AFRICA AND THE G8:  CIVIL SOCIETY PLANNING

It affords us great pleasure to contribute to public support for African
Development.  To strengthen your links with African civil society and
to lobby G8 member states for an effective response to questions of Debt,
Development Assistance, Conflict Resolution, Human Rights and other issues
affecting African development.

We believe that the cordial and mutual beneficial relationship existing
between Nigeria and the African Development is so well-known that we
hardly need to re-emphasize it here.  This acted as a stimulus to enlarge
and sustain these efforts as well as to lay greater emphasis on the global
aspect.

For about four hundred and fifty years Africans were caught, manacled
and shipped across the Atlantic to create wealth for their captors and
used them in the sugar cane, tobacco and cotton plantations in the Americas.
 Great were the privations to which they were finally landed in the Americas
were sentenced to life of servitude without any chance of manumission.
 The people so forcibly transported have been estimated to number anything
from 20 million to 50 million.

Those who were captured were the young and virile Africans they very
class on whom the development of the continent would have devolved.
The chaos accompanying the slave trade retarded the African march towards
development, progress and the advancement in science and technology.
 In fact the period of the slave trade was the period of retrogression.
 While Africa and Europe were almost at per in terms of development up
to the 15th century.  When great empires such as those of Ghana, Mali,
Soughai, Kanem-Borno, Benin, Ife, Oyo, Great Zimbabwe flourished, the
slave trade destroyed all that was left of the African achievement and
civilization of which ancient Egypt, Merae and Axum were historic manifestations.

The chaos attendant on European onslaught on Africa softened African
resistance to imperialism and the eventual European partition and colonial
administration finally concluded the African experience of subjugation.
 This colonial imposition did not go unchallenged.

African resistant leaders such as Samori Toure of the Mandinkas, Sultan
Ahahiral of the Sokoto Caliphate, Jaja of Opobo, Chaka the Zulu, Lobengula
of the Ndebeles and the great Menelik's Ethiopia most of the African
states succumbed to imperialism.   But this was after the loss of millions
of African lives.

Do I need to remind any one of the millions of Africans who lost their
lives resisting the seizure of their countries?  To the colonial powers,
African lives were expendables.  In fact, the doctrine prevailing then
was massive infliction of injury and casualties on their helpless victims
because it was erroneously conjectured that Africans did not value "their
lives."  This strange doctrine led almost to the disappearance of the
Heroes in the former German South West African country (now Namibia),
while Angola was reduced to wilderness by the Portuguese as a result
of four centuries of slave raiding and colonial exploitation.

The struggle for independence in many parts of Africa particularly in
such places as the Cameroon, Algeria, Ethiopia and the entire southern
African region was characterised by extreme violence with consequent
loss of lives of millions of Africans.

The President Leopold Sedar Sedar Senghor, that great African statesman
and poet once said that Africans, Jews and Arabs constitute a trilogy
of suffering peoples.  But the fact is that of these entire three groups
the suffering of Africans has never really been seriously addressed.

Even the granting of independence to African states is nothing more than
tactical political concession, while the economic exploitation and externally
triggered civil wars continue.  Since 1945, the world has witnessed attempts
to redress the grievances of at least the Jews if not those of the Arabs.
 But in spite of our support, Africans in Diaspora had again to fight
against great odds to secure the right, which has been solemnly promised
to everybody.  That was not all.

Our kit and kin in the black Diaspora have not fared better wither.
The African-American in both south and north America has largely been
kept at the periphery of social and economic happening in the new world.
 Economic and therefore political power has by and large eluded our people.
 Those of us in the home continent have had our energies sapped by the
struggle against racism and the battle for de-colonization.

Our political burden has been replaced by economic yoke of a crippling
debt which continues to increase by compound interest, no matter our
efforts at amortization.  We have come to a situation where development
has generally grounded to a situation where most African countries exist
and live for debt repayment.

In spite of our grinding poverty, our continent has witnessed massive
capital transfer to the rich nation of the north in the past decade while
our people are being reduced to economic serfs in their countries. For
how long will our people stand for this without bringing down this evil
edifice of an unjust economic system imposed on the whole world to benefit
a fraction of mankind.

