JOINT ASSEMBLY OF THE CONVENTION CONCLUED BETWEEN THE AFRICAN, CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC STATES AND THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY (ACP-EC)

RESOLUTION () on conflict prevention in Africa

The ACP-EU Joint Assembly,

- meeting in Luxembourg from 23 to 26 September 1996,

- having regard to its previous resolutions, in particular those adopted in Dakar, Libreville and Brussels,

A. having regard to the number, intensity and duration of conflicts in Africa; having regard to the tense situation prevailing in Burundi, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Rwanda and many other regions,

B. whereas these conflicts generally take the form of civil wars or inter-ethnic strife inside the states and are partly due to the emergence of disastrous economic situations,

C. noting with grave concern that the adverse effects of armed conflict are threatening the survival and development of children and hence the future of the countries involved,

D. having regard to the vast flow of refugees between African states and of displaced persons around the world (8,5 million in 1996),

E. deploring the fact that often no action is taken in response to appeals from civil society or NGOs to leading international political decision-makers; concerned at the increase in the volume and cost of humanitarian action over the past ten years and acknowledging the scale of the financial problem facing the major international organizations,

F. convinced that the international community has the human and financial resources to implement a strategy aimed at foreseeing and preventing conflicts; convinced, therefore, that it only lacks the necessary legal means, which however are dependent solely on political will,

G. whereas the 1963 OAU Charter is aimed at promoting unity and solidarity among African states, and coordinating and intensifying cooperation between them in order to achieve a better life for their peoples; whereas, in line with this policy, the OAU set up in June 1993 a mechanism for the prevention, management and settlement of conflicts; stressing that this organization intends to attach special importance to the field of prevention,

H. having regard to the resolutions adopted by the OAU in Tunis and Addis Ababa, officially confirming the need to set up African forces responsible for conflict prevention, and the Agenda for Action, which it adopted in Cairo in March 1995, stating its intention to set up its own conflict prevention body; recalling also that the Heads of State and Government who met on that occasion acknowledged that, without democracy and peace, development would be utterly impossible,

1. Reiterates its repeated calls for the establishment of international political cooperation structures with sufficient and appropriate resources to act effectively in the field of conflict prevention;

2. Endorses the recommendations made by the OAU and its member states, in particular that proposing to set up or appoint contingents from their armies to follow specialized training courses in the field of conflict prevention and peace-keeping operations, and calls for an inventory to be made of measures being taken or already carried out;

3. Recalls its belief, which is shared by many international bodies, both public and private, that humanitarian law should be incorporated or codified in international texts and that steps should be taken not only to set up an early warning system but also to improve information on humanitarian action;

4. Believes that conflict prevention measures should form an integral part of development aid;

5. Recommends the establishment of peace-keeping zones and corridors in cases of armed conflict, to protect mothers and children, facilitate humanitarian aid operations and provide welfare services such as education and public health, particularly vaccination programmes;

6. Recalls its belief that the forthcoming Intergovernmental Conference should lay the foundations and establish the means of action for a genuine EU common foreign and security policy;

7. Urges the Council of the Union and the Commission, on cooperation with the OAU and the other major international organizations to continue holding conferences or working party meetings with a view to examining the global problems in the region of the Great Lakes and other regions of Africa where conflict is liable to erupt;

8. Calls on all international bodies to ensure that special attention is paid in each forum to refugees and displaced persons, and that the necessary assistance is given them in the countries of origin and the countries of asylum in the form of durable solutions;

9. Instructs its Co-Presidents to forward this resolution to the ACP-EU Council, the Commission, the UN Security Council and the OAU.