World Notes ZAIRE

Traveling through his central African domain this spring, President Mobutu Sese Seko heard crowds demand democracy and an end to injustice and corruption. The former army sergeant, who has held power since 1965, vowed that "the will of the majority will be respected."

To the surprise of many, Mobutu appeared on TV last week to announce that opposition parties would be legalized, the constitution rewritten and elections held within a year. Meanwhile, he has appointed a Prime Minister to handle day-to-day affairs.

But he will remain as President by popular demand, he said, "above politics." Some of Mobutu's critics suggested he was simply swapping his dictatorship for a monarchy. Nonsense, replied Mobutu, "I am the son of a cook, not a king."