Zaire opposition launches protest

ZAIRE'S opposition parties in the interim parliament have declared Preident Mobutu Sese Seko guilty of high treason and called for a general strike and a campaign of civil disobedience to force him to step down. They accused him of undermining moves towards democracy, writes Richard Dowden.

The United States, Belgium and France, supported by the European Community, later said that aid to Zaire could only be resumed if the parliament was allowed to operate without constraint. The protests began yesterday with a 'dead cities' drive to halt all normal activity in Kinshasa and other cities.