From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
Subject: ZAIRE: POLITICAL TENSION RISES
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: PACH
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1992 23:24:59 GMT

/** reg.safrica: 186.0 **/
** Topic: IPS: 07/91 **
** Written  7:05 am  Aug  8, 1992 by gavan@UCT_elc.mth.uct.ac.za in cdp:reg.safrica **

/* Written 12:26 am  Jul 17, 1992 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */
/* ---------- "ZAIRE: POLITICAL TENSION RISES" ---------- */
Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Area: Europe, western
Title: ZAIRE: POLITICAL TENSION RISES

kinshasa, jul 14 (ips) -- a confrontation between president
mobutu sese seko and the opposition is looming when the national
conference, the umbrella forum of opposition parties, resumes
its work next week to map out the transition to democracy.

scheduled to resume its plenary session jul. 20, following a
one month break to allow the 23 commissions set up to complete
their reports, conflict with mobutu over the tranistional
arrangements appears unavoidable.

a majority, the ''radical opposition'', within the national
conference are determined to strip mobutu of his effective
powers, leaving him after 27-years of rule charecterised by
corruption and human rights abuse, a titular head.

since the national conference set up a commission to draft a
''transition charter'' to serve as an interim constitution during
the transition period to multi-party democracy, mobutu has been
pressurising the conference to abandon the approach.

according to mobutu, the transition constitution cannot
replace the one that is currently in force.

but the opposition now appears emboldened. president of the
national conference, bishop laurent monsengwo, on a trip this
month to europe and the u.s. received a high-profile welcome in
washington -- which has been a keen supporter of mobutu -- and
among donors who have cut off credit to zaire in the past year.

with the intensification of negotiations between the
government and the opposition regarding the running of
the country during the transition period, political observers
believe a crisis could be looming.

according to the scheme of the radical opposition, which is
the majority in the national conference, the prime minister
should be the commander in chief of the armed forces and not
be accountable to the president ''who will reign but not
govern.''

with the resumption of the national conference next week,
political tension is palpable.

voices are calling on president mobutu and etienne
tshisekedi, the key figure of the radical opposition, for a
peaceful power sharing during the transition period.

banyaku epotu of the university of kinshasa told ips that in
order to avoid a confrontation, ''it is up to all leaders to
reflect on the historical conditions of secession , to reflect
on rebellion and the different coups d'etats which zaire has
experienced.''  (more/ips)


zaire: political (2)

according to epotu, the stand taken by the various parties in
the national conference can only serve to ''exacerbate political
tension and to incite generalised violence.''

while there has hitherto been only one candidate for the
premiership, tshisekedi, other names have begun to circulate in
the zairian capital to contest the same post in the event that
the conference adopts the decision to elect a new prime
minister.

among these are thomas kanza, a former lecturer at oxford
university. another candidate is massamba kamitatu, vice
president of the social democratic christian party, one of the
leading parties of the radical sacred union opposition
coalition.

however the announcement of kamitatu's candidature was not
welcomed by many in the sacred union which had agreed to field
only one candidate.

his candidature is therefore regarded as a betrayal which will
benefit mobutu.

according to a source in the opposition, who requested
anonymity, the announcement of kamitatu's candidature was made a
few hours after he had visited mobutu last week.

under domestic and western pressure, mobutu announced a
commitment to democratisation in apr. 1990 in this central
african country of 35-million people.

he has however consistently tried to split the opposition,
co-opting or coercing, and has used the security forces to
violently suppress pro-democracy demonstrations.
(end/ips/lo/mvh/oa/92)



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