June 2005 in Africa

Wednesday the 1st er June

East Africa: the Heads of State of the Kenya, the Uganda and Tanzania met in Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania) in order to work out a constitution project of a federation of the countries of the East Africa.
Rwanda: Publication of the first novel written by Rwandan on the genocide of the Tutsi, Fire under the cassock , Editions the Spirit-rapper, of Benjamin Sehene.

Thursday June 2nd

Cen-Sad: The top of the the Community of the Sahélo-Saharan States (Cen-Sad), brought together 15 Heads of States June 1st, th and 2nd with Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso). They decided to create a “high ranking authority of water, agriculture and seeds” in order to make it possible the Member States to develop their agriculture by a better control of the water resources and the selection of the seeds. In addition, the top to decide to put in study the construction of a railway line connecting the Libya, the Chad, the Niger, with straps towards the Burkina Faso, the Mali and the Senegal, in order to facilitate the exchanges and to disenclose space Cen-Sad. Two new countries adhered to Cen-Sad, the Ghana and the Sierra Leone. Blaise Compaoré, Burkinabe president, succeeds chairing Malian Amadou Toumani Touré as President-in-Office of Cen-Sad.

Ivory Coast: slaughters took place June 1st, th and 2nd in the west of the country, in the area of Duékoué making at least 70 dead. The government and the new Forces are rejected the responsibility for these slaughters which are likely to call into question the process of disarmament currently in hand.

Niger: A demonstration joined together with Niamey several thousands of people to ask for the free distribution of food to face the famine which threatens the country.

Democratic republic of Congo:

the blue helmets of the Monuc were the subject of an attack. Helicopters were destroyed. A Nepalese blue helmet was killed and three others wounded.
Two employees, a French logistician and his Congolese driver, from ONG Frenchwoman Doctors without borders (MSF) were removed in Ituri by a group of militiamans.

Sao Tome and Principe: Damiao Vaz d' Almeida, Prime Minister, gave his resignation.

Chad: Lol Choua, leader of the Gathering for the democracy and progress (RDP, opposition) calls with the abstention at the time of the constitutional referendum of June 6th, 2005.

Friday June 3rd

COMESA : The 10th top of the Heads of States and government of the Common Market for Eastern and southern Africa (COMESA) was completed with Kigali (Rwanda) by the adoption of a resolution calling with creation of a customs union in December 2008.

Burundi: The communal elections proceeded in the country. These elections were disturbed by violences in certain areas. A person died following the explosion of a grenade. A blue helmet was wounded by bullets. According to the first results published on Saturday, June 4, the Forces for the defense of the democracy (FDD) arrive largely at the head.

Zimbabwe: a “operation of cleaning” of the cities ended according to the police force after two weeks of intervention of the police force against the itinerant salesmen and the “dwellings of fortunes”. 22.000 people were challenged and imprisoned. international Amnesty condemned this operation which aims those which supported the opposition at the time of the last elections.

Saturday June 4th

Mauritania: A military base located in the vicinity of the borders with the Algeria and the Mali was attacked on Saturday night by an armed movement. The army Mauritanian shows the Groupe salafist for preaching and the combat (GSPC) to be responsible for this attack which made 20 died (15 soldiers Mauritanians and 5 attackers).

Monday June 6th

Ivory Coast: Laurent Gbagbo, president of the Republic, in visit official with Luanda (Angola) declared that “ the businesses with UNO continue to be treated as if we (African countries) were still colonies ”.

Ethiopia: Approximately 900 students expressed with Addis-Abeba to protest against the provisional results of the legislative elections of May 15th giving the victory to the party in power. The police force buckled the accesses to the universities. Clashes between the students and the security forces burst. The police force stopped several hundreds of students.

Sudan: the International penal court (CPI) announced to have opened an investigation into the crimes committed with the Darfur.

Chad: Referendum on the revision of the constitution.

Tuesday June 7th

Sao Tome and Principe: Fradique de Menezes, president of the republic, named Maria C Carmo Silveira at the post of Prime Minister.

