AU – praag.org

Africa Day fizzles out

There was no celebrations to mark Africa Day in Kenya, but the country’s President Uhuru Kenyatta is urging the continent to work together to fight extremism.

Africa has 54 countries, but only six; Ghana, Mali, Namibia, Zambia, Lesotho and Zimbabwe observe the day with a public holiday. Celebrations in these countries began early.

Africa Day is celebrated annually within the African continent to mark the formation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) on 25 May 1963 and the African Union in 2002.

Nobel peace prize winner and Egyptian scholar Mohamed ElBaradei said on Africa Day it is generally good to celebrate, but not in Africa right now.

ElBaradei told journalists in Pretoria today that there were still too many problems in Africa, and even the world, and reflection was needed instead.

“It is good to celebrate, but it is also good to say we have a lot of problems on our hands. I don’t think it will suffice to celebrate now. I think it is time for reflection and to say we have a lot of problems on our hands. We owe our people a lot in terms of governance, and governance continues to be a major issue in Africa,” he said.

He said countries had to ask themselves if military intervention was the only way or whether there was another way to address the issues.

Elbaradei used to head the International Nuclear Atomic Agency.

SA must learn new anthem and fly AU flag

President Jacob Zuma on Sunday urged South Africans to learn the African Union anthem, and asked companies and institutions to fly the African Union flag alongside that of the national flag.

“On this 21st year of being part of the AU, we must begin a new chapter and formalise the promotion of the AU and our African identity in every aspect of life,” Zuma said while speaking at an Africa Day event at the University of Pretoria.

“Starting today, every school, church or community choir and individuals, must practice the African Union anthem so that we can sing it at all our important gatherings and celebrations.”

We urge South African institutions and companies to begin flying the African Union flag together with the South African flag.”

Africa Day is officially celebrated on May 25 to commemorate the formation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), now known as the African Union (AU).

South Africa joined the OAU on May 23, 1994.

Zuma said South Africans should reclaim their African identity which was suppressed during the apartheid era.

South Africa would continue working with the AU to advance peace and stability on the continent.

“We are proud of our modest contribution to the success of the continent through involvement in peacemaking, peacekeeping as well as reconstruction and development, working within the ambit of the African Union with other sister countries,” said Zuma.

“We continue to work together as Africans to find solutions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Mali, Sudan, the Central African Republic and other parts of the continent facing challenges such as Burundi in recent weeks.”

While the continent continued to show advancements on the economic front, more work needed to be done, said Zuma.

“Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. We have a sound socio-economic development plan in the form of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, NEPAD. We have clear programmes to advance infrastructure development, industrialisation and advancement in agriculture, health and other social programmes,” he said.

“The challenge is to make the growth inclusive and for it to translate into an improved quality of life for the one billion Africans who inhabit our continent.”

Source: ANA

Being a black terrorist in Africa

They were treated like terrorists, writes Malaika wa Azania.

There has been speculation about what transpired in Morocco a few days ago when a black youth ambassador for the AU landed in Morocco.

The full-time student in Grahamstown is a member of the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change (AYICC) South Africa.

The CCDA-4 is organised by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (Uneca), the AU Commission (AUC) and the African Development Bank (AfDB).

In Casablanca in Morocco, the crisis of being a “black terrorist”, began.

Upon arrival in Morocco, at 12.10pm on Tuesday, Moroccan authorities, in spite of valid and authentic documentation, refused to grant the blacks visas.

Some people in the group were allowed to enter the country while others were denied entry.

People holding diplomatic passports, were high-ranking officials but were equally being denied entry.

The language barrier between the Afro-Saxons and the Moroccan authorities, who speak French and Arabic, was making communication a “nightmare” according the youth ambassador.

The sense of entitlement black South Africans suffer from, increased the antagonism on both sides.

Eventually Wa Azania was asked to “drink water from a toilet” because there was nothing else available.

Washing her underwear and drying it with a hand-dryer, and using her fingers to pry the plaque off her teeth, was “the most humiliating experience”, she said. ” No woman should ever have to go through that.

“We were treated like terrorists who had gone to Morocco to destabilise the government, or as asylum seekers who were refusing to be deported back to their homes,” Malaika wa Azania said.

The youth ambassador couldn’t stay in Morocco after the trauma she said, and booked onto the next available flight eventhough they were granted visas.

France provides maps of Africa’s real borders

France has provided maps from its archives on African borders to the African Union.

France was one of the top colonisers of Africa and was involved in creating borders of most of the countries.

The AU’s Director for Peace and Security, Wane El-Ghassim, says knowing this kind of information will help curb some of the conflicts we still see today.

He says when borders are not clearly defined there is a huge risk of tensions resulting in conflict.

El-Ghassim says borders were defined by treaties signed by colonisers as a result these countries have a lot of information on Africa.

This is why the AU is trying to generate as much information as possible from the colonisers.

Africa has 80 000km of borders, but only 30% are precisely demarcated and this has been a source of disagreements among many countries in the continent.

Meanwhile, Analyst and Senior lecturer at Wits University, Koffi Kouakou, says Africa should not be relying on outsiders to give them information. He says it is important for Africans to have their own information.

Zuma warns Africans against regime change

President Jacob Zuma says ideas to replace Africa’s democratically elected governments from outside the continent must be rejected.

The people of Africa must reject any idea from outside the continent, which would lead to regime change in an African state, President Jacob Zuma said on Saturday.

“Through the AU [African Union], the peoples of Africa must reject any idea from outside the continent, which seeks to foster an agenda of regime change,” Zuma said at the University of Fort Hare’s East London campus.

