Suchergebnisse

India's worst earthquake for 50 years decimated a whole region of Gujarat, killing probably 30,000 people. As UN troops moved into the Congo, signs grew that the peace process there would lead to the military withdrawal of the mainly Commonwealth countries involved. The crisis over land reform in Zimbabwe remained at the center of Commonwealth concerns. CMAG tried to send a mission to see President Mugabe, but Zimbabwe refused it. In South America, Guyana held a successful election keeping the young President Jagdeo in power, & tiny Pitcairn Islands planned to end its isolation & turn itself into a tourist resort with two airports & a smart hotel. Environmentalists were not pleased. Adapted from the source document.

A peaceful election in Ghana & the handing over of power to the opposition contrasted sharply with what happened in Zanzibar where Commonwealth observers called the election "a shambles" & violence followed. The death of Laurent Kabila highlighted the involvement of Commonwealth countries in the Congo war, with member states on opposite sides -- Uganda on one & Zimbabwe & Namibia on the other. The world's first woman prime minister, Sirima Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka, died -- while in India tens of millions took part in the biggest occasional festival in the Hindu calendar, the Maha Kumbh Mela. It was probably the greatest gathering of people in the history of the planet. Adapted from the source document.

While Australia, which will host the 2001 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Brisbane, staged the most successful Olympic Games in history, its diplomats mediated a Solomon Islands peace deal. Fiji & Pakistan, both under suspension from the Commonwealth, were warned that their timetables for a return to democracy were too slow. Popular discontent with President Robert Mugabe within Zimbabwe grew as living costs soared while in Sierra Leone internal division hindered work of the UN force & GB sent in the SAS to rescue hostages. Finance ministers meeting in Malta sounded alarm bells over OECD threats to tax haven countries. Adapted from the source document.