Politics

10, April 2019

Algeria’s New Dictator Abdelkader Bensalah ⁰

Algeria’s parliament on Tuesday confirmed Abdelkader Bensalah as the new interim president of the country, following lat week’s resignation by the ailing Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Bouteflika’s resignation, fuelled by protests that have lasted over a month, means Algeria has a new president for the first time in 20 years.

In this article, we profile the new president, who protesters have insisted is equally unfit to govern the North African nation.

It’s a great responsibility that the constitution demands of me.

President-in-Waiting

Bensalah is a seasoned establishment insider who has a track record of stepping in for his veteran predecessor.

Bensalah has served as a lawmaker, ambassador, civil servant and senator, but it is his role as upper house speaker which paved the way for his appointment to the presidency.

Like Bouteflika, the interim president was also a young veteran of Algeria’s independence struggle.

In recent years he has often stepped in at home and abroad for Bouteflika, who has rarely been seen in public since a 2013 stroke, last month taking Algeria’s seat at the Arab League summit in neighbouring Tunisia.

But such a close alliance with his predecessor has also seen 77-year-old Bensalah targeted by protesters, who on Tuesday gathered in their thousands in Algiers to oppose his appointment.

Bensalah’s life before politics

While his 17 years as parliamentary speaker build on a lengthy political career, Bensalah initially took a different path.

Following Algerian independence in 1962, Bensalah won a scholarship to study law in the Syrian capital Damascus and returned home five years later.

He joined an Arabic-language national newspaper and spent around a decade working for state media—including stints as a foreign correspondent—before being elected to parliament in 1977.

A skilled politician

Bensalah’s political career also took on an international dimension. He chaired the lower chamber’s foreign affairs commission for 10 years and went on to serve as an ambassador to Saudi Arabia and a foreign ministry spokesman.

“Making himself useful at the right time is what he knows how to do, he who rarely speaks on issues related to the management of state affairs,” Algerian daily El Watan wrote in 2015.

After returning to national politics, Bensalah was nominated speaker by Bouteflika in 2002 and has been re-elected every three years since.

The holder of the position is tasked with taking over the presidency in case of resignation, death or an impediment such as long-term illness.

“It’s a great responsibility that the constitution demands of me,” Bensalah told parliament as he began his 90-day interim presidency.

On the streets of Algiers, the scale of the challenge facing him was evident as protesters chanted: “Bensalah go away!”

Despite facing tear gas and water cannon, the students continued to rally against their new president and the political system which he has served for decades.

AFP

10, April 2019

What’s next in Brexit? The possible scenarios ⁰

As British Prime Minister Theresa May scrambles to secure a Brexit extension at Wednesday’s crucial EU summit, what are the possible scenarios in the days to come?

Here are the possibilities:

No-deal Brexit on April 12

May is seeking a Brexit delay until June 30. MPs this week forced through legislation to force the prime minister to always seek an extension rather than leave the EU without a deal.

But the EU appears to be more keen on a longer “flextension” of around a year.

If no agreement is reached on Wednesday, the legal default is that Britain leaves the EU without a deal on Friday.

The EU has already granted one delay — the original deadline was March 29 — and EU leaders will ask May to explain what another postponement would achieve.

Economists warn a no-deal Brexit could generate economic shockwaves on both sides of the Channel and cause severe delays at border points, despite preparations to mitigate these risks.

Leave with changes to May’s deal

After failing three times to get her deal through parliament, May is currently locked in talks with the opposition Labour Party — who favour keeping closer ties with the EU — to try and break the impasse.

Labour is demanding Britain remain in a customs union, angering the rank-and-file in May’s Tory party.

If they agree a deal, Brexit could still happen before Britain has to take part in European Union elections on May 23.

The withdrawal agreement allows for a long transition period and time for trade ties to be negotiated.

The EU has ruled out any changes to it but has said it could speedily rewrite the political declaration — an accompanying document on future trade ties.

In a desperate gamble to get the deal over the line, May even told her MPs that she would resign before the start of full-blown trade negotiations with the EU if they backed it, but it still failed.

