Overview of the African Union

Trans Model United Nations III 2015

Committee : African Union

Issue : Topic A-Strengthening Border Security of African Nations

Topic B-Rights of Women and Children in Armed Conflicts Chairpersons: Mark Chen, Angela Chen, Stephanie Chen Assistant: Tony Hsu

Overview of the African Union

Background In the 19th century, New Imperialism and Colonialism

dominated the western countries. European powers such as France, Germany, and Great Britain put full effort in the competition of occupying colonies, with the Africa continent being the most tortured victim. Having strong desire on praying on the rich natural resources and exploiting the bountiful manpower, the empires strove to expand their forces and successfully maintained control of their territories until the mid-20th century. It was not until then did the African countries gain independence as the colonial empires released their control over them.

History After the colonization era, the independent nations in Africa began to cooperate with an eye to unite together and prevent such invasion from happening. The origins of the African Union can be traced back to the 1960’s when the Union of African States was established as an early confederation to the foundation of Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the African Economic Community in the 1980’s.

Union of African States

A short lasting union of three West African states - Mali, Ghana, and Guinea, the Union of African States was framed by African revolutionaries such as Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana and Sékou Touré, the president of Guinea. Nevertheless, the Union fell apart when Guinea started to reach out to the United States in 1962.


Organization of African Unity

In 1963, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) was established in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. After achieving several notable accomplishments, however, it was dissolved by its last chairperson, South African President Thabo Mbeki and replaced by the African Union for advanced requirement in 2002.

Establishment of the African Union The launch of the African Union was led by the leadership of Libyan, head of state, Muammar al-Gaddafi

in the mid-1990. Since 1999, four consecutive summits had been held, leading to the official launching of the African Union:

In 1999, the Sirte Extraordinary Session decided to establish an African Union; In 2000, the Lome Summit adopted the Constitutive Act of the Union; In 2001, the Lusaka Summit drew the road map for the implementation of the AU; In 2002, the Durban Summit launched the AU and convened the 1st Assembly of the Heads of States of the African Union.

Exception The African Union now includes all nations of the African continent, in exclusive of Morocco. Being the

only African state that is not a member of the African Union, Morocco withdrew from the OAU in 1984 to protest the support of other member states toward Sahrawi Republic. Since then, some countries have revoked their endorsement for the Sahrawi Republic.

Objectives “An integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic

force in global arena” is the ultimate vision of the AU. To realize this vision, a long-term endeavor is bound to be made by all African nations. The main objectives are to intensify unity among African States and to promote coordination for country development, sovereignty, and international cooperation. In order to reach the goals, the AU has set up several organizations such as the Assembly, Peace and Security Council, Pan-African Parliament, also a few specialized committees and financial institutions affiliated.


Topic A：

Strengthening Border Security of African Nations

General Overview The borders of African nations today were mostly drawn in

the period of New Imperialism, sometimes known as the “Scramble for Africa”. However, since African countries gained independence in the 1960s, the borders have been a recurrent source of conflicts and disputes on the continent. A series of severe issues related to border security includes strategic natural resources in cross-border areas, land border disputes and violence, illegal migration, cross-border crime, and infiltration of rebels. Conflicts on border understandings have also caused tension while there is also risk that it might escalate. Although multiple solutions have been adopted, these issues still require more attention and more feasible approaches toward them.

Current efforts 1. Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe have been placing military units & police operations along borders to control illegal migration and smuggling. 2. United Nations:

(1) Resolution 2195 (2014) has urged international action to break links between terrorists & transnational organized crime (2) Resolution 1509 (2003), which targeted on solving the Liberian Situation

3. African Union: (1)African Union Border Programme (AUBP) (2)African Union Convention On Cross‐Border Cooperation (Niamey Convention)

Tensions and Difficulties Natural resources

Despite the adverse weather conditions, Africa possesses a large quantity of natural resources including gold, diamonds, fossil fuel, and so forth, bringing about not only the European’s plunder of the continent but also modern conflicts over national interests among neighboring countries. Ownerships of water source are of problematic issues as well, which can be seen from the Nile conflict.


