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His Excellency Professor Alpha Oumar Konaré
Africa Center for Strategic Studies Visionary Award
African Ambassadors’ Dinner
April 13th, 2006
President Konaré:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This evening will undeniably be for me a tremendous event. This award, all the nice things that have been said about me this evening, and the attendance of so many friends, some from very far away, and some that I have not seen in years, all of this deeply touches me. But this award is not mine alone. I share it with many people whom I have been lucky enough to rub shoulders with. Humble team workers from the political community, as well as civil society. In accepting this award, I would like to thank all the young men and women who never gave up on Africa, all these women who are supporting Africa.
On this evening, my thoughts are with all of the people that many of us, including myself, have decided to help so that they could find their place in the sun. On this evening, as on any other evening, I cannot help but think of the many children who, on our continent, go to sleep on an empty stomach only to wake up crying the next morning. On this evening, I think, as all of you do, of all the people who are dying on another continent when there are drugs to cure them. To die of malaria today, or to die from drinking unsuitable water, so will be the fate of many of them. On this evening, my thoughts turn to all these children who, unlike ours, have not had and will not have the opportunity to go to school to learn to read and count, children who will not experience a fulfilling life simply because they can neither read nor write. On this evening, I think of all the children that have been denied youth. Instead of allowing them to play, we gave them arms and made them into soldiers. Needless to say, on this evening I think of all the women who have become heads of families, as indeed did some of their children, and whose dignity has forever been tainted by violence, especially in areas of conflict.
Hard as I try, never will I be able to forget all the handicapped persons that I saw in Sierra Leone, their hands cut off, their arms cut off, their nose cut off, and their ears cut off, even at two years of age. As a matter of fact, I saw children that were not even two who will be forever handicapped, thanks only to human stupidity. This award also brings to mind some great men who have showed us the way and whose footsteps we will always thread on. His Excellency, Ambassador Perkins referred to some of them. From this great land of yours, there is Martin Luther King, an accomplished man who gained immortality at the age of 35. I also think of a man who we all knew and who, having left us way too soon, is dearly missed by his country. I am thinking of John Garang who clearly understood that nothing could justify the sorrow.
On this evening, I am reminded very strongly of a man who is amongst us and who, even though he is only human, has gained immortality through his boundless love, dignity and humanity, values that he truly personifies. I am speaking of Nelson Mandela who, more than anybody else, knows that he is only human but that the values he embodies are timeless. There is another great African [unintelligible] whom I would like to single out if only because he dreamed of a special Africa, an Africa that may be the answer to the thousands of issues that now plague our continent. A united Africa. That is what our Heads of State had in mind when they established the African Union.
Back in 1999, when African Heads of state met in Sirte, they quickly grasped that the OAU, created in 1963, had run its course. The OAU helped free the continent. The OAU helped bring about the end of apartheid. But the OAU was unable to remedy problems of governance, peace and economic development, as these issues were not part of its mandate. The OAU was a solidarity-based intergovernmental cooperation organization, which many tried to repeatedly revamp and update over the years, as its followers well know. But we realized, back in 1999, that reorganizing or restructuring the OAU was pointless. What we needed was a new organization that would not be limited to intergovernmental cooperation but one of an integrative nature.
Thus was established the African Union. The African Union acts as a forward thrust that will one day enable all 53 African States to merge into one single great country, that of Africa, inhabited by men and women of African citizenship. It is the African Union that is now leading the way and whose Commission I now preside. Unlike the OAU, which only had a Secretariat, the Commission is intended as a kind of governing body of the African Union. Other than the Commission, the African Union now boasts a Pan-African Parliament, a first in the history of our continent. The African Union can also rely on a Court of justice that should be fully operational within two months. The Africa Union also has access to an Economic, Social, and Cultural Council. The African Union is considering the establishment of financial institutions, a central bank, a monetary fund, and an investment bank, institutions that, Ladies and Gentlemen, do make up a country. The African Union has also adopted new values: freedom of initiative and gender equality [unintelligible]. As a matter of fact, the African Union Commission comprises 10 members, 5 men and 5 women, to illustrate this newfound will to make room for women. The African Union has acknowledged that civil society had a critical role to play. The African Union has come to realize that Africa is not limited to Africans living in Africa but extends also to the diaspora, which must have its say. The African Union has also opted to highlight yet another basic principle, that of non-indifference.
