The O.A.U.: Hurrying Nowhere?Author(s): Cynthia KahnSource: Africa Today, Vol. 15, No. 5, New Trends in African Integration (Oct. - Nov., 1968),pp. 1-2Published by: Indiana University PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4184947 .

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TABLE OF CONTENTS UNITED NATIONS LETTER, Yahne Sangare - Inside

Front Cover and Page 21.

COMMENTARY The OAU.Hurrying Nowhere? -- I

Cynthia Kahn

South Africa's Membership in the International - 3 Olympics Committee - 4

Jimi Boluton

The End of NIBMAR on the Fearless - - 4 Richard L. Sklar

For Immediate Action ---4

ARTICLES

New Trends in African Integration - 13 Donald Rothchild

The Southern African Bloc: Integration for Defense or Expansion? --9

Martin Legassick

External Impact on African Integration -13 Aaron Segal

New Departures in Equatorial African Integration, 16 Lynn Krieger Mytelka

ACTIOiN NOTES

Background Report on Trends in

Industry and Finance -24

Rhodesia Assaulting Economic Sanctions -24

CARA's Second Catholic African Mission Seminar ._24

Liberian Studies Journal -24

Announcing the Opening of New Washington Office of ACOA - -- 24

Black Awareness and Black Unity surging Forward at Harvard Law School - -24

South Africa: A Last Chance - -25

Report on LIFELINE - - 26

Herskovits Award, 1968 - -26

Spanish Guinea Gains Independence - -27

South Africa Plans a Missile Test Base -- 27

BOOK REVIEWS

The African Assertion, by Austin J. Shelton, re- viewed by Robert McDowell -28

First American Ambassador to Guinea, by John H. Morrow, reviewed by Charles F. Andrain -28

Leopold Sedar Senghor: Un President de L'Afrique Nouvelle, by Jean Rous, reviewed by W. A. E. Skurnik - -29

New Swahili-English Dictionary compiled by Dr. Charles W. Rechenbach, reviewed by Ronald A. Snoxall - -30

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR -32

CONTRIBUTORS -Back Cover

COMMENTARY

Te O.A.U.: Hurrying Nowhere? The Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity, which met in Al-

giers September 5th, and the O.A.U. Heads of State summit meeting, which followed a week later accomplished very little. The decline of the O.A.U. was evident in the fact that only half the forty-two delegations were represented by heads of state

By far the most significant result of the sum- mit meeting was the overwhelming support given to the Federal Government of Nigeria over its war with seccessionist Biafra. That the subject was discussed at all represented only a hollow victory for the four countries that had recognized Biafra: Ivory Coast, Gabon, Tanzania, and Zam- bia. The resolution was based on a draft drawn up by the six-member Constultative Committee, which has been conducting the peace talks in

Addis Ababa, under the leadership of Emperor Haile Selassie.

It appealed for the cessation of hostilities, and called on Biafran leaders to cooperate with Federal authorities who, in order to "restore peace and unity in Nigeria", should declare a general am- nesty and cooperate with the O.A.U. to ensure the physical security of all people3. The resolu- tion further urged the continuation of relief sup- plies and called on the United Nations and the O.A.U. to "refrain from any action detrimental tc

AFRICA TODAY

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Amady Epo Ba

the peace, unity, and territorial integrity of Ni- geria." Finally, the consultative committee was asked to continue its efforts towards peace negoti- ations and to implement the O.A.U. resolution.

An amendment offered by the four dissenting states that the O.A.U. should demand an immedi- ate ceasefire followed by renewed negotiations was vociferously rejected by the majority. Presi- dent Mobutu of the Congo, who was the most outspoken of the delegates supporting Nigeria, compared Biafran secession with Katanga's inde- pendence move in 1960. Both movements, he de- clared, were supported by neo-colonialists who wished to dominate African countries by dividing them.

Questioning the motives of the states that had recognized Biafra was a consistent theme of the summit meeting. In his inaugural remarks Presi- dent Bournedienne of Algeria accused the sup- porters of Biafra of being agents of imperialism. As a result Zambia's President Kaunda, the only head-of-state of the four countries which recog- nized Biafra to attend, refused a previously ac- cepted nomination as a conference vice-president. Abrubtly he left for an official visit to France, before the final vote on Nigeria was taken.

The outcome was not surprising. Thirty-six voted for the resolution, two abstained (Rwanda and Botswana), and four against. Chief Awolowo,

head of the Nigerian delegation, thanked the O.A.U. for its reaffirmation of Nigeria's territorial integrity, and proceded to accuse the four offend- ing states of "a flagrant violation of the O.A.U. charter and a deliberate disregard of the resolu- tions adopted by the organization."

The debate over the reorganization of the O.A.U.'s Liberation Committee, the "Committee of Nine", reflected the growing disillusionment of many O.A.U. members with the ineffectiveness of the various movements and their seeming in- ability to resolve personal squabbles. The plenary session refused a ten per cent increase in the Com- mittee of Nine's budget. They also established another committee to explore various reorganiza- tion plans for the liberation body. Tunisia's sug- gestion was to set up the Liberation Committee along the lines of the U.N. Security Council, with both permanent and rotating membership. Al- though rejected by the full body, such an eco- nomizing move is likely to be brought up again.

The only other significant piece of business to come before the summit meeting -was the re- election of Diallo Telli to a second four-year term as Secretary-General of the O.A.U. A great num- ber of the "moderate" states disliked M. Telli. but, although they were in the vast majority they were in the end unable to prevent his election This was partly the result of the greater unity and superior diplomacy on the part of the 'revolu- tionary" states. When it came to a vote at the end of the conference, only one minor candidate op- posed M. Telli. M. Fidele Nkundabagenzi, the Secretary-General of the Rwandan cooperation ministry, inspired little enthusiasm. Although he dropped out after the third ballot, Diallo Telli was unable to acquire the necessary two-thirds majority until the sixth ballot, taken at five A.M. of the final session.

How then can we assess the results of the 5th annual summit conference of the O.A.U.? The only resolution of importance was a negative one that gave full support to the Federal Government of Nigeria, but came no closer to resolving the issues that divide that country. Is it enough that states of such differing political tendencies as Senegal and Mali, or Algeria and Morocco, met together? There seems to be some justification for such a view, particularly as it relates to Al- geria and Morocco. The leaders of these two countries have not met since the 1963 Sahara border war. After a series of private, unpubli- cized encounters at the Algiers conference, in- formed sources indicated there had been "a sig- nificant improvement" in relations between the two countries.

In addition the O.A.U. meeting provided an opportunity for bi-lateral exchanges particularly of economic information at the very highest level. But these are more vague hopes of the delegates than realistic results of this year's O.A.U. summit conference. If the O.A.U. is to survive as a viable organization, it will have to overcome its appar- ent immobility and take effective action on the is~sues that confront and divide the nations of Africa. As it stands now the O.A.U. is in danger of dying.

Cynthia Kahn

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