wfn.org | All Africa News Agency December 15 2003 News

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

ALL AFRICA NEWS AGENCY
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AANA Bulletin			Bulletin APTA
  Editor -Elly Wamari		Editor - Silvie Alemba

AANA BULLETIN No. 49/03 December 15, 2003 News

NEWS SECTION

Former Fighters Go On Rampage Over Delayed Pledges

MONROVIA (AANA) December 15 - At least nine people were reported killed in 
the Liberian capital, Monrovia, following three days of violent rioting by 
hundreds of disgruntled former government soldiers.

Subsequently, the interim government has imposed a night time curfew in the 
city.

The soldiers went on the rampage on December 8, a day after they began 
handing in their weapons as part of a United Nations (UN)-sponsored 
disarmament programme, complaining that the UN had failed to give each 
fighter a promised US$300 in exchange for their guns.

According to reports, about 1,000, mostly child soldiers, handed in their 
guns at a UN centre on the outskirts of the capital.

The deaths are said to have occurred on the night of December 9, despite 
the curfew, as the soldiers went on a looting spree.

Earlier, one woman was shot dead when she refused to hand over her car, as 
former militiamen started commandeering vehicles and firing their guns in 
the air.

But the UN has disputed the number of deaths, saying the reports were 
exaggerated, and that it knew of only one death.  The fighters claimed the 
UN had promised to pay half of the stated amount at the beginning of the 
disarmament programme.

Under the programme, each demobilised soldier is to receive US$300, 
counselling and vocational training.

To quell the violence, the UN then announced it was giving each soldier an 
initial US$75 to begin the process.

The nine-month programme, under which UN forces are expected to disarm over 
40,000 government and rebel fighters, was officially launched on December 1.

However, fighters from the rebel groups, namely, Liberia United for 
Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), and Movement for Democracy in Liberia 
(MODEL), failed to begin the process on schedule, after their leaders 
complained of not being given promised positions in the new transitional 
government.

UN envoy to Liberia, Jacques Klein, is reported to have warned: "This is 
Liberia's last chance.	Liberia must put an end to war, or war will put an 
end to Liberia."

He expressed hope, nevertheless,  that all parties will comply with the 
Accra peace accord aimed at ending the country's 14 years of civil war.

Fighters from all sides are expected to assemble in camps before the end of 
the year for disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration.

The UN is expected to increase its troops deployment to 15,000 early next 
year, to oversee the disarmament throughout the country.

Presently, there are about 4,500 UN troops deployed mainly in and around 
Monrovia.

Meanwhile, Nigeria says it will not detain former Liberian president, 
Charles Taylor, after Interpol issued a "red notice" for his arrest. He has 
been indicted by a Sierra Leone war crimes court.

A Nigerian government spokeswoman dismissed the Interpol warrant, saying 
Taylor would only be handed over if an elected government in Liberia made a 
formal request.

The former president was granted asylum as part of a peace deal to end the 
civil war.

Reported by Othello Gruduah

Zimbabwe's Paraplegics Cry Foul Over Land Programme

BULAWAYO (AANA) December 15 - Thousands of people living with disabilities 
in Zimbabwe have threatened to stage protests against the government for 
failing to allocate them farming land under the country's land reforms 
programme, in which land formerly belonging to white settlers is being 
redistributed to land-less native Zimbabweans.

Speaking during a three-day National Council for the Disabled Persons of 
Zimbabwe (NCDPZ) conference in Bulawayo last week, Alexander Phiri, the 
council's president, accused President Robert Mugabe's government of 
failing to address the plight of the disabled, and said they would soon 
stage march protests "to reclaim our rights as equal citizens who deserve 
recognition".

He said they were disgruntled by the government's land reform programme 
that "apparently left us in the cold".

"The government has deliberately neglected the people living with 
disabilities in most of its programmes, and we feel this is the time we 
should stand up and fight for our rights," charged Phiri.

"As for the land reform programme, the government has failed to allocate us 
farming land, and this is a great cause for concern to us. Why can't we be 
treated in the same manner as our able-bodied colleagues in the society,?" 
posed a furious Phiri.

The plight of people living with disabilities has remained a contentious 
issue in Zimbabwe, with activists and rights organisations throwing 
accusations at the government for doing nothing to help the disabled live 
better lives.

The NCDPZ conference, which ran concurrently with that of the ruling 
Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), was initially 
scheduled to be held in Masvingo town in the south of the country, but the 
disabled were bundled out of the hotel they were booked in, to make way for 
the ZANU-PF officials.

