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International peace and understanding

The background of the Africa Union (AU)
THE AFRICAN UNION (AU)
The background of the Africa Union (AU)
On 9.9.1999 the Head of state and government of the OAU issued a declaration for the establishment of African union (AU) with a view of accelerating the process of integration in the continent.

So, the AU was established in order to replace the former OAU. Since then, the four summits have been held to the official launching of the AU, These include:-

The site extraordinary session (1999), this decided to establish the AU.
The home summit (2000) which accepted the constitutive Act of the union.
The Lusaka summit (2001) which drew the road map for the implementation of the AU.
The Durban summit (2002) which launched the AU and convened the first Assembly of the heads of state of the AU.

The Vision of AU

The Vision of the AU is to create united and strong Africa in building partnership and all Segments of civil society modern to strengthen solidarity amongst the peoples of Africa.

Quest for Unity:-

African countries in their quest for unity, economic and social development under the barriers of OAU, have taken various initiatives and made substantial progress in many areas that paved the way for the establishment of the AU.

Objectives of the AU:-

To achieve a greater unity and solidarity among African countries and the people of Africa.
To defend the sovereignty territories integrity and independence of its members states.
To promote peace, security and stability on the continent.
To promote democratic principles and institution, popular participation and good governance.
To accelerate political and socio – economic integration of the continent.
To promote and defend African common positions on issues of interest to the continent and its peoples.
To promote international cooperation, taking due account of the UN charter and the universal Declaration of Human right.
To promote sustainable development at the economic, social and cultural levels as well as integration of African.
To advance the development of the continent by promoting research in all fields particularly in science and technology i.e. research in malaria.
To work with relevant international partners in the eradication of preventable disease in order to promote good health and living standard.

Achievements of the AU

Since the Lusaka summit decisions on the transition from O.A.U to AU.

Progress has been made as follows:-

It has promoted African unity and friendship for being a Forum where African leaders meet annually to discuss affairs of the continent.
It has managed to solve internal conflicts and Civil wars in some states. E.g. in Comoro where the AU intervened back up the government of President Ali Abdullah Sambi from lebels led by colonel Bakary.
It has managed to promote African regional economic integration e.g. promoting the African Development Bank (ADB).
If has managed to make peaceful settlement of disputes by negotiations, mediation and conclusion e.g. Settlement of Kenyan disputes peacefully as well as settlement of dispute in Zimbabwe by establishing the coalition government President Robert Mugabe of ZANU – PF and Morgan Tsvangorai from MDC.
AU through cultural activities like the African cup of nations has helped to promote closer understanding, cooperation and friendship among African states.
It has maintained the no-interference into the internal affairs of the states.

Impelimentation of AU objectives

i. There has been a renewed commitment to human right, good governance,social and economic reform and development.

ii. Intensification of efforts to fight against HIV/AIDS in the continent. There are more efforts made of fight the pandemic which is claiming the life of many young and energetic people

iii. Recognition of the importance of gender balance in the election of the Africa Union’s commissioners and in the election of a woman a parliament’s first president. For example,Getrude Mongella.

iv. It has established Neo partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) with the focus of the developing the Africa states. NEPAD is the latest scheme for boosting economic development among the Africa states.

v. It has managed to create the court of justice which interprets laws and protects them. Through this organ
there is an improvement on respect of human rights.

vi. There is a monetary institution such as the Africa Central Bank which provided loans to member states instead of depending much on foreign countries.

vii. There has been an establishment of the pan-Africa Parliament and the peace and Security Council. The later was launched in 26th May, 2004. Thus, it is hoped that the peace and security council will continue serving as an efficient tool in materializing the Africa agenda for conflict prevention, management and resolution.

viii. Promotion of democracy. Many Africa countries hold multiparty elections, Wide spread consultations o constitutional reforms are occurring in many Africa countries due to the efforts of AU

CHALLENGES FACING THE AU

Different levels of development – some AU members are economically powerful than other so they tend to influence the affairs of the AU as well dominating others. example, South Africa also the North African countries (Arab countries) like Egypt are not ready to cooperate closely with poor countries and also Nigeria.
Economic dependence – African countries retain a dependent economy inherited from colonialists and continue under Neo colonialism e.g. technological dependence, budgetary dependence, loan dependence and expatriates.
Conflict and wars within the AU members Example. In DRC, Mali, Sudan.
Terrorism and threats in some African countries. example, Kenya (West gate issue in 2013), Somalia, Uganda, Nigeria.
Poor communication system and transport problems – there is inter territorial linkage were bordering states organically belonged to different colonial master.
It is not autonomous organ – it is dependent and UN organs AU has no standing army of itself , this is because the AU cannot operate military or form a standing army without the consent of the UN security council . This delays its ability to settle situation that call for that immediately.
Refugee problem in Africa – due to political instability led to high influence of refugees and political instability in some all member examples Tanzania from Rwanda, Burundi and DRC – Chad from Sudan, Kenya from Somalia.

