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__26-11-2001

BURUNDI : Politics-Diplomacy. The transition government and all involved parties in the Arusha peace accord say thanks to the region.

 

The transition government and all political parties that signed the Arusha peace and reconciliation deal have embarked on an intensive tour around the central African region to express their appreciation to those who made the accord become a reality.

 

Every single inhabitant  of this planet knows that havoc reigned in Burundi just after the assassination of the first ever democratically elected president, in 1993. The governments of the region, with the great contribution of the mediation by  the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, followed by another huge effort by the former South African President Nelson Mandela; brokered a peace deal on August 28, 2000. The transition government was subsequently sworn in on the first November this year.

 

It is a common tradition in Burundi for a great action in their favour to be followed by a sign of thankfulness and this government has done just that. According to political analysts in Bujumbura, this tour doesn’t mean that all is in place and over, but rather a way of asking for more, as surely there is still much to be done. A long lasting peace environment and security need to be assured, a cease fire has to be negotiated so that the population can come out of  the seemingly eternity suffering. 

 

We would like to point out that due to illness, the FRODEBU president, Jean Minani could not travel with the rest of the delegation. The party was instead represented by Salvator TOYI.

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25-11-2001

World Cup : The list of 32 is complete

Australia has once again missed out on the chances to enter the 2002 World Cup finals in Japan and Korea. After beating Uruguay 1-0 at home early this week, they were punished this weekend by a great display and a great result away, 0-3.

Here are the 32 finalists grouped according to confederations and continent.

·        AFC- Asian Football Confederation . 4 teams represent Asia: China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea.

·        CAF-Confederation Africaine de Football.  4 teams represent Africa in 2002 : Cameroon, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia.

·        CONCAF-Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football . 3 teams represent this part of the world: Costa Rica, Mexico and USA.

·        CONMEBOL-Confederación Sudamericana de Futbol.  Latin America is represented by 5 countries: Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay.

·        UEFA-Union of European  Football Associations. Europe is represented by 15 teams: Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey.

The 32 teams make up 8 groups and 48 matches will be played from May31st to June 15. The two top teams go to the second round. 24 first round matches will be played in Korea while the other 24 will be played in Japan. The opening match will be played in Seoul on May 31st at half past mid-day in Kigali and Bujumbura time. 4 fixtures in the second round will take place in Korea, 4 others in Japan.

The ¼ finals will be played on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 June in Shizuoka, Ulsan, Gwangju et Osaka. The first semi-final will take place in Seoul, on Tuesday 25 while the second will be played on Wednesday in Saitama. Daegu hosts the game for 3rd place, on Saturday June 29 while the final will be played in Yokohama on Sunday 30 June 2002 at mid-day Central African time.

Argentina are still the favourite to win the world cup just ahead of France while Cameroon, according to Eurosport sports analysts, are to reach at least the semi-finals. Games played at 15.30 local time will be watched at  4.30 in Buenos Aires, 6.30 in London and 7.30 in Paris/Kigali/Buja.

Wassup Angola ??????????

The friendly game opposing Angola to Portugal was abandoned the other day after the Africans were reduced to just 6 men. Angola who were leading 1-0 let in unprecedented leg-hunting football and the referee sent off 4 while the 5th got his leg broken. He abandoned the game at the 67th minute when Portugal was leading 5-1.

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15,16-11-2001

 

Rwanda: Get out of DRC or no aid, Kigali authorities told

 

Donors have told Rwanda to withdraw from Congo as they fear their money could be used to fund the war there.

 

Belgian ambassador to Congo Michel Latchenkho told the audience at the opening of a three-day donor conference in Kigali that the international community fears

that aid could be used to fund war efforts in Congo. He said: “in the long run, the Rwandans will lose out  though at the moment, alleged looting by the occupying foreign forces aggravate the impoverishment of the Congolese people”.

The war in Congo has sucked in many foreign armies. A peace accord signed in Lusaka in 1999 called for the withdrawal of all foreign troops.

The reason put forward by Rwanda is the fact that Congo is still harbouring half a million Hutus who may attack the country anytime. The Rwanda's Defence Minister Colonel Emmanuel Habyarimana said that they are ready to withdraw from Congo but “armed militias posing a threat to our security must be disarmed”.

 

Uganda and Rwanda invaded Congo in 1998, saying they wanted to neutralise the threat posed by rebel groups sheltered in the east of the former Zaire. The war widened when Namibia, Angola and Zimbabwe sent troops to join the Kinshasa government side. The Rwandan government of President Paul Kagame has been criticised for the slow pace of reform since it came to power after the genocide. Critics say Kagame has used external security threats as an excuse to restrict political freedom.

"Before we talk of any development, there must be economic and social stability," Jean de Dieu Ntiruhungwa, Rwanda's interior minister said, urging the international community to help with the disarmament phase of the Lusaka ceasefire deal.

 

The conference organised by the donor community and the Rwandan Government said it cannot guarantee the signing of cheques before  Rwandan forces withdraw from Congo. But money is needed to alleviate poverty and HIV/AIDS in the tiny Central African Republic.

 

 

Burundi-Tanzania: Its www.burundi-bushasha.NGARA

 

Not being big-headed, but how more popular can you be? A U.N. agency and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) signed a deal on Wednesday to get some 135,000 Burundian refugees hooked online. It is going to be a Cyber refugee camp, said a clever refugee interviewed by Burundi-bushasha.

The UN has promised Internet services to refugees in a number of refugee camps in the North of Tanzania so they can catch up with what is going o around the world.

People in refugee camps are ecstatic, they cannot believe it is happening so soon. “People are so excited and have the latest news though this famous site, so shall we”: said a refugee coming back from Dar-Es salaam.

