Luanda - The African continent is experiencing a festive moment, with the celebration, on January 31st, of the “Day of Peace and Reconciliation in Africa”, established in 2022.

By Adérito Ferreira, ANGOP journalist

In these celebrations, Angola appears in “spotlight” due to the fact that the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, was designated by the African Union (AU) “Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa”.

This is a distinction that makes Angolans proud, whose authorities spare no effort and assume, on merit, the responsibilities that are reserved for them at regional, continental level, or in international organizations.

In all these forums, Angola favors approaches linked to peace and reconciliation, defense and security, peaceful and negotiated resolution of conflicts, among others.

With the presidency of the AU already on the horizon, within the framework of the candidacy to be formalized at the end of this year, Angolan diplomacy ends up giving substance to the adage according to which “the lamp in front lights up twice”.

It is in this sense that the country is one step closer to increasing its political-diplomatic capital at the continental level, during the 37th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU, an opportunity in which it hopes to be elected for a new term in the Peace and Security Council (PSC).

Reinforced with the credits of “AU Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa” and mediation in the conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, both roles entrusted by the AU to President João Lourenço, Angola is once again running for office up for a new term for the CPS, whose seat he has already held three times.

The election of 10 members of the CPS will be held during the work of the AU Summit, scheduled for the 17th and 18th of February, in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), with the Angolan candidacy for the Southern African region being a bet by the Executive within the scope of the diplomatic engagement on defense and security issues.

With the “agreement” of the leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), there are strong possibilities for the country to be elected for the fourth time, to be part of the CPS, the main body of the AU, responsible for guaranteeing peace and the security.

The last time Angola held the position was from March 2018 to March 2020, after previous mandates from 2007 to 2010, 2012 to 2014 and 2018 to 2020.

With the new onslaught, Angola reaffirms its commitment to the various purposes of the AU, included in Agenda 2063, reflected in the slogan “The Africa We Want”, based on principles such as “Silencing the Guns in Africa” and “African Solutions to Problems Africans”.

After his appointment as Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa, the Angolan statesman soon expressed his readiness to promote actions and initiatives to reinforce understanding and national reconciliation, at the level of the continent, marked by internal, border or inter-conflict armed conflicts. neighboring countries.

The distinction occurred at the 16th Extraordinary Summit of the AU, held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, on 28 May 2022, on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Changes of Governments in Africa, frequent phenomena that continue to worry President João Lourenço, who deplores any type of impunity for its actors.

In one of his last statements on this matter, João Lourenço criticized the passivity of Africans themselves and international partners, for, in his view, “encouraging and stimulating” the repetition and proliferation of these practices, endangering the achievements already achieved.

For the Angolan head of state, tolerance of such practices jeopardizes the gains achieved, in terms of political and social stability, necessary for good governance and socioeconomic development in Africa.

Despite Angolan diplomacy continuing to focus on the negotiated and peaceful resolution of conflicts, the Angolan statesman believes that the time has come for “a serious and in-depth reflection” on the need for the rapid operationalization of the African Standby Force.

Among other functions, this mechanism would have the mission of intervening in critical moments and situations, which undermine the stability and security of countries, regions and the continent as a whole, within the framework of the African Peace and Security Architecture.

The return of military coups, particularly in Gabon, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, Sudan and Niger, have contributed to the weakening of democracy on the continent, giving way to political violence, which worries Africans, at the same time, the Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa.

At the same Summit recognizing the Angolan Head of State, in May 2022, a call was made for the creation of an AU Ministerial Committee for the Fight against Terrorism to serve as a mechanism for coordination, monitoring, evaluation and high-level monitoring of implementation of the commitments made.

Also at this meeting, January 31st was established as “Day of Peace and Reconciliation in Africa”, with the aim of promoting greater citizen participation, political inclusion and the appropriation of peace negotiation processes for stability and development. in Africa.

Last year (2023), the Angolan President had the honor of leading the launch of the anniversary.