We must obviously respect national sovereignty but must we keep on witnessing human rights violations? Shall we go on tolerating humanitarian crises? Shall we watch our countries disintegrate without intervening ? Our answer is no. Shall we accept living with the conflicts that have superseded the mechanism set forth in Cairo in 1993? The Peace and Security Council of the African Union comprises 15 members who meet at least twice a month at the ambassador level, and at least once a month at the ministerial and Head of State level. Since its actual implementation in 2004, the Peace and Security Council has met at least on fifty occasions to deal with various issues. As a matter of fact, the Council met this very afternoon to discuss issues pertaining to Chad and Sudan. This Peace and Security Council is a critical component, I did say critical, of our conflict solving mechanism but it is not the only one. There is also a Committee of 5 Wise Men. This Committee will be fully functional before the end of the year. The purpose of this Committee of Wise Men is to support implementation and prevention. Made up of independent public figures who, among other things, will be involved in conflict resolution, that Committee will in some ways offset the strictly governmental Peace and Security Council.
Our system will rely on standby forces and an additional 5 brigades, already planned for, which will constitute the first step towards the establishment, one day, of a great African Army. After 53 years, we are still having difficulty in mobilizing 10,000 men, which is why we must review our approach. The establishment of regional brigades will help us set up the African Contingency Force. Other than the Contingency Force, we have implemented an early warning system, which includes observation centers in each of the 5 regions. This is where prevention comes into play since any African conflict can be foreseen. We usually watch them spreading and getting worse, without taking action. The less expensive early warning system will be a great asset in this regard. We are currently proceeding with the implementation of this system, which will be complemented by 3 new elements. Firstly, the African Counter-Terrorism Center, which was recently established in Algiers.
Then there is the Information Secretariat, set up recently in Addis-Ababa and finally, the Peer Review mechanism, intended to promote good governance. These, ladies and Gentlemen, are the tools that we are implementing to address peace and security issues on the continent. We are strongly committed to so-called “structural” prevention, through the development of a suitable policy to help promote good governance, fight corruption, consolidate the democratic process, and fight impunity, as all of these are closely related to so-called structural prevention. But we are also committed to, shall I say, “operational” prevention that is well suited to our policy of non-indifference. After we introduced the concept of a non-indifference policy, many asked us what it meant. Well to us, it means, let’s not be afraid of saying it, a policy of interference, but one of courtesy and solidarity. The idea is not to tell people what to do but to support them. That is why our operational prevention relies on discrete missions and discrete actions. As everybody knows, the way things are said and the context of intervention are of paramount importance in Africa.
For some people, anything can be said in private but the minute that you go public, your words become totally unacceptable. We must therefore fully integrate African culture into our process. We are well aware that the foremost challenge facing our country today is resolving peace and security issues. The roots of conflicts are also well known. Let’s not fool ourselves, they are usually related to power struggles. They usually are the results of state structure and poor governance, for which we are responsible. But the continent has made tremendous progress. Many long-lasting conflicts are now behind us. Mozambique, what a puzzle! But what an amazing progress in Angora! And the 20-yeard old conflict in Southern Sudan now behind us. Liberia has made astonishing progress! True, hands and arms have been lopped off in Sierra Leone, but progress has been made there too! Progress has even been made in Rwanda, following the genocide! Burundi has also come a long way! And what progress in the Comoros after some 20 coups d’etat. Progress was even made in Chad, prior to current events.
So there has been progress, but not nearly enough for us to ignore the fact that my country is still suffering. Darfur is reeling from a humanitarian crisis and from human rights violations. And what about the risk of seeing the situation in Darfur and Sudan spread to other vulnerable countries in the region? Sudan represents 2 million square feet of land and shares borders with 9 different countries. The Middle East is just around the corner. Should we fail to instill peace in this vast country, should we fail to maintain its unity, and let me stress while still respecting its diversity and plurality, the very survival of Africa might be at stake. Anarchy and civil war in Sudan, which are given little notice, are not limited to a domestic issue, or to Central Africa. They have implications for North Africa and West Africa. The situation may very well lead Africa to the brink of conflicts between Blacks and Whites, with consequences that no one can predict. You may talk about modern day Africa, but it remains the native land of Black people. And even though Black people are the majority on the continent, Africa is now an Arabic land. Let’s not forget that two-thirds of the global Arabic population now live in Africa. This is the African reality that we must learn to deal with in order to make progress. We are concerned with events in Darfur and we thank all of our friends for their support. If the African Union is committed to resolving that situation through a political solution, hoping to quickly reach an agreement in Abuja, we are also relying on a military force that has that has proven effective.