The centres, the first ever in refugee camps, will provide health, education, information and communication needs for the refugees, ITU Secretary General Yoshio Utsumi told a media briefing but refugees have also other things in their minds, reading news on the ever popular site on the NET.

 

Communications charity Volunteers in Technical Assistance will provide satellite support. WorldSpace Corporation, which provides low-cost digital broadcast from satellites, will provide equipment, including satellite receiver and data terminals to download web-based multimedia content.

The first centre will be opened by February 2002 in Ngara. You are up for a treat, Ngara folks!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is great that refugees are soon receiving these services, but we think it is much better to speed up the ceasefire talks so they can go back to their home land.

 

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08-11-2001

 

BURUNDI: Rebels kidnap kids to force direct negociations, parents are furious

 

We have always mentioned this in our articles that President Buyoya has never expressed a will to really stop the war. He mismanages his business and the country has been characterised by corruption for a long time now. 

 

The transitional government has a huge task ahead of them, they should show how tough they are prepared to be and how serious they are to handle national affaires. They should open face to face negotiations  with those elements attacking the country, FNL and FDD. Rebels have now adopted another dirty trick of kidnapping school children, keep them as hostages to force the government make concessions. This strategy is driving parents mad, it is getting out of hand and they are not going to wait any longer. The government should make that a priority and do something about it as soon as possible to rescue those innocent angels, the leaders of tomorrow.

 

 

But to the amazement of the international community and Burundi-bushasha, we have noticed and regret to hear the president telling his cabinet this: “It does not matter, why don’t they kill the kids then?” Wait and see!

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06-11-2001

Africa : a peaceful sub-Saharan Africa very soon

Of course you can day-dream or draw conclusions, but believe it or not, something big is about to happen in that part of the world. Do these names or words mean anything in your life? Ange Felix Patasse, Paul Kagame, Yoweri Museveni, Kaunda, FDD and FNL are certainly not varieties of coffee, cocoa, of bananas. Check this out.

In our last editions, in French, we told how Ugandan President refused to travel to Burundi to avoid meeting his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame. The old friends who nowadays seem to speak different languages have met today in London and had talks with the British Prime Minister, iron Tony Blair. After that they met again in a mini summit organised by the Overseas Development minister, Clare Short. There are tensions between the two countries since their clashes in Kisangani in 1999.  Rwanda is accusing Uganda of massing troops on its border while Uganda accuses Rwanda of harbouring dissidents plotting to overthrow Museveni. Britain is a major donor in the two countries and is trying to calm down the situation which seems to worsen day after day. In August, Mr Museveni wrote to the British Government asking for military help because of the threat of attack by Rwanda.

Don’t be misled, these two are true friends, they will be back.

In Burundi, the power seem to be in the hands of FDD and FNL instead of the newly sworn-in transitional government. The two armed movements have played a major role in the war against the Tutsi-dominated army and indirectly forced the government to go to the negotiations.

Diplomats, observers and political analysts in Bujumbura are said to be sympathetic with the two movements, however, they think they are taking things a little too far. Now that there is a new government, though they are not part of it, shouldn’t they cooperate for the interest of all Burundians? Aren’t they fighting for the well-being of the population?

In the Central African Republic, things are going from bad to worse and last night, heavy fighting were reported in the south of Bangui. The current crisis was triggered by the sack of General Francois Bozize accused of Coup attempt. His failed arrest simply worsened the already volatile situation. The general supporters have staged roadblocks in the north of the capital and the president is being guarded by his special security and Libyan soldiers.

Further south, in Zambia, Kaunda is tipped for a comeback. Africans remember the man with grey hair, his magic handkerchief and his motto “One Zambia, One Nation”. He is back. Not Kenneth but  Tilyenji, his son. Dr Kaunda’s party, UNIP, which ruled the country for 3 decades after independence has just announced their presidential candidate Tilyenji Kaunda for this year’s presidential and parliamentary elections.

So what do you think ? The beginning of the end or end of the beginning!!!!!!!!!!!

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05-10-2001

Tanzania: Trade minister quits

 

Tanzanian Trade Minister Iddi Simba has resigned amid corruption allegations, but will head a delegation of poor countries to a World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting this week, officials said this morning in Dar-Es-salaam.

 

The minister has been accused by the media and other officials for issuing regular illegal sugar imports licences and the Tanzania's parliament was due to debate a 125-page report containing the allegations this morning

Tanzania is expected to to lead representatives of the world's 49 least developed countries (LDCs) at a WTO meeting in Doha, Qatar, from November 9-13 where rich countries hope to launch a new round of talks to promote free trade.

Simba, who was appointed trade minister in 1998, has sought to forge a united front among the group to fight for a fair deal from industrialised nations, which they accuse of distorting global trade rules to exploit the poor.

Tanzania has said poor countries should oppose the launch of a new trade round until rich countries keep previous commitments to open their markets to poor countries' exports.

 

Reuters  reported this morning that Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa was "very sorry" to receive Simba's resignation, which would take effect from November 16.

Burundi: Clashes again

It is reported that four soldiers have been killed in clashes between the Government army and Hutu rebels since the so-called “hope government” was installed in Bujumbura.

 

The new government was sworn in last Thursday and its main goals is to reconcile Burundians and lead the country to a violence free environment. Clashes of this nature between Tutsi Soldiers and  Hutu rebels have killed  more than 200,000 people since 1993 and devastated the tiny central African country.

Most political parties are represented in the new cabinet, but the two main armed Hutu rebel groups have rejected the arrangement and vowed to continue their civil war against the Tutsi-dominated army.

