PANA Sudanese Minister Hails Libya, Egyptian Mediation Panafrican News Agency <http://allafrica.com/publishers.html?passed_name=Panafrican%20News%20Agency &passed_location=Dakar> (Dakar) February 26, 2001 Posted to the web February 27, 2001 Tripoli, Libya Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustapha Othaman Ismael, said that the mediation of Libya and Egypt had contributed significantly to the restoration of peace and stability in Sudan through reconciliation. Ismael, who is attending the OAU ministerial meeting in Tripoli, stressed that his country's government was determined to continue with the policy of openness and reconciliation, "despite attempts by certain parties to make the conflict last because it serves their personal interests. He downplayed the recent arrest in Khartoum of the leader of the Popular Congress Party, Hassan Tourabi. The minister told PANA that the re-election of Sudanese president Omar Hassan el Bechir, for a new five-year term as well as the participation of several Sudanese parties in the new government show that the process of national concord set in motion is on track. Asked what his comment is on the African Union launched by the leader of the Libyan revolution, Col Moammar Kadhafi, and whose constitutive act was unanimously adopted by the 36th OAU summit in Lome (Togo), he said he was optimistic. "All the people of Africa are today convinced that unity is their salvation in an increasingly globalisation context. For him, the adoption of the constitutive act of the Union by 40 States and its ratification expected from more than 44 Heads of State at the Sirte II summit was a favourable sign. "The Union which yesterday was a sheer dream, has become a concrete reality which no one can deny," he added. **** Libya News and Views Tuesday, 27 February, 2001: The Libyan government has filed a suit against the Dong Ah Construction consortium, seeking compensation for US$3.6 billion in damages it says the Korean builder has caused during its work on the Great Waterway project in Libya. Libya's Great Man-made River Agency [GMRA] filed the suit with the southern district court of Tripoli soon after Dong Ah Construction was placed under court receivership late last year. The damage compensation demand includes US$1.09 billion to repair leaks, US$846 million to cover the remaining construction work and US$99 million to compensate for the damage Libya says was done to its honor. If the suit is upheld in the Libyan court, a similar suit will need to be filed in a Korean court before Libya will be able to collect the compensation claiming. [Asia Pulse] Tuesday, 27 February, 2001: Col. Qadhafi cancelled "30 percent of the arrears of contributions of 10 OAU member countries currently under sanctions by the continental body". Announcing the news on the last day of the Council of Ministers meeting, the Secretary General of the OAU said he had received from Libya a cheque "temporarily and exceptionally bailing out 10 sanctioned countries." As a result those countries will be able to take part fully in the next deliberations of the Syrte II extraordinary Summit. Countries which have benefited from the Libyan leader's generosity are Burundi, the Central African Republic, Comoros, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Niger, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles and Sierra Leone. [PANA] _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
