Addis Ababa — The UN Security Council can only shoulder its responsibility for maintaining and promoting peace and security in its operations in Africa if it is reformed to ensure that it is more democratic and even-handed, participants at the Africa regional hearing on the Millennium Assembly have stressed.
In the third thematic plenary discussion, titled 'Addressing Development Peace and Security in Africa', it was noted that the Security Council had in a number of cases been reluctant to establish, and has even failed to establish peacekeeping operations in places where they were needed most, particularly in Africa. "As we move into the next millennium, the question is should we preserve the role of the UN Security Council with regards to peace and security and its imbalances and double standards towards Africa?" asked one participant.
Panellist Mr. John A. Tesha of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) stated that although the Security Council had "the primary responsibility of maintaining international peace and security, we notice a degree of double standards, a notion of underdog conflicts in its operations." Mr. Tesha stressed that the problem was not essentially between the UN as a whole and Africa, but between the Security Council and Africa. Conflicts in the developed world were addressed by the Security Council, and yet conflicts in the developing countries were not. "Is death in Africa different from death in Kosovo?" asked Mr. Tesha.
Another panellist, retired Lt. Gen. Arnold Quainoo, noted that "there is indeed a functional correlation between poverty and conflict, between under- development and violence." Although African countries had sent troops to help stop conflicts in the region, there was a need to improve the mechanisms for launching and directing such operations for better results in the future, and the UN could play an important role in this regard.
Participants cited the need for reform of the UN Security Council, towards a more enlightened response to African problems. They recommended that the UN assist in strengthening the OAU's institutional and human capacity for conflict resolution and management; establish an African Peace Academy to help advise on best strategies to adopt for conflict resolution and management; and encourage enforcement of international laws prohibiting the use of mercenaries and child soldiers.
They also proposed that, among other things, the UN agenda for the new millennium should include: alleviating poverty; preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction; reducing the spread of war and violence; and promoting economic and social development.
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