Mozambique Chronology 01-31 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/01-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LEGISLATION - JUDICIAL YEAR - LEGAL SYSTEM
The president of the Mozambican Supreme Court, Mario Mangaze, opened the 1999 judicial year with a call for further investment in the legal system. He pointed out that the country still faces a severe shortage of adequately trained magistrates. It was only recently, he said, that the Supreme Council of the Judicial Magistrate, the ruling body of the judiciary, was able to ensure that each of the 11 provincial law courts possessed at least one judge with a law degree. Similar shortcomings could be detected in the public prosecutors office. As for lawyers, the vast bulk of them were concentrated in Maputo. There were two or three in Beira and in Nampula, and the rest of the country had none at all. Mangaze also called for an overhaul of the country's legal structure and organization. He pointed out that the amount of cases that end up on the desks of the Supreme Court had tripled in the past three years. He called for a return to a structure once proposed, but never implemented, under which there would be three intermediate courts of appeal, in the south, center and north of the country. This, Mangaze said, "would lead to greater efficiency in the system, and would allow the Supreme Court to work more effectively".
From: Judicial year opens / AIM / 1 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/01-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ECONOMIC POLICY - DEBT CANCELLATION
A meeting called in Maputo by the World Bank and the IMF gave the Bretton Woods institutions a message they did not want to hear: that the only way to deal with Mozambique's foreign debt is to cancel it. The meeting was part of the process of reviewing the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) debt relief initiative. According to a detailed account of the meeting in the daily independent newsheet "Metical", the two Bretton Woods economists who ran the meeting, Leslie Lipschitz of the IMF, and Jeffrey Katz of the World Bank, were surprised at the unanimous call for debt cancellation. Otilia Pacule, coordinator of the NGO coalition, the Mozambican Debt Group, pointed to the contrast between the way Mozambique is now being treated, and the generosity shown to a defeated Germany at the end of World War II. Now Mozambique is told that a 20 per cent debt service ratio is "sustainable", but the allies exacted a debt service ratio of only five per cent from Germany which was how Germany was able to rebuild its shattered economy. HIPC was already outdated, and the only solution lay in outright cancellation. "It's a question of political will," she said. The result of the meeting was that the World Bank and the IMF can have no doubt that a broadly representative spectrum of the Mozambican government, business, NGOs and civil society in general do not want to tinker around with the HIPC mechanisms. Instead they want to wipe the slate clean, reducing debt repayments to zero.
From: Debt cancellation, not HIPC, is the solution / AIM / 1 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/02-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Mozambican Foreign Minister Leonardo Simao described a three-year cooperation programme he is to sign with his Portuguese counterpart, Jaime Gama, as the start of a "new quality relationship" between the two countries. Speaking during a press conference at the opening of his talks with Gama, Simao stressed that the programme "forces us to look beyond the three year period (1999-2001)", and that cooperation "should benefit both sides". In terms of financial aid to Mozambique, the Portuguese Foreign Ministry says that Portugal is to contribute around 22 billion escudos (about 122 million US dollars) for the relief of Mozambique's foreign debt in the next three years. Another important area of cooperation, said Simao, is between municipalities, taking into account that the Portuguese experience in this area is important for Mozambique, where autonomous local authorities have been in existence for less than a year. He said, "political and diplomatic cooperation is also part of our agreements". In this field Portugal is to help create a data bank in the Mozambican Foreign Ministry, standardise the computer systems in its various physically scattered sectors and, at a later stage, establish "computer links between the country's embassies".
