O.A.U. Debates Rhodesia

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31001, 5 March 1966, Page 15

O.A.U. Debates Rhodesia

(N.Z.P. A.-Reuter—Copyright)

ADDIS ABABA, March 4.

The ministerial conference of the Organisation of African Unity will debate an 18nation resolution today on measures to bring down Mr lan Smith’s Rhodesian Government.

The O.A.U. assistant secre-tary-general, Mr Mohamed Sahnoun, announced this early this morning but declined to give details of the resolution. It was adopted by the political committee yesterday with some amendments.

He said the draft was passed after a five-hour session of the 36-nation committee. Some countries voted against it and ♦some abstained, he added, but he would not give the voting figures. The 18-nation draft, tabled by Tunisia and sponsored by 17 other nations, was a coun-ter-resolution to one tabled by Algeria, which the committee rejected. According to informed sources, Algeria’s resolution had urged immediate steps for joint armed intervention.

The sources said Tunisia’s resolution was apparently less radical in some respects. Before the resolution was amended, the sources said, it called on the British Government to apply measures, in eluding force, to bring about Mr Smith's immediate downfall.

They said the resolution also decided to set up a committee of solidarity for Zambia, which borders Rhodesia. It urged all necessary aid to Rhodesian Africans willing to fight to liberate their country. Stormy Session The adoption of the resolution with amendments was understood to have been stormy, some delegates complaining that it was too weak and others that it was too strong. On another issue four member countries —the United Arab Republic, Mali, Guinea and Tanzania—walked out of the conference yesterday in protest at the presence of a

delegation representing the regime which has ousted President Nkrumah in Ghana.