News Africa Extended

News Africa Extended

#EgyptAir ‘black box signals detected’

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 06:47 AM PDT

A French navy vessel detected signals from one of the black boxes of the EgyptAir plane that crashed in the Mediterranean, investigators said.

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A French navy vessel equipped with deep-water listening devices has detected signals from one of the black boxes of the EgyptAir plane that crashed in the Mediterranean, investigators said on Wednesday.

The flight recorders could contain crucial information to help solve the mystery of why the Airbus A320 plunged into the sea with 66 people on board en route from Paris to Cairo on May 19.

The signals were picked up by French survey ship Laplace which is using acoustic detection systems to listen for the “pings” emitted by the flight recorders, France's aviation safety agency BEA said.

“The detection of this signal is a first step,” said BEA official Remi Jouty.

Egypt's ministry of civil aviation had announced the potential breakthrough earlier, saying the signals were “assumed to be from one of the data recorders”.

Some of the wreckage has already been pulled from the Mediterranean along with passenger belongings. No survivors have been found.

Another vessel sent by Deep Ocean Search (DOS), a private company hired to help find the black boxes, is on its way to the area carrying a ship with a robot capable of diving up to 3 000 metres (yards) to retrieve the recorders.

The ship is due to arrive at the site within a week, the Egyptian ministry said.

“Extensive search efforts are being carried out to locate the two data recorders in preparation for their retrieval,” the ministry said.

The black boxes have enough battery power to emit signals for four or five weeks.

The French navy surveillance vessel Laplace which detected the signals is equipped with three devices capable of picking up the “pings” from the black boxes from a distance of up to five kilometres (3.1 miles).

Investigators have said it is too soon to determine what caused the disaster although a terror attack has not been ruled out.

France's aviation safety agency has said the aircraft transmitted automated messages indicating smoke in the cabin and a fault in the flight control unit minutes before disappearing from radar screens.

The passengers were 30 Egyptians, 15 French citizens, two Iraqis, two Canadians, and citizens from Algeria, Belgium, Britain, Chad, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. They included a boy and two babies.

Seven crew and three security personnel were also on board.

The crash comes after the bombing of a Russian airliner over Egypt's restive Sinai Peninsula last October that killed all 224 people on board.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for that attack within hours, but there has been no such claim linked to the EgyptAir crash.

IS has been waging a deadly insurgency against Egyptian security forces and has claimed attacks in both France and Egypt.

In October, foreign governments issued travel warnings for Egypt and demanded a review of security at its airports after IS said it downed the Russian airliner over Sinai with a bomb concealed in a soda can that had been smuggled on the plane.

AFP

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Lone voices speak out as Mugabe clings on

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 06:46 AM PDT

Individual voices in Zimbabwe are taking a stand and tapping into anger bubbling below the surface.

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Harare - Dissent is seldom aired publicly in Zimbabwe after Robert Mugabe's 35 years of authoritarian rule but, against all the odds, individual voices are taking a stand and tapping into anger bubbling below the surface.

President Mugabe, now aged 92, oversees a moribund economy, a food shortage crisis and a listless political scene with opposition parties weakened by rigged elections and constant intimidation.

Amid such gloom, pastor Evan Mawarire has emerged as a national hero in recent weeks after starting his “ThisFlag” campaign that rapidly became an unlikely outlet for many Zimbabweans' frustration.

Two days after Mugabe recited a list of his achievements at a rally in April, Mawarire posted a video of himself on Facebook venting against state corruption and the government's failure to provide basic services.

The video, in which Mawarire was wearing a Zimbabwean flag, became a huge hit - viewed more than 100 000 times - and spawned a wave of Internet activism in a country where any expression of protest can be dangerous.

“This is how political reform is going to happen,” Mawarire told AFP.

“I asked as many Zimbabweans as possible to carry our national flag as a way of saying to our government 'enough is enough'.

“Citizens are aware, they are watching the government when it comes to issues where we feel there is mismanagement of resources or an injustice.”