From: Foreign Minister on relations with Portugal / AIM / 2 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/03-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - NATURAL DISASTERS - INTERNATIONAL AID - FLOODS
The Mozambican government launched an emergency appeal for 12.4 million US dollars to assist the victims of the current floods, and to repair damage done to the country's infrastructure. The appeal covers flooded areas in Inhambane, in the south, and in the Central Provinces of Sofala, Tete and Zambezia. At a meeting with donor representatives, the director of the national relief agency, the DPCCN, Silvano Langa, said that the most serious situation was in the northern districts of Inhambane, where two substantial towns, Vilanculo and Inhassoro, have been cut off from the rest of the country. Currently they can only be reached by sea or by air. Georgia Shaver of the World Food Programme said the critical situation in northern Inhambane justified an urgent airlift of food and other relief items. She put the cost of such an airlift at 125,000 dollars. The US government has already provided 25,000 dollars for this purpose, and the WFP is advancing 100,000 dollars from its own funds. The largest item in the government's appeal is 4.35 million dollars for the repair of roads and bridges. Foodstuffs are costed at 2.7 million dollars, and the logistics to move them (by road, sea and air) at 763,000 dollars.
From: Government launches flood appeal / AIM / 3 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/03-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - HUMAN RIGHTS
The Mozambican Human Rights League (LDH) announced that it possesses an annual fund of 30,000 US dollars provided by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to support "victims of persecution". LDH chairperson Alice Mabota said that the money is used to assist people who are harassed by the police, or by other citizens, in attempts to prevent them denouncing abuses of human rights. The fund is being granted to the LDH experimentally, and could be increased according to the needs. Mabota added that the UNDP wants to see "practical results" from the use of this money. The money would support those who are forced to live "clandestinely". They would be provided with the means to live a decent life, since the loss of their jobs often left them in a very difficult situation. The fund would also support the families of the victims.
From: Human rights: fund to support victims / AIM / 3 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/05-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - IDENTITY CARDS
The Mozambican government adopted a decree on a new type of personal identity card, so that production of the card can start this year, said the Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi. He suggested that the new card would be extremely difficult to forge, and in future could also be used as a voting card. Interior Minister Almerino Manhenje told the same press briefing that the card would initially be produced in two factories, in Maputo, and in the northern city of Nampula. The Maputo factory could start work in April, and the Nampula one in the second half of the year: all the equipment needed was already in Maputo. The new card will be introduced gradually: Manhenje said that 1.5 million would be produced this year, three million in 2000 and 4.5 million in 2001. The maximum cost of a card will be 30,000 meticais (about 2.5 dollars), but around 20 per cent will be issued free of charge to citizens who cannot afford to pay. Manhenje said those also to be produced are digitalised work and residence permits for foreigners, and eventually digitalised passports and driving licences.
From: New Identity Cards / AIM / 5 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/08-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LAND MINES - DEMINING
Mozambican Foreign Minister Leonardo Simao told the Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic that, since the start of mine clearance in December 1992 until last month, 53,624 anti-personnel mines have been destroyed. Also cleared were 392 anti-tank mines, and 28,927 other unexplored items. Simao added that so far 7,718 kilometers of roads, 1,825 kilometers of electricity transmission lines, 90 kilometers of railway, and 10,560 hectares of land have been cleared of mines. Up until the end of 1998, demining operations had cost 116 million US dollars. Simao stressed the leading role Mozambique has been playing in the international campaign against anti-personnel land mines. It has signed and ratified the Ottawa treaty outlawing anti-personnel mines, and in May Maputo will host a conference of all signatories to the treaty.
From: Simao briefs Assembly on demining / AIM / 8 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/08-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - SECURITY - MILITARY
Mozambican Defense Minister Aguiar Mazula declared that the country's defense force (FADM) is fully integrated, and can no longer be described as consisting of "former government" and "former Renamo" troops. He was speaking in the Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, in response to a request from the former rebel movement Renamo for information on the state of military integration. He insisted not only that the FADM was a genuinely non- partisan, and fully integrated army, but that it was also "a living example of national reconciliation". When it came to military matters "the question of ideology is not posed", he added. In relation to the military recruitment, Mazula claimed the government had introduced "the normal, universal practice of forming armed forces". If by this he meant that conscription is a universal practice, then the statement is simply untrue. Mozambique's most powerful neighbours, South Africa and Zimbabwe both have volunteer armies, not conscript ones.
