wfn.org | Fassett on Zaire

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS" by SUSAN PEEK on Aug. 11, 1991 at 13:58 Eastern,
about FULL TEXT RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (3533 notes).

Note 3529 modified by UMNS on April 2, 1997 at 16:15 Eastern (2121
characters).

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

CONTACT: Linda Bloom                          175(10-21-71B){3529}
          New York (212) 870-3803                    April 2, 1997

'U.S. must take action
on Zaire,' Fassett says 

          by United Methodist News Service

     The U.S. government should "immediately take steps" to
support a negotiated political transition in Zaire, according to
the Rev. Thom "White Wolf" Fassett.
     Fassett, general secretary of the United Methodist Board of
Church and Society in Washington, said the transition "should be
founded upon the creation of a legitimate, representative and
inclusive transitional government of national unity" to prepare
the way for "truly democratic" elections and to meet needs for
humanitarian assistance in that African nation.
     Long led by the government of dictator Mobutu Sese Seko,
Zaire currently is in a state of civil war. At the end of March,
rebel forces took control of a key railway hub in Eastern Zaire
and were headed toward Lubumbashi, the country's second largest
city. At the same time, the remainder of the Rwandan and Burundian
refugees trapped in Zaire are suffering from hunger and disease.
     In a March 31 statement, Fassett noted that a broad-based
representation of those opposed to the Mobutu regime would be
needed "to support truly democratic change.
     "While the success of the rebellion in Zaire provides a long-
awaited opportunity to end the bankrupt Mobutu dictatorship, there
is great danger that further militarization will exacerbate
divisions among anti-Mobutu forces and make democracy less
likely," he said. "In addition, prolonged fighting will raise the
already large toll of lives lost and could even lead to a
'scorched earth' destruction of Kinshasa (the capital)."
     Fassett called on the U.S. government to engage actively with
African and other governments in finding a non-violent democratic
solution in Zaire.
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