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IRIN-WA Daily Media Update 49-97 of Events in West Africa, 18 September 1997
[As a supplement to its weekly roundups of main events in West Africa, IRIN-WA will produce a daily synposis of international media 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: AFRC calls for talks with ousted president
A prominent member of Sierra Leone's Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), Colonel Sam Bukari, on Wednesday, called for a meeting between the three key political players in Sierra Leone. Bukari, who is also a member of the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF), said that AFRC chairman Johnny Paul Koroma, ousted president Ahmad Tejan Kabbah and RUF leader Foday Sankoh should meet to discuss a lasting solution to the political crisis. He warned that the talks hinged on the release of Sankoh, who has been under house arrest in Nigeria since March. Meanwhile, the Independent National Mediation Committee set up earlier in the week is planning to send a mediation team to meet Kabbah in Guinea. Source: DPA, Dow Jones
AFRC accused of mistreating Nigerians
Nigeria's defence spokesman, Colonel Godwin Ugbo, told reporters yesterday in Lagos that the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) was subjecting members of the Hausa community in Sierra Leone to "untold hardships". Ugbo said that the Hausas, mainly of Nigerian extraction, have been arrested and taken to military camps for interrogation. ECOMOG Force Commander General Victor Malu last week advised Nigerians to leave Sierra Leone because of possible reprisals. Local sources confirm that there is increasing anti-Nigerian sentiment particularly in Freetown. Source:AFP and IRIN
Official says troops and ex-rebels in illegal diamond mining
The Kono district chief secretary of state, Solomon Musa, said in a statement cited by state radio today, that Sierra Leonean government troops and former rebels had joined forces to mine diamonds in defiance of orders. Musa directly accused some security personnel of the armed forces and the RUF of "active connivance" in the illegal mining and warned them to stop this practice. He said some state security personnel had even taken over whole chiefdoms, chased out authorised officials and issued mining licences. An independent source told AFP that diamond mining in Kono was a free-for-all activity even during the days of the toppled government. Source: AFP.
Farmers receive aid
In an effort to mitigate the impact of the war, humanitarian agencies have distributed agricultural inputs to 105 chiefdoms, mainly in the eastern and southern provinces. Approximately 141,000 bushels of rice were distributed to 126,000 farming families throughout Sierra Leone last month. A major uncertainty in estimating the impact of this aid is the extent to which crops may be looted by armed elements at harvest time. The degree to which the Kamajors, the pro-Kabbah militia, are willing to help farmers protect their crops is of critical importance. Source: Humanitarian Situation Report on Sierra Leone. LIBERIA: Security Council praises UNOMIL
Members of the UN Security Council, on Wednesday, welcomed the successful conclusion of the United Nations Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL). Addressing reporters in New York, Security Council President Bill Richardson said that they had taken note of the Secretary-General's intention to maintain an office in Liberia to assist national reconstruction and development. Richardson said Security Council members supported the plan to convene a special UN conference on Liberia and saw it as an opportunity for Liberian President Charles Taylor to outline his government's policies. Source: UN Central News
NIGERIA: Churches urge oil firms to press Nigeria on human rights
The World Council of Churches, on Wednesday, urged Shell International and other oil firms to use their influence with the Nigerian government to promote human rights and democracy. The council's central committee, which has been meeting in Geneva from 11 September, also urged Shell to repair the environmental damage caused by its operations, particularly in the Ogoni region. Catholic bishops in Nigeria earlier this week told Abacha to free political detainees and not to contest next year's elections, a church spokesman said on Wednesday. He said it would "immoral" for Abacha to succeed himself. Source: Reuters and AFP
US ambassador warns against Abacha presidency
The United States will maintain sanctions against Nigeria unless there is a credible transition to civilian rule. The outgoing US ambassador to Nigeria, Walter Carrington, told a press conference that the US would not accept as credible an election organised by the military in which a military ruler succeeded himself. He said there was no real opposition as parties critical of the government were not registered and warned of the danger of delaying true democracy. Source: Dow Jones and DPA
Press office raided
The Lagos offices of the independent 'The News' magazine were raided by Nigerian security on Wednesday. According to the Independent Journalism Centre in Lagos, the officers had been instructed to arrest the editors but finding none, arrested a staffer instead. AFP reported that he was still being detained. The offices of the newspaper in the northern city of Kano were also raided. This week's cover story said that Nigerian head of state General Sani Abacha was terminally ill and that nothing short of divine intervention could save him. News agents and vendors were arrested and copies of the magazine were confiscated in Abuja, the federal capital. Source: AFP and IFEX
CAMEROON: Opposition calls for delaying polls
Cameroon's President Paul Biya has formally announced that he will seek re-election in the 12 October presidential elections. The three main opposition parties are boycotting the elections and demanding an independent electoral commission. Last Friday, they called on the international community to support their struggle. Meanwhile, the leader of Cameroon's main opposition party, the Social Democratic Front, is seeking foreign mediation to help secure postponement of the elections. Speaking in Dakar, Senegal, on Wednesday, John Fru Ndi said he would be asking the Senegalese president to urge Biya "to preserve peace in Cameroon by putting the election back to a later date." Fru Ndi will also be visiting France, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire and Gabon. Source: Reuters and BBC Monitoring
SAHEL: Sahelian-Saharan foreign ministers meeting ends in Libya
The meeting of foreign ministers from nine Sahelian and Saharan countries ended yesterday (Wednesday) in Benghazi, Libya. The ministers from Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Sudan and Tunisia discussed regional economic integration and drew up a draft treaty on creating a Sahel-Sahara economic grouping. The document will be submitted to the heads of state and government prior to the next summit. Source: PANA, Reuters and BBC Monitoring
Abidjan, 18 September 1997
[ENDS] [Via the UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs Integrated Regional Information Network for West Africa (IRIN-WA) Reports mailing list. The material contained in this communication may not necessarily reflect the views of the UN or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts from this report should be attributed to the original sources where appropriate. For further information: e-mail irin-wa@africaonline.co.ci, Tel: +225 217367 Fax: +225 216335.]
Message-Id: <199709190709.KAA16772@dha.unon.org> Date: Fri, 19 Sep 1997 10:04:43 +0000 From: UN DHA IRIN - West Africa <irin-wa@africaonline.co.ci> Subject: IRIN-WA Daily Media Update 49-97 18 Sep 1997 97.9.18
Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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