A letter from a reader in South Africa

To the editor, World Socialist Web Site,

First of all, accept my sincere appreciation for the significant and necessary role performed by the WSWS editorial committee in heightening our consciousness around so many facets of our daily lives and struggles. This, of course, includes your almost singular, and thus highly valuable, commentaries on the atrocities inflicted by the American administration/military on the innocent people of Afghanistan; a precursor of what will surely translate into full-scale plunder and rape of the resources of this already war-torn and destitute people.

Make no mistake, I fully abhor the atrocious acts perpetrated on September 11 by hitherto unknown and faceless cowards, but I strongly feel (like the overwhelming millions across the globe) that the American administration is acting tenfold worse by summarily executing and wiping out innocent men, women and children, in some cases even villages in its pursuit of so-called freedom and the eradication of terrorism. I have carefully followed your daily commentaries on developments both in Afghanistan and on American soil.

Recent developments in America, such as the curtailment of civil liberties, detention without trial and public notification, remind strongly of conditions in South Africa during the height of the struggle for liberation in the ’70s and ’80s especially. The world is reminded that during this time South Africa was ruled by a fascist, merciless, undemocratic, vehemently racist, abusive, exploitative and tyrannical government. Is this where America is heading?

Today in South Africa political liberties have been won, “democratic governance” abounds in all spheres of public life; however, the hard-won victories and programs of the progressive working class lie in tatters for all to behold. Since the dawn of our bourgeois democracy poverty, destitution, unemployment and crime have been progressively growing. Homelessness continues to ravage and kill the spirits of those who dreamed of and fought for freedom, democracy and equality in a liberated South Africa. The South African rulers have made their primary budgetary concern the escalation of its military arsenal (why? since the country is not at war, nor threatened by any of its neighbours or any other country in Africa or elsewhere for that matter). This will cost the country some 70 billion rands—the biggest expenditure in this field since 1994.

Another primary concern of the ANC government is the privatization of state assets. The leadership in the working class unions in South Africa is partly to be blamed and accountable for these developments as can be clearly observed from its close alliance with the bourgeois-capitalist ANC ruling class. The lesson to be learnt is simply that a system of capitalist exploitation and the accumulation of private wealth by those who control the means of production can never lead to the emancipation, freedom, happiness, progress, and well-being of the poor and working people of this world.

Recent events in America bring back stark images and nightmares strongly reminiscent of South Africa’s apartheid era. But above all, recent events in America similarly reveal the colossal power wielded by the political agents of the capitalist class. However, having said this, one should ask why are Western capitalist governments driven to such extremes as can be observed in their proclamations and decrees during the period following the September 11 attack? Is it because they realise the enormous power and challenge posed by an organised and principled international working class? Is it not time that workers internationally realise their own strengths and collectively obliterate all oppressive and exploitative systems which currently govern our lives?

Returning to the issue at hand, namely the war in Afghanistan, I am therefore particularly appreciative of your worthy efforts to make known to the world in clear and uncertain terms, an accurate account of this war (as observed not by the perpetrators but by the victims) and the true reasons behind this war (as espoused from a workers’ perspective, thus being anti-capitalist amidst the predominant media force internationally). I am also highly appreciative of your courageous efforts, knowing just of how ruthless and merciless the ruling class can be when faced with simple truths and honesty.

CK

Cape Town, South Africa

6 December 2001

Witch doctors 'cleanse' Vlakplaas

VLAKPLAAS, the notorious farm used covertly by the South African state for murder and torture under apartheid, saw blood spilled again yesterday as witch doctors slaughtered livestock to exorcise its evil spirits. Ten years after the last white secret policemen left, hundreds of black "traditional healers" gathered to cleanse a place viewed by most modern South Africans as the Jews view Auschwitz. Drums were beaten, whistles blown and elaborate dances performed by groups of witch doctors from all over South Africa, next to the now-overgrown helipad once used to deliver victims of the apartheid regime's security apparatus.

Farm buildings that once echoed to the screams of victims echoed to the screams of cattle and goats that had their throats cut by experts in magic and the black arts. "This is to put the souls of the victims to rest and to appease their ancestors," said one woman between gyrations under the baking hot December sun.

Some of the men wore beaded head-dresses and animal skins while the women wrapped themselves in an elaborate collection of bright scarves and shawls. A few white members of the local police contingent deployed at the farm raised their eyebrows in surprise at some of the performances. But the commander said he thought the event a "good idea". "Traditional healers feel the collective wound left by Vlakplaas can be healed," said Wally Serote, chairman of the Indigenous Knowledge Secretariat. "Vlakplaas with its horrific memories can be turned into a place of reconciliation and healing."

The white caretaker of the farm, Louis Smit, who is a born-again Christian, said he hoped the ceremony would rid the place of some of its demons. He casually pointed to a room next to the verandah where a man was beaten to death with a snooker cue in the 1980s and at the barbecue area, which was used to burn body parts.

Vlakplaas, a pretty, 250-acre farm only 20 minutes' drive from Pretoria but hidden by a ring of mountains, has yet to have its full history revealed. It served for more than 10 years as the headquarters of the secret police's often brutal efforts to hold on to power but was kept secret by the white government. During the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, which were meant to draw a line under apartheid-era atrocities, visits were made to the Vlakplaas and a number of unmarked graves were discovered. The event at Vlakplaas was intended to pave the way for the farm being turned into a museum and a centre for the training of witch doctors.

Source: Telegraph

South Africa: 3 Cleared Of Coup Accusation

Three of the country's leading black businessmen, all central figures in the anti-apartheid struggle and senior members of the governing African National Congress, have been cleared of accusations that they were plotting to oust President Thabo Mbeki. The accusations against Cyril Ramaphosa, Tokyo Sexwale and Matthews Phosa were widely denounced as absurd and dangerous when they were made in April.

In announcing the results of the investigation, Minister of Safety and Security Steve Tshwete, who first accused the men, expressed his ''profound apologies'' to them and their families.

Source: New York Times

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS (PROTECTION OF FUNDS) ACT 28 OF 2001

The purpose of the G=Financial Institutions )protections of Funds) Act is to provide for, and consolidate the laws relating to, the investment, safe custody and administration of funds and trust property by financial institutions; to enable the registrar to protect such funds and trust property; to repeal the Financial Institutions (Investment of Funds) Act, 1984 (Act No. 39 of 1984); to improve the enforcement powers of the registrar; and to provide for matters incidental thereto.

Duties of persons dealing with funds of, and with trust property controlled by, financial institutions

A director, member, partner, official, employee or agent of a financial institution or of a nominee company who invests, holds, keeps in safe custody, controls, administers or alienates any funds of the financial institution or any trust property-

(a) must, with regard to such funds, observe the utmost good faith and exercise proper care and diligence;
(b) must, with regard to the trust property and the terms of the instrument or agreement by which the trust or agency in question has been created, observe the utmost good faith and exercise the care and diligence required of a trustee in the exercise or discharge of his or her powers and duties; and
(c) may not alienate, invest, pledge, hypothecate or otherwise encumber or make use of the funds or trust property or furnish any guarantee in a manner calculated to gain directly or indirectly any improper advantage for himself or herself or for any other person to the prejudice of the financial institution or principal concerned.

Declaration of interest

A director, member, partner, official, employee or agent of a financial institution or of a nominee company who takes part in a decision to invest any of the funds of the financial institution or any trust property in a company or other undertaking in which he or she has a direct or indirect financial interest, must declare that interest in writing to the board of management or other governing body of the financial institution or nominee company, indicating the nature and extent of such interest, before such decision is made.

Enforcement

The registrar may, on good cause shown, apply to a division of the High Court having jurisdiction for the appointment of a curator to take control of, and to manage the whole or any part of, the business of an institution.

Source: SABINET

South Africa: Stop Court Fight on AIDS Drugs

Appealing to his history of leadership in the country’s struggle for rights and freedoms, Human Rights Watch today urged President Thabo Mbeki to have his government drop its fight against a legal appeal for low-cost AIDS treatment for pregnant women.

The South African government is currently in court fighting a case brought by the Treatment Action Campaign of South Africa to ensure HIV-positive women have access to affordable antiretroviral treatment to reduce the risk of transmission of HIV to their newborns. A hearing in the case is scheduled for November 26 in the Pretoria High Court. President Mbeki has at various times denied that the human immunodeficiency virus is the cause of AIDS and has alleged dangers of anti-AIDS drugs that are unproven in clinical science.

“Mbeki should pull the government out of this case and support programs to help newborns start life free of HIV,” said Peter Takirambudde, executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Africa Division. “Even in much lower-income African countries, women increasingly have access to this treatment.”

South Africa has the largest number of persons living with HIV/AIDS of any country, about 4.2 million, according to United Nations figures. The Medical Research Council of South Africa recently estimated that 7 million persons could die of HIV/AIDS by 2010, mostly young adults in their prime. Although South Africa has resources to provide treatment to a significant number of AIDS sufferers, the government has consistently resisted supporting treatment programs.

In April 2001, South Africa won a victory against 39 pharmaceutical companies that had sued the government because of the provisions of a 1997 law that would have facilitated the production and importation of generic drugs for HIV/AIDS. The opportunity for treatment programs that was created when the companies dropped their suit in the face of national and international pressure has been left unused by the government, which does not fund treatment programs on a significant level.

“President Mbeki could go a long way to redeeming his mishandling of AIDS by supporting the treatment for mother-to-child transmission,” said Takirambudde.

