AU Summit 2017 outcomes, with Deputy Minister

Meeting report

The Chairperson commented on the success of the seminar which members attended in Pretoria and congratulated the committee on their input and participation. He also emphasised that Parliament needs to focus on passing the Foreign Service Bill. He added that it is imperative that the Bill is passed before 2019.

He gave feedback on the March committee study tour, saying that as government is reaching the end of the financial year, they would not be able to go on the tour as there are currently insufficient funds. Members need to finalise the countries they want to visit by March in order for them to embark on the tour in the new financial year. The visit to the various countries is also part of the exercise to finalise the Foreign Service Bill.

The Chairperson commented on the successful Ubuntu awards conducted by DIRCO, he also praised the Department on how well they were doing.

Ms S Kaylan (DA) asked why the Future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) under the Trump administration had been removed from the agenda.

The Chairperson replied that he had received letter from Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies stating that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is still undergoing various consultations between government and other departments on the matter. Therefore the Chairperson indicated that he felt it would be best if DTI presented on AGOA only after the inter-departmental consultations had been completed in order to have substantial information on the matter. It was also an advantage that they did not have a presentation on the future of AGOA at that meeting due to the recent phone call between President Trump and President Zuma. He believed that the phone call between the two presidents would possibly give a good indication of the future of AGOA.

The Chairperson asked the members if they have anything to say on the issues he had raised.

Mr S Mokgalapa (DA) requested a timeframe on the DTI’s response on AGOA. He understands that DTI does need to undergo various consultations but he highlighted the importance of feedback from the Ministry of Trade and Industry due to growing civil uncertainty on the matter. Although there is media speculation on the contents of the phone call between President Zuma and President Trump, but he hesitated on whether through the phone call, the Ministry of Trade and Industry should have had some form of indication of the bilateral relations between South Africa and the White House moving forward. Since AGOA is not purely a South African matter, but a continental one, he appreciated the complexities around the issue. On the Foreign Service Bill, it was important that the Bill is processed and prioritised within their term of office. The Bill needs to be the primary focus of the Committee.

The Chairperson stated that he had failed to add with regards to the letter from Minister Rob Davies, that the future of AGOA is fine and secured. The inter-departmental discussions relate only to the future of US-SA relations and NEDLAC. He welcomed the Deputy Minister.

Department of International Relations and Cooperation: Presentation
Deputy Minister Llewellyn Landers introduced Ms Bongiwe Qwabe as the DIRCO Chief Director for the AU. He commented on the lack of written reporting on matters such as the AU Summit and stated that Parliament and the Portfolio Committee need to be aware of the proceedings of the summits. He asked the Chairperson to formally request DIRCO to provide written reports on summit proceedings such as the AU Summit, the SADC Summit, the UN General Assembly and a few others.

Chief Director of African Union (AU), Ms Bongiwe Qwabe, said that the summit was the 28th Ordinary Session of the Assembly and it was preceded by meetings of the Permanent Representatives Council and the Executive Council. She announced the new Chairperson of the African Union for 2017 was President of Guinea, Alpha Conde. The Assembly launched a new AU theme for 2017: “Harnessing the demographic dividend through investments in the youth”, which was not discussed at the January summit but will be discussed and elaborated on during the July Summit instead.

The focus areas of the Summit included:
- The admission Morocco to the AU
- The collective withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC)
- Institutional reform
- The continental free trade Area (CFTA)
- Elections for the Commission’s office bearers

On Morocco’s admission to the AU, Ms Qwabe emphasised that the question of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) is central to Africa’s commitment to the attainment of decolonisation and self-determination. While Morocco’s membership in the AU has the potential to enhance continental unity, its admission poses fundamental questions related to the intrinsic principles of the AU in that Morocco’s continued occupation of the SADR territory is an act of colonialism and is simultaneously contrary to the spirit of the Constitutive Act of the African Union (AU).

On the collective withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC), Ms Qwabe communicated that the collective withdrawal strategy from the ICC was adopted; however some member states registered reservations. While three member states (Burundi, Gambia and South Africa) had notified their intentions to withdraw from the ICC, Gambia informed the assembly that since they have entered their transition with a new government, they requested keeping their intention to withdraw in abeyance for now.

Ms Qwabe said that at the Summit, South Africa had emphasised the importance of strengthening continental institutions such as the African Court of Justice and Human Rights, which the Malabo Protocol makes provision for. However while South Africa has neither signed nor ratified the Malabo Protocol due to inconsistencies with national law, they have requested the Malabo Protocol to be reverted back to the Justice sector to iron out any concerns that member states have, specifically about national legislation.

