The African Union suspends Madagascar

The peace and security council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) has proclaimed that the process leading to the assumption of power by opposition leader Andry Rajoelina in Madagascar was unconstitutional and therefore has decided to suspended Madagascar’s membership from the organisation. Other African leaders, including the president of South Africa and current chairperson of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Kgalema Motlanthe, also condemned the ousting of President Ravalomanana as the product of unconstitutional action against democratic institutions. Prior to Ravalomanana’s resignation, the PSC had urged all Malagasy parties to uphold the spirit of dialogue and compromise in order to find a peaceful and consensual solution to the crisis and to carefully follow the provisions of the constitution of Madagascar on interim arrangements in the event of resignation. In a communiqué that the PSC issued on Madagascar, it reiterated that ‘the transfer of power was made in violation of the relevant provisions of the Malagasy Constitution and that the subsequent decisions to confer the office of the President of the Republic to Mr Andry Rajoelina constitute an unconstitutional change of government’.

The Libyan leader and chairman of the AU, Mouammar Kadhafi, met with officials of the AU Commission to discuss on a range of issues including the peace and security in Africa, the monitoring and implementation of decisions made at the 12th AU summit and the preparations for the next AU summit among others. Meanwhile, Mauritius has expressed its interest to host the 13th AU summit that was due to be held in Madagascar in July citing the need for the summit to be held in a country of the Indian Ocean region.

SADC leaders, who brokered the power-sharing agreement between Zimbabwean President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai, pledged to mobilise economic support for Zimbabwe to the tune of $8.3 billion from international donors at their recent summit. Further, African trade ministers are meeting to discuss the impact of the global financial crisis on African economies, increasing food prices, climate change and global trade. They are also ‘expected to reflect on how to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Doha round of negotiation and the EPA negotiations can be successfully concluded’. Meanwhile, India is seeking to strike comprehensive economic cooperation agreements with the Common Market of Southern Africa and the East African Community (EAC). Also in development news, the self-evaluation report published by the African Peer Review Mechanism forum warned that Mozambique’s development model is creating a wide moat separating the rich from the poor, which could lead to social convulsions in the medium term.

Civil society organisations gathered in Tanzania to talk about their increased participation in discussions on the integration process of the EAC, a contribution that would go a long way in deepening the democratic foundations of the bloc. Meanwhile the EAC deputy secretary general Julius Rotich, stressing the importance of the civil society in the affairs of the region, used the gathering to urge non-state actors to actively take part in the organisation. Participants in the sixth African Development Forum aimed at reviewing progress made towards achieving gender equality in Africa put their leaders to task over their failure to implement international declarations made to end violence against women. Also in regards to civil society, the Forum for the Participation of non governmental organisations in the ordinary sessions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights will take place in Gambia from the 13th to the 27th of May, 2009, to deliberate on the human rights situation in Africa.

Members of the Pan African Parliament, who feel that they are ready to be vested with some authority, are blaming the AU for slowing down the process of transforming the continental body into fully legislative organ rather than the current advisory role it enjoys. Also in regards to continental integration, Azubuike Ishiekwene analyses the difficulties that the United States of Africa agenda will face as African leaders continue to struggle to put their houses in order.