Human Rights Watch urged President Mbeki to lead the government in increasing budgetary support for HIV/AIDS programs – currently allocated less than 1 percent of the national budget – and in working with the medical and public health leaders in South Africa who are already mobilized to strengthen both prevention and treatment programs.

“President Mbeki’s questioning of the science of HIV/AIDS and the South African government’s active refusal to support programs of known effectiveness is helping to fuel the AIDS crisis in South Africa,” said Takirambudde. “This is much worse than the government inaction we have seen so often regarding HIV/AIDS.”

Source: Human Rights Watch

Masetlha 'above the law'

Home Affairs DG Billy Masetlha seems to have placed himself above the law resulting in a major setback for democracy in South Africa, the department's minister Mangosuthu Buthelezi said on Thursday. Replying to questions in the National Assembly, Buthelezi said by working without a valid contract, Masetlha had placed the legality of all actions taken by the department in jeopardy. "It is possible that Mr Masetlha is placing himself above the rule of law and creating the invalidity of an enormous amount of actions taken by my department with unforseeable consequences for the state. It was also an enormous setback for our democracy as it seems that certain people are becoming untouchable and beyond the reach of law."

The support Masetlha was receiving from "many sectors" was effectively placing him beyond the reach of the law. Buthelezi said he, as the political head of the department, was therefore not able to perform his Constitutionally mandated function of being accountable to Parliament. Relations between the minister and the DG have been strained for months and Buthelezi has claimed - backed by legal opinion of senior counsel - that Masetlha had not had a valid employment contract since June this year. The minister told MPs on Thursday that "no conclusions were reached" at a meeting earlier this week between himself, President Thabo Mbeki and Deputy President Jacob Zuma. Contrary to statements issued by the Presidency, the meeting was not convened to deal solely with the Masetlha issue. "The impression I got from the Deputy President was that it was a meeting that we have, the three of us, from time to time. At this meeting this issue, among other things, was raised but no conclusions were reached on that," he said.

Both Buthelezi - the Inkatha Freedom Party leader - and Masetlha, a former ANC intelligence operative, have previously asked for Mbeki's intervention. Buthelezi said he had referred all information and documentation on Masetlha's contract to the Public Service Commission following a recommendation by Parliament's home affairs portfolio committee. The commission was investigating the matter, but ultimately the final decision of the DG's status rested with the President. The minister said he had only agreed to Mbeki's request that Masetlha's contract be extended on condition that the situation was reviewed when the President returned from an overseas trip. He had, at that time, communicated this to Masetlha and the Cabinet.

Buthelezi last week presented a 10-page document citing 64 examples of alleged wrongdoing by Masetlha to the home affairs committee. He accused the director-general of insubordination and defiance. Masetlha said in response that he was angry and disappointed by the accusations, which he contended were part of a campaign to vilify him.

Source: mail & Guardian

The Club of Madrid was launched following the Conference on Democratic Transition and Consolidation (CDTC), held in Madrid, Spain, in October 2001. At that unprecedented gathering, 35 heads of state and government from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa met with more than 100 of the world's most respected scholars and policy experts to discuss the problems of building democracy from both a theoretical and practical point of view. The CDTC looked at eight core issues, including constitutional design, the legislature and its relations with the executive, the judiciary and its relations with the executive, anti-corruption measures, the role of armed forces and security forces, reform of the state bureaucracy, strengthening of political and social pluralism and of political parties, and economic and social conditions. In four days of intensive discussion between the leaders and experts, the two groups were able to identify areas of agreement and disagreement, and formulate practical recommendations for strengthening democracy around the world. For more on the CDTC, go here.

The Club of Madrid's primary asset is its membership, which includes almost 90 distinguished former heads of state and government of democratic nations. The Club of Madrid seeks to leverage the first-hand experience of its members to assist countries with critical elements of their democratic transition or consolidation. A distinguished group of scholars, former policy makers and political leaders provides additional advice and assistance on a wide range of issues. The Club of Madrid is supported institutionally by the Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior (FRIDE) and the Gorbachev Foundation of North America (GFNA), the original sponsors of the 2001 conference.

Source: Club of Madrid

ID fraudsters arrested

Five more Home Affairs employees have been arrested for allegedly issuing false birth certificates and identity documents, bringing to 12 the number of officials apprehended since June, the department announced on Tuesday.

Director-general Billy Masetlha said two officials allegedly linked to a Chinese syndicate were arrested in Pretoria in the morning. They allegedly helped process fake identity document applications lodged in the Eastern Cape. Two weeks ago, another three officials were arrested in Pretoria. Nokuzola Funani, Yolanda Mfunzi and Ncomeca Nombembe were charged with fraud, corruption and theft in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court and freed on R1 000 bail. They were due to appear in court again on Tuesday. Funani and Mfunzi were employed at the department's regional office in Pretoria, while Nombembe worked at the identification directorate in head office. They were arrested with a fourth man not employed by the department.

Masetlha said the arrests formed part of a joint investigation by his department, the police and customs officials into corrupt officials. Operation Molopo started in June and had so far identified seven syndicates of different nationalities involved in the issuing of fake birth and identity documents. The investigation was also focusing on those making the applications. "We would like to get them to lead us to the main culprits," Masetlha said. The director-general expressed concern about refugees evading the system by marrying South Africans in order to obtain residence status. Recently, some 300 refugee applications were withdrawn by foreigners who subsequently married local partners.

Masetlha conceded "very little" controls were in place and said special measures should be introduced to tackle the problem of so-called marriages of convenience. This could include measures as used in the US, where married couples of which one partner was a foreigner, were regularly grilled in a bid to establish if they truly lived together as husband and wife.

Source: Mail & Guardian

A NATION CHALLENGED: THE BANKER; Italian Arab Is Perplexed By Swiss Raid

As he left his office here the night before the Swiss and Italian police raided it, Youssef M. Nada, 71, shook his head, saying: ''To come to the end of my life, a good life, and be accused of helping terrorists -- it is too much.''

Mr. Nada and his partner Ghaleb Himmat, who spent five hours talking with a reporter this week in their office and in Mr. Nada's tiled hillside mansion across the lake in Campione d'Italia, Italy, do not fit the image of the shadowy unregulated money shifters portrayed by some American officials.

From a building with copper-colored windows, they run an empire that had a Bahamas bank and shares of business throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with cement plants, drydocks, textile and brick factories and a division that trades steel, wheat, oil and other commodities. The lone sign for the sixth-floor office is a red placard with one word, ''NADA.'' All others ''were taken down because of the reporters,'' said a banker from another floor.

The trading screens and offices look typical.

Before the raid, Mr. Nada denied that he had aided Al Qaeda or any other terrorist group. ''It is not true, and I'm sure the U.S. government must know it is not true,'' he said when asked about the allegation.

Mr. Nada said he believed that he was a victim of guilt by association because he is a member of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and has had members of Osama bin Laden's immensely wealthy family as clients. ''I have been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood for 50 years,'' he said. ''That is no secret. But it is not a violent organization.''

The group, founded in Egypt in 1928, was banned in 1948 for opposing [Farouk I of Egypt]. It wants Egypt to become an Islamic state. Today it has members in Parliament, and the United States State Department does not list it as terrorist organization.

Mr. Nada, who left Egypt in 1959 and is an Italian citizen, pointed out that a deputy to Mr. bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, wrote a book that attacked the group as infidels because they renounced jihad.

His investment house, Al Taqwa, meaning piety or fear of God, offers 3,000 clients investments in accordance with shariah, or Islamic law. That tenet forbids charging interest or owning anything to do with alcohol, weapons, gambling or adultery.

His chief investment vehicle, Al Taqwa Bank of the Bahamas, which he says he voluntarily liquidated in February, worked like a mutual fund, or mudarabah in Arabic. It made no loans and could not own bonds or, for example, shares in casinos, brewers or weapons manufacturers. But it owned commodities contracts and businesses, many in food and construction materials.

At its height, Mr. Nada said, the bank controlled $220 million in assets, and during its 14-year life investors -- ''mostly Muslims, but also some Christian and Jewish friends'' -- had annual returns of 7 to 14 percent. It closed, he said, because large losses in Indonesia and Malaysia plus news reports that alleged shady dealings started a run by investors. The United States said, however, the Bahamas revoked its charter in April.

An investigation by the Swiss Banking Commission, which included an audit by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, found no evidence of money laundering or allowing other entities to use al-Taqwa as a front, according to the audit.

''What more do you want?'' Mr. Nada asked.

Mark Widmer, a spokesman for the Swiss attorney general, said that there were ''signs and rumors about al-Taqwa for years,'' but that Swiss investigators had never found the ''substantial suspicion'' that courts require for a search warrant. He declined to say what new evidence led to the raid today.

Mr. Nada does not appear to lead a shadowy life. He donates to charity, invited a television crew to his house to meet Muslim women who were wearing head scarves and was for years the Middle East expert at the Pio Manzù Research Center, an organization in Rimini, Italy, affiliated with the United Nations.

SOurce: New York Times

Hijacked Jets Destroy Twin Towers and Hit Pentagon

Hijackers rammed jetliners into each of New York's World Trade Center towers yesterday, toppling both in a hellish storm of ash, glass, smoke and leaping victims, while a third jetliner crashed into the Pentagon in Virginia. There was no official count, but President Bush said thousands had perished, and in the immediate aftermath the calamity was already being ranked the worst and most audacious terror attack in American history.