Both rebel groups, the FDD and FNL, are thought to have been involved in the past three days of violence. One rebel leader interviewed by Burundi-bushasha said: “We ain’t gonna stop the war until we bring the Tutsi army to its knees, we don’t care about the new government, it is not ours”.

 

One army officer was killed this morning in Kirimbi (in southern Bururi province) when the army tried to chase  a group of rebels out of the province. It is also reported that government soldiers are fed up with the endless war and mostly demoralised after the arrival of South African soldiers to take part in the protection of transition institution. Some sources talk about soldiers defecting to rebel positions.

 

The weekend was also dominated by violence. On Saturday, rebels attacked a military patrol in Isare, in the hills situated at 13 miles from the capital Bujumbura, killing three soldiers.  A minibus from Bukavu to Bujumbura was ambushed also on Saturday but all passengers managed to escape unheart.

On Sunday, rebels burned the office of a local administrator in Muhweza in southern Bururi, around 87 miles from the capital, a military source said.

Its about time both parties realised that only peaceful means will heal Burundi. It also looks like the new government has a tough task ahead but with the help of the international community and the neutral force to re-enforce security and protect the transition institutions, things will improve bit by bit.

 

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15-10-2001

 

BURUNDI-South Africa: South Africa honours its promises

 

After the positive results from the Pretoria summit last Thursday in which heads of states from the region brokered a peace deal in Burundi , things associated with to the November 1 rendezvous seem to be on the right track especially between the two main political parties, UPRONA and FRODEBU. “Yes we have just agreed on a number of texts which will be shaping our Transition Institutions”: announced to Burundi-bushasha Mr Domitien NDAYIZEYE, deputy President to be.

 

On the other hand, according to the South African Ministry of Defence, the country is ready to send troops in Burundi to protect the Transition institutions in the next five days. South Africa has therefore proved that it honoured its promises, contrary to what the cynics thought. We would like to point out that several people among the Burundi military are against a foreign army presence in the country. They would rather prefer to see those authorities coming in Burundi from exile being protected by the very army which sent them into hiding. They want to create an atmosphere which will render those politicians easy to capture and netted like fish.

 

Following the sending  of South African troops, we have learned from the FRODEBU headquarters that Honourable Jean MINANI, the party president and Mr TOYI Salvator, the Finance genius are getting ready to head back to Burundi very soon. Burundi-bushasha wishes them well and safe return to their ancestors’ land, we hope their will be greeted by total peace and Security.

 

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11-10-2001

 

Burundi : Last Peace hope: South African summit

African leaders are meeting in Pretoria today to try to tie up a peace deal for the war-torn Burundi and agree on a peacekeeping force to monitor it.

Diplomats and analysts said the success of the one-day talks depends on whether the leader of Burundi’s main rebel group, FDD(Forces for the Defence of Democracy) attends the meeting. Officials said the heads of state of Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, Gabon, DRC and ministers from Rwanda and Kenya were meeting Burundi chief negotiator, former South African president Nelson Mandela.

FDD and FNL(Forces for the National Liberation) have shunned previous summits, arguing Burundi military ruler Major Pierre Buyoya should first negotiate a ceasefire with them. FDD had not arrived when the meeting began. Diplomats said that talks must focus on the establishment of a transitional government due to be installed on November 1 to help end the war in Burundi.

Mandela announced in July Burundi political parties had agreed to set up the temporary government to prepare the ground for democratic elections 3 years later. Under the peace accord signed in August last year, Buyoya, an ethnic Tutsi will be leader for the first 18 months transition, with an ethnic Hutu as his deputy. The job will be reversed during the second 18 months.

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07-10-2001 : Sport News

This weekend was dominated by the qualification matches for the World Cup finals and Burundi-bushasha has the exclusive of all-related news.

World Cup Qualifications

1. Africa

 

The five countries to represent Africa in the World Cup finals are now known. They are: Senegal, Nigeria, Cameroon, Tunisia and South Africa.  It is the first time that Senegal have qualified for a World Cup final. They were in the toughest group of the qualifications and had to sweat to achieve the top spot. South Africa, Tunisia and Cameroon qualified with ease.

 

Here are the final standings :

 

Group A     Pts              Group B     Pts              Group C     Pts    +/-

 

Cameroon        19                    Nigeria             16                    Senegal            15        +14                 

Angola             13                    Liberia              15                    Morocco          15        +  8

Zambia             11                    Sudan               12                    Egypt               13       

Togo                  9                    Ghana              11                    Algeria               8

Libya                  2                    Sierra Leone       4                    Namibia             2

 

Group D     Pts                                           Group                  Pts

 

Tunisia              20                                                        South Africa                 16       

Cote d’Ivoire    15                                                        Zimbabwe                    12

Congo DR        10                                                        Burkina Faso                  5

Madagascar       6                                                        Malawi                           1

Congo                5

 

2. Oceania

 

Australia is top of their Continent’s qualification table just in front of Fiji. They will face the 5th in the south American table, most probably Brazil.

 

3. Latin America

 

Here is the standing in the South American qualification table:

Argentina          38

Paraguay          29

Ecuador           26

Brazil                24

Colombia         24

 

The continent is represented by 4 countries but could be five if No 5 beat Australia

 

4. Asia

 

Here are the standings:

 

Group A                                           Group B              

 

Saudi Arabia                14                                China                           13

Iran                              12                                UAE                            10

Iraq                                7                                Qatar                             9

Bahrain                           6                                Uzbekistan                     7

Thailand                         3                                Oman                             2

 

The leaders of each group go through automatically whereas the two runners-up clash between themselves to clinch the 3rd spot.

