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Sunday 25 December 2005


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IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 284 for 18-24 June 2005

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

CONTENTS:

RWANDA-DRC: EU may support military action against Hutu rebels
DRC: Voter registration begins in Kinshasa
BURUNDI: CNDD-FDD confirmed winner of communal polls
BURUNDI: Paramilitary youth in protest over demob payments
CAR: Disarmament of former combatants begins
CAR: Newly-appointed premier names cabinet
CONGO: Ebola epidemic over for now, WHO says
TANZANIA: Sacked medical interns reinstated
TANZANIA-SOMALIA: Government grants 182 Somalis citizenship

RWANDA-DRC: EU may support military action against Hutu rebels, Ajello says

The EU special representative to Africa's Great Lakes region, Aldo Ajello, said on Friday the Union might support military action against Rwandan Hutu rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo if they refuse to disarm and return home.

"Since the political option is not working for the time being, because we don't have the feeling that FDLR [Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda] are trying to implement what they said in their declaration [to disarm], then we are moving into the military option," Ajello said at a news conference in the Rwandan capital, Kigali.

His warning to the rebels followed a meeting with President Paul Kagame.

The Hutu-dominated FDLR signed a declaration in Rome in March announcing that it was ending its war against Rwanda and denounced the 1994 genocide in which many of its core members are suspected to have taken part.

Despite that declaration three months ago, Ajello said the rebels had shown no commitment to return freely.

Ajello said six Congolese army brigades would be deployed to eastern Congo to root out the FDLR, a move that the European bloc would support logistically. Rwanda has also been demanding similar action of the Congolese government, in the past.
Ajello said two of the brigades would be deployed to the troubled northeastern district of Ituri, while the rest would be deployed to the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu to deal with the Rwandan Hutu rebels there.

The government in Kinshasa has not yet given public confirmation of the deployment details outlined in Ajello’s comment. Ajello also said the EU would also support a proposed African Union force to be deployed to the east to help disarm the Rwandan rebels.

Full report

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DRC: Voter registration begins in Kinshasa

Despite prevailing insecurity in the east and northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the postponement of presidential elections, the Independent Electoral Commission launched its registration campaign of 3.5 million voters in Kinshasa on Monday.

The three-week voter-registration process in the capital city is the first step of the nationwide registration programme, which will extend to other provinces in the next 45 days, starting with the Bas-Congo and Orientale provinces, Apolinnaire Muholongu Malumalu, the chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission, said. The enrolment of voters in the North and South Kivus and Bandundu provinces would follow.

Before the registration could take place, the transitional government took measures to stabilise the capital city, where opposition groups threatened to protest against election delays.

On Friday, parliament extended the government's transition period by six months, at the request of the electoral commission, to allow for a constitutional referendum on 27 November. Opposition members in Kinshasa called on residents to demonstrate on 30 June, the original date designated as the end of the transition period under the current constitution.

Some 9,000 voter-registration centres are due to open nationwide in the coming weeks. Donors will finance the lion's share of the process, which will cost US $430 million in all. The DRC government will contribute 10 percent.

Full report

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BURUNDI: CNDD-FDD confirmed winner of communal polls

The Independent National Electoral Commission, or CENI, released on Thursday the final results of communal polls held countrywide on 3 June, confirming the outright victory of the country's former main rebel group, the CNDD-FDD, now a political party.

"Out of 3,225 seats in competition, CNDD-FDD won 1,781 seats, followed by FRODEBU [Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi] party with 822 seats," Paul Ngarambe, the electoral commission chairman, said.

He said the CNDD-FDD, or Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie-Forces nationales pour la défense de la démocratie, polled an overall 57.3 percent of the votes cast. The largest mainly Tutsi party, the Union pour le Progrès National (or UPRONA) came third with 260 seats, followed by Movement for the Rehabilitation of Citizens with 88 seats. Ngarambe also announced voter turnout at 80.6 percent of the registered voters.

Full report

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BURUNDI: Paramilitary youth in protest over demobilisation payments

Members of a government-supported self-defence paramilitary organisation known as Guardiens de la paix (Guardians of Peace) disrupted activities on Thursday in several provinces in Burundi, demanding payment of demobilisation money they said had been delayed.

Members of the unit claimed that because they had fought on the side of the government army, they would not receive payment if the CNDD-FDD took control of government following its absolute majority win in communal elections held across the nation on 3 June.

However, the director of information at the national secretariat in charge of demobilisation, Brig-Gen Libère Hicuburundi, said the demobilisation money for all members of the unit was available.

"Each peacekeeper will be disarmed and given 100,000 Burundian francs [US $100] in a single payment, but we are still waiting for an updated list to know who is entitled to get the money," Hicuburundi said during a weekly news conference at the UN Mission in Burundi, known as ONUB.

Full report

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CAR: Disarmament of former combatants begins

A weeklong disarmament of 2,000 former combatants began on Saturday in eight districts of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic (CAR).

The disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) process, for a total of 7,565 combatants, will be extended to the rest of the country's provinces this week, officials said.

The combatants, who were also known as "liberators" were non-professional soldiers who joined a rebellion led by Francois Bozize from October 2002 to March 2003. The rebellion ended with Bozize overthrowing former President Ange-Felix Patasse and seizing over.