The campaign has unnerved the government due to its non-political stance and its choice of the national flag as its symbol - making it a difficult target for official criticism.

Two cabinet ministers have instead sought to focus on Mawarire himself, alleging that he is linked to western powers supposedly plotting to oust Mugabe, who has ruled since 1980.

Mawarire, 39, a father of two who describes himself as “just a regular guy who likes to express himself”, says he now fears he will attract unwelcome attention from the authorities.

“I am afraid of being beaten, hurt or abducted,” he said.

Sylvanos Mudzvova, an actor, knows all too well that Zimbabwe can be a violent and dangerous place for subversive voices.

He was mugged by unidentified assailants in 2013 after he wrote and staged a play about the Arab Spring.

The play told of disillusioned Zimbabweans including a street vendor and a motor mechanic who planned their own version of the protests in Harare's main public square.

The mugging left Mudzvova with a paralysed left leg, and he still walks with a limp.

Mudzvova is also a close friend of Itai Dzamara, an outspoken anti-Mugabe protester and rights activist who is missing - and feared dead - after being abducted in mysterious circumstances more than a year ago.

Last month, Mudzvova was briefly detained by police after staging a one-actor play outside parliament denouncing state corruption and environmental damage.

“There are issues that the government needs to address but hasn't and we shouldn't keep our mouths shut in a conspiracy of silence,” Mudzvova told AFP at Alliance Francaise in Harare while preparing to stage his solo act on the opaque diamond-mining industry.

To avoid arrest, Mudzvova often performs what he calls “hit-and-run” shows in a public places, such as shopping centres and marketplaces, without any warning.

He quickly performs his short play and leaves the surprised audience pondering the issues he has raised.

Another cleric, Patrick Mugadza, has vowed he will continue to speak out even after being detained for a lone protest carrying a placard that read “Mr President, the people are suffering” outside the Zanu-PF annual conference last year.

He was released on $50 bail after spending 16 days behind bars.

Undeterred, Mugadza last month gave a sermon while chained to a lamp-post in Harare telling listeners “until we stand up and demand our freedom, we will watch our nation bleeding to death.”

Such individual protests pose little threat to Mugabe, who retains a fierce grip on power despite increasing signs of ageing and has vowed to run for re-election in 2018.

But they offer glimmers of hope to the many Zimbabweans who wait for the country to begin a new chapter when Mugabe's long rule finally ends.

“This can get serious on the back of the deteriorating economy,” Ibbo Mandaza, head of the think-tank Southern African Political and Economic Series, told AFP.

“Anything can happen.”

AFP

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Moz clashes revive spectre of civil war

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 06:45 AM PDT

The Mozambican region of Gorongosa has been witnessing an increase in skirmishes and sporadic clashes between the army and rebels.

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Gorongosa - Decomposing corpses in the bush, destroyed villages, abductions - in the central Mozambican district of Gorongosa clashes between the army and rebels have revived the spectre of a civil war that ended 20 years ago.

“It has been two months since I have found these bodies and no one has come to remove them,” Donca Sabir, a local farmer, told AFP as he contemplated remains barely hidden among shrubs on his land.

Wearing scraps of civilian clothes, their trousers often pulled down, and their jaws open in macabre expressions of pain, the skeletal corpses lie just 100 metres from Mozambique's main north-south road.

From the roadside, the smell is strong from the bodies of at least nine men and women.

A little further down the road, under a small bridge, local authorities said they recently buried 11 other corpses.

But no proper autopsy was conducted, and four skulls and some bones are still visible in the sand.

The discovery of bodies in the area last month shocked many in Mozambique and alerted international human rights groups.

Local villagers had also earlier reported an unconfirmed mass grave that could contain more than 100 corpses.

But in Zone 76, the alleged location of the mass grave, everyone is too scared to speak about it, and the government has dismissed the reports.

“The Mozambican government must tell us who are these people, how they died and who left their bodies there,” Zenaida Machado, Mozambique researcher for Human Rights Watch, told AFP.