Korea and Japan did not need to compete as they are the ones organising the finals.

 

5. Europe

 

Nine of the 14 countries representing Europe in the world Cup finals are already known namely :

 

  1. Russia
  2. Denmark
  3. Poland
  4. Spain
  5. England
  6. Portugal
  7. Sweden
  8. Croatia
  9. and Italy

 

The rest will be known after the play-offs and the countries involved are:

Slovenia, Czech Rep, Ukraine, Austria, Germany, Republic of Ireland, Belgium and Romania.

The world champions, France were not involved in the qualifications campaign as they do qualify automatically. The hot favourite to win the world cup are Argentina followed by the champions, France.

Friendly Match: France V Algeria

The party was spoiled last night as non-violent fans invaded the pitch and the referee had no choice other that suspend the match on the 75th minute. France was leading Algeria 4-1.

Copa America

Colombia has lifted the South American Cup after beating Mexico 1-0. The two teams had beaten respectively Honduras 2-0 and Uruguay 2-1 in the semi-final.

Basketball

Michael Jordan has made a sensational comeback in the game after a 3 year self-imposed retirement. He will be playing for the Wizards alongside the likes of Richard Hamilton and Courtney Alexander.

Dennis Rehman, 40, might as well come back in the NBA.

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04-10-2001

Rwanda-Tanzania: Genocide Trials

Belgium has handed over a genocide suspect to the UN Tribunal in Tanzania.

Protais ZIGIRANYIRAZO, the brother in Law of the late President HABYARIMANA was handed over to the UN Tribunal based in Arusha in connection with the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. He is alleged to have ordered roadblocks and consequently, several opposition members were killed. Half a million people were reported killed during the genocide itself and the war between the Government and RPF Tutsi rebels.

Kenya: Kenyatta is back

Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi has nominated the son of his predecessor Jomo Kenyatta to the country’s Parliament.

Uhuru Kenyatta’s nomination is an apparent attempt to widen the party’s leadership ahead of next year’s election. Kenyatta, 40, son of the country’s first President is from Kenya ‘s largest tribe, KIKUYU and is tipped for a leading role in the ruling party, KANU.

Zambia: President Divorces

Zambian President, Frederic CHILUBA has divorced his wife after 33 years of marriage. He then told a gathering in KITWE that being a bachelor was a terrible headache.

He said that being single again meant that he had to cook and do some household work on top of being President as well as First Lady. His ex-wife, Vera Tembo Chiluba heads Hope Foundation, a charity distributing food to impoverished families in Lusaka and other provinces. She is very popular and is likely to seek a parliamentary seat in next year’s election.

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02-10-2001

Burundi: Arusha

Yesterday, the heads of states from our region have met in the negotiations capital(Arusha) to discuss the issue of the Transition Institutions which are expected to be formed on the 1st October this year. Two important topics were discussed namely:

·        The issue of a Special Force to protect Transition Institutions, especially the protection of political figures who will go in the country from exile.

·        Reforming the security forces(the Army, the Police and the Judiciary). A delegation of military experts from 4 countries who have agreed to provide assistance related to the Protection of Transition Institutions, has arrived in Burundi since last week. In Arusha, certain political figures from the G7 have expressed their fears that, 28 days to go, the issue of that Special Force is far from being resolved. One of them approached by Burundi-bushasha conceded: “I have learned from experience. Without the presence of that Special Force, there is no way I will go in Burundi as it is difficult to trust BUYOYA’s Lieutenants and Captains.

The next meeting will be held in Johannesburg  in a week’s time on the 11th and it is hoped that the Armed Movements fighting in Burundi will be invited.  

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01-10-2001

Burundi : Killings go on and people in power encourage them

They are known, they are seen wandering around and they are free, they are in power(the army), they rule. The killers of the first ever democratically elected President, the late Melchior NDADAYE on 21-10-1993 are neither arrested nor tried, they have no worries at all.

 

Burundi, a country completely taken over by insecurity and impunity is ranked second just after Sierra Leone as far as Human Rights’ violations are concerned. To make matters worse, the state uses its power tools to violate its own citizens.

Another sad story similar to the assassination of 1993 has just reached Burundi-bushasha. In December 1999, Honourable Gabriel GISABWAMANA was gunned down in his Cibitoke constituency by a member of the same group who killed the President in 1993.

The killer, Sergeant pascal NDIKURIYO was arrested later on and put in jail in Mpimba Prison. On 26September 2001, the Military Court of Bujumbura(General Audit) released him unconditionally with a BUFrs1000 fine, which is the equivalent of 1US$.

 

In Burundi, you can have a Dollar, kill an MP and get away with it. Where is the country heading to? On November 1st, the transition government will be formed following the Arusha peace agreement and once again BUYOYA will be the head of State. Independent observers ask themselves how Burundi will reach lasting peace without justice for all.

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27-09-2001

Burundi: Refugee repatriation

A meeting between Burundi government officials, Tanzanian government and the UNHCR has just ended. It was reviewing the progress made in the preparation to repatriate half a million of Burundian refugees in Tanzania.

The question remains to know whether there is enough security in Burundi to ensure safety of those going back.

Rwanda-DRC: Blantyre meeting

The Rwandan President Paul Kagame has declared being satisfied with the outcome of his meeting in Malawi with President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

According to President Bakili Muluzi, tangible progress has been reached concerning the withdrawal of foreign troops from the DRC.

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26-09-2001

 

Burundi: War, casualties and Diplomacy.

