At least 500 people have died of famine in the last four months in camps in Angola holding members of the former Unita rebel group.
The 14-nation Southern African Development Community opens a two-day annual summit Wednesday in Angola, as the region faces a growing threat from famine and Aids but also new hopes for peace as the host nation emerges from a 27-year war.
Angola’s Unita rebel movement, which transformed itself into a political party after the oil-rich southern African state last year ended its 27-year-long civil war, on Tuesday began picking a successor to slain leader Jonas Savimbi.
Angola’s army on Monday began choosing 5 000 former Unita rebels to join the ranks of the military under a peace pact bringing an end to almost three decades of civil war.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and the leader of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila, on Friday signed a peace agreement aimed at ending the war in the vast central African nation.
Angola’s Unita rebels have formally disbanded their military wing and laid down their arms, ending the 27-year civil war since independence from Portugal.
The government is ready to open talks with armed separatist groups in Cabinda on limited autonomy for the oil-rich Angolan enclave, a senior official said on Thursday.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has urged Zimbabwe to change its land-seizure policies to stave off the food crisis that threatens the country and compensate farmers who have lost their land.