We Africans, whether at home or in Diaspora have suffered too much largely
because we were divided through the force and brutally former slave drivers
and owners.  A yawning chasm separated Africans at home from our kith
and kin broad in the in the past.  Out of ignorance and missing information,
our brothers and sisters in Diaspora whose ancestors were responsible
for their plight in the new world suffer.

The political struggle has largely been fought and won, what we need
now are as follows:
*  Economic freedom
*  We demand that Africans should be granted economic freedom through
debt forgiveness and total debt write-off.
*  We demand an African marshal plan as United States of Africa (USA)
to compensate for the centuries of abuse and neglect.
*  We demand full equality with all men for Africans at home and in Diaspora.
*  We call on all countries of Europe and the Americas to compensate
Africans for the untold hardship and exploitation that the continent
had been subjected to in the past.
*  We make these demands because services of our forefathers in the American
plantation were unrecorded and unpaid for.
*  We make these demands because the exploitation of Africans during
the period of colonial rule further impoverished us while enhancing the
development of the West.
*  We make this demand because this is the interest of mankind.

Remember that when humanity suffers a little, somewhere, all humanity
suffers also, the world cannot continue like this with the vast majority
under pain while a few luxuriate in affluence.  The time to make a fresh
start is now and Europe and Americas must redress the imbalance in their
relation with Africans and Africa.  It is time for descendants of the
oppressors and the oppressed to open a new chapter based on mutually
rewarding and beneficial relationship.

We must not give up the struggle for total emancipation of the black
race from poverty, want, social degradation, economic backwardness and
political emasculation.  We believe that there is sufficient political
realism to reinforce the momentum and justness of our cause, we should
summon and take that political decision to realise the desired goal of
equality of the human race. We can do it now.  And now is the time.

This climate is not only intolerant, but also enervating for the white
man who wants to have things done but is thwarted by the African way,
the indolent rhythm and love of words, and his being permitted by a kind
of silent arrogance and scorn; the African man is convinced that decolonisation
means he defeated the white and he wants to enjoy his newly won position
as a victor.

This may be a natural sentiment, but it is not conducive to cooperation.
 It is of even greater importance that Africans, including Arabs of North
Africa do not have the same notion of political cooperation as the nations
of the west whose political concepts and attitude have evolved during
a long period of time reaching back to antiquity and under special circumstances.
 The greater and tragic misunderstanding on the part of so many western
thinkers and public figure is that it is enough to teach the Africans
about these political concepts and show them by example how they work,
while the rest will follow by invitation, persuasion and admiration of
the model.

But these political concepts - democracy, parliamentary system where
government and opposition clash, the electoral mechanism for change -
cannot really be transplanted to Africans, a continent both violent and
invert.  Neither does most Arabs nor most Africans understand power as
public trust, unless it is their traditional authority of father, tribal
chief or king.  They have adopted the rules of the new political game,
but very soon they push them aside and install the substance of the old
authority in the garb of a new terminology which today is called "democracy."
 Their basic attitude is:  why should anybody who has power yield to
opponents?  If am right, why should I step aside for someone who is wrong?
 The problem of the co-existence of races in Africa in these few illustrations
indicates extra-ordinary complexity, and the political evolution of the
continent is not likely to solve them. 

In any case, unrealistic to believe that the society will study the continent's
map.  The probability is that both West and African states will accentuate
 their racism in the future.  The South Africans respond to the threat
of African submersion by separating the race, and the African state assert
themselves by Africanizing public and private life.  In Africa continent,
the dichotomy between the states is increasingly wider.  African government
find it every year more repugnant to sit down at the same table with
the Portuguese and South Africans, even to discuss matters pertaining
to postal services, technical advice, exchange of agricultural or meteorological
information.  Nobody knows where all these will lead.  But one thing
is certain, relationship among races is not improving, and area of racial
co-existence is shrinking if any prediction can be ventured at this time.
 It is that the continent will the break into three parts (from North
to South) - Arabs, Africans and the West.  Only God knows whether at
least these three will live quietly in their present territories.