“I find it difficult to understand how any investigation can be made without performing an autopsy on the bodies.

“It is extremely worrying that instead of taking these reports (of graves) seriously, the first action of the authorities is to deny them.”

Ivone Soares, head of the Renamo party in parliament, alleges that Frelimo, the ruling party in power since 1975, has implemented a campaign to eliminate all opposition.

“Death squads terrorise those who criticise the regime... People are abducted and murdered in their homes,” she told AFP.

The “death squads” are said to patrol in white trucks and target supporters of Renamo - a movement that operates as both an armed insurgent group and an elected opposition party.

Frelimo and Renamo fought a bloody civil war between 1976 and 1992 that claimed one million lives.

Since 2013, tensions have risen and Renamo fighters have again taken up arms in a battle that it says is against a Frelimo elite that has enriched itself at the expense of the country.

Starting with a low-intensity insurgency, attacks intensified from late last year, forcing thousands of refugees to flee to neighbouring Malawi.

In Gorongosa, a local government official insisted that the situation was calm across the region, but declined to go into further details.

About 30 kilometres east of Gorongosa, on the small dirt track, 10 armoured army trucks patrol outside the deserted village of Vunduzi, a Renamo stronghold surrounded by corn fields.

In the distance stand the lush mountains where Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama is hiding after escaping several assassination attempts.

On the side of the road, Joaquim Assais is visibly upset as he contemplates the fate of his village.

“My father was sitting there when the army arrived. They tied him, beat him up and burned down the houses,” said Assais, who now sleeps with 12 other members of his family under a tree in the bush.

At the end of the dirt track, Vunduzi is a ghost town.

A few military men patrol the small main square, their Kalashnikov rifles by their sides.

Everything is closed, and there is little activity except for one or two banana sellers.

In the abandoned village school, a blackboard suggests that the last maths lesson was given on March 16.

“It's war here,” Siwageros Campira said, pointing to his general store which is riddled with bullets.

“When it gets dark, we pack our belongings up and hide in the bush. In recent months, there has been a lot of shooting and many people were captured and killed by soldiers.”

Villagers say that just to have relatives who are accused of links to Renamo can mean kidnapping and death.

In retaliation, Renamo has conducted 18 attacks in the past two weeks on the main road of the country, killing seven people and leaving more than 30 wounded, according to police.

“Both sides are killing innocent people, both violate human rights,” said Daviz Simango, the mayor of Beira, the main city in the central region.

“Like any guerrillas, Renamo know how to blend in with the population and lead a normal life, while armed forces are trying to prevent them from getting supplies to their leader.”

In the capital Maputo, cautious negotiations resumed last week in a first step to restarting the peace process.

In Gorongosa, the locals can only hope for some respite.

AFP

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Uganda opposition leader’s treason trial begins

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 06:44 AM PDT

Kizza Besigye's treason trial began with the prosecutor saying he could not be brought to court for security reasons.

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Kampala - Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye's treason trial began on Wednesday with the prosecutor saying he could not be brought to court for security reasons.

Besigye, who claimed fraud after coming second in February's presidential election, was arrested last month for holding a mock swearing-in ceremony and charged with treason.

He is being held at the maximum security Luzira Prison in the capital Kampala.

State prosecutor Lino Angunzu told the judge that Besigye could not be brought to court because of “a specific security threat” and requested that further hearings be held inside the prison.

Chief Magistrate James Ereemye Mawanda said he would rule on the request on June 15 and adjourned the case until then.

Opposition party officials and supporters who had thronged the small courtroom jeered as the brief hearing took place.

Mugisha Muntu, president of Besigye's Forum for Democratic Change party, said the proceedings were “absurd” and a “manipulation of the judicial system by the executive.”

Besigye was arrested in Kampala on May 11 after staging his mock inauguration ahead of President Yoweri Museveni's swearing in.

He was then whisked to a northern town and charged with treason before being brought back to the capital a few days later.

Treason is a capital offence in Uganda, but the death penalty has not been carried out for years.

