In response to the recent death of nearly 100 pro-democracy protesters, the AU Peace and Security Council suspended with immediate effect the participation of the Republic of Sudan in all AU activities until the effective establishment of a Civilian-led Transitional Authority. This, the body said, is the only way to allow the Sudan to exit from the current crisis. In every single day, there’s an upsurge of violence in the capital Khartoum, making life extremely precarious where dozens have been indiscriminately killed. The Sudanese government, however, denied that the deaths were as high as 100 and admitting it was at most 46 opposition activists. Doctors linked to the opposition reportedly said the figure was as high as 108, and that 40 bodies were pulled from the River Nile in Khartoum on Tuesday. The Peace and Security Council (PSC), which is the standing decision-making organ of the AU for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts, is committed to ensuring peace and stability across the continent. In so-doing, the council facilitates timely and efficient responses to conflict and crisis situations in Africa. Meanwhile, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki, has come out to strongly condemn the violence that erupted which led to reported deaths and several civilian injuries. In this regard, he has urged for an immediate and transparent investigation in order to hold those all responsible accountable. The Chairperson called on the Transitional Military Council to protect the civilians from further harm. This is among several actions the AU has taken in recent years to condemn any military takeover, or unconstitutional change of government. Thanks to the AU for asserting its powers, by ensuring the democratic rule or the civilian-led rule prevails. In recent years, the AU has incredibly positioned itself in matters that affect the continent. Critically speaking, the AU is steadily changing its narrative. Today, it’s committed to resolving its matters without relying on the West. Such a leverage stems from the African Union Constitutive Act, contained in Article 4, which proclaims the ‘respect for democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law and good governance’ and ‘condemnation and rejection of unconstitutional changes of governments’, among its cardinal principles. Indeed, the AU has strongly pledged to enforce the strict adherence to the democratic rule, while preempting unconstitutional change of government. Most memorably, the AU, following a military coup carried out by presidential guards of former President of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore, condemned the coup and immediately demanded the restoration of the civilian-led rule. And as a result then-interim President Michel Kafando was restored to the transitional power. Besides, when the former President Yahya Jammeh had stubbornly refused to step down and hand over the power peacefully to Adama Barrow, who had won the presidential elections in Gambia, the AU and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) jointly pressurized him until he ceded the power to the democratically-elected leader. This was another huge achievement in terms of upholding the democratic rule. Of course, this was in accordance with Article 3 of the ECOWAS Treaty, where a member states must adhere to the core principles, inter alia, observance of the rules and principles of the Community as well as the promotion and consolidation of a democratic system of governance across the region, among others. In the context of upholding the rule of law, the African Union and Senegal jointly established a Special Court, known as the Extraordinary African Chambers (CAE), which convicted the former Chadian leader Hissene Habre of life sentence in respect of crimes against humanity (such as rape, sexual slavery and killings committed during his an iron fist rule from 1982 through 1990). In my view, this one of the greatest dispensations of justice. It was a landmark judgement that perhaps chilled out the victims of his heinous actions. Despite the challenges encountered in bringing Habre to justice, one would rightly salute the AU for seriously taking action where fundamental interests are at stake. In pursuit of restoring peace and security, one could hardly underestimate the contribution of African states in peacekeeping in various conflict-ravaged areas, such as South Sudan, Mali, Sudan, Ivory Coast, Somalia (AMISON), the Central African Republic (CAR) to name but a few. To me, there’s a paradigm shift that any independent thinker would certainly appreciate. Yes, there’s a lot more to be done, but as the saying goes, ‘a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step’. There’re very real grounds for optimism. At this point in time, there’s a growing African determination to challenge the misconception of the West that Africans are incapable of sorting their problems out. Working consistently and closely with regional agencies, such as ECOWAS, EAC and SADC, the AU will ultimately prove its ability and potential to resolve peace-and-security-related pressing issues. And these have been at the epicentre of undermining the African continent in the eyes of many. To ensure the realization of peace and security across the continent, it calls for greater collaboration and support for African-led initiatives to ensure the achievement of the aspirations of African people. The writer is a law expert. Views expressed in this article are of the author.
