Greetings
and Rastafari Blessings 147 days before the Ethiopian Millennium
As I&I approach the Grand Debate
on the Union Government at the next African Union General
Assembly, all Rastafari sons and dawtas involved in organizing and
centralizing should "study to show thyself approved." Towards
a People Driven African Union
is a document recently published
that is essential reading for overstanding the status of the
African Union and what must be done leading up to the Grand Debate
on the Union Government.
As I stated to the Ethiopian African
Black International Congress (EABIC) on January 19, 2007:
"Of the 20 "seats"
reserved for the African Diaspora (which includes Europe and
Asia), [the African Diaspora in the Western Hemisphere] will
thus be responsible for filling approximately 13 seats -- the
rest going to the African Diaspora outside of the Western
Hemisphere. As a result, Canada shall have two (2)
representatives; the USA shall have three (3) representatives;
the Caribbean shall have three (3) representatives; Brazil shall
have three (3) representatives; and Latin/Hispanic America shall
have two (2) representatives.
Given the reality above, the
realistic goal of the Rastafari Movement working within this
process ought to be to secure at least one Rastafari
representative among the 13, and possibly two, most likely from
the Caribbean Region. This will require the united effort of the
Rastafari Family Worldwide, and this is one of the reasons why
it is imperative for I&I to establish a Rastafari Global
Secretariat (RGS) to Iffirm someone for this position, AND THEN
WORK TO SECURE THAT PERSON'S APPOINTMENT THROUGH THE
PROCESS."
Moreover, in the Address I gave to
the Ethiopian National Front (ENF) "Grand Reasoning on the
Coming Grand Debate on the Union Government", I stated that:
THE DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE
9TH EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL ON THE
PROPOSAL FOR THE UNION GOVERNMENT - DOC.ASSEMBLY/AU/10(VII)
reiterated "that the ultimate objective of the African
Union is the political and economic integration of the continent
leading to the creation of the United States of Africa."
THE DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE
9th EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL ON THE
PROPOSALS FOR THE UNION GOVERNMENT - DOC. ASSEMBLY/AU/10 (VIII)
states that the AU Assembly
TAKES NOTE of the Report of the
9th Extraordinary Session of the Executive Council on the
Proposals for the Union Government held in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia in November 2006;
REITERATES that the ultimate
objective of the African Union is the political and economic
integration of the continent leading to the creation of the
United States of Africa;
DECIDES to devote the 9th
Ordinary Session of the Assembly in Accra, Ghana in July 2007
to the theme: "Grand Debate on the Union
Government";
Unfortunately, the above mentioned
report was not developed with participation of the African
Diaspora.
Also, The Protocol Relating to the
Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African
Union, 9 July, 2002 Durban, South Africa states,
Article 11
Panel of the Wise
1. In order to support the
efforts of the Peace and Security Council and those
of the Chairperson of the Commission, particularly in the
area of conflict prevention, a Panel of the Wise
shall be established.
2. The Panel of the
Wise shall be composed of five highly respected African
personalities from various segments of society who
have made outstanding contribution to the cause of peace,
security and development on the continent. They shall be
selected by the Chairperson of the Commission after
consultation with the Member States concerned, on the basis
of regional representation and appointed by the Assembly to
serve for a period of three years.
3. The Panel of the
Wise shall advise the Peace and Security Council and the
Chairperson of the Commission on all issues
pertaining to the promotion, and maintenance of peace,
security and stability in Africa.
Further, THE DECISION ON ELECTION
OF FIVE (5) MEMBERS OF THE PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL OF THE
AFRICAN UNION - DOC. EX.CL/326 (X) states,
The Assembly:
APPROVES the
results of the election conducted by the Executive
Council;
CONGRATULATES the
following Members of the Peace and Security Council elected
for a three-year term as of March 2007:
1. Gabon (Central)
2. Ethiopia (East)
3. Algeria (North)
4. Angola (South)
5. Nigeria (West)
It is unfortunate that, here,
again, the 6th Region of the African Union was omitted.
Likewise, THE DECISION ON THE
APPOINTMENT OF THE MEMBERS OF THE PANEL OF THE WISE - DOC.