Phiri described the government's move as regrettable. "That was outrageous 
to say the least. The government caused us a lot of inconvenience, as we 
lost a lot of money in the process of relocating here, (Bulawayo). This is 
an apparent testimony of how unconcerned the government is with our 
plight," he said.

Phiri's sentiments were echoed by thousands of other delegates who attended 
the conference.

"Staging a violent and militant demonstration is the only language I feel 
the government will understand, and this, we should do in a few days to 
come, if we are to get a redress in the criteria of land allocation," said 
a delegate at the conference.

"We need land just like our able-bodied colleagues to do farming. And in 
any case, who says disability is tantamount to inability," queried another 
delegate, Moyana Sibindi.

In response, the Minister for Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement, 
Joseph Made, said his ministry had allocated considerable acres of land to 
people with disabilities.

"My ministry has been particularly sensitive to the needs of persons with 
disabilities, for example, we have endeavoured to give this category of 
farmers land that is close to major roads," said Made, in a speech  read on 
his behalf by his permanent secretary, Partson Mbiriri.

The group however, disapproved Made's claims, describing them as "blue lies 
by a respectable minister" and promising to stage a protest.

However, demonstrations in the country are outlawed under the Public Order 
and Security Act (POSA), which was passed into law by Parliament last year, 
amid a public outcry that the legislation was in violation of fundamental 
human rights.

Reported by Ntungamili Nkomo

Pressure Mounts On Somali Leaders To Speed Up Process

NAIROBI (AANA) December 15 - The 2nd Intergovernmental Authority on 
Development (IGAD) facilitation committee on the Somalia peace process, 
meeting here on December 8, urged Somali leaders to respect the Declaration 
of Cessation of Hostilities signed in October 2002 in Kenya.

Kenya's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kalonzo Musyoka, while urging the 
international community and IGAD member countries to commit themselves both 
financially and morally to support the peace process, pointed out that the 
international community were running out of patience.

"We cannot watch endlessly as the Somali people continue to kill each 
other," the minister said, adding:  "It is the high time they saw the need 
to sign a cease-fire."

The negotiators will be taking the conference participants for a 10-day 
retreat in Kenya's coastal town of Mombasa from the 18 December, where they 
will be given an opportunity to resolve their differences, and possibly 
agree on how to elect a parliament, a speaker, and president.

"The failure to do so is likely to cast a shadow of doubt on their 
genuineness to resolve the conflict," Kalonzo said.

Reported by Muuna Wamuli

Sudan Civil Society Group Lobbies For Truth Commission

NAIROBI (AANA) December 15 - As the latest round of Sudan peace talks 
opened in the Kenyan town of Naivasha, Sudanese civil society groups hinted 
that they will push for a truth and reconciliation commission, whose form 
and structure they admitted "cannot be fathomed as of now".

Addressing the press in Nairobi on December 5, just before the resumption 
of peace talks, Ms Sussane Jambo, co-ordinator for New Sudan Indigenous 
NGOs Network (NESiNET), said that no southern Sudanese "can just wish away 
the more than 3 million people who have lost their lives, let alone the 4 
million refugees and the over 2 million internally displaced persons".

She said that the Sudanese have lost so much through unimaginable 
violations of all rights, and have to decide which way the healing process 
should take. Jambo added that the sheer number of the dead, let alone the 
property destroyed, could not be washed away by sweeping "forgiveness" 
statements.

While concurring, Fr Dominic Otwari, said that efforts towards this have 
already started, with Dr John Garang's support of South to South Dialogue 
mechanism that aims to address wider engagement within the southern populace.

Dr Garang is the leader of Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army 
(SPLM/A), which is currently locked in peace negotiations with the
government.

The civilil society leaders noted that a truth and reconciliation 
commission, if formed, would address and redress losses, hatred, and pain 
suffered by every south Sudanese.
Reported by Henry Neondo

Support For Western Ideals Bears Uganda Some Fruit

KAMPALA (AANA) December 15 - Uganda's support for big western 
pharmaceutical firms has resulted in the country accessing nearly US$140 
million of funds to fight Malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB).

United States (US), which fully endorses Uganda's anti-AIDS programmes, on 
December 6 sent a high-powered delegation led by US Secretary for Health, 
Tonny Thompson.

One of the major highlights of the visit was the opening of a US$1 million 
clinical facility at Mulago hospital, the country's largest.