Besigye was earlier charged with treason in 2005 and the case was eventually dropped.

A long-standing opponent of Museveni, Besigye has been frequently jailed, placed under house arrest, accused of both treason and rape, tear-gassed, beaten and hospitalised over the years.

Museveni seized power at the head of a rebel army in 1986 and has ruled the country ever since.

His victory in February's poll marked the start of his fifth term in office and fourth decade in power.

AFP

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Egypt hospital shuts down after FGM death

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 03:13 AM PDT

The death of a teenage girl during FGM raises questions about Egypt's efforts to end the practice, anti-FGM campaigners said.

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Dakar - The death of a teenage girl during an operation to illegally perform female genital mutilation (FGM) on her in Egypt raises questions about the north African nation's efforts to end the practice, anti-FGM campaigners said on Tuesday.

Mayar Mohamed Mousa, 17, died of heavy bleeding in a hospital in Suez province on Sunday while under anaesthesia, according to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), Cairo-based rights group.

The private El Canal Hospital, where Mousa's twin sister also underwent the procedure but survived, was on Tuesday shut down and Egyptian prosecutors are investigating the death, said Sedkhi Sidhom, an official from Egypt's health ministry.

“Not all cases of female circumcision are reported across Egypt. There are cases of circumcision where the women die and are then buried without a word being mentioned,” Sidhom said.

More than nine in 10 women and girls aged between 15 and 49 in Egypt have undergone FGM, and around 80 percent of these procedures are carried out by medical professionals, despite the practice being banned in 2008, according to UN estimates.

The teenager's death comes more than a year after doctor Raslan Fadl was convicted of manslaughter in Egypt's first FGM trial after a 13-year-old girl died in a botched procedure.

While Fadl was sentenced to more than two years in prison, he has not yet been imprisoned, said Suad Abu-Dayyeh, Middle East and North Africa consultant at rights group Equality Now.

“It is incredible that the Egyptian police are not taking a tough line on ending FGM in a country where over 27 million have been affected,” she said in a statement.

“The death of the 17-year-old should be yet another shocking wake up call for Egypt.”

Enforcing the law

FGM affects an estimated 140 million girls and women across a swathe of Africa and parts of the Middle East and Asia, and is seen as a gateway to marriage and a way of preserving a girl's purity. It causes numerous health problems that can be fatal.

The practice is punishable in Egypt by up to two years in prison under a 2008 law, which was enacted after an 11-year-old girl died following an FGM procedure in Minya province.

Yet rights groups say the law has not been enforced and that Egyptian society is permissive of FGM, which is widely practised among Muslims as well as Christians in the mostly Muslim nation.

“It's a catastrophe that these cases are still happening. The doctors are actually not performing operations, but crimes,” said Dalia Abd El-Hameed, gender and women's rights officer at the EIPR.

“Criminalisation alone is not enough,” she said. “The state must focus on changing individuals' beliefs ... that cannot be done using only medical and religious discourse,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by email from Cairo.

Magdy Khaled, head of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said she was deeply saddened by Mousa's death in light of the progress Egypt had made in combating FGM in recent years.

Around six in 10 girls aged 15 to 17 had been cut in Egypt in 2014, down from three quarters of girls in 2008, the UNFPA said.

Reuters

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Kenya protests dogs, slaves reference

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 03:06 AM PDT

An Egyptian diplomat has been accused of calling sub-Saharan Africans “slaves and dogs.”

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Nairobi, Kenya - A Kenyan diplomat has written to the dean of the Africa Diplomatic Corps to protest what she calls “uncivilized, undiplomatic, irresponsible, degrading and insulting behavior” by an Egyptian diplomat who is alleged to have called sub-Saharan Africans “slaves and dogs.”

In a letter dated May 29, Yvonne Khamati, chairwoman of the Africa Diplomatic Corp Technical Committee, said that the head of the Egyptian delegation made the remarks last week at the end of the United Nations Environment Assembly in Kenya.

