Introduction
1- Background of the study
1.1- Africa: a continent of conflicts and political crisis
Africa has been a theater of armed conflicts in a manner that
it is typical continental experience. Roughly thirty percent of conflicts over
the past five decades have occurred in Africa causing twice as many fatalities
as conflicts in other regions (Hoeffler, 2014). These conflicts, mainly
intra-state conflicts, have brought many of African economies to the brink of
collapse along with the loss of millions of lives, widespread displacement and
a wide array of human rights abuses (Ndiho, 2010). For instance, for decades,
countries such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Africa, Angola,
Liberia, Sierra Leone, Côte d'Ivoire and Guinea- Bissau, etc, were
crippled by conflicts and civil strife in which violence and incessant killings
were prevalent. Alao (2000) argues that these violent conflicts are very often
characterized by the following patterns:
(a) tensions between sub-national groups stemming from the
collapse of old patterns of relationships that provided the framework for
collaboration among the many ethnic groups in most states;
(b) disputes over resource sharing arising from gross
disparities in wealth among different groups within the same countries and the
consequent struggles for reform of economic systems to ensure an equitable
distribution of economic power;
(c) struggles for democratization, good governance and reform
of political systems;
(d) crises resulting from the systemic failures in the
administration of justice and the inability of states to guarantee the security
of the population;
(e) clashes relating to religious cleavages and religious
fundamentalism.
1.2- In search of effective solutions
It was with the aim to address such conflicts that arose since
the independence that the first continental organization by the name the
Organization of African Unity (OAU) was created in 1963 so that problems of
Africa could be solved by the Africans themselves. However, while OAU was
supposed to be praised for its achievement in supporting efforts to eradicate
colonialism from the continent, it failed to effectively address issues related
with its legacies. Particularly crisis related with ethnicity and the quest for
democracy are said to be challenges that the organization failed to tackle in
its capacity. For instance, the organization had been blamed for inaction to
stop the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, and in not finding lasting solutions to the
conflict in the DRC, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and Sudan, among others.
The drawback in this respect is to some extent attributed to the provisions
within the charter that
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established OAU which hampered its operation significantly.
Particularly the concern for respecting sovereignty of member states was
supposed to be obstacles that curtailed most of its aspiration.
Consequently there arose a need for more effective
organizational framework to address the practical political, economic, social,
etc issues in order for a bright continental future. This resulted in the
transformation of OAU into AU (African Union) in 2002 with a lot of hopes and
expectations. Among the agendas with due concern in the new organization was
the issue of peace and security. In line with this, the Protocol relating to
the establishment of the Peace and Security Council (PSC), which was ratified
by the requisite number of member States in December 2003, commits the AU to
work towards the well-being of the African people and their environment, as
well as the creation of conditions conducive to sustainable development.
Furthermore, it calls for the promotion of democratic practices, good
governance, the rule of law, protection of human rights and fundamental
freedoms, respect for the sanctity of human life and international humanitarian
law by member States (PSC, art 2). The Constitutive Act and the PSC Protocol
gives the AU the power to create the structures and processes necessary for the
establishment of a comprehensive peace and security architecture for the
Continent. This architecture includes the PSC, the AU Commission, the Panel of
the Wise, the African Standby Force (ASF), and the Continental Early Warning
System (CEWS). The PSC Protocol also provides for closer collaboration between
the AU and the Regional Mechanisms for Conflict Prevention, Management and
Resolution (AU, 2002).
With these norms, values, and principles, the AU since 2004
have taken initiatives with significant success. According to (Ndiho, 2010), in
1990, there were about 20 wars going on simultaneously in Africa but by 2010,
there were only four ongoing wars and this is a big success story for AU. For
example effective measures were taken against States with unconstitutional
changes of government, particularly the coup d'état in the Central
African Republic (2003), Guinea Bissau (2003 and 2012), Sao Tome and Principe
(2003), Togo (2005), Mauritania (2005 and 2008), Guinea (2008), Madagascar
(2009), and Niger (2010) (Col. Abiodun Joseph Oluwadare, 2015). The council has
also been able to authorize peace operations in Burundi, Somalia, Sudan, and
the Comoros. AU's first mission was deployed in Burundi where transition to
self-rule was characterized by ethnic violence between the Hutu majority and
the Tutsi minority. The mission was described as one of the AU's biggest
success stories as it made concerted efforts to prevent genocides in the Great
Lakes region, and played a crucial role in the ceasefire negotiations.
