|
Address by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini
Zuma in the State of the Nation Debate, The National Assembly, Parliament, Cape
Town 16 February 2005
Madame Speaker
President Mbeki
Deputy President
Zuma
Ministers
Comrades
Honourable Members
"There shall be peace
and friendship!
South Africa shall be a fully independent state which respects
the rights and sovereignty of all nations;
South Africa shall strive to maintain
world peace and the settlement of all international disputes by negotiation -
not war; Peace and friendship amongst all our people shall be secured by
upholding the equal rights, opportunities and status of all; … The
right of all peoples of Africa to independence and self-government shall be recognised,
and shall be the basis of close co-operation." This is what the people
of this country declared 50 years ago, led by the ANC which has always been the
driving force for progressive change. Mr President, in outlining the key
elements of our international agenda and programme, you said:
"We shall
do all this, Madame Speaker, conscious of the responsibility that we have not
only to our own citizens, but also to the rest of humanity in pursuing the goal
of a better world. In the first instance, our greatest challenge in this
regard is to consolidate the African agenda, and we can draw inspiration from
the many positive developments on the continent since we addressed the Joint Sitting
of Parliament last May". This illustrates that the ANC-led government
has been true to the international vision and tradition of our people and the
founding leaders of our Movement. We continue to give concrete expression
to one of the fundamental aims and objectives of the ANC which is the cause of
the National Liberation and the right to independence of nations in Africa and
the rest of the world. In our work on the continent we continue to be guided
by a basic understanding so simply put by our first Nobel Laureate, Chief Albert
Luthuli, when he delivered his lecture at the University of Oslo on December 11th
1961 when he said: "All Africa has this single aim: our goal is a United
Africa in which the standard of life and liberty are constantly expanding…The
goal pursued by millions of our people with revolutionary zeal … carries
the only real promise of peace in Africa". It is this same content
of Africa's liberation that President Mandela expressed in his address to the
OAU Summit in Tunis in 1994 when he said: "If freedom was the crown
which the fighters of liberation sought to place on the head of Mother Africa,
let the upliftment, the happiness, prosperity and comfort of her children be the
jewel of the crown". This content of our engagement means that our
engagement with the world is guided by the same goals that we pursue everyday
of our lives here at home viz., pushing back the frontiers of poverty and underdevelopment,
and the constant expansion of the vistas for human advancement and freedom. Thus
Madame Speaker, the founding President of our democratic state redefined our relations
with the continent- away from being a source of suffering and pain to being a
potent force for good and for the all round regeneration and advance of our continent. Madame
Speaker, I have drawn your attention to an enduring perspective that has shaped
the attitude of the ANC primarily in its engagement with the continent but also
with the broader global community. It is a perspective that continues to inspire
and guide us even today as we find our bearings through a maze of complexities
in the execution of our tasks. We remain consistent because our approach
is rooted in a rich legacy of practical experience, intellectual interrogation
and moral judgement. It is in this context Mr President that we salute you
for your leadership in ensuring that whatever difficulties, we stay the course;
that we do not betray our people simply because the alternative may bring short-term
comfort and popularity. A luta Continua. Madame Speaker - it is also
against this background that we wish to make it clear that in whatever form it
arises any fundamental challenge to our expression of support to the advancement
of our continent like the now fashionable questioning in some quarters of the
time devoted by the President and Deputy President to the affairs of the continent-
we shall treat with the contempt it deserves. We do so fully confident of the
support of our people and the verdict of time. We also do so in the knowledge
that the security of our own future objectively depends on and Africa that is
free, peaceful, democratic and prosperous. Thus we shall: - Strengthen
the AU and its organs both materially and morally.
- Continue to support
the advance and consolidation of democracy in the DRC and Burundi;
- Contribute
what we can to the post conflict reconstruction in Angola and the Comores. We
are consequently proud that our country is currently playing host to the Prime
Minister of Angola who is here as a guest of the Deputy President;
- Continue
to support the legitimate struggle of the people of Western Sahara based on their
right to self-determination.
- As you indicated, we are inspired by the
comprehensive agreement between the Government of Sudan and the SPLM ending the
decades long conflict in our continent. On the 18th we shall be chairing the Post
Conflict Reconstruction Committee Meeting here in the mother city.