In a speech prepared for delivery at the university’s Organisation of African Unity (OAU) 50th anniversary lecture, the president said the replacement of democratically elected governments on the continent must be rejected.

“We must do everything we can to prevent Africa from being cheaply auctioned as a result of the ineptitude and lack of united action and resolve on the part of some of its leaders in safeguarding its vital territorial and sovereign interests,” Zuma said.

The mandate of the OAU had been to deliver African unity, freedom, independence, economic emancipation and development.

The achievement of these objectives still continued today under the banner of the AU.

The AU replaced the OAU on July 9 2002. The OAU was founded on May 25 1963.

Zuma said Africa was no longer a place devoid of hope as was believed in the past, with it now being one of the world’s prime regions of economic growth.

“Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. It is no longer characterised as hopeless, but rather as a continent of hope and opportunity,” he said.

The economic emancipation of the continent, as envisaged by the OAU and AU, could be best attained through economic integration, he added. This would enable Africa to grow its markets, allow for more diversification, and encourage the optimisation of resources.

Integration would help lower transport costs, and ensure people, goods and services were able to move effectively and efficiently across the continent, according to Zuma.

For integration to be achieved, providing the needed infrastructure was key, he said.

“Roads, bridges, rail lines, pipelines, power plants, ICT connectivity, cables, ports, and water-ways are the underpinning arteries of growth,” Zuma said.

Africa’s people, including those who lived outside its borders, also had to recognise that they needed to contribute to its development, he said.

“Beyond this, Africa cannot develop if the continent is not peaceful, and there cannot be peace without development as the two are indivisibly intertwined,” Zuma said.

“The peace and security efforts that the African Union is championing in the continent are important and should be supported by every member state.”

Zuma said Africans should continue to think globally, beyond the confines of the continent.

“We want to be part of the UN Security Council. We want to see an urgent transformation of global economic institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund,” he said. – Sapa

ANC launches online radio station

The government on Thursday launched an online, 24-hour radio station that aims to showcase its foreign policy and shore up its position as a continental economic and political powerhouse.

Ubuntu Radio, operated by the department of international relations and co-operation, will “change how Africa is covered”, said spokesperson Clayson Monyela.

“South Africa has a good story to tell and we have done extremely well over the past 20 years. Our foreign policy has evolved but that story is not being told,” he added.

Pushing for a permanent African seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), South Africa is the only African member of the G20 and part of the Brics grouping, alongside Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Stimulate public debate

Monyela said the station aimed to stimulate public debate, with phone-in programmes and talk shows.

“We are not going to talk at our audience, but we are going to have discussions and conversations because people need to know what informs decisions on certain matters,” he said.

“Ubuntu” is used to describe African-style humanity.

South Africa has an estimated 14m internet users, roughly 39% of the adult population. – AFP

SA to deploy reservists in Mali, DRC

Civilians who have undergone military training could soon be called up for active service and be deployed on potentially deadly peace-keeping operations.

The South African army – already overstretched by peacekeeping deployments across the continent – is fast preparing for the deployment of hundreds of additional troops, including civilian reservists, to peacekeeping missions. There are some 15000 army reservists.

Prior to yesterday’s announcement, President Jacob Zuma said he would strongly consider deploying soldiers to Mali on an African Union peacekeeping mission. If Zuma gives the go-ahead, the deployment could happen early next year.

Army chief Lieutenant-General Amos Masondo yesterday confirmed the urgent requests by Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

“We are waiting to hear what needs to be done,” he said.

Masondo said the appointment of Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as AU Commission chair would lead to increased demands for South African forces to be deployed elsewhere Africa.

“Unfortunately, we are limited by our numbers. If the request is approved, the forces will have to include lots of reservists.

“We simply do not have enough permanent force members. We are already overstretched in Africa, with hundreds of our troops deployed internally on our borders.”

Masondo said vast amounts of money were currently being spent on training, and that the upgrading of equipment was a priority.

Mali’s government is currently embroiled in violent confrontations with al-Qaeda linked groups trying to overthrow the state.

The government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, along with the UN, is currently involved in bloody battles against rebel forces who are armed with heavy artillery and tanks.

The proposed deployments are being considered while 3000 South African soldiers take part in an exercise at the combat training centre in the Northern Cape.

A senior officer – deployed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2010 – said the missions would require more than just a few hundred troops.

“These rebels are not playing around. They have serious numbers and serious fire-power. They are battle-hardened and have been at war for years. If we don’t do this right we will be bringing body bags home,” he said. – timeslive.co.za

Dlamini-Zuma has no power at AU

Newly elected African Union (AU) chairwoman Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has been set up to fail in her new position, former President Thabo Mbeki said in a media report on Sunday.

“I think part of this feeling that she is going to change [things] is the failure to understand how the AU operates. People might put a big burden on her shoulders expecting her to do this and that and when it doesn’t happen, they will blame her when actually she has no capacity to do these things,” Mbeki told the Sunday Independent.

The former president said AU policies did not originate from the AU Commission, which Dlamini-Zuma heads.

Mbeki said the AU depended on policy made by individual nations, with the commission only able to try and persuade them.

“You have to be able to intervene with the governments in a manner that encourages them,” Mbeki said.

He said the AU had appointed a former head-of-state, Malian President Alpha Konare, for this reason.

“The reasoning was that once you have a former head of state sitting in this position of chair; he will have sufficient influence over his former peers,” Mbeki said. “It didn’t work.”

Mbeki said Konare asked not to be re-appointed to the position at the end of his term.

“The people should not raise expectation with regard to the appointment of Nkosazana, which expectations will be disappointed,” Mbeki said. – Sapa