<Sudan/South Sudan>

Conflicts between Sudan and South Sudan haven’t been on the wane although the two countries separated in 2011. Controversial issues, including oil and border demarcation, have not been resolved. Unresolved areas such as Darfur, Abyei, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile (the “Two Areas”) have become sovereignty dilemma due to uncontrollable rebel groups and the shared oil fields within them, which results in continuing violence. <East Africa>

The discovery of significant reserves of oil and gas in East Africa fuels tensions in the region. Uganda and Rwanda, neighboring states of the mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo, are believed to be intensifying the conflict by supporting rebel groups for the purpose of gaining access to the resources in DRC. Moreover, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, Zanzibar, South Sudan, and Uganda are all engaged in arguments over border, which have exacerbated with the discovery of minerals.

Political factors The complex historical background of Africa eventually leads to intractable border issues. Even after UN

arbitration, conflicts between Ethiopia and Eritrea didn’t seem to cease. The two nations have had several armed clashes throughout a decade. The disputed territory bordered by Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria, known as the Western Sahara, has long been the heart of the conflicts. The tense situation only got worse after the withdrawal of Spanish and France colonial forces. In the long term, there are still numerous disputes to be untangled.

<Terrorism>

There has been a long history of combating terrorism in Africa. Terrorism has its root in the political instability of several regions, and vice versa.

The notorious Boko Haram, which also referred to

itself as the "Nigerian Taliban", has been throwing deadly terror attacks, claiming thousands of lives during the past years. Its aim is to replace the current Nigerian government with an Islamic regime. As the insurgency force grows stronger, it is indisputably posing a huge threat to the regional border security.

Another well-known terrorist group is the Harakat al-

Shabaab al-Mujahideen, commonly known as the al-Shabaab. It was the militant wing of the Somali Council of Islamic Courts and has committed crimes such as kidnapping, robbing, and other brutal attacks mostly in Somalia and Kenya. Although efforts have been made by the two nations and the UN, the Islamic insurgent group still threatens Kenya and the Horn of Africa.


Terrorism in Africa seriously imperils border security, not only costing lives but aggravating children and women slavery as well as prostitution, which makes enhancing counterterrorism capacity throughout the broader region more urgent than ever.

<Others>

Apart from the factors mentioned above, African border security is still faced with several difficulties such as cultural and religious differences. Criminal activities like smuggling and illegal migrations have also been quite an issue, which, along with contagious diseases, bring more hardship to build up cross border security in the continent.

Difficulties There is no easy solution that can be applied to the complicated border issues. Nations may be led by

strong leaders, however, feeble organizations and finite power over distant areas disabled them to control borders which are often the focus of conflicts – especially when they often lack legality in these areas through political and economic policies that overlooked them. What is necessary is a continent-wide approach to borders for the African Union to go beyond resolving the conflicts through intervention forces. Attempts at peacemaking must be taken seriously as the body representing the continent in the long run of borders and people constrained, split or made almost stateless by them.


Topic B：

Rights of Women and Children in Armed Conflicts

General Overview The adoption of Universal Declaration of Human Rights(UNCRC), African Union’s Maputo Protocol, and

Children’s Charter were to call upon States to ensure that they respect women’s and children’s equality, dignity, and the right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment or punishment. Nevertheless, multiple forms of human rights violations continue to take place in armed conflicts, in massacre or military use of children, and in gender-based violence such as rape and sexual mutilation of women and children, mostly used as a tactic of war. Hence, more effective implementation should be ratified and executed in order to eradicate all forms of violence against women and children in conflict situations.

Current Approaches 1. UNICEF: commitments on legislation and

children rights protection 2. United Nations (1) General Assembly, Resolution 3318(1974) (2) Security Council, Resolution 1325 (2000) (3) Security Council, Resolution 1820 (2008)

Tensions and Difficulties

Women In Africa, women face tensions such as discrimination, unfair treatment, fewer opportunities, and worse

condition. Most of the time, women in Africa are viewed as inferior to men. Due to this reason, women are often treated unequally to the men.

