Friday, February 11 12:44 AM SGT
Peace deal moves ahead as 28 Djibouti rebels freed
DJIBOUTI, Feb 10 (AFP) -
The first fruits of a peace deal signed a week ago by Djibouti rebels and
the government here were borne Thursday when both sides released captives.
Twenty-eight rebels from the Front for the Restoration of Unity and
Democracy (FRUD) were freed from jail in Djibouti while three Djibouti
soldiers held by the rebel group arrived in the capital the same day, an AFP
journalist reported.
The FRUD prisoners were freed shortly after 3:00 p.m. (1200 GMT) from Gabode
jail on the outskirts of Djibouti city.
No other members of the rebel group are held in the prison, according to
authorities.
Another member of the Afar rebel group, Mohammed Daoud Chehem, was released
earlier this week to allow him to visit a sick brother in France.
Monday's accord, signed by a government representative and the president of
FRUD's radical wing, Ahmed Dini, calls for the release of prisoners from
both camps.
The released rebels include FRUD's former representative in Europe Mohamed
Kadame and a commander, Ali Maki.
Saying nothing as they left the jail, those released went to celebrate their
freedom at a feast in the Einguelleh district in central Djibouti city.
Sixteen of them had been extradited from Ethiopia in 1997 and 12 arrested
during clashes or army operations in the north of the country.
None had been prosecuted, prompting several human right organisation to
criticise their detention.
According to Dini, the government had been holding a total of 47 "politcal
prisoners," the 29 from FRUD and others from the majority Issa ethnic group.
On Wednesday, judicial sources said the Afar detainees would not leave their
prison without the Issas, who were arrested in April and September 1988
after allegedly trying to form a guerilla movement in the south.
An arms cache was unearthed at the time.
Chief Prosecutor Ali Mohammed Ardon told AFP that a dozen of them linked to
the arms would appear in court Friday where the prosecution would call for
detention terms equal to those already served, allowing their release.
He added that an amnesty for FRUD hardliners was being drawn up and would
soon be adopted by the national assembly.
He said the law should ease the reintegration of the rebels.
The FRUD rebellion emerged in the Afar community in the early 1990s.
The Afars are the country's second largest ethnic group and live mainly in
northern areas close to the borders of Ethiopia and Eritrea.
After several years of violence, part of FRUD signed a peace deal in 1994
with then president Hassan Gouled Aptidon, while former prime minister Dini
hung on to his guns.
Since 1994, the conflict has taken the form of sporadic clashes in the
north.
FRUD raids, punitive army operations and landmines laid by both sides have
claimed numerous lives, but no accurate toll is available.
Djibouti is a former French colony and hosts the largest French military
base in Africa.