Rawlings calls for honest business practices, slams irresponsible Lebanese husbands

Commission on human rights calls for cultural review

Make processing of retirement benefits less cumbersome - official

Minister lauds private telecom sector

Rawlings to confer honours during June Four anniversary

University of Ghana to reopen on Wednesday

B/A drivers embark on strike

US Labour secretary, Jesse Jackson arrive for AAA summit

Sierra Leone President flies in summit

Zambian Vice-President also arrives summit

Africa seeks partnership in education

Muslims appeal to NATO to stop bombing Yugoslavia

Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May ‘99 –

President Jerry John Rawlings on Monday warned against unfair business practices and said the government would deal ruthlessly with businessmen who engaged in illegal activities.

"Law abiding businessmen would enjoy the support of the government and when they run into difficulties we shall come to their aid", he said.

The President said this when he granted audience to Dr. Mounir Khreish, Ambassador of Lebanon, at the Castle, Osu. He called to say farewell after four years duty tour.

He said the Lebanese community is contributing to the economic development of the country, moving away from trading to manufacturing.

The President was, however, unhappy about the behaviour of some Lebanese, who marry Ghanaian women but abandon them when they grow old and return to Lebanon to marry Lebanese women.

He said they give everything to their new Lebanese wives and children in their will, leaving their Ghanaian wives and children with nothing.

"This is unjust and we feel bad about it."

President Rawlings revisited the Kosovo issue and said it was pathetic that no Arab nation is contributing to the upkeep of the Kosovo refugees who are Muslims.

He said Western countries are either taking in some of the refugees or are contributing cash for their upkeep.

Mr Victor Gbeho, Foreign Affairs Minister, said the Lebanese community "has become part of our lives, contributing to the development of the country".

Dr. Khreish said Ghanaian women, who intend marrying Lebanese Muslims need to be made aware that in Islam a man cannot will his property to a non-Muslim.

"Also, some of the marriages between Ghanaian women and Lebanese are not registered. Problems thus crop up when the man dies," he said.

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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 May ’99

The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on Monday said there is an urgent need for "a critical cultural review" in the light of the controversy generated by the ban on drumming by the Ga Traditional Council.

It said in a statement in Accra that this is "in order to harmonize our cultural practices with human rights values and norms".

CHRAJ, therefore, called on the National Commission for Civic Education, National Commission on Culture, National House of Chiefs, Traditional Councils and District Assemblies "to embark on a carefully programmed process of cultural review."

In a six-page reaction to its earlier statement that the ban violates the constitution, CHRAJ said it is unfortunate that some people would want to construe it to mean it has arrogated to itself the function of the Supreme Court.

It said it believes in upholding the cultural integrity and validity of the various ethnic groups. However, Article 1 (2) of the constitution states that "This constitution shall be the supreme law of Ghana and any other law found to

be inconsistent with any provision of this constitution shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void."

Thus, it said, the constitution takes precedence over every customary law or practice, and the legal validity of any cultural practice must be measured or assessed in relation to the constitution.

CHRAJ said the constitution upholds customary law and customary or cultural practices as integral parts of the laws of the country. However, the totality of Article 26 (1) and (2) of the constitution means that the various customary laws and cultural practices are valid only within the confines of the constitution.

Article 26 (1) says, "Every person is entitled to enjoy, practise, profess, maintain and promote any culture, language, tradition or religion subject to the provisions of this Constitution."

Article 26(2) states that "All customary practices, which dehumanize or are injurious to the physical and mental well-being of a person are prohibited."

CHRAJ said while upholding the right of each ethnic group to practise and maintain its culture, the practice must conform to the Constitution.

"Flowing from this, the Gas have the constitutional right to practise and maintain their culture and religion, including a ban on noise making during a particular period of the year to be observed by those who embrace that cultural practice.

"However, they do not have the right to extend this religious or cultural requirement to others."

CHRAJ said the unconstitutionality of the ban lies in the attempt to require or compel others to forgo their constitutional right to manifest a different religious practice in order that the Gas can practise their culture and religion.

It said forcibly entering churches, beating up people who are exercising their fundamental right to freedom of worship, seizing or destroying the property or others because they have not complied with a unilateral limitation on their worship "is a wanton act of lawlessness".

This, it said, has the potential to result in anarchy if not checked.

It said there are bye-laws regulating noise-making, adding that the manner in which some churches exercise the right to freedom of worship, especially in residential neighbourhoods, may, in certain circumstances, violate the rights of people in the neighbourhood to their peace and quiet.

"Such unlawful infractions must be condemned and dealt with in accordance with the law.

"Furthermore, even though the ban may be a time-honoured tradition, it is necessary to consider its place in the context of a changing Ghanaian society."