Besides, the AU Commission also provided strategic, political,
technical, and planning support to operations authorized by the Peace and
Security Council and carried out by regional coalitions of Member States,
Regional Economic Communities (RECs), or Regional Mechanisms for Conflict
Prevention, Management and Resolution (RMs). Such support includes the Regional
Cooperation Initiative against the Lord's Resistance Army (RCI-LRA) and the
operation against Boko Haram undertaken by the Lake Chad Basin Commission and
Benin - the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).
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1.3- Persisting nature of conflicts and the eruption of Mali
crisis
Despite the forthright initiatives of the AU in conflict
resolution, Africa Briefing Report (2011), says there remains a discrepancy
between the AU capacity on paper and its actual impact in crisis situations as
incidents of violent conflicts have persisted in Africa. Old conflicts have
continued in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Somalia, and Sudan, as
well as in the Central African Republic (CAR). To this are added emerging
conflicts including a wave emanating from uprising against sit-tight and
despotic leaders which covered North Africa, from Tunisia, Egypt to Libya in
2011, which culminated by the eruption in 2012 of the devastating armed
conflict in Mali with imposing new challenges in the Sahelo-Saharan region.
To respond to this last crisis, the African Union along with
its Regional Economic community (REC), ECOWAS engaged very early in the
conflict through preventive and peacekeeping measures to bring African
solutions to African problems. Unfortunately, once again, the continental body
was not successful as expected. Neither the diplomatic nor the military
initiatives could prevent the crisis from escalating. The Western solutions
were therefore called upon to help stabilize Mali. This resulted in the
deployment of the «operation Serval» by French, the change of AFISMA
by MINUSMA. Furthermore, even if the AU was part of the Algerian peace process,
it was not the main actor.
2- Research questions
The situation of armed conflicts in Africa in light of the
ongoing Malian crisis raises the question of Africa's capability and commitment
to solve its own problems. Is the African Union and its sub-regional
organizations, doing enough to prevent and resolve conflicts on the continent?
What prevents the African continental organization to fully operationalize the
peace and security framework? What can be the possible measures to find
«African solutions to African problems»? These are the questions
which are raised and this study will try to find some answers.
3- Rationale
This issue is worth studying given the fact that peace and
security are necessary precondition for sustainable growth and development any
nation aspires to bring about. Besides, for continents like Africa where there
exist a great deal of records of conflicts and in fact still a political
reality today, researches aimed at searching for alternative ways to deal with
issue of peace and security are by far important. Specifically this study is
claimed to be significant in two dimensions. In the first place, it tries to
unfold the continental potential and practical capacity at the disposal of the
continental organization (AU) to address peace and security. Secondly it tries
to explore the Malian problem in light of the continental initiative to deal
with the challenge of peace and security, so that it is possible to
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understand the gaps between potentials and practical
capacities of Africans in solving African problems and suggest ways forward.
4- Objectives 4.1- General objective
The basic objective of this study is to analyze the status of
the African Union in discharging its responsibilities with respect to
maintaining continental peace and security in light of the Malian political
crisis.
4.2- Specific objectives
In specific terms this study is supposed to:
- Identify the root causes of the Malian political crisis;
- Identify the Actors in the Malian political crisis;
- Portray the consequences of the Malian political crisis;
- Illustrate the role of AU in dealing with the Malian political
crisis;
- Show the challenges AU faced in the Malian political
crisis;
- Ascertain what the African Union must do for the Union to
remain effective in African conflict
resolution.
5- Sphere of application and target group
It is intended that the outcome of this study will help to
stimulate further debate in the area of conflict resolution in Africa. In
addition to the above, the study will generate debate with regards to the
relevance of the AU in conflict resolution in Africa. This is against the
background of the verdict of irrelevance, seemingly given to the defunct OAU
and some suggestions to the effect that the AU has not been significantly
effective in the resolution of African crisis.
Findings of the study will therefore be useful in the
re-positioning of the African Union (AU), for optimal performance in conflict
resolution. In addition to the foregoing, findings of the study will be useful
to the political elite in Africa, in instituting best practices in their
policies and politics, as it is the absence of such progressive political
practices that bring about violent political conflicts. African and non-African
leaders at other non-political levels, will also find beneficial, the findings
of the study, as issues of conflict resolution cut across leadership
spheres.