THE AFRICAN INSTITUTION

The African institution was formed in 1807 to make sure that people obeyed
the law against the slave trade.  It was hoped that this would be done
in the following ways:  to keep a watch on the slave traders; to get
other countries to stop the slave trade; to get people to teach Negroes;
and to educate the public on the facts about Africa and African peoples.
 A few years later, the British parliament passed more laws to punish
British people who disobeyed the law against the slave trade.

THE ANTI SLAVERY SOCIETY

The Anti slavery society was formed in 1825, because the law of 1807
did not stop the slave trade in every country.  Other countries took
the English share of the trade.  More slaves than before were taken from
Africa to the so-called New World. The captured slaves where meted with
the worst treatment, though the anti-slavery society wanted to stop slavery
and the slave trade completely.

In 1833, the British parliament passed a law to stop both slavery and
slave trade in the British Empire.  On 1st August, 1834, all the slaves
were set free.  The British government paid a sum of 20,000,000 pounds
to the slave owners.  This is the area to look into when our forefathers
were caught manaced and shipped across the Atlantic to create wealth
for their captors, forcefully using them in their sugar cane, tobacco
and cotton plantation without any compensation or remuneration.

We now call the civil society and lobby the G8 members state for an effective
response to the question of debt forgiveness and total debt write-off
because of African services in the Western plantation of which the volume
of such labour was never recorded nor paid for.

DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Africans especially Nigerian people, have already achieved the objective
of the civil war period and have reached a stage that will enable us
to embark upon the creation of new era.  The foundation of the development
of a nation and its people lies in the individuals. I am suggesting a
determination to make social development the basic policies devoted to
the preservation of the dignity of the human society.  It is my sincere
wish that young people will be conscious of their pride and responsibility
to become  a driving force of Africans especially Nigerians of the future
and to make contributions to the welfare of the future of the society
and that they will acquire a strong will and develop stout bodies which
will enable them to overcome any hardship, so that they will grow up
to become citizens endowed with rich human qualities.

Our government lay emphasis on policies for improvement of the system
of compulsory education, the expansion and improvement of high-grade
middle school education and the promotion of private schools.  The government
promises to strengthen effort towards the expansion of the scholarship
system, and the promotion of education at their secluded places and other
special educational structures for the benefit of the children who find
themselves in depressed situation either economically or geographically
and also for those who are mentally or physically handicapped.

One needs to experience the political climate of Africa to understand
that such promises are absolutely without foundation.  This climate is
not only intolerant, but also enervating for the West who wants to have
things done but is thwarted by the African 'system.' The human rights
campaign was initiated and made global under charter in reaction to these.

It was not much surprising that the satisfaction of certain criteria
became linked to aid.  The restructuring of African economies and politics
were assured.  Even before the pressure from external bodies there were
healthy debates about both the limitations of the US documents and the
glaring abuses of human rights by African regimes from African citizens
and scholars.  In legal terms, there was an attempt at redressing these
issues through the creation of an African Charter on Human and People's
Rights (1981).  Here the main point is that recognition of peoples' rights
is more in accord with African traditions where individualism is shunned.
 It also emphasized duties.  The signing of the Charter did not mean
that there was a refrain from African dictatorship and abuse on human
rights.  All it did was put pressure on them, because of its creation
of a commission to which violation of any of the rights contained in
the document could be taken.

OTHER ISSUES AFFECTING AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT

In the Horn of Africa a strained situation developed as a result of Somalia's
claims on Ethiopia and of Somalia aggression against that neighbouring
country, and the interference in the conflict by some western states
and their accomplices.

As to the developing states which are planning to establish a "new international
economic order" imperialism, resorting to all manners of "dialogues"
and delaying tactics, is trying to force them to give up such plans.
 In so doing imperialism is unscrupulous about its methods, which range
from creating so-called "aid funds" to sowing discord between the African
states.  It is also trying to take advantage of the petrodollars, especially
their inflow into the industrial capitalist countries.  We are also witnessing
attempts to build "sub-imperialist" bastions, i.e., having permanent
presence (so-called "bases") in different parts of Africa.  And there
is a gamble on collective neo-colonialism, which reflects the intentions
of the West to bolster their influence in Africa.