It cited the announcement of the death of two important chiefs in the media - the Asantehene and Okyenhene - even beyond a day, and said this is a typical example of the impossibility of maintaining in the same form time-honoured traditions in this modern electronic age.

CHRAJ said it believes that various cultures contain numerous positive elements that must be maintained.

"Our respect for, and deference toward elderly, as the supportive mechanism of the extended family system, are clearly positive."

It said it has spoken out against the infiltration of Ghanaian culture and values by what is shown on TV, especially foreign films, which depict permissive sex and violent crime.

"Nonetheless, like every human society, our cultures in Ghana also contain many negative aspects which must be urgently reviewed through education and legislation."

The Commission said it is its view that the Ga Traditional Council should merely appeal to residents of the traditional area to observe the ban rather than seek to compel compliance.

"Such an approach will win the confidence and sympathy of many who do not subscribe to this cultural practice.

"No group of Ghanaians, whether Moslem, Christians, traditionalists, other religious or ethnic groups, have the right to impose cultural practices on others."

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Apam (Central Region) 18 May ’99

A retired district director of education, Mr Benjamin Kojo Odoom, has called on the Controller and Accountant-General's Department not to remove the names of workers who are due for retirement from pay rolls until their entitlements are ready for payment.

Mr Odoom said the present situation where retired workers had to stay without salaries for more than six months before their entitlements are paid, is very frustrating.

He made the appeal at a get-together organised by the Gomoa District Directorate of the Ghana Education service in his honour at Apam.

Mr Odoom called on the authorities to make the procedure for the processing of retiring benefits less cumbersome saying the demand for birth certificates and first appointment letters must be reviewed.

The length of time it takes the service to pay salaries of newly recruited teachers and benefits to those retiring are disincentives to teachers, he said.

The Gomoa District Chief Executive, Mr Kow Anyanful, urged teachers to show positive attitude to work to help salvage the falling level of education in the country.

The district director of education, Mrs. Rose Newman, commended Mr Odoom for his efforts to raise the standard of education in the district.

Mr Odoom was presented with assorted gifts and cash.

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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 May ’99

Mr John Mahama, Minister of Communications, on Monday praised private telecommunication companies in the country for their commitment to the government's policy for the sector.

Since government implemented its liberalisation policy in 1995, the contribution of the private sector to the telecommunication industry has created an environment which "will facilitate Ghana becoming part of the global network economy."

Mr Mahama was speaking at the flag hoisting ceremony to mark World Telecommunication Day, a day set aside by the Geneva-based International Telecommuniction Union (ITU), an inter-governmental organisation, to emphasise the importance of telecommunication in the totality of human life and development.

The day is also meant to bring governments, telecommunication service providers and consumers to appreciate the need for more resources to be committed to the development of infrastructure and service in pursuit of universal access to telecommunication facilities.

The global theme for the celebration this year is "Electronic Commerce".

Mr Mahama mentioned services and products provided by the private players in the Telecom sector over the period as fixed and mobile telephones, data and internet services, and public prepaid telephones among others.

"I am informed that Ghana Telecom alone, has increased the number of public pay-phones from 480 in 1995 to 2,500 in May 1999.

"It must also be emphasised that through the effort of internet service providers such as Network Computer Systems, Africa Online and Internet Ghana, the electronic commerce has already taken root in Ghana, benefiting a host of service providers and industries."

Mr Mahama said government is therefore committed to strategies and policies that will support a favourable environment for the private sector to establish a national information infrastructure to provide such other services as electronic commerce, tele-commuting, distant education, improved banking and tele-medicine among others.

He, however, noted that the challenge facing Ghana and most African countries is not only the establishment of physical infrastructure but also the need for adequate human capacity with expertise in information and communication technologies.

Mr Mahama said a sub-regional collaborative effort, meant to provide a bigger market, harmonise regulatory structures for potential investors as well as to share and pool resources for human capacity development for the sector is under way.

The initiative, dubbed African Connection, has also been adopted by the Pan-African Telecommunications Union (PATU), adding that a report on it is currently being finalised for presentation to OAU heads of state meeting this year.

In a message read on his behalf, Mr Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary-General, called on developing countries to establish the necessary infrastructure to avoid being marginalised in the inevitable electronic market during the next millennium.

"Since electronic communication media will be the essential key for access to the world market in the 21st century, we must avoid the trap of electronic exclusion which could bar the way to development."

He urged government's corporate sectors, international bodies and NGOs to form an alliance to make the right to communication fundamental and to promote access to the means of communication as an essential engine of development and integration rather than a luxury.

Mr Gilbert Adanisa, Telecom Adviser to MOC, called on telecom service providers in the country to reduce the cost of their services and make telecommunication affordable and easily accessible to all and sundry.

