SOUTH AFRICA

DURBAN - Congress of the People (Cope) chairperson Terror Lekota says that South Africa's president, its provincial premiers and its mayors should be voted in directly by the electorate and not appointed by party hierarchy. He wants to put the power in the hands of the people to decide who is trustworthy, rather than allowing party leaders to choose their friends. Referring to the neutrality of the police, Lekota questions their absence following disruptions of Cope meetings by African National Congress (ANC) members. He stresses that the country's security institutions should not be politically allied. Lekota also questions the ANC's refusal to discipline unruly members, saying that if political parties cannot criticize, then the political debate is restricted. The Cope chairman adds that the fear the ANC inspires in its supporters can be likened to that experienced by ANC supporters during the apartheid era.

JOHANNESBURG - The National Working Committee (NWC) of the African National Congress (ANC) condemns reports of political intolerance, intimidation or violence by its supporters. The ANC promises to act against any ANC members who are found to be engaging in such activity. The ruling party urges other political parties to take a similarly firm line. This statement comes after numerous reports of ANC members disrupting Cope meetings. The NWC says that all parties are encouraged to desist from such provocative and opportunistic actions.

AFRICA & WORLD

WASHINGTON - World leaders agree, at a Group of 20 (G20) summit to address the global financial crisis, to "strive" for a major breakthrough in long-running world trade talks by the end of the year. United States (US) president George Bush says there is a determined effort underway to complete the modalities for Doha by the end of December. Many countries want to finalise the basics of a Doha agreement before Bush's successor, president-elect Barack Obama, takes over in January. World Trade Organisation (WTO) director general Pascal Lamy says that this G20 statement provides the Doha round with crucial political impetus, but that this support now needs to be translated into action. Leaders at the summit also pledge to refrain from raising new barriers to investment, or to trade in goods and services, imposing new export restrictions, or implementing WTO inconsistent measures to stimulate exports.

TUNIS - Government officials and economists say that the global credit crisis has come just as African economies were coming right, forcing governments to delay or scale back projects to stimulate growth and fight poverty. The continent's economic growth has accelerated as inward investment grows and foreign capital takes a bigger role in road, power and utility projects. But turmoil on world markets has cut the supply of money as the world's biggest banks shift funds from new projects, leaving African governments wondering how their infrastructure will be built. Leaders say that this crisis could not have come at a worse time for Africa; it constitutes a major setback at a time when African economies were turning the corner. African countries are concerned that Western states will cut back on funding faced with their own financial difficulties. This means that African development is taking a knock.

JOHANNESBURG - Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) says the rule of law and protection of minorities will never be achieved as long as the ruling Zanu-PF is involved in the management of the contested Home Affairs Ministry. A Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit holds that the Ministry should be coheaded by Ministers nominated by both the MDC and Zanu-PF, but this proposal is rejected by the MDC as it argues that the arrangement militates against the principle of equity, which should be at the core of the power-sharing deal. Authority over the Home Affairs Ministry is important because it controls the police, the Immigration Department and the department responsible for Zimbabwe's voters' roll. The MDC is loathe to let Zanu-PF retain control of the disputed ministry, as the ruling party has often been accused of manipulating the voters' roll to rig elections.

WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that a large-scale global fiscal stimulus is needed to counter the financial crisis, which has blunted the impact of interest rate cuts. These rates are cut in a futile bid to avoid a recession. IMF first deputy managing director John Lipsky says that a global fiscal stimulus in the region of 2 percent of gross domestic product is justified. His view that fiscal expansion should play a role in sustaining global demand is endorsed by the G20 summit. Lipsky qualifies this view, however, as he says that fiscal action might not be appropriate in countries with great vulnerabilities or those where debt sustainability is a major concern.

GENEVA - The United Nations (UN) Security Council plans to work on a French-drafted resolution to boost the number of UN peacekeepers in the Congo to help avert a new regional war. This development comes in response to the growing humanitarian crisis in that country as recent fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has uprooted a quarter of a million people. The proposed increase in the size of the UN peacekeeping mission in the Congo is based on a recommendation for a troop "surge" from UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon. The increase is set to bring the maximum permitted number of troops and police deployed under the resolution, already the biggest UN peacekeeping force in the world, to just over 20,000.