HUMAN RIGHTS

Human rights are solely applied to humans for the reason of their being
humans.  Such rights could be derived from reasoning, God, nature or
any other source.  Whatever the case may be, they are supposed to apply
to human beings regardless of their codifications in any positive law.
 The various revolutions (Americans, English, French) popularised the
idea of rights.  In the writings of the philosophers of the enlightenment
and in the works of UN AFRICAN NETWORK (state of African historical research
for unity and peace) and NIGERIA PEACE BUREAU (peace education research
centre) even Hobbes "life, liberty and estate" UNAN and NPB were taken
as rights inherent in humans.  The Americans were to add "the pursuit
of happiness."  These rights were to form the core of what later came
to be called civil and political rights - life, liberty, property, freedom
of conscience, belief, assembly, association, etc.

The global campaign for human rights did not just happen in a vacuum,
it was promoted by the government of the United States of America from
1977, when Jimmy Carter became the President and American imperialism
had become so discredited and battered, even in the eyes of a significant
proportion of American citizens, that it required some morally uplifting
position from which to repair its system of control and hegemony in various
parts of the world and restore some domestic credibility for its operations
in other countries.  The defeat in Vietnam; the setback in Angola; the
resurgence of the liberation struggle in South Africa; the Watergate
scandal and the removal of Nixon; and the exposure of the vicious and
reactionary role of the CIA against democratic and liberation movements,
had come together during the Nixon and forced presidencies to threaten
its domestic bases psychologically and politically.

CONCLUSION

I am confident that the conference will be worth all the effort and sacrifice
on your part particularly if, as I expect, at the end of your deliberations,
you do come up with practical, workable and carefully articulated recommendations
that will enable Africa fully to exploit the opportunities and advantages
of APPER and UN-PAAERD, as well as lay a truly solid and sound foundation
for the achievement of the long-term goals of the region's development.

I am sure that your report will be eagerly appreciated by all those who
are genuinely interested in Africa's development as well as those who
are prepared to help Africa in that process.  I personally will be looking
forward to your report.

Thanks.

Hon. Prince S. B. Jide Ademosu-Amperiola email iahl_nig_chapter@onebox.com
Group National Chairman
(FNPB, UNAN, UNP, IAHL)

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IN REQUEST OF DELIBERATIONS ON THE AFRICAN CIVIL SOCIETY AND TO LOBBY
G8 MEMBER STATES FOR AN EFFECTIVE RESPONSE TO QUESTION OF DEBT, DEVELOPMENT
ASSISTANCE, CONFLICT RESOLUTION, HUMAN RIGHT AND OTHER ISSUES AFFECTING
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT

The extremely complex ethno-linguistic structure and the acute national
problems of tropical Africa lend not only scientific interest, but also
political topicality to a study of national integration.  This is because
the success of integration largely depends on the success of social and
economic development plans and political stability, and this is increasingly
becoming clear in many African countries with resultant increasing interest
in ethnic problem.

ISSUES AFFECTING AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Ethnic processes, as understood by our organization - International Alliance
of Holistic Lawyers, Nigeria Chapter (IAHL) and United NGOs for Peace
(UNP) as joint NGOs in this programme, imply change in the basic features
of an ethnic community language, material and spiritual culture, etc.
 In other words, all that distinguishes one community from another.

These processes can be subdivided into those of ethnic unification (such
as consolidation, assimilation and integration) and separation.  Research
in the field is unanimous that throughout the African continent (more
in some countries, less in others) the tribal structure is disintegrating,
and national consolidation and integration is steadily gaining grounds.

Foreign studies and the organization's own observations in many countries
in Africa suggest, however, that socio-economic change as a major factor
of national integration is often underestimated, some times event entirely
negated; that ethnic problems, in all their diversity, are reduced to
tribal discord while the persistence of ethnic prejudices is explained
as more peculiarities of individual mentality.

No doubt many negative phenomena in the young African states, particularly
tribal discord, are rooted in their colonial past.  But ethnic conflicts,
far from vanishing after independence, have in many countries been exacerbated.
 What is the reason?  Some are inclined to blame it all on imperialist
intrigue, completely disregarding the fact that the seeds of tribal discord
sown by the colonialists fall on fertile soil.  That approach only beclouds
the issue and impedes the resolution of ethnic contradictions today.

