Working for Justice through the African Union
Next Steps for Civil Society

Resolution of participating NGOs

NGOs meeting on the fringes of the 6th Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly, in a forum “Working for Justice through the African Union: next steps for civil society” organised by Sudan Organisation Against Torture (SOAT), the Khartoum Center for Human Rights and Environmental Development and the International Refugee Rights Initiative, respectfully present the following submissions for consideration by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government:

Ensure a strong and independent AU leadership for peace

As escalating tensions threaten to disturb relations between States on the continent, the AU Presidency must be in a position to mediate and ensure the peaceful resolution of conflicts. The people of Darfur in particular need an AU President capable of taking a strong and independent stand on behalf of peace.

• We call upon AU leaders to consider carefully their choice of AU President during this Summit, bearing in mind the far reaching consequences for the embryonic AU.

Make the protection of human rights, justice and combating impunity a reality

The protection of human rights and the “rejection of impunity” are core principles of the Union. Since the last summit in Sirte, three critical events have reinforced the essential interdependence between combating impunity and the quest for justice and peace on the continent:

• The arrest of the former Chadian leader Hissène Habré in Senegal;
• Recognition that the return of Charles Taylor to Liberia, without transfer to trial by the Special Court for Sierra Leone, would constitute an “impediment to stability” and a threat to “international peace and security in the region” and,
• The commencement of an investigation into international crimes in Darfur by the International Criminal Court in addition to the continuation of investigations in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

As a matter of immediacy, these developments reinforce the necessity for African states to ensure that justice for victims and survivors of international crimes and human rights violations is not only done but seen to be done. As this requires appropriate action at the national, regional and international levels, we urge the Assembly to:

• Expressly reaffirm its commitment to the promotion of justice, and to combating impunity by taking the necessary legislative, judicial and other appropriate action to uphold these principles in practice;

• Call upon Member States to become parties to key regional and international treaties, in particular the Rome Statute Establishing the International Criminal Court;

• Call upon Member States to expressly incorporate the principles of universal jurisdiction into domestic law;

• Sign the AU-ICC cooperation agreement that has been agreed to in principle and urge Member States to cooperate fully with investigations by the ICC;

• Propose practical ways in which the AU and its Member States can support, “the possibility of conducting proceedings in the region, which would contribute to regional efforts in the fight against impunity” as recommended by the UN Security Council in Resolution 1593;

• Explore the role that UN and AU peace keeping missions might play in both the protection of victims and witnesses and in the enforcement of the orders of the International Criminal Court;

• Recommend the extradition of Hissène Habré to Belgium, in the absence of an appropriate venue in Africa;

• Support the transfer of Charles Taylor to prosecution before the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Strengthen the evolution of the AU institutions

The AU Constitutive Act sets out an ambitious framework for governance of the continent. This promise is being undermined by the slow pace at which the institutions of the AU are being developed. Effective institutions are one of the essential preconditions for the realisation of human rights.

We urge the Assembly to:

• Expedite the establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights as an independent, impartial and gender balanced Court;
• Exhort states to ratify the Protocol establishing the Court and giving individuals and NGOs the right of direct access to the Court;
• Put into place mechanisms that facilitate access to the AU organs and ensure that information and documents emanating from such organs are widely available, in particular in local languages;
• Call on Member States to contribute the financial means to allow existing and future institutions of the AU to function effectively;
• Protect the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights against unfair attacks by Member States, such as happened in relation to recent resolutions adopted concerning the situation in Eritrea, Sudan, Uganda and Zimbabwe.