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 انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد
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هيمنت الأوضاع بإقليم دارفور غربي السودان وبالصومال على الجلسة الافتتاحية لقمة الاتحاد الأفريقي المنعقدة في أديس أبابا.
فقد تعرضت الحكومة السودانية لانتقادات من رئيس المفوضية الأفريقية ألفا عمر كوناري، الذي دعا لوقف ما أسماه بعمليات قصف يشنها الجيش السوداني في دارفور والسعي بدلا من ذلك لتحقيق السلام في الإقليم.
كما دعا الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون في كلمته إلى وقف ما أسماه العنف وسياسة الأرض المحروقة التي تنتهجها مختلف الأطراف في دارفور. وحث القادة الأفارقة على إيجاد حل "للمعضلة التي صنعها رفض السودان نشر قوات من الأمم المتحدة في الإقليم".
وطالب كي مون أيضا بالسماح لمنظمات الإغاثة بالعمل في دارفور بعد أن حذرت بعض هذه المنظمات من أن مهامها على وشك الانهيار. وقد اجتمع الأمين العام مع الرئيس السوداني عمر البشير على هامش القمة حيث أكد كي مون أنه يسعى لإقناع البشير بالموافقة على نشر القوات الأممية في دارفور.
كما دعا متمردي دارفور الذين لم يوقعوا على اتفاقية أبوجا للسلام إلى الانضمام إليها، مشيرا إلى ضرورة بناء إجماع على نشر قوات أفريقية أممية مشتركة في الإقليم.
وإثر هذه الانتقادات أفاد مصدر بالاتحاد الأفريقي أن الرئاسة الدورية للاتحاد سلمت إلى غانا بدلا من السودان. جاء ذلك بعد حملة قادتها دول ومنظمات غربية بتأييد دول أفريقية مثل تشاد ضد تولي الخرطوم رئاسة الاتحاد بسبب الأوضاع في دارفور.
وأوضحت مصادر مطلعة أن التسوية تمت بموجب اقتراح للجنة المعروفة بالحكماء السبعة، ووافق عليه السودان الذي كان مصرا على حقه في رئاسة الاتحاد.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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the last post was from Aljazeera.net
and this one from BBC
غانا بدلا من السودان لرئاسة الاتحاد الأفريقي
دعا بان كي-مون إلى نشر قوات مشتركة في دارفور وحل النزاعات في الصومال
حصلت غانا علي مقعد رئاسة الاتحاد الافريقي بدلا من السودان التي اعترضت تشاد علي طلبها بتولي الرئاسة.
وتم انتخاب الرئيس الغاني كوفورKufuor رئيسا للاتحاد الافريقي بالاجماع بموافقة كل الدول بما فيها السودان، وقد تزامن ذلك مع الاحتفال بالذكري الخمسين لاستقلال غانا.
وقال الفا عمر كوناري مفوض الاتحاد الافريقي ان السودان نفسه قد ساند القرار. وكان بان كيمون أمين عام الأمم المتحدة قد دعا الاتحاد الافريقي الي الموافقة بالاجماع علي انتشار القوات المشتركة للاتحاد الافريقي والأمم المتحدة في اقليم دارفور.
وجاء تصريح بان كي-مون في افتتاح القمة الأفريقية الاثنين في أديس أبابا باثيوبيا.
وحث الأمين العام المشاركين في القمة العمل لإقناع المتمردين في إقليم دارفور الذين لم يوقعوا على اتفاقية السلام مع الحكومة في الخرطوم للتوقيع عليها، وفي الوقت نفسه "السعي إلى بناء اجماع لنشر قوات أفريقية وأممية في الإقليم".
كما ناقش الاجتماع الشأن الصومالي ووعدت الولايات المتحدة الامريكية بتقديم الدعم الجوي لقوات الاتحاد الافريقي .
وجاءت تصريحات الأمين العام قبل سويعات فقط من اجتماعه بالرئيس السوداني عمر البشير، حيث قال الأمين العام إنه يعتزم حث البشير على السماح بنشر قوات حفظ سلام تابعة للأمم المتحدة في الإقليم.
في نفس الوقت حذرت وكالات الإغاثة العالمية بأن عملها في الإقليم السوداني على وشك الانهيار.
قضايا بارزة
وقد اختار الاتحاد الإفريقي غانا لرئاسة المنظمة للسنة الثانية على التوالي وسط خلاف حول منع السودان من تولي الرئاسة بسبب الأزمة في دارفور.
وقال رئيس بعثة الاتحاد الأفريقي، ألفا عمر كوناري، في مؤتمر صحفي في مكان انعقاد القمة: "إن رئيس غانا (جون) كوفوور أختير لرئاسة الاتحاد الإفريقي".
وكان من المقرر أن يتولى البشير رئاسة الاتحاد الأفريقي - غير أن منظمات حقوق الإنسان تقول إن هذا الأمر سيكون مثار احتجاج وغضب صاخب.
كما من المقرر أن تكون الاضطرابات في الصومال من القضايا البارزة للقمة.
