Category: Politics

New Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema took office on Tuesday, 12 days after defeating incumbent Edgar Lungu in a general election.

VOA’s Peter Clottey sat down with Hichilema before Tuesday’s inauguration to discuss goals for his five-year term. Hichilema covered a wide range of topics and promised to improve a poor economy, defend human rights, and have better relations regionally and with Washington.

Excerpts from the 55-minute interview:

VOA: What would you want to have achieved within the first 100 days?

Hichilema: One, we want to reunite this country. This country has been divided for so many years and the divisions are visible. You just have to look anywhere, you see them in the workplaces, in the market areas, divisions all over.

We can then do the second anchor of what we are selling… reconstruction, rebuilding our country. So that’s rebuilding the country economically to bring back economic prosperity, to bring back investment, to bring back jobs, to expand jobs, to expand food for people.

VOA: What do you plan to do about the crackdown on press freedom and civil liberties?

Hichilema: Before this new dawn, citizens ran away from the police because the police tear gassed them, the police discharged live ammunition on them. Not anymore. The police who operate law and order keep law and order, but in a humane way, in a civilized way. And what does that mean to the population? It means that they can go about their business. And so we have called for the police to be professional in their conduct and that we will not inject political underhand methods.

VOA: What are your plans to address the debt situation?

Hichilema: We’ll put an eagle eye on it because we don’t want to lay more debt on already overburdened economics… We know that the debt was overpriced in many cases, especially project related debt… We’ll look at those issues with a keen eye and see what opportunities we have to dismantle this debt.

VOA: What is you plan to deal with public corruption following news that the state coffers are empty due to financial malpractices?

Hichilema: Our policy is very clear: zero tolerance to corruption. Zero and I mean zero. You come to protect public assets, you’ve come to grow these public assets, not to deplete them. I think it’s important that that message goes to my colleagues in the European Union, the allies, and the people in the civil service… We are going to strengthen the institutions that help us to fight corruption.

VOA: What is your message to the people who suffered under the previous administration and who are demanding a pound of flesh?

Hichilema: There was a perception that if you use force, then you stay in power. We have proved that wrong. I’m sure you remember at one point I couldn’t enter my own town and I asked the question: ‘Why should I not enter this town? Since when did I need a passport to enter this town?’ I don’t want to continue articulating those issues. But I want to say that, that’s over. So, the first thing we do is clearing that, that no one needs a permit. No one needs a license from anyone to hold a meeting… We will not allow other people to go through the pain we have gone through.

VOA: How do you want the already warm relations between Washington and Lusaka to be under your leadership?

Hichilema: Our values are very clear. We espouse clear values: constitutionalism, democracy, and democratic space to all, in accordance [with] our constitution, in accordance to subsidiarity laws. We ascribe the rule of law, order in society, respecting fundamental human rights, liberties, and freedoms.

VOA: What role do you think Zambia can play in promoting democracy within the SADC’s region and by extension Africa?

Hichilema: We think that we have already sent a signal that we are a child of democracy. We are a product of democracy… and we got elected against all odds. Honestly, we are a good example of how democracy must evolve even under brutal conditions.

So we are willing on the SADC’s platforms, African Union platforms to, in a small way, because we’re the new kids on the block, offer our own experiences so that others can either emulate or do even better.

VOA: What is your message to the people of Zambia after your success at the recent polls?

Hichilema: We have not overpromised anything. We have answered what people’s cries are. And with the people, with the difficult financial situation, with the support of those who believe in what we are doing, and democracy and rule of law, we think all of these factors brought together will begin to dismantle a very difficult situation and deliver for the people of Zambia over a five-year period.

Source: Voice of America

Cameroonian authorities are urging thousands of villagers who fled northern Cameroon after a violent conflict between herders and fishers this week to return home. The villagers fled across the border into neighboring Chad after clashes over resources left farms and villages destroyed.

