John Garang dead in chopper crash

[utala]

From the BBC-


Sudan's VP Garang killed in crash

Sudan's Vice-President John Garang, a former rebel leader, has been killed in a crash, a UN official has said.

Mr Garang had been missing since Saturday, when contact was lost with his helicopter flying back from Uganda.

He was greeted as a peacemaker by more than a million people when he was sworn in three weeks ago as part of a deal ending a decades-long civil war.

The BBC's Jonah Fisher says Mr Garang's importance in holding together southern Sudan cannot be overstated.

[Solid Rust Twotter]

HKGK.................!:ooh:

[Gunship]

It's confirmed now : His body was found this morning.

This is a tradedgy for peace in the region ...

A rebel official said Sudan's vice president John Garang, a former rebel leader who is a key figure in the country's fledgling peace deal, was killed in a helicopter crash at the weekend.

Search crews reached the site early on Monday and found a body they believe to be that of John Garang, a UN official said.

Ugandan and Sudanese forces had been searching for Garang's helicopter since Sunday, and Uganda's president said it had crashed in bad weather in the border region between the two countries.

Search crews had reached the crash site on the Sudanese side of the border early on Monday and found a body they believed was that of Garang, a UN official in the Sudanese capital Khartoum said, citing information from people at the scene.

An official in Garang's Sudan People's Liberation Army said that Garang's death had been confirmed.

[josephshankes]

I wonder if he was killed, or helped on his way?

The old story, "you live by the sword then you die by the sword"

At the beginning of the second North/South war in the 1980'S Garang ordered the shooting down of several civilian unarmed passenger A/C, including an airliner. So seems Johnny boy got a taste of his own medicine whichever way his chopper was brought down. Yes war in all it's forms is ugly, very ugly indeed.

[gen3]

:sad: unfortunate state of affairs. And just when he had given up rebeling for some peace in the region. Hope it doesn't spell an about turn to trouble out there.

:hmm: gen3

[bush van]

Well situation is very tense, with the SPLA looting shops and demonstrating. Their hub Juba is now surrounded by SPLA and in Khartoum the same is happening.

I am not quit sure what is happening, Apparently most of the looting was done by students,

Locals say that tonight is when trouble will start.

[ShenziRubani]

This is very sad and bad. Whether it was an acccident, or an "accident", the death of Garang is a blow to the peace process.
What a man, what a life! RIP John Garang!

[Komba]

John Garang.

This is a terrible blow to the Sudan peace process as a whole.

A man of great strength and vision - RIP John Garang.

[Gunship]

.............. Non flight - related portions taken out ...

Leaders of Dr John Garang's liberation movement yesterday joined calls for an international investigation into the helicopter crash that claimed his life.

Kenya, Uganda, the United Nations, the United States and Britain should be part of the investigation, said state governor Pagan Amum, of Dr Garang's Sudan People's Liberation Movement.

.................


In calling for an international investigation, Mr Amum stressed that the implementation of January's comprehensive peace agreement would continue as planned. His demand for an investigation came two days after Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni asked for an international probe into the helicopter crash in Kidepo valley in which Dr Garang and 13 other people were killed: six companions and seven members of the crew.

President Museveni said this was aimed at ruling out terrorism. It was understood he had contacted the US government for help.

Reports from Kampala quoting security sources indicated that a United States satellite was used to find the wreckage of the presidential helicopter.

It also emerged that the helicopter was the one in which former US President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary used during their visit to Uganda in March, 1998.

Defence minister Amama Mbabazi told Parliament in Kampala it was the same helicopter but ruled out that it had crashed because of poor visibility at night.

Mr Mbabazi said visibility could not have been the reason because the helicopter had been fitted with modern western navigation equipment that could enable it fly at night.

Immediately after the Saturday crash, top SPLM leaders including Dr Garang's successor, Mr Salva Kiir, ruled out foul play while appealing for calm.

Dr Garang's widow, Mrs Rebecca Garang, also ruled out foul play while appealing to the SPLM rank and file to move forward with her husband's vision to build a new Southern Sudan.

"Let the people of Sudan remain calm after the death of Garang who has left us. It is only my husband who is no longer with us, the leadership is still there and I have given given them my blessings to go ahead with what he left behind," she reportedly said from his base at New Site village, sitting beside her husband's coffin.

The SPLM and the government have said they believe the crash was an accident due to poor weather. It was not clear whether the request for an investigation was a change in that stance.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan also urged calm, saying, "all indications as of now seem to indicate it was an accident."

.............................



Full Text Article (http://allafrica.com/stories/200508040042.html)

[Gunship]

More details about the helicopter ... : From "The Monitor" in Kampala.


PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni's ill-fated helicopter in which Sudanese First Vice-President, Lt. Gen. John Garang was killed was less than three weeks in the country after it returned for overhaul from Belarus.