International peace and understanding

A. Causes of conflicts in Africa

A conflict is the term which includes the actions, propagandist, the diplomatic,commercial or military threats and punishments that the contending parties take towards each other.
Conflicts can either be involving four levels, namely, societal, communal,interstate, and interpersonal or conflicts are grouped into five levels: (1) those among communities/ groups within the state: (2) those between communities across national borders: (3) those between communities and central governments: (4) those between communities and multinational corporations:and (5) those between governments. It needs to be pointed out from the outset that overlaps can occur in this categorization, but the division can assist in identifying some of the complex ramifications through which conflicts are expressed in Africa.

The escalating problems of conflicts in Africa can be attributed to be the following:
1. Problems associated with land scarcity: difficulties arising from conflicting laws governing land tenure: boundary disputes and rival claims to specific portions of land: demands for a review of “landlord- tenant” arrangements over land ownership: the clash of spiritual considerations with political and economic realities: complaints over government’s land regulatory policies: complexities of massive human influx: and conflicts arising from land and labor relations.

2. Self-interests of some individuals: As a factor for fueling conflicts,oil in Nigeria, oil and diamonds in Angola, rubber and timber in Liberia, diamonds in Sierra Leone, and land in Zimbabwe, etc. have become one of the most controversial issues in Africa, especially through the increase in the number of armed groups exploiting such natural resources to advance their desire for self-determination or pursue other self-interest. For example, from Angola and Liberia to DRC and Sierra Leone, armed groups have exploited the natural resources inside their territories and have initiated constant wars against their respective governments.

3. The desire to control regions endowed with natural resources: The desire to control region endowed with natural resources has always increased the determination with which warring sides instigate wars, resulting in an increase of casualty figures. In all major conflicts, the location of natural resources has always been a prime target for warring sides, and battles fought over these sites are often some of the fiercest. An example that quickly comes to mind here is the struggle for the control of the mineral-rich Kisangani in the DRC between the forces of Uganda and Rwanda. Another example can be seen in Angola, where the northeastern provinces of Luanda Norte and Luanda Sul, the location of the country’s diamond deposits, were among the most highly contested sections of the country during the civil war.

4. Colonial boundaries and inter regional conflict. For example, in Kenya and Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Kenya and Uganda, Cameroon and Nigeria as well as Uganda and Tanzania.

5. Corruption, nepotism and lack of transparency in public offices. These have led to embezzlement in public funds and uneven nglish-swahili/distribution” target=”_blank”>distribution of national resources. Some people are segregated from the the national cake and hence this makes them to fight against the domination.

6. Tribalism, regionalism and religious differences. For example, Nigeria Muslims against Christians: in Uganda the central region against the northern part, in Burundi Tutsi against Hutu.

7. Weak economic base or poverty. This has been the root cause of civil ears and instability in Africa. Many Africans have turned against their government accusing them to segregate them from sharing the national cake.

8. Abuse of human rights like freedom of speech, orbiter arrest, extra judicial killing, etc

9. Coup d’états in various countries or struggle for power.

10. Ruling regimes unwilling to step down after elections. This has been due to either vote ringing or clinging to power and this has led to political chaos. For example, Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast refused to step down despite being defeated by his political opponent Alasane Quwattara during the elections held in November 2010. This led to political chaos and death of people.

11. Puppetism: Most of the leaders are used by economically powerful countries to foster in stabilities for their gain.

B. Strategies for conflict resolution

There are three basic procedures for arranging compromises:

(i) Negotiation among parties: This procedure involves bilateral or multilateral negotiations among the parties involved.Condition for success of any negotiation is a common interest on the part of the opponents to avoid violence. The bargaining process involves;

The establishment of commitments to essential positions.
Determination of areas where concessions can be made.
Determination of areas where concessions can be made.
Commissioning of credible threats and promises.
Maintaining patience.

(ii) Mediation: This strategy involves passing messages between the parties to active agreement in the bargaining and attempts to place pressure on the antagonists to accept peace proposals that the mediator has proposed. A mediator can be, fro instance, the Security Council. In this procedure, a third party with no direct interest in the issue intervenes in the bargaining processes.
(iii)Adjudication and arbitration: It is strategy of conflict resolution in which the parties involved in conflict agree to submit the issues under contention to an independent tribunal. The court is supposed to decide the case on the basis of international law and jurisdiction extends only of legal issues such as interpretation of treaty, any question of international law or the existence of breach of an international obligation. The prerequisites of successful adjudication and arbitration include:

The existence of legal issues.
Voluntary submission of the case by both parties involved in the conflict.
Agreement that settlement
Willingness to accept an award rather than bargain for compromise outcome.

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