 

At times sad situations may seem really funny and this can be applied to war in Burundi. Senseless, isn’t it? Here we are, 8 years on and Burundian are still spending not only sleepless nights, but being killed because of selfish and uncompromising politicians. The country has become like the Middle East where only the fittest survive and where arms are the best instrument of claiming their rights “ a resident of Bujumbura expressed concern when he could not hear the sound of guns in the capital, he said everything was not OK; madness!!!!!!!!!”.

 

The “Route Nationale No1”, road connecting the capital to the rest of major cities in Burundi, Rwanda and East Africa(Kenya, Uganda), especially helping in hauling first necessity goods, had been closed since last Thursday following heavy fighting between Government soldiers and Hutu rebels. It was reopened on Monday 24 September. According to news of last minute sent to Burundi-bushasha, 19 people perished in Mageyo and 12 houses burnt down in Gasozo. The heavy fighting all started when rebels attacked an army gathering in Gasozo, announced a rebel source on Saturday. According to the same source, 7 soldiers died and a good number of arms were seized from them.

 

We would like to mention that armed groups are not yet part of the Arusha peace agreement “We cannot be part of an agreement which was signed unwillingly, and which we did not sign ourselves, added CNDD-FDD and FNL”.

 

On the other hand, the Speaker of Parliament Honourable Leonce Ngendakumana has just returned home from a 7 days visit to China. He has asked the Chinese authorities to support  the transition institutions. He had the opportunity to talk to the Chinese authorities in general and most especially his MPs counterparts “ Our colleagues from the Popular Republic of China have pledged to give us a hand, announced Honourable Ngendakumana”.

China supports a great deal of projects in Burundi especially in the Textile and medical industry. It has helped with the construction of COTEBU(textile complex of Bujumbura) there are Chinese doctors at Gitega Hospital and has helped in the construction of the Mugere hydro-electric Centre and RN7.

 

A source close to the Army headquarters has confirmed that the Buyuya Government(not the Burundi Government, if you know what I mean) is to send 500 officers to china, to have a commandos style training. They want to replace the injured or killed soldiers, or is it to specialise so they could stab again the young democracy in the back?

 

Democrats , be warned!!!!!!!!!!!

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25-09-2001

 

Rwanda-DRC

 

This may seem unbelievable but true ! a fly attacking an elephant. The Democratic Republic of Congo, with its area of 1, 245,000 square kilometres has been crying for 3 years, having been attacked by Rwanda, a country barely seen on the African map.

 

It is today Tuesday 25-09-2001 that the two enemy brothers, through their Presidents,DRC’s Joseph KABILA and Paul KAGAME of Rwanda, meet in Blantyre, Malawi’s second largest city. They will be joined by their Malawian Counterpart, Bakili MULUZI.

 

According to information gathered by Burundi-bushasha, here are the main topics on the agenda:

 

Still talking about the Great-Lakes, we would like to mention that Burundian President Major Pierre BUYOYA has just bought a massive property(farm) in Malawi, while Burundian people continue to die by famine. One ask themselves if the farm is of any benefit for the country or if President BUYOYA is simply “another version of MOBUTU”.

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24-09-2001

 

Burundi: Protection of Transition Institutions

 

The application of the Arusha Peace Agreement in Burundi continues.

As they prepare for the formation of the transition  Government; South Africa, Senegal and Nigeria have just sent to Burundi a technical delegation made of high military officers.

 

That delegation has a mission to analyse different ways and possibilities to form a special unit to protect the transition institutions.

We would like to mention that the delegation arrived on the 23rd September 2001 and the Ghanaian envoys are still awaited.

The Arusha Peace Agreement has agreed the formation of that special force after realising that the 1993 Presidential security team was not loyal at all; it is the one that helped in the assassination of the democratically elected President.

The technical delegation will be in the country for four days.

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22-09-2001

The management of Burundi-bushasha would like to remind its readers that the technical problem which had affected the publication of daily news  has now been resolved. News postings will be available from  Monday 24-09-2001. Once again we apologise for the inconvenience caused.

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Week-End news. 09-09-2001.

 

The world’s Racism Conference has adopted a final declaration recognising the injustice of slavery and colonialism and the “plight” of Palestinians. The final declaration was reached after the European Union and African delegations agreed to acknowledge that slavery is a crime against humanity. It dropped the “reparation and apology demands” to settle for dept relief. Reparation is not about monetary exchange, it is about African dignity, said the conference chairwoman, South-African Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma

 

Burundi, Rwanda, DRC

 

Sports news

World Cup News.

 

in Munich last week-end by beating them 5-1. All goals were scored by Liverpool players, a hat-trick from Michael Owen and two goals from Emile Heskey and Steven Gerrard.

It was Germany’s second defeat in 61 World cup qualifiers and their first in 28 years at the Olympic Stadium.

 

Three days later, England played against Albania who they beat 2-0 with Owen scoring again and his Liverpool team mate, Robbie Fowler scoring the winner. They are now top of Group Nine with Germany second on goal difference. They need only a goal against Greece at Old Trafford on October 6 to automatically qualify for Korea-Japan Finals next year. Finland beat Greece 5-1 and want to upset the Germans on October 6.

 

 

 

-Koreans eat 3 times a day and up to TWENTY dishes can be eaten during a meal.

-The Korean language resembles , Finnish and Turkish instead of Chinese or Japanese.

-The ancient martial art Taekwondo was invented in Korea.

-It is not unusual to find Japanese peeing in crowded streets and public loos are often unisex.

-The Japanese consider rude eating in the streets.

-Women are considered second-class citizens in Japan. Unmarried women after the age of 25 are often called “Christmas Cake”, they are treated as USELESS after 25.

 

Tennis.