The regions most affected by the conflict include Bangui and its surroundings as well as the provinces of Ouham, Ouham-Pende, Nana-Grebizi and Kemo. These are also the places where the DDR will be conducted.

The government launched the US $13-million DDR and community support programme, known by its French acronym PRAC, in December 2004 in the town of Bossangoa in the north.

Full report

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CAR: Newly-appointed premier names cabinet

The newly-appointed CAR prime minister, Elie Dote, named his 27-member cabinet team on Sunday.

In a communiqué read over state-owned radio Centrafrique, Dote announced that President Francois Bozize, who was elected on 8 May, retains the Defence Ministry portfolio, which he has held since March 2003 when he ousted President Ange-Felix Patasse.

The newcomers in Dote's cabinet include Jean-Eudes Teya from the political coalition Convergence Nationale Kwa na Kwa (KNK - the local Sangho language for "work, nothing but work"), who is the minister for water and forest; a Member of Parliament from the coalition, Brigitte Epaye; Minister for Industry and Commerce and KNK coalition member Fidele Ngouandjika as minister for telecommunications.

Former Prime Minister Jean-Paul Ngoupande, who lost the first round of the presidential poll and threw his weight behind Bozize during the 8 May runoff, is the new minister for foreign affairs and regional integration. Another unsuccessful presidential candidate, Charles Massi, is the minister for transport.

Bozize's nephew, Sylvain Ndoutingaye, retains his position as minister for mining, a post he has held since March 2003. Desire Kolingba, son of former President Andre Kolingba, remains minister for Youth and Sport.

Lea Koyassoum Doumta, who Bozize sacked from the ministry of justice on 7 January 2005, makes a comeback as minister for public health and population.

Full report

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CONGO: Ebola epidemic over for now, WHO says

The deadly Ebola haemorrhagic fever that has ravaged the northern Cuvette-Ouest region of the Republic of Congo since April is now under control, UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

"On 17 June, the last people [who came into contact with infected persons] will be removed from the monitoring list. The epidemic will be regarded as epidemiologically over," WHO said in a statement issued in Brazzaville, the nation's capital.

However, WHO clarified that "the official declaration of the end of the epidemic would come only at the end of 21 days, on 8 July."

The most recent epidemic was declared on 27 April for a forested area of the Cuvette-Ouest region that borders Gabon. WHO confirmed the finding a month later. Since the start of the outbreak, the virus has killed 10 people in Cuvette-Ouest: in the locality of Etoumbi and one in Mbomo.

Full report

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TANZANIA: Sacked medical interns reinstated

The government announced on Friday that the crisis at Muhimbili National Hospital, the country's largest, had ended after the reinstatement of medical interns sacked recently following a week-long strike for more allowances.

"The government has started to deal with the problems, including allowances and salaries of medical cadres to be paid effective this month," Frederick Sumaye, the prime minister, told reporters shortly after visiting the hospital.

He said the government understood the plight of the interns but had been unable to improve their emoluments because of the country's financial difficulties.

A total of 148 interns had been on strike: 111 doctors, 24 pharmacists and 13 nurses at the 1,400-bed hospital in central Dar es Salaam, the nation's largest commercial city. They were demanding an increase in their monthly allowance, which is 80 percent of the 201,000 Tanzanian shillings (US $200) monthly salary of a newly hired government doctor.

The interns said they wanted at least a 20-percent raise in their allowances because, they said, their workload was greater than their fully employed colleagues and senior professionals.

Full report

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TANZANIA-SOMALIA: Government grants 182 Somali refugees citizenship

As part of activities to mark the World Refugee Day, the Tanzanian government granted citizenship on Monday to the first 182 of 1,320 Somali refugees.

The naturalisation ceremony was held at a refugee camp in Chogo village, in the northeastern Tanga region, which is home to 472 Somali refugee families. Those to receive citizenship are from 44 families.

The representative of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Tanzania, Chrysantus Ache, said on Friday his agency and government authorities were considering the applications for citizenship from a total of 1,320 Somali refugees.

The refugees, referred to as Somali Bantus, number about 3,000 in total and are said to be descendants of slaves who were captured from Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania by a ruler of Zanzibar and other slave traders and sold into Somalia.

Full report

Focus on the return home of Somali Bantus

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[ENDS]

Theme(s)	Other

Other recent CENTRAL & EASTERN AFRICA reports:

IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 310 17-23 December 2005, 23/Dec/05

IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 309 10-16 December 2005, 16/Dec/05

IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 308 3-9 December 2005, 9/Dec/05

UN appeal seeks $154.5 million for recovery efforts , 7/Dec/05

IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 307 26 November to 2 December 2005, 2/Dec/05

Other recent reports:

RWANDA: Body found in Brussels canal confirmed that of ex-minister's, 23/Dec/05

CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap, 23/Dec/05

WEST AFRICA: IRIN-WA Weekly Round-up 309 covering 17 - 23 December 2005, 23/Dec/05

CENTRAL ASIA: IRIN-Asia Weekly Round-up 51 covering the period 17 - 23 December 2005, 23/Dec/05

SOUTHERN AFRICA: IRIN-SA Weekly Round-up 262 for 17-23 December 2005, 23/Dec/05

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