Yes to unity

Provisional results from the Comoros referendum on Sunday showed a 75 percent vote in favour of a new constitution to reunite the three Indian Ocean islands and end a secessionist crisis, news reports said. The proposed constitution grants the islands of Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli greater autonomy within a new federation. Anjouan and Moheli unilaterally seceded in 1997. Final results were due to be confirmed by the national electoral commission on 7 January. Turnout was estimated at 75 percent. The picturesque volcanic islands off the east coast of Africa have a population of around 714 000, Reuters said. Meanwhile, two French mercenaries who took part in a failed coup last week turned themselves in to the Comoran authorities on Tuesday. The men were the last two members of a group of 13 mercenaries who "invaded" Moheli on 19 December to surrender, prosecutor Soilihi Mahamoud told AFP. Using a radio from their hideout in a small and isolated village, the mercenaries told authorities they feared they would be lynched by the local population, and asked to be transferred immediately to the Comoran capital Moroni. According to AFP, of the raiders that took part in the ham-fisted coup attempt, four were killed by the Comoran army, two were lynched by the population and seven have been taken prisoner. The prosecutor told the news agency that all 13 had served in the French army, mostly in the Foreign Legion and other elite corps. The mercenaries maintain that they were acting on behalf of a former Comoran interior minister, Achirafi Said Hachim, who currently resides in France. On Friday, Comoran authorities brought formal charges against two of the prisoners, accusing them of attempting to undermine state security.