From: barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us (Mr Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS: SOUTH AFRICA: EC group leaves next
Originator: barnhart@gagme
Organization: Evanston, Illinois
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 22:23:22 GMT

Title: SOUTH AFRICA: EC group leaves next week on peace mission


brussels, aug 28 (ips/debra percival) -- a high profile european
community (ec) delegation heads to south africa next week in an
effort to break the deadlock on talks of an interim government in
pretoria.

''the community and its member states have been concerned to
ensure that the visit to south africa should take place only if it
could help the search for a solution to the violence and
resumption of the negotiation process,'' said a spokesperson for
the british presidency in london friday.

british foreign secretary douglas hurd will head the so-
called 'troika' diplomatic group comprising portugal's foreign
minister joao deus de pinheiro and danish counterpart, uffe
ellerman-jensen as well as dutch ec commissioner for external
trade, frans andriessen.

the decision to dispatch the 'troika' to south africa was taken
at the lisbon summit of ec heads of state in june.

according to the british spokesperson: ''after contacts with
the parties, the community believes that an opportunity now exists
to pursue these objectives.''  the aim, he said, is to talk about
means to curb violence to ''get all sides round the negotiating
table''.

during the sep 1 to 3 trip, the ec delegation will also hold
talks with the african national congress (anc), the inkatha
freedom party and church groups.

liza boshoff, a diplomat at the south african mission to the ec
in brussels, said she expected the discussions will deal also with
the united nations security council resolution 772 of aug. 17,
which gives the go ahead for the u.n. secretary-general to deploy
some 30 observers in south africa to avert violence.

the resolution also calls on other international grouping like
the commonwealth, the organisation of african unity (oau) and the
ec itself to send to south africa their own observers ''in
cooperation with the united nations and structures set up under
the national peace accord''.

early this year an ec ''interest office'' was set up in
johannesburg which, among other things, managed its beneficiary
programmes there. but
stressing the symbolic nature of the
delegation's visit, boshoff said the pretoria government wanted
the ''interest office'' upgraded to full-fledged diplomatic
status.

church bodies are among those groups actively working against
apartheid who, since 1986, have been beneficiaries of ec funds.
the ec budget for assisting victims of apartheid includes
provision for legal aid and educational training for blacks.
(more/ips)

south africa: ec group leaves next week on peace mission(2-e)

south africa: ec group (2)

since 1986, the ec has funded 571 such projects costing 231
million european currency units (300 million dollars). in 1992,
the commission budgeted 80 million ecus (104 million dollars) for
the scheme.

the south african government was also hoping that a diplomatic
mission would push the door open for talks on a trade and
cooperation pact, similar to that which the ec has with many
countries around the world.

although the ec has not set any conditions for such talks,
boshoff admitted that they would be facilitated by ''the
establishment of an interim structure or government in south
africa''.

the warming of ec relations with south africa, leading up to
the 'troika' visit, the first high profile ec visit since 1985,
began two years ago with the announcement by president f.w de
klerk of the abolition of the ''pillars of apartheid''.

subsequently, the ec decided to lift its 1986 embargo on
steel, iron, gold coins and its ban on new investments with south
africa. and after de klerk's moves to negotiate with parties on an
interim government, the ec lifted its oil embargo, one of the
united nations' 1985 measures.

another u.n. measure, the ban on sporting links, was lifted by
all 12 ec states in april. the embargo on trade in military
hardware and exchange of armaments, however remains in place.
(end/ips/ip/dp/cdm/92)




-- 
Mr. Aaron Barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us -- posting from Evanston, Illinois
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african,soc.culture.african.american