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Tuesday 21 February 2006


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IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 308 for 31 December 2005-6 January 2006

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

CONTENTS:

HORN OF AFRICA: Border standoff could cause mission pullout - Annan
ETHIOPIA: Opposition leaders denied bail
ETHIOPIA: Trial of opposition activists "divisive" - US diplomat
SOMALIA: Leaders agree to convene parliament in 30 days
SUDAN: Negotiations needed to avoid war in the east - ICG
SUDAN: Civilian deaths almost double in Darfur, Annan says

ALSO SEE:
SUDAN: Child camel jockeys return home
Full report

ERITREA-ETHIOPIA: Border standoff could cause mission pullout - Annan

Ethiopia and Eritrea's dangerous stalemate over their disputed border, could force the United Nations to withdraw its peacekeeping mission, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said.

"As a result of the restrictions imposed on UNMEE [the UN's Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea], the present position of the Mission is becoming increasingly untenable," Annan said in a report to the UN Security Council on Tuesday.

He said that UNMEE could maintain its present configuration "albeit with a much degraded monitoring capacity."

The Security Council could also opt for relocating its staff from the Eritrean capital of Asmara, to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, he said in his report. Other options included transforming UNMEE into an observer or political liaison mission. Yet another possibility would be to restrict its operations to the Ethiopian side of the border.

Full report

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ETHIOPIA: Opposition leaders denied bail

Ethiopian opposition leaders facing charges of treason and genocide were refused bail amidst chaotic scenes that forced a judge to halt their court hearing.

"The majority of the charges carry sentences of above 15 years imprisonment, so after hearing the evidence we have decided to refuse bail," said Judge Adil Ahmed on Wednesday.

Some 129 opposition leaders, journalists and activists face charges of attempting to overthrow the government during violent demonstrations against the outcome of parliamentary elections, a crime punishable by death or life imprisonment.

Full report

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ETHIOPIA: Trial of opposition activists "divisive" - US diplomat

A United States diplomat in Ethiopia has described as "divisive" the decision by Ethiopian government authorities to try 129 opposition leaders, journalists and local aid workers, on charges including treason and genocide.

"What is needed is reconciliation and communication," said Vicki Huddleston, the charge d’affaires at the American embassy in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. Huddleston called for then defendants to receive better access to legal counsel, and for a speedier judicial process.

Defence lawyers have boycotted proceedings, complaining of being prevented from meeting their clients, who if convicted, face sentences ranging from three years in prison to the death penalty. Huddleston also said charges against five local Voice of America (VOA) reporters, accused of "outrages against the constitution", should be dropped.

Full report

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SOMALIA: Leaders agree to convene parliament in 30 days

Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and Speaker of the Transitional Federal Parliament Sharif Hassan Shaykh Aden agreed on Thursday that the country’s national assembly would meet in Somalia within the next 30 days.

Following a three-day meeting in the Yemeni capital, Aden, the two leaders signed the "Aden Declaration" agreeing to end their differences, which they said had "brought serious damage to the discharge of the duties and responsibilities of the institutions."

Somalia's transitional federal institutions moved to the Horn of Africa country in June from Kenya, where they were created in 2004, but the administration has remained divided over two key issues: the location of Somalia's seat of government and the deployment of peacekeepers from neighbouring countries.

The president, Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Gedi and their supporters pitched camp in Jowhar, 90 km north of the capital, Mogadishu, citing the city's insecurity as the reason behind their decision not to work from the capital.

Other MPs, led by Aden, went to Mogadishu, saying they would attempt to restore stability to the capital, which was largely destroyed during nearly 15 years of factional warfare following the toppling in 1991 of President Muhammad Siyad Barre.

The Aden declaration called on "the members of the Parliament and Government to put aside their fruitless squabbles and differences, urging them to unite, placing the supreme interest of the nation above other interests, while appealing to them, for their full cooperation in fulfilling the provisions of this declaration."

A venue for the parliamentary session is to be decided at a later date.

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SUDAN: Negotiations needed to avoid war in the east - ICG

Negotiations are needed immediately to address a simmering conflict in eastern Sudan and avoid the outbreak of a new regional war, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG).

In a report, "Sudan: Saving the Peace in the East", the advocacy organisation said that if the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) - now part of the Sudanese government - went ahead with a troop withdrawal scheduled in the east, the low-intensity conflict there risked becoming a major new war with disastrous humanitarian consequences.

The troop withdrawal is part of a Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed by Sudan’s ruling National Congress Party and the then rebel SPLM almost a year ago. The agreement ended a 21-year civil war in southern Sudan, but did not address the political and economic grievances of rebel groups in either eastern Sudan or the country's western region of Darfur.

According to the ICG's new report, the SPLM "has a duty to ensure that its withdrawal from eastern Sudan does not create a security vacuum that could invite escalation."

Full report

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SUDAN: Civilian deaths almost double in Darfur, Annan says

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned on Thursday that the security situation in Darfur continued to deteriorate, leading to nearly a doubling of confirmed civilian deaths.

In his latest monthly report on the conflict in the western Sudanese region, he called it a "deeply disturbing trend" with "devastating effects on the civilian population". Reports from the ground confirmed the marked deterioration in the situation since September, he said, with confirmed civilian deaths rising from 70 in October to 120 in November.

"Civilians continue to pay an intolerably high price as a result of recurrent fighting by warring parties, the renewal of the scorched earth tactics by militia and massive military action by the government," he said in the report released on 29 December.

Full report

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[ENDS]

Theme(s)	Other

Other recent HORN OF AFRICA reports:

UN envoy urges quick response to drought crisis, 21/Feb/06

IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 314 for 11- 17 February 2006, 17/Feb/06

IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 313 for 4 - 10 February 2006, 10/Feb/06

EC gives €5 m for drought-affected people, 9/Feb/06

Millions facing critical food shortages, 6/Feb/06

Other recent reports:

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Donors pledge support for humanitarian crisis, 21/Feb/06

ANGOLA: Ready to play larger security role in Africa, 21/Feb/06

CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap, 17/Feb/06

SOUTHERN AFRICA: IRIN-SA Weekly Round-up 270 for 11-17 February 2006, 17/Feb/06

WEST AFRICA: IRIN-WA Weekly Round-up 317 covering 11-17 February 2006, 17/Feb/06

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