Cameroon says the conflict between cattle ranchers and fishermen has displaced people in Logone and Chari villages, but residents are reluctant to return due to concerns of ongoing violence in the country’s northern border with Chad.

Midjiyawa Bakari is the governor of Cameroon’s Far North region, where the Logone and Chari Division is located.

Bakari insists that Mousgoum fishermen and Arab Choua cattle ranchers are fighting over water resources to maintain control over their natural habitats. He wants all civilians to know that Mousgoum fishermen also clash among themselves over water in fishing areas. He adds that the Arab Choua cattle ranchers have informed Cameroon government officials on several occasions that their peers allow cattle to stray out of ranches in search of water, causing tensions between Arab Choua cattle ranchers.

Bakari said Mosgoum and Arab Choua communities are not fighting to chase each other from territories they have been living in for decades.

Last week, the central African nation reported at least 11,000 civilians were displaced by conflicts between Mousgoum fishermen and Arab Choua cattle ranchers over water usage. Cameroon said 10,000 civilians jumped across the Logone river separating Cameroon and Chad to Chadian border towns and villages.

Kamssouloum Abba Kabir is an Arab Choua community leader and a lawmaker in Cameroon National Assembly’s lower house of parliament. He says peace is gradually returning to both communities.

He is pleading with displaced Arab Choua community in Cameroon and Chad to return home, he says, seeking peace and hoping to reconcile. He has called on the Arab Choua community members in Logone and Chari, an administrative unit on Cameroon’s northern border with Chad, to drop their weapons for peace and return.

Cameroon President Paul Biya held a 5th crisis meeting in Kousseri, the capital of Logone and Chari Division Monday. During the meeting, it was reported that 43 people have been killed and more than one hundred wounded in the clashes, including 40 villages burned.

Dougmbe Ahamat, a fisherman and spokesperson of the Mosgoum community, says civilians fear returning because their livelihoods have been destroyed.

“It is difficult for displaced Mosgoum fishermen and their families to return when their villages have been burnt down and fishing lands destroyed,” he said. “The social and economic consequences of the clashes are enormous, and many men were killed, and their wives and children do not know who to rely on.”

Bakari said the government will be sending assistance to the victims but did not say when. He, however, distributed food and matrasses to at least 200 displaced people who returned on Monday.

Mahamat Bahar Marouf is a traditional leader also known as Sultan of Logone-Birni, in another town in Logone and Chari Division.

Marouf says the Mosgoum and Arab Choua communities should learn to settle their disputes peacefully because they will forever live in Logone and Chari. “Fighting instead of exploiting limited natural resources in a sustainable manner will only bring misery to both communities, deepen poverty and underdevelopment,” he said.

Cameroon says it will send government officials, cleric and traditional rulers to Chad in the coming days to encourage people to return home.

Source: Voice of America

Somali security forces recaptured the town of Amaara in the central Galmudug region after al-Shabab militants briefly took over early Tuesday following a dawn attack.

The attack on Amaara and a subsequent roadside explosion in the same vicinity killed at least six people, including four Somali soldiers.

Witnesses and officials told VOA that al-Shabab militants began their attack with a suicide vehicle-borne explosion detonated near an army base.

Galmudug Information Minister Ahmed Shire Falagle confirmed the attack to VOA but disputed allegations that the town fell to al-Shabab. Falagle said the militants loaded a truck with sheep and goats to disguise the explosive-laden vehicle.

He said the truck exploded near a military camp, killing two civilians and three soldiers. A fourth soldier died, and six others were injured after their vehicle struck a landmine in the same vicinity, officials said.

Falagle told VOA that an airstrike targeted the militants near Amaara, but he did not give details.

The U.S. military in Africa, known as AFRICOM, later confirmed conducting a “collective self-defense” strike against al-Shabab fighters. AFRICOM said the militants engaged in active combat with Somali forces.

Initial assessment of the airstrike is that no civilians were injured or killed, AFRICOM said.