Choice for AU Mediator

Always in the context of political instability, and surrendered to Angola's role in the pacification of the Great Lakes region, African leaders did not hesitate to invite the country to mediate the crisis between Rwanda and the DRC.

To further this challenge, the Angolan statesman said he was fully ready to assume the new responsibility and, since then, he has engaged in direct contacts with both sides at the highest level.

Last Wednesday (January 24), he had two telephone conversations with his counterparts from Rwanda, Paul Kagame, and from the DRC, Félix Tshisekedi, with both of them discussing “bilateral and regional issues”.

In the same light, on June 27 last year, Luanda hosted a Quadripartite Summit between SADC, the East African Community (EAC), the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) and the International Conference on the Large Lagos (CIRGL).

In addition to João Lourenço, Azali Assoumani, President of the Union of Comoros and current member of the AU were present; Emmerson Mnangagwa, from Zimbabwe and serving as the AU PSC; Ali Bongo Ondimba, from Gabon and member of the ECCAS; Évariste Ndayishimiye, from Burundi and the EAC; and Félix Tshisekedi, from DRC and acting member of SADC.

Also participating in the Summit were Uhuru Kenyatta, former President of Kenya and designated facilitator of the EAC, Nangolo Mbumba, Vice-President of Namibia; Vincent Biruta, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Rwanda, Moussa Faki Mahammat, Chairman of the AU Commission; Parfait Onanga, representative of the UN Secretary General, among other individuals,

In the final communiqué released at the time, the participants demand, among other measures, the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all armed groups operating in the DRC and called for the creation of corridors to facilitate assistance to the populations.

On the occasion, João Lourenço made it clear that Angolans, after suffering from a war lasting around three decades, are sensitive to the “horrors that the populations of Eastern DRC are experiencing today”, which justifies his spirit of solidarity.

Mediation Results

But even before and even after this unprecedented meeting, Angola has carried out a series of initiatives aimed at relaunching the foundations of a constructive dialogue and peace between the two belligerents, whose tension has reignited with the resurgence of the M23, which, since the beginning of 2021, launched armed actions and occupied several locations in Congolese territory.

Among the results, emphasis is placed on facilitating dialogue between the parties, which allowed the adoption of the “Luanda Roadmap on the Pacification Process of the Eastern Region of the DRC”, which highlights the need for the normalization of political-diplomatic relations, including the cessation hostilities and the immediate withdrawal of the positions occupied by the M23 to cantonment centers in Congolese territory.

Within the same framework, the “Joint Action Plan for the Resolution of the Security Crisis in the Eastern Region of the DRC” was adopted, and the start of the repatriation of all refugees was agreed, as well as the start of the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reinsertion (DDR) process.

One of the commitments made by Angola, as mediator, concerns the deployment of a contingent of the Angolan Armed Forces, to guarantee the security of M23 elements in the cantonment centers.

The total withdrawal of the MONUSCO detachment – ​​a United Nations Mission that has been in the country for more than 20 years – is scheduled for December 20, 2024.

As for the logistics component, Angola contributed one million euros (1 euro is equivalent to around 900 kwanzas), according to the director of Conflict Management of the AU's Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Sarjo Bah, at the opening of the ministerial meeting quadripartite.

However, in addition to the conflict between the DRC and Rwanda, several African states continue to be at the mercy of persistent political, ethnic, religious, border crises, terrorism, problems of inclusion, among other pressing issues on the agenda of CPS members and others. bodies, as well as, certainly, Angola and the AU Champion for Peace and Reconciliation.

Analyzes from different quarters suggest that Angola's experience, inherited from the approximately three decades of armed conflict of which it was a victim, before achieving peace and national reconciliation in 2002, and, above all, the way it conducted its own process of peace and national unity, make the country a constant reference in matters related to reconciliation in Africa.

The establishment of an environment of political inclusion and democratic participation among its children, putting aside their partisan options, the commitment to supporting other countries in the search for peace, prevention, management and resolution of conflicts, will allow Angola and its leader leaves an indelible legacy for history when it comes to conflict resolution. ADR/VIC/DOJ