Keesing's Record of World Events (formerly Keesing's Contemporary Archives), Volume 12, December, 1966 , , Page 21738 © 1931-2006 Keesing's Worldwide, LLC - All Rights Reserved. The Ghana-Guinea Dispute.

The fourth Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the member-States of the Organization of African Unity (O.A.U.) took place in on Nov. 5–9. It was preceded by a meeting of the Council of Ministers of the O.A.U., but this meeting, as well as the Assembly itself, was largely overshadowed by a dispute caused by the Government of Ghana in intercepting and detaining the Guinean mission to the O.A.U.

On Oct. 29 the Ghanaian authorities removed from a Pan American Airways airliner (calling at on a scheduled flight from to Lagos) the four members of the Guinean delegation to the O.A.U. conference, including Dr. Louis Lansana Beavogui (the Foreign Minister of Guinea) and 15 Guinean students travelling to Lagos, and detained all 19 at an Army camp. The Ghanaian Government announced the same day that the detained Guineans would not be released unless the Guinean Government released those Ghanaians who were “illegally detained” in Guinea.

The Accra statement said that Ghana had been forced to take this action “to seek redress from a country which has shown a total disregard for normal international behaviour.” Admitting that under normal circumstances the detentions would have been contrary to diplomatic norms, the statement referred to Guinea's “consistently hostile” attitude and its threats to invade Ghana in order to restore Dr. Nkrumah to power.

General Ankrah, the Head of the Military Government of Ghana, said at a press conference on Oct. 31 that the Guineans would not be released until President Sekou Toure “comes to reason and releases those Ghanaians whom he is holding against their will in Conakry.” Among the “undiplomatic acts” which he alleged had been committed by the Government of Guinea were a raid on the Ghanaian Embassy in Conakry in February; permission given to the head of Dr. Nkrumah's security guards, Mr. Ambrose Yankey, to sign cheques on Embassy accounts; the removal of the Ghanaian Ambassador and his wife from an aircraft, and their arrest; and the training of Ghanaians for the overthrow of the new regime and the restoration of Dr. Nkrumah to power.

When the Ghanaian action against the Guinean delegation became known in Conakry, the Government of Guinea called for demonstrations against the “machinations of American imperialism and its puppets in Accra”; Radio Conakry announced on Oct. 30 that the U.S. Ambassador in Conakry, Mr. Robinson McIlvaine, had been placed under house-arrest because the Guinean Government held the U.S. Government “entirely responsible for the seizure of its delegation in Accra.” A communique issued by the ruling Parti democratique de Guinee (P.D.G.) said that the U.S. Government must “fulfil its obligations by carrying the Guinean delegation to Addis Ababa before the opening of the session.” The U.S. State Department strongly protested on the same day against the restriction imposed upon Mr. McIlvaine; demanded his immediate release and that of a local official of Pan American Airways who had been similarly restricted; and denied that either the U.S. Government or Pan American Airways were in any way responsible for the incident. Mr. McIlvaine was released from restriction on Oct. 31, but the American Embassy in Conakry was attacked the same day by about 50,000 demonstrators led by youth leaders and members of the militia of the P.D.G. The U.S. Government sent a strong protest against the attack.

On Nov. 2 Mr. Edward M. Korry, the U.S. Ambassador to , handed to M. Diallo Telli, the Secretary-General of the O.A.U., a Note expressing U.S. disapproval of Ghana's detention of the 19 Guineans as “contrary to accepted international practice,” but at the same time repeating the U.S. protest over Guinea's reprisals against the American Embassy in Conakry.

The Guinean Government on Nov. 8 nevertheless expelled 64 American Peace Corps volunteers and eight staff members, as well as U.S. Information Service personnel, and closed Conakry airport to Pan American Airways.