Amaara is one of three towns recently captured by Somali forces, with the U.S. providing occasional air support after al-Shabab reportedly posed threats to Somali forces, including the Danab unit trained by the U.S. military.

Source: Voice of America

A group of Somali opposition presidential candidates has rejected the government’s plan for upcoming elections. The rejection could result in yet another delay for the Somali polls.

The opposition Council of Presidential Candidates, or CPS, released a statement Monday saying they reject a new election roadmap proposed by the federal government and regional leaders.

The opposition argues that the process would give five regional leaders too much power in selecting the electoral delegates who will choose 275 members of parliament.

Opposition leader Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said there is need for a clear path towards the process on who will select the delegates and whom they represent since the parliamentary polls is based on the 4.5 power sharing formula. The former head of state adds they don’t want another delay on the polls, which were already delayed twice before, and thus demands a clear timetable.

The 4.5 formula refers to a plan for sharing power among Somalia’s dominant clans.

The indirect election of the parliamentarians is scheduled to commence early next month before the crucial presidential poll on October 10th. But, analysts say this new stalemate will delay the presidential polll if not urgently resolved.

Abdifatah Hassan, a Somali political analyst, said the new grievance by the opposition members will further push back the process to an unspecified date. He recommends urgent dialogue by the political stakeholders to avoid another election setback in the fragile nation.

Somalia’s election process was originally scheduled to start last year, but has been repeatedly delayed by political disagreements, in spite of pressure from the international community.

In April, Somali lawmakers voted for an extension of the president’s mandate, only to reverse that decision in May following violent clashes between opposition and government supporters in the capital Mogadishu.

Source: Voice of America

The United States imposed sanctions Monday on a top Eritrean defense official, citing Eritrea’s actions during the conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region.

The Treasury Department said in a statement that it is sanctioning Filipos Woldeyohannes, the chief of staff of the Eritrean Defense Forces (EDF), accusing the forces of carrying out abuses in Tigray.

The Treasury Department said the EDF engaged in “despicable acts” in Tigray, including “massacres, looting and sexual assaults.”

“The EDF have purposely shot civilians in the street and carried out systematic house-to-house searches, executing men and boys, and have forcibly evicted Tigrayan families from their residences and taken over their houses and property,” it said.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a separate statement Monday, “The United States will continue to identify and pursue action against those involved in serious human rights abuse in Ethiopia and prolonging the ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis.”

The Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected the U.S. allegations, calling them “utterly baseless.”

“Eritrea calls on the U.S. administration to bring the case to an independent adjudication if it indeed has facts to prove its false allegations,” the ministry said in a statement.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops into Tigray last November, saying it was a response to attacks on federal army camps by forces loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

Both Ethiopia and Eritrea denied for months that Eritrean troops were also in the region. Eritrea later acknowledged their presence, but denied they were involved in human rights abuses.

Tigrayan forces retook the regional capital Mekele in June, forcing a withdrawal of some Eritrean troops from the region. However, Blinken said in his statement Monday, “the United States is concerned that large numbers of EDF have reentered Ethiopia, after withdrawing in June.”

The United Nations says the fighting in Tigray has killed thousands of people and put hundreds of thousands of people in danger of famine.

Source: Voice of America

The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on an Eritrean official it accused of being engaged in serious human rights abuse in the conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, where thousands have been killed and over 2 million displaced.

The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said it had blacklisted Filipos Woldeyohannes, the chief of staff of the Eritrean Defense Forces, accusing the forces of being responsible for massacres, sexual assaults and purposely shooting civilians in the streets, among other human rights abuses.

The United States has repeatedly called for Eritrean troops to withdraw from Tigray.

“Today’s action demonstrates the United States’ commitment to imposing costs on those responsible for these despicable acts, which worsen a conflict that has led to tremendous suffering by Ethiopians,” Andrea Gacki, director of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, said in the statement.

“We urge Eritrea to immediately and permanently withdraw its forces from Ethiopia, and urge the parties to the conflict to begin ceasefire negotiations and end human rights abuses,” Gacki added.

