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AAPSO ASSESSING AFRICAN PROBLEMS
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At the dawn of the New Millennium, Africa appears
to make its move towards a turning page of its history, deploying
desperately its efforts in order to swift from the legacy inherited from
the past today marked by countless unresolved problems.
Most of the concerns voiced by AAPSO are the
continuing bloody, devastating civil wars and numerous conflicts with
million on deaths and lots of heavy destruction, not to mention all ills
that plague the African continent : mass poverty, diseases,
malnutrition, famine, violations of human rights, corruption, waste of
resources for armaments, external debt, looting of natural riches,
ethnic and religious conflicts, etc., all contributing to growing
backwardness, political and social unrest, leaving little room, if any,
to the genuine economic development and social progress.
The developments of the situation in some countries
like Sudan, one of countries having heavy death toll of its citizens,the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the largest and richest country of
the region if not of all Africa, and now the Ivory Coast once presented
as the "mirror" and "star" in the West Africa because of its economic
performance all are matter for more or less scepticism.
The main concerns of AAPSO regarding these
countries lie on what was and still is the threat of splitting, leading
to the possible collapse of their unity and territorial integrity. In
the particular case of Sudan, the Machakos agreement, for example, has
put the entire Sudanese national political structure, secular and
democratic, under question. Such agreement, nonetheless, did not prevent
the fightings to resume, proving by itself that it was not the real
solution to the issue while it ultimately will lead to the division of
the country. Moreover, more consternation has raised regarding the
precise nature and role of the United States accused of manipulating
the situation from behind the scene.
AAPSO has been more concerned by the situation in
the Great Lakes region being embroiled in a series of conflicts..
Although the situation has fortunately improved in the DRC and peace
agreement has been reached which stirs hopes for the final settlement of
the problem, foreign invading troops continue to occupy parts of the
country despite already signed agreement to withdraw, still provoking
bloody confrontations with the local populations. Such confrontations
might be used as pretext to go back to conflict, provoking more deaths
and destruction. Moreover, the neighbouring areas of the Great Lakes
region are now threatened of being another theatre of confrontations
with the new kind of internal conflict having erupted in Central African
Republic, which is likely to affect the situation of the neighbouring
countries, specially the Chad, both countries sheltering opposition
leaders accused of preparing coup d'état..The recently reported
massacres of both Centrafricans and Chadians in this country have
dangerously inflamed the political atmosphere. Surprisingly, Lybians and
troops from the part of Democratic Republic of Congo controlled by
secessionist Jean Pierre Bemba happened to be involved in the conflict
giving support to Central African rulers. Lybia which backs the Central
African regime, has been accused of sympathizing with the rebels
fighting against Chadian president. The presence of Lybia in this
country is also connected by what The Economist ( Nov. 2, 2002) stated
that "Lybia has backed his (Central African president's) regime since
last year, in return for a 99-year monopoly on extracting the republic'
vast reserves of diamonds, gold and other minerals".
While the Geat Lakes region and its neighbouring
areas are trapped in endless confrontations, the most striking attitude
of indifference manifested by the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville)
vis-à-vis what is happening next to its borders, has raised suspicion
among foreign observers.
Trouble in the political atmosphere in Southern
African region had manifested in a country, the giant among its peers,
South Africa, which is leading a vibrant economic development. ANC has
been increasingly engaged into neo-liberal policy, which has recently
triggered the discontent of its allies governing the country. ANC was
fired with scathing criticism from the powerful national Union, COSATU,
and the Communist Party of South Africa, accusing it of leading the
country into the Western capitalist powerful influence. Concerns have
even raised sometimes among the neighbouring countries of SADC about the
attitude of the heavy-weight South Africa in terms of economic and trade
transactions.
Another issue of concern by AAPSO is the fact that
the Western region of Africa is being caught by the conflict between
governement troops and mutineers from military in Ivory Coast. The
situation there suggests that political, economic, religious and human
rights factors play an important role in the conflict. Violations of
human rights are being committed in many parts of the country, thus
aggravating the already disastrous situation in search of just and
equitable solution. Foreign ethnic populations accused of involvement in
the local problems of the Ivorians have provoked xenophobic acts and
tense hatred from local citizens causing bloody killings and massacres.
Despite appeasing discourses of maintaining the integrity of the Ivorian
territory; despite the announcement of deployment of troops from Ecowas
to mediate between the conflicting parties, and to ensure the cease-fire
and the negociations conducted by team composed of responsible
personalities from West African neighbouring countries; in view of the
threat of coup as openly and explicitly declared by the mutineers, as
well as that of splitting the country once considered as a possibility,
the country remains in high degree of tension.
AAPSO is of the view that the division of country
because of civil wars or any kinds of conflicts be it in Sudan or
elsewhere in Africa where the very sensitive character of the issue is
evident, would create a very dangerous situation, lead to more
confrontations, instability, devastation and death of people. The issues
should be tackled and settled by peaceful means.
AAPSO hailed the African efforts to solve
themselves the issues that constitute major challenges within the
present international environment. While civil wars have ended in
Angola, Sierra Leone, or in Burundi where nevertheless the process of
war-settlement is lagging in hard negotiating conditions between warring
parties, a lot of problems remain and needed to be solved. Numerous
obstacles constitute major stumbling blocks to this end.
