A former Comoran separatist leader may have defected from the cause

One of the leaders of the separatist movement in the Comoran island of Anjouan, Mohamed Abdou Madi, has appeared on the main island of Grande Comore, in an apparent defection from the separatist cause.

Mr Madi, a former Comoran prime minister who became the separatists' foreign affairs spokesman was arrested soon after his arrival in Grande Comore earlier this week.

He has since been released.

Mr Madi was dismissed from the separatist leadership after opposing last month's referendum in Anjouan on independence from federal rule.

The Organisation of African Unity is continuing its efforts to resolve the separatist dispute by organising a conference in Addis Ababa.Reports from Anjouan itself say people are suffering considerable hardship as a result of the economic blockade imposed by the central government - and a continuing electricity blackout.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service