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IRIN-WA Update 275 of Events in West Africa, (Tuesday) 18 August 1998
NIGERIA: Military leader calls on army to support democratic rule
The Nigerian military ruler, General Abdulsalam Abubakar, called on Monday for the support all Nigerians, including the armed forces, to ensure a successful hand-over to an elected government in May 1999, news agencies reported.
Nigerian television quoted Abubakar in Lagos on the first visit to the country's economic capital by a military leader in nearly five years as advising officers and men of the armed forces and the police that they should "revert to their traditional role of defending the sovereignty of the country". He said the military had to be prepared to subordinate itself to civil authorities under a democratic setting.
Abubakar, speaking to military officers in southern Nigeria during a three-day visit also "implored politicians to play by the rules and give Nigeria a chance to move forward", Reuters said.
Abubakar, who has promised to restore civilian rule by May after a general election, said security agencies had been instructed to allow politicians to campaign freely for the elections.
Meanwhile, Abubakar said he was reviewing legislation under which opponents of the military administration could be detained without trial on suspicion of subversion. He said an announcement would be made at an appropriate time, according to Reuters.
Abubakar visits Abiola's family
Abubakar, who also visited Ibadan, which like Lagos is another southern opposition stronghold, and Enugu, also paid a condolence call on the family of the late opposition leader, Moshood Abiola, news organisations reported on Tuesday. AFP quoted him as saying: "I think it is safe in Lagos to come and see you and express my condolences over the death of Abiola... All we pray is his death brings peace in the country." Abubakar spent 25 minutes with the Abiola family in their home in Lagos. Abiola's eldest son, Kola Abiola, told the Nigerian daily, 'The Guardian', that the "entire family" had been moved by Abubakar's visit.
Abiola, the presumed winner of the annulled 1993 presidential elections, died in detention on 7 July on the eve of his release.
Nigerian leader invited to South Africa
Abubakar is expected to visit South Africa next week at the invitation of South African President Nelson Mandela, news organisations reported on Tuesday. AFP quoted a South African diplomat in Lagos as saying that the exact timing and schedule for the visit had not yet been released. News reports said the invitation followed a visit by the South African deputy president, Thabo Mbeki, to Nigeria in July, shortly after Abubakar replaced the deceased hardline ruler, General Sani Abacha. This visit, to be Abubakar's first official trip outside of Nigeria since he took office in June, was aimed at mending strained relations between the two countries, according to South African news reports.
The South African government had criticised Abacha's regime harshly for its abuse of human rights and perpetuation of military rule.
SIERRA LEONE: RUF issues terror ultimatum
Sierra Leone's rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) has threatened to launch a new terror offensive against foreigners in the country next week unless the government releases its gaoled leader, Foday Sankoh.
Humanitarian sources in the capital, Freetown, told IRIN on Tuesday that the BBC had quoted RUF spokesman Eldred Collins at the weekend as saying that Sierra Leone's civilian government must release Sankoh "within seven days" or it would attack Nigerians, Guineans and "other foreigners" linked to the Nigerian-led West African intervention force in Sierra Leone, ECOMOG.
He reportedly called the offensive "Operation Spare No Soul". Humanitarian sources said that Sierra Leoneans were taking the threat seriously with families in Freetown sending young men up country to bring family members to the comparative safety of the capital.
"A lot of people in rural areas have moved into the towns, too. People are genuinely scared for their lives," one source added.
GUINEA BISSAU: Peace talks
Peace talks between Guinea Bissau's government and army rebels were scheduled to open on Tuesday on the island of Sal in neighbouring Cape Verde, Portuguese media reports said.
The Lisbon-based 'Diario de Noticias' quoted Cape Verde's foreign minister, Jose Luis de Jesus, as saying delegations from the two sides would join members of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) contact group and representatives of the regional body, ECOWAS, for two days of talks to try and find a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
Soldiers loyal to President Joao Bernardo Vieira, backed by some 3,000 troops from neighbouring Senegal and Guinea, battled army mutineers led by Vieira's former armed forces chief of staff, Ansumane Mane, for control of the capital, Bissau for nearly two months until a CPLP-brokered ceasefire on 26 July.
