European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 8, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday december 8, 1993 world the stars and stripes Page 11 Ivory coast Dies after 33-year Rule Abidjan Ivory coast a president f61ix Hou Houet Bovigny Ivory coasts Only ruler since gaining Independence from France 33 years ago has died. His death was announced on National television tuesday by prime minister Alassane Ouattara one Day after the nation celebrated the anniversary of its Independence. Hou Houet Bovigny officially 88 but believed to be older had been ill for months after undergoing surgery for prostate cancer in Paris in june. One of several government sources All of whom spoke on condition of anonymity said the president died monday at Yamoussoukro his Home Hou Houet Bovigny town 150 Miles North of Abidjan. Monday was the first time in 33 years that Hou Houet Bovigny was unable to address ivorian to Mark the nations Independence from France in 1960. Out Tara made the traditional speech on the eve of the dec. 7 anniversary and urged the nation to Pray for the president. In a televised broadcast Ouattara dwelt on social economic and political problems facing this once prosperous West african nation of 12 million people. The address came As the country that used be touted As an economic Miracle and Island of stability on a fragile continent faced its worst crisis since violent 1990 strikes and protests for  of health workers and University professors have been striking for two weeks to demand salaries unpaid since september because government cof fers Are empty. The killing of scores of ghanaian after a soccer match last month has millions of foreigners fearful for their safety. Ivorian and their opposition newspapers had warned of possible clashes among the country a 60 ethnic groups following Hou Houct to Igny a death. Hou Houet Bovigny appointed Ouattara a former world Bank official to help solve an economic crisis brought on by decades of mismanagement corruption and slumping Cocoa prices. Ivory coast is the worlds biggest Cocoa producer. Quattara a appointment came after riots forced the president to hold multiparty elections in 1990. Hou Houet Bovigny won re election with Case. Despite his dictatorial ways most ivorian valued him for keeping the country stable in a Region prone to coups and wars. Yeltsin decrees Sharp boost in Moscow apr with sundays National elections approaching president Boris Yeltsin has nearly doubled the monthly minimum wage for government workers. But Coal miners struck briefly on monday to protest the government s failure to pay them. Yeltsin meanwhile flew to the troubled caucasus mountains of Southern Russia to try to defuse a territorial conflict Between two hostile regions. Presidential spokesman Alexander or Yonov on monday denied there was any political motivation for the pay increase prior to the elections for a new parliament Ana Yeltsin a proposed Constitution. A a it a purely accidental that the decree fell on this Day Quot he said. Yeltsin increased the minimum monthly wage from the equivalent of $6.30 to $11.90, effective this month. Last month Yeltsin gave soldiers a pay increase and expanded benefits for the poor. Russia has no official minimum wage but the go yarn mentus lowest pay scale is the Benchmark for salaries in the rest of the Economy most russians Are better paid than government workers. The Federal employment service says the average monthly wage in Russia now is about $60. Miners who Are among Yeltsin a strongest supporters make More than the average but want a guarantee that the government will pay them. Their patience wore out monday and they closed 12 mines in the Vor Kuta Region of Northern Russia demanding Back wages. Four mines two truck depots and the main workshop of a Copper processing Plant in nor Ilsk in Northern rus Sia joined the strike As did four mines and an open pit in the ural mountains town of Chelyabinsk inter fax news Agency said. Deputy labor minister Yuri Shady Crnko said most of the demands put Forward by the Independent Trade Union of mine workers of Russia will be met. Later the government signed a protocol with the Union that appeared to meet the strikers demands and the miners said they would go Back to work tuesday. The strike followed weeks of government Pinion talks. The miners called off a threatened strike last week when economics minister Yegor Gaidar promised emergency funding. Yeltsin spent the Day in the caucasus trying to mediate the conflict Between North Ossetia and ing Shetia two regions about 900 Miles Southeast of Moscow. Yeltsin said he had no specific plan to end a year of fighting Over territory claimed by both the Christian ossetian and the Muslim Inrush. A presidential spokesman said Yeltsin was working on a plan to return Inrush refugees to the Region which is part of North Ossetia. But North Ossetia a Premier Sergei Kheta Gurov said intervention by More russian troops would be a a  dictator Josef Stalin accused the Inrush of collaborating with the nazis and expelled them from their Homeland. Their return in recent years sparked ethnic