Hopewell Radebe
1 July 2009
Johannesburg — AFRICAN Union chairman (AU) Muammar Gaddafi let Mahmoud Ahmadinejad overshadow the union's agenda yesterday when he announced that the Iranian leader would address the summit in Libya today.
The prominence given to Ahmadinejad, whose re-election sparked massive opposition protests, means that other vital matters important to SA will be eclipsed.
These include discussions on the arrest warrant issued for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir by the International Criminal Court and the political crises and conflicts plaguing Africa, particularly in Sudan and Somalia, where the AU has a combined 4300-strong peacekeeping force.
Gaddafi apparently personally invited Ahmadinejad without consulting the bloc's 52 other member nations.
He also invited Italy's Silvio Berlusconi to the summit to discuss potential sanctions against Iran by the Group of Eight industrialised nations, which Berlusconi will host next week.
Ahmadinejad's impending arrival grabbed attention away from African hotspots such as Mauritania, due to hold elections this month after a coup last August, or Guinea-Bissau, where elections were held last weekend after the president's assassination.
Ousted Madagascar leader Marc Ravalomanana has also come to Sirte, Libya, to plead for tougher action to return him to power, while rights groups are urging the AU to abandon its reticence over the international war crimes warrant for al-Bashir, who will also be attending.
Former president Thabo Mbeki was appointed an AU special envoy on the al-Bashir matter, and is expected to report back on efforts to make the AU's case to the United Nations Security Council for the warrant's stay of execution.
President Jacob Zuma will make his maiden report as chairman of the Southern African Development Community on mediation efforts in Madagascar.
AU Commission chairman Jean Ping is pushing for thorough discussions on conflicts in Africa.
Ping said yesterday the persistence of coups d'etat or unconstitutional changes were "regressive", and he called for "a coherent response" by the AU.
With Sapa- AFP
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