From: Mazula says army fully integrated / AIM / 8 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/10-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - FREEDOM - DECORATES - SOUTHERN AFRICAN
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano decorated the former President of Botswana, Ketumile Masire, with the country's highest honor, the "Eduardo Mondlane Order, First Class" for his merits "in the fight against all forms of domination and oppression, colonialism and "apartheid". On the occasion, Chissano said that Masire's merit is also due to his commitment to peace, his strengthening of the ties of solidarity between the peoples of Mozambique and Botswana, and his dedication to the progress of southern Africa. "Today we are meeting to decorate one of the most illustrious sons of Africa, who has dedicated his life, his knowledge and wisdom to the cause of the people of Botswana, of southern Africa and of the entire African continent," said Chissano. Thanking Chissano for the award, Masire said it was "symbolic of the close ties that have existed between our two countries". He paid tribute to "the founding fathers of the two republics" (the late presidents Samora Machel of Mozambique and Seretse Khama of Botswana) for the "vision of creating an alliance within the southern African region to foster political and economic cooperation. The fulfillment of that vision is illustrated by the benefits that we derive from our membership to the Southern African Development Community (SADC)". Masire was President of Botswana between 1980 and 1998, when he voluntarily decided to retire.
From: Chissano decorates Masire / AIM / 10 March 1999

ITEM NOO. 99/03/10-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - SOUTHERN AFRICAN - COPYRIGHT
The Mozambican Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Mateus Katupha, defended, in Maputo, a greater exchange of original national products between the member countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Speaking during a workshop on copyright within SADC, Katupha hoped that the Committee of SADC Culture and Information Ministers would find ways of making original products available cheaply. He thought this would also give more importance to the authors' societies of the region, and counter the trend whereby royalties "are transferred more to Europe and to the Americas than to the countries of the region". The chief objective of the meeting was to discuss the latest developments concerning the protection of copyright in the region, draft recommendations to be submitted to the annual meeting of ministers of the sector, to take place in May, and to gather international experiences in collective management of societies of authors.
From: Copyright under debate / AIM / 10 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/10-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
The Japanese and Mozambican governments signed agreements in Maputo under which Japan is to provide 2.3 billion yen (about 19.4 million US dollars) in aid. According to a press release from the Japanese embassy, 1.5 billion yen is budgetary assistance to support the Mozambican structural adjustment programme. A second agreement concerns 424 million yen in grant aid for the rehabilitation of the Maputo fishing port. The rest of the money is for purchasing rice in response to Mozambique's food aid needs, following the severe floods in parts of the country earlier this year. The three agreements were signed by Mozambican Foreign Minister Leonardo Simao, and by Japanese ambassador Atsushi Hatakenaka.
From: Aid agreements with Japan / AIM / 10 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/11-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LEGISLATION - JUSTICE SYSTEM
The Mozambican justice system is in crisis thanks to excessive bureaucracy, a poorly trained and equipped police force, young and inexperienced magistrates in lower level courts, overcrowded prisons, and corruption, accused the country's Attorney-General, Antonio Namburete. Giving his annual report to the Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, Namburete also attacked the country's obsolete legal codes, and its legal procedures, which he described as "full of baroque and useless acts". In the provinces and districts, the attorneys' offices struggled with inadequate budgets, and a shortage of basic office equipment. As for prisons, the cells are usually overcrowded, housing two or three times the number of people they were built for. Many prisons are "in an advanced state of decay", without functioning water or sanitation systems. As a result, the prisons suffered outbreaks of diseases such as cholera and dysentery. Namburete was skeptical about calls for "a war on crime" which "forget that crime is a problem of society, it is born in society and must be solved in society". "Tough" policies of combating crime "at all costs" had always proved to be "ineffective, irrational and pernicious", he said. The statistics appended to Namburete's report show clearly that most of those languishing in Mozambican jails have not been convicted of any crime. During 1998, 18,715 people were deprived of their freedom - but only 4,923 of these were actually serving sentences passed by a court. 5,969 were detained by court order and were awaiting trial. The others were detained by order of the police or the public prosecutor's office prior to a decision as to whether these cases would go to trial.