The attacks seemed carefully coordinated. The hijacked planes were all en route to California, and therefore gorged with fuel, and their departures were spaced within an hour and 40 minutes. The first, American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 out of Boston for Los Angeles, crashed into the north tower at 8:48 a.m. Eighteen minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175, also headed from Boston to Los Angeles, plowed into the south tower.

Then an American Airlines Boeing 757 left Washington's Dulles International Airport bound for Los Angeles, but instead hit the western part of the Pentagon, the military headquarters where 24,000 people work, at 9:40 a.m. Finally, United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757 flying from Newark to San Francisco, crashed near Pittsburgh, raising the possibility that its hijackers had failed in whatever their mission was.

In all, 266 people perished in the four planes and several score more were known dead elsewhere. Numerous firefighters, police officers and other rescue workers who responded to the initial disaster in Lower Manhattan were killed or injured when the buildings collapsed. Hundreds were treated for cuts, broken bones, burns and smoke inhalation.

By 8 p.m., police officer volunteers using dogs had found four bodies in the smoldering, stories-high pile of rubble where the towers had once stood and had taken them to a makeshift morgue in the lobby of an office building at Vesey and West Streets.

But the real carnage was concealed for now by the twisted, smoking, ash-choked carcasses of the twin towers, in which tens of thousands of people used to work on a weekday. The collapse of the towers caused another World Trade Center building to fall 10 hours later, and several other buildings in the area were damaged or aflame.

Source: New York Times

Pakistan's Northern Areas dilemma

For over 50 years, the Northern Areas in Pakistani-administered Kashmir have been administered by Pakistan although they are not legally part of it. This curious position arises from what the Pakistani Government calls its unresolved dispute with India over the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. When a ceasefire was agreed between the two warring countries in 1949, Pakistan retained control of one-third of the state, India two-thirds. Of the area administered by Pakistan, a small strip of territory established its separate administration and became known as Azad (Free) Jammu and Kashmir.

The larger area to the north, through which the river Indus runs, was taken under the direct administration of the government of Pakistan. When a ceasefire was agreed between the two warring countries in 1949, Pakistan retained control of one-third of the state, India two-thirds. Of the area administered by Pakistan, a small strip of territory established its separate administration and became known as Azad (Free) Jammu and Kashmir. The larger area to the north, through which the river Indus runs, was taken under the direct administration of the government of Pakistan. It borders Pakistan's North-West Frontier to the west, Afghanistan and China to the north, Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir to the east, leading to the frozen wastes of the Siachen glacier.

The Northern Areas are, therefore, as strategically important to Pakistan as they were to the British in the days of empire. The issue of its status appears even more anomalous because, at the time of independence, the princes whose separate principalities comprised the area, had indicated their willingness to join Pakistan. That their accession has never been accepted has been a great disappointment to the majority of the approximately one million inhabitants, who are 100% Muslims (Sunnis, Shias and Ismailis). Unlike Pakistan's other four provinces, the Northern Areas therefore have no political representation and no status under Pakistan's constitution. Instead their affairs are subject to the control of a non-elected minister for northern areas who is selected by the federal government.

From Pakistan's point of view, the accession of the Northern Areas could not be accepted lest India interpret the action as validation of the status quo. The fear is that Delhi could see this as an indication that Pakistan was prepared to accept the ceasefire line as an international border and that the UN resolutions, requiring a plebiscite to be held throughout the state, were no longer relevant. Even so resentment among the local people remains. Relations were also strained when, following the construction of the Karakoram Highway in 1978, Pakistan set up a customs post at Sost - just south of the Khunjerab pass leading from China. The local inhabitants fiercely resisted any attempt at taxation and adopted the slogan "no taxation without representation".

Mirroring the movement for independence which began in Indian-administered Kashmir in the late 1980s, a movement for independence in the Northern Areas has now been gaining adherents. It is currently divided between those who are demanding independence of the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir and those who are calling for the independence of Balawaristan (from the old name by which the Northern Areas were once known, Boloristan). This movement has been given renewed impetus among the youth following Pakistan's incursion into Kargil in 1999. "You see many of the boys who died in Kargil were from the Northern Light Infantry which is based in Skardu," says a local journalist. "They are upset that initially they were not owned by Pakistan. Instead the Pakistani Government tried to pass them off as mujahideen." On the other hand, those who see the benefits of not paying taxes are less concerned about their lack of political rights than about the economic aid they are now being given to develop what is still a poor region. Recent initiatives by the Pakistani Government to encourage tourists to come and view an area which contains spectacular mountain peaks, almost equal in height to Mount Everest, are welcomed.

There is now some slight hope that if the Kashmir dispute is indeed resolved by India and Pakistan, it may pave the way for a resolution of the political status of the Northern Areas as well. Those, however, who support the independence movement are bound to be disappointed. Pakistan may have consistently supported the Kashmiris' right of self determination and continued to insist that the Northern Areas form part of the disputed territory, but, regardless of its lack of political representation, the government has always regarded the Northern Areas as ultimately part of Pakistan. There is, therefore, no question of Pakistan ever agreeing to relinquish control of the area, either to form part of an independent state of Jammu or Kashmir or as an independent state in its own right.

Source: BBC

Sisulu Robben Island reunion

African National Congress patriarch Walter Sisulu on Saturday said he was in "tiptop" shape when he visited his Robben Island cell, number 17, which was his home for 18 years. He was an inmate of Pollsmoor Prison for an additional eight years.

The former struggle veteran who turned 89 this year along with his entire family of 36 visited the island for a historic family gathering, the first time they had held such a reunion on the island. The youngest visitor to the island was just nine months old, the granddaughter of Sisulu, and daughter of Ntsiki Sisulu-Singapi. Sisulu-Singapi said that apart from the family getting together for birthdays this was the first time they had all gathered on the island. Sisulu, looking frail, was wheeled to his cell where he said it was great to be reunited with the family on the island. "Such a change has taken place over the years," Sisulu said. "It certainly brings back some bad memories. The very fact that I entered this cell brings back memories. "It is the first time the family has had a reunion of this nature." Asked about his health, he said he was fine and in "tiptop" shape, before the media was ushered out of the cell.

Sisulu's elder son, Zwelakhe, a former journalist and chief executive officer of the South African Broadcasting Corporation, joined his father and other family members in the cell. He raised a laugh when the cell door was shut as he stuck an arm through the bars and shouted "Amandla". Zwelakhe said Saturday's event was "obviously a very profound occasion for all of us. Coming here today, one goes away with very deep emotions."

Sisulu's wife Albertina said: "Today's visit is great. Looking back in that my grandchildren know exactly what happened to the old man."

Source: News 24

Prison baffled by inmates' fiery cell deaths

Correctional Services authorities are baffled by the deaths of three inmates in a fire in their cell at Odi Prison in Mabopane, North West Province, on Monday night.

Correctional Services spokesman Russel Mamabolo said that although the cause of death was still unknown, it appeared that the prisoners had set their mattresses alight shortly after lockup. The three, aged 25, 26 and 31, were serving terms of 10 to 30 years for crimes including robbery with aggravating circumstances.

Mamabolo said the trio apparently had been involved in gang fighting earlier, but warders had defused the situation just before lock-up time.

Source: IoL

The Genoa Declaration

A new partnership between Africa and the G8 countries got under way with the Genoa Declaration in 2001, with the aim of backing Africa's effort to address crucial issues for the continent's development. The impulse provided by the Italian presidency to building a strong and lasting link with the African continent was picked up and developed at every G8 Summit thereafter.

The 2001 G8 Summit highlighted the will to support a totally African development initiative (NEPAD) that put an end to the old methods of the past and paved the way for a new vision of the future. The Heads of State and Government leaders of the leading industrially advanced democracies meeting in Genoa responded with the Genoa Declaration, which basically subscribed to the priorities defined by the African representatives.

These are the salient points enshrined in the Declaration: a strategic approach to reducing poverty; debt relief, particularly through the Reinforced Initiative in favor of the heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC), which is considered a valid contribution to the struggle against poverty, but also as a means of stimulating faster growth in the very poor countries; greater participation in the global trade system for developing countries; a boost to private investment in the continent; initiatives to promote health, education and food security and safety, such as: the establishment of a global fund to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis; the reliability of national health systems; food security and safety; the crucial nature of Official Development Assistance (ODA); the struggle against crime; the opportunities offered by digital technology (Task Force G8).

A decision was also reached at Genoa to formalize the post of Africa Personal Representative (APR) for the G8 countries' Heads of State and Government leaders, with each country appointing a ranking personality to the job.

The Africa personal representative's task is to liaise with the African countries on a permanent basis and, working in conjunction with the African leaders, to put together a G8 Africa Action Plan each year for submission to the following year's G8 Summit.

The representatives also recommend action to be taken in favour of Africa and they track the implementation of the Action Plan, keeping their respective heads of state and government leaders up to date on the progress being made.

Source: G8 Summit, Genoa, July 22 2001

South Africa: ANC government evicts poor squatters

Bailiffs have begun to evict hundreds of homeless poor people attempting to take over an area of barren land at Bredell, near Johannesburg, South Africa. Riot police with armoured cars backed the bailiffs, but the squatters are apparently prepared to move peacefully.

Over 5,000 poor squatters had taken plots of land and begun to erect wooden and corrugated iron shacks, turning the area into a small town over two weeks. Although many moved out when the ANC government took court action against them, several hundred remained because of the desperate housing shortage. There is no running water or other utilities, but families with young children were still prepared to endure freezing winter nights.