But it must be said that, in undertaking all of these peace initiatives, we have benefited from productive partnerships with the United States, which have supported and are still supporting us, and with the European Union, which has provided financial support through its global funding agency. But on this evening, I would like to pay tribute to the United Nations, our Nation, our United Nations, an organization that has always supported us. I would like to pay special tribute to the world’s UN Peacekeepers, two-thirds of which are now deployed on our continent. Seventy percent (70 %) of issues considered by the Security Council relate to Africa. Not a fact that I am proud of but which clearly demonstrates the UN interest in our continent. We collaborate with the UN on all major issues.
In the coming weeks, we will intensify our collaboration with the United Nations while still ensuring the leadership of the African Union and Sudanese authorities. We are of course concerned with other current events in Africa. Major progress has been made in Ivory Coast. Having full confidence in our Ivorian brothers, we support them in their ongoing efforts to one day establish the fraternal Ivory Coast that we have all dreamed about. The Democratic Republic of Congo is now forging ahead. We support its electoral process that should come to a close probably in June. Let me assure you that the path chosen by the RDC will signal a new march for Africa. We are also concerned with Ethiopia and Eritrea. We are equally concerned with Western Sahara. We know that we have the support of the international community, including the United States, on all these issues of uncertainty.
Dear friends, should Africa succeed in resolving these conflicts and restoring peace, anything will be possible. Anything. Africa is in need of solidarity but we must acknowledge that many of our numerous promises have not been kept. As a matter of fact, we were promised far too much and too few of these promises were kept. Europe managed to recover thanks to American assistance. Eastern European countries and the new European Union are now standing up thanks to exceptional support. But Africa also deserves such outstanding assistance. Africa wishes for more than band-aid solutions. Modern African development involves infrastructures and requires considerable investments to help us process our raw materials. Let me tell you that Africa, now more than ever, needs assistance.
I have heard a great President say that friends of Africa had a duty of humanity. Our answer to him was that that duty of humanity had now become a duty of Africanism. A duty towards today’s Africa. Indeed, a non-functional Africa would be a risky situation for the entire world. Many of the world’s conflicts and disorders are the result of poverty. And poverty fuels mercenary activities. Poverty triggers competition for raw materials. Poverty feeds instability. No one would gain from an undeveloped Africa. My country, Africa, has everything it needs to evolve, and you know it.
Africa has all the natural, mineral and agricultural resources needed to ensure its development. Some of the world’s rarest minerals can be found in Africa. Africa has tremendous potential and my country is a great country, one to be proud of. Truly a great country. Please consider for a moment that size-wise, Africa is equal to the United States, China, India, Mexico, and Argentina, all put together. Its size is such that I can call it a vast country. A country whose land area would cover the United States of America, the European Union, India, China, Mexico, and Argentina. It is a huge country. There are today 800,000 million Africans. In 30 years from now, there will be 1,5 billion Africans. Our country will be as large as China or India. In 30 years from now, those 1,5 billion Africans will amount to the European population, plus that of all North America, United States and Canada included, plus that of all South America. That’s how many of us Africans there will be in 2030.
But we will have an advantage over China, and over India. Our population will be the youngest in the world. And 30 years from now, so help us God, if conflicts have become fewer, if our health programs are better established, if education programs are more refined, Africa, a land where everything needs to be done, will have become the world’s largest manufacture, as well as the worlds biggest and youngest market. In this context, there cannot be any future without Africa, there is no future without our country. And, as I said earlier, by Africa I do not mean Black Africa nor White Africa, but an Africa that extends from the Mediterranean to Southern Africa, in fact all the way to South Africa. Such will be our continent, neither black nor white, but of all colors. And nowadays, the term African Union refers to an organization based on Africanism, which for us equals to negritude, the Arab world, and the involvement of the diaspora. Therein lies our future.
General, I have come here to accept this award granted by your Center for Africa-related endeavors. I am also here because of all that your great country, the United States, does for us. I am honored to be here. May I take this opportunity to wish your Center the very best. May it continue to strengthen the relationships between the United States and Africa. And may your Center help the United States to increase its commitment to Africa. As we mentioned earlier, it is true that solutions to security issues are related to security mechanisms. But these solutions also call for political and economic initiatives. This great country of yours, America, has a lot to contribute to Africa. And here we are, waiting with great expectations, for Africa, the very first continent upon which mankind walked, spoke, and traded. This very first of continents, is undeniably THE continent of the future, as men can still today gather there, surrounded by great and important values. They do not do so solely for themselves, or for their peers, but also for everybody else, as this first of continents is that of mankind, and the only worthwhile struggle nowadays is to serve mankind. I thank you for your attention and for the opportunity to be here this evening. Thank you.
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