Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Gold/Mining/Energy : ARAKIS: HIGH RISK OIL PLAY (AKSEF) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jim Lamb who wrote (7361)	11/29/1997 3:54:00 PM
From: Douglas V. Fant	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9164

Jim, Don't count on it- but from an AKSEF shareholder's perspective that is good. This talk by Bashir just confirms what I feared- that by the SPLA's identifying what provinces should go into the southern half of the New Sudan, that Bashir's Secret Police and Mujahadeen "Holy Warriors" will now move into the Southern Kordofan and savage the population even further- more murder, more torture, more African children sold into slavery. But geopolitically there are two reasons why Bashir can't win- (1) early after the 1989 Coup, the National Islamic Front Party secretly rounded up and executed all top Army Commanders, very wisely fearing a counter coup from the secular Army who frowned upon "religiosizing" the Government. Now there are no tactically capable Sudan Army Commanders left- and (2) The United States has now taken a direct interest in what's going on in East Africa- see attached article- Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will be visiting all of the "front line" countries of Africa next week. Indeed study the list of countries which the Secretary is visiting. I spoke earlier here of a "New Order" in African Leadership, who are bent upon expelling the last colonialist vestiges from East Africa, which includes expansionist Arab Muslims, and establishing free-market based western-style secular regimes. It seems that the US has recogonized and has begun warming up to these African Leaders. At first the US objected to this new group of African Leadership as they disrupted the previously established order of political influence in Africa (previous to 1993 that is), seriously diminishing French influence in Africa (which in a way is bad because France appears to be the one European Nation that tries to stay involved in African affairs), and reducing the British influence too (however the British are IMO almost comatose from a geopolitical perspective as a people anyway; about all the British do nowadays is occupy space- look at their lack of response to Egypt's Mubarak call to Britain to help fight terrorism- another minor hint- do not invest in British Companies doing business in Africa- they are often unpopular and seen by locals as defenders of the antiquated "status quo" regimes!). The US has realized that the new African leadership is intent upon improving the lot of their respective peoples, and collectively will not tolerate any leader(s) who wants to keep Africa frozen in time in developmental terms, such as the NIF government. IMO Ms. Albright's trip to East Africa "legitimizes" in US geopolitical eyes the "New Order" of East Africa. Now from your investment perspective- the sooner the NIF Regime passes, then the sooner that Sudan will be pulled into this same sphere of development. I have no inside information, but I predict that the oil from the Unity Field will never leave East Africa- it can be used locally to fuel the growing economic boom (e.g. Uganda's and Eritrea's economies are growing at at a 5-6% clip). Also there is a particular reason that Bashir picked Kadugli to make the above statement which I will explain later as it has nothing to do with the meat of this note. So keep your fingers crossed that Bashir cannot back up his words.... Albright to Make Six-Nation Africa Tour 06:58 a.m. Nov 26, 1997 Eastern By Patrick Worsnip WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will make a six-nation tour of Africa next month that will include the turbulent Great Lakes states of Congo and Rwanda, according to the State Department. Spokesman James Foley said Albright would visit Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa and Zimbabwe from Dec. 9 to 15 in her first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office in January. She will start her tour with a speech in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, to the Organization of African Unity, which has its headquarters there, Foley told a news briefing. He said a key focus of her trip would be ''advancing U.S. interests in the Great Lakes region, justice and the rule of law, stability and economic opportunity'' as well as developing a partnership with a new generation of African leaders. ''She believes that the United States can be a catalyst for the consolidation of political change in Africa,'' he added. Central Africa has been a scene of ethnic turmoil for the past four years. Hutu extremists massacred up to half a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda in 1994 before being ousted by a Tutsi-led force. A Tutsi-led rebellion later erupted in eastern Zaire in October 1996, leading in May to the overthrow of President Mobutu Sese Seko and the installation of President Laurent Kabila in what was renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, U.S. relations with Kinshasa have been bogged down in a dispute over a U.N. inquiry into alleged killings of Rwandan Hutu refugees by Kabila's forces. A U.N. team that first arrived in Congo in August has yet to start work. Some U.S. diplomats feel the United States is ''missing the tide'' of engaging with the new leadership in mineral-rich Congo because of the heavy emphasis on human rights under pressure from powerful lobby groups in Washington. Albright's predecessor, Warren Christopher, waited almost four years before making his first and only tour of sub-Saharan Africa in October 1996. He visited Mali, Ethiopia, Tanzania, South Africa and Angola. The tour provoked sarcastic comments from a French minister that Christopher had ''discovered'' Africa -- a traditional French sphere of influence -- on the eve of a U.S. presidential election. Albright's trip may well be seen in Paris as a fresh attempt to cash in on France's diplomatic discomfiture in the region, especially the ousting of its former ally Mobutu. One key stop on her tour will be Uganda, which is seen by Washington as an ally against the Islamist government in Sudan and also a model of political and economic reform. Uganda is one of two countries -- the other is Senegal -- where U.S. special forces have begun training African troops for a potential peace-keeping force on the continent. Like Christopher, Albright has included South Africa on her tour in homage to its economic strength and the prestige of President Nelson Mandela, despite U.S. irritation over two visits he recently paid to Libya. Spokesman Foley told reporters that throughout her tour Albright would aim to encourage trends towards economic reform in Africa following a period of political paralysis during the Cold War, and to promote American business in the region. The United States believes many African countries are quietly evolving into lucrative fields for Western investment, and President Clinton promoted an Africa initiative at the Group of Seven economic summit in Denver in June. [end]. ___ Finally FWIW, go into Reuters- Reuters sent one of its "heavyweight" reporters into East Africa, Christine Hauser, and for the last week she has been posting some outstanding news reports on the events in the Sudan....