Savimbi orders renewed war effort - UNITA deserter

UNITA rebel leader Jonas Savimbi’s recent calls for “dialogue” to end Angola´s civil war are simply a bluff to gain time and rearm his forces, the official daily ‘Jornal de Angola’ quoted an alleged former UNITA bodyguard who recently deserted. Major Bernardo Paciencia Mota, who deserted UNITA last month in central Huambo, also said that Savimbi has issued orders for renewed fighting. “Savimbi has never had the intention of dialoguing”, he said, adding that recent statements in this vein aimed “to fool the Angolan people and international community” in hopes the United Nations would lift sanctions, giving UNITA time “to rearm and seize power by force”. The newspaper quoted him as saying that recent widespread UNITA attacks and ambushes sought to project a “false image” of rebel military strength, “which no longer exists”.

Meanwhile, a 14-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) ministerial gathering announced at the weekend that it was seeking concrete ways to cut off fuel supplies to UNITA. SADC members were attending a meeting in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) capital, Kinshasa. News reports said energy ministers from SADC formed a committee, headed by South Africa and Zimbabwe, to devise a strategy to cut off oil supplies to the insurgents. The task force would have two months to “compile data and formulate a strategy to stop the supply of petroleum products to UNITA”, a statement was quoted as saying. “Ministers underscored the urgency of this matter and directed that the task force should complete its work within the next two months in order that the outcome could be submitted to the SADC council of ministers and to the UN committee on sanctions,” the statement said.