 

Venus Williams has won the American Open after beating her younger sister Serena Williams 6-2, 6-4 in 68 minutes. The world No 2 and 2000 and 2001 Wimbledon champion declared: Its all going fine with me, I now have to concentrate on my ranking. The message sent a warning to World No 1 Martina Hingis who has not won a Grand Slam for a while now. Venus’ kid sister Serena is said to be gutted after losing to her older sister for the second time in two years.

She lost in the Wimbledon 2000 in the semi-finals and could not contain her tears. The latest defeat proves that the two sisters do not fix matches as often portrayed in the media.

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08-09-2001

Sorry we haven’t been able to update our site in the last few days. It has been due to a technical fault beyond our control. We will be resuming updates very soon.

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29-08-2001

 

The United States will not attend a Racism Conference because of the language used, critical on Israel. The US Secretary of State Colin Powell will not attend the Conference, said the Department spokesman, Richard Bucher.

This comes after negotiations to remove language that labels Israel as “racist”.

 

Bucher said sending a delegation to the Conference which starts on Friday in Durban, South Africa would associate the US with positions considered “offensive”.

The UN General Assembly which had labelled Israel’s policies of Zionism as “racist” in 1975 dropped the charges after the 1991 Madrid peace talks. The Bush administration also objected to support for reparations for slavery. The conference will be attended by 20 leaders including Fidel Castro of Cuba and Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

 

 

Burundian, Tanzanian and UNHCR officials have been meeting for the last couple of days to discuss the repatriation of Burundian refugees living in Tanzania.

It is reported that Rwandan refugees who left the country following the 1994 genocide and the war in 1990 and 1996 continue to go back to their country. The United High Commission for Refugees is evacuating Angolan refugees from the Congolese province of “Bas Congo”.

 

 

R&B singer and actress Aaliyah, 22 is among eight people who have died in a light aircraft in the Bahamas. She and other people were flying back to the US after filming her latest video when the plane crashed. Aaliyah, known to fans as “Baby Girl” recorded her first album “Age ain’t nothing but a number” in 1994 at the age of 15 with the production of R&B guru, R Kelly. She went on to release another Album in 1996 “ One in a Million” and starred in a movie “Romeo must die”, whose soundtrack “Try Again” was also massive. She had just released a new album.

As we pay tribute to Aaliyah, we should not forget to remember other stars who died in mysterious circumstances or who made our lives much better, such as “Tupac, Notorious BIG, Luambo and Nikidave”

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26-08-2001

International News

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last night, Iain Duncan Smith emerged favourite to win the contest, in a poll conducted by ICM for the Daily Telegraph, giving him 76% against 26% for his rival Kenneth Clarke. The successor of William Hague has a tough task to unite the party and trying to win the 2005 elections after the two landslide defeat by the Labour Party(1997,2001) headed by the Prime Minister Tony Blair.

 

Sport News

Today’s news are dominated by Football.

 

Leicester City’s misery continued after yet another defeat by Arsenal 4-0. The match was marked by a sensational goal from Nigerian Kanu at the last of his 4 minutes on the pitch.

Here are other results:

-Tottenham 1-2 Blackburn

-Southampton 0-2 Chelsea

-Everton 2-0 Middlesborough

-Fulham0-0 Derby

-Ipswich 0-1 Charlton

-West Ham 0-0 Leeds

-Fulham 2-0 Sunderland

-Aston Villa 1-1 Manchester United

-Bolton 1-3 Ipswich (Finidi George scores twice)

-Bolton 1-0 Middlesborough(3 defeats in 3 games)

 

Top scorer: Louis Saha, 3 goals-Fulham. Note that there are sometimes two games per team, per week in the Premiership(England).

France

Here are the results in the 1st Division (week 4)

-Guingamp1-0 Nantes

-Bastia 1-0 Marseille

-Lorient 2-0 Monaco

-Montpellier 2-0 Sochaux

-Paris saint Germain 3-0 Rennes

-Sedan 2-0 Metz

-Troyes 0-2 Lyon

-Bordeaux 1-1 Auxerre

 

Lyon are top of the table, Lens are second with goal difference.

Top scorer: D CISSE, 7 goals-Auxerre

Spain

On the first day of the la Liga season 2001-02 , Real Madrid , with Zinedine Zidane, were beaten by Valencia 1-0.

Here are other results:

-Deportivo 4-0 Valadolid

-Espanyol 2-1 Zaragoza

-Osasuna 0-3 Celta

-Real Sociedad 1-3 Athletico Bilbao

-CD Tenerife 0-2Alaves

Germany

Liverpool have beaten Bayern Munich in the European super cup at the Louis II stadium, in Monaco. The Reds of Gerard Houllier set another record by winning their 5th cup within a year.

Here are the Bundesliga results (4th week)

-Hertha BSC 2-3 Cottbus

-Koln 0-2 M’gladbatch

-Schalke04 3-3 Leverkusen

-Bremen 1-3 1860 Munchen

-Hamburg 2-3 Kaiserslarten

-Nurnmburg 2-4 Stuttgart

-FC Bayern 2-0 St Pauli

-Wolfsburg 1-1 Freiburg

-Rostock 0-2 Dortmund

Italy

The first day of the Serie A was red hot as Juventus romped Venezia 4-0 while Inter Milan beat Perugia 4-1.

Here are other results:

-Brescia 2-2 AC Milan

-Fiorentina 0-2 Chievo

-Lazio 0-1Piacenza

-Lecce 1-1 Parma

-Udinese 2-2 Torino

-Bologna 1-0 Atalanta.