It seems unlikely that this option could happen, as May would have to agree to a softer Brexit that will placate members of the opposition, and give up on some of her staunchly-held positions.

New plan, long Brexit delay

If no deal is agreed in the coming days, Britain will likely face a delay of up to a year, which would entail it holding European Parliament elections.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, has advised EU leaders that this longer extension should be at least until the end of 2019 and possibly much longer to allow for a proper change in Brexit strategy. If Britain finds an agreement before the end of the extension period, it would be able to leave the bloc earlier.

Under the “flextension”, Britain could leave the EU once it found a plan commanding domestic support, but a longer delay would open up options such as holding a general election, a leadership election to replace May or, perhaps, a second referendum.

A general election would reset parliament, and a clear outcome with a government majority could result in a much stronger administration.

But there is a danger it could result in the same situation as now with no one party holding a majority.

And for both major parties, finding a definitive manifesto position on Brexit that all their MPs can commit to could prove a challenge.

A long delay also opens up the possibility of another referendum.

The Labour Party is reported to be pushing for one in return for approving May’s deal.

A referendum could come in different flavours: either a second referendum that poses the same question to the British public on whether to leave the EU, or a “confirmatory referendum”, in which any deal struck would be put to a public confirmatory vote.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

10, April 2019

Biya regime mastering the art of muzzling opposition ⁰

International rights group, Human Rights Watch, HRW, says it is worried about the Cameroonian government’s continued muzzling of the dissenting voices, especially that of the opposition.

HRW’s concerns were primarily set around the recent banning of an assembly by the main opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement, MRC.

In a statement titled, ‘Cameroon Tightens Screws on Opposition,’ HRW bemoaned what it described as a crackdown on the Maurice Kamto-led MRC’s right to assemble and to protest same. The statement came barely 24-hours to Kamto’s next court appearance.

The group cited a key instance where the Minister of Interior banned MRC demonstrations with the reason that it had destabilizing motives.

“The minister, Atanga Nji, also accused the MRC of an act of provocation, having chosen to organise demonstrations on April 6, a date which marks the anniversary of a 1984 coup attempt to oust President Biya.

“This move is part of a growing trend in Cameroon. Since late 2016, the government has repeatedly blocked peaceful anti-government protests with force, arbitrary arrest, and detention of protesters.

“In January 2017, the Minister of Territorial Administration banned the activities of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC), a leading civil society organization working in the volatile anglophone regions,” the statement added.

In the case of rebellion which he currently faces, MRC leader Kamto is expected to appear before a Yaounde Appeal Court today (April 9). Political watchers largely expect the court to confirm the decision of a lower court to keep Kamto in prison awaiting trial.

During his last appearance (April 2), his defense lawyers walked out of the court room in protest of the decision to hold the proceedings behind closed doors. Kamto placed a distant second to President Paul Biya in October 2018 polls.

A move to contest the outcome at the Constitutional Court was thrown out by judges. His decision to form a resistance movement subsequently resulted in his arrest and trial for rebellion against the state.

“The government’s ban on MRC rallies is a step backward for Cameroon and should be lifted immediately. Rather than forbid dissent and lock up opponents, the government should respect democratic principles and allow peaceful protest,” HRW’s statement concluded.

Africa News

9, April 2019

UK: House of Lords approve Brexit law forcing Prime Minister to consult parliament on delay ⁰

Britain’s House of Lords approved legislation on Monday that will give parliament the power to scrutinize and even change Prime Minister Theresa May’s request that the European Union agree to delay Brexit until June 30.

The legislation, which is being passed despite government opposition to it, will now return to the elected House of Commons for further consideration with a view to being finalized and turned into law later on Monday.

May has already asked Brussels to extend Britain’s EU membership until June 30 to allow talks with the opposition Labour Party in search of different exit plan – a last-ditch attempt to keep control after parliament rejected her own Brexit deal three times.

But lawmakers want additional legal guarantees against a “no-deal” exit happening on April 12 – the current exit day – and have crafted a law forcing ministers to consult with parliament on Tuesday (April 9) before she goes to Brussels.

