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East Africa: Horn Conflict, 1
East Africa: Horn Conflict, 1
Date distributed (ymd): 980707
Document reposted by APIC
+++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: East Africa
Issue Areas: +security/peace+
Summary Contents:
This posting contains a background update from the UN's Integrated Regional
Information Network (IRIN) in Nairobi, the text of the Security Council
resolution on the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, and a Pan African
News Agency summary of the US/Rwanda peace plan. The next posting contains
position statements from the two governments and notes on sources for additional
information on-line.
+++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA: New peace efforts amid claims of civilian abuses
NAIROBI, 3 July 1998 (IRIN)
A team of African diplomats under the auspices of the OAU left Addis
Ababa for Asmara in renewed peace efforts this week, news agencies reported.
The group represents the four-nation team mandated by the OAU summit on
10 June in Ouagadougou. The OAU-mandated mediation mission which ended
on 19 June failed to break the deadlock and did not succeed in advancing
the US-Rwanda peace plan which included a call for Eritrean forces to withdraw.
Rwanda yesterday announced its withdrawal from the team to try to break
the deadlock, news agencies report.
A UN source told IRIN today the original team's room for manoeuvre was
"limited" by the OAU's endorsement of the US-Rwanda plan. It
is as yet unclear what new proposals the current mission carries. Another
mediation effort from Democratic Republic of Congo leader Laurent-Desire
Kabila on Friday was also fruitless, news agencies said. Ethiopia has reiterated
its insistence on the four-point US-Rwanda plan, while the Eritrean Assembly
last week repeated Asmara's proposals for demilitarising the border area
and beginning direct talks between the two sides. New initiatives by the
governments of Libya and the Netherlands was reported by media in recent
days but no further details are yet available.
The UN Security Council on Friday condemned the use of force in the
dispute between the two former allies and demanded an immediate cessation
of hostilities. The resolution (1177) also supported the OAU's efforts
to defuse the crisis and called on both parties to take confidence-building
steps such as "guaranteeing the rights and safety of each other's
nationals". AFP reports suggest only two minor clashes have taken
place since 11 June.
However, while actual conflict seems to be on hold, little visible progress
has been made in bringing Ethiopia and Eritrea back from the brink of renewed
conflict, and the war of words conducted in the media shows no signs of
letting up.
In the humanitarian sphere, the focus in both countries has been on
displacement and the treatment of expatriate civilians. An unknown number
of Eritrean civilians have been displaced from their homes within Eritrea,
while two UN inter-agency teams assessed the situation in the clash-hit
Tigray and Afar regions last week. UN sources told IRIN it was hard to
establish exact numbers of displaced people, as people are being taken
care of in communities, but that people were still moving out of their
areas. Most of the Ethiopian displaced people have been housed in local
communities as the government is opposed to the creation of camps, humanitarian
sources say. The official 'Ethiopian Herald' however reported that makeshift
camps had been set up in some areas. Host communities and social services
are under stress in coping with the influx of displaced. The international
humanitarian community is expected to give only a "measured"
response to needs in Ethiopia, given the extensive response of local communities
and institutions, sources close to the team told IRIN.
The Eritrean government has again protested against the alleged mistreatment
of its civilians in Ethiopia, while Ethiopia makes similar protests about
expulsions, detentions and confiscation of property of Ethiopians in Eritrea.
Eritrea's ambassador to the UN on 15 June called for humanitarian intervention
to protect the "safety and well-being" of Eritreans in Ethiopia,
claiming that thousands of Eritreans were being rounded up.
Another inter-agency assessment is planned to leave Asmara to check
on the humanitarian situation in the country. Two inter-agency UN teams
are to assess the humanitarian situation in Eritrea, visiting the contested
Zala Anbessa and Badme areas this weekend. Eritrea is unlikely to make
any early appeal for international assistance for an unknown number of
displaced people within its borders, UN sources say.
A spokesman at the Ethiopian embassy in Nairobi this week claimed that
600 Ethiopians were being held in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, while 4,000
had been expelled. An Eritrean news agency statement, received by IRIN
yesterday alleges that 6,000 Eritreans have been expelled, and over 1,000
are in detention in Ethiopia. An ICRC spokesperson told IRIN today that
the organization has regular access to interned Eritrean civilians and
prisoners of war in Ethiopia. She added that requests for access to Ethiopian
detainees or prisoners of war in Eritrea had not yet been successful.
Humanitarian sources stressed to IRIN today that it was important not
to lose sight of ongoing humanitarian needs in Ethiopia, in particular
the fate of four million people faced with serious food shortages.
A senior aid worker told IRIN today humanitarian assistance could be
potentially beneficial for the overall economy, but "nobody wants
to support the war effort". He stressed the situation was currently
under control, but there was a risk of continued or increased displacement
as well as disruption to ongoing drough-related relief operations. The
capabilities and experience of both governments in managing relief efforts
means that a big international presence is unlikely, aid workers said.
Support for the war-displaced would be more a case of "plugging the
gaps", one relief official told IRIN.
[ENDS]
[The material contained in this communication comes to you via IRIN,
a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the
views of the United Nations or its agencies. UN IRIN Tel: +254 2 622123
Fax: +254 2 622129 e-mail: irin@dha.unon.org
for more information or subscriptions. If you re-print, copy, archive or
re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations
or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. IRIN reports
are archived on the WWW at: http://wwwnotes.reliefweb.int
or can be retrieved automatically by sending e-mail to archive@dha.unon.org.
Mailing list: irin-cea-weekly]
Sec. Council Urges Ethiopia, Eritrea To Achieve Peace
June 29, 1998
From UN Web Site (http://www.un.org)
United Nations - Expressing grave concern at the conflict between Ethiopia
and Eritrea and its implication for the region, the Security Council this
afternoon urged the two States to exhaust all means to achieve a peaceful
settlement of their border dispute.