Africa

 

 

 

-Esperance 0-0 Mamelodi Sundowns(South Africa) in Pretoria

            -TP Mazembe 1-0 Julius Berger(Nigeria) in Kinshasa

-El Ahly 3-0 Petro Athletico(Angola) in Luanda

 

 

Senegal who have qualified for the world cup are not in the top ten, the DRC are 15th and No71 in the world, Burundi are 34th and No 137 in the world, just ahead of Rwanda(35th and No 140 in the world). The last spot, 52 is held by Somalia and are ranked No 197 in the world.

Brief weather focus

Temperatures will range from 18 degree Celsius to 32 in Bujumbura, 15-29 in Kigali, 20-30 in Kinshasa, 12-27 in Nairobi, 18-30 in Dar Es Salaam.

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20-08-2001

International News in Brief

· At least 36 people are reported killed and 30 injured at a mine in Ukraine.

· Angola: an independent Angolan journalist Gilberto Neto has been banned to leave the country following a story published 2 years ago.

· The Angolan government has blamed UNITA rebels for the attack on a train this week. At least 90 people were killed and hundreds injured.

· Zimbabwe: police have arrested a number of journalists after stories of white owned farms confiscation stories-related were published. The arrests have re-ignited concerns about the freedom of the press in the run up to presidential elections next year.

· The 3 IRA men arrested in Columbia for allegedly training Marxist rebels are to be deported. But the Columbian officials are perplexed by the whole scenario. Apparently the 3 were to gain information on a mortar-fired

"super-bomb" and they are said to have a connections with Cuba, government in Havana confirms.

· Former US Vice-President Al Gore has appeared in Public for the first time since his controversial defeat in Us presidential elections last year. He has been on a long holiday in Europe, he has gained weight and grown a beard. Apparently, he would have to shave off his beard if he is to stand for election in 2004. 30% of Americans say they would back him if he stood next time.

· Finally: How Old were you when you had your first job?

She is 2years old and has just landed a teaching job. Clever Diana Graham(UK) learned sign language before she could talk-and is fluent aged two. She uses the signs to communicate with mum, 37 who is deaf and she can identify lots of colours and knows signs for her favourite TV programmes. Her grand mum whose parents were also deaf said she learned the signs when she was a tot but she was not as clever as Diana.

Diana has now a job at their local supermarket(ASDA) where she teaches the staff so they can communicate with deaf customers.

How about a laugh ?

· Before the G8 summit, American President George Dabya Bush was asked to name the names of the eight G8 members and answered with a grin. He said: "That's easy, they are Superman, Spiderman,….."
(Dave Letterman-The late Show with Dave Letterman…CBS)
· During his recent European tour, president Bush visited the UK and met the Queen. "Apart from both being head of States, they have something else in common; neither one of them has actually won an election".
(Dave Letterman-The late Show with Dave Letterman…CBS)
· Former American President Bill Clinton has a new office in New York. He has a special chair enabling him to have a 360 degree view, just in case wife Hillary comes in by surprise. Lewinsky is not a member of staff but there are other gorgeous young ladies.
(Dave Letterman-The late Show with Dave Letterman…CBS)
· The Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi has asked Kenyans to go two years without sex to cut down the spread of the deadly HIV-AIDS virus.
· Wycleff Jean is not as tough as we thought after all. He says he calls his mum everyday from wherever he is in the world. The former star of the group Fugees who has just released a tune entitled "Perfect Gentleman" with lyrics such as: "I call up my mum to tell her I'm in love with a stripper" admits: I must call my mum, otherwise she can kick my a** anytime.
· A fun saddened by the spilt between Jennifer Lopez(JLo) and Puff Daddy said: "JLo ain't nothing but a big booty mother f*****, we see many like her in the hood"

Sport News

Tennis :-Serena Williams has defeated Monica Seres in the Canadian Open to book a place in the final. She will play fellow American Jennifer Capriati.
-Andre Agassi was beaten by number 10 seed Sjeng Schalken in the Washington Open. The Dutchman will meet Andy Roddick in the final.

Formula 1: Here are the results(top 5) of the Hungarian Grand Prix warm up.

Position Name Team Country

1 Coulthard David Mclaren Mercedes Great Britain
2 Schumacher Michael Ferrari Germany
3 Barrichello Rubens Ferrari Brazil
4 Schumacher Raff Williams BMW Germany
5 Hakkinen Mika Mclaren Mercedes Finland

Michael Schumacher has won the Hungarian Grand Prix with his Ferrari team mate Rubens Barrichello coming second. The Briton David Coulthard finished third while the youngest of the Schumacher brothers, Raff finished 4th. The number five spot was taken by Mika Hakkinen.

Football

England: There were lots of surprises in the first week of the English premiership this weekend. Here are the results.

-Charlton were beaten at home by Everton (1-2)
-Derby beat newly promoted Blackburn (2-1)
-Leeds 2-0 Southampton
-Liverpool 2-1 West Ham
-Sunderland 1-0 Ipswich
-Tottenham 0-0 Aston Villa
-The biggest upset came from the underdogs, newly promoted Bolton already tipped to go down at the end of the season as they hammered Leicester 5-0.
-Manchester United beat Fulham 3-2. Fulham, team owned by multi-millionaire Egyptian Mohamed Fayed, playing in the premiership for the first time were ahead twice through goals from Luis Saha. But 2 goals from Ruud Van Nistelrooy and one from England captain David Beckham destroyed the visitors at Old Trafford.
-Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle.

Top goal: Alan Smith, Leeds as voted by Ali Mccoist(The Premiership ITV1)

Italy: Juventus have beaten AC Milan on penalties to claim the pre-season Luigi Berlusconi trophy on Saturday after a 1-1 draw.
Juve scored on the 4th minute through Alessandro Del Piero while AC Milan's goal came from Serginho on the 80th minute. Juve Won on penalties 3-2.