On institutional reform, the assembly adopted the report presented by President Kagame of Rwanda (referred to as the Kagame Report). The recommendations of the Kagame Report include:
- Seeking to address the challenges faced by the African Union through political and operational reform to streamline the working methods of the AU.
- Introducing progressive accounting and auditing methods which ensure AU financial sustainability.
- The AU should focus on a fewer number of priority areas with continental scope such as political affairs, peace and security and pay more attention on Africa’s voice and representation in the international arena.
- Realigning AU institutions in order to deliver the priorities above.
- Connecting the African Union to its citizens was emphasized.

On the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), Ms Qwabe said that the assembly called upon member states to mobilise funding for the implementation of the Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) Elimination Program in the CFTA. A High Level Panel of Eminent Persons (one for each region) was established by the assembly. The panel was set up because the assembly expects a number of challenges to come up and the panel will have the capacity to fast-track the CFTA negotiations.

The elections for the Commission’s office bearers included the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and eight Commissioners. Mr Mahamat of Chad was elected as the Chairperson of the AU Commission and Mr Quartey of Ghana was elected as the Deputy Chairperson. Six of the eight commissioners were elected by the assembly and the remaining two commissioners (Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology and Commissioner for Economic Affairs) will be elected at the July summit. Southern Africa is represented in two commissioner posts, namely the Commissioner for Trade and Industry and Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, which were elected from Zambia and Angola.

South Africa participated in a few side meetings which formed part of the Assembly’s proceedings including:
- A Pre-Summit Gender Meeting, which was attended by Minister Shabangu
- African Peer Review Mechanism, which was attended by Minister Ramatlhodi
- Peace and Security Council, which was attended by the Department of Defence
- Foundation Stone laying of the headquarters of the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa, which was attended by the Minister Mahlobo
- Committee of African Heads of States and Government on Climate Change, attended by President Zuma.

Discussion
The Chairperson thanked Ms Qwabe for her input and requested members to comment on Morocco’s admission to the AU.

Mr L Mpumlwana (ANC) asked for more details about the contradiction of AU principles in relation to Morocco’s admission and the future of Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. What is the AU saying about that dilemma? Are they ignoring the principles and is money taking precedence?

Mr M Maila (ANC) asked if Morocco is now recognising the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. He stated that Morocco now needed to recognise the SADR. The condition the AU now needs to add with the admission of Morocco, is providing a clear roadmap on how they would go about recognising the SADR.

Ms D Raphuti (ANC) observed that Morocco’s admission to the AU is positive and they can now play a role in Agenda 2063. She felt that Morocco was being isolated before within the AU agenda. On the SADR, now that Morocco has joined the AU, they need to assist the Sahrawi people as well and play a role in the “Africa Unite” narrative.

Ms T Kenye (ANC) was concerned about Morocco’s leadership but she asked, from the position of South Africa, what is the future policy on Western Sahara? What is the stance on the political future of the people in Western Sahara?

Ms S Kaylan (DA) commented that the presentation is incomplete; it contains a lot of statements and does not elaborate on the issues. The presentation poses a lot of fundamental questions. Why did South Africa agree to Morocco’s admission if they have so many questions? South Africa knows that the admission of Morocco is contrary to the spirit of the Constitutive Act of the Union yet still violates that, which is not good for democracy. She questioned the basis for 36 countries voting in favour of Morocco’s admission and asked what South Africa’s position was in the vote? Who represented South Africa at the Summit?

Mr Mokgalapa believed that the logic behind the assembly voting for Morocco’s admission was that it would be better to have Morocco admitted into the AU, because it would be better to engage with them when they are part of the organisation especially on the battle for independence by the Sahrawi people. Seeing that we are heading towards economic hardship globally, regionalism has become an important tool for international relations, and therefore isolating Morocco would have not worked. Moving forward, the African Union needs to persuade Morocco to fast-track the referendum. Furthermore, the AU needs to monitor Morocco now that they have joined the AU and have more sway over the state.

Mr B Radebe (ANC) responded to Deputy Minister Landers about having written reports sent to the public. He stated that matters of International Relations need not be open to the public because the state may be compromised. Information needs to be controlled. The future of other countries and foreign policy are discussed in the meetings therefore it is best to have closed meetings, in confidence.