From: Mozambican justice system in crisis / AIM / 11 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/11-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - INTERNATIONAL AID
The presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for later this year moved a step closer when the Mozambican government signed agreements on the financial arrangements with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union. Under the first agreement, the UNDP will handle funds donated essentially to cover technical assistance for the electoral process. A good slice of this money has already arrived. Mozambique has received contributions from Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland, amounting to 8.55 million US dollars. Also signed was a financial convention with the European Union, under which Mozambique will receive 21 million Euros (about 23 million dollars) for the elections, under the second financial protocol of the Fourth Lome Convention between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of countries. The total cost of the elections is put at 42 million dollars. The government will contribute with the equivalent of about nine million dollars from the state budget.
From: Documents signed on funding 1999 Elections / AIM / 11 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/12-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ECONOMIC POLICY - VAT
The Mozambican government still seems determined to impose a Value Added Tax (VAT), replacing the current sales taxes, on 1 April, despite the near-unanimous opposition of the formal business sector, which wants to delay VAT introduction until 1 January 2000. Speaking to reporters, Mocumbi said the government was continuing to work so that the new tax will take effect on the scheduled day. He claimed that the government remained committed to dialogue with the business community, and "wants to reduce the difference between government and business as much as possible. A tax policy had to be defined, and dates fixed. Mocumbi said that VAT had already been delayed: initially it was supposed to come into force in mid-1998. "The government took the contributions of everybody into account, and fixed 1 April as the date for introduction", he said. As for the Mozambican customs service, Mocumbi would not say whether the current contract with the British firm Crown Agents would be renewed when it expires at the end of this year.
From: VAT date: No Government change of mind / AIM / 12 March

ITEM NO. 99/03/14-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano declared in Maputo that Nigeria wishes to initiate "fruitful cooperation in all fields with Mozambique". He was speaking to reporters at the end of talks with Nigeria's President-elect, Olusegun Obasanjo, who visited Maputo for several hours, in order to resume his contacts with the country's leadership. Chissano said that Obasanjo "came to learn of the situation in our country, so that he could be better prepared for good cooperation for Mozambique, when his term of office begins in May". He added that Obasanjo's current tour of southern African countries was also aimed at "thanking some of those countries for the role they played in the period of his imprisonment, which helped in getting him released". Obasanjo told the reporters that his visit could not be regarded as "official" since, although elected, he is not yet in office. "It's a visit of friendship so that I can thank President Chissano, individually and together with other African leaders, for what they did when I was detained". Obasanjo was flown on from Maputo to Nairobi. He visited Tanzania, and Namibia on tour. He also intends to tour Asia, Europe and America, with stops planned in China, Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the United States. Obasanjo was elected President on 27 February, defeating his sole opponent Olu Falae.
From: Obasanjo visits Mozambique / AIM / 14 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/16-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LEGISLATION - NATIONAL ANTHEM
The Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, failed the three proposals for the amendment of the National Anthem that had been "barely" passed by the jury and the "ad hoc" commission. The proposals concern the creation of new lyrics for the National Anthem, to be adjusted to the old melody. The jury and the commission had implicitly recommended that the three proposals, selected among 35 of the approved entries. After the report of the commission, the plenary of the parliament listened to the proposed anthems, with the lyrics adjusted to the old melody. The opinion of both the jury and the commission that prevailed within the plenary was that "the lyrics in the three proposals are of poor quality and do not reflect the cultural diversity of our country". The jury, finding the poor quality of the submitted proposals, had suggested, in January, a new public consultation. Meanwhile, the Renamo bench proposed that Mozambique uses the Anthem of Africa until it gets to create its own. However, they seem not to know that this anthem "Nkosi Sikelela Africa" (God Bless Africa) has been adopted as the South African National Anthem. Presently, Mozambique is using, without lyrics, the melody of the old national Anthem, created after independence, and rejected after the general peace accord. The reason for this was that it is connoted with the ruling Frelimo party, because of the first verse of its lyrics: "Viva, Viva a Frelimo, Guia do povo Mocambicano" (long live Frelimo, the guide of the Mozambican people).