ASSEMBLY/AU/13 (VIII) states
The Assembly :
TAKES NOTE of
the Report of the Chairperson of the Commission on the
establishment of the Panel of the Wise, as provided for by
Article 11 of the Protocol relating to the Peace and
Security Council (PSC);
DECIDES, as
proposed by the Chairperson of the Commission and in
conformity with Article 11 (2) of the PSC Protocol, to
appoint, for a period of three (3) years, the following
African personalities as members of the Panel of the Wise:
- Salim Ahmed Salim,
former Secretary-General of the Organization of African
Unity (East Africa),
- Brigalia Bam,
Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission of
South Africa (Southern Africa),
- Ahmed Ben Bella, former
President of Algeria (North Africa),
- Elisabeth K. Pognon,
President of the Constitutional Court of Benin (West
Africa), and
- Miguel Trovoada, former
President of Sao Tomé and Principé (Central Africa);
Here, again, the 6th Region of the
African Union has been omitted.
Thus, the African Diaspora is being excluded at the highest levels
of Black Government at the most important meeting concerning the
future of Black people on the Eve of the Ethiopian Millennium that
begins September 11, 2007.
Fred O. Oladeinde highlighted this
omission at the Regional Consultative Meeting on Economic Social
and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) of the African Union, at the
Africa Leadership Forum, Ota, Nigeria 15 June 2006, saying,
"The inauguration
of ECOSOCC, and other actions of the African Union,
including the adoption of the CSSDCA earlier into the
organizational structure of the AU, marked the beginning of a
new covenant between the African Union, an
intergovernmental organization and
the African people, both at home and abroad.
Presently, the interim
Standing Committee and Officers of the ECOSOCC, excluding
members of the Diaspora civil society
organizations were elected during the inauguration in July
2004, putting the present body at
odd with the mandates of the founding fathers and the spirit
of the African Union Constitutive act, particularly, article
3q that recognizes the African Diaspora as an important
constituent of the African Union. This
error and omission of the Union must be corrected
immediately to preserve peace and harmony within the Union,
with your full cooperation and assistance.
Mr. Chairman, the major
challenge facing the interim Steering Committee and CSOs in
Africa and the Diaspora today is not just operationalsing
ECOSOCC, the major problem, and the
first order of business must be to ensure that the interim
Standing Committee and Officers of the ECOSOCC includes
members of the Diaspora, first, then as a "whole"
body we can move to operationalize the new organ, through
consultative processes, which will culminate in
and guide elections of
members at the national, regional and Diaspora
levels, on the one hand and define requisite
framework and strategies for creating synergy between
ECOSOCC and other AU organs.
The present ECOSOCC
frame work guarantee twenty of the 150 seats in the ECOSOCC
for the Diaspora, this represents
the first institutional interface between the Union and its
constituents in the Diaspora, a
major milestone in the realization of the hopes and
aspirations of the Pan African movement. I
was privilege to serve on the Civil Society Provisional
working group, representing the Diaspora that was
mandated by the Commission to produce the Statutes, and the
draft rules of procedure of the ECOSOCC of the African
Union.
Presently, my
organization the Foundation for Democracy in Africa (FDA),
serves as the secretariat of the Western Hemisphere African
Diaspora Network (WHADN), an initiative of the African Union
that was launched during the historic First African Union
Western Hemisphere Diaspora Forum held in Washington, D.C.
17-19 December 2002. The mission of WHADN is to encourage
and facilitate the utilization of the collective talents and
resources of the African Diaspora in the Americas, the
Caribbean and Latin America to support economic development
and sustainable growth on the continent. WHADN in pursuit of
its mission encourage and facilitate the enduring cultural,
social, and economic ties to Africa within the Western
Hemisphere Diaspora communities, Develop and identify
funding for capacity building projects by Diaspora civil
society organizations in the Western Hemisphere Diaspora and
the African Union. Work with the
African Union to create mechanisms to represent the views,
concerns and interest of the African Diaspora within the
African Union. WHADN
was established to function as the coordinating network,
linking the Diaspora and the AU for the purpose of achieving
the common goals of social and economic development.