Wednesday June 8th

Ethiopia: the demonstrations of students continue with Addis-Abeba to protest against the provisional results of the elections of May 15th. Clashes between students and police force resulted in deaths of at least 29 people and the hundreds of casualties. Hailu Shawel, president of the Coalition for the unit and the democracy (CUD, opposition) is assigned with residence since Tuesday evening

Mali: Enclose with Bamako of a symposium bringing together fifteen former Heads of African States having left the capacity by respecting the democracy: , Nicéphore Soglo (Benign), Ketumile Masire (Botswana), Antonio Mascarenhas Monteiro (Cape Verde), Daouda Kaïraba Jawara (Gambia), Jerry Rawlings (Ghana), Amos Sawyer (Liberia), Albert Zafy (Madagascar), Alpha Oumar Konaré (Mali), Joaquim Chissano (Mozambique), Sam Nujoma (Namibia), Mahamane Ousmane (Niger); Yakubu Gowon (Nigeria), Manual Pinto and Miguel Trovoada (Sao Tome and Principe), Ali Hassan Mwinyi (Tanzania). In a final declaration, known as “ Declaration of Bamako ”, they are in particular committed placing their experiment at the disposal of Africa, in order to encourage the dialog and the peaceful resolution of the conflicts which mine the continent.

Togo: Edem Kodjo, president of the Panafrican patriotic Convergence (CP, moderate opposition), was appointed Prime Minister. it is charged to constitute a government of national union.

Thursday June 9th

Mali: The ministry for the culture announced that Tombouctou had been selected the Islamic organization for education, sciences and the culture (Isesco) like capital of the Islamic culture 2006 for the zone Africa.

Friday June 10th

UNO: Kofi Annan, General secretary of the United Nations announced the nomination of Ibrahim A. Gambari, former minister Nigerian of the Foreign affairs at the post of general under-secretary to the political matters.

Uganda: the Constitutional court of Uganda, considering that the automatic application of capital punishments and a time of more than 3 years in the execution of the sentences of death is contrary with the constitution, handed down a judgment commuting the capital punishment applicable to the 417 condemned to the capital punishment of the country.

Sudan: official resumption with Abuja (Nigeria) of the negotiations on the Darfur under the aegis of the African Union with delegations of the Sudanese government and the two rebellious main movements, the Movement for justice and the equality (JEM) and the Movement for the release of Sudan (SLM).

Saturday June 11th

Debt of the third world: The countries of the G8 announced an obliteration of the debt of 18 heavily in debt countries (including 14 African countries): Benign, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guyana, Honduras, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. This cancellation relates to the debts towards Fonds international currency, the World Bank and African Banque of development, for an amount of 40 billion dollars.

Central African Republic: François Bozize, elected at the time of the presidential election of May 8th, was invested president of the Republic.

Democratic republic of Congo: The two employees of ONG Frenchwoman removed Doctors without borders on June 2nd in Ituri by a group of militiamans were released.

Sudan: The Sudanese government, opposed to the International penal court to judge the authors of violences to the Darfur, announced the establishment of a special court to judge the crimes of violations of the human rights in Darfur.

Monday June 13rd

Central African Republic: Élie Doté was appointed Prime Minister by François Bozize, president of the Republic. He succeeds Célestin Leroy Gaombalet which had resigned on June 11th after being elected with the presidency of the National Assembly.

Thursday June 16th

Right of the child: Initiated by the African Union, the Journée of the African child has as a subject this year “the orphans, a collective responsibility”. UNICEF estimates that the number of orphans in Africa east of 40 million and should reach 50 million in 2010. Half of them would be orphans of the Sida.

Friday June 17th

Mali: the government Malian decided to exonerate Taxe on the added-value (VAT) 500.000 tons of Riz and 100.000 tons of Maïs been essential in order to supply the markets and to channel the consecutive blaze of the prices of cereals to the bad pluviometry and the invasion acridienne. The government will also proceed to the free distribution of 8500 tons cereals in the zones where the famine threatens the populations.

Democratic republic of Congo: Parliament with adoptee extension by 6 months of the political transition installation in 2003 and which was to end on June 30th, 2005 with the presidential election. This prolongation, claimed by the Independent electoral commission, because of the delay taken for the recording of the voters. The Parti lumumbist unified (palu, opposition) considers that this prolongation violates the constitution. The Union for the democracy and the social progress (UDPS, opposition) also denounces this carryforward and threatens to organize a popular rising.

Saturday June 18th

Nigeria: the 6 employees of the oil company Bilfinger Berger Gas and Oil Services Ltd (BandB) retained as an hostage for Wednesday have been released. The takers of hostage claimed the implementation of an agreement of local development signed with the Shell company in 2002.