Previously the Government of Ghana had requested the O.A.U. to include in the agenda for the Assembly the question of about 30 students and 70 officials allegedly detained in Conakry against their will. The officials were those who had gone to Guinea with ex-President Nkrumah after his return from Communist China, while the students had originally intended to aid the former President to return to power in Ghana; 23 of them had later tried to flee from Ghana, but (the Ghanaian Government alleged) had been intercepted and imprisoned in Guinea–though this was denied by the Guinean Government.

On hearing of the Ghanaian action against the Guinean delegation, Mr. Ketema Yifru, the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, immediately sent a protest to the Government of Ghana, and Mr. Mammo Tadesse, the Ethiopian Minister of Justice, arrived in Accra early on Oct. 31 as special envoy of the Emperor Haile Selassie. After meeting Mr. Tadesse, General Ankrah announced that he had told the Emperor's envoy that he would not release the Guineans before Guinea returned the detained Ghanaians to Ghana.

An official Ethiopian communique (Oct. 30) described the Ghanaian action as “a violation of international law” and of international practice as well as of the conventions signed by all O.A.U. member-States, including Ghana; it maintained that, having requested the O.A.U. to examine the question of the detention of Ghanaians in Conakry, Ghana was not entitled to act unilaterally. In reply, Brigadier A. K. Ocran, the leader of the Ghanaian delegation to the meeting of the Council of Ministers, accused the Ethiopian Government of violating the O.A.U. Charter and of arrogating to itself the right “to give instructions to the Government of Ghana on what to do or not to do.” He added that the Ethiopian reproaches should have been addressed to Guinea; Justified the detentions by referring to Guinea's “systematic refusal” to release the Ghanaians detained in that country; and called on the Council of Ministers to give priority to the dispute between Ghana and Guinea.

The Ghanaian action was also condemned by , the U.A.R., , and Communist China. In President Boumedienne sent a special message of sympathy to President Sekou Toure, and M. Bouteflika, the Foreign Minister, demanded the “immediate and unconditional release” of the Guinean delegation. In Mr. Mahmoud Riad, the U.A.R. Foreign Minister, handed the Ghanaian Ambassador a demand for the release of the Guinean delegation, but the U.A.R. Government also offered to mediate between the two countries. In Dac-es-Salaam a statement issued by the Tanzanian Government described Ghana's decision as “an insult not only to Guinea but also to the O.A.U. and ” and said that it might Jeopardize the success of the O.A.U. conference.

In Peking the New China News Agency announced on Oct. 31 that Marshal Chen Yi (the Chinese Foreign Minister) had expressed his “indignation at the outrage committed by American imperialists in collusion with the reactionary Ghanaian authorities.”

An appeal to Ghana for the release of the Guineans was made on Nov. 2 by U Thant, the U.N. Secretary-General, who informed President Toure of his action and asked him at the same time to accede to a request by Ghana that the Red Cross or some other “acceptable” international agency should be permitted to ascertain whether Ghanaians held in Guinea wished to return to Ghana. U Thant's offer to mediate was accepted by the Government of Ghana on Nov. 4.

The Council of Ministers of the O.A.U. had meanwhile decided on Oct. 31 to send to both Accra and Conakry a special mission consisting of M. Justin Bomboko (Foreign Minister of the Congo- ), Vice-President Murumbi of , and Mr. John Williams ( Minister of Information) in order to bring about the release of the Guinean delegation and to improve relations between the two countries. On arriving in Accra on Nov. 2 the mission called upon General Ankrah, who explained to them at length his grievances against Guinea. After hearing evidence from three Ghanaian security men who had recently escaped from Guinea, the mission proceeded to Conakry later the same day. On the mission's return to Accra on Nov. 7 M. Bomboko reported that 82 Ghanaians questioned in Guinea had stated that they were not being detained there against their will.

