Hi Qwerty ol' freind,
maybe this will make your wait a bit more tolerable hang in there
Regards
john
The Post of Zambia (Lusaka)
Kabila finally backs down
March 24, 1999
By Reuben Phiri
Lusaka - Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Laurent Kabila has
finally agreed to meet rebel
forces to discuss a ceasefire.
President Frederick Chiluba, on arrival at Lusaka International Airport
from a oneday visit to the DRC to confer
on the ongoing conflict, disclosed that President Kabila had changed his
position on meeting Congolese
rebels.
"I am happy I have managed to secure concurrence from President Kabila
to involve the rebels directly at
official level," President Chiluba said.
"That will open the way for us to go further."
Initiatives for a ceasefire have in the past flopped because of
President Kabila's insistence that he was not
prepared to meet face to face with leaders of the rebel forces led by
Wamba Dia Wamba.
President Chiluba said after yesterday's deliberations, a meeting had
been set at which rebels will sit at official
level together with the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and United
Nations representatives, including the
DRC government officials to discuss modalities of the ceasefire.
"We had been engaging in a proximity arrangement from the beginning but
I am happy this will accelerate the
pace for the ceasefire," he said.
President Chiluba, briefing the press in DRC, disclosed that President
Kabila has commenced initiatives to
help resolve the ongoing feud between Zambia and Angola.
He said President Kabila had already put "certain measures in place" to
ensure that Zambia and Angola
settled the accusations in a diplomatic way".
"He's already done something and I'm sure things will be clear,"
President Chiluba said.
He, however, reiterated Zambia's denial of Angola's accusations that it
was supporting Jonas Savimbi's rebel
UNITA movement.
"We are a product of a democratic process and we can't be expected to
engage in such things as we're being
accused," he said. "We believe in true democracy and everyone should
look at us that way. We are a peaceful,
morally upright society and our conscience cannot allow us to engage in
the sort of deeds we are being
accused of having done."
President Chiluba said those who buy and sell arms or engage in
gunrunning have a lot of money and he did
not think Zambia had such people.
"Savimbi has diamonds and has big money and I don't think he wants to
deal with people from Zambia,"
President Chiluba said.
He said the gunrunning allegations have not affected Zambia in any way
because they have never been
substantiated.
"We don't harbour any ill feelings towards Angola and we would wish our
friends enjoyed peace after all these
years of war," said Chiluba.
Copyright © 1999 Post of Zambia. Distributed via Africa News
Online(www.africanews.org). For information
about the content or for permission to redistribute, publish or use for
broadcast, contact Post of Zambia at the
link above.
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The Times of Zambia (Lusaka)
Kabila agrees to involve rebels in talks
March 24, 1999
by Times Reporter
Lusaka - President Chiluba has said his Congolese counterpart Laurent
Kabila has agreed to involve rebels
fighting to topple him in future peace talks at official level. Mr.
Chiluba said in the Congolese capital Kinshasa
on ZNBC news monitored in Lusaka that President Kabila had agreed to
meet the rebels so the two sides
could quickly sign a ceasefire.
He said Mr. Kabila had in the recent past called for internal dialogue
either in Africa or Europe in the interest of
peace in DR Congo. Earlier before departure at the Lusaka International
Airport, Mr. Chiluba said he was
going to DR Congo to find out whether his Congolse counterpart had
consulted his cabinet on pertinent issues
of the peace process.
On the stand-off between Zambia and Angola, Mr. Chiluba said President
Kabila was making efforts to reduce
the tension between the two countries. Mr. Chiluba said he had briefed
South African head of state Nelson
Mandela and President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe regarding the
accusations that had been repeatedly
made by Luanda.
"We have undertaken certain measures and I am sure things will be
cleared. I have no ill feelings against our
brothers in Angola. We want an end to the civil strife so that the
people of Angola can see peace," he said. And
the MMD has supported President Chiluba's leading role in the SADC peace
initiative in the war-ravaged DR
Congo. MMD information chairman Vernon Mwaanga said at a Press briefing
in Lusaka the SADC mandate
to Mr. Chiluba was in line with the spirit of maintaining peace and
stability in the region.
Copyright © 1999 Times of Zambia. Distributed via Africa News
Online(www.africanews.org). For
information about the content or for permission to redistribute,
publish or use for broadcast, contact Times of
Zambia at the link above.
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