وقال الأمين العام: "يجب أن نعمل معا لإيقاف العنف وسياسة الأرض المحروقة المتبعة من قبل أطراف متعددة، بما فيها الميليشيا، وكذلك وقف تفجير القنابل التي لا تزال تشكل صفة مروعة للحياة في دارفور".
وكان بان في وقت سابق قال إنه يعتزم إجراء مباحثات مع عدة قادة أفارقة، بمن فيهم زعماء إثيوبيا وساحل العاج، والصومال، وإفريقيا الجنوبية.
إنها تحول دون تمتع السودان ككل بإمكانياته في التقدم كبلد سلمي، ومزدهر وديقراطي، الشيء الذي يحول بدوره إلى عرقلة مستقبل منطقة شبه القارة الأفريقية كلها
الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة، بان كي-مون
كما ان الأمين العام اجتمع مع كوناري، للتشاور معه حول الخطة ذات المراحل الثلاث لتسوية الوضع في إقليم دارفور، والتي من المتوقع أن تؤدي إلى نشر قوات أفريقية وأممية قوية إلى الإقليم.
وقال متحدث باسم الاتحاد أن المسئولين أعربا عن أملهما في أن يبدأ نشر القوات بنهاية فبراير / شباط المقبل.
وسيحسم قرار الرئاسة في جلسة مغلقة تجمع قادة الاتحاد قبيل اجتماع كي-مون بالبشير.
وقال بان متحدثا عن حصيلة النزاع في الإقليم " لكن حصيلة الأزمة تبقى غير مقبولة".
أبعاد إقليمية
وقال عن الأزمة " إنها تحول دون تمتع السودان ككل بإمكانياته في التقدم كبلد سلمي، ومزدهر وديقراطي، الشيء الذي يؤدي بدوره إلى عرقلة مستقبل المنطقة".
و أضاف "علينا أن نطرح الأزمة بأبعادها الإقليمية"، في إشارة إلى تدفق النزاع الدارفوري إلى البلدين المجاورين، تشاد وجمهورية افريقيا الوسطى.
ومع أن الحكومة في الخرطوم وافقت على نشر القوات المشتركة، إلا أن مسألة عددها وتفاصيل قيادتها ومراقبة الدعم التقني، ستدرس بين الأمم المتحدة والاتحاد الأفريقي والحكومة السودانية في وقت لاحق.
كما دعا الأمين العام إلى بذل جهود من أجل جلب السلام في كل من الصومال وساحل العاج التي تمزقهما النزاعات.
ففي ما يتعلق بالصومال، شدد الأمين العام على المجتمع الدولي لدعم الحكومة الصومالية الفدرالية الانتقالية، التي تدعمها إثيوبيا للوصول إلى مصالحة وطنية.
يذكر أن القوات التابعة للحكومة الصومالية التي دعمتها الآلاف من القوات الإثيوبية قد تمكنت من طرد القوات الإسلامية التي كانت منتشرة عبر الصومال الشهر الماضي.
مقارنة مع تجربة كوريا الجنوبية
كما عبر وزير كوريا الجنوبية للخارجية السابق عما يكنّه من اعتراف لقادة الاتحاد الأفريقي، الذي يضم 53 عضوا، لدعم انتخابه أمينا عاما للأمم المتحدة.
يشار إلى أن الأمين العام الجديد قد إلتقى في وقت مبكر من نهارالاثنين مساعد وزيرة الخارجية الأمريكية المكلف بالشئون الأفريقية، جوندايي فرايزر.
حذرت وكالات الإغاثة من خروج الوضع في دارفور عن السيطرة
كما أنه تشاور مساء أمس الأحد بالرئيس الفلسطيني، محمود عباس، حول اجتماع اللجنة الرباعية الدبلوماسية المكلفة بعملية السلام في الشرق الأوسط، المرتقب عقده قريبا.
وقد لعبت إثيوبيا، التي تستضيف القمة، دورا رئيسيا، في الإطاحة بميليشيا المحاكم الإسلامية التي كانت قد سيطرت على الصومال، وتدعم الحكومة الإثيوبية الحكومة الصومالية المؤقتة التي تحظى باعتراف دولي.
وتقول إثيوبيا إنها ستبدأ خفض مستويات قواتها في الصومال، بما يجعل نشر قوة حفظ سلام أفريقية مقترحة في الصومال قضية أكثر إلحاحا، حسبما قالت آمبر هينشو مراسلة بي بي سي في أديس أبابا، حيث تنعقد القمة.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Ghana chosen to chair African Union
29/01/2007 14h39
Ghana chosen to chair African Union
©AFP/FileADDIS ABABA (AFP) - African leaders have chosen Ghana to be chairman of the African Union and snubbed Sudan's ambitions to head up the 53-member organisation, officials said.
"Ghana will chair the AU," Ethiopia's Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin told AFP on Monday after the decision was taken by leaders at a closed-door session in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
Habiba Mejri, head of the AU's communications department, confirmed the decision.