That would give lawmakers the chance to make legally binding changes to May’s requested departure date during a debate scheduled to last 90 minutes on Tuesday (April 9).

Source: Presstv

9, April 2019

Cameroon Tightens Screws on Opposition ⁰

In a crackdown on both the opposition and the right to assemble, Cameroonian authorities have banned a week of demonstrations planned by the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC) party.

On April 5, the Ministry of the Territorial Administration issued a press release banning the demonstrations between April 6 and 13, accusing the MRC of destabilising the country. The minister, Atanga Nji, also accused the MRC of an act of provocation, having chosen to organise demonstrations on April 6, a date which marks the anniversary of a 1984 coup attempt to oust President Biya.

This move is part of a growing trend in Cameroon. Since late 2016, the government has repeatedly blocked peaceful anti-government protests with force, arbitrary arrest, and detention of protesters. In January 2017, the Minister of Territorial Administration banned the activities of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC), a leading civil society organization working in the volatile anglophone regions.

The ban on MRC demonstrations comes as the party’s leader, Maurice Kamto, prepares to go to court tomorrow alongside six other MRC members and supporters to hear the verdict on a habeas corpus request. Kamto and the six others were among 200 people arrested on January 26 following pro-MRC demonstrations across Cameroon.

The Yaoundé Appeal Court is expected to confirm the decision of a lower court to keep Kamto in prison awaiting trial. On April 2, his defense lawyers walked out of the court room in protest of the decision to hold the proceedings behind closed doors.

The government’s ban on MRC rallies is a step backward for Cameroon and should be lifted immediately. Rather than forbid dissent and lock up opponents, the government should respect democratic principles and allow peaceful protest.

Source: Human Rights Watch

3, April 2019

UK PM May to meet Labour leader to try to break Brexit stalemate ⁰

British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn on Wednesday to thrash out a Brexit compromise, a gamble that could finally see a European Union divorce deal agreed but also tear her party apart.

After her EU withdrawal deal was rejected three times by lawmakers, with parliament and her Conservative Party hopelessly divided over Brexit, May said on Tuesday she would reach out to Corbyn in a bid to break the impasse.

The United Kingdom was supposed to leave the EU last Friday, but three years after Britons backed leaving the bloc in a referendum, it is still unclear how, when or even if it will do so.

May has been unable to persuade a hardcore eurosceptic group of own lawmakers to back the divorce agreement she struck with the EU because they argued it did not provide a decisive break with Europe.

Her decision to seek another short delay to the current Brexit date of April 12 and turn instead for support from Labour, which wants to stay in a customs union with the EU, may make a “soft” Brexit more likely – one that keeps Britain’s economy closely aligned to the world’s biggest trading bloc.

Sterling rose on Wednesday over hopes for a “softer” Brexit, hitting its highest level since March 28.

“I personally think a customs union is highly undesirable,” Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay told BBC radio. “It is regrettable that what we have been saying for several months now is coming to pass, but that is the remorseless logic of not backing the prime minister’s deal.”

May’s decision to approach Corbyn, a veteran socialist deeply disliked by many Conservatives and mocked by May herself as unfit to govern, still leaves many questions unanswered.

She did not spell out how long a delay to Brexit she wanted, merely saying it should be “as short as possible and which ends when we pass a deal”. She has repeatedly said she did not want an extension which would see Britain having to take part in elections to the European Parliament on May 23.

European Council President Donald Tusk said the bloc should be patient with Britain as May tries to find a way forward but it was not certain how European leaders would view her request.

As it stands, Britain will still leave the EU on April 12 without a deal, something many Conservative lawmakers would like to happen but a scenario businesses fear could wreak chaos and cause huge economic damage.

A cross-party group of British lawmakers will try on Wednesday try to rush through legislation in parliament to make such an outcome impossible.

What does Labour want?

Ahead of their talks, May and Corbyn said there would be no preconditions, but the leaders might well struggle to find a compromise position that can satisfy their own parties.

“This isn’t a blank cheque,” Barclay said.

The Conservatives have been divided over Europe for three decades, leading to the demise of three former prime ministers, David Cameron, John Major and Margaret Thatcher.