The remarks were allegedly made in Arabic during consultation on the lack of quorum to pass resolutions affecting Gaza, Khamati said.

The assembly is the world's highest-level decision-making body on the environment and makes resolutions to address critical environmental challenges facing the world.

Khamati is asking for an apology and said that Egypt should be stopped from representing Africa in any leadership position.

In response, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri, according to a statement issued in Cairo, has ordered an investigation into the incident.

Information already available to the foreign ministry dismisses that such “language” was used by the Egyptian delegate, said the statement.

“It is unacceptable to fall into the trap of generalization and direct flimsy accusations against the state of Egypt, its people and its African identity as well as its ability to assume its responsibilities in championing African interests,” the statement said.

The ministry also directed the Egyptian embassy in Nairobi to send a “sharply worded” memo to the Council of African Ambassadors in the Kenya capital to express Cairo's indignation at the “excesses” committed by Khamati in her statement on Egypt.

Egypt under President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, in office since 2014, has worked to forge closer ties with sub-Saharan Africa, with Cairo offering training and technical know-how in several fields.

AP

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Call for Kenyan electoral officers to resign

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 03:05 AM PDT

Embattled IEBC officials are facing mounting pressure to vacate office and pave the way for new officials ahead of the 2017 general elections in Kenya.

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Nairobi - Embattled Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) officials are facing mounting pressure to vacate office and pave the way for new officials ahead of the 2017 general elections in Kenya.

The International Commission of Jurists - Kenya (ICJ Kenya) on Tuesday added their voice to demand that the IEBC officials do the honourable thing and resign from office as they were no longer “credible”.

Addressing a media briefing, ICJ Vice Chairperson Kelvin Mogeni dismissed the government’s proposed parliamentary process to remove the IEBC officers, saying a parliamentary process would be time consuming.

This method, he said, could not guarantee the constitution of a new electoral body before the elections in 2017.

Mogeni said the current electoral body did not have the confidence of the citizens especially because some commissioners were implicated in the “Chicken Gate” scandal that involved a United Kingdom printing firm, Smith and Ouzman, printing the ballot papers in the last general election in 2013.

“The conviction and imprisonment by a British Court of two directors of Smith and Ouzman Company for bribing Kenyan election officials, including IEBC Chair Mr Ahmed Isaak Hassan, commonly known as the Chicken gate scandal, has cast doubts on the integrity of IEBC as an institution and its commissioners to manage elections in Kenya,” said Mogeni.

ICJ said the electoral body was currently faced with challenges regarding its credibility, independence and capacity to deliver credible, free and fair elections in Kenya and had failed to inspire confidence in its independence in dealing with political parties.

Other problems cited by ICJ included the report of the Auditor General dated June 6, 2014, on the procurement of Electronic Voter Devices for use in the 2013 elections which exposed serious gaps in the procurement processes; the management of the 2013 elections including the existence of multiple voter registers, and failures surrounding the adoption and use of technology in the elections.

All these, ICJ said, cast “reasonable doubt on IEBC’s capacity and integrity in management of the 2017 elections. Further, the low voter turnout reported in the recent voter registration exercise is symptomatic of voter apathy and expressed in numerous public opinion polls that further demonstrate a lack of public confidence”.

In the past three weeks, protests have been held in various parts of the country calling for the removal and/or resignation of IEBC commissioners, with some protests leading to the loss of life.

The opposition party called off the Monday protests to give dialogue a chance.

ICJ’s call for the election officials to resign come just a day after about 50 legislators from both the ruling party Jubilee and the Opposition met on Monday and agreed that all stakeholders would hold a series of consultative meetings to come up with proposals on how to reform the electoral body.

The legislators agreed to ensure comprehensive electoral and institutional reforms would be established before the general election set for August 2017.

– African News Agency

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Smaller Zim opposition parties launch coalition

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 03:05 AM PDT

Smaller opposition parties in Zimbabwe signed a coalition agreement in Harare, dubbed the Coalition of Democrats.