From: Parliament rejects National Anthem proposals / AIM / 16 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/17-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS
As expected, Mozambican Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi has appointed Antonio Carrasco as Director-General of the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE). STAE is the executive body responsible for the nuts and bolts of Mozambican elections. It is subordinate to the National Elections Commission (CNE), the body in overall political charge of the elections. Carrasco was previously the STAE official in charge of civic organisation. He is also director of the publicly owned Mass Communications Institute (ICS). Under the electoral legislation passed by the Mozambican parliament in December, STAE will also have two deputy general directors, appointed by the major parliamentary parties
From: New STAE Director Appointed / AIM / 17 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/19-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INVESTMENT - TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Mozambican Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi said that the country would need about 500 million US dollars of new investment in the area of telecommunications over the next seven years. Mocumbi was speaking at the opening of a Forum on Reform of the Telecommunications Sector in Mozambique, which brought together representatives of the government, telecommunications operators, experts and civil society. "We have made improvements in terms of modernising and expanding the telecommunications network during the last five years", said Mocumbi, noting that 23 Electro-mechanical switching centres have already been replaced by digital ones. Mocumbi added that another achievement in this period was the installation of the cellular phone system in Maputo and Xai-Xai, capital of the southern province of Gaza, and along the main roads between Maputo and the South African and Swazi borders. Concerning the number of subscribers, Mocumbi said that there was an increase of 23 per cent nationally, and the rural areas, when counted separately, registered an increase of more than 130 per cent. Further improvements in this area included the installation of about 1,500 public phones countrywide.
From: 500 Million Dollars needed for Telecommunications / AIM / 19 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/19-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - EDUCATION - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
The Mozambican Ministry of Education and the US Governmental Organisation, the Peace Corps signed in Maputo a memorandum of understanding in the area of education, according to a US embassy press release. Under the agreement, the two parties will share the costs of the programme, which includes the training of the American volunteers and their Mozambican counterparts. The Peace Corps will recruit the volunteers in the United States and pay their air tickets, training and medical care, while the Ministry of Education will provide accommodation and facilities for the training programme. The Peace Corps is a volunteer agency of the United States Government. There are currently 22 volunteers, teaching the English language in secondary schools in the provinces of Maputo, Gaza, Inhambane and Sofala,
From: Agreement between Education and "US Peace Corps" / AIM / 19 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/23-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - COMMUNICATIONS - TV CABLE
The first television broadcasts by cable in Mozambique are to start early April at the latest, launched by TeleCabo, a Mozambican-Portuguese joint venture. TeleCabo representative Pedro Baptista said that the company is completing installation of the necessary equipment and should start broadcasting between 31 March and 2 April. Baptista said that the experimental stage of the programme will be in the plush Maputo suburb of Sommerschield, and that only in the second half of the year will it be extended to the rest of the city. The project is designed to serve about 22,000 homes in Maputo alone. Baptista said that the basic service will cost about 20 US dollars a month, but he explained that this fee might increase by about four per cent when Value Added Tax (VAT) takes effect. The subscription fee is fixed at 85 US dollars. He said that the basic service would offer TV channels from various countries, including Italy, France, Germany, and Portugal, as well as the Mozambican channel TVM. The material available will be diversified, including the American news channel CNN, as well as specialist sports and music programming. He also explained that clients would have the chance to subscribe to additional channels of their liking, for which they will pay an extra seven US dollars a month.