Women, unlike men, are expected to stay at home nurturing kids, doing house chores or farming the fields while men are outside working or looking for jobs. With that belief in mind, families tend to spend money on letting boys go to school and leaving girls at home. This belief that women are inferior to men makes women less educated comparing to men and also creates fewer employment chances for women.

Another difficulty women face is their health issues. According to The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), two fifth of African girls are married at age below 18. Since girls are not fully developed and physically mature below age 18, it creates problems dealing with production and even risks their lives during childbirth.

Internal Armed Conflict-

International Legal Framework

Concerning Women and

Children


Children

Children are perhaps the population that suffers the most in Africa. In Africa, both adults and children suffer from poverty, which leads to malnutrition and vile sanitation. However, since children are more vulnerable, they become the most severe victims. According to the African Union, in sub-Saharan Africa, one in every six children fails to reach the age of five.

Besides health issues, children are also confronted with the burden of income. In many families, because of poverty, both adults and children hold the responsibility to bring home the bacon. Many children are also sent to beg on streets or work in fields as farm servants. They are often put in terrible working conditions such as long working hours and painstaking labor work with only a little amount of salary.

Another serious difficulty faced with children is the opportunity to receive proper education. Since most

children need to spend time earning income, they wouldn’t have the time or money to attend school. There are kids who attend primary school but drop out of school so as to get a job to support their family. Other than the reason of poverty, many girls are often discouraged to receive education due to religious and traditional beliefs.


Women and Children in Armed Conflicts The mentioned difficulties which women and children face are either direct or underlying causes that

make them the vulnerable ones in armed conflicts. According to the United Nations, 90 percent of wartime casualties are civilians while the majorities are children and women; whereas a century ago, most victims were military personnel. War has not only created numerous deaths, but has also violated basic human rights. In places such as Africa, where women’s statuses are traditionally lower than men, women often endure the most threat and violence. Some problems women face during war are sexual violence such as rape, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, sexual slavery and forced sterilization. In terms of the consequences of war, among the refugee flows and internal displacement, 75-90 percent is women and children.

Delegate Assignment

Here is a task for you to complete before the conference. Please answer the three following questions and email it to [email protected] before 7/26. 1. Please briefly introduce the history of your country/organization in approximately 150 words. 2. Please summarize one of the conflicts related to border issues your country/ organization is involved in in

about 100 words. 3. Please elaborate your country’s/organization’s position toward the protection of women and children in

armed conflicts. Feel free to email any one of us if you have any questions! Mark Chen : [email protected]

Stephanie Chen : [email protected] Angela Chen : [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]





References 1. African Union-AU

http://www.au.int/en/ 2. Vision of the African Union-AU

http://www.au.int/en/about/vision 3. African Union Border Programme (AUBP)-AU

http://www.peaceau.org/en/page/27-au-border-programme-aubp

4. Security Council, Adopting Resolution 2195 (2014)-UN http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/sc11717.doc.htm

5. Peacebuilding / Security-IMUNA http://nhsmun.org/issue/peacebuilding-security?page=5

6. Women peace and security- Women War Peace

http://www.womenwarpeace.org/ 7. 283: Resolution on the Situation of Women and Children in Armed Conflict-ACHPR

http://www.achpr.org/sessions/55th/resolutions/283/ 8. Women and Armed Conflict-UN

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/followup/session/presskit/fs5.htm 9. Women and Children in armed conflicts/Gender mainstreaming-AU

http://www.peaceau.org/en/topic/women-and-children-in-armed-conflicts-gender-mainstreaming

http://www.au.int/en/

http://www.au.int/en/about/vision

http://www.peaceau.org/en/page/27-au-border-programme-aubp

http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/sc11717.doc.htm

http://nhsmun.org/issue/peacebuilding-security?page=5

http://www.womenwarpeace.org/

http://www.achpr.org/sessions/55th/resolutions/283/

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/followup/session/presskit/fs5.htm

http://www.peaceau.org/en/topic/women-and-children-in-armed-conflicts-gender-mainstreaming

Overview of the African Union

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