Unanimously adopting resolution 1177 (1998), the Council condemned the
use of force and demanded that the parties refrain from its further use
and to immediately cease hostilities. It welcomed their commitment to a
moratorium on the threat of and use of air strikes.
The Council called upon the parties to avoid any steps which would aggravate
tensions, such as provocative actions or statements, and to take steps
to build confidence between them, including guaranteeing the rights and
safety of each other's nationals.
It expressed strong support for the decision of the Assembly of Heads
of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) on 10
June 1998 to dispatch a mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (embodied in document
S/1998/494), and called upon the two countries to cooperate fully with
the organization. The Council urged the OAU to follow up as quickly as
possible. (By that decision, the OAU Assembly dispatched a delegation of
heads of State and government of the member States of the Central Organ
of OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution, led
by the current OAU Chairman, to Ethiopia and Eritrea for talks on the conflict.)
By other terms of today's resolution, the Council asked the Secretary-General
to make available his good offices in support of a peaceful resolution
of the conflict and said it stood ready to consider further recommendations
to that end. The Secretary-General was also to provide technical support
to Ethiopia and Eritrea to assist in the eventual delimitation and demarcation
of their common border. Towards that end, the Council established a trust
fund and urged all Member States to contribute to it.
The meeting, which was called to order at 12:40 p.m., was adjourned
at 12:45 p.m.
Resolution Adopted
The text of the resolution is as follows:
"The Security Council,
"Expressing grave concern at the conflict between Ethiopia and
Eritrea, its political, humanitarian and security implications for the
region, and its effect on the civilian populations there,
"Affirming the commitment of all Member States to the sovereignty
and territorial integrity of Ethiopia and Eritrea,
"Affirming the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes and
stressing that the use of armed force is not acceptable as a means of addressing
territorial disputes or changing circumstances on the ground,
"Noting that the official statements by the Government of Ethiopia
and the Government of Eritrea pledging to discontinue the threat of and
use of air strikes in the conflict have contributed to the continuation
of the efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution to the conflict, reduced
the threat to the civilian populations as well as the economic and social
infrastructure, and enabled the resumption of normal economic activity,
including commercial transportation,
"Noting the strong traditional ties between Ethiopia and Eritrea,
"Welcoming the official statements by the Government of Ethiopia
and the Government of Eritrea that they share the ultimate goal of delimiting
and demarcating their common border on the basis of a mutually agreeable
and binding arrangement, taking into account the Charter of the Organization
of African Unity (OAU), colonial treaties, and international law applicable
to such treaties,
"Noting the resolution adopted by the Council of Ministers of the
OAU in special session on 5 June 1998 (S/1998/485),
"Commending the efforts of the OAU and of others, in cooperation
with the OAU, to achieve a peaceful settlement of the conflict,
"1. Condemns the use of force and demands that both parties immediately
cease hostilities and refrain from further use of force;
"2. Welcomes the commitment of the parties to a moratorium on the
threat of and use of air strikes;
"3. Urges the parties to exhaust all means to achieve a peaceful
settlement of the dispute;
"4. Expresses its strong support for the decision of the Assembly
of the Heads of State and Government of the OAU on 10 June 1998 (S/1998/494)
as well as for the mission and efforts of the Heads of State of the OAU
and urges the OAU to follow up as quickly as possible;
"5. Calls upon the parties to cooperate fully with the OAU;
"6. Also calls upon the parties to avoid any steps which would
aggravate tensions such as provocative actions or statements and to take
steps to build confidence between them including by guaranteeing the rights
and safety of each other's nationals;
"7. Requests the Secretary-General to make available his good offices
in support of a peaceful resolution of the conflict and stands ready to
consider further recommendations to this end;
"8. Requests the Secretary-General to provide technical support
to the parties to assist in the eventual delimitation and demarcation of
the common border between Ethiopia and Eritrea and, for this purpose, establishes
a Trust Fund and urges all Member States to contribute to it; and
"9. Decides to remain seized of the matter."
26 June 1998
Four-Point Proposals To Resolve Ethiopia-Eritrea Dispute
June 5, 1998
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (PANA) - Following is the summary of the Rwanda-United
States recommendations to defuse the border conflict between Eritrea and
Ethiopia:
- Both parties should commit themselves to the following principles:
resolving this and any other dispute between them by peaceful means --
renouncing force as a means of imposing solutions -- agreeing to undertake
measures to reduce current tensions -- and seeking the final disposition
of their common border, on the basis of established colonial treaties and
international law applicable to such treaties.
- To reduce current tensions, and without prejudice to the territorial
claims of either party: a small observer mission should be deployed to
Badme. Eritrean forces should redeploy from Badme to positions held before
May 6. The previous civilian administration should return and there should
be an investigation into the events of May 6.
- To achieve lasting resolution of the underlying border dispute, both
parties should agree to the swift and binding delimitation and demarcation
of the Eritrea-Ethiopia border. Border delimitation should be determined
on the basis of established colonial treaties and international law applicable
to such treaties, and the delimitation and demarcation process should be
completed by a qualified technical team as soon as possible. The demarcated
border should be accepted and adhered to by both parties, and, upon completion
of demarcation, the legitimate authorities assume jurisdication over their
respective sovereign territories.
- Both parties should demilitarize the entire common border as soon as
possible.
For additional PANA dispatches see the PANA Web Site (http://www.africanews.org/pana).
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by the Africa
Policy Information Center (APIC), the educational affiliate of the Washington
Office on Africa. APIC's primary objective is to widen the policy debate
in the United States around African issues and the U.S. role in Africa,
by concentrating on providing accessible policy-relevant information and
analysis usable by a wide range of groups individuals.
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