"Sudan has lost out at the expense of Ghana. Ghana has been elected for a year," she said. "The
of government decided that next time it will be someone from east Africa."
Sudan had earlier Monday received a public dressing-down as the summit began over violence in Darfur, which put paid to Khartoum's ambitions to chair the organisation.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Worries over al-Bashir push for AU
POSTED: 7:44 a.m. EST, January 29, 2007
Adjust font size:
KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) -- Sudan said Sunday it would push for President Omar al-Bashir to become chair of the African Union this week, a move observers and rebels warned would jeopardize the body's efforts to pacify conflict-torn Darfur.
The 53-member AU meets this week in Ethiopia to choose its new chairman among African
of states. The spiraling violence in Sudan's western Darfur region, where the AU has 7,000 peacekeepers, is expected to top the agenda.
Many observers say al-Bashir is a party to the conflict and should not chair the organization.
Khartoum says AU leaders already agreed to select al-Bashir during last year's summit.
"African
of states will have to stick to their word, otherwise what is the point for the AU to hold meetings and reach agreements?" said Sudanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ali Sadiq.
But several African countries -- backed by Western nations -- oppose al-Bashir's bid to become chairman despite the agreement reported last year, diplomats in Khartoum said.
Countries with peacekeeping contingents in Darfur, such as Senegal and South Africa, are among those opposed, said the diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
The Darfur crisis began in February 2003 when rebels from black African tribes took up arms, complaining of decades of neglect and discrimination by Sudan's Arab-dominated government. More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced.
The government is accused of unleashing Arab tribal militia known as janjaweed against civilians in a campaign of killings, rapes and arson.
The Sudanese government, which denies backing the janjaweed, signed a peace agreement with one Darfur rebel faction in May, but violence has worsened in the region, spilling over into neighboring Chad and Central African Republic.
Darfur rebel leaders warned they would stop considering the AU mission an honest peace-broker in Darfur if al-Bashir was selected.
"We are fighting al-Bashir and his army. ... There will be huge chaos in Darfur if he becomes AU chairman," rebel chief Khalil Ibrahim warned in a phone interview.
Ibrahim
the Justice and Equality Movement, the backbone of a rebel coalition that has repeatedly defeated government forces in North Darfur. The coalition recently threatened it would treat AU peacekeepers as a "hostile force" if al-Bashir becomes their nominal head.
"I hope all African leaders understand that we are very serious about this," Ibrahim said. "If they select al-Bashir, it will mean the AU instantly terminates its mission in Darfur."
Sadiq dismissed claims that a Sudanese chairmanship would put the African force in an awkward position in Darfur, saying the regional body's chief does oversee day-to-day peacekeeping operations.
The AU mission in Sudan declined to comment.
Khartoum opposes a U.N. Security Council resolution that calls for some 22,000 U.N. peacekeepers to replace the overwhelmed African force.
Experts say there is mounting pressure on African leaders not to select al-Bashir. "However, I don't know how they'll get around it," said Tom Cargyll, an analyst at Chatham House, a British think tank.
The AU's chairmanship is largely symbolic and has little effect on peacekeepers in Darfur, Cargyll said. "But knowing how Sudanese diplomacy works, they would certainly extract the maximum political capital from it," he said.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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غانا رئيسا للاتحاد والقمة الأفريقية تبحث نزاعات القارة
جون كوفور يتولى رئاسة الاتحاد التي تتزامن مع الذكرى الخمسين لاستقلال غانا (الفرنسية)
خسر السودان للمرة الثانية رئاسة الاتحاد الأفريقي بسبب الضغوط الإقليمية والدولية على خلفية أزمة إقليم دارفور. وأعلن رئيس مفوضية الاتحاد الأفريقي ألفاعمر كوناري موافقة القادة الأفارقة في افتتاح قمة أديس أبابا على تولي غانا الرئاسة الدورية للاتحاد العام الحالي.
وأكد كوناري تأييد السودان للقرار الذي اقترحه الرئيس المنتهية ولايته الكونغولي دنيس ساسو نغيسو. ويرى مراقبون أن القمة تفادت بذلك نزاعا كان سيلقي بظلاله على القضايا المطروحة على جدول الأعمال وبينها الوضع بالصومال.
ونقل نغيسو صلاحيات رئيس الاتحاد إلى نظيره الغاني جون كوفور الذي عبر عن امتنانه للقرار الذي اعتبره دليلا على الثقة في جهود بلاده لتحقيق الديمقراطية والحكم الرشيد ومحاربة الفقر. ويشار إلى أن غانا ستحتفل في مارس/آذار المقبل بالذكرى الخمسين لاستقلالها مما يزيد من الأهمية المعنوية لنقل رئاسة الاتحاد إليها.
وكانت أوضاع دارفور قد هيمنت على الجلسة الافتتاحية للقمة، فقد تعرضت الحكومة السودانية لانتقادات من رئيس المفوضية الأفريقية الذي دعا إلى وقف ما أسماه "عمليات قصف يشنها الجيش السوداني في دارفور"، والسعي بدلا من ذلك لتحقيق السلام في الإقليم.