United States has helped Uganda build up infrastructure, mainly to fight 
the AIDS Pandemic, which, according to the Ministry of Health statistics, 
has so far killed 70,000 people this year.

The amount includes US$ 36 million worth of Anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) 
for AIDS sufferers.  Presently, only 10,000 people have access to ARVs, 
among millions suffering from the pandemic.

With US support, Uganda has attracted the largest funding for AIDS 
activities in Africa, according to Brigadier Jim Muhwezi, Uganda's Minister 
for Health.

The country was one of the first African countries to support  western 
pharmaceutical companies at a time when many countries were sympathetic to 
views that developing countries should be allowed to develop more 
affordable generic ARVs to roll back AIDS, which is more prominent in 
developing countries.

Giant US firms like Pfizer, have set up infrastructure to allow an 
effective supply and distribution of ARV drugs in Uganda.

The country also supports the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) Trade 
Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) that establishes 
disciplines for protection of copyright, trademark and other forms of patent

Though countries like India fear that introduction of patent rights could 
increase the cost of technology transfer and make drugs unaffordable, 
Uganda argues that the fear is unjustified because the global system 
encourages all countries to be efficient.

India has been the largest supplier of drugs to Uganda, according to 
government reports, but there are fears that given the latest developments, 
it may lose out fast.

Reported by Crespo Sebunya
  Kenyan Fishermen Complain Of Invasions By Neighbours

KISUMU, Kenya (AANA) December 15 - Kenyan fishermen around Lake Victoria 
have expressed fear over increasing cases of invasion of Kenyan waters by 
fishermen and security personnel from neighbouring countries.

The fishermen say they have lost fishing gear worth over Ksh 1.2 million 
(approximately US$ 15,800) over the past one month alone, due to the
invasions.

Accordingly, two Kenyan Members of Parliament (MPs) from the lake region, 
Otieno Kajwang' and Zadock Syong'o, have joined the fishermen in calling on 
the government to improve security in the Kenyan portion of the lake.

The leaders have urged the government to provide speedboats to the police 
to enhance security for the fishermen, who say their lifeline is 
threatened, not only by pirates, but by foreigners who have crossed to fish 
on the Kenyan side.

According to the fishermen and the MPs, there are more than 1,500 foreign 
boats using modern drift nets, locally know as tembea, in the Kenyan 
waters. The nets had been declared illegal by the Kenyan government due to 
their capacity to destroy young fish.

The fishermen and the MPs are also concerned that Uganda and Tanzania 
security personnel are now controlling nearly all the islands along the 
common boundary.

The islands, whose ownership have increasingly been disputed over the last 
two years, are rich fishing grounds, and are occupied by fishermen from all 
the three countries for whom the territorial borders have never mattered 
over the ages. The islands include Remba, Ringiti,, Sigulu, Siro, Wayasi, 
Lolwe, Hama, Makera, and Kirwa.

Kenyan leaders around the lake region say the police are not equal to the 
task of effectively policing the lake because they are ill equipped, as 
compared to their Tanzanian and Ugandan counterparts, who have repeatedly 
arrested Kenyan fishermen crossing into their territories.

The renewed fears come at a time when the three governments have initiated 
a number of joint efforts towards sustainable exploitation and management 
of this common resource.

A series of high level consultations have been going on between officials 
of the three countries, including a meeting of the heads of state, with a 
growing commitment towards common management approaches.

The joint initiatives facilitated the release of 93 Kenyans from Ugandan 
jails last September, and another 47 from Tanzanian jails earlier arrested 
for cross border fishing.

Reported by William Oloo

Looming Crisis As Drought Hits Parts Of Northern Somalia

NAIROB I (AANA) December 15 - Drought has hit Somalia and its impact is 
being felt most in the northern parts of this Horn of African country, a 
recently released report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination 
of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) has disclosed.

"All berkads (water reservoirs) are dry and many bore-holes are inoperable. 
Pasture is extremely poor in almost all areas," says the report, which is 
an assessment of the Sool Plateau and Gebi Valley, in the Sool and Sanaag 
regions.

The report, made available to AANA by the UN-OCHA-Somalia Mission, says 
that cumulative livestock losses have decimated herds and rendered them 
unproductive.

Camels, which are used in this region for mobility as well as for milk 
supply, are particularly affected.

Herds have been reduced by about 60-70 percent, reducing the chances of 
survival of the nomadic pastoral populations to a critical point.

