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IRIN-WA Update 84-97 of Events in West Africa, 15-17 November 1997
[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: AFRC accuses ECOMOG of violating ceasefire
The ruling Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) accused the West African peace-keeping force ECOMOG of violating the recent Sierra Leone ceasefire on Sunday. Speaking to AFP in Freetown, a senior military officer claimed ECOMOG, which occupies the Lungi peninsula opposite Freetown, had fired on an army barracks and houses in Murray, in the west of the capital, injuring several people. "A Nigerian military jet first flew over the capital in the early hours of today before firing these shots at 1.30 p.m" he said. Another AFRC official told AFP that this attack came as no surprise "because ousted president [Alhaji Ahmad] Tejan Kabbah is in Nigeria" on a two-day visit. Another senior official condemned Sunday's raid as "provocation" and said that the Sierra Leone army had not fired a shot since the ceasefire was declared.
Reuters reported a witness as saying there had been an exchange of fire between ECOMOG and the AFRC on Sunday, but it was not immediately clear who fired first. Last week, the Nigerian commander of ECOMOG, Major General Victor Malu, assured the AFRC that his forces would not launch any new attacks unless the military regime violated the West African embargo.
UN calls on AFRC to fulfil peace accord
The UN Security Council called on the AFRC to make good on its obligations contained in last month's peace plan providing for the reinstatement of Kabbah. In the statement released on Friday the Council called on all sides to "work for the early and effective implementation of the peace plan" signed in Conakry in October. It also urged the AFRC to maintain the current ceasefire. The Security Council was prepared to help implement the peace plan and underscored the need for humanitarian aid to Sierra Leone. It also reminded governments that an embargo on oil, oil products and arms sales remains in place.
NIGERIA: Abacha announces new cabinet in coup anniversary address
General Sani Abacha will dissolve the Nigerian government and free an unknown number of dissidents as part of the move towards civilian rule. In a nationwide speech on state radio to mark the fourth anniversary of the military coup which brought him to power, Abacha said he was appointing a new cabinet to run the country until October 1998, when he has promised to surrender power to an elected president. Abacha said he was dissolving the government because some members wanted to "fully participate" in the election. On the question of dissidents, Abacha said the government had reviewed the cases of all political prisoners and decided to free prisoners "whose release would constitute no further impediment to the peace and security of our country." He did not identify who nor how many would be freed.
Human rights and press warning
On the subject of human rights, the general said "it is becoming evident that the issues of human rights and democracy are being used as a ploy to interfere in the internal affairs of states". Without going into detail, he cited the case of the Commonwealth, which has suspended Nigeria's membership because of its human rights record. Abacha also warned the Nigerian press against trying to "derail" the transition toward civilian rule. However, he said that his government would continue to give necessary support to the development of private-sector media.
Judicial council to be created
Abacha also announced the creation of a National Judicial Council. Designed to "regulate the conduct of judicial officers", Abacha said that the creation of the body was aimed at strengthening the justice system and enhancing its independence. Government officials and the Nigerian press have cited cases of corruption by some tribunals, according to media sources.
NIGER: Thirty killed in attack, rebels claim
Niger rebels claimed that 30 people were killed in simultaneous attacks on two army bases in eastern Niger Friday. A communique by the Front Democratique Revolutionnaire (FDR) quoted by AFP claimed that 23 government soldiers and seven rebels were killed in fighting in Diffa region. "Numerous" soldiers had been injured and six taken prisoner. Issa Lamine, head of the FDR's external affairs, claimed that the Guedira army post and its supplies were still in rebel hands. These attacks were the start of a major FDR military offensive aimed at military and economic targets, Lamine told AFP. The Niger Chief of Staff denied significant rebel gains, telling AFP that three rebels had been killed and many other wounded for only one government soldier wounded during the clashes.
In a separate statement, a group calling itself the Comite Regional de Paix called on the rebel Tuareg and Tobou movements to put an end to hostilities in the north of Niger. Fighting broke out again in the area in September after two years of relative peace between government forces and a coalition of Tuareg groups.
Schools reopen
Classes resumed in Niamey on Monday. State schools had been shut last week during a teachers strike and student demonstrations. The return to class followed the signing over the weekend of a protocol between students and local educational authorities stipulating the immediate payment of allowances, construction of new school facilities to replace the huts currently being used and a teacher recruitment drive. Teachers, who have not had their demands met, however, have called for three days of strike action later this month in support of backpay demands.
Niamey university also remains shut following disturbances on Friday which left a dozen students injured following the intervention of riot police in the campus. Education minister Sanoussi Jackou denounced police action on Monday, calling for an enquiry into the affair.
GHANA: Police round up 2,000 in "clean-up operation"
Ghanaian security agencies arrested some 2,000 people in a "clean-up operation" in Akwatia, 100 km northwest of Accra on Sunday. According to local media, this operation was in response to a Thursday mob attack on police sent to the diamond-mining town to arrest illegal diamond dealers. Police said those arrested were brought to Accra, where they are being screened. Officers, who stormed the market in Akwatia on Thursday, were beaten back by angry youths who attacked them with cutlasses, sticks and stones. Nine police officers were injured and one person killed when police fired warning shots to disperse the crowd. Ghana Consolidated Diamonds Ltd owns the Akwatia mine, Ghana's only large-scale diamond works, which produced 271,000 carats of diamonds last year. Another 100,000 carats are produced in the region yearly by small-scale miners, who sell the stones in the Akwatia market.
SENEGAL: US missionaries evacuate Casamance
American missionaries and their families have left Senegal's southern province of Casamance because of growing insecurity linked to separatist unrest. US diplomatic sources told Reuters on Saturday that approximately 80 people who had settled in the village of Fanda, 14 km from the provincial capital of Ziguinchor, had decided to leave for "security reasons". The use of landmines in the conflict had compounded the risk to civilians, according to the source. The mines have killed several civilians and soldiers this year although the missionaries have not ruled out returning to Casamance at a later date. AFP reported that the US embassy in Dakar had asked the missionaries to leave the area. The embassy has issued frequent travel advisories warning its citizens to avoid high-risk areas of Casamance. There has been an upsurge of violence between separatist rebels and the government since July.
EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Dissidents released
Two Equatorial Guinea opposition leaders gaoled since they were forcibly repatriated from neighbouring Gabon have been released. Felipe Ondo Obiang and Guillermo Nguema Ela were set free by government authorities on Friday. The two were allegedly spirited away by the Equatorial Guinean services with Gabonese complicity, according to opposition members. The Gabon interior minister brought a message from Gabon President Omar Bongo to his Equatorial Guinea counterpart on Friday, which local media contend secured the release of the two men.
Abidjan, 17 November 1997
[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: Mon, 17 Nov 1997 19:18:51 +0000 (GMT) Subject: IRIN-WA Update 84-97 of Events in West Africa, 15-17 November Message-Id: <Pine.LNX.3.95.971117191227.4367A-100000@wa.dha.unon.org>
Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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