patth@ccnysci.UUCP (Patt Haring) (09/04/89)
SAVIMBI HOLDS OUT FOR FRESH ZAIRE SUMMIT AFTER PRETORIA TALKS The rebel Angolan organisation Unita appears to be holding out for a better deal than that arranged at Gbadolite, after talks at the weekend between its leader, Jonas Savimbi, and South Africa's acting President FW de Klerk. A conference has been scheduled by African heads of state for Kinshasa later this month to attempt to revive the peace process. In a statement in South Africa after the meeting on August 27, Savimbi said he hoped the process would get "back on the rails" and his immediate goal was to get talks going again. Savimbi repudiated the ceasefire arrived at in Gbadolite in June, after a regional summit meeting in Harare last week had spelled out the terms of the agreement, including Savimbi's withdrawing from the Angolan scene and the integration of Unita into government structures (SouthScan v4/31 p233) Savimbi said the incident in which six Cubans were killed - an issue raised at the UN by Cuban head of state Fidel Castro - SouthScan v4/31 p234 - "was not something deliberate". He said told journalists in South Africa that since the Cuban withdrawal had begun eight months ago this was the only incident which had occurred. Angola has suggested in an official news agency commentary that the US government should take over Zaire's mediation role in the internal peace process, after the repudiation of the ceasefire agreement by the rebel movement Unita. Angop said on August 26 that Washington had been embarrassed in attempting to define a clear position regarding the "unequivocal demand" made by eight African heads of state in Harare last week. "Perhaps the US administration wishes to take the mediator's place or become directly involved as an integral component of the ongoing process, as happened with regards to the quadripartite peace talks on south-west Africa". If that were the case Angolan government would "look into the matter serenity and with sovereignty". --- Patt Haring | UNITEX : United Nations patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange -=- Every child smiles in the same language. -=- -- Patt Haring | UNITEX : United Nations patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange -=- Every child smiles in the same language. -=-