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Harare - Smaller opposition parties in Zimbabwe on Tuesday signed a coalition agreement in Harare, dubbed the Coalition of Democrats (CODE) which is expected to see them field and support one candidate for President and other positions, from local government elections up to legislators.

The agreement was signed by Democratic Assembly for Restoration of the Economy (DARE) President, Gilbert Dzikiti, MDC-N President, Welshman Ncube, Mavambo Khusile Dawn (MKD) President Simba Makoni, Renewal Democrats President, Elton Mangoma, and Zimbabwe United for Democracy (ZUNDE) President Farai Mbire.

People’s Democratic President, Tendai Biti and ZAPU Secretary for Information and Publicity, Mjobisa Noko were at the signing ceremony and gave solidarity messages although they did not sign the agreement.

The MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai, which is the biggest opposition party in the country, and the newly formed Zimbabwe People First led by deposed Vice-President, Joice Mujuru, were conspicuous by their absence.

Mujuru was said to have shown interest in the coalition but was waiting for the party’s congress expected in August to give the green light to sign the agreement.

“Today I have the greatest honour bestowed on me by my fellow Presidents up here with me to announce a new narrative and write a new chapter for the people of Zimbabwe,” Dzikiti, who currently chairs the coalition, said.

“We are gathered here to sign a coalition agreement among political parties here present. These political parties have seen it fit and proper to come together and work for the common good of Zimbabweans,” he added.

Dzikiti said the political party leaders had put their political differences aside to resolve the crisis in the country, which was reeling under deepening poverty levels, economic collapse and high unemployment.

“CODE was worked on the basis that no one should be excluded. There are some who have indicated that they are in internal consultations. We look forward to the day when they will be able to add their signatures to CODE,” he said.

Dzikiti said the leadership of CODE was committed and able to resolve the Zimbabwean crisis as they had a proven record of making things work.

“We are united by the common objective to work together as compatriots to achieve a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Zimbabwe, fully respected as a member of the community of nations,” he said.

The coalition will field candidates using a distinctive symbol and logos separate from their own political parties, according to the agreement.

The CODE will have a governing council consisting of all the Presidents of the member political parties and two other senior leaders from each political party.

Political analyst, Pedzisai Ruhanya, said while the coalition was a good starting point, the absence of Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC-T party and People First was a major setback as they had the numbers necessary to win an election.

“The fundamental strength of this group that met is that it represents the technical component of the opposition in Zimbabwe. They are talking about Professor Welshman Ncube, you cannot doubt

his technical competence in terms of understanding the issues of democracy and issues of electoral processes, the same applies to Biti and Mangoma,” he said.

“So they need to marry the technical, or what I call techno democracy, these are techno democrats, democrats who understand the technical aspect of democratic processes. But what they lack is the political; they need to marry the techno aspect with the political represented by other forces led by the MDC led by Tsvangirai and Mujuru. That is people who have a huge presence in the community.

“So in order to become a complete coalition that has the technical aspect of running an election and the political aspect of mobilising the numbers, because elections is also a quantitative game, it is a game of numbers,” he added.

Ruhanya said Mujuru and her People First were also necessary in the coalition because they had a greater understanding of how the ruling Zanu-PF regime operated.

“They have a better understanding of how Zanu-PF operated because they were part of the manipulative architecture of the state before they left Zanu; so we need the Mujurus and company because the conditions that are prevailing are the kind of conditions where the opposition thrives.

“So everybody is needed,” he said.

He said if Tsvangirai and Mujuru were excluded, they would all die politically.

“If they don’t unite, they die. Not only does Tsvangirai die, so will Biti and Makoni. If they go in a fractious state, they will all die, Tsvangirai and his numbers will also die, Biti with his technical capacity, Welsh with his technical capacity, they will all die and Zanu will thrive.

“So what they need to understand is everyone is needed, even if grasshoppers become voters, you should seek to have those grasshoppers to be part of the organisation,” he said.