Source: World Socialist Web

South Africa: U.S. To Help Fight Crime

The government signed two treaties with the United States aimed at fighting one of the world's highest crime rates. The Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty is intended to increase cooperation between South African and American law-enforcement agencies in investigations, prosecutions and crime prevention. The countries also expanded their 50-year-old extradition treaty.

Source: New York Times

Iran-Contra: The Cover-Up Begins to Crack

Until last week the Iran-contra scandal seemed ready to fade from the courts, the news and the mind. After costing more than four years and $25.5 million, the investigation headed by special prosecutor Lawrence Walsh was limping to a close. A federal appeals court had overturned Lieut. Colonel Oliver North's felony conviction, and a retrial seemed unlikely. The same outcome seemed possible for former National Security Adviser John Poindexter's conviction.

Then the scandal roared back to life with a series of stunning developments. They suggested that:

-- Top intelligence officials had engaged in covering up the Reagan Administration's attempts to evade a congressional ban on aid to the Nicaraguan rebels by siphoning off profits from secret arms shipments to Iran.

-- The Iran-contra affair may be only part of a broader and previously undisclosed pattern of illegal activities by intelligence agencies during the tenure of Ronald Reagan and his CIA chief William Casey. Sources close to the unfolding investigation of the Bank of Credit & Commerce International told TIME that U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA, maintained secret accounts with the globe-girdling financial empire, which has been accused of laundering billions of dollars in drug money, financing illegal arms deals and engaging in other crimes.

The discovery of the CIA's dealings with B.C.C.I. raises a deeply disturbing question: Did the agency hijack the foreign policy of the U.S. and in the process involve itself in one of the most audacious criminal enterprises in history? Items:

-- Alan Fiers, head of the CIA's Central America task force from 1984 to 1986, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two counts of lying to Congress about when high- ranking intelligence officials first learned of the illegal diversion of funds to the contras. Fiers said he became aware of the diversions and informed Clair George, then the CIA's deputy director for operations, in the summer of 1986. But, Fiers said, George ordered him to deny any knowledge of the transfers when he testified before the House intelligence committee that October. In exchange for being allowed to plead guilty to two misdemeanors instead of more serious felonies, Fiers is now assisting Walsh's investigation. With his help, Walsh will probably seek a perjury indictment of George and perhaps other present and former government officials.

-- Three days after Fiers entered his plea, the New York Times disclosed that Walsh possesses tapes and transcripts of hundreds of telephone conversations between CIA headquarters in Langley, Va., and agents in Central America. The talks occurred during the period when North, former Air Force General Richard Secord and his business partner Albert Hakim were operating their secret arms pipeline. The tapes -- which have been in Walsh's hands for three years -- were recorded on a system that George installed at the agency's operations center in the early to mid-1980s.

In recent months Walsh has used the tapes to prod the memory of North and other reluctant witnesses before the grand jury that is still gamely looking into the scandal. The tapes are expected to furnish evidence that could lead to further indictments. Some transcripts of the recordings have been examined by staff investigators for the congressional Iran-contra committees. But curiously, until last Friday, no member of the Senate intelligence committee was aware of the recordings.

-- Investigators probing B.C.C.I. have told TIME that the Iran-contra affair is linked to the burgeoning bank scandal. Former government officials and other sources confirm that the CIA stashed money in a number of B.C.C.I. accounts that were used to finance covert operations; some of these funds went to the contras. Investigators also say an intelligence unit of the U.S. defense establishment has used the bank to maintain a secret slush fund, possibly for financing unauthorized covert operations. More startling yet, even before North set up his network for making illegal payments to the contras, the National Security Council was using B.C.C.I. to channel money to them. The funds were first sent to Saudi Arabia to disguise their White House origins; then they were deposited into a B.C.C.I. account maintained by contra leader Adolfo Calero.

The Iran-contra affair has been characterized by U.S. officials as a rogue operation managed by overzealous members of the National Security Council. But if Fiers is correct, top-ranking CIA officials not only knew about the operation and did nothing to stop it; they also participated in an illegal cover-up.

One of the first casualties of the disclosures could be the nomination of Deputy National Security Adviser Robert Gates to head the CIA. Though Fiers did not implicate Gates in the deception, some Senators find it hard to believe Gates' claim that he knew next to nothing about the Iran-contra scheme when he served as Casey's principal deputy. Four years ago, that suspicion forced Gates to withdraw after Reagan picked him to succeed Casey, who was dying from brain cancer.

Those misgivings appeared to have faded when George Bush chose Gates to replace William Webster. But the mounting questions about the scandal could put his nomination on hold. The Senate intelligence committee, which had expected to begin its hearings on Gates this week, decided to hold off. Members may want to question Fiers, George and perhaps others about what Gates may have known. If the committee's uncertainty drags on, it could run into the August congressional recess, which would delay hearings until September.

Sensing the threat to Gates' confirmation, Bush rushed to defend his nominee. He implored the Senate not to leave Gates "twisting in the wind" through the summer. "Get the men up there who are making these allegations," Bush demanded. "Isn't that the American system of justice -- innocent until proven guilty?"

But Gates is just one more figure twisting in a resurgent storm. Suddenly a number of unanswered questions assume a new urgency. Just what did Ronald Reagan -- and George Bush -- know? And when did they know it?

Beyond that, the discovery of the secret intelligence-agency accounts in the renegade B.C.C.I. raises a whole new set of unsettling possibilities. The most serious is that U.S. spymasters may have been undertaking unauthorized covert operations and all the while furthering the ends of B.C.C.I. By providing clandestine services for intelligence agencies in numerous countries, B.C.C.I. was able to cloak its activities in an aura of national security and thereby stave off investigations from banking officials in the U.S. and abroad.

In 1988 Gates is reported to have told a colleague that B.C.C.I. was "the bank of crooks and criminals." Yet when customs agents investigated the bank in 1988, they found "numerous CIA accounts in B.C.C.I.," says former U.S. Commissioner of Customs William von Raab. Those, he says, were being used to pay agents and "apparently to support covert activities."

Senate investigators, who have known of the agency's links to the bank, have demanded an explanation from the CIA -- so far, without getting a satisfactory response. One question they might ask is whether the CIA link to B.C.C.I. explains the Justice Department's slowness in pursuing its case against the bank. Last year the Justice Department tried unsuccessfully to persuade the Florida state comptroller not to lift B.C.C.I.'s license to operate in that state.

Armed with Fiers' testimony and the treasure trove of CIA phone tapes, Walsh is likely to seek more indictments. In addition to George and perhaps other CIA officials, there are two potential targets outside the agency: former Assistant Secretary of State Elliott Abrams and Donald Gregg, now U.S. ambassador to South Korea. In his plea Fiers says he lied to Congress at a Senate intelligence committee hearing on Nov. 25, 1986. On the same day, Abrams testified that no one at the State Department knew of the diversion of funds. A few days later, when Abrams made a second appearance before the lawmakers, Democratic Senator Thomas Eagleton of Missouri angrily accused him of having lied earlier. "You've heard my testimony," Abrams said during their exchange. "I've heard it," Eagleton replied, "and I want to puke."

Fiers may also implicate Gregg, a onetime CIA officer who served as a foreign policy adviser to then Vice President Bush. Gregg was a close friend of Felix Rodriguez, another former agent, who became a crucial link in the North pipeline to the contras. But Gregg has repeatedly denied before Congress that the office of the Vice President recruited Rodriguez. One tantalizing entry in North's diary indicates that on Jan. 9, 1986, North and Fiers had a phone conversation about Rodriguez. It reads, "Felix talking too much about V.P. connection." Was the reference to Gregg or to Bush?

Walsh's biggest worry may be that the Senate intelligence committee will call Fiers and George as witnesses at Gates' confirmation hearing. Last July a federal appeals court set aside North's 1989 conviction on the ground that some witnesses who testified against him may have been influenced by his congressional testimony about Iran-contra. That testimony could not be used against North in court because Congress had granted him immunity. Concerned that future Senate testimony by Fiers or George might also be put beyond his reach by a grant of immunity, Walsh last week issued a pointed warning to the committee not to imperil his case. "Our investigation has reached a point of significant breakthrough," Walsh said. "To jeopardize this progress in a vain hope of getting quick facts as to an individual nomination would be regrettable."

In one respect, at least, Walsh is right: an individual nomination is no longer the central issue. The main questions now focus on whether the intelligence community covered up illegal acts and how high the conspiracy reached.

Source: Time

More surprises in lapa scandal

Several magistrates and private contractors who had allegedly been involved in the so-called R50 million lapa scandal can expect a second unpleasant surprise.

Heath special investigative unit senior legal adviser Advocate Gerhard Visagie on Tuesday confirmed that "many Justice department officials and private contractors" could expect subpoenas from the unit to appear before a special tribunal.

The report was compiled by the Investigating Directorate for Serious Economic Offences (IDSEO) following a probe of two years. Arrests can be expected soon.

Both the Heath Unit and IDSEO probes stem from the exposure in 1998 of the involvement of Magistrates' courts in fraudulent authorisation of private contractors to effect luxury renovations to Magistrates' Courts and official homes.

Source: News 24.com

Royal Bloodbath Suspect Is Nepal's King, for Now

The bizarre massacre of most of Nepal's royal family was followed on Saturday by the bizarre ascension to the throne of Crown Prince Dipendra, a love-struck young man who, by most accounts, murdered his parents and at least seven other relatives during the family's Friday night meal.