Mr Radebe highlighted that moving forward, South Africa needs to give instructions to DIRCO that Morocco needs to meet the requirements of releasing Western Sahara. He commended South Africa for opposing Morocco’s admission and for their commitment to the principles of the AU. South Africa needs to be strict on those requirements relating to releasing Western Sahara, otherwise strict sanctions need to be imposed.

The Chairperson questioned why the summit did not tackle the issue of peace and security, especially after the recent incidents which point to pockets of absence of peace in Africa such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) – the Gambia situation, the DRC election process, the crisis in South Sudan, Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab. He was concerned why in general peace and security were not a matter of discussion.

He asked what the implication of Morocco’s admission to the AU is for Western Sahara. He commented that the AU has failed the people of Western Sahara and the people of Africa, especially because the OAU was initially formed to address decolonisation.

He added that South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe were very clear about opposing Morocco’s admission. The continent seems to be divided along former colonial rule lines, especially between the Anglophone and the Francophone African states. The colonial competition for hegemony between the British and the French has caught onto Africa and its affecting how Africa is trading.

In response, Deputy Minister Landers emphasised that South Africa in fact did not support Morocco’s admission into the AU, and added that Algeria, Zimbabwe, Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, Uganda and Lesotho held the same position. He highlighted that Lesotho stood out in vocalising that Morocco could not join the AU.

The Deputy Minister discussed what he believes motivated other member states to allow Morocco to join the AU, claiming that Morocco used certain European allies such as Spain, France and Israel, to embark on a concerted effort to influence African states before Morocco joined. By the time of the Summit, Morocco already knew that they had the numbers in terms of support to join the AU.

Deputy Minister Landers believed that the AU would have demanded certain guarantees from Morocco including a referendum for Western Sahara before their admission, and he said that he was shocked that this did not occur. He agreed and reiterated that the AU has indeed let Western Sahara down.

The Deputy Minister claimed that President Mugabe had put forward a proposal at the Summit, requesting that before the AU entertains Morocco joining the AU that a committee of heads of states should be elected to set out all the conditions for their admission, yet that did not materialise.

The Deputy Minister stated that the Department is supportive of the Western Sahara people and he agrees with Mr Malia’s statement that a roadmap needs to be drawn for the independence of Western Sahara. He added that it seems that South Africa does not enjoy the support and authority they used to have in the AU as they did before.

On who represented South Africa at the Summit, he stated that that President Zuma himself represented the country, along with the assistance of several senior ministers. He noted that elections at the Summit took up time, hence the issue of peace and security could not be discussed.

The Chairperson thanked Deputy Minister Landers for his response.

Mr Radebe commended the AU for taking a Collective Withdrawal strategy from the International Criminal Court (ICC). Yet he was concerned about the capacity of the African Court of justice and Human Rights to deal with human rights. What other instruments does the AU have in place to ensure there is no impunity?

On institutional reform, Mr Radebe commented on how South Africa is losing influence in the continent, while simultaneously the continent wants our money. South Africa needs to use carrot and stick diplomacy. He asked where the AU flag is in South Africa’s government institutions and added that the future generations of the country will not be aware of the relevance of the OAU and AU.

Mr Radebe stated that the AU needs to address the unethical conduct of bribing. If the continent continues to be influenced by foreign forces that means in actual fact the continent is not independent.

Mr Radebe was disappointed with the election outcome and felt that the gender is not being embraced in the AU.

Mr D Bergman (DA) said that he is not too sure that the South African representatives put enough input into the AU. He hopes to see more of a consultative approach from the South African delegation. At the last European Union (EU) meeting he attended, he felt that the AU and the EU were speaking two totally different languages. The African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP) countries were talking about job creation, poverty and hunger, while the EU was talking about how the continent is killing animals and air quality. He added that unfortunately, while the continent is still taking aid and while the EU continues to give aid, there is going to be a difference in the relationship. Yet we need to find a way to appease one another and help each other.

Mr Bergman asked what South Africa’s problems are with the Malabo Protocol. Where does South Africa differ? What is the process for getting the differing points accommodated in order to reach agreement?

Mr Mokgalapa suggested that the Committee should have a national indaba on South Africa’s national interest and foreign policy. He agreed with Mr Radebe’s views on the African Court of Justice and Human Rights. On the ICC withdrawal, South Africa needs to be conscious of the fact that smaller countries might not have jurisprudence which is as adequate as South Africa’s. He said that he is sad that South Africa has taken the decision of ICC withdrawal. He is glad that Gambia reversed their intent to withdraw from the ICC but there is still hope that South Africa can think likewise. He asked how effective the African Court of Justice and Human Rights is. He also asked what the issues are with the Malabo Protocol.

