Joshua Amupadhi
THE Angolan government has called on Southern African countries to exert pressure on Unita to implement the Lusaka peace protocol. The call followed the forth extension of the United Nations Angola Verification Mission (Unavem) last week.
The Security Council agreed to extend Unavem IIIfor only two months – from the set withdrawal date of February 1997 until April.
A representative at the Angolan embassy in Pretoria, Jorge Morais, said the short extension was a reflection of the slow pace of implementation of the Lusaka protocol, and blamed Unita for the delay.
Morais said although Unita had this week sent generals to Luanda to join government forces in a united army – a stipulation of the Lusaka protocol – more needed to be done.
He said: “Southern African countries must put pressure [on Unita] for the implementation of the protocol. … It is important for the region that peace comes to Angola.”
While the UN extended Unavem III, a pessimistic picture of the country was painted by Angolans who continued to flee to neighbouring states, including South Africa.
The representative of the Southern African office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Yusuf Hassan, said despite the “ceasefire”, Angolans were fleeing Unita-held areas.
“There is a feeling of uncertainty among the people. The process [Angolans fleeing] has slowed down but it has not stopped completely. There is a trickle every day,” Hassan said.
The UNHCR estimates there are over 300 000 Angolan refugees scattered in Southern African. Two-thirds were in Zaire, almost a third in Zambia and the rest in Namibia and South Africa.