Eritrea’s Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel did not return calls and text messages seeking comment.

War broke out in November between the federal army and forces loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) that controls the region.

The government declared victory at the end of that month, after seizing the regional capital Mekelle. But the TPLF kept fighting and at the end of June retook Mekelle and most of Tigray after government soldiers withdrew.

Source: Voice of America

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON – Cameroon says its military has killed seven self-proclaimed separatist generals who blocked traffic for a month on roads in the central African state’s English-speaking western regions. The military says during a two-week operation, it recovered 70 vehicles the fighters had seized from civilians and rescued several women and children held hostage in separatist camps.

Cameroon said Friday its military had eliminated separatists from roads the fighters had illegally occupied in the English-speaking North-West region since July. Lieutenant Conrad Onana says he commanded government troops in one of several operations to neutralize fighters blocking roads.

Onana says a heavy exchange of fire lasted for over two hours starting at 1 a.m. Friday, when government troops attacked the fighters in Bafut. He says many of the separatists and their five self-proclaimed generals killed by government troops had been wanted by the military.

Onana did not give the total number of separatists killed in the raid.

He said the military rescued several women, including a pregnant woman, and a nursing baby held hostage by the fighters. He said at least six men were arrested for collaborating with separatists.

General Nka Valere is commander of government troops fighting separatists in the North-West region.

Nka says several hundred government troops took part in operations in which two self-proclaimed generals were killed in Bali in addition to the five in Bafut, towns in the North-West region’s Mezam Division. He says the generals killed by the military are called Small Pepper, Stone, Small Bible, Ibobe, Prince, Kobet and Babilla. He says his troops recovered many weapons and seized material the fighters were using for homemade bombs.

Nka said he is asking civilians to collaborate more than ever before with the military by reporting suspected separatist fighters hiding in their communities.

Separatists have said on social media that some of their fighters and generals were killed but have given no further details. The fighters say many government troops were also killed.

Nka said a few government troops sustained light injuries, but none were killed.

In July, Cameroonian officials prohibited use of motorcycles in Mezam. The officials accused separatists of using motorcycles for crimes, including the ambush and killing of five police officers in Bali July 18.

Cameroon said the separatist fighters also used motorcycles to attack and raze military positions, police stations and government offices.

On social media, separatists claimed responsibility for killing the police officers and burning buildings occupied by the military. The fighters also imposed a ban on motor vehicle traffic and promised to lift the ban when government officials allow motorcycle traffic.

The military said the separatists seized over a hundred vehicles that defied the ban and used the vehicles to erect road barricades.

The government said it ordered the military to clear the roads of separatist fighters because thousands of people who use the roads daily were stranded.

Deben Tchoffo, governor of the North-West region, said 70 vehicles were removed from the road. He said all the roads blocked by separatist fighters are now safe and useable. Tchoffo said Cameroonian President Paul Biya has reiterated that fighters who surrender and drop their weapons will not be prosecuted.

Twenty-four-year-old truck driver Innocent Njikong says it is the sixth time since 2015 that the government is assuring travelers that roads in the North-West region are safe. He says he is very certain that the fighters will not drop their weapons.

“How do you meet and convince them [fighters] when they are still staying outside? They [the military] have burned their [fighters’] houses,” Njikongsaid. “We are pleading to the government, let them [the military] drop their guns. We need to sacrifice in order to bring peace.”

Njikong said by sacrifice, he means that the government should declare a cease-fire.

Cameroon has always said its military is not involved in any wrongdoing and that it will crush separatists who refuse to surrender.

Violence erupted in 2017 in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions when teachers and lawyers protested alleged discrimination by the French-speaking majority. The military reacted with a crackdown and separatist groups took up weapons, claiming that they were protecting civilians.

The United Nations says over 3,000 people have been killed and 550,000 displaced in Cameroon and neighboring Nigeria since the conflict began.

 

Source: Voice of America