Did you know? Luigi Berlusconi is Italian Prime Minister since May this year, the owner of AC Milan and Italy's richest man.

France: -Lens have retained the top spot on week 4 of the French division championship after beating Olympique Marseille 2-0 when the Senegalese trio: El Hadji Diouf, Pape Sarr and Ferdinand Coly went berserk.
-PSG held Monaco to 2-2
-Auxerre seized second place.

Germany: Here are the weekend's Bundesliga results (Day 4)

FC Schalke 04 3-3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
FC Werder Bremen 1-3 TSV 1860 Munchen
Hamburger SV 2-3 1.FC Kaiserlautern
FC Bayern Munichen 2-0 FC St. Pauli
VFL Wolfsburg 1-1 FC Freiburg
FC Hansa Rostock 0-1 Borussia Dortmund

Spain: Luis Figo has admitted he may not see out his 6 year contract with Real Madrid. The former most expensive player at £37 million has told Portuguese newspaper Record: I hope to return to Portugal in the near future.

The Spanish championship(La Liga) will begin on the 26th August and Burundi-Bushasha will bring you all the actions. Here are next weekend's fixtures:

26-8-01: Malaga V Relis Balompie
26-8-01 Valencia V Real Madrid
26-8-01 Deportivo
Corunia V Valladolid
26-8-01 Mallorca V Palmas
26-8-01 Real Sociedad V Athletico Bilbao
26-8-01 CD Tenerife V Alaves
26-8-01 Osasuna V Celta
Rayo
26-8-01 Vallesano V Villarreal
26-8-01 Sevilla FC V Barcelona
26-8-01 Espanyol V Zaragoza

Africa

-Senegal have qualified for the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan after beating Morocco and Namibia. They defeated Namibia 5-0 after Morocco had failed to grab a point they needed to qualify in Dakar. Egypt was in the same group.
So far, Cameroon, Nigeria and Senegal have qualified and other two countries are still awaited.

-A draw was held on the 18th August in New Delhi for the first Afro-Asian tournament. The tournament will start in new Delhi on November 2 and the first two top teams will advance in the semi-finals.

Here are the two groups:

Group A                      Group B

Nigeria                         Cameroon
India                             Iran
Turkmenistan                South Africa
Morocco                      Kuwait

- Finidi George has moved to Ipswich for £3.1 million from Real Mallorca and had an immediate impact in their 1-0 defeat of Sunderland. The Nigerian Star has promised a lot of goals and will continue his bizarre goal celebration.
- Lucas Radebe has lost his captaincy at Leeds to Rio Ferdinand, the England international most expensive defender in the world. He was bought at £18 million from Hest Ham last season. It is said that Radebe may as well lose the arm band for his country, South Africa.
- South African Phil Masinga has been refused a work permit to play for Coventry City. He has already played in England for Leeds and has been playing in the Italian Serie A for Bari. Coventry will appeal against the decision.

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15-08-2001

Burundi : Armed Political Movements

It has been sometime since we heard much about the political heavyweight movement, CNDD-FDD.
We hear these days from various sources that the movement is set to make a comeback in the headlines. But reliable sources state that the weight given to the news may be exaggerated and need to be verified and confirmed. Therefore, the General Directorate of the movement has promised to say something about the issue in our forthcoming editions. At the same occasion, it will shed some light on the relations between the movement and FNL. Burundi-bushasha will bring you an exclusive of the true and original story, so watch this space.

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14-08-2001

Various News from the Region

· In Burundi, at least 30 members and officials of PARENA have been arrested and put in prison last week. They were demonstrating together with other non-members against what is known as international troops as stipulated in the Arusha peace process. PARENA is the party headed by former President Jean Baptiste Bagaza.
In the Arusha peace accords signed on 28-8-2000, Burundians have agreed to create a 50-50 national army to be shared between the two rival ethnic groups, the Hutu and the Tutsi.
· The World Food Programme has began feeding people in the government held province of Katanga, according to the BBC World Service. WFP says that more than 150,000 displaced people are in urgent need of food aid .
· The French Foreign Minister has left Kigali yesterday where he held talks with the Rwanda President Paul Kagame. It was the first visit of a French Official since the 1994 Crisis which worsened relations between the two countries. In Brazzaville, the Frenchman will meet Congolese President Denis Sassou Nguesso. AS he continues his tour of the Great Lakes in the Central African Region, he gas offered to offer support in resolving the conflict in the DRC.
· Britain has agreed to help in the disarmament of rebels attacking the Rwandan Government's troops. DFID Minister Claire Short announced that the programme will cost a total of $ 7billion and a big part of the amount will be given to women to convince their husbands to give up those acts of violence. The rebels attacking Rwanda are said to be those defeated in 1994 following the genocide.

Be warned African women

Various body creams and soaps are flooding African beauty stores as African women continue their search in lighter skins. But most of those creams and soaps contain chemicals like hydroquinone and mercury, powerful poisons forbidden in western countries. Dermatologists say that those products usually bleach by breaking down skin melanin and destroy its skin's protective outer layer in the process.

In the long run, the skin starts to burn and turns even blacker than before. Prolonged use can lead to kidney failure or skin cancer which can cause death. Those products that are mostly present in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and a few other Sub-Sahara African states.

13-08-2001

Dear Readers,

We are pleased to inform you that information will be available on a daily basis from the 14th August 2001. You will be able to read fresh news on the socio-politico-economic situation of Burundi and other central African countries. During the weekends, you will be spoilt with international and sport news of the week, plus a bonus of humorous stories. We are confident that you will have fun at this website.

 

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