1st report from AU summit received 3rd February
2003
GREETINGS AND RASTAFARI BLESSINGS IN THE NAME OF HAILE SELASSIE
THE FIRST AND EMPRESS MENEN.
GREAT AND GLORIOUS IS JAH RASTAFARI. HEARTICAL ISES FOR JAH
RASTAFARI GOETH BEFORE I&I AND OPENS EVERY DOOR.
I am now in the computer lab available to the foreign press at the
First Extraordinary Summit of the Assembly of the African Union
3-4 February 2003. I received Press Credentials as a reporter for
the Rastafari Speaks newspaper. Give thanks!
Apparently I made quite a sensation upon entering the Economic
Commission for Africa (ECA) building where the conference is
taking place. Most of the African Foreign Press murmured
"Rastafarian" as I passed and television cameras,
and journalists, particularly from Benin, began to focus attention
on me. An Ethiopian journalist who I met acted as a guide for me. He
told me that I am the first "African-American"
journalist at the conference. I don't know if this is true, but I
attempted to find some, and I even asked the the official from the
Press and Information department who got me pass security and
issued my press credentials about it, and who could not name
anyone. This is particularly disturbing since one of the biggest
issues at this African Union conference is the "Recognition
of the Diaspora".
According to the REPORT OF THE AD HOC MINISTERIAL COMMITTEE
MEETING ON THE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTIVE ACT OF THE
AFRICAN UNION:
"9. Prior to detailed consideration of this item, the
Chairperson gave the floor successively to the Comission and the
Senegalese delegation for clarifications on this subject.
10. The representative of the Commission indicated that six
proposed amendments had been referred to the Ad Hoc Ministerial
Committee but that the one relating to the African Diaspora had
been inadevertently omitted from the Items listed on the Agenda of
the Meeting. He added that the item had not been examined by the
Executive Council Session in Tripoli, because it had not been
submitted in time. He then read out the amendment as contained in
paragraph 40 of the Report of the First Extraordinary Session of
the Executive Council as follows:
'Invite and encourage the full
participation of Africans in the Diaspora in the building of the
African Union in its capacity as an important part of our
Continent.'
11. At the Chairperson's request for more clarification on the
categories of Africans that come under the term 'African
Diaspora', the delegation of Senegal, the proposer of the
amendment, informed the Meeting that the issue could be addressed
from two perspectives, namely;
a) a narrow sense, whereby the Diaspora includes all Africans
currently residing any where outside the Continent of Africa;
b) a broad and historic sense, whereby the Diaspora comprises all
Africans who had ledt Africa by force and still consider
themselves Africans."
12. It was decided at the end of the debate that the overall
principle underlying the amendment should be retained and
incorporated in the Constitutive Act as proposed. The amendment
would read as follows:
Article 3 (0): 'Invite and encourage the full participation of
Africans in the Diaspora in the building of the African Union in
its capacity as an important part of our Continent."
13. On the question as to how this amendment would be implemented,
it was proposed that this matter be examined at a collective
brainstorming session of the Committee before the end of the
Meeting to come up with proposals for submission to the Executive
Council, as it was at the implementation level that all aspects of
bilateral cooperation between the two entities would be addressed
with greater clarity. It was also proposed that the matter be
further considered subsequently at experts' and Executive Council
levels for further inputs.
14. Subsequently, at the end of the consideration of all the
Agenda Items, the Committee devoted some time to collective
brainstorming on the issue of 'the Diaspora' particularly its
definition and the modalities for implementing effective
collaboration with the African Union.
15. During the discussions, a number of proposals were made, such
as the need to convene a forum between the AU and the Diasopora
and the setting up of a coordinating mechanism within the
Comission to deal with issues relating to the Diaspora. A proposal
was also made that the Diaspora could be involved in the work of
ECOSOC.
16. At the end of the deliberations, the need was recognised to
convene a session of the Executive Council entirely devoted to
'the Diaspora' to further examine all the proposals made as well
as others to enable all Member States to have the same
understanding of the subject. It was recommended that the work
done by the Commission regarding the civil society and the
Diaspora should continue and be enriched by the proposed
session."
TOMORROW AT 10:00 a.m. IS THE FINAL PRESS BRIEFING SO STAY TUNED.
IS THIS BEING REPORTED IN THE PRESS, IS IT REACHING THE
AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY. IF NOT, FORWARD THIS TO THE BLACK
PRESS. RASTAFARI!
Most Raspectfully,
Nathaniel