CONCLUSION:
Now that the ENF Founder-Chairman
Ras E.S.P. Mc Pherson has been elected to represent New York to
the AU 6th Region Sub-caucus USA that well select three
representatives to take seats at ECOSOCC this December, the door
is now open for the African Diaspora to have a direct and
continuous input into the Grand Debate on the Union Government.
Specifically, the Provisional Agenda of The MEETING OF THE 2nd
INTERIM STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
COUNCIL OF THE AFRICAN UNION (ecosocc) 24-26 FEBRUARY 2007,
Cairo, EGYPT, states
PROVISIONAL AGENDA
1- Executive Council Decision on
ECOSOCC
2- Commission’s update on
ECOSOCC activities: Past, present, future.
3- Presentation on the
boundaries between CIDO and ECOSOCC
4- Challenges: implementation of
the Executive Council decision, work program for election and
calendar of activities
5- Procedures for Accreditation
and Election of Credentials Committee - CSOs and other
non-state actors
6- Budgetary questions and
procedures for disbursement and use of ECOSOCC funds
7- Developing an
ECOSOCC perspective on the grand debate on the Union
government
Ras Mc Pherson is eminently
qualified to participate in the Grand Debate on the Union
Government, as all ENF Founding Executives, Members,
Study Groups and Affiliate structures know. His work in the
Ethiopian and South African constitutional exercises, in
addition to the THE ETHIO-RASTAFARI INTERNATIONAL
PUBLIC POLICY AGENDA is well known and embodies the
broadest, deepest, and most detailed articulation of the "the
most sacred principle of modern international policy -- that
principle of collective security with which the name of Ethiopia
is imperishably associated", from the Ethio Rastafari
perspective. Ubuntu!!!
The African Union must either
appoint Ras Mc Pherson to the Panel of the WIse Representing the
6th Region, or the ECOSOCC should immediately name Ras E.S.P.
McPherson to the ECOSOCC Committee that is "Developing an
ECOSOCC perspective on the grand debate on the Union
government."
Please sign the Petition
to Seat Ras ESP McPherson at the African Union Economic, Social
and Cultural Council at the African Union at:
Igziabier Yimassgan,
Most Raspectfully,
Ras Siphiwe Nathaniel Ka Baleka,
Coordinator, IRIE
Coordinator, RNCI-USA
Director, AU 6th Region Education
Campaign
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The
Truth about the St Agnes Place Raid
sent on behalf of the Executive
Committee of the Ethiopian World Federation, Inc.,
12th April 2007 Police Raid at St.
Agnes Place at 3am under Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and Firearms Act
1968. 23 people arrested under a very violent assault. This
consisted of 10 Residents, 5 Executive Officers, the other eight
individuals were either visitors or vulnerable homeless victims of
the system.
Stunt grenade thrown in to frighten
the residents, two of our elders were violently attacked, and
physically abused, face stamped on- blood shot eyes and bruises to
the face, one asthmatic member was shot with an electric gun three
times, one to the heart, one to the kidney, other members/ residents
were rough up to say the least.
Female executive officer arrested,
unable to get her belongings such as purse with personal items for
at least 24 hrs following release. No respect for a mother of 7 and
several grandchildren, snatch/dragged out of the house, face down on
the ground, and stood on while other officers stood in her back when
she was hand cuffed. Physically abused treated like a dog.
To date so far no one has been
charged with anything substantial - search is till going on - the
police are under orders to do a job as the intention is to make the
Rasta Temple inhabitable so that we are not able to go back in.
This is a ploy to move the Ras
Tafari Community out of St. Agnes Place it is part of a master plan
for the London Borough of Lambeth to get back the properties, a
property that has been used for over 30 years, by the Ras Tafari
Community.
At least 13 people are homeless,
they are unable to get their personal belongs such as eye glasses,
bible, frankincense and myrrh toothbrush, money etc., some are
walking around at night with no place to go, confused and abused.
Although the police have stated
they found ammunition under floor boards, (they do not know how long
they have been there) so far to our knowledge no weapons or
crack/cocaine has been found - no one charge yet with possession
with fire arms or crack/cocaine.
Friday 13th April Police in
Camberwell Magistrates Court to seek Order to Close Rasta Temple
down under Crack/Cocaine Legislation. Case adjourned to Friday 20th
2007.
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