- São Tomé and Príncipe government has charged 38 people for allegedly trying to topple President Fradique de Menezes last Thursday, government has confirmed today.
Last Friday, justice ministry spokesman Justino Veiga announced the arrest of a group of men after the foiled coup and the confiscation of more than 310 assault rifles in the home of one of the opposition party leaders.
Reports said all alleged coup leaders were presented on Monday and Tuesday in court, with the judge ordering that 27 of them, including opposition Christian Democratic Front (FDC) Arlecio Costa, who was among those arrested last week to be held in custody. The 11 others were released under the oversight of the court.
In January 2008, the Gulf of Guinea archipelago accused an elite "Ninja" police unit backed by the Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe (MLSTP) of being behind a foiled coup bid in April 2007.
The two islands off the central African Atlantic coast have seen several bouts of unrest in the security forces, including a failed 2003 coup also linked to the Buffalos.
São Tomé and Príncipe, an Atlantic archipelago of 140,000 people used to be extremely poor, relying mainly on fishing and subsistence farming, until it became the Gulf of Guinea's latest potential oil rich nation.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
front page
| news
| countries
| archive
| currencies
| news alerts login
| about afrol News
| contact
| advertise
| español