From: Cable TV to be launched in April / AIM / 23 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/24-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - TRANSPORT - REGIONAL COOPERATION
Mozambique's publicly owned ports and railway company CFM) has won the tender to manage Malawi railways, according to the Malawi Privatisation Commission. Dye Mawindo, executive director of the Privatisation Commission, said that CFM won a heavily contested tender which also attracted bids from, among others, Britain's Railtrack and Spoornet of South Africa. "CFM will be taking over because it offered a promising package to turn around Malawi Railways," he said. The CFM takeover should not result in many job losses, largely because over 2,000 jobs were already shed during the 1993 restructuring. Maybe only senior positions will be lost since CFM may wish to bring in its own management team," he said.
From: CFM wins Malawi privatisation tender / AIM / 24 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/24-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INDUSTRY - INVESTMENT
The publicly owned Mozambican Electricity Company, EDM, is claiming a 71 per cent improvement in its overall results in 1998. The company also claims that there was a 30 per cent decrease in the costs of importing electricity, thanks to the rerouting of power from the Cahora Bassa dam to southern Mozambique. These figures were made public during a meeting of the company's management board in the Bilene tourist resort, in the southern province of Gaza. The arrangement whereby Cahora Bassa power enters South Africa, and is immediately redirected to Maputo came back into effect in June 1998. Hence the savings, which should be much larger in 1999, the first full year of this arrangement. The Bilene meeting also drew up "a balance sheet of the performance of the company during 1998 and analysed the implementation of the contract-programme with the government", said an EDM source. As for the claimed good performance, the source said that the production of electricity increased by nine per cent, and the number of clients grew by five per cent. The latter led to a 21 per cent increase in income.
From: EDM satisfied with performance / AIM / 24 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/25-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ECONOMIC POLICY - VAT
The Mozambican government announced that it is delaying the introduction of a Value Added Tax (VAT), but only by two months rather than the nine months requested by the Confederation of Mozambican Business (CTA). The planned date for replacing the current sales taxes with VAT was 1 April. Addressing the Mozambican parliament, Planning and Finance Minister Tomas Salomao said the government had decided to postpone VAT introduction until 1 June because "small and medium sized companies, who have few resources in terms of qualified staff, are running into various difficulties in preparing for VAT". He admitted that introducing VAT "at a moment when small and medium businesses are not fully prepared could have negative consequences both for the future of the tax, and for the revenue it generates". Salomao added that VAT was still a condition for Mozambique's access to the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) debt relief initiative. Although the government has previously denied such a crude linkage, Salomao effectively admitted that the IMF has told the government - No VAT, no HIPC. Salomao warned that delaying VAT beyond 1 June "will mean delaying Mozambique's entry into HIPC".
From: Government postpones introduction of VAT / AIM / 25 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/25-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - POLITICAL PARTIES - ELECTIONS
The newly formed coalition UMO (Mozambican Opposition Union) has split, with three of its members suspending a fourth. A UMO press release states that Wehia Ripua, Casimiro Nhamitambo and Vasco Momboya, who are the leaders of PADEMO (Mozambican Democratic Party), SOL (Social-Liberal Party) and PACODE (Democratic Congress Party) held an emergency meeting at which they decided to suspend the PRD (Democratic Renewal Party) from membership. The PRD leader, Manecas Daniel, was suspended from his post as UMO general secretary. No reason was given for this other than "the gravity of the political situation inside UMO". Daniel and the PRD are suspended from the coalition until a UMO General Meeting, which will be held shortly. All four of these parties are tiny groups, which have been largely inactive since the 1994 general elections at which their votes were derisory.
