{"id":445822,"date":"2011-06-22T18:17:31","date_gmt":"2011-06-22T18:17:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/06\/22\/letter-to-african-union-chairperson-jean-ping-on-the-17th-au-summit\/"},"modified":"2011-06-22T18:17:31","modified_gmt":"2011-06-22T18:17:31","slug":"letter-to-african-union-chairperson-jean-ping-on-the-17th-au-summit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/06\/22\/letter-to-african-union-chairperson-jean-ping-on-the-17th-au-summit\/","title":{"rendered":"Letter to African Union Chairperson Jean Ping On the 17th AU Summit"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
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Human Rights Watch<\/a> (Washington,\u00a0DC)<\/p>\n

21 June 2011<\/p>\n

\n

document<\/p>\n

H.E. Dr. Jean Ping<\/em><\/p>\n

Chairperson, African Union Commission<\/em><\/p>\n

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia<\/em><\/p>\n

Your Excellency,<\/em><\/p>\n

In advance of the 17th African Union Summit, scheduled for June 23- July 1, 2011 in Malabo, we are writing to provide input into the discussions that are due to take place around the main theme of the summit “Accelerating Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development”; and other important points on the summit’s agenda.<\/p>\n

This summit comes after the recent adoption, by the African Union Commission, of the Africa Human Rights Strategy and comes just months after AU member states renewed their commitment to Africa’s “shared values” including human rights. We hope to see the Malabo discussions build on this solid background and urge the delegates at the summit to consider the following points as they conduct their deliberations:<\/p>\n

Empowerment of youth in Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n

The summit’s focus on the situation of African youth as well as on strategies for their empowerment is welcome. But before we can hope to achieve empowerment, we must first address the serious human rights abuses that children suffer on the continent, and that prevent them from developing their potential to the fullest. These include:<\/p>\n

Child labor: We have documented the exploitation of children in Africa, including the exploitation of child domestic workers (for e.g. in Morocco and Guinea), of child beggars known as talib\u00e9s (in Senegal), of child laborers in artisanal mines (for e.g. in Mali and Zimbabwe), and of child soldiers (for e.g. in DR Congo and Chad). Many children are trafficked for the purpose of exploitation which also frequently impedes access to education and vocational training. This results in a lack of professional skills and poor access to the labor market.<\/p>\n

Access to education: We have documented a range of barriers to education in Africa, including discrimination, child abuse and neglect, and HIV-related issues (Kenya, South Africa, Uganda), child labor, and armed conflict (DR Congo, Somalia, C\u00f4te d’Ivoire). In a number of countries, girls suffer discrimination in accessing education and are obliged to work as domestic workers or are married under the age of eighteen, resulting in situations of vulnerability and abuse. Hundreds of thousands of girls also suffer from sexual abuse and are unable to seek redress.<\/p>\n

In order to address “child labor” concerns, AU member states have an opportunity at Malabo to adopt appropriate measures, including specific withdrawal programs, for purposes of ending all child labor. The new ILO Convention on Decent Work for Domestic Workers is an obvious example, as are “free lunch” and “social protection” programs on the issue of “access to education”. Access to education for girls could (and should) be made a priority; and this should extend to secondary education as well as vocational training. Lastly, the summit has an opportunity to urge governments to review their response mechanisms to situations of violence, trafficking and abuse and to improve the capacity of their judicial systems to respond to such situations.<\/p>\n

Another area of great concern is reproductive health. Teenage pregnancies are very high, and many girls suffer from obstetric fistula. In addition, thousands die each year during pregnancy and childbirth because they get married early and lack access to life-saving healthcare. There is an overwhelming need in Africa to improve young people’s access to basic reproductive health education and care, such as family planning information and services. For its part, the AU Commission could help focus attention on this issue by monitoring member states’ implementation of the Maputo Plan of Action on Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Africa.<\/p>\n

Peace and security challenges in Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n

Human Rights Watch commends the AU for its ongoing efforts to address the massive peace and security challenges facing the continent. In order to ensure the sustainability of these peace-building efforts, however, greater attention is needed on the human rights dimensions of ongoing crises and post-conflict situations.<\/p>\n

Sudan<\/strong><\/p>\n

The situation in Sudan has sharply deteriorated over the past month, with the Khartoum government conducting aggressive military operations in Southern Kordofan and Abyei. The government’s actions clearly violate of the terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement and have also resulted in serious human rights violations including the mass displacement of tens of thousands of civilians, indiscriminate killings, arbitrary arrests, and government bombing of civilian areas leading to civilian deaths and destruction of property.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile in Darfur, government forces continue to clash with rebels and carry out attacks on civilian areas, including aerial bombardments, causing continued civilian death, injury and displacement. Despite promises to provide accountability for human rights violations, Sudan has yet to convict any perpetrators of crimes committed during the conflict or make promised legal reforms that would enable effective prosecutions, and it continues to refuse to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC).<\/p>\n

Human Rights Watch has urged the African Union to press the Sudanese government to immediately stop its indiscriminate aerial bombing, rein in its forces and allied militia in Southern Kordofan, Abyei, and Darfur, and promote justice for human rights abuses committed. At Malabo, the AU has an opportunity to press the Sudanese government to allow UN peacekeepers and humanitarian organizations access to all affected areas and provide much-needed assistance, and allow UN human rights monitors to document the impact of the violence on civilians.<\/p>\n

The AU could also press Sudan to create “enabling conditions” for the next phase of the Darfur political Process (DPP), as the Peace and Security Council has already outlined. The AU could monitor Sudan’s fulfillment of enabling conditions by mandating the joint AU\/UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) to monitor the conditions in Darfur based on clear benchmarks that include an end to indiscriminate bombings, an end to arbitrary arrests and detention of activists, journalists, and political opponents, the lifting of the state of emergency, and key reforms of the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).<\/p>\n

Finally, the Malabo summit is the right place for AU member states to press Sudan to implement the recommendations of the AU’s very own High level Panel on Darfur. These envision wide ranging reforms to Sudan’s national justice system and accountability for human rights violations.<\/p>\n

Somalia<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fighting between the internationally-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces, African Union (AMISOM) troops and al-Shabaab in Mogadishu has continued almost unabated throughout 2011. Fighting has spread to the Gedo and Lower Juba regions amongst others. Violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law continue to be committed by all parties to the conflict, including indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas; and several parties to the conflict have committed extrajudicial killings of civilians notably al-Shabaab and Ahlu Sunna Wal-Jama’a, arbitrary arrests and detention, and forced recruitment. Use of civilians as human-shields by al-Shabaab persists and continues to prompt military responses by AMISOM and TFG that target civilian areas. Al-Shabaab is also responsible for widespread human rights and international humanitarian law violations- including acts of cruel, inhumane and degrading punishment, restrictions on freedom of association and movement, recruitment and use of child soldiers in areas under its control. Massive population displacement persists as a result of the conflict and drought within South and Central Somalia and into neighboring countries and regions. According to media reports approximately 10 000 new refugees have been arriving in Kenya each month since 2011.<\/p>\n

The impunity that prevails in Somalia should not be allowed to continue. The Malabo summit has an opportunity to stand up for the African victims of the conflict and press the UN Security Council to establish a UN Commission of Inquiry to map and document gross violations of human rights which have taken place in the conflict, and to lay the groundwork for the initiation of concrete accountability processes.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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\nLetter to African Union Chairperson Jean Ping On the 17th AU Summit<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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