Week-long activities marking the day include open days for various service providers.

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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 May ’99

President Jerry Rawlings will confer honours on citizens who have distinguished themselves in various fields as part of activities marking the 20th anniversary of the June Four Uprising.

According to a programme for the celebration released on Monday by the Information Services Department, there will be fun games at El-Wak Stadium, lectures in all the regions and a music carnival at Holy gardens in Accra.

The celebration will reach its climax on June Four with a route march and wreath laying ceremony at Revolution Square.

These will be followed by a special football match between Kotoko and Hearts at the Accra Sports Stadium.

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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 May ’99

Students of University of Ghana are to return to campus on Wednesday for academic work to resume the following day.

An official statement released in Accra on Monday said this follows the suspension of the industrial action by the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) and the Federation of Universities Senior Staff Association of Ghana (FUSSAG).

TEWU and FUSSAG called off the strike when negotiations with the Committee of Vice- Chancellors and Principals (CVCP) under the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) started.

"In the light of these developments the Executive Committee has decided that students should be called to campus to complete outstanding work of the second semester of the 1998-99."

It said lectures would end on Friday, June four, 1999. Revision week would be from June seven to 11 and the second semester examinations would be from June 14 to June 25. The second semester ends on June 26, 1999.

The 1999/2000 academic year would start from August 23, 1999 and fresh students are to report on same date. Teaching commences on Monday, August 30, 1999.

TEWU and FUSSAG embarked on a three-week strike to press home their demand for re-negotiation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which they said had expired in October last year.

Meanwhile, a source close to the university workers told GNA that they would be having another meeting on Saturday and is likely that they would embark on another strike action.

When asked what would be the motive of the second action, he said "we are not satisfied with the modalities of the negotiations and if the outcome does not favour us, we can assure you of another aluta (strike)".

Efforts to get the chairman of the local union of TEWU and the Registrar to comment on this new development proved futile.

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Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) 18 May ’99

Travellers in Brong Ahafo Region were on Monday stranded following a strike action embarked upon by members of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) in the region.

Their action is in protest against the purported wholesale re-testing and re-licensing of drivers in the country and a recent letter from the regional branch of the Road Safety Committee asking all the drivers to attend a refresher course at the cost of 70,000 cedis each.

At Sunyani where the strike was most intense, a detachment of Police and Military personnel had to be deployed to dismantle a number of road blocks, mounted by some of the striking drivers.

Travellers arriving from various parts of the region by private cars spoke of similar actions by drivers in the other districts thus forcing most vehicles to make long detours.

Most commuters in Sunyani and other big towns in the region, therefore, had to walk to their various workplaces, while those staying far away had to stay at home.

The drivers embarked on the demonstrations, even though, the Regional Executives of the Union told them that the refresher course which was to be organised by the Regional Road Safety Committee had been cancelled.

A number of drivers, who spoke to the Ghana News Agency said the demonstration was to protest in the strongest of terms against the intended re-testing and re-licensing of drivers, which they claimed would cost them substantial amount of money and their time.

They vowed not to go back to the road, unless they received firm assurances from the government that some categories of drivers would be exempted from the exercise.

Some residents, however, condemned picketing drivers for using force to prevent other commercial and private cars from plying the road.

Meanwhile, the Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC), which has appealed to the drivers to rescind their decision, was meeting at the time of filing this report to discuss the strike action by the drivers.

Official of the GPRTU could not be reached for their comments because they were attending the RCC meeting.

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Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May ‘99 –

The United States Secretary for Labour, Mrs Alexis Herman arrived on Monday at the head of a 35-member delegation to attend the five-day African-African American Summit underway in Accra.

The entourage included Reverend Jesse Jackson, US special envoy for the promotion of democracy in Africa, and other senior government officials.

Speaking to journalists Mrs Herman said their participation in the conference reaffirms President Bill Clinton's commitment to forge closer ties with Ghana and Africa as a whole.

She said the summit also opens a new chapter in US - Ghana relations and that they are looking forward to fruitful deliberations during the summit.

Rev. Jesse Jackson commended President Jerry Rawlings for his able leadership in Ghana's economic recovery programme, citing the success being chalked by Ashanti Goldfields Company on international markets.

Rev. Jackson said African-Americans have a role to play in conflict resolution in Africa and intends to go to Togo after the summit to help in brokering peace in the Sierra Leonean crisis.

He mentioned the conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo as some of the areas that engage the attention of African – Americans and for which they will strive to find solutions.

Rev Jackson said problems facing Africa such as AIDS, the debt burden and prevalence of land mines in war-torn areas should not over-shadow opportunities that abound in Africa.