كما دعا الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون في كلمته إلى وقف ما أسماه "العنف وسياسة الأرض المحروقة التي تنتهجها مختلف الأطراف في دارفور".
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Sudan humiliated as Ghana takes African Union helm
29/01/2007 20h08
Sudanese President Omar El-Beshir arrives at the African Union summit
©AFP - Marco LongariADDIS ABABA (AFP) - Sudan suffered a double humiliation after the African Union summit opened when it was snubbed in favour of Ghana for the AU presidency and lectured by UN chief Ban Ki-Moon over the conflict in Darfur.
As Khartoum put a brave face on getting the cold shoulder from the 53-nation organisation it had expected to head up, Ghana's President John Kufuor fizzed with delight.
"I wish to express my gratitude to all of you, my brothers, for appointing me as the head of our union," he said after the decision was formally announced.
"Your decision is quite clearly a mark of confidence, a recognition of the fight of my country for democracy, good governance and the fight against poverty."
The vote means that Ghana, the first African state to gain independence, will head the organisation on the 50th anniversary of nationhood, which the west African country celebrates in March.
President John Kufuor of Ghana
©AFP - Marco LongariSudan's Foreign Minister Lam Akol tried to play down the setback, saying Khartoum agreed with the decision.
"The choice is good. Sudan has voluntarily accepted to decline in favour of Ghana. Ghana is a great country," he told AFP. "We chose Ghana to maintain the unity of the continent."
The summit, held amid massive security in the Ethiopian capital, was also focusing on efforts to put together a peacekeeping force for lawless Somalia as well as issues such as global warming and the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
The situation in Darfur, however, dominated both the build-up to the summit and its opening sessions.
As late as Sunday night, the Sudanese delegation was saying it saw "no other scenario" to taking the helm of the AU, after reluctantly agreeing to step aside at the previous summit in Khartoum.
But President Omar al-Beshir, possibly sensing a defeat on Monday, told AFP before the vote there would be "no problem" if Sudan were not elected chairman.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon addresses the African Union summit
©AFP - Don Emmert"If they don't allow it to us, it is no problem. We have not discussed about it yet but we will," he said.
Human rights groups had expressed outrage at the idea of Khartoum assuming the presidency, given its record in Darfur.
New UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who met Beshir on the sidelines of the two-day summit, slammed "terrifying bombardments" of Darfur by Khartoum's forces in his speech to the summit.
Pushing for deployment of a robust joint AU-UN force in Darfur, Ban stressed "the partnership between the AU and the UN is of central importance" to end the conflict.
"Together we must work to end the violence and scorched-earth policies adopted by various parties, including militias, as well as the bombings which are still a terrifying feature of life in Darfur," he said.
Ban Ki-moon
©AFP - Marco LongariBan later said that his meeting with Beshir had been productive.
The UN wants to send troops to bolster a struggling AU peacekeeping force already in Darfur but Khartoum is trying to limit the UN presence to a supporting role.
"We agreed to accelerate the joint AU-UN efforts for the political process and cooperation for peace-keeping mission" based on previous agreements which the UN feels have not been honoured.
Beshir had "reiterated his strong commitment to implementing these agreements" Ban added to reporters.
AU commission chief Alpha Oumar Konare had earlier told the summit in his opening speech that both the Sudanese government and rebel forces should "stop the bombardments and massacres" in Darfur, where the UN estimates some 200,000 people have been killed since 2003.
UN sources had said they expected Sudan would be more amenable to pressure if it were elected to chair the AU, believing a diplomatic snub might leave it even more isolated.
Konare also used his speech as an opportunity to urge more countries to join a planned peacekeeping mission to Somalia, warning of chaos if the force was not deployed rapidly.
The African Union has given the green light to a force of nearly 8,000 soldiers to go to Somalia but only a handful of countries have committed troops.
Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi also told the gathering that Rome stands ready to host a peace conference for Somalia once stability returns to its former colony.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Sudan Loses AU Chair to Ghana
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 29 (IPS) - African leaders Monday picked Ghana as the new chair of the African Union (AU), turning down Sudan's bid for its failure to end the conflict in Darfur.
The 53 African
of state and government chose Ghanaian President John Kufuor over the beleaguered Sudanese President Omar al Bashir at the start of their two-day summit in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, Jan. 29. Bashir has been accused of genocide in the troubled western Sudanese region of Darfur.
His candidacy has divided Africa. If elected, he would have carried with him the mandate to handle African conflicts such as Darfur and Somalia for a year -- the duration of his chairmanship.
Alpha Konae, AU Commission chairperson, told journalists in Addis Ababa that African leaders agreed by "consensus" to elect Kufuor to the presidency of the pan-African body.
Even before Bashir formally lost, opposition to his candidacy was already overwhelming. "Bashir has demonstrated that he's not a democrat... He has not been willing in the past two or so years to deal with the issue in Darfur," Korwa Adar, an analyst at the Pretoria-based Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA), told IPS.
