SIRTE, Libya, July 3 (Xinhua) -- African leaders
wound up a summit on Friday after reaching a deal on the creation of a new
authority and approving a resolution to abstain from cooperation with the
International Criminal Court (ICC) over extraditing Sudanese President Omar
al-Bashir.
COMPROMISE ON CREATION OF
AU AUTHORITY
The African leaders agreed to create the African Union (AU) Authority, but it has to be ratified by African parliaments, said Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi at the closing session of the 13th AU Summit.
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi delivers a speech during the closing of the 13th African Union (AU) summit in Sirte, Libya, July 3, 2009. The 13th AU summit wrapped up here Friday after the AU leaders approved a resolution to end cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over extraditing Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Gaddafi said the African leaders "decided to
establish a new Authority speaking in one voice on behalf of the African
people," adding the new organ is headed by a president and possessing an
enhanced role to coordinate foreign affairs, trade and defense policies on the
world's poorest continent.
But the AU Authority will only come into force when
the 53 African states ratify an amended treaty of the AU, known as the
Constitutive Act, according to the veteran Libyan leader.
Asked when the new Authority would be ratified at a
joint press conference with AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping after the summit,
Gaddafi said it would be ratified "in due time."
The compromise reached after a three-day heated
debate will give the African states at least six years to consult their
parliaments before committing themselves to submitting their authority to the
new AU Authority, diplomatic sources said.
The idea of establishing a unity government in Africa
has been discussed for years among African leaders. Gaddafi is leading the calls
to immediately establish a union government, which he believes is the only way
to meet the challenges of globalization, fight poverty and resolve conflicts
without western interference.
But the gradualists, mainly south and east African
leaders grouped around former South African President Thabo Mbeki, oppose an
immediate integration, suggesting currently African nations should first focus
on improving their respective socio-political systems, strengthening regional
cooperation, and solving their own peace and development problems.
However, South African President Jacob Zuma said at
the closing session that South Africa remained to be steadfast in its
commitments to African unity, pledging "we will never betray the causes of
African advancement and African unity."
REGIONAL
HOTSPOTS
South African President Jacob Zuma walks into the venue to attend the closing ceremony of the 13th African Union (AU) summit in Sirte, 500 km southeast of Tripoli, capital of Libya, on July 3, 2009. The 13th AU summit wrapped up here Friday after the AU leaders approved a resolution to end cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over extraditing Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Zuma said this summit also touched on the climate
change, the conflicts and disputes on the continent, such as in Sudan's western
region of Darfur, Somalia, Madagascar, Cote d'Iviore, the Democratic Republic of
the Congo and Mauritania, besides discussions on the theme of "investing in
agriculture for economic development and food security."
As for Somalia's security situation, Zuma said
African leaders expressed their support to the transitional federal government
led by Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed.
The African leaders also decided to abstain from cooperation with the ICC over extraditing Sudanese President al-Bashir, according to a text of the draft resolution.
Sudan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Al-Samani al-Wasila attends the closing ceremony of the 13th AU summit in Sirte, 500 km southeast of Tripoli, capital of Libya, on July 3, 2009. The 13th AU summit wrapped up here Friday after the AU leaders approved a resolution to end cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over extraditing Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
On March 4, The Hague-based ICC issued an arrest
warrant against al-Bashir for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in
Darfur between 2003 and 2008.
The division over Africa's integration overshadowed
the official agenda focused on boosting agricultural investment for the world's
poorest continent.
Agriculture, which produces 25 to 35 percent of
Africa's gross domestic product and provides 60 percent of Africa's employment,
is underfunded according to a report jointly published late May by AU and the UN
Economic Commission for Africa.
African countries have once pledged to spend an
average of 10 percent of their total national budget on agriculture but only
several countries have fulfilled their promises.
The theme of this summit, Zuma said, underlines that
investment is critical in boosting economy, but the African people expect more
tangible moves.
At the joint press conference after the summit, the
AU Commission chairperson stressed the importance of agriculture in economic
development, calling on African countries to live up to its investment promises.
Libya is expected to host a special AU summit in
early September, which will coincide with the 40th anniversary of Gaddafi's rise
to power of the Libyan "Guide" on Sept. 1, 1969, after the overthrow of King
Idriss.
Leaders from about half of the AU members came to the
three-day summit in Libya's north-central coastal city of Sirte, where the
proclamation of the AU was signed in 1999.