But Labour is far from united itself. Corbyn, who voted against joining the bloc in 1975, has previously set out a series of demands he wanted May to agree to before he would back her deal.

“Labour has put forward our proposals to ensure there is a customs union with the EU, access to vital markets and protections of our standards of consumer, environmental and workers’ rights,” he said on Tuesday.

However, many Labour supporters want the party to throw its weight behind a second referendum, while some Labour lawmakers, who represent areas that voted strongly to leave the EU, are fearful that they will be viewed as betraying such traditional voters if they do not strongly back Brexit.

It’s a trap

“I thought momentarily last night May’s ‘offer’ might be genuine,” said one pro-EU Labour lawmaker Bradshaw.

“Having heard Barclay…it is clearly a trap designed to try to get May’s terrible deal through, which some people have fallen for, but Labour mustn’t,” he wrote on Twitter.

It is also unclear where May’s last-ditch attempt to get a Brexit deal through will ultimately leave her minority government.

She had already promised to step down if her withdrawal agreement was passed by parliament, although that failed to persuade all her lawmakers to back her, and her overture to Corbyn has alienated some Conservatives still further.

“She needs to take a long look in the mirror and for the good of our country, our democracy and the Conservative Party she needs to go now,” lawmaker Andrew Bridgen told Sky News.

The Democratic Unionist Party, the small Northern Irish party on whose support May relies on to govern, were also wary of her plans.

“It remains to be seen if sub-contracting out the future of Brexit to Jeremy Corbyn, someone whom the Conservatives have demonized for four years, will end happily,” the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) said in a statement following May’s change of strategy.

(Source: Reuters)

1, April 2019

SDF’s agony as parliamentary group leader dies ⁰

Joseph Banadzem Lukong, a prominent Southern Cameroons Member of Parliament and senior political figure of the Social Democratic Front-the so-called main opposition party is no more! The MP reportedly died on Saturday morning at the Yaoundé General Hospital.

Cameroon Concord News gathered from SDF sources that the MP’s health had deteriorated ever since the beginning of the crisis in Southern Cameroons. SDF propaganda minister, Jean Robert Wafo who confirmed the news late on Saturday did not make public any funeral arrangements.

Elected from the Bui County in the Northern Zone, Joseph Banadzem Lukong was the chairman of the SDF parliamentary group at the National Assembly. His teaching career took him to all the nooks and crannies of the Ambazonian territory including a brilliant period in Government High School Mamfe.

By Rita Akana

31, March 2019

Arab League expected to oppose US decision over Golan Heights ⁰

Arab heads of state, long divided by regional rivalries, are expected to unite at a summit on Sunday in the Tunisian capital to oppose a US decision recognising Israel’s annexation of Arab lands captured in 1967.

Arab leaders are already grappling with unrest in Algeria and Sudan, international pressure over the war in Yemen, regional splits over Iran’s influence in the Middle East and a bitter Gulf Arab dispute.

They face a new challenge after US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation last week recognising the Golan Heights as Israeli, less than four months after recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

Arab officials said the summit would be dominated by the Golan Heights and Palestinian demands for an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, areas also occupied by Israel in the 1967 war.

Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil said on Saturday Arab ministers had expressed support for a proposal to declare that the US move violated the UN charter against acquiring land by force.

They also agreed to back Syria’s right to regain Golan and Lebanon’s right to the Shebaa farms, a small strip of land next to the Golan claimed by Beirut, he tweeted.

Call for peace with Israel

Summit spokesman Mahmoud Al-Khmeiry said Arab leaders would repeat an Arab call for peace with Israel in exchange for occupied Arab lands and would reject any initiative not in line with UN resolutions.

Khmeiry appeared to be referring to a still-unannounced US peace plan by White House adviser Jared Kushner and Trump son-in-law that Palestinians have refused to discuss.

Trump’s aides have said his moves have drawn a less severe private reaction from Arab states than experts had predicted.