Africa's many difficulties, including ethnic difficulties (as we are
usually told), are largely due to the artificial state boundaries fixed
by the colonial powers, which do not follow ethnic division.  That is
an important factor, but the real source of ethnic conflicts, in my view,
should be sought not so much in arbitrary boundaries as in the tangle
of socio-economic and political problems.

Some African leaders and bourgeois scholars go to the other extreme and
reduce all existing difficulties ethnic problems.  They ignore the class
struggle or substitute it for tribal struggle.  Even such intricate crisis
situation as in the former Belgian Congo following independence, or in
Nigeria between 1966 and 1970, are attributed to ethnic hostility.

Our observations indicate that in many African countries there is no
difficulty informing inter-ethnic contacts among intellectuals, particularly,
among students and university/secondary school teachers.  Unlike the
traditionalists who always look to their ethnic group and tribal territory,
today's intellectuals easily make friends with colleagues at work, etc.
 Members of the new classes and strata are united not by common origins
(though the feeling of ethnic identity remains), but rather by common
social and professional contributing factors, such as: relatively young
age (all below 45), rising cultural and educational levels of the family
over the past ten years.  These new socialites are gradually replacing
tribal consciousness and weakening ethnic prejudices and superstitions
and bias.

While in the cities, a more complex socio-professional structure is taking
shape, in the rural areas very much of the old social structure remains
intact.  The gap between city and village in this respect is a very wide
one.  Social processes within the peasant population are bound to react
on ethnic processes.  Higher social mobility, migrant labour, in some
countries on a massive scale, are gradually transforming the old structures,
widening the peasant's views, promoting personal contacts with members
of other ethnic groups.  In other words, we are witnessing intensification
of ethnic processes.

DIFFICULTIES OF NATIONAL INTEGRATION

Unsettled socio-economic problems are the main causes of inter-ethnic
frictions in Africa.   Social conflicts often appear in their ethnic
shell, and this aggravates the ethnic problems.  The clash of interests
of the exploiting elements belonging to different ethnic groups is also
a cause of conflict (for instance, the struggle of the urban-middle strata
of the Fanti and Ewe against the tribal elite of the Ashanti in Ghana;
the struggle of the growing Kikuyu bourgeoisie with the Luo bourgeoisie
in Kenya, and of the feudal-patriarchal elements of Baganda against the
central government of Milton Obote which was largely made up of members
of the Nilotic ethnic group, etc).  All of these lead to a situation
in which an essentially social struggle takes the form of ethnic conflicts.

Our research in several West African countries shows that the roots of
the complex relationship between some people can be traced back to the
slave trade days.  Relations between the Ashanti and the northern peoples
of Ghana, the Ibo and the people of central Nigeria, the people of southern
and northern Dahomey (now Benin Republic), between the Efik and the people
living along Cross River in the former south-eastern part of Nigeria
may also be cited as examples.

And no mean part in complicating relations between African people was
the colonial policy of setting ethnic group against another and encouraging
the formation of ethnically-based parties and organizations.

HUMAN RIGHTS

The collapse of traditional political institutions in Nigeria should
be seen as representative of the experience in other parts of Africa.
 The centuries of forcible possession of Africans gave way in the 19th
century of forcible possession of Africa.  A combination of outright
deceit in terms of fraudulent acquisition of territories through the
signing of dubious treaties and blatant use of superior weapons as well
as playing traditional rivalries over Africans.  By the close of the
19th century, only two countries - Ethiopia and Liberia - were out-rightly
unoccupied by colonizing European countries.  Within the  context of
our discussion, the fundamental impact of the colonization of Africa
from the late 19th century was the loss of independence of African territories
as well as the implication for the established pattern of socio-political
developments along their own lines.  Significantly, traditional political
institutions that had given room for consultation and consensus were
either thrown into abeyance or out-rightly destroyed.  More importantly
for our purpose today, a new geographical map of Africa was drawn by
the colonizing powers.

In what was clearly an unco-ordinated attempt to acquire territories,
many European colonial powers soon acquired territories that were, for
all intents and purpose, polyglotal, hybrid and synthetic because many
of them were made up of people of diverse culture, perception and cosmology.
 As would be seen in this sequence, such culture-pluralism in geographical
and political terms were to constitute a major hindrance to the development
of democratic culture and institutions within the context of western
liberal democracy which European colonial administration sought to implant
on the eve of their departure from the middle of the 20th century.

