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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 July 1999 Issue No. 438 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 July 1999 Issue No. 438
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles People Cartoons Letters Africa backs Algeria
By Dina EzzatRigorous, but not necessarily too conspicuous, security measures blanketed the Algerian capital this week, as the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) came to town. The decision to hold an OAU summit in Algeria -- a country that for the past seven years has been synonymous in the mind of the world with the most atrocious acts of violence -- was widely perceived as heralding the North African nation's 'official' reemergence from the years of darkness.
Delegates from around 50 countries were in Algiers to take part in the summit, which was attended by well over 40 heads of states and/or government. All of them seemed happy with the security measures in place for the event, judging them neither too relaxed, nor too intrusive.
And, as UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan himself argued, the fact that all these countries were happy to send delegates to Algeria is a clear message that the country is now beginning to put the horrors of its past behind it.
President Hosni Mubarak, who was in Algiers for two out of the summit's three days, was particularly eloquent on this theme. "I was very keen to come to this summit, and I sincerely wish Algeria all progress and stability," Mubarak said shortly before leaving town Tuesday afternoon.
Other than the novelty of its location, however, this 35th OAU summit was largely a case of "déjà vu". The two main areas of concern were peace and stability, and economic development. That is to say, there were the usual wars to be discussed, with the Eritrea-Ethiopia conflict taking centre stage; the usual peace agreements to be praised, with the deal in Sierra Leone between the government and the rebels hogging much of the applause; and the usual chronic problems -- refugees, external debts -- to be blamed for all the hardships of the continent.
For the most part, the resolutions adopted by the summit were equally traditional: calls for peaceful settlements of all military conflicts, declarations of support for the right of the peoples of Africa to development and stability, and emphasis duly placed on the importance of greater political and economic cooperation between the countries of the continent.
One optimistic resolution, adopted by the summit at the request of Nigeria, declared the year 2000 a year for African peace and stability.
However, there were some participants who still believe this objective is attainable. One of them was Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who has been involved in several -- albeit not particularly conclusive -- attempts to end conflicts across the continent. "I think that things can be worked out, because the African leaders want to settle their disputes," the Libyan leader said.
Mubarak's speech to the summit meanwhile put forward Egypt's short-cut prescription for the realisation of stability, through the peaceful settlement of military disputes, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, and healthy involvement in regional and sub-regional economic groupings.
In concrete terms, however, it was the African nations' interest in fighting terrorism that seemed most likely to be translated into real action. The summit adopted a resolution supporting Mubarak's initiative for an international conference under the auspices of the UN to define formulas for international cooperation in the battle against terrorism. The summit also adopted an anti-terrorism treaty intended to improve inter-African cooperation on this front.
To have so many African leaders all together in one place, along with so many guests from other regional organisations, inevitably meant that there was much to be discussed in addition to the summit's official business. Indeed, the list of topics for fringe meetings seemed very like a résumé of all geo-political and economic themes known to diplomats.
Mubarak met with Sudanese President Omar El-Bashir to discuss the future of relations between the two Nile valley neighbours. "We hope this meeting will provide a substantial impetus that will enhance efforts to normalise relations between the two countries," El-Bashir told Al-Ahram Weekly.
Egyptian officials also had a chance to speak to their counterparts from various North African countries about Egypt's interest in joining their Maghreb union as an observer. According to Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, these overtures were warmly received.
The African leaders who are involved in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo held a meeting to discuss the future of their recently signed ceasefire agreement after the Congolese rebels refused to subscribe to the deal.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, fresh from his meeting with new Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, took part in a number of discussions about the Middle East peace process, including one in which Mubarak also participated.
Iraq, meanwhile, was attending the summit as a guest at the invitation of the OAU. Iraqi Foreign Minister Said El-Sahhaf took the opportunity to convey to the African leaders, as well as to representatives of a number of other groups, including the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, that it was time for Baghdad to be freed from the crippling sanctions that have been in place since 1991.
At Libya's request, the African leaders are scheduled to convene again in Tripoli in two months time for an extraordinary meeting to discuss ways of boosting inter-African cooperation, particularly economic cooperation. They will also meet in Cairo next year, together with their counterparts from the European Union, to discuss ways of enhancing African-EU cooperation, including the establishment of free trade areas. All these special gatherings are in addition to next year's annual summit meeting, which will be held in Togo.