More than 200,000 people have been killed and another two million displaced since Darfur rebels, seeking autonomy, took up arms to fight the Khartoum government in 2003, according to a Jan. 28 statement by the New York-based Human Rights Watch urging the AU to deny Bashir the chairmanship.
But Bashir claimed last November at a press conference in Khartoum that "counting all those killed in battles between the armed forces, the rebels and the tribes, the number (of dead in Darfur) does not reach 9,000." The government of Sudan has consistently denied the mass forced displacement, killings and rape, according to Amnesty International.
So far, Bashir has rejected a United Nations Security Council proposal to deploy 20,000 blue helmets to replace the 7,000 ill-equipped and cash-strapped AU peacekeepers monitoring the peace in Darfur, a territory the size of France.
Bashir insists on keeping the AU troops, preferring only logistical and financial support to come from the West. Analysts say Bashir fears that the U.N. peacekeepers will be used to apprehend and deliver him, along with 51 other suspects, to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for crimes against humanity.
Last year African leaders, meeting in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, turned down Bashir's bid for the AU chairmanship and settled for a compromise candidate, Denis Nguesso of the Republic of Congo. They promised Bashir the job this year, if he resolved the Darfur conflict. But, to the chagrin of African academics and human rights activists, Darfur is still burning. Therefore, giving Bashir the job, they fear, will undermine AU's credibility.
"It could be the first time for a commander-in-chief of an army fighting (Darfur) rebels to become a chair of a continental body. It goes beyond logic. It goes against international law. This may give Bashir a license to do whatever he likes in Darfur," John Yoh, lecturer of political science at the University of South Africa (UNISA), told IPS by phone before Monday's vote.
Chad, which is fighting Sudan-backed rebels, had threatened to quit AU if Bashir assumed the body's chairmanship.
Like Darfur, Somalia is also expected to bog down African leaders in Addis Ababa. A failed state, Somalia has been without a central government for 16 years since the fall of the dictator Siad Barre in 1991. In June 2006, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) seized power from a group of U.S.-backed Somali warlords only to be driven out themselves by Ethiopian forces in December 2006. Ethiopia is backing Somalia's weak Transitional Federal Government (TFG) which was based in Baidoa, 250 northwest of the capital Mogadishu.
Reluctant to stay longer, Ethiopia has begun pulling out its troops from Somalia, raising fears of a power vacuum that could throw Somalia back into the ugly clan-based wars of the past. Ethiopia fought two wars with Somalia in 45 years. As a result, it doesn't want to get stuck in Somalia and be regarded as a colonial power.
"I think Ethiopia did a good thing by intervening in Somalia. Whether it did it for personal interest or for Somalia's interest, it's immaterial. If they can stabilise Somalia, it will restore AU's credibility. If we don't stabilise it now, we may lose the opportunity," Claude Kabemba of the Johannesburg-based Southern Africa Resource Watch, a non-governmental organization (NGO), told IPS.
The African Union has proposed the deployment of 8,000 peacekeepers for Somalia. So far, only Uganda has pledged 1,500 troops. Malawi and Nigeria have also expressed interests to send peacekeepers.
South Africa, the continent's diplomatic and economic powerhouse, said Jan. 25 it would not contribute troops. Defence minister Mosinoa Lekota made the announcement when he met with President Thabo Mbeki to review South Africa's peacekeeping role in Africa. He said South Africa's force was overstretched.
South Africa has deployed a total of over 3,000 peacekeeping forces in Sudan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other small numbers in Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia and Eritrea.
"South Africa is getting tired. The enthusiasm with which it deployed peacekeepers to Burundi, the DRC and Cote d'Ivoire is no longer there. It is losing momentum," Kabemba said.
South Africa said it would study ways of supporting the Somali mission.
Like in Darfur, inadequate funding continues to undermine the role of African peacekeepers. "African countries have always been encumbered with lack of finance. I think money can be raised within the continent, through taxes. This does not mean that we shall ignore donor contributions. Donor money should complement domestic efforts. We have so much resources which we could use to solve Africa's problems," Adar said.
He believes that the Darfur and Somali conflicts could easily be resolved by the African Union. The Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor of the African Union, had faced more serious problems than the AU in the past, Adar said. He cited the British stand on white-ruled Rhodesia, now called Zimbabwe, which almost divided Africa in the 1960s.
"I'm convinced that AU can handle the Darfur and Somalia conflicts," said Adar, author of the book "Kenyan Foreign Policy Behaviour Towards Somalia, 1963-1983".
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Sudan losses AU leadership because of Darfur
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Sudan lost its bid to assume the rotating leadership of the African Union to Ghana on Monday after regional leaders snubbed Khartoum for a second time because of international outrage over bloodshed in Darfur.
Alpha Oumar Konare, the AU's top diplomat, told reporters Ghanaian President John Kufuor would take the post of AU chairman. "By consensus it is President Kufuor."