Meanwhile M. Cisse Fode, the Guinean Charge d’Affaires in Cairo, had on Nov. 2 informed the O.A.U. Council of Ministers that the Ghanaian delegation had assured him that the four detained Guinean diplomats would be released before the opening of the O.A.U. Assembly. No action, however, was taken by Ghana until Nov. 5, when General Ankrah, as head of the Ghanaian delegation to the Assembly, met Emperor Haile Selassie and Presidents Nasser and Tubman at a four-hour conference, and as a result agreed to the release of the Guineans held in Ghana. The four Guinean delegates thereupon left Accra by air the next day for Lagos, where, however, they received instructions from the Guinean Government on Nov. 7 to return to Conakry. The 15 Guinean students had meanwhile also continued their journey to Lagos.

President Sekou Toure had sent a message to the O.A.U. on Nov. 2 promising that any Ghanaians who so desired would be repatriated to Ghana at Guinea's expense. To enable President Toure to attend the Assembly, President Nasser had sent a special aircraft to bring him from Conakry to Addis Ababa, but on Nov. 6 President Toure announced that the “insult” to Guinea was “not wiped out” because the other African leaders had accepted the presence of General Ankrah at Addis Ababa, and he would therefore refuse to attend the O.A.U. Assembly. A Guinean mission nevertheless arrived in Addis Ababa on Nov. 8, led by M. Leon Maka (the president of the National Assembly), with instructions to take no part in the work of the O.A.U. but to “enlighten” the “friendly” delegations on the bad treatment allegedly meted out to the Guinean “hostages” in Ghana.

The seventh meeting of the Council of Ministers of the O.A.U., held in camera and presided over by M. Bomboko, opened on Oct. 31, with Guinea being unrepresented.

The Emperor Haile Selassie, in his opening speech, appealed to both Ghana and Guinea to settle their dispute in the interest of the ideal of African unity and solidarity. He called for pressure to be exerted on Britain for stronger action in Rhodesia “before the whole of the African continent is plunged into a racial war,” adding that half-measures would prove to he without effect.

The meeting thereupon approved the admission of the newly independent States of and as members of the O.A.U., bringing the membership of the Organization to 38 States.

The Council subsequently dealt with “decolonization” as it affected various African territories, and also with inter-African disputes and matters concerning the structure and activities of the O.A.U. itself.

Rhodesia. The Council approved, with some amendments, a draft resolution submitted by a sub- committee, condemning “British procrastination,” appealing for a programme of sanctions against the Smith regime, and providing for the setting-up of a “committee of solidarity” with . It declined, however, to make a renewed appeal for a break in diplomatic relations with Britain, although President Nyerere had alleged in a memorandum that Britain “clearly wants to create a second ,” and had called on all member-States to break off diplomatic relations with the U.K. “to restore the honour of Africa.” On a proposal by the for the recognition of a Government-in-exile for Rhodesia, the Council decided to appoint a sub- committee to draft a resolution on the subject.

Portuguese Territories. The Council decided to send a “military mission” to and Cabinda in order to evaluate the respective importance of forces led by the “Revolutionary Angolan Government -in-exile” (G.R.A.E.) under Senhor Holden Roberto and the “Popular Liberation Movement of Angola” (M.P.L.A.) under Dr. Agostinho Neto, and to reassess O.A.U. aid to the two move, meats accordingly.

Comoro Islands. A proposal by Tanzania and the U.A.R. to call upon to concede self- determination to the Comoro Islands (N.W. of ) failed to gain the necessary majority, obtaining only 17 votes, with two against and 13 abstentions. [In a memorandum submitted by M. Abdou Bakari Boina, secretary-general of the “Comoro Liberation Movement” with offices in Tanzania, it had been demanded that the islands should be included as a non-independent country in the list made up by the U.N.

French . The Council resolved to invite the population of to decide on its future “in unity and cohesion” in the referendum proposed by the French Government. A draft resolution by urging the people of Djibouti “resolutely to choose” independence was rejected, obtaining only 17 out of 37 votes.

Algerian-Moroccan Border Dispute. This territorial dispute, unresolved since 1963, was referred back to the ad hoc commission dealing with it.

