Statement by the Prime Minister Mr. Pakalitha Mosisili at the Fourth African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries Summit, Maputo, Mozambique

 

Your Excellency Mr. Joaquim Alberto Chissano

President of the 4th ACP Summit

Your Excellency Heads of State and Government

Distinguished Leaders of Delegation

Honourable Ministers

Ladies and gentlemen

On behalf of the Southern African region, the Government and People of Lesotho, and on my own behalf, I wish to express our gratitude to the Government and People of Mozambique for the generous and warm hospitality extended to us since our arrival in Maputo.

Secondly, Mr. President, allow me at the outset, to congratulate you and your Bureau, upon your election as President of the 4th ACP Summit. With that appointment, we know we are in good hands.

Mr. President, the Maputo Declaration that is to be adopted by this august Assembly confirms that peace, security and stability are the sine qua non for the socio-economic development of nations, regions and the world at large.However, we must remain mindful of the fact that there are indispensable cornerstones for peace, stability and security in our troubled world. These cornerstones include democracy, good political governance, respect for the rule of law and fundamental human rights.

Mr. President, humankind yearns for peace, hence the signing and ratification of several protocols and declarations that signal our collective commitment to peace, and the rejection of force in settling disputes. In our region, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Politics, Defence and security Cooperation is a concrete testimony of the region's commitment to peace. The Protocol has led to the creation of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation currently spearheaded by the troika of Lesotho as Chairperson, South Africa as deputy Chairperson and Mozambique as outgoing or erstwhile Chairperson.

Whilst the general objective of the Organ is to promote peace and stability in the region, it has specific objectives such as, inter alia 

  • to protect the people and safeguard the development of the Region against instability arising from the breakdown of law and order, intra-state conflict and aggression;

  • to promote political co-operation among State Parties and the evolution of common political values and institutions;

  • to promote regional co-ordination and co-operation on matters pertaining to security and defence and to establish appropriate mechanisms to this end;

  • to promote the development of democratic institutions and practices within the territories of State Parties, and to encourage the observance of universal human rights as provided for in the Charters and Conventions of the African Union and the United Nations respectively.

In its desire to promote democracy, good governance and peace within the region, the SADC Organ is currently working on the Principles and Guidelines governing democratic elections, thus contributing to the activities of the African Union's Peace and Security Council. The Peace and Security Council, Mr. President, is a potentially powerful tool for the prevention, management and resolution of conflict.

Mr. President, we remain deeply concerned that armed conflicts continue to hinder peace, security , stability and hence, socio-economic development in Africa and elsewhere. Indeed, this critical state of affairs is illustrated by the recent coup attempt in the Democratic republic of Congo which threatened to derail the process of consolidating peace in that member state of our Community. As we meet here, arrangements are afoot for our Ministers of Defence and/or of Foreign Affairs to travel to Kinshasa and then to Bukavo for consultations with role players in that complex situation. Moreover, as you may be aware, some Members States of our Community such as South Africa currently have contingents on peace-keeping duty in the DRC. Clearly, these initiatives do not come cheap. But as a Community, we subscribe to the belief that "the most expensive peace is still cheaper than the cheapest war."

To this end, Mr. President we welcome progress made so far to restore law and order in the DRC and the Great Lakes region as a whole. We hope that the international community will continue to support all endeavours aimed at lasting peace, security and stability in the countries of this vast region.

Mr. President, we applaud decision No. 3/2003 of the ACP EU Council of Ministers of 11 December, 2003, on the use of their European Development Fund (EDF) resources for the creation of a peace facility for Africa. We commend both the African Members States of the ACP and the European Commission for agreeing to the reallocation of Euro 126.4 million to service the Peace Facility.

In conclusion, Mr. President, I wish to reiterate that the key challenge for all of us is to work hard for peace, security and stability for the peoples of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States. We need to end senseless conflicts and wars which have caused so must pain and suffering to our peoples, and have stunted socio-economic development. Last but not least, we need to acknowledge that it is only through dialogue and peaceful resolution of conflicts that we will be able to attain everlasting peace and stability and thus ensure that the peoples of our regions and of the world can live in harmony and prosperity from our shared resources.

I thank you.