Dipendra's suitability to be sovereign is cast in doubt not only by the murderous acts attributed to him but also by the fact that he has fallen into a coma and is being kept breathing by life-support machines. He shot himself in the head, attempting suicide, soon after committing multiple homicide, authorities here say. ''The king is dead!'' the people of Nepal declared as they began to mourn. ''Long live the king!'' was a proclamation harder to summon. Confusion, more than anything else, now reigns in this rugged Himalayan country, a place with many of the world's highest mountains, 23 million of its poorest people and one if its most peculiar political setups.

Nepal is governed by a constitutional monarchy. The king, by legend, is a reincarnation of the Hindu deity Vishnu. Parliament, by recent democratic elections, is controlled by Communists. Maoist insurgents, operating in near perfect guerrilla habitat, are creating bloody havoc in the countryside. On Saturday, Nepalese awoke to rumors of the great carnage that had occurred in the grand palace in the center of Katmandu, the capital. They had little more to go on than this hearsay. Foreign news broadcasts were announcing the death of King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, 55, a monarch with an Eton and Harvard education and a walrus-like mustache. Queen Aiswarya, 51, was said to be dead as well. But local television and radio played only devotional music while withholding the grim bulletin. Finally, at 1 p.m., about 15 hours after the massacre, a short statement was read over government channels by Keshar Jung Rayamajhi, chairman of the State Council, an advisory body to the monarchy. In a tearful voice, he read a short text, announcing the king's death but saying little else. The council, coping with the aftermath of the slaughter at the royal dinner table, had spent the morning puzzling through the delicate matter of succession. It named Crown Prince Dipendra the new king -- but not really.

The actual power is to pass to the dead king's brother, Gyanendra, who as a little boy had briefly served as king and who now, as an adult, had the good fortune of not being in town during the Friday meal. ''The first son of his majesty, the king and heir to the throne, Dipendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, has been proclaimed the king in accordance with the law, custom and usage relating to the succession to the throne,'' the chairman said, adding an important ''but.'' ''Since the new king is physically unable to exercise his duty and is undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit of the military hospital in Katmandu, his uncle, Prince Gyanendra, has been proclaimed as the regent.'' Nothing was officially reported about the palace slaughter, however, until 7 a.m. today, when Gyanendra issued a condolence to the nation on Radio Nepal. In the imperial style of the royal family, he confirmed the reports of a dinnertime bloodbath, while making no allegations against his comatose nephew. ''According to the information received by us, (members of the royal family) were seriously injured in an accidental firing from an automatic weapon,'' his statement read.

Other accounts belie any suggestion of an accident. What is known about the shooting comes from conflicting accounts that have been pieced together by local journalists who interviewed witnesses of the bloodshed and friends of the royal family. ''It was like a shooting in an American high school,'' wryly said Kunda Dixit, editor of The Nepali Times. By most accounts, the royal family had sat down for its traditional Friday dinner in a banquet hall in the huge palace. More than a dozen people were at the table, including the king and queen and their three adult children.

Crown Prince Dipendra, 29, had been upset by his parents' -- and particularly his mother's -- disapproval of his choice for a bride, though the young woman came from one of the nation's leading families. That evening, Dipendra had been drinking, according to several accounts, and he left the meal in a fit of anger only to return with at least one -- perhaps two -- semiautomatic weapons. ''Dipendra sprayed the room with bullets, and then he went out and got dressed in military fatigues before coming back to finish up,'' Mr. Dixit said. ''He was a gun lover, a hunter and a shooter. He was someone who even tested weapons for the Royal Nepali Army.'' According to other accounts, the prince had changed into the military garb -- becoming dressed to kill -- before he fired any shots. Either way, he had locked the doors to the dining hall, the accounts say. No guards or aides were inside at the time. In one account, the prince, upon returning to the hall, carried a handgun. He then moved among the wounded, firing single shots into their heads. Finally, guards entered the hall. In one version, Dipendra immediately attempted suicide, firing a single shot through his temple. In a second version, he briefly escaped to another room before trying to take his own life.

The precise death count is unknown. Dead, according to government sources, are the king and queen; their son Prince Nirajan, 22, and daughter Princess Shruti, 24; the king's sisters Princess Shanti Singh and Princess Sharada Shah; Princess Sharada's husband Kumar Khadga Bikram Shah; and Princess Jayanti Shah, a cousin of the late king. At least three other family members were reported wounded. The massacre brought a storybook life to an abrupt end.

The Shah lineage dates back to the mid-1700's. In 1951, with most of the family in exile, Gyenendra, then just an infant, was installed as a puppet king, a position he relinquished with the return of his father, Mahendra. With Mahendra's death in 1972, Birendra became king, though his coronation did not take place until 1975, awaiting a time considered more auspicious by the royal astrologers. On that memorable day, Birendra donned the elaborate crown that came with the title. The royal family rode on elegantly decorated elephants. During this ceremony, 3-year-old Crown Prince Dipendra, flanked by generals, bowed before his father and mother and smartly saluted them. This precocious touch by the young prince brought a burst of applause from the solemn crowd. Good things were expected from the young heir -- and he enjoyed a reputation free of any foreshadowing of mass murder.

King Birendra remained a traditional king until 1990, when a democratic uprising forced the change toward a constitutional monarchy. At the time, there were allegations of royal pocket-stuffing. But Birendra, over time, regained his nation's affection. He was popular, and some would say beloved. And he was not feckless. He retained the loyalty of the army. Earlier this year, the royal astrologers again seemed to be playing a central role in palace affairs. According to press reports, unchallenged by the royal family, it was determined by the stars that the Crown Prince should not marry until age 35. If he did, mortal risks were predicted. This prophecy will inevitably play a role in later reconstruction of the deadly events.

On Saturday, as the news finally sunk in, people seemed too stunned to be outwardly grieving, as if they had just emerged from their homes after the tremors of an earthquake. ''The tragedy is beyond words,'' said Ramesh Chandra Adhikary, a professor of political science here in Katmandu. ''We Hindus believe that the king is an incarnation of God. The sorrow we feel is unimaginable.''

Late Saturday afternoon, tens of thousands of mourners began lining the streets to await the eight-mile procession that would bring the murdered king and queen from the hospital to the funeral ghat. ''Journalists are telling us a lot of things about what happened, but we really don't know,'' said Nirendra Sharma, a young man with a shirt that said Nike Air. ''Probably, the murders took place within the royal family. But it's hard to say much more. Nothing like this has happened before in history.''

The king's body, held aloft by bare-chested Brahmin priests, was covered to the neck with a saffron cloth. Behind him came the queen -- dressed in her bridal sari and carried inside an ornate, covered palanquin. And following them was Prince Narajin, Princess Shruti and Princess Jayanti Shah. The corpses were taken to a specially erected canopy near the cremation site on the banks of the holy Bagmati River, near the temple of Lord Pashupatinath. Mourners laid flowers on the bodies. ''The king who saw this country through trying and difficult times is no more,'' said a commentator on state television.

Priests muttered the final prayers as the bodies were lain on pyres of sandalwood. A little known member of the royal family, with a torch in hand, ceremonially circled the king's body three times. Then he set the flame to Birendra's head, starting the fire that would render the royal family to ashes.

Source: New York Times

Birenda: Ruler of Nepal's Hindu Kingdom: Murdered

King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, who was shot to death on Friday in a massacre of Nepal's royal family, was a proud but isolated monarch whose reign began in absolutism and ended in uneasy partnership with democracy. But it was a uniquely Nepalese democracy, with a fractious political spectrum from extreme left to right, further muddied by age-old palace intrigue and violence in a royal family, the Shah dynasty, descended from Rajput warriors of India that had been in and out of power since the 1770's, when it employed the indomitable Gurkha fighters to conquer large areas of the country and establish the capital in Katmandu.

King Birendra, 55, had survived a fierce wave of street revolts in 1990 only by the force of tradition; the Nepalese considered him a reincarnation of Vishnu, and there was never a mass movement to depose him. But he was later sidelined into the role of constitutional monarch.

Nepal was first opened to the world four decades ago under King Tribhuvan and later King Mahendra, Birendra's father, and it became the Himalayan region's most popular tourist attraction and the major earner of foreign currency under King Birendra. Mountain-climbing in the regions around Everest and Annapurna made the country famous. Tourism, however, led to the mushrooming of Katmandu, a city with scant public services that soon became inundated with backpackers and hippies, drawing criticism of uncontrolled tourist growth. The reliance on tourism, nurtured by Nepal's kings, has not been tempered by the current political leadership. Nepal, the world's only Hindu kingdom, was never colonized by the West but has been acutely aware of its vulnerability as a landlocked nation wedged between India and China, the world's most populous countries.

