Gambari urges Angolans towards peace

Ibrahim Gambari, the UN Secretary-General’s special adviser on Africa, ended his visit to Angola on Saturday urging civilians to continue working for peace. He also left with a memorandum from the Catholic Bishop of oil-rich Cabinda, where separatists have been waging a war for independence, calling on the UN to place Cabinda on its agenda. Speaking in Luanda, Gambari said: “I found that there has been considerable progress in the humanitarian relief work, but there is still a lot to be done, specially in terms of guaranteeing access to those in need, increasing security for civilians, specially children.” Gambari said he had met President Eduardo dos Santos, several ministers and other leaders in the country and described his visit as “fruitful”. “Progress is being made to find solutions for the conflict and to end war in Angola. I am happy to note that the dialogue on the future of Angola is already taking place at various levels. Indeed the civil society has taken a particular interest in promoting and participating in this dialogue and President dos Santos himself has recently contributed to the public debate on the way forward in the peace process,” he said. Meanwhile, Cabinda general vicar Raul Taty said during an interview on ‘Radio Ecclesia’ on Friday that Gambari had been given a memorandum urging the United Nations to prioritise finding a solution to the secessionist war taking place in Cabinda. “We are asking the United Nations to intervene by holding an open, honest discussion on the Cabindan issue, with a view to finding a solution which will end this 25-year-long nightmare,” he was quoted as saying on the station’s website. The station also reported on Monday that UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi had written to the Catholic bishops encouraging them to help find a solution to the war. Savimbi reportedly said the mediation of the Catholic church was fundamental to bring about peace in the country.