conflicts with ossetian who had moved into Inrush Homes. A state of emergency has been in effect in the area for More than a year and about 5,000 russian troops Are there. London authorities pull tree s defenders from Park from wire reports 1 London a hundreds of Taw enforcement officers evicted environmentalists from a Park in Northeast London on tuesday after the protesters chained themselves to an ancient Chestnut tree in a bid to save it from destruction. Police and bailiffs scuffled with the protesters for several hours. The authorities Cut away chains and dragged and pushed the demonstrators from the Small Green. The department of transport plans to destroy the Park Ana build a Tunnel link to them a i Motorway. Most of the demonstrators had been moved away by midday and the bailiffs were using a Crane to Pluck the last several from the top branches of the tree. Azerbaijan censors papers Baku Azerbaijan a military censorship on azerbaijani newspapers went into effect tuesday to prevent Armenia from gleaning state secrets from the opposition press. Despite opposition protests the parliament on monday a suspended until special notice Quot a Media Law Banning a a restrictions of the Freedom of the  chairman Rasul Galice told legislators that military censorship was necessary to prevent leakage of state secrets at a time when the country was virtually in a state of War. Azerbaijan in the caucasus mountains has been devastated by a five year War with separatist armenians in the enclave of Magorno Karabash. Vigilantes reportedly raided Bogota Colombia a police stormed a building where a to Crew was interviewing a vigilante gang and opened fire without warning killing one Man and wounding two the station s news director said monday. The three Man Crew for to today who were uninjured were interviewing the vigilantes sunday in Medellin. Vigilante groups Are among the Many armed gangs in Medellin. The vigilantes try to rid their neighbourhoods of drug dealers and thieves by threatening or killing them. As a dozen armed and hooded vigilantes Many of them Terai agers were seating themselves in a House for an interview gunfire rang out and the vigilantes scattered. They ripped off their hoods and some threw their guns onto the floor the Crews video shows. Gunfire continued As the gang members fled. Medellin police refused to comment. Typhoon Lola kills 64 Manila Philippines a typhoon Lola killed 64 people in the Philippines authorities said tuesday As another storm headed toward the Southeastern part of Luzon Island. Much of the. Area hit by Lola on monday remained without electricity because Power lines were Down. About 3,000 families were left homeless when floods and winds destroyed their houses. President Fidel v. Ramos Declar fid the Southeastern Region a disaster area. The Manila weather Bureau said the Eye of the approaching typhoon named Manny was entered about 370 Miles East of . Korea hands Over 31 sets of remains to . Panmunjom North Korea apr in an apparent Goodwill gesture to Washington North Korea gave the United states 31 sets of remains it said were from . Soldiers who died in the korean War. The handover of 31 Brown wooden coffins was the second such return of remains in a week across the heavily armed korean Border. Communist North Korea is struggling to improve ties with the United states in the midst of mounting International pressure to resolve concerns that it is developing nuclear weapons. _ North Korea claims that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes Only but it has walked at International demands for full inspections of its suspected nuclear facilities. Many Western experts say the North May have enough plutonium to make at least one atomic bomb by 1995. . And South korean officials warn that the North should resolve suspicions soon by opening up to inspections or it will face . Sanctions. . Officials in Seoul South Korea said the remains Given Over tuesday will be sent to the Central investigation Laboratory in Hawaii for forensic evaluation and identification. 1 on nov. 30, the North returned what it said were the remains of 33 . Soldiers killed in the 1950-53 korean War. A a none of the remains returned so far has been positively identified . Scientists say that Many Are not from the United states and some include Bones that Are not human. North Korea has newer said How Many War remains it has but the number could be in the thousands. About 8,100 . Soldiers Are listed As missing of unaccounted for from the korean War including 866 bodies returned in 1954 and never identified. They arc buried in Hawaii. After the 1954 Transfer no remains were returned until 1990, when the North turned Over five sets followed by 11 in 1991 and 30 the following year. In july 17 More were returned. In. August . And North korean officials adopted an agreement to cooperate in finding exhuming and repatriating remains of . And Allied service members. The United states and 15 other Western countries fought on the South korean Side in the korean War under the . Flag. More than 5 million american service members fought in the War and 54,000 of them died