Burundi. A complaint against , raised by the delegation on Nov. 4, stated that terrorist gangs of Tutsi refugees from Burundi, allegedly led by Burundi Army officers, were disturbing the peace of Rwanda. The Foreign Minister of Burundi rejected the complaint, declaring that Rwanda had exterminated 200,000 Tutsis on its own soil, that there were some 80,000 Tutsi refugees in his country. and that Rwanda should be grateful to the Government of Burundi for giving these refugees humanitarian aid with the help of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. The meeting requested the Government of the Congo (Kinshasa) to try to effect a reconciliation between the two countries, and a Congolese mission set up for this purpose left Kinshasa on Nov. 18 for Rwanda and Burundi.

Liberation Committee. After debating criticism of the “Liberation Committee” stationed in Dar-es-Salaam on Nov. 2, the Council overruled a Tunisian proposal to abolish it and decided instead (a) to appoint a new committee of 10 members charged with finding ways of making the committee more effective; (b) to place its executive committee under the direct control of the secretariat-general of the O.A.U.; and (c) to exclude any initiative of a political nature from its activities.

Commenting on the debate afterwards, Mr. Oscar Kambona (Tanzanian Minister of Regional Administration and chairman of the committee) said that the Liberation Committee could do nothing as it had no army to invade the colonial territories. He added: “If we have done nothing else we have frightened the imperialists.” In reply to reproaches that “freedom fighters” in Dar- es-Salaam were spending O.A.U. money by “living in big hotels and buying smart suits,” he said: “Of course there are renegades in every movement.”

Pan-African Press Agency. Discussions on the creation of a Pan-African Press Agency were abandoned on Nov. 2 because of the excessive cost which would be involved.

The Assembly, which was held on Nov. 5–9, was attended by 16 Heads of State or Government, the other member-States of the O.A.U. being represented only by Cabinet Ministers or diplomats.

The countries represented by their Heads of State or Government were: Algeria–President Boumedienne; –President Ahidjo; –President Bokassa; Ethiopia–Emperor Haile Selassie; Gambia–.Sir David Jawara, Prime Minister; Ghana–General Ankrah, Head of Military Government; Lesotho–King Moshoeshoe II; –President Tubman; –President Modibo Keita; –President Ould Daddah; Sierra Leone–Sir Albert Margai, Prime Minister; Somalia–Mr. Abdirizak Hadji Hussein, Prime Minister; Sudan– President Ismail el Azhari; Tanzania–President Nyerere; United Arab Republic–President Nasser; and Zambia–President Kaunda. A notable absentee was President Senghor of , who during October had had a dispute with President Sekou Toure–the latter having alleged that Senegal maintained, with French complicity, a training camp for men who intended to overthrow the Conakry regime, and the President of Senegal having demanded that the Guinean President should publicly withdraw this allegation.

While there were observers present from various National Liberation Movements, two members of the United People's Party (the official Opposition in the Rhodesian Parliament), Mr. Percy Mkudu and Mr. Joel Behane, who had intended to attend the Assembly as observers, were refused permission to enter Ethiopia because they carried Rhodesian passports issued after U.D.I. They said at Blantyre () on Nov. 6 that they had instead sent a memorandum to Addis Ababa.

The Assembly was opened by the Emperor of Ethiopia.

Emperor Haile Selassie said inter alia with regard to the Rhodesian problem: “If we wish to avoid a situation which is extremely dangerous for Africa, the United Kingdom must depose the present Rhodesian regime with all means at her disposal, including force.” He expressed disquiet at the situation in Djibouti, to which Ethiopia was “linked by numerous historical and economic ties.”

President Bokassa proposed on Nov. 7 that greater powers to mediate in disputes should be given to the Secretary-General of the O.A.U. who, however, “would have to be a very eminent personage, completely impartial, and enjoying the confidence of all member-States of the O.A.U.”; and that the O.A.U. should set up a special emergency military force to intervene in armed conflicts in Africa.