In a telephone interview with AANA after his arrival from a mission in 
Somalia, the head of UN-OCHA-Somalia Mission, Calum McLean, revealed that 
"an estimated 93,000 people are currently affected by the drought."

"Their animals are fast being wiped out, and UN agencies have already sent 
out food appeals," he added.

The UN official added that both the World Food Programme (WFP) and the 
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), were already delivering 
humanitarian aid.

Reported by Osman Njuguna

Crackdown On Zimbabwean Striking Doctors Continues

HARARE (AANA) December 15 - Zimbabwean police this week arrested ten more 
striking medical personnel as they attended a hearing of seven of their 
colleagues, who had been charged with defying a labour court order 
compelling them to resume work.

This now brings to 17, the number of arrested medical personnel since the 
strike started.

Junior and middle-level doctors went on strike about two months ago, 
pressing for a whooping 8,000 percent salary increment and better working 
conditions.

The government subsequently took them to the labour court, which ruled that 
the strike was unlawful, ordering them to resume work..

Under the country's laws, doctors cannot engage in any industrial action 
because their services are considered indispensable.

Nurses, who had also gone on strike much earlier but later resumed work, 
have again rejoined the doctors in the strike, after the government failed 
to fulfil its promises.

Analysts say the situation has done more harm to the country's ailing 
health sector, which is already reeling from the shortage of drugs and 
qualified health personnel.

A police spokesman here said the arrests would continue until all striking 
doctors got behind bars.

But doctors have been hitting back by tendering resignations, while those 
who remain in the sector have vowed to remain on strike until the 
government addresses their grievances.

Eye-witnesses say there was drama at the courts when some of the doctors 
tried to resist arrest, demanding to see their warrants of arrests.

"When our colleagues appeared before the magistrate, we also came in and 
settled in the public gallery, but no sooner had we settled down, than the 
police pounced on us," said Molefi Ndlovu, one of the doctors who survived 
the arrests.

"We don't know how they identified us, but that is what happened. Some 
doctors tried to resist but the police dragged them, huffing and puffing 
into their van," he continued.

No comment could be obtained from the Hospitals Doctors Association of 
Zimbabwe, since the doctors' entire leadership is in police custody. It 
however, remains uncertain when they will appear in court.

Junior and middle level doctors currently earn Z$4.5 and 5.7 million (about 
US$ 5641 and 6917) a year respectively, but they argue that the money 
cannot sustain them, and are pressing for an annual salary of Z$30 million 
(about US$ 36,407).

The government has however, indicated that it was not prepared to pay as 
much, and has described the demands as unrealistic.

Reported by Ntungamili Nkomo

Church Initiates Mission To Rehabilitate Prison Inmates

NAIROBI (AANA) December 15 - The Nairobi Lighthouse Church, a growing 
evangelical church in the country, has embarked on a nation-wide prison 
outreach mission aimed at ministering to inmates.

The first mission ran from December 1 to 7, after being officially flagged 
off by Kenya's Vice President and Minister for Home Affairs, Hon Moody Awori.

Speaking in an interview with AANA, a spokesperson for the church, Ms Tracy 
Gichora, said that they managed to visit 85 prisons, and reached more than 
45,000 prisoners in the seven-day exercise.

"It felt fulfilling to be able to assure the inmates of forgiveness through 
Christ, and seeing them happy and with smiling faces," she said.

The prison outreach programme, which is one of the largest ever held by a 
church in the country, will be conducted annually, the main aim being to 
add a theological touch to the rehabilitation of inmates.

Reported by Anthony Nabiliki

Use Of Traditional Drums In Church Stirs Controversy

BLANTYRE (AANA) December 15 - The introduction of drums and other 
traditional musical instruments in some mainstream conventional churches 
here, has raised controversy.

While many have embraced the practice, some clergymen have condemned it as 
"pagan and unscriptural".

Rev Elias Soya of the Africa Evangelical Church, recalls that he once had 
to plead for pardon on behalf of a member of his church, who had been 
excommunicated for suggesting that there was nothing wrong with using drums 
during church service.

"I had to do everything to convince the church's leadership to reinstate 
the member," says Soya.

The Church of the Central Africa Presbeyerian (CCAP) does not object to the 
use of drums or any other instrument, provided that they are intended to 
praise and glorify God. It uses the flute, cymbals and stringed instruments.

CCAP Blantyre Synod General Secretary, Rev Daniel Gunya, appreciates the 
reluctance of most churches to change practices in order to preserve the 
sanctity and originality of their service.