Another political analyst, Rejoice Ngwenya, said what the country needed now was not a coalition, but an electoral pact between the political parties.

“What is important is to unite for an electoral pact than having a coalition because it involves sharing of candidates by parties. What we want is to dilute Zanu-PF and get them out of the matrix first, and then decide on a coalition later.”

He said individuals who were entertaining any hopes of going it alone and defeating Zanu-PF were wasting their time as it was not possible.

Alexander Rusero, another political analyst, said Zimbabwe was not yet ready for a coalition and what was rather needed was to create a level playing field to ensure the country held credible elections.

– African News Agency

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Uganda accused of redeploying troops in S Sudan

Posted: 01 Jun 2016 03:05 AM PDT

Uganda has been accused of redeploying its troops inside South Sudan, in breach of a 2015 peace agreement which demanded their withdrawal.

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Kampala - Uganda has been accused of redeploying its troops inside South Sudan by the world’s newest country’s opposition forces, in breach of an August 2015 peace agreement which demanded their withdrawal.

A senior military official of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO), under the leadership of the First Vice President Riek Machar, said convoys of hundreds or thousands of forces of the Ugandan People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) were seen “sneaking” back into South Sudan last Tuesday and Wednesday.

“Ugandan troops have crossed the borders back into South Sudan. We don’t know about their intention,” the anonymous senior SPLA-IO military officer, who is also a member of the Joint Monitoring Ceasefire Committee (JMCC) that monitors implementation of the permanent ceasefire and security arrangements, told the Sudan Tribune on Monday.

According to the SPLA-IO military officer, Ugandan forces entered Eastern Equatoria state, east of the capital Juba, while another convoy entered Central Equatoria, south of Juba.

“This is a serious violation of the peace agreement,” said the SPLA-IO officer.

The South Sudanese peace agreement brokered by the East African regional bloc, IGAD, and signed by top rival leaders, President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Machar, only allowed Ugandan troops based in Western Equatoria under the African Union (AU) mandate to continue hunting for rebels of the Ugandan Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) under the leadership of Joseph Kony, reported the Tribune.

The opposition official of the SPLA-IO said the sudden and illegal redeployment of the UPDF inside South Sudan was a violation of the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty which he also said raised suspicion about their intention during this time of peace.

He added that regional and international bodies, such as IGAD, AU and the United Nations should put pressure on Uganda to withdraw its forces and stop “meddling” in the internal affairs of South Sudan.

However, UPDF spokesman Paddy Ankunda said he wouldn’t even waste his time commenting on the issue.

“It’s nothing but lies and loose talk. It’s all fabricated. Our forces are not in South Sudan. If we were there I would know about it,” Ankunda told the African News Agency (ANA) Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, the Tribune reported eyewitnesses confirming the presence of Ugandan forces crossing the border into South Sudan only five months after their withdrawal.

The witnesses claimed the foreign forces said they were hunting for gunmen associated with Ugandan opposition forces.

Several weeks ago several dozen Ugandan villagers were abducted from northern Uganda into South Sudan by unidentified gunmen raising suspicions that they would be used to supplement the manpower of armed militias there.

There have also been repeated incidents of South Sudanese gunmen raiding Ugandan farms and homesteads in the north after illegally crossing the border.

“In late April, armed Dinka gunmen crossed the border into Elegu in a cattle rustling raid and stole 160 cattle from a local homestead,” said Doka Mudathir, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) Field Assistant for Adjumani, near the South Sudan border.

“They were pursued by Ugandan forces but only four cattle were recovered. During the raids they shot several Ugandans dead and stole hundreds of cattle. The porous borders make it easy for infiltrators to cross illegally,” Mudathir told ANA.

Before South Sudan’s civil war, UPDF troops crossed the border into South Sudan days before the December 2013, crisis erupted to fight on the side of President Salva Kiir’s forces against the then opposition leader Riek Machar.

The Ugandan forces were backed by helicopter gunships, tanks and other armoured vehicles and claimed they were fighting to prevent genocide in South Sudan.

– African News Agency

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