THURSDAY, 6.30PM:
ANGOLAN rebel movement Unita said on Thursday it will not meet an end-February deadline to completely disarm its forces.
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola said in the Portuguese capital Lisbon it cannot disarm its remaining troops “effectively or with dignity”.
The statement, which came from Unita’s headquarters in Bailundo, central Angola, said total demilitarisation must be the responsibility of the Angolan government and the international community.
Unita accused the Angolan government of having no intention of disarming the civilian population, especially in the capital Luanda — an initiative Unita says it considers “fundamental to avoid a massacre of thousands of innocent people, as was the case in October and November 1992”.
The defeat of Unita leader Jonas Savimbi in 1992 general elections shattered a previous two-year halt to the conflict, which has devastated this oil-and diamond rich country since independence from Portugal in 1975.
General Higino Carneiro, deputy minister in charge of implementing peace accords signed in 1994, called on Unita on Tuesday to carry out total demilitarisation by February 28, a date agreed by Unita and the government. He threatened possible reprisals against Unita if the deadline is ignored.
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