While opposition to Israel and its actions can unite the 22-member Arab League, Arab states remain divided over a range of other issues, including pro-democracy protests that have erupted in the region since 2011 and over Iran’s Middle East influence.

Ibrahim al-Assaf, foreign minister of Sunni Muslim powerhouse Saudi Arabia, said on Friday that Shi’ite Muslim rival Iran remained the biggest threat to the region.

The Tunis summit will be the first time the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Qatar have attended the same gathering since 2017, when Riyadh and its allies imposed a political and economic boycott on Doha. Saudi Arabia and its allies accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism and cosying up to Iran, a charge Doha denies.

The leaders of Sudan and Algeria are not expected to attend, with both nations roiled by anti-government protests.

Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algeria’s ailing, 82-year-old president who has ruled for 20 years, and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, in power for three decades and wanted by international prosecutors for alleged war crimes in his country’s Darfur region, are both facing calls to step down.

Syria has been suspended from the Arab League since 2011 over its crackdown on protesters at the start of the civil war. The League has said there was still no consensus to allow Syria’s reinstatement.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)

28, March 2019

Could Nigeria’s court ruling ease the conflict in southern Cameroon? ⁰

On 1 March, in the case between 12 Cameroonian separatist leaders and the Federal Government of Nigeria, Justice Anwuli Chikere of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the forced deportation of the 12 leaders and 39 other Anglophones from Taraba State was illegal and unconstitutional.

The judge said that irrespective of whether they posed a threat to the Nigerian state or not, the Federal Government did not follow due process and thus violated both the Nigerian constitution and articles 32 and 33 of the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Stating that their human rights were violated, Justice Chikere ordered their return to Nigeria. He also decided the government should pay compensation of ₦5-million each to the 12 and ₦200 000 each to the 39 other deportees. The 12 are leaders of the self-proclaimed independent territory of Ambazonia, an outlawed territory in Cameroon’s mostly Anglophone regions, where some English-speaking residents seek to restore what was formerly British Southern Cameroons.

While seeking refuge in Nigeria, the individuals, including their leader Sisiku Julius Ayuk Tabe, were seized in January 2018 at the Nera Hotel in Abuja and extradited to Cameroon. The UN, particularly the UN High Commission for Refugees, which had records of the 12 as refugees and asylees, strongly condemned the act and called for their return. After being held incommunicado for over 10 months in Cameroon, they are now on trial before a Yaoundé military tribunal for terrorism-related crimes.

The ruling has given new impetus to the hotly contested issue. Legally, justice seems to have been served but politically, the implications are unclear. There is a need to closely examine the legality of the court’s ruling, to ascertain what it means in practice. Can the court compel the Nigerian government to enforce the ruling? Will the Cameroon government heed the court’s decision by releasing the leaders?

As it stands, there is no extradition treaty between the two countries. This is contrary to Cameroon’s communication minister Issa Tchiroma’s argument that the arrest and transfer of the 12 from Nigeria to Cameroon conformed with the law. He cited three security accords signed by Cameroon and Nigeria in 1963 and 1972 which, although not extradition treaties, define rules of cooperation in matters of security between the two countries.

Inasmuch as the ruling censures the Federal Government of Nigeria, it does present options to resolve the deepening armed conflict in the two English-speaking North West and South West regions. Anglophone militias in these areas are battling pro-regime soldiers in their quest to separate and establish a new country. These Anglophone separatists want emancipation from the French-dominated Cameroon.

The separatists will no doubt expect some reaction from the government of Cameroon to the court’s ruling. If the Paul Biya administration were to ignore an overture from the Nigerian government to return the deportees, and find the deportees guilty of terrorism – which could include the death penalty – this could escalate tensions. It would mark a turning point for the conflict and a missed opportunity for restoring peace in the country.

Although capital punishment is a far-fetched outcome, a guilty verdict is not an unlikely scenario. This is a country where state authority remains heavily centralised in the executive branch, and legislative decision making is often opaque and without consultation. This is evident in the government’s unilaterally designed conflict mitigation strategies, such as the creation of a Bilingualism Committee in response to the perceived linguistic marginalisation of the English-speaking regions.