King Birendra was born on Dec. 28, 1945, and acceded to the throne in January 1972, after the death of King Mahendra. Birendra's grandfather, King Tribhuvan, had been restored to the throne with the help of India in 1951 after a century of rule by a hereditary clan of political dictators, the Ranas. Tribhuvan died in 1955. Birendra inherited from his father a system of partyless rule through rubber-stamp local and regional councils known as panchayats. The system afforded only the barest facade of democracy and was a constant irritant to the people of Nepal, who saw in it not only unbridled royal privilege but also the source of corruption and the abuse of political power by royal favorites who had no interest in the development of this mountainous country, still one of the poorest in the world. The king's attempts to cling to this system -- and his arrests of prominent leaders of the Congress Party, the leading political organization -- led him into direct confrontation with the Nepalese electorate by the late 1980's. The panchayat system was finally abolished by law in 1993. King Birenda was a man of medium height who wore glasses and invariably dressed in public in the Nepalese national costume: a tunic over tight, jodphur-style trousers, a Western-style jacket and the coloful asymetrical cap called a topi. As a young man, he enjoyed the outdoors and hiked the length and breadth of Nepal to get to know it. Although he was a Hindu king, he made a point of attending major festivals and visiting the holy sites of the country's large Buddhist minority. He continued the practice of softening lines between the two religions, and this made him popular across sectarian lines. Politically, the king had gained stature and approval in his final years because he did not call in the military to stop the democracy movement or take charge when the political coalitions that have marked the last decade cracked and sometimes crumbled, leaving a dangerous vacuum. He was the first king of Nepal to be educated abroad. He was sent first to St. Joseph's School in Darjeeling, in India's hill country. He then finished his secondary education at Eton, the elite British school, before attending Tokyo University and later Harvard, where he took courses in economics and government and studied American politics. A traveler in his youth, he visited Canada, Latin America and Africa, as well as many Asian countries. He became an art collector and supported Nepalese crafts people and artists. He could fly helicopters and enjoyed horseback riding. Many Nepalese critical of the royal family have focused their ire on Queen Aiswarya Rajya Laxni Devi Rana, whom he married in 1970. She was also killed on Friday.

The royal family lived a relatively reclusive life, especially in recent years, in a huge, ominous-looking palace that looms over central Katmandu, the capital. They had two sons, Crown Prince Dipendra, who is accused of the killings, and Prince Nirajan, who was reported to have died today of his wounds, as well as a daughter, Princess Shruti, who was killed. Shruti's two children survive, along with Birendra's brother Gyanendra, who was away from Katmandu.

Source: New York Times

Moseneke resigns from top posts

Nail CEO and acting chairman Dikgang Moseneke has resigned from all his positions at Nail, Metropolitan and Telkom to take up a position in the judiciary.

Media statements from the three companies announced on Friday evening that Advocate Moseneke will take up his new acting position in the judiciary at the end of July. No details about his new job were released.

Moseneke has been acting chairman and CEO of Nail, the chairman of the board of Metropolitan and chairman of Telkom. "I am also looking forward to the completion of the convergence of Metropolitan and New Africa Investments Limited (Nail), which will be a specific area of focus during the remainder of my time with both groups," Moseneke said.

The companies have not yet announced replacements for Moseneke.

Source: News 24

Heath's future is still uncertain

Judge Willem Heath is consulting his family and friends about his future after President Thabo Mbeki turned down a request by the controversial corruption-buster to resign from the judiciary.

On the advice of Justice Minister Penuell Maduna, Mbeki sent a letter to Judge Heath refusing his request to be discharged from active service as a judge. Judge Heath, who has been on long leave, is due to return at the end of this month but had hoped to leave the bench to become a private sector anti-corruption consultant.

The decision by Mbeki was made just weeks ahead of a planned request by Pan Africanist Congress MP Patricia de Lille for a judicial review of Mbeki's decision to exclude the special investigating unit, formerly headed by Judge Heath, from the arms deal investigation.

Acting on a Constitutional Court ruling, the national assembly has approved legislation barring a special investigating unit being headed by a judge.

This means that even should Mbeki's decision to exclude the unit be overturned, Judge Heath could not be involved in the arms deal probe because he would continue to be a judge.

Source: Cape Times

Willie Hofmeyr promoted

President Thabo Mbeki has approved the promotion of Assets Forfeiture Unit (AFU) head Willie Hofmeyr to Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Monday. Spokesperson Sipho Ngwema said Hofmeyr, 47, would no longer be involved in the day-to-day running of the AFU, but would guide policy formulation and would be involved in the strategic direction of the NPA as a whole. The move formed part of renewed efforts to boost the operations of the state prosecution service. "His expertise will, however, not be lost to the unit," Ngwema said. "He will still be helping out when necessary."

Ngwema said Hofmeyr would be replaced as Special Director of Public Prosecutions: Asset Forfeiture Unit by Advocate Juliana Galetlale Ouma Rabaji, 41.

Hofmeyr was the founding head of the AFU, an unit within the NPA. The AFU was created in May 1999 to confiscate the ill-gotten gains of criminals and give effect to the saying that "crime does not pay". Hofmeyr, an economist and lawyer by training, previously served as an African National Congress MP and Parliamentary Councillor to the President.

Rabaji was appointed a Deputy Director: Asset Forfeiture Unit in April last year. Between September last year and January she also acted as NPA chief executive officer. She was previously a regional manager at the Road Accident Fund and an advocate.

Source: News 24

Three Businessmen Accused of Plot to Oust South African President

After weeks of whispers about political jousting and maneuvering within the governing African National Congress, the minister of safety and security has accused three leading members of the party of plotting to oust President Thabo Mbeki. The announcement that the three, Cyril Ramaphosa, Tokyo Sexwale and Matthews Phosa, all prominent businessmen, were under investigation was front-page news today and it left some government officials reeling. All three were fighters for liberation during the apartheid regime.

Mr. Ramaphosa and Mr. Sexwale have long been viewed as potential rivals to Mr. Mbeki although both men have left politics to pursue lucrative careers in business. Opposition politicians quickly condemned the investigation as an attempt by Mr. Mbeki to neutralize opponents who might be tempted to deny his hopes for a second term. A.N.C. officials denied that the probe was politically motivated.

The investigation became public on Tuesday night when Steve Tshwete, minister of safety and security, announced on national television that the three men were believed to be running a disinformation campaign against the president. Of particular concern, Mr. Tshwete said, were rumors charging Mr. Mbeki with orchestrating the assassination in 1993 of Chris Hani, the revered South African Communist Party leader. Two right-wing whites were convicted of killing Mr. Hani, who was one of Mr. Mbeki's rivals for the position of deputy president to Nelson R. Mandela.

Mr. Tshwete said rumors linking President Mbeki to the death of Mr. Hani might have led Mr. Hani's supporters to turn on the president. ''There are sworn affidavits of a plot and disinformation campaign and we have to investigate to see to what extent does it compromise the safety of the president so that we can take the necessary precautions,'' Andre Martin, a spokesman for Mr. Tshwete, said in an interview this afternoon. Officials refused to divulge further details of the reported plot today, but Mr. Tshwete said that the government was bolstering Mr. Mbeki's personal security.

The allegations are the most recent hint of factional fighting within the party. Mr. Mbeki, who succeeded Mr. Mandela in 1999, has been viewed as increasingly vulnerable in A.N.C. circles. Polls indicate that his popularity has slipped, and he has stumbled in his handling of the AIDS epidemic and some other issues. In a surprise public statement earlier this month, Deputy President Jacob Zuma unexpectedly denied rumors and ''unverified, so-called intelligence reports'' that he might stand for the position of A.N.C. president. Earlier this year, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, president of the African National Congress Women's League, denied that she was spreading malicious rumors about Mr. Mbeki. Mr. Sexwale and Mr. Phosa vehemently denied today that they were plotting against the president.

Mr. Ramaphosa, who was once the A.N.C.'s secretary general and is now chairman of a powerful media and telecommunications company, helped lead the negotiations that brought an end to all white rule and was Mr. Mandela's first choice as a successor. Mr. Sexwale, who was imprisoned by the apartheid government and later ran the provincial government that includes Johannesburg, ''is more than satisfied'' with running a black empowerment company with interests in diamond and platinum mines, his family said. ''Our country faces real and serious socio-economic problems, most of all poverty,'' the family said in its statement. ''It is an unwarranted, precious time-wasting exercise to be diverted by gossip and rumor-mongering based on cooked-up stories.''

Mr. Phosa, who served as an A.N.C. legal adviser under apartheid and led the province of Mpumalanga before moving into business, described the allegations as ''insulting the intelligence of ordinary South Africans.'' Leaders of the opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, describing the investigation as an abuse of government powers. Mr. Mbeki declined to discuss the issue today, but in a TV interview on Tuesday, he urged the so-called conspirators to abandon their plotting and to declare their ambitions.

Source: New York Times

'Corruption governs SA': Heath

Corruption governs a South Africa led by people who are not serious about fighting it, and steps have to be taken to ensure the country does not "go the same way" as Third World Africa, Judge Willem Heath said on Tuesday.

Heath, the controversial head of the special investigating unit, said the government was not dedicated in the fight against corruption.

"I doubt that they are serious about corruption," he told members of the South Africa/Israel Chamber of Commerce and investigators of the private security firm, Stallion Security, at a function in Johannesburg.

There was a culture of dishonesty in South Africa, said Heath. Only a few members of government were guilty of ignoring corruption, but unfortunately only "a few people were running politics".

Source: News 24.com

Milosevic arrested

Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević has been arrested and taken to prison, where he is due to face questioning later on Sunday. His arrest came in the early hours of the morning, after a heavily-armed standoff at his Belgrade villa, where the ex-leader had been surrounded by police for nearly 36 hours.

A convoy of five cars was seen speeding away from the scene. BK TV showed footage of the car carrying Mr Milosevic entering Belgrade's central prison and the security gates closing behind it. Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batić said Mr Milosevic had not yet been formally charged, but would face questioning by an investigating judge on charges of abuse of power and financial corruption.

Mr Milosevic is wanted on war crimes charges by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, but so far the Belgrade authorities have been unwilling to consider extraditing him. A number of people who tried to prevent Mr Milosevic's arrest have themselves now been detained, including several of his bodyguards. They are charged with illegally possessing and using arms during the first failed police attempt to detain Milosevic on Friday night.

Source: BBC

Arms corruption scandal erupts in South Africa

A series of major corruption scandals have rocked the South African government in the past few months. High-ranking members of the ANC government are accused of taking "kick-backs" and of funnelling lucrative contracts to companies in which they or their families have a personal interest.

