From: barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us (Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS: NAMIBIA: Germany not to cut aid des
Originator: barnhart@gagme
Organization: Gagme Public Access UNIX, Chicago, Illinois.
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 1992 22:45:13 GMT

Title: NAMIBIA: Germany not to cut aid despite purchase of a French jet


an inter press service feature

by ramesh jaura

bonn, aug 18 (ips) -- germany has assured namibia that the
purchase of a 28 million dollar french jet plane for president sam
nujoma -- which evoked strong reactions in norway and sweden --
will not lead to a cut in german bilateral development assistance,
a namibian diplomat said here tuesday.

a german government official affirmed that no punitive action was
planned. ''we will discuss the matter during the forthcoming
bilateral aid negotiations, but it will not play a cardinal
role,'' economic cooperation ministry's petra hippmann told ips.

the talks on bilateral development assistance to the former
german colony in southwest africa are scheduled for aug 31 to sep
4 in windhoek. ''our focus will of course be on projects to be
funded by financial and technical aid,'' she added.

namibia decided to go in for a 'falcon 900 b' jet as part of an
aid package negotiated with france last year. but the deal became
public knowledge only earlier this year.

subsequently, the norwegian aid minister grete faremo criticised
nujoma's swapo government in public, threatening to cancel drought
aid to the southwest african country. sweden followed suit.

commenting on a german newspaper report that also bonn was
''annoyed,'' bonny haufiku, minister-counsellor at the namibian
embassy, told ips that ''our relations with germany remain
friendly and there are no strains whatsoever''.

haufiku said the german ambassador in windhoek had denied a
recent report in the german daily newspaper, 'frankfurter
rundschau'.

the newspaper said that in view of the namibian government's
decision to divert scarce funds for buying an ''expensive
presidential plane,'' the bonn economic cooperation ministry was
considering a sizeable reduction in aid.

the newspaper quoted a confidential government document saying
that a cut from 40 million marks (28 million dollars) to 25
million marks (17 million dollars) was on the cards. the reduction
was envisaged for 1983 bilateral aid pledge, the report added.

''there is no framework planning yet for 1993 and hence the
question of a cut does not arise,'' economic cooperation ministry
spokesperson ralf mathias mohs said tuesday. (more/ips)

namibia: germany not to cut aid despite purchase of a french jet(2-e)

namibia: germany (2)

''for the time being, we are busy working out the details of
bilateral aid for the year 1992,'' he added.

mohs refused to mention a figure for the aid envisaged for the
current year. however, another economic cooperation ministry
official who did not wish to be named, said germany had envisaged
40 million marks (28 million dollars) for 1992.

this will be in additional to 140 million marks (97 million
dollars) germany has committed in bilateral financial and
technical assistance since namibia freed itself march 1990 from
the yoke of 75 years of south african rule.

the same official confided: ''we can't be hitting the namibians
for something that was forced down their throat. this is something
we have to take up with the french within the framework of
coordinating development aid.''

supporting the view, economic cooperation policy spokesperson of
the opposition social democratic party (spd), ingomar hauchler
said, while germany dithered the french had hurried to give aid to
windhoek to protect itself from european fleet fishing within the
namibian waters.

and they had made that assistance conditional on namibia
''helping the french aviation industry'' by way of buying a jet
plane for nujoma from the dassault company.

hauchler said, ''it is unfair when the countries of the third
world are forced to use the aid funds to buy goods from the
industrialised countries''. ''but it conforms to the development
policy concept which is also practised by the german federal
government,'' he added.

''there is no doubt though that 28 million dollars which have
been spent on the jet plane could have been better used to fight
drought,'' argued hauchler. ''but the aid conditions are dictated
by donors.''

in an apparent move to counter the criticism emanating
particularly from norway -- as reported in the german media -- the
namibian embassy said in a statement on aug 14: ''the norwegian
attack... is an outright abuse of our nation's sovereignty and
fundamental right to chart its own course without interference
from friend or foe''.

''the stance now taken by norway is also an echo of similar
opinions by other governments which have, through history, sought
to give aid with strings attached to developing countries,'' the
namibian embassy added. (end/ips/cd/raj/92)



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