He said Sudan had supported the decision, which avoided a damaging dispute that would have eclipsed the main summit agenda, including raising peacekeeping troops for Somalia.
Before the swift decision on Monday, some analysts had predicted the dispute over Sudan would dominate the summit and only be resolved at the last moment.
Delegates said a deal was worked out through the mediation of South African President Thabo Mbeki and a group of seven respected presidents or "wise men".
The 2007 chairmanship was promised to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir a year ago when he was passed over for the post because of the violence in Darfur, which experts estimate has killed 200,000 people and driven 2.5 million from their homes.
Critics say that far from abating, the violence has worsened in the last year and government-backed Arab militias have killed thousands.
Bashir has repeatedly blocked deployment of U.N. peacekeepers to bolster an overstretched African Union military mission of 7,000 soldiers and monitors.
Sudanese Foreign Minister Lama Kol told Reuters: "This was our suggestion. We voluntarily suggested this so that the foreign elements who were trying to divide the continent over this issue would not succeed ... what was important was to take the decision for the unity of the continent."
TRAGEDY
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the summit a solution must be found to the "tragedy" of Darfur. "We must open a new and different chapter. The toll of the crisis remains unacceptable," he said.
But despite lengthy talks with Bashir he failed to win commitments to deploy U.N. peacekeepers, a key demand of the United Nations and Western governments.
Sudan had seemed adamant on the eve of the summit that it should get the chairmanship despite a chorus of demands from rights organisations and Western governments that it be barred because of abuses in Darfur.
But as the summit began in the Ethiopian capital, pressure rose to prevent Khartoum from running the organisation whose overstretched force has been unable to stem the violence in Sudan's vast west.
In his opening speech, Konare accused Khartoum of attacking civilians in Darfur, where Washington says genocide is taking place.
"We appeal to the government of Sudan to stop attacking and bombarding Darfur and instead restore peace," he said.
Rights group Amnesty International said in a statement on the eve of the two-day summit that the AU would undermine its credibility if it gave the chairmanship to Bashir.
Chad, whose relations with Sudan are severely strained after the Darfur conflict spilt over their border, had vowed to withdraw from the AU if Bashir got the chair and Chadian President Idriss Deby praised the outcome.
"It is a very wise decision. You have to know it was unanimous. It is a decision that reassures not only Africans but also all of Africa's partners," he said.
Diplomats said Western governments lobbied vigorously in Addis Ababa against Sudan.
But U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer rejected Sudan's accusations of Western pressure.
"I think that's a mistake. The membership of the AU takes the decision about who will lead them. I think that they want leadership that reflects criteria they have within their own process, which includes democracies not at war," she said.
Delegates said a compromise over Ghana, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its independence in 2007, offered a way out of the dilemma supported by consensus -- the traditional African way of resolving disputes.
The summit is due to discuss raising a peacekeeping force for Somalia to replace Ethiopian troops, unrest in Guinea and climate change, as well as the AU military mission in Darfur.
Konare said in his speech that African leaders must urgently provide troops for the Somali peacekeeping mission.
"If African troops are not in place quickly, then there will be chaos," he said.
"We need 8,000 soldiers, today we have hardly 4,000. We cannot simply wait for others to do the work in our place," he added.
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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اديس ابابا (رويترز)
فقد السودان زعامة الاتحاد الافريقي للمرة الثانية بعد ان منحت المنظمة الافريقية الرئاسة الدورية لغانا بسبب الغضب من استمرار اراقة الدماء في دارفور.
وقال الفا عمر كوناري رئيس مفوضية الاتحاد الافريقي للصحفيين ان جون كوفور رئيس غانا سيرأس الاتحاد الافريقي. وقال "بتوافق الاراء..انه الرئيس كوفور."
وقال ان السودان أيد القرار الذي تفادى نزاعا كان سيلقي بظلاله على القضايا المطروحة على جدول أعمال القمة وبينها تجميع جنود لحفظ السلام في الصومال.
وتنبأ بعض المحللين قبل صدور القرار بان يسيطر النزاع حول السودان على اعمال القمة ولا يحل الا في اللحظة الاخيرة.
وقال اعضاء وفود في القمة ان اتفاقا تم اعداده من خلال وساطة رئيس جنوب افريقيا ثابو مبيكي ومجموعة من سبعة رؤساء حكماء.
كان الرئيس السوداني عمر حسن البشير قد تلقى وعدا منذ عام بتولي بلاده رئاسة الاتحاد لكنه لم ينل المنصب بسبب العنف في دارفور الذي يقدر خبراء أنه أسفر عن مقتل 200 الف شخص وتسبب في نزوح 2.5 مليون عن ديارهم.
ويقول منتقدون ومن بينهم جماعات مدافعة عن حقوق الانسان وحكومات غربية انه بدلا من التراجع أخذ العنف في دارفور يتفاقم في العام الاخير حيث قتلت الميليشيات العربية التي تدعمها الحكومة الالاف. وعرقل البشير مرارا نشر قوات لحفظ السلام لتعزيز بعثة عسكرية للاتحاد الافريقي مكونة من سبعة الاف جندي ومراقب.