Mr Mokgalapa asked how sustainable is the AU funding model suggested by former President Obasanjo. He asked why the trade facilitation agreement from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) still has not been ratified. What are the issues there and why have we not signed it yet?

Ms Kaylan asked what are the specifics regarding the Malabo Protocol. What is South Africa’s perspective? On institution reform, she asked if Agenda 2063 was considered one of the key priorities with continental scope. She added that the Kagame report should be made available to the Committee.

Ms Raphuti commended South Africa’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) and stated that she supported the country’s decision. She asked Ms Qwabe if any resolutions were discussed at the side meetings that were held at the event.

Ms Kenye asked what the timeframe is for the establishment of this High Level Panel to mobilise AU funding. She is concerned about Agenda 2063, she felt that the elderly will not be there to witness the outcomes. She asked what the main discussion was on the issue.

The Chairperson addressed the withdrawal from the ICC and asked if the African Court of Justice and Human Rights is an operational body now. Is it staffed? Does it have a judge? In which country is it sitting? It is important for citizens to know where they will be tried if they commit human rights violations.

He requested details on the Malabo Protocol, specifically article 46, what does it provide for and why is it not consistent with our national law? Cabinet needs to give a directive about the Malabo Protocol. He made a recommendation that the Ministers of Justice and International Relations need to walk the Committee through the ICC withdrawal process that is being taken by the country.

The Chairperson was concerned that only 29 of the 54 African countries are signatories to the African Peer Review Mechanism because it indicates that half of the continent does not want to subject itself to self-monitoring and good governance. He asked if that issue could be discussed.

Ms O Maxon (EFF) agreed with the Chairperson that the Committee needs a full briefing on the Malabo Protocol. She asked what the mood of other countries is regarding plans to withdraw from the ICC.

In response, Deputy Minister Landers said that on the Malabo Protocol, the Chairperson would need to speak with the Minister of Justice who could explain the legal difficulties about the protocol.

On the African Court of Justice and Human Rights, he replied that Justice Bernard Ngoepe was appointed to serve on the court, yet he was uncertain about his term of office. The court is based in Gambia.

On the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), he replied that all 54 African member states have different national legal systems, therefore difference in domestic legal systems impacts on signing the APRM.

On the African Court of Justice and Human Rights, he replied that the difficulty lies with referrals as the African Court wants direct referrals. This entails bypassing the domestic legal systems and sending referrals straight to the Court. He said it is essentially non government organisations (NGOs) who are making this call.

On an AU collective withdrawal from the ICC, Deputy Minister Landers said that a collective withdrawal is not going to happen. Kenya, South Africa and Burundi have signalled to withdraw. He said that he is satisfied that South Africa took a sovereign decision to withdraw; therefore one needs to allow other member states to make a sovereign decision to follow suit.

On the Continental Free Trade Area, he said that he had the privilege to accompany Minister Davies to Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt when the Eastern side of the continent met at a summit to agree to sign the free trade area. They are now waiting for the Western side of the continent.

On the funding that the continent derives from the European Union, he stated that the African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP) as a bloc which came about after the Second World War has been funded by the EU due to the fact that they are extremely poor countries with limited natural resources. The EU has recently announced that the funding the AU receives for the ACP will be reduced in 2020. Moving forward, it was recommended that the ACP members either individually or as a group enter into an economic partnership with the EU. SADC has agreed to the economic partnership with the EU. The point he was trying to make is that the EU itself is reviewing its own funding and aid model and the implications for South Africa and Africa are unknown.

Ms Qwabe stated that there was no indication whether the current AU chairperson will continue with Agenda 2063. She noted that Agenda 2063 is a broad strategy but its implementation is domestic therefore it implies that national parliaments would need to adopt it.

On AU sustainable funding, Ms Qwabe said that the 0.02 % levy discussed in Kigali was endorsed at the Summit to sustain the fundability of African programmes but she cannot assure that all states will contribute.

On the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), Ms Qwabe apologised for not reporting on the topic and said that the topic of institutional reform took up most of the time during the summit. She indicated that there were efforts to revitalise the APRM, as well as NEPAD.

The Committee adopted its 7 December minutes.

The meeting was adjourned.