King Moshoeshoe II said that, although entirely surrounded by South Africa, Lesotho rejected the doctrine of apartheid, would refuse to recognize the Smith regime in Rhodesia, would continue to give asylum to political refugees from South Africa, and would assist any of them wishing to leave Lesotho by taking up the question of an airlift with the South African Government.

Mr. M.P. K. Nwaka, the External Affairs Minister of Botswana, expressing similar views, asked African leaders to realize that his country was vulnerable because of its economic dependence on South Africa and could perhaps not fulfil all obligations involved in O.A.U. membership. He appealed to the O.A.U. to give aid to Botswana.

President Kaunda alleged on Nov. 8, during the debate on Rhodesia, that the Smith regime had recruited British mercenaries to patrol the borders of Rhodesia and that saboteurs from Angola and were operating in Zambia. As a result of the Rhodesian U.D.I., he said, Zambia had spent £30,000,000 not provided for in the Zambian budget, but before deciding whether to accept the £14,000,000 offered by Britain she was awaiting the outcome of the talks between Britain and the Smith regime. The principal topics dealt with by the Assembly, apart from the dispute between Ghana and Guinea, were Rhodesia, French Somaliland, Burundi, and the O.A.U. Liberation Committee.

Rhodesia. In a resolution adopted on Nov. 8 the talks between the British Government and the Smith regime were described as “a conspiracy aimed at recognizing the independence seized by rebel settlers.” It again called on Britain to bring about the immediate downfall of the Smith regime “by any means, including the use of force”; urged all O.A.U. member-States and all other States to support full mandatory sanctions against Rhodesia and to refuse recognition of the Smith regime and of any “independent regime which the present talks between Britain and the Rhodesian rebels may bring about, unless such a Government is based on majority rule”; and condemned States giving support to the Rhodesian regime, in particular Portugal and South Africa. The Assembly decided not to recognize a Rhodesian Government-in-exile, because this would “complicate further an already complex matter.”

French Somaliland. The Assembly took note of the French Government's decision to grant self- determination to the territory's population by means of a referendum, and expressed the hope that this would take place on an entirely free, democratic, and impartial basis.

Burundi. On the dispute between Rwanda and Burundi the Assembly decided on Nov. 9 to ask the Government of Upper Volta to draw up an appeal to the two countries requesting them to abstain from all hostile action against each other.

Liberation Committee. The Assembly resolved on Nov. 9 to extend the committee's budget until the next meeting of the Council of Ministers in February 1967. President Nyerere had previously walked out during the debate, having threatened to order the committee to leave Dan- es-Salaam unless sufficient funds were provided.

The Assembly rejected a proposal that it should meet only every two years and resolved to meet again during the first half of September 1967 in Addis Ababa. It held its final session without having completed its agenda and in the absence of six Heads of State and Government who had attended previous sessions. Among them, Presidents Nasser and Boumedienne had left Addis Ababa the previous day; it was understood that the President of the U.A.R. had been disappointed by President Sekou Toure's refusal to attend the Assembly and to honour an alleged undertaking to release the Ghanaians held in Guinea.

In his closing speech on Nov. 9 the Emperor Haile Selassie underlined the “realism” of the resolutions adopted and affirmed that “this time those who criticize Africa will not be able to say that they are not being applied.”

President Boumedienne said on his return to Algiers on Nov. 8: “The most important result of this conference is that it has been possible to hold it despite numerous difficulties and troubles experienced by the African continent and despite numerous attempts by imperialism and colonialism to wreck the work of the O.A.U.”

President Nyerere said in Dan-es-Salaam on Nov. 10 that African nations would have to decide whether to give priority to their continent or to their former colonial masters, as the meeting had demonstrated that Britain and France had more power in the O.A.U. than the whole of Africa put together. He added: “ Africa is in a mess… I am a good superstitions African and I believe in devils. There must be a devil somewhere in Africa.”–(Times - Guardian - Daily Telegraph - Le Monde - New York Times - Cape Times - U.N. Information Centre, London)

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