Similarly, government created the ill-fitted National Committee for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration. The committee has been unable to make inroads in disarming militants, many of whom have shown no signs of surrendering their arms without dialogue.

These government initiatives don’t reflect a real analysis of the root causes of the current crisis. Linguistic marginalisation is a simplistic explanation that belies the decades-long exploitation of citizens by the ruling elite, who depend solely on patronage. Even more troubling have been government actions to vilify Anglophone communities in the wake of the crisis, and the failure to hold security services accountable for attacks on civilians.

Cameroon’s government could instead use the Nigerian court’s ruling as an opportunity to start a process of national reconciliation. Having suffered setbacks in its legitimacy, government could restore trust and social cohesion with citizens by prioritising peace building rather than state-building.

By heeding the Abuja High Court ruling and repatriating the 12 leaders who are seen by their followers as the legitimate brokers of peace in any dialogue process, chances are the Cameroonian leadership can set a new course towards stability.

It could capitalise on the faction of Anglophone ‘federalists’ who hope for a return to the former federal system of government without the structural exploitation and under-development of the two Anglophone regions by the Francophone political centre of power. This has been at the heart of the ‘Anglophone problem’.

The process of finding a durable solution would ideally be facilitated by the international community through the UN. Central to such a dialogue and reconciliation process will be a commitment to holding both separatists and security forces responsible for crimes committed against innocent civilians. It must also provide justice for the thousands who have been killed, and redress for those rendered homeless due to the burning of their villages, resulting in the massive exodus into Nigeria in the first place.

Source: Polity.org

28, March 2019

United States sanctions on the Paul Biya regime: A good move though coming late ⁰

Paul Biya remains one of the few “sit tight” leaders in Africa. He has been in power for close to 37 years. And at 86 years, he has not thought it wise to quit the political stage and make way for the younger generation. Who knows if he intends to die in office like the late Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo or he is waiting for the military to topple his government as it was done to Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe. Whatever his intention may be, power does not last forever. If he does not leave power, power will definitely leave him.

Because of the atrocities committed in the ongoing war in Southern Cameroon, the United States government has sanctioned Paul Biya’s regime. What these sanctions mean is that, 20 military personnel, civilians, and ministers cannot travel to the U.S. – they have been banned. Added to this, the US will also withdraw all promised aid and security programmes, including an offer to provide training to the Cameroonian military. Importantly, the US gives a total of 17 million dollars annually to the Cameroonian government as aid. All of this will be forfeited due to the sanctions.

Even though the United States government sanctions are coming late, it is a welcome development. Since the conflict started in 2016, Washington is the first foreign government to condemn Paul Biya’s regime with sanctions. And without any iota of doubt, these sanctions will affect the US-Cameroon relations but it may force Paul Biya’s regime to minimize the use of force in the Anglophone region.

Again, Yaoundé may want to be desperate to regain the favour of the white house, hence, it may release the detained opposition leader, Maurice Kamto, whose arrest and detention also contributed to the sanctions.

Now that the United States has sanctioned Paul Biya’s regime, it will be wise for the European Union (EU) including France to do the same in order to intensify the pressure and force Yaoundé to negotiate with the Ambazonia leaders. It will not make any sense if the EU especially France takes steps that will thwart the US sanctions or embolden Paul Biya’s regime to continue to perpetrate atrocities in Southern Cameroon.

As a matter of fact, no fewer than 2,000 people have died with another 170,000 displaced since the conflict began. Despite this, it is very shameful that no African country has suspended its relationship with Cameroon. Even Nigeria, the big brother of Africa, reportedly arrested and deported Julius Ayuk Tabe the self-declared president of Ambazonia in 2018.

And to worsen the matter, the African Union (AU) has not taken drastic steps to at least restrain Paul Biya from killing Southern Cameroonians and burning down villages even though it does not have the power to interfere in Cameroon’s domestic affairs. And I hope none of the African countries will give Cameroon a hand by the time the sanctions begin to bite her hard.

Everyone not the United States government must take a stand against Paul Biya’s regime until he negotiates with the separatist leaders.

Source: Qwenu.com