From: Opposition coalition splits / AIM / 25 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/25-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Mozambican Foreign Minister, Leonardo Simao, said that Mozambique is prepared to play a role in East Timor, as long as the interested parties feel that this can help restore normality to that territory. Speaking to reporters at the end of talks with his Indonesian counterpart Ali Alatas, in Maputo, Simao stressed that if necessary, Mozambique may even send a peace keeping force to East Timor. For his part, Alatas said he had briefed Simao "on what is happening in Indonesia and in the region of southeast Asia, particularly the financial crisis". He said that his country is endeavoring to find ways to improve bilateral cooperation with Mozambique. He claimed that he has scheduled a meeting with the Timorese community in Mozambique - but the representative of the Timorese resistance in Maputo, Mari Alkatiri, commented "we have no official information about such a meeting. We expect them to give us official information, otherwise there will be no meeting". Mozambique and Indonesia signed an agreement, on the reciprocal promotion of investment.
From: Indonesian Minister in Maputo / AIM / 25 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/25-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - CNE
Mozambique's second multi-party general elections inched a little closer when the country's parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, elected its 15 members of the body that will run the elections, the National Elections Commission (CNE). The Assembly's 15 members of the new CNE were chosen by the parliamentary parties in proportion to the number of seats they hold in the Assembly. Thus eight were selected by the ruling Frelimo Party, six by Renamo, and one by the Democratic Union (UD) coalition. The members of the new CNE are as follows: Appointed by Frelimo: Alcinda Abreu, Antonio Muacorica, Carlos Morgado, Jamisse Taimo, Machatine Munguambe, Angelica Salomao, Percina Sitoe, Rufino Nombora, Appointed by Renamo: Francisco Marcelino, Maria Inacio, Viana Magalhaes, Maria Macuacua, Fernando Tome, Antonio Mthini. Appointed by the UD: Antonio Manhica. The two members appointed by the government, Carlos Manuel and Fernando Macamo, are senior civil servants who both served on the 1997-98 CNE.
From: National Elections Commission in place / AIM / 25 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/25-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATIONS - INVESTMENT
Although there has so far been no official statement on the matter in Maputo, it seems certain that a consortium headed by the Mozambican publicly-owned ports and rail company, CFM, has indeed won the tender for the privatisation of Malawi Railways. According to the sources, CFM's partner in the consortium is the Nacala Corridor Development Company (SDCN), which consists of private American, French and Mozambican interests. The CFM/SDCN bid works out at around 20 million dollars to be paid over a 20-year period. The consortium acquires all of Malawi Railways' assets, which include several locomotives in good condition, and around 300 wagons. Malawi Railways is one of the smaller rail companies of the region. It carries around 400,000 tones of freight a year, whereas CFM carries around six million tones. Rui Fonseca, chairman of CFM said, "It's along the lines of the restructuring we're engaged in. It's part of our strategy for internationalisation and regional integration".
From: CFM purchase of Malawi Railways: details / AIM / 25 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/26-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE - NATURAL RESOURCES
The Mozambican authorities want to hold a meeting with their Malawian counterparts to discuss ways to fight against abuses in the exploitation of forest resources along the common border. Mozambican Minister of Agriculture Carlos Agostinho do Rosario called for such discussions during a meeting with his ministry's staff, in the northern province of Niassa, where about 80 per cent of forestry exploitation is undertaken by unlicensed Malawians. The chief of the Niassa Forestry and Wildlife Department said that control is made difficult because of the lack of inspectors. He noted that "Malawians come in trucks into Mozambique to fell trees with no authorization". He noted that, sometimes it is necessary to allocate land to local communities as a way to fight against illicit exploitation and preserve natural resources.