وقال وزير الخارجية السوداني لام اكول لرويترز ان هذا كان اقتراح السودان وانه تطوع بذلك حتى لا تنجح العناصر الاجنبية التي تحاول تقسيم القارة حول هذه القضية وان الامر المهم هو اتخاذ القرار من اجل وحدة القارة.
وقال الامين العام للامم المتحدة بان جي مون للقمة انه يتعين التوصل لحل "لمأساة" دارفور.
وقال "لابد أن نفتح صفحة جديدة ومختلفة. حجم الكارثة يظل غير مقبول."
لكن رغم محادثات مطولة مع البشير لم يستطع بان الحصول على التزام من البشير بنشر قوات تابعة للامم المتحدة وهو مطلب أساسي للمنظمة الدولية والحكومات الغربية.
وكان السودان يبدو متصلبا عشية القمة بانه ينبغي ان يتولى الرئاسة على الرغم من مجموعة المطالب من جماعات حقوق الانسان والحكومات الغربية بانه يجب ابعاده بسبب سوء المعاملة في دارفور.
لكن مع بداية القمة في العاصمة الاثيوبية تصاعدت الضغوط لمنع السودان من ادارة المنظمة التي تقوم قواتها لحفظ السلام بمهمة لانهاء العنف في اقليم دارفور المترامي الاطراف الواقع في غرب البلاد.
وفي خطابه الافتتاحي اتهم كوناري الخرطوم بمهاجمة المدنيين في دارفور حيث تقول الولايات المتحدة ان الابادة الجماعية تنفذ.
وقال "نناشد حكومة السودان بوقف مهاجمة وقصف دارفور واعادة السلام بدلا من ذلك."
وقالت منظمة العفو الدولية في بيان صدر عشية القمة التي تستمر يومين ان الاتحاد الافريقي سيقوض مصداقيته اذا منح الرئاسة للبشير.
وتعهدت تشاد التي توترت علاقاتها مع السودان بشدة بعد أن امتد الصراع في دارفور الى حدودها بان تنسحب من الاتحاد الافريقي اذا تولى البشير رئاسته. وأشاد الرئيس التشادي ادريس ديبي بالنتيجة.
وقال "انه قرار حكيم للغاية. ينبغي أن تعلموا أنه (القرار) اتخذ بالاجماع. انه قرار لا يطمئن الافارقة فحسب بل كل شركاء أفريقيا أيضا."
وقال دبلوماسيون ان حكومات غربية ضغطت بقوة في اديس ابابا كي لا يحصل السودان على الرئاسة
لكن مساعدة وزيرة الخارجية الامريكية جينداي فريزر رفضت اتهامات السودان حول الضغوط الغربية.
وقالت "اعتقد ان هذا خطأ. أعضاء الاتحاد الافريقي هم الذين يتخذون القرار حول من يرأسهم. واعتقد انهم يريدون رئاسة تعبر عن معايير موجودة داخل عملياتهم السياسية التي تتضمن ديمقراطيات ليست في حالة حرب."
وقال اعضاء وفود ان التسوية المتمثلة في اختيار غانا التي تحتفل بالذكرى السنوية الخمسين لاستقلالها في عام 2007 قدمت مخرجا من المشكلة التي يدعمها الاجماع وهي الطريقة الافريقية التقليدية لحل النزاعات.
ومن المقرر ان يناقش اجتماع اديس ابابا ايضا تجميع قوة لحفظ السلام من اجل الصومال لتحل محل قوات اثيوبية وبحث القلاقل في غينيا وتغير المناخ الى جانب البعثة العسكرية للاتحاد الافريقي في دارفور.
وقال كوناري في كلمته انه يتعين على القادة الافارقة أن يساهموا بسرعة بجنود في قوة حفظ السلام الصومالية.
وأضاف "اذا لم يكن الجنود الافارقة في مواقعهم بسرعة فستكون هناك فوضى."
وتابع "نحتاج ثمانية الاف جندي واليوم لدينا بالكاد أربعة الاف. لا يمكننا ببساطة أن ننتظر من الاخرين كي يقوموا بالعمل بدلا منا."
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Re: انتقادات للسودان في القمة الأفريقية وغانا ترأس الاتحاد (Re: sudani)
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Sudan Loses AU Chair to Ghana
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 29 (IPS) - African leaders Monday picked Ghana as the new chair of the African Union (AU), turning down Sudan's bid for its failure to end the conflict in Darfur.
The 53 African
of state and government chose Ghanaian President John Kufuor over the beleaguered Sudanese President Omar al Bashir at the start of their two-day summit in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, Jan. 29. Bashir has been accused of genocide in the troubled western Sudanese region of Darfur.
His candidacy has divided Africa. If elected, he would have carried with him the mandate to handle African conflicts such as Darfur and Somalia for a year -- the duration of his chairmanship.
