CAPE TOWN, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- African Union (AU) Commission
Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has called on African countries
to improve democratic and participatory governance and rule with
the consent of their people.
"Across the continent, from north central to south, and east to
west, the numbers of mass protests have increased drastically over
the past few years," Dlamini-Zuma said in her State of the Union
media briefing on Monday in Durban, South Africa.
African people are out in the streets demanding better services
from their governments, improvements in their living conditions and
an end to repression and to corruption, according to
Dlamini-Zuma.
Just during the term of office of this Commission, over 50
elections have been held in the four years. African countries must
ensure that democracy translate into changes in the peoples' lives
and their freedoms, Dlamini-Zuma said.
She said the AU Constitutive Act committed the continent to a
principle of non-indifference, and put in place an African Peace
and Security Architecture, to ensure that concrete actions are
being taken to prevent and resolve conflicts.
Moreover, the continent also adopted its frameworks in the area
of governance, human rights and democracy, through the African
Charter on Peoples and Human Rights, and the Charter on Democracy,
Elections and Governance, said Dlamini-Zuma.
These normative frameworks, along with the AU programmes of
development and growth, are the foundations for silencing the guns
and building lasting peace in Africa, she said.
These human rights and democratic frameworks, in the context of
Africa's diverse populations, cultures and religions, must ensure
inclusion, rights and development for all, Dlamini-Zuma
stressed.
"Thus, as we address the situations in Burundi, South Sudan,
Somalia, Libya, Darfur and Mali, we seek to bring an immediate end
to the killings and displacements, but we must also make sure that
we assist these countries to build inclusive political, social and
economic development and cultures of tolerance and peace," she
added.
The AU chief also announced that the organization will convene
the African Economic Platform from March 20-22 next year in
Mauritius, to strategise with the political leadership, business
and academic leadership on economic transformation and on the
African skills revolution. Enditem
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