Central African Republic President Francois Bozize dissolved the government on Sunday, a decree broadcast on national radio said, after pledging to form a unity government at recent peace talks.
While no explanation was given for Sunday’s move, Bozize had promised a new unity government after peace talks aimed at halting a near civil war ended last month.
During a visit to Libreville last week, Bozize had said a government would be formed “very soon,” without providing further details.
The current government led by Prime Minister Faustin-Archange Touadera was formed in January last year.
The long-delayed dialogue at last month’s 12-day peace talks brought together some 200 representatives of Touadera’s government, opposition, civil society groups and rebel movements. It was aimed at paving the way to ending unrest in the impoverished and landlocked country.
A new “consensus” government should be tasked with “restoring peace and security throughout the country” and “work for genuine and lasting reconciliation among its citizens,” the final report from the talks said.
It admitted that “the many forums for reconciliation and dialogue have not enabled the Central African Republic to be rooted definitively in peace, stability and development, as shown by the insecurity and tragic events that occur in the north of the country.”
A highlight of the conference that brought together the country’s various factions was the return of former president Ange-Felix Patasse after five years in exile in Togo to attend the talks.
Patasse made a striking vow to recognize Bozize, who ousted him in the 2003 coup, rather than call for his removal as some of his opponents have insisted.
“The solution is not to ask you to leave power. It rests mainly in the prospect of bringing the people to democratic, transparent and fair elections in 2010,” he said.
The report recommended the holding of municipal elections this year, followed by presidential and parliamentary polls next year.
It also called for auditing several economic sectors, disarming former combatants and creating a truth and reconciliation commission.
One of the world’s poorest countries, the Central African Republic has been racked for years by insecurity with rebel groups, bandits and government troops blamed for widespread criminal activity.
Following mediation efforts by Gabon, the government signed four peace accords with rebel groups between February 2007 and June last year.
Bozize first came to power in 2003 when as armed forces chief of staff he ousted the increasingly unpopular elected president Patasse after years of political turmoil and economic woes.
Once in power Bozize found the state coffers were virtually empty and began anti-corruption measures.
In May 2005, he won an election for president after overseeing a political transition.
PRECARIOUS RELATIONS: Commentators in Saudi Arabia accuse the UAE of growing too bold, backing forces at odds with Saudi interests in various conflicts A Saudi Arabian media campaign targeting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has deepened the Gulf’s worst row in years, stoking fears of a damaging fall-out in the financial heart of the Middle East. Fiery accusations of rights abuses and betrayal have circulated for weeks in state-run and social media after a brief conflict in Yemen, where Saudi airstrikes quelled an offensive by UAE-backed separatists. The United Arab Emirates is “investing in chaos and supporting secessionists” from Libya to Yemen and the Horn of Africa, Saudi Arabia’s al-Ekhbariya TV charged in a report this week. Such invective has been unheard of
US President Donald Trump on Saturday warned Canada that if it concludes a trade deal with China, he would impose a 100 percent tariff on all goods coming over the border. Relations between the US and its northern neighbor have been rocky since Trump returned to the White House a year ago, with spats over trade and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney decrying a “rupture” in the US-led global order. During a visit to Beijing earlier this month, Carney hailed a “new strategic partnership” with China that resulted in a “preliminary, but landmark trade agreement” to reduce tariffs — but
SCAM CLAMPDOWN: About 130 South Korean scam suspects have been sent home since October last year, and 60 more are still waiting for repatriation Dozens of South Koreans allegedly involved in online scams in Cambodia were yesterday returned to South Korea to face investigations in what was the largest group repatriation of Korean criminal suspects from abroad. The 73 South Korean suspects allegedly scammed fellow Koreans out of 48.6 billion won (US$33 million), South Korea said. Upon arrival in South Korea’s Incheon International Airport aboard a chartered plane, the suspects — 65 men and eight women — were sent to police stations. Local TV footage showed the suspects, in handcuffs and wearing masks, being escorted by police officers and boarding buses. They were among about 260 South
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) purge of his most senior general is driven by his effort to both secure “total control” of his military and root out corruption, US Ambassador to China David Perdue said told Bloomberg Television yesterday. The probe into Zhang Youxia (張又俠), Xi’s second-in-command, announced over the weekend, is a “major development,” Perdue said, citing the family connections the vice chair of China’s apex military commission has with Xi. Chinese authorities said Zhang was being investigated for suspected serious discipline and law violations, without disclosing further details. “I take him at his word that there’s a corruption effort under
RSS