The President made the maiden flight on the refurbished M1-172 helicopter after it returned from a US$1.4million (about Shs2.5bn) overhaul from Belarus on July 23.

Museveni flew from Kampala to Gulu where he launched the Referendum campaign for the 'YES' side, which was pushing for Uganda's return to multiparty politics, military sources told Daily Monitor.

From Gulu, the President flew to Kitgum the next day, then to Soroti.

Sources said the President last flew in the helicopter on Friday at 1.30p.m from Entebbe International Airport to his rural home of Rwakitura, Mbarara district, less than 24 hours before it went down with Gen. Garang and 13 other people including seven Ugandans.

"After it dropped the President in Rwakitura (Friday), it came back to Entebbe to pick Gen. Garang the same day," an intelligence source attached to State House said yesterday.

Garang, a university college mate of Museveni and a political ally for decades spent Friday night at Rwakitura for consultations before the flight to New Site, his headquarters in Southern Sudan.

The revelations about the President's travel on the helicopter comes at the time when there are reports that it was having censor problems which could be attributable to the weekend's crash in Southern Sudan.

Daily Monitor reported that Museveni chose not to use it to travel to Rwanda in June, opting to go by road, which ended up in the border saga where half his convoy was retuned by the Rwandan authorities. But presidential press secretary, Mr Onapito Ekomoloit said, the helicopter was out of the country for the overhaul during the June 1, border incident at Gatuna and obviously, the President could not have used it.

Security sources said the helicopter's last flight in the country before it went for overhaul in the former Soviet Republic was on December 5, when it landed with the President at Kololo airstrip from Gulu.

After landing, it was flown to the airbase at the Old airport in Entebbe where it was dismantled and its parts put in a hired cargo aircraft, which took it to Belarus. While in Belarus, according to a source, Presidential Guard Brigade (PGB) deployed its personnel to guard it until it was flown back last month. :E

"The helicopter has been thoroughly checked by security and aviation experts to ensure it was in top form. From Lira to Gulu during the last Referendum, the president flew in it when it was very dark and they landed without incident" a security source said.

President Museveni issued a statement on Monday said the helicopter was in good mechanical condition and some of the equipment had been upgraded to increase the performance and safety.

He said, he had asked a foreign country to investigate for any sabotage or for terrorism in the crash.

The Daily Monitor yesterday said the US; a strong Western ally of Museveni was the country to investigate the circumstances of the crash.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200508040150.html

[steamchicken]

Censor problems - exactly what they did, it would seem

[Gunship]

And a problem with the deceased as well ... :(

Only in Africa ...



THE bodies of the seven Ugandans who died in the July 30 helicopter crash that also killed Sudanese Vice President, Lt. Gen. John Garang have been delayed again.

The bodies are scheduled to arrive at 8am today. They were first expected to arrive in the country from Sudan on Thursday, but they were withheld for investigations.


The government cancelled a holiday, which it had declared on Thursday to pray for the deceased.

The bodies were again expected to arrive by Sunday, but they did not.

The government again said the bodies would arrive by last evening and had prepared to declare tomorrow a public holiday. But by last evening the last hope had vanished and new information said the bodies will arrive today.

The bodies were reportedly delayed by the team of experts investigating the helicopter crash.

The Assistant Chief of Staff, Brig. Benon Biraro told journalists at Entebbe Airport yesterday that the delay was partly caused by the runway in Juba in southern Sudan lacking navigation lights and the need for the investigators to be "thorough."

"The team of experts on the ground, in their bid to be thorough, have partly caused the delay," Biraro said.

He said the delay was also partly due to the late departure of the Ugandan plane to New Site in southern Sudan to pick the bodies.

The seven bodies are of Col. Peter Nyakairu, the president's chief pilot; Capt. Paul Kiyimba, co-pilot; Maj. Patrick Kiggundu, flight engineer; Mr Samuel Bakoowa, chief of protocol at State House and Lt. John Munanura, jet officer.

Others are of Ms Lillian Kabaije, an airhostess to the President and Cpl. Hassan Kiiza, a Presidential Guard Brigade (PGB) signaller.

Garang was buried in the Sudanese town of Juba on Saturday, but family members of the seven Ugandans on the ill-fated helicopter have since endured the agony of waiting for the bodies of their loved ones to arrive in the country.

The Vice President, Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, the Army Commander, Lt. Gen. Aronda Nyakairima and the Air Force Commander, Col. Turyagyenda were at the airport yesterday to receive the bodies. The Airbase Commandant, Maj. Moses Rwakitarate was present.

A van from the Uganda Funeral Services was also on standby to transport the bodies.

A guard of honour had been put on standby to salute the fallen Ugandans. The soldiers dispersed after news came in that the bodies would not arrive last evening.

Biraro said that upon arrival the bodies will be taken to Mulago Hospital or Mbuya Military Hospital for treatment and the family members will view them there.

From the Monitor in Kampala (http://allafrica.com/stories/200508081007.html)