6- Structure
The dissertation is structured around three (03) chapters. The
first chapter deals with the theoretical and methodological frameworks
including on the one hand the definition of concepts and the relevant
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theories developed in the analysis of armed conflicts along
with the literature review and the AU framework in dealing with conflict
prevention and resolution, and on the other hand the methodology used for this
study as well as the description of the study area.
The second chapter deals with the analysis of the Malian armed
conflict including an overview of the conflict, the impact, the root causes as
well as the actors of the conflict.
The third chapter provides, the practical conflict resolution
efforts undertaken by the sub-regional (ECOWAS) and regional (AU) actors in the
Malian conflict. This includes the political and diplomatic efforts as well as
the military efforts deployed in support of diplomatic ones. Finally, some
observations related to the challenges and limits of the initiatives resulting
from the gap existing between the theoretical provisions and the practical
aspects of AU peace intervention lead to the formulation of some
recommendations on the way forward.
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Chapter 1: THEORETICAL, METHODOLOGICAL AND CONTEXTUAL
FRAMEWORKS
1- Theoretical framework
1.1- Definition of concepts
Conflict
The word "conflict" remains a very ambiguous word and is
therefore taken as an umbrella term that can be used to refer to diverse
situations. Scholars such as Rubin et al. (1994), Lewicki et al.
(1997) consider conflict to be «the interaction of interdependent
people who perceived incompatible goals and interference from each other in
achieving those goals». Barki and Hartwick (2004) elaborated upon
these efforts by defining conflict as «a dynamic process that occurs
between interdependent parties as they experience negative emotional reactions
to perceived disagreements and interference with the attainment of their
goals». According to the Responding to Conflict (RTC)1,
conflict is «a relationship between two or more parties (individuals
or groups) who have, or think they have, incompatible goals.» From
this definition, there is no conflict as long as parties or actors do not
recognize that the situation is problematic and conflictual. However, it is not
because a situation is not recognized as a conflict that there is no latent
problem slowly growing and dividing parties.
Conflict can therefore be described as a disagreement among
groups or individuals characterized by antagonism. This is usually fueled by
the opposition of one party to another, in an attempt to reach an objective
different from that of the other party. Defined this way, conflict can be seen
as an inevitable part of life. Each of us possesses our own opinions, ideas and
sets of beliefs. We have our own ways of looking at things and we act according
to what we think is proper. As such conflicts are daily occurrences with family
members, friends, strangers, colleagues, etc.
Experience in human society has shown that there are degrees
of variation in conflicts. Conflicts are classified in types. Psychology as a
discipline has espoused on intra-personal conflict. Sociology identifies
inter-personal and intra-group or intra-unit conflict, as well as inter-group
conflict.
Conflict should normally be an opportunity for growth and can
be an effective means of opening up among groups or individuals. But when the
conflict is unsolved or not transformed properly, it takes more complex
dimensions with polarizations yielding to hostility, violence and armed
conflict.
1 RTC is a non-governmental organization that works
to transform conflict and build peace by working alongside people living in
situations of conflict and violence to develop the skills, knowledge and
confidence to create and implement strategies for peace.
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Violent or Armed Conflict
According to Dan Smith (2001), violent or armed conflict is
defined as open, armed clashes between two or more centrally organized parties,
with continuity between the clashes, in disputes about power over government
and territory. In international relations, this type of conflict can be
interstate or intrastrate. While Interstate armed conflict is a conflict
between two or more states who use their respective national forces in the
conflict, intrastate violent conflict is describes as sustained political
violence that takes place between armed groups representing the state, and one
or more non-state groups. Violence of this sort usually is confined within the
borders of a single state, but can have significant international dimensions
and holds the risk of spilling over into bordering states.
Before and during the Cold War, interstates armed conflicts
were predominant in the world, but since the end of the Cold War, the most
common form of conflict is the intrastate violence. Smith says that of the 118
armed conflicts which ensued from 1990, only ten can be strictly defined as
interstate conflicts, more than hundred are intrastate conflicts. With the
increasing number of intrastate armed conflicts, more attention is given by
scholars who develop different theories to help understand the new trends.
1.2- Theories of intrastate conflicts
For the purpose of coming up with a comprehensive
understanding of the Malian complex armed conflict, two types of theories of
conflict are used in this study. The first ones are theories put forward to
explain causes of conflict and the second ones are theories for conflict
pacification or resolution.
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