But he acknowledges that Apostle Paul, through the Epistles, teaches the 
Church to comply with the culture of the day.

Gunya notes that there is need to consider the limits of change, and that 
theologians ought to be engaged whenever effecting changes in the liturgy. 
"Some churches are conservative - others are moderate, and yet others are 
liberal," explains Gunya, adding that each had their own advantages and the 
negative sides.

"The Presbyterian church is moderate.  It marries the past with the 
present," he says, adding: "Experience has shown that liberal churches end 
up dying because everybody want things done their own way, and if their 
wishes are not accommodated, members leave the church."

Professor Edward Barnes of the African Bible College in Blantyre admits 
that there is a problem in using drums in churches, as they were linked to 
erotic traditional dances at initiation ceremonies.

"I appreciate the importance of change, but it should be in keeping with 
the scriptures. Whatever we adopt should be aimed at glorifying God," he 
argues.

Reported by Hobbs Gama

Church Introduces Mandatory HIV Testing For Pastors

HARARE (AANA) December 15 - The Pentecostal Assemblies of Zimbabwe, a 
grouping of 150 Pentecostal and evangelical churches, has embarked on a 
historic mandatory HIV testing for all its pastors, marriage officers, and 
couples.

The testing for pastors and marriage officers has already commenced, while 
testing for couples will start in January next year.

Despite having one of the highest HIV/AIDS infection rates in the world, 
Zimbabwe outlaws the mandatory HIV testing.

However, anti-HIV/AIDS campaigners say the proposed measures may provide 
Africa with a new way of fighting the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS.

They argue that thousands of Africans infected with the virus are dying 
prematurely because they cannot seek early treatment, for fear of being 
discriminated against.

According to Bishop Trevor Mananga, a member of the Pentecoastal 
Assemblies, Church leaders resolved at their annual conference recently, to 
adopt what  "pragmatic measures" to check the spread of pandemic.

He said the Church has a major role to play in fighting stigma and 
discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, and Africa in general.

"Although this might sound rather controversial, discriminatory and 
infringing on individuals' rights, we felt that the only way we could 
effectively fight this pandemic was through adoption of more pragmatic and 
practical measures," Rev Mananga said.

"Church leaders who daily preach to and counsel church members on various 
issues, including HIV/AIDS, have to set the pace and lead by example and 
avoid the notion of 'do as I say, and not as I do'," he added.

He said all church leaders under the Pentecostal assemblies of Zimbabwe, 
pastors and marriage officers have set the ball rolling by going for HIV 
tests, which should be completed by the end of the year, before the 
programme is extended to would-be married couples with effect from January 
2004.

According to the bishop, it is absurd for a marriage officer or pastor 
within a church to sit and counsel would-be married couples on HIV/AIDS 
issues, when they (the counsellors) were not aware of their own status.

All pastors, marriage officers and couples who will have gone for testing 
will be issued with some form of certification that they were tested and 
counselled. Marriage officers without this certification would not be 
allowed to conduct marriage ceremonies.

Since the passing of the resolution, pastors have embarked on vigorous 
awareness and education campaigns on the new practice.

A pastor with one of the affiliate churches in Bulawayo, said in an 
interview last week that the exercise has been well-received in his church, 
and a number of couples have already undergone pre-marriage testing and 
counselling.

"Just two weeks after the resolution was passed, we have a number of 
would-be couples who have responded positively to the call and more members 
who have been informed of the exercise are joining the church by each day, 
contrary to views that this would scare away church members," said the 
pastor, who asked for anonymity.

People interviewed on the issue expressed mixed feelings with some saying 
the new policy on HIV/AIDS testing introduced by the Pentecostal Assemblies 
of Zimbabwe was discriminatory and infringed on personal liberties.

Zimbabwe has a number of HIV/AIDS voluntary testing centres but activists 
say people are still reluctant to know their status as the disease still 
carries a lot of stigma.

However, recent statistics released by the Ministry of Health and Child 
Welfare indicate that HIV/AIDS infections in Zimbabwe declined from 33 
percent to 24.6 percent this year, reflecting the success of various 
awareness campaigns.

In the past, churches in Zimbabwe have played a peripheral role in the 
fight against the pandemic and the initiative taken by the Pentecostals 
might be a harbinger for a more active role in the campaign against the 
world's highest killer disease.

Reported by Bhekisipho Nyathi