The allegations centre on a massive arms deal, announced in 1998, to re-equip the South African military forces. The first phase of the deal involved the purchase of patrol corvettes, light helicopters, submarines, Hawk jet trainers and light fighter aircraft, from manufacturers in France, Britain, Italy, Germany and Sweden. Within one year, the cost of the deal had skyrocketed from R29.9bn to R43bn (US5.5bn)— an increase of more than 42 percent.

The corruption allegations were first raised by PAC MP Patricia de Lille, using documents provided anonymously by ANC MPs. These alleged that bribes were paid to senior ANC members and contracts were awarded to their relatives.

Mbeki and the government, however, are completely opposed to any scrutiny of the arms deal. Behind the scenes, ANC officials made desperate attempts to stymie any investigation.

Source: World Socialist Web

Seized assets' money to go back to victims

Over 60 percent of the R210-million in assets seized by the Directorate of Public Prosecutions' Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) is to be paid back to those who lost the money through criminal activities. "Our major aim is to deprive criminals of their ill-gotten gains ... and associated with that is a strong view that, where there is a victim, that victim should be compensated," AFU chief Willie Hofmeyr said in an interview with Sapa on Sunday.

Because the AFU seizes assets belonging to, among others, drug dealers and people involved in other "victimless" crimes, money which does not have an identifiable recipient goes into a special fund - the Criminal Assets Recovery Account. Money from the fund has, by law, to be used to combat crime or for "victim empowerment", such as the establishment of drug rehabilitation centres. Hofmeyr said the AFU had already returned over R1.1 million to victims in two of its finalised cases. The unit does not claim its own costs from regained funds, but does pay external costs before returning the money.

Source: News 24

Destruction of Giant Buddhas Confirmed

The international community acknowledged Monday that it has failed to stop the ruling Taliban militia in Afghanistan from destroying the ancient Buddha statues at Bamiyan, with UNESCO branding their demolition "a crime against culture." It was the first time that the destruction of the statues had been independently confirmed, despite a concerted effort by Arab, Islamic and international players to spare them. "I was distressed to learn from my special envoy, Pierre Lafrance, that the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas has been confirmed," the UN cultural body's chief Koichiro Matsura said in a statement. "It is abominable to witness the cold and calculated destruction of cultural properties which were the heritage of the Afghan people, and, indeed, of the whole of humanity," the statement said.

The Taliban had said the huge figures, carved into sandstone cliffs in Bamiyan city more than 1,500 years ago when Afghanistan was a seat of Buddhism, are "false idols" and must be destroyed in line with Islamic laws. Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee of India, which has a large Buddhist population, on Monday branded the destruction "an act of barbarism" but stressed that his government had been helpless to intervene. "What is happening there has been condemned by the entire world. It is an act of barbarism, but there is a limit and the world cannot stop the destruction," said Vajpayee. Yet there were no shortage of efforts to try reversing the Taliban's edict, including from many Muslim countries and Pakistan, the closest ally of the Taliban and one of only three countries which recognizes its puritanical regime. After talks over the weekend between Pakistan Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider and Taliban officials failed, Haider played for time "suggesting that since this edict has repercussions for the entire Muslim world, it should be discussed with the ulema (Islamic religious leaders) from outside Afghanistan." But the high-level delegation of Islamic clerics that later visited Afghanistan returned empty-handed Monday.

The Taliban said the clerics had "failed to convince us that destroying the statues was un-Islamic." They were part of a delegation of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) led by Qatar's foreign minister and included Egypt's top religious leader and two leading Sunni clerics, the same faith as the Taliban. "From a religious point of view it is clear, these statues are part of humanity's heritage and do no affect Islam at all," said the Egyptian cleric, speaking on his return to Cairo. A similar diplomatic mission from Japan also failed to overturn Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Mohammad Omar's decree, which he said was based on orders of God and the Koran, Islam's holy book, and was "irreversible."

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan tried his hand at convincing the Taliban not to carry out their "lamentable decision," meeting Taliban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmad Mutawakel while on a tour of South Asia. Annan stressed that many Islamic countries opposed the move, adding that destroying cultural masterpieces was not the way to mobilise the donor community to help Afghanistan overcome its humanitarian crisis. Jordan, another Muslim country, was quick to react to the news Monday that the statues were finished, saying it was disappointed at the "failure of Arab, Islamic and international efforts to stop the destruction." "Heritage that dates back to before Islam belongs to the entire world," the country's culture minister said.

With the Taliban set to move even further into isolation now, Matsuria concluded that "the loss is irreversible" but that "everything possible must be done to stop further destruction" of Afghanistan's pre-Islamic heritage. He also said he hoped that the destruction "will not provide fanatics elsewhere with an excuse for acts of destruction targeting Muslim cultural properties."

Source: Agence France-Presse

PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT 2 OF 2000

The purpose of the Promotion of Access to Information Act is to give effect to the constitutional right of access to any information held by the State and any information that is held by another person and that is required for the exercise or protection of any rights; and to provide for matters connected therewith.

RECOGNISING THAT –
* the system of government in South Africa before 27 April 1994, amongst others, resulted in a secretive and unresponsive culture in public and private bodies which often led to an abuse of power and human rights violations;
* section 8 of the Constitution provides for the horizontal application of the rights in the Bill of Rights to juristic persons to the extent required by the nature of the rights and the nature of those juristic persons;
* section 32 (1) (a) of the Constitution provides that everyone has the right of access to any information held by the State;
* section 32 (1) (b) of the Constitution provides for the horizontal application of the right of access to information held by another person to everyone when that information is required for the exercise or protection of any rights;
* and national legislation must be enacted to give effect to this right in section 32 of the Constitution;

AND BEARING IN MIND THAT –
* the State must respect, protect, promote and fulfil, at least, all the rights in the Bill of Rights which is the cornerstone of democracy in South Africa;
* the right of access to any information held by a public or private body may be limited to the extent that the limitations are reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom as contemplated in section 36 of the Constitution;
* reasonable legislative measures may, in terms of section 32 (2) of the Constitution, be provided to alleviate the administrative and financial burden on the State in giving effect to its obligation to promote and fulfil the right of access to information;

AND IN ORDER TO –
* foster a culture of transparency and accountability in public and private bodies by giving effect to the right of access to information;
* actively promote a society in which the people of South Africa have effective access to information to enable them to more fully exercise and protect all of their rights.

Source: SABINET

PROTECTED DISCLOSURES ACT 26 OF 2000

The purpose of the Protected Disclosures Act is to make provision for procedures in terms of which employees in both the private and the public sector may disclose information regarding unlawful or irregular conduct by their employers or other employees in the employ of their employers; to provide for the protection of employees who make a disclosure which is protected in terms of this Act; and to provide for matters connected therewith.

Recognising that-

- the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, enshrines the rights of all people in the Republic and affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality and freedom;

- section 8 of the Bill of Rights provides for the horizontal application of the rights in the Bill of Rights, taking into account the nature of the right and the nature of any duty imposed by the right;

- criminal and other irregular conduct in organs of state and private bodies are detrimental to good, effective, accountable and transparent governance in organs of state and open and good corporate governance in private bodies and can endanger the economic stability of the Republic and have the potential to cause social damage;

And bearing in mind that-

- neither the South African common law nor statutory law makes provision for mechanisms or procedures in terms of which employees may, without fear of reprisals, disclose information relating to suspected or alleged criminal or other irregular conduct by their employers, whether in the private or the public sector;

- every employer and employee has a responsibility to disclose criminal and any other irregular conduct in the workplace;

- every employer has a responsibility to take all necessary steps to ensure that employees who disclose such information are protected from any reprisals as a result of such disclosure;

And in order to-

- create a culture which will facilitate the disclosure of information by employees relating to criminal and other irregular conduct in the workplace in a responsible manner by providing comprehensive statutory guidelines for the disclosure of such information and protection against any reprisals as a result of such disclosures;

- promote the eradication of criminal and other irregular conduct in organs of state and private bodies

Source: SABINET

Massacre was revenge for Nkabinde's murder

Gunmen attacking the Ndabazitha household in Richmond in January 1999 accused them of killing United Democratic Movement secretary-general Sifiso Nkabinde, according to evidence heard in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Wednesday.

Betty Ndabazitha and her relative Edith Ndabazitha gave this evidence against five men charged with 21 counts relating to the massacre in which 11 people were killed and seven injured. The accused are Vulindlela Blessing Nkabinde, 29, Mbongeni Mjwara, 25, Bongani Derik Nkabinde, 31, Sipho Edward Mtungwa, 30 and Emmanuel Simanga Mashumi Dlamini, 27. They are all from Magoda, the UDM stronghold in which Nkabinde lived. Vulindlela and Bongani Nkabinde are related to the politician. Betty Ndabazitha said relatives had been attending the funeral of her son when the shooting occurred, the same day that Sifiso Nkabinde was murdered.

Edith Ndabazitha was an assistant to the chairperson of the ANC Richmond branch, Siphiwe Ntinga, who was implicated by state witnesses in the trial against the killers of Sifiso Nkabinde in the Pietermaritzburg High Court last year.

She told the court that she heard something exploding outside.

"In my mind I thought maybe it was crackers, but at the time when people who were sitting on the veranda came in running. It was then that I realised that we were under attack," she said.

