gas to disperse demonstrators and dismantle barricades in the capital, Bamako, and other major towns across the country.
Official sources said the closure was "in the face of sharply escalating tensions" at schools and universities. Sources in Bamako told AFP on Wednesday that at least two student union leaders had been arrested.
The student boycott compounds Mali's long-running political crisis sparked by the cancellation of legislative elections in April and an opposition election boycott last year.
NIGERIA: Nigeria says foreign governments had role in failed coup
Nigerian Foreign Minister Chief Tom Ikimi told African diplomats on Tuesday that unnamed foreign countries may have been involved in December's failed coup, media sources reported. Ikimi said investigations had revealed possible foreign involvement in the alleged attempt to assassinate Nigerian Head of State General Sani Abacha. Diplomatic missions had colluded with the coup plotters, Ikimi claimed.
Diplomats and Nigerian media were also shown video footage on Tuesday described as evidence of the plot. The video reportedly showed Lieutenant-General Oladipo Diya, formerly Abacha's no. 2, as confessing to planning the coup and begging Abacha's forgiveness.
Opposition groups in Nigeria, however, continued to dismiss the alleged coup attempt as a diversion from Nigeria's continued military rule, Pana reported on Wednesday.
Abacha "disheartened"
Abacha meanwhile told a delegation of traditional leaders in Abuja he was "disheartened" close friends had plotted to overthrow him, Nigerian radio reported on Wednesday. "We will continue to pray to God to protect us," Abacha said. Abacha claimed he was surprised some people viewed the affair as "a mere frame-up".
LIBERIA: Government dismisses 2,500 troops from army
The Liberian government announced on Tuesday it would dismiss some 2,500 troops from the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), AFP reported. A military communique said the first phase of a programme to restructure the army had been approved by President Charles Taylor. They included an unspecified number of generals. Some of the soldiers were being retired on pension, while others were dismissed for incompetence or absence-without-leave, the communique said.
An analyst in Monrovia told IRIN on Thursday the dismissals could be a move to sideline AFL personnel who had fought against Taylor during Liberia's seven-year civil war. "Some of the generals dismissed were high up in anti-Taylor factions."
NIGER: Government frees two opposition politicians
Authorities in Niger released two prominent opposition politicians arrested last Friday in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate President Ibrahim Bare Mainassara, media sources reported. The two, Bazoum Mohammed and Issoufou Assoumane, were detained after they gave interviews to foreign radio stations denouncing the coup allegations as a ploy to incriminate opposition figures.
Eight other opposition politicians also arrested and were still in detention. They included a former civilian prime minister, Hama Amadou. Mainassara seized power in a military coup in 1996, ending Niger's brief period of civilian rule.
SENEGAL: Opposition condemns election fee increases
Opposition parties reacted strongly on Wednesday against a government decision to raise the deposit for candidates contesting elections, AFP reported. An opposition spokesman said the increase from CFA 1,000,000 to CFA 3,000,000 (FFr 10,000 to FFr 30,000) was intended to discourage people standing. The opposition also accused the government of failing to consult other parties. It said the move was unfair because financial resources were limited.
New army chief appointed
Senegal's President Abdou Diouf has appointed a new army chief of staff, Radio France Internationale reported on Wednesday. General Mamadou Seck, a French officer school graduate and former private chief of staff to Diouf, replaces General Lamine Cisse who retires after one year in post.
Abidjan, 8 January 1998, 19:00 gmt
[ends]
[The material contained in this communication comes to you via IRIN West Africa, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. UN IRIN-WA Tel: +225 21 73 66 Fax: +225 21 63 35 e-mail: irin-wa@africaonline.co.ci for more information or subscription. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this report, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. IRIN reports are archived on the Web at: http://www.reliefweb.int/emergenc or can be retrieved automatically by sending e-mail to archive@dha.unon.org . Mailing list: irin-wa-updates]
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 1998 19:07:54 +0000 (GMT) From: UN IRIN - West Africa <irin-wa@wa.dha.unon.org> Subject: IRIN-West Africa Update 119, 98.1.8 Message-Id: <Pine.LNX.3.95.980108190220.9140A-100000@wa.dha.unon.org>
Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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