WHAT CONSTITUTES DEVELOPMENT

The dictionary meaning of the word "develop" from which the word development
is derived tells it all.  Chambers 20th Century Dictionary defines the
word "develop" to mean "to unroll," "to lay open by begress," "to bring
to a more advanced or more organized state," etc. from this underlined
definition, we can proceed to again observe that throughout human history
mankind has been involved in advancing and organizing his society.  We
are now in the computer age, we were once in the stone age.  The question
is:  where do we advance to from here? 

There are also attitudinal problems which retard economic development
in Africa.  The need to modernise farming techniques cannot also be over-emphasized.
 Africa needs to build up a modern farming population among the young,
who will have access to resources including land and expert knowledge.

In order to ensure that food production keeps pace with population growth,
and in particular in order to ensure that the region becomes internally
self-sufficient in its basic food requirement.  It is equally important
to attract the young back to the farm.

In the area of what is happening in Rwanda, Liberia, Somalia, Bosnia.
Afghanistan, Southern and Lebanon, the crime infested cities of the western
world, Chechnya, etc are ample proofs of mankind's capacity to move forward
and backwards at the same time.   Those who are fighting against corruption
and for genuine democracy in their respective countries are contributing
in no small measure in positively advancing the course of human history.

THE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

In the international political arena, the cold war ended leaving the
cold-worries at a loss as to what to do next.  Unfortunately, western
thinkers and strategic planners hurriedly began searching for and identifying
new enemies in preparation of the commencement of another cold war.

In so doing, they all in one way or another, targeted Islam in 1992 alone,
at least two leading western magazines.  The Economist and Time magazines
carried lead articles on Islam.  Both magazines agree that Islam is "on
the march" and Islam is "anti-west."  The two magazines identified "Islamic
fundamentalism" as the real danger.  The Economist however, made the
point that "in a sense, Islam is per se fundamentalist because "the guide
to every condition and circumstance of life is contained within the Quran
and Suna."

"The dominant view in the west, which Mr. Bush should reason and reject
is that Islam constitutes a threat to western values, cultures and economies.
 In other words, Islam is a threat to western civilisation.  There can
be no denying the fact that Islam is in competition with western values
and cultures.  But this is, essentially, an intellectual, spiritual and
peaceful competition rather than an armed conflict.  In situations where
Muslims took up against western interests, there are always compelling
reasons which even the most vociferous anti-Islamic critic cannot totally
discountenance ."

DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANT FOR AFRICA

Every African should have the best possible start in life.  Every African
should receive a good quality basic education. Every African should have
the opportunities to develop his or her full potential and contribute
to society in meaningful ways.  And when we say every African, we mean
every African without exception.  Our challenge through today's address
is, therefore, motivated by the obligation to respond to the needs of
about half of our population as it is by the goal of national, international
development.

The United Nations General Assembly's special session on children which
took place in September 2001 and also the open session of the Security
Council on women - PEACE AND SECURITY that was held on 24th October,
2000.  There non-security council members are able to speak and the public
is able to listen.  In the past, the open session have lasted all day
and sometimes, into the night.  On the same day, we in Nigeria launched
our support for the NGO's resolution under the leadership of Hon. Prince
S. B. Jide Ademosu-Amperiola, which will offer leaders of the world's
children a great assistance and determine whether, indeed, these have
translated into a better reality for them.

Let us, on our part, commence our appraisal of our locales.  This is
because it is one of the many ways through which the children of the
world face difficulties, abuse, neglect and serious violence.  All of
those problems, if seriously analysed, would be seen as an off-short
of the bad economy of the world which needs serious and urgent attention.
Another of the world's problems that is seriously causing difficulty
and violence for the children of the world is the social structure, pattern
of welfare and the society itself.

Let's therefore support the establishment of such effective Development
Assistance for Africa through the organised NGOs.

***This paper was prepared jointly by: 
United NGOs for Peace (UNP)
International Alliance of Holistic Lawyers, Nigeria Chapter (IAHL).