Sunday June 19th

Debt: Six Heads of African States (Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigeria and President-in-Office of the African Union (UA); Thabo Mbeki, South Africa; John Kufuor, Ghana; Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algeria; Paul Kagame, Rwanda and Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Sierra Leone) as well as the Prime Minister for the Mozambique, Luisa Diogo, joined together in top with Abuja (Nigeria) wishes that the worldwide African be able to profit from the cancellation of their Dette. They also ask “the G8 and the international community (...) to double the development assistance over three years and to envisage other increases then, to make sure that Africa can reach the Development objectives of the millenium in 2015”.

Peace: The general meeting constitutive of Rassemblement of the young people for peace in Africa (RJPA) brought together with Bamako young people coming from the Burkina Faso, of the Ivory Coast, the Mali, the Niger, the Central African Republic, the Senegal, and the Chad. The objective of this new movement is to promote the agreement and peace between the people of Africa while fighting against all forms of discrimination, requirement for a sustainable development and the fight against poverty. Vincent Koné (Ivory Coast) was elected president of the RJPA.

Guinea-Bissau: The presidential election proceeded in the calm one, in the presence of 250 international observers of which those of the European Union. The participation was important for this first presidential election after the coup d'etat of September 2003 having reversed the former president Kumba Yala and who must put an end to the 22 month transitional period.

Monday June 20th

Togo: The government of “national union” directed by the Prime Minister Edem Kodjo was made public. The majority of the ministers are members of the presidential party, the Rassemblement of the Togolese people (RPT). Several ministers are members of the parties of the opposition. The principal party of the radical opposition, the Union of the forces of change, refused to take part in this government, claiming the installation of a transitory government before the organization of new elections.

Tuesday June 21st

CEDEAO: Opening to Bamako (Mali) of the ministerial meeting of the Economic community of the States of West Africa (CEDEAO) on biotechnology.

Wednesday June 22nd

South Africa: Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka was appointed vice-president.

Senegal: Death of Doudou Sow, singer and musician Senegalese.

Chad: the independent National electoral commission made public the official results of the constitutional referendum of the June 6th 2005. Rate of participation amounts to 77,01% and yes carries it with 77,20%. The Coordination of the political parties for the defense of Constitution (CPDC), gathering the opposition to the president Idriss Déby Itno, question these results and called “with resistance and civic disobedience”. One day “dead cities” is planned for on Monday, June 27.

Thursday June 23rd

Burundi: the independent National electoral commission published the final results of the communal elections. See: Political of Burundi.

Friday June 24th

Central African Republic: The Council of peace and safety of the African Union decided to raise it the sanction of suspension taken against the Central African Republic in 2003 after the coup d'etat against the former president Angel-Felix Patassé. This lifting of sanction intervenes after the presidential election of May 8th gained by François Bozize.

Democratic republic of Congo: According to a report/ratio of the African Union made public by Alpha Oumar Konaré, president of the Commission, the African Union estimates that between 30.000 and 45.000 men will be necessary to disarm the Rwandan Hutu rebels operative as a democratic republic of Congo.

Saturday June 25th

Guinea-Bissau: the National electoral commission announced the official and final results of the presidential election. Malam Bacai Sanha, former president between May 1999 and January 2000 arrived at the head with 35.45% of the voices in front of the independent candidate and former Head of State Joao Bernardo " Nino" Vieira, (28,87%) and the former president Kumba Yala (25%).

Mali: A concert, organized by the Police station with food safety, gather with Bamako ten artists (Oumou Sangaré, Baba Salted, Yaye Kanouté, Aïra Arby, Abdoulaye Diabaté, Néba Solo, Adja Soumano, Sadio Nampé). The receipts will be used to come to assistance of the affected populations by the famine.

Monday June 27th

South Africa: The Congress of the South-African trade unions organized one day of strikes to protest against unemployment and poverty.

Thursday June 30th

Democratic republic of Congo: The Union for the democracy and the social progress (UDPS, first opposition party) called with demonstrations with Kinshasa the birthday day of independence to protest against the carryforward in December 2005 of the elections initially envisaged this day and having to put a term at the transitional period. These demonstrations, gathering between 1000 and 3000 people were repressed violently by the police force making a death according to the authorities or 11 died according to the opposition.

Uganda: Referendum on the re-establishment of the multi-party system.

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