From: Discussions with Malawi on Forest Resources / AIM / 26 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/29-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - GOVERNMENT
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano declared that "the general situation of the country is healthy. It is stable and peace is a reality". Giving his annual state of the nation address to the country's parliament, Chissano claimed that "the longings of all our people for peace are increasingly rooted in principles of tolerance and mutual respect, and in valuing our diversity - and therefore in genuine pluralism". Chissano noted that "there are still imbalances in our country's social and economic development, resulting from colonialism and wars of aggression". Chissano said major steps had been taken in improving the health network. The number of health units in the country was now about 1,000 - much the same as in 1983, the peak year of the post- independence expansion, before Renamo turned its guns and explosives against rural health posts and centres. As for education, Chissano noted that the war had destroyed much of the post-independence gains. But once peace had been achieved, the government embarked upon expanding education and improving its quality. "Currently, there are more than 2.3 million pupils in primary school, as against about 1.4 million in 1994. The President admitted that there are serious problems in the legal system. "The debates in this Assembly and in society at large have pointed to the need to make our judicial system more efficient". "Significant improvements" were needed, he warned, because citizens felt cheated "when they have to wait years for justice to be done".
From: Chissano gives state of nation address / AIM / 29 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/29-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - GOVERNMENT - ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
Mozambique's Gross Domestic Product has grown at over 10 per cent for the last two years, President Joaquim Chissano declared during his state of the nation address to the country's parliament, the Assembly of the Republic. He said that agriculture had made a vigorous contribution, growing by 8.7 per cent in 1997 and 8.2 per cent in 1998. On privatisations, Chissano admitted these were controversial because of the loss of jobs in some privatised companies. "But a more objective analysis leads us to conclude that, while some workers have lost their jobs, others have kept theirs, and new jobs have been created", he said. Chissano said the government had eliminated the high rate of inflation that had characterised the Mozambican economy earlier in the decade. "We have passed from an average rate of inflation of 63 per cent in 1994 to an average rate of one per cent in 1998", he declared. Macro-economic stability had created a firm basis for growth in private sector investment. Chissano said that in 1998 the government's Investment Promotion Centre (CPI) approved 202 new projects, with a total value of 837 million US dollars.
From: Chissano on the Economy / AIM / 29 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/29-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - POLITICAL PARTIES - ELECTIONS
Mozambique's former rebel movement Renamo, and 12 minor opposition parties, will run a joint slate for the parliamentary elections scheduled for later this year. This information came at the end of a seminar at which these parties hammered out their ideas for the general elections. In a final statement the 13 parties said they were sure that a united opposition could win the elections. However, each party is to reflect upon the conditions for a coalition: the party leaderships will then analyse the results of this reflection before drawing up a formal "unity charter". According to Renamo general secretary Joao Alexandre, the other parties had accepted that Renamo would be the leader of this opposition bloc. For the time being, the would-be coalition is calling itself "G15 plus 1". This arcane name refers to the group of 15 minor parties that boycotted the June 1998 local elections, and were later joined - and led - in this by Renamo. The 12 minor parties are: ALIMO - Mozambique Independent Alliance, FAP - Patriotic Action Front, MONAMO - Mozambican Nationalist Movement, PADELIMO - Democratic Party for the Liberation of Mozambique, PCN - National Convention Party, PIMO - Independent Party of Mozambique, PPPM - Mozambican People's Progress Party PRD - Democratic Renewal Party PT - Labor Party PUN - National Unity Party UNAMO - Mozambique National Union Os Verdes - The Greens
From: Opposition coalition in the making / AIM / 29 March 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/30-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INDUSTRY - INVESTMENT
India is planning to install a cashew-processing factory in Mozambique and rehabilitate some of the country's irrigation systems. The visiting Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh, did not say how much the factory will cost, but said that for the rehabilitation of the irrigation systems his country is prepared to invest 500,000 rupees (about 15,000 US dollars). Singh was speaking after a meeting with the Mozambican Prime Minister, Pascoal Mocumbi. The two leaders also discussed the planned state visit of Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano to India in April.
From: India to install Cashew Processing Factory / AIM / 30 March 1999

Compiled by SARDC Maputo