"Our interest in Africa is broad and deep and our commitment is eternal," he said and recalled the pioneering role of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, and W.E.B Dubois in Pan-Africanism and the struggle against apartheid and segregation in South Africa by President Nelson Mandela.

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Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May ‘99 –

President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah of Sierra Leone said on Monday that his government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels have made progress in their peace talks currently taking place in Lome, Togo.

He said the RUF's decision to transform itself into a political party is welcomed since his country's constitution allows for freedom of association.

"The people of Sierra Leone are tired of war and conflicts which have had a devastating effect on them," he said, adding that ''for the past eight years all governments have been fighting the rebels''.

President Kabbah was speaking to reporters on arrival at the Kotoka International airport for the fifth African-African American Summit, which got underway on Monday.

He said he would fly to Lome to hold direct talks with Foday Sankoh, leader of the RUF adding that a meeting of foreign ministers of the committee of six on Sierra Leone will be held on May 24 this year to deliberate on the peace proposals of both parties.

Kabbah said while in Ghana he would hold discussions with his Ghanaian counterpart, Jerry Rawlings, on the situation in his country, which he hoped, would bring a lasting solution to the war.

President Rawlings on his part said the presence of President Kabbah would offer the opportunity for both leaders to discuss issues relating to peace and tranquillity, which he described as a foundation to the way forward.

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Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May ‘99 --

The Zambian Vice-President Lt.Gen. Christon Tembo arrived in Accra on Monday to attend the Fifth African-African American Summit.

Vice-President John Evans Atta Mills met him on arrival. Lt.Gen. Tembo told newsmen that he is representing President Frederick Chiluba who is currently meeting with leaders in the Great Lakes region to find a lasting solution to the crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

He said the Foreign Ministers in that region are also meeting over the issue to finalise arrangements for a peace summit soon.

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Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May ‘99 –

African officials and academicians attending the Fifth African-African American Summit on Monday pressed for wider partnership with the United States in Africa's educational reforms.

At a separate session on education, the Africans said they would want to "strengthen their partnership with the US to promote education in Africa".

The session, which revolved on the theme, "education: the human dimension of technology and globalisation for the 21st century", engaged participants throughout the day after which some inroads were made by the Africans.

"Poverty continues to be Africa's number one enemy to quality education. "...Americans, especially African Americans are welcome to support and participate in any aspect of the continent's education, but in particular, in investment of capital technology and skills for educational institutions", Mr Ewkow Spio-Garbrah, Minister of Education said to set the tone of the session.

Africa, he said, is now committed more than ever to do everything possible to promote quality education in order to meet the challenges of the next millennium.

"This comes amidst the global recognition that the survival and sustainable development of countries in the next millennium would be based not on natural resources, but on the quality of human resource development."

Therefore, Mr Spio-Garbrah said, Africa's major pre-occupation is focused on human resource development capable of promoting advancement in technology and human skills.

He said Africa's only hope for survival in the next century rests on quality education for its citizens to help reduce hunger and economic deprivation.

"The globalisation of markets and economies should offer Africa the opportunity to leapfrog into the future."

This, Mr Spio-Garbrah said, could be done through strong partnership between stakeholders in the sector, including parents, students, traditional councils, local communities, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and development partners, as well as the private sector.

According to him, Africa needs to set aside between 20 and 25 per cent of its national budget to fund education.

"But governments can share some of these responsibilities with other stakeholders", Mr Spio-Garbrah told the African partners.

The education session is a top priority of the week-long Summit, which has registered about 5,000 delegates from around the world.

The biennial Summit, a brainchild of Reverend Leon Sullivan, an African American, was first held in Abidjan in 1991.

This fifth gathering said, to be the largest, would reach its climax on Wednesday, when 12 Heads of State would meet on the future of Africa.

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Accra (Greater Accra), 18^th May 99 –

The Ghana Muslim Mission has appealed to NATO to stop its air raids in Yugoslavia and find a peaceful solution to the crisis in Kosovo.

A statement issued on Monday and signed by Abubakar Aryeetey, General-Secretary, said apart from the untold hardships the people in Kosovo are facing as a result of the current air raids by NATO, the destruction in Yugoslavia is enormous and pathetic.

"We therefore call on NATO and all concerned to halt all military operations, including the withdrawal of forces from the region."

The statement said to keep peace in the region, the formation of a military force contributed by several states and some NATO member states, whose intervention may be accepted by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, should be organised as a matter of urgency.

It called for the deployment of an effective international civil and security presence endorsed and adopted by the United Nations capable of guaranteeing the achievement of the common objectives and establishment of an interim administration for Kosovo.

"We pray that Almighty Allah will grant the required wisdom and guidance in handling the Kosovo crisis for eventual peaceful settlement."

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