While Edith hid under the table, four gunmen came into the house. She said that as they were shooting they accused them of killing Nkabinde. She said one woman who tried to run out through the kitchen was shot by the attackers. A man tried to take out his firearm and shoot to protect himself, but "because he was already injured he was unable to shoot".

"They continued shooting and they were saying 'the dogs must die'. One of the attackers even pointed his foot at the people (who had already been killed) and counted them."

"Lindeni (Myeni) was pleading with an attacker, asking the attacker not to shoot her, saying she was not from the area. I heard an explosion from the firearm. I noticed Lindeni falling down. I did not notice whether she was dead or not," Edith testified.

Betty said that she was sitting in her bedroom with a child when she heard "the sound of a gunshot ringing from outside". She said that she lay on top of the child and "the shooting continued until it was inside the bedroom".

After she heard a firearm make a "clicking sound" one attacker called to another saying "bring a firearm, these dogs are not all dead". She said that a person replied from the dining room "let us stab them".

Betty said that after it became quiet she tried to lift her head to see what the attackers were doing. "I was unable to do so because there was another person lying on top of me. The person on top of me was dead," she said. She was not injured in the attack.

The case is continuing. - Sapa

Source: IoL

Top judge thrown off 'corrupt' arms deal inquiry

A top corruption buster was reported yesterday to have sought the backing of Nelson Mandela after South African President Thabo Mbeki blocked him from investigating alleged corruption in a 43 billion rand (£3.7bn) arms deal involving Britain.

The Sunday Independent, a South African sister paper of The Independent, and South Africa's Sunday Times newspapers said Judge Willem Heath, head of a successful anti-corruption unit, had telephoned Mr Mandela for backing after Mr Mbeki blocked him from investigating alleged corruption in the foreign arms deal.

The contract, signed in December 1999, involving arms firms in Britain, Germany, Italy, Sweden, France and South Africa, is supposed to generate investments worth 104 billion rand (£9bn) and create 65,000 much-needed jobs. But allegations of bribery have surrounded the deal, and a preliminary study by the auditor-general last year called for a more detailed audit after finding serious flaws in procedure.

Source: The Independent

Top judge thrown off 'corrupt' arms deal inquiry

A top corruption buster was reported yesterday to have sought the backing of Nelson Mandela after South African President Thabo Mbeki blocked him from investigating alleged corruption in a 43 billion rand (£3.7bn) arms deal involving Britain.

The Sunday Independent, a South African sister paper of The Independent, and South Africa's Sunday Times newspapers said Judge Willem Heath, head of a successful anti-corruption unit, had telephoned Mr Mandela for backing after Mr Mbeki blocked him from investigating alleged corruption in the foreign arms deal.

The contract, signed in December 1999, involving arms firms in Britain, Germany, Italy, Sweden, France and South Africa, is supposed to generate investments worth 104 billion rand (£9bn) and create 65,000 much-needed jobs. But allegations of bribery have surrounded the deal, and a preliminary study by the auditor-general last year called for a more detailed audit after finding serious flaws in procedure.

Source: The Independent

Mbeki's decision sounds death knell for Heath unit

The decision by President Thabo Mbeki to exclude the Heath Special Investigation Unit from the controversial R43-billion arms deal probe signals the death knell of the unit, Judge Willem Heath said on Friday evening.

Quashing any hopes of the unit appealing the decision, Heath, who had not been officially informed of the exclusion by Mbeki said: "There is no next move because we have ceased to exist."

Heath said he was not surprised by the president's decision "because we have always anticipated the possibility".

"But of course I am disappointed. I know many other people in the country are disappointed. We were merely trying to protect the interests of the country as well as that of the government."

Source: News 24.com

A Nervous Congo Admits That Its President Is Dead

The Congo government finally announced today that President Laurent Kabila had died, two days after it was reported that he had been shot by a bodyguard. But it is not clear that the battle-worn and impoverished Congo is ready to accept his 31-year-old son as his successor. A Belgian businessman who lives in Kinshasa said the decision to name the son, Maj. Gen. Joseph Kabila, to lead the government seemed to increase tension here, a sentiment reflected on the streets. ''This is a government we have -- it's not a monarchy,'' said Moise Muamba, an 18-year-old student. ''They can't do what they did.''

The announcement on national television this evening that the president is dead gave no details of how he died. Most reports have said that he was shot by a bodyguard, apparently during an argument with some of his generals, and that he died while being flown to seek medical aid in Zimbabwe, which stood as his country's main ally, along with Angola. The government announcement said he had died today in a Zimbabwe hospital. In its announcement, the government also signaled its intention to continue the president's hard-line position toward a 29-month war against rebels that has thrown all of Central Africa into disorder.

Using the same language employed during Laurent Kabila's rule, the communications minister, Dominique Sakombi Inongo, said on state television that Mr. Kabila had left a testament to the army to ''flush the aggressors out of the national territory.'' The government has consistently described the war as an invasion from outside Congo and has refused to negotiate with the Congolese rebels, who are backed by Rwanda and Uganda. As the official announcement was being made, Congo rebels said their positions in the north were being bombed by government troops. The head of Congo Liberation Front, Jean-Pierre Bemba, reported the strikes to the news agency Agence France-Presse.

In the capital tonight, the streets were quiet, with a curfew still in place. People milling outside just before the start of the curfew reacted calmly to the death of Mr. Kabila, who marched into Kinshasa four years ago as the heroic victor over one of Africa's great dictators, Mobutu Sese Seko, but whose own dictatorial style had made him increasingly unpopular. ''There haven't been any positive things, so why should he be mourned?'' said Papy Masundi, 22, a trader who was sitting on a sidewalk and sharing a bottle of beer with four friends. One of his friends, Francis Basayi, 27, an apprentice taxi driver, said Mr. Kabila's death might now bring peace in Congo. ''If he wanted peace,'' Mr. Basayi said, ''peace would have come two years ago. He said he'd come to liberate us. But after all this time, we didn't see any change. The price of gasoline keeps climbing, and so does the price of food. Before I was doing a little well, but look at me now.''

Kinshasa was deserted Wednesday, a day after the shooting in the presidential palace, as people stayed home out of fear. But today taxis and buses started running again, and people returned to work all across Kinshasa, a sprawling city of five million that is like a carcass of houses, roads and sewers built by Belgian colonialists and abandoned by Congo's rulers. Ferry service on the great Congo River between here and Brazzaville, in the Congo Republic, remained closed. The government reopened the main airport, but most carriers stayed away because of insecurity. On one of the few planes that flew in and out of Kinshasa, many European and Lebanese women and children could be seen leaving the capital. Lebanese men, who fearlessly sustain businesses in the most unstable of African cities, typically send their wives and children away during crises -- and the men depart only when things fall apart completely.

After announcing the president's death tonight, state television showed images that tried to portray his son as having already taken control. It showed General Kabila receiving the ambassadors from Belgium, France, Britain, China and Russia, and an American Embassy representative, Barry Walkley. General Kabila, who has no political experience but who will be supported by his father's small inner circle, made no announcement of his own today. Little is known of him, other than that he received his military training in China after his father took over in 1997. Called back to this country after the outbreak of the current war in August 1998, Joseph Kabila was quickly given the rank of general. He is said to have been born in eastern Congo, near the borders with Rwanda and Uganda. His father was a small-time guerrilla fighter for three decades, most of them spent in the eastern region, before the Rwandans and Ugandans plucked him out of obscurity in 1997 to head a rebellion against Mr. Mobutu.

In Kinshasa, people were said to be unhappy about the son's ascension, not only because of its monarchical tinge, but for a far darker reason: His mother, people in Kinshasa say, is a Tutsi. The Tutsi ethnic group, which controls the governments in Burundi and Rwanda, are hated in this part of the country. It was Rwandan Tutsi -- the main victims of the 1994 massacre led by Hutu extremists -- who backed Laurent Kabila against Mr. Mobutu. But once Mr. Kabila arrived here in Kinshasa, he quickly turned against his former Tutsi patrons. Though he had helped the Tutsi exact revenge on Hutu extremists, Mr. Kabila did an about-face to side with these same Hutu. Many of the Congolese rebels who are backed by Rwanda are ethnic Tutsi. Called the Banyamulenge, they have lived in Congolese territory for generations but have never been accepted by other Congolese. After the outbreak of war in August 1998, Mr. Kabila often seized on Congolese hatred of Tutsi to rally his forces.

In Kinshasa, Mr. Kabila never brooked much freedom, and that legacy survived his death. Even as his government denied for two days that Mr. Kabila had been killed, the residents of Kinshasa heard the news on shortwave radio from France, Britain and the United States. People interviewed this evening, before the official announcement was made, were wary of speaking of his death. Most seemed afraid even of mentioning his name. ''It's difficult -- no one knows what's happening,'' said Christian Unshemvula, 29, who speaks English with an American accent and said he had studied at San Jose State University. ''I just want things to improve in this country, on the economic and political levels.'' Asked what effects Mr. Kabila's death might have on Congo's future, Mr. Unshemvula said: ''I'm not a politician. I don't know.''

The Kabila regime clamped down severely on its critics, and many of those interviewed today took the government line, which often seemed surreal. ''Since he's come into power, we've had peace,'' Alain Tshimwanga, 26, said of Laurent Kabila. ''Since he's been here, we've had no disruption.''

State television gave no details of Mr. Kabila's funeral. But the government of Belgium, the former colonial ruler, which was the first to announce Mr. Kabila's death on Tuesday night, said his body would be flown first to Lubumbashi, his hometown, and then here to Kinshasa. His funeral is expected to take place on Tuesday.

Source: New York Times