This
meeting will discuss the agreement itself and map out the action plan for the
committee in the coming years. The challenge is how to make sure that in the next
six years the lives of the people of Sudan especially in the South change for
the better to an extent that they vote to stay in a United Sudan. The alternative
will have wide-ranging negative implications. Our government together with
UNISA participated in an important exchange of ideas with the senior Leadership
of the SPLA\M in the South of Sudan from 5 - 8th February 2004. - Mr
President, we support you in your task in Cote d' Ivoire that you were asked to
carry out by the AU.
- The formation of the Transitional Federal Government
of Somalia heralds a new hope. The re-establishment of a State of Somalia is not
going to be easy but we have no choice but as part of the AU to participate in
that Herculean task.
- We support the President's position on Togo and the
holding of democratic elections in line with their constitution.
- The attainment
of sustained peace and enduring stability on the African continent can only become
a reality if there is also sustained socio-economic development. Therefore we
must focus on the implementation of NEPAD programmes. The only concern is the
much-needed resources to carry out this work. We must strive to make resources
available from our own continent for these processes.
- At the recent meeting
of the World Economic Forum in Davos, the challenge of Africa's renewal and development
was placed high on the global agenda. We are encouraged that the world's decision-makers
gathered at Davos sought to address the global and African challenge of poverty,
further paving the way for us together with our international partners to be able
to realise our developmental objectives.
- The UN report by Jeffrey Sachs
on the Millennium Development Goal indicates that Sub-Saharan Africa demonstrates
a widespread shortfall for most of the MDGs and is at the epicenter of crisis
and as a consequence requires specific poverty scale-up interventions by all.
Fortunately the same report makes the bold statement that the MDGs can still be
achieved by 2015 if there is renewed and intensive effort by al parties.
- Certainly
what we need is the realisation of the MDGs, but we also do need the Continent
to develop to its full potential and for Africans to posses a prosperous future.
- Of
course, Africa will only be able to boast about being free when its women are
also free. We ought to acknowledge the efforts of President Mbeki in this regard.
We know that the President has also strongly motivated and supported the AU positions
on gender parity within the organisation and its related organs and structures.
The AU also extended this requirements for governments to implement in all structures
of leadership in member states. In this regard, later this month and early in
March we shall participate in New York in a major UN meeting which will review
implementation of our commitments to the Beijing Platform of Action. We are certain
that this process will give further impetus to the realisation of women's emancipation
in the wider world.
- As part of our contribution in mobilising the African
continent and demonstrating our solidarity with the struggles of the people of
the Diaspora we will be participating in the Carribean Diaspora Conference. We
hope that this will lead to a global Africa Diaspora Conference that will ensure
that Africa's development needs are met.
- We are in fully agreement with
what President Mbeki has said about the Middle East. We are concerned with the
situation in Lebanon. But we believe that the resolution of the Israeli-Palestine
Middle East conflict will be a major contribution to peace in the world.
- This
year has seen a number of important events in the evolution of the global multilateral
system. As we previously reported, the High Level Panel set up by Secretary General
Kofi Annan has released its report. We have engaged this report and are fully
prepared to participate in the oncoming Ministerial meetings of the AU Executive
Council in Swaziland from the 20th to 22th February and in early March in Addis
Ababa called to discuss this report.
- In yesterday's debate, I found the
heckling of the Honourable A.U. Gaum rather unfortunate. It is very telling that
those who were derogative were being so to someone who was talking highly positive
things about our country. I would like to remind the Members of this House that
they are all supposed to be Ambassadors of South Africa.
- I found it rather
contradictory that Sheila Camerer claimed that she supports the Homecoming Revolution,
but then went on give a litany of reasons why South Africans abroad should not
come home. In essence, she is saying that she does not support this excellent
initiative.
- We have instructed our Missions to work closely with Angel
Jones and Marina Smithers of the Homecoming Revolution and hope this project the
greatest of success.
- It is high time that as South Africans we all agree
to act in the interests of our people, our country and our continent. This would
be a real homecoming for us all as we work towards a better country in a better
Africa and a better world.
Thank you. Issued by Ronnie Mamoepa
on 082 990 4853
Department of Foreign Affairs
Private Bag X152
Pretoria
0001 16
February 2005 | 