Alpha Konae, AU Commission chairperson, told journalists in Addis Ababa that African leaders agreed by "consensus" to elect Kufuor to the presidency of the pan-African body.
Even before Bashir formally lost, opposition to his candidacy was already overwhelming. "Bashir has demonstrated that he's not a democrat... He has not been willing in the past two or so years to deal with the issue in Darfur," Korwa Adar, an analyst at the Pretoria-based Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA), told IPS.
More than 200,000 people have been killed and another two million displaced since Darfur rebels, seeking autonomy, took up arms to fight the Khartoum government in 2003, according to a Jan. 28 statement by the New York-based Human Rights Watch urging the AU to deny Bashir the chairmanship.
But Bashir claimed last November at a press conference in Khartoum that "counting all those killed in battles between the armed forces, the rebels and the tribes, the number (of dead in Darfur) does not reach 9,000." The government of Sudan has consistently denied the mass forced displacement, killings and rape, according to Amnesty International.
So far, Bashir has rejected a United Nations Security Council proposal to deploy 20,000 blue helmets to replace the 7,000 ill-equipped and cash-strapped AU peacekeepers monitoring the peace in Darfur, a territory the size of France.
Bashir insists on keeping the AU troops, preferring only logistical and financial support to come from the West. Analysts say Bashir fears that the U.N. peacekeepers will be used to apprehend and deliver him, along with 51 other suspects, to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for crimes against humanity.
Last year African leaders, meeting in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, turned down Bashir's bid for the AU chairmanship and settled for a compromise candidate, Denis Nguesso of the Republic of Congo. They promised Bashir the job this year, if he resolved the Darfur conflict. But, to the chagrin of African academics and human rights activists, Darfur is still burning. Therefore, giving Bashir the job, they fear, will undermine AU's credibility.
"It could be the first time for a commander-in-chief of an army fighting (Darfur) rebels to become a chair of a continental body. It goes beyond logic. It goes against international law. This may give Bashir a license to do whatever he likes in Darfur," John Yoh, lecturer of political science at the University of South Africa (UNISA), told IPS by phone before Monday's vote.
Chad, which is fighting Sudan-backed rebels, had threatened to quit AU if Bashir assumed the body's chairmanship.
Like Darfur, Somalia is also expected to bog down African leaders in Addis Ababa. A failed state, Somalia has been without a central government for 16 years since the fall of the dictator Siad Barre in 1991. In June 2006, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) seized power from a group of U.S.-backed Somali warlords only to be driven out themselves by Ethiopian forces in December 2006. Ethiopia is backing Somalia's weak Transitional Federal Government (TFG) which was based in Baidoa, 250 northwest of the capital Mogadishu.
Reluctant to stay longer, Ethiopia has begun pulling out its troops from Somalia, raising fears of a power vacuum that could throw Somalia back into the ugly clan-based wars of the past. Ethiopia fought two wars with Somalia in 45 years. As a result, it doesn't want to get stuck in Somalia and be regarded as a colonial power.
"I think Ethiopia did a good thing by intervening in Somalia. Whether it did it for personal interest or for Somalia's interest, it's immaterial. If they can stabilise Somalia, it will restore AU's credibility. If we don't stabilise it now, we may lose the opportunity," Claude Kabemba of the Johannesburg-based Southern Africa Resource Watch, a non-governmental organization (NGO), told IPS.
The African Union has proposed the deployment of 8,000 peacekeepers for Somalia. So far, only Uganda has pledged 1,500 troops. Malawi and Nigeria have also expressed interests to send peacekeepers.
South Africa, the continent's diplomatic and economic powerhouse, said Jan. 25 it would not contribute troops. Defence minister Mosinoa Lekota made the announcement when he met with President Thabo Mbeki to review South Africa's peacekeeping role in Africa. He said South Africa's force was overstretched.
South Africa has deployed a total of over 3,000 peacekeeping forces in Sudan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other small numbers in Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia and Eritrea.
"South Africa is getting tired. The enthusiasm with which it deployed peacekeepers to Burundi, the DRC and Cote d'Ivoire is no longer there. It is losing momentum," Kabemba said.
South Africa said it would study ways of supporting the Somali mission.
Like in Darfur, inadequate funding continues to undermine the role of African peacekeepers. "African countries have always been encumbered with lack of finance. I think money can be raised within the continent, through taxes. This does not mean that we shall ignore donor contributions. Donor money should complement domestic efforts. We have so much resources which we could use to solve Africa's problems," Adar said.
He believes that the Darfur and Somali conflicts could easily be resolved by the African Union. The Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor of the African Union, had faced more serious problems than the AU in the past, Adar said. He cited the British stand on white-ruled Rhodesia, now called Zimbabwe, which almost divided Africa in the 1960s.
"I'm convinced that AU can handle the Darfur and Somalia conflicts," said Adar, author of the book "Kenyan Foreign Policy Behaviour Towards Somalia, 1963-1983".
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فيس بوك
تويتر
انستقرام
يوتيوب
بنتيريست