LETTER N° 38

From 17 to 23 of September

17 France (Corsica)		Local elections. The outgoing Bonapartist mayor of Ajaccio, Marc Marcangeli, arrives largely at the head of the first tour of municipal election in front of president (DL) of the Assembly of Corsica.
19 Saint Kitts and Nevis		National holiday : Independence Day (19 September 1983 from UK) In 1983 the two islands gained full independence. Kennedy Simmonds of the People's Action Movement served as prime minister until 1995, when the opposition Labour party won in the general elections and Denzil Douglas became prime minister.
19 Israel		Elections to local councils in the four Negev villages of Ksaife, Ararah, Lakia and Segev-Shalom. It will be the first occasion on which residents are able to appoint local candidates to positions on the local councils and leadership bodies, ending a thirteen year period in which the towns were controlled by government officials appointed by the Minister of the Interior. Among the nine candidates, six are linked with the Islamic movement. Results in Ksaife : Abu Ajaj was the big loser with 88 votes; Suliman Abu Hamid received 956 votes, and Salem Abu Rabia was first with 1,081 votes. Since none of the candidates received more than 40 percent, there will be a second round between Abu Hamid and Abu Rabia. Turn out : 80% of the eligible voters.
21 United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)		Parliamentary by election in South Antrim. Reverend Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionist Party has won the South Antrim parliamentary by-election. Results : Reverend William McCrea(DUP) 11,601 votes ; David Burnside(UUP)10,779 ; Donovan McClelland (SDLP) 3,496 ; Martin Meehan (Sinn Fein) 2,611 ; David Ford (Alliance) 2,031 ; David Collins (Natural Law) 49.
21 Belize		National holiday : Independence Day (21 September 1981 from UK) British settlers from Jamaica began the exploitation of timber. Spain contested British possession several times until defeated at the last battle of St. George's Cay (1798). From 1862 to 1884 the colony was administered by the governor of Jamaica. Guatemala long claimed the territory as part of its inheritance from Spain. As Belize progressed toward independence, the tension between Britain and Guatemala over the issue increased. In 1964 the colony gained complete internal self-government, and in 1981 Belize achieved independence, a development that prompted Guatemala to threaten war.
21 Malta		National holiday : Independence Day (21 September 1964 from UK) Almost from the start of the period of British rule the Maltese agitated for increased political freedom. Considerable self-government was granted in 1921, but this was revoked in 1936. A constitution granted in 1947 was revoked after civil disturbances in 1959. Malta achieved full independence in 1964 and became a republic in 1974.
22 Mali		National holiday : Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic (22 September 1960) In the French constitutional referendum of 1958, French Sudan voted to join the French Community as the autonomous Sudanese Republic. In 1959 the republic joined Senegal to form the Mali Federation, but political differences shattered the union in 1960. That same year, the Sudanese Republic, renamed the Republic of Mali, obtained full independence from France and severed ties with the French Community. Seeking to promote African unity, Mali joined in a largely symbolic union with Guinea and Ghana, and in 1963 it joined the newborn Organization of African Unity.
23 Saudi Arabia		National holiday : Unification of the Kingdom (23 September 1932) It was Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud, a descendant of the first Wahhabi rulers, who laid the basis of the present Saudi Arabian state. Beginning the Wahhabi reconquest at the turn of the century, Saud took Riyadh in 1902 and was master of the Nejd by 1906. On the eve of World War I he conquered the Al-Hasa region from the Ottoman Turks and soon extended his control over other areas. He was then ready for the conquest of the Hejaz, ruled since 1916 by Husayn ibn Ali of Mecca. The Hejaz fell to Saud in 1924-25 and in 1932 was combined with the Nejd to form the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarchy, ruled under Islamic law. In much of the country, King Ibn Saud compelled the Bedouins to abandon traditional ways and encouraged their settlement as farmers.
24 Guinea-Bissau		National holiday : Independence Day (24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau) ; 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) In 1956, Amilcar Cabral founded the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC). After some years of sporadic violence, the PAIGC launched a war of independence in Portuguese Guinea in the early 1960s; in 1973 it declared the province, renamed Guinea-Bissau, independent of Portugal. A government was established and elections for a national assembly were held in PAIGC-controlled areas. Following the coup in Portugal (1974), the new Portuguese government initiated negotiations with the PAIGC.