AAPSO is aware of the dimension reached by the
alarming situation of human rights in Africa. It suggests that hopes for
a meaningful change in this respect have been betrayed. At the outset of
the New Millennium, slavery, bearing modern image and aspects in some
circumstances, has commenced to spread in some parts of the black
continent. Apartheid appears in various forms in different
circumstances. Sexual exploitation, child trafficking and prostitution
constitute scourges of seemingly unlimited bounds. The resort to torture
as a mean to extract confessions; the summary executions in defiance of
all equitable justice; the mysterious disappearance of detained persons,
the discrimination with respect to race, sex, religion and ethnicity,
all these are practices perpetrated , often with total impunity, in the
continent. While the mass of African population is subject to
starvation, misery and diseases, national high ranking officials are
implicitly or explicitly accused of amassing the wealth of their
countries, furthering corruption, ignoring massacres of their own
citizens, using their own social and political position to influence
decision-making bodies, or carrying out repressive operations and rape
even using the fight agaisnt terrorists as a pretext to harass human
rights militants or political opponents. While Africa has opted for
democracy and human rights, democracy is suffering from ill-practices of
"variable geometry" perpetrated according to individual or collective
interests. Regrettably, the spread of democracy in Africa has not
brought the anticipated boost to development.
AAPSO views the selfish interests manifested by
those who covet, internally and externally, the immense riches and
natural resources enjoyed by Africa as fact undermining the countries'
right to development and social progress. The race towards immediate
profit at the detriment of the entire African population seems to be the
rule. The looting and trafficking of natural resources of Africa
continue unabated with the regrettable complicity of Africans and
foreign countries or corporations abroad. The African oil is now object
of increasing covetousness. Not surprisingly, in their quest for
international control of the oil in the world, America's assistant
secretary of state for Africa, have declared that "African oil has
become of national strategic interest for us (America)". Recently,
American officials were touring some African oil-producers countries
like Angola, Gabon, Nigeria, in a bid to justify their intention. It is
rumoured now that the American president himself will follow suit next
year.
The world is now witnessing the devastating effects of
HIV/AIDS in Africa which is home for 70% of the global total of people
living with these infections. The number of African victims is more and
more alarmingly increasing. AAPSO strongly supports the demands of
Africans for easy access to essential drugs for HIV-related illness; for
freeing hard-hit populations from charge related to affordable
anti-retroviral medecines; for producing generic drugs by compulsory
licensing. AAPSO believes that the time is ripe to declare a decisive
war against this disease and reminds the political leadership of Africa
and worldwide of their responsibility facing the present and the future
of the African people.
Facing the deepening poverty, growing backwardness and
continued marginalisation of Africa from the globalization process
standing in stark contrast to the prosperity of the developed world,
Africans are queen to get rid of this miserable situation. AAPSO views
the New Partnership for African Development-NEPAD-as demonstration of
African efforts to primarily deal with their own problems and to search
for solutions by means initiated by themselves. Nevertheless, NEPAD has
sparkled strong criticisms and more grievances from the side of African
civil society, NGOs, Unions, intellectuals, thinkers etc, for not having
been consulted in drawing the Document. Taking these critics into
consideration, AAPSO considers that NEPAD should be regarded as a
process-in-the making subject to further necessary improvements,
amendments, or substantial adjustments according to genuine African
people's aspirations reflecting all realities involved in the process of
development. This requires participation of the masses, their
enthusiasm, their sustained efforts towards progress and prosperity.
Africa has opened a new page of its history. AAPSO
welcomed the new-born African Union (AU) as new African political
identity destined to meet the challenges it will face in the process of
globalization. Although the positive achievements of the OAU outweighted
the negative ones from the political and economic point of view,
unavoidable pitfalls in many occasions had tarnished its face and
reputation in the eyes of both Africans and the rest of the world. For
the AU to succced it should learn the lesson from OAU's past
experiences, while voices come from many corners about the incertainties
regarding the AU's planned structures and the recurrent failure of
several generations of African leaders to live up to their promises and
commitments. In this respect, no less important question about the
accountability of African leaders concerns the setting up of a "peer
review" process through which political governance and management of
national affairs will be put under scrutiny by counterparts leaders. But
for this to meet all expectations, AAPSO thinks that civil society,
NGOs, should be involved in the process, not merely the leaders. As a
political priority of its efforts directed to tackle the problem of
security, the AU, while continuing to subscribe to the principle of
non-interference, has incorporated in its Constitutive Act the so-called
principle of non-indifference. Unconstitutional seizure of power,
genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity can trigger actions. AU
may intervene to reestablish security where needed. The creation on
"Peace and Security Council" is intended to act in this respect.
What matters most is that Africans alone should be
responsible for resolving their own problems. The AU should lend a
careful ear to the legitimate aspirations and demands of the African
people that globalization tends to leave out in abysses of misery and
poverty. Preserving the African identity, the African cultures, the
African values; perfecting the image of a united, integral Africa that
can revive peace, security ad stability for its citizens, all constitute
major challenges for the African Union.
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N.B.- The present paper has been set on November 6th, 2003. The
situation in some theatres of conflicts ( Ivory Coast, DRC, Central
African Republic.) is subject to further update owing to rapid
developments of events.
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