WFP distributes food aid
WFP began distributing three months' food supplies this week in two rural areas of Guinea Bissau in the north and northeast of the country, an agency spokesman told IRIN on Tuesday.
He said the food was being distributed to some 39,000 people in Gabu and Oio regions.
WFP said although the food situation in Guinea Bissau was not critical, the effect of the civil war meant people had no money to buy supplies. People outside the Bissau were also facing shortages because of an estimated 350,000 displaced people camped up-country, he added.
LIBERIA: Court gaols minister
Liberia's Supreme Court has sentenced the deputy information minister, Milton Teahjay, to five days gaol for criminal contempt, media reports said on Tuesday. According to the independent Monrovia-based Star Radio, Teahjay reportedly described the judiciary as "rotten" during a talk show on the Catholic station, Radio Veritas.
The court also fined Solicitor General Theophilus Gould the equivalent of US$ 125 for representing Teahjay, it said. The court reportedly ruled Gould's assignment as state prosecutor was a "conflict of interest" at the same time, rejecting his application to withdraw from the proceedings.
Meanwhile, a lawyer who represented Radio Veritas was also fined US$ 50, Star Radio reported.
National security ministry warns journalists
At the weekend, Star Radio reported that Liberia's Ministry of National Security had warned journalists to "back up" reports criticising security in the country. It quoted the ministry as saying it was concerned recent media reports on security matters had been "calculated to create fear and insecurity in the public". It did not elaborate further.
TOGO: Key opposition leader denies knowledge of incursion
The Togolese opposition leader, Gilchrist Olympio, denied early knowledge of an alleged armed incursion into Togo from Ghana at the weekend, news agencies said on Monday.
PANA quoted Olympio as saying: "I know nothing about it. It will be a stupid thing to attempt to cause armed violence at this time when we are pursuing a genuine and just course towards democracy." Olympio had contested the re-election of Togolese President Gnassingbe Eyadema in June. European Union observers also criticised the process. At the weekend, news reports said Ghanian and Togolese military chiefs launched a joint operation to keep the peace after allegations that unidentified gunmen had opened fire on Sunday from Ghana on a Togolese border post.
Olympio, leader of the Union des forces pour le changement (UFC), described the incident as stage-managed by the Togolese government in a bid to clamp down on political activity. Olympio added that the situation in Togo required a negotiated settlement between the Togolese leaders, the opposition and the international community, in particular the EU.
According to the radio station Africa No.1, opposition members claimed that three persons were killed on Monday in the capital, Lome. The circumstances of the deaths were not explained. The report added that most opposition members had gone underground for fear of reprisals.
Explosions in north
In a separate development, Radio France Internationale reported two explosions in northern Togo on Monday. The first blast was at the house of an official of the opposition Parti pour la democratie et le renouveau (PDR), while the second explosion damaged the PDR's regional office in the northern town of Sokode.
WEST AFRICA: Compaore visits Ghana
Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaore has arrived in neighbouring Ghana this week for his first visit there since he came to power in a bloody coup eleven years ago, the BBC reported. The BBC said ties between the two countries had been tense for several years because Burkina Faso's ousted leader, Captain Thomas Sankara, was a close friend of Ghanaian president, Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings.
However, it said relations had gradually improved with Rawlings making an official visit to Burkina Faso last November.
Abidjan, 18 August 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 or can be retrieved automatically by sending e-mail to <archive@ocha.unon..org> - mailing list: irin-wa-updates]
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 1998 19:07:08 +0000 (GMT) Subject: IRIN-West Africa Update 275, 98.8.18 Message-Id: <Pine.LNX.3.95.980818190514.7355A-D N A T I O N S
Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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