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Thabo Mbeki Foundation Africa Day Lecture, UNISA, Tshwane, South Africa, 23Rd May 2014

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Thabo Mbeki Foundation Africa Day Lecture, UNISA, Tshwane, South Africa, 23Rd May 2014 Presentation by Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, “Defining the Leadership Paradigm for a New Africa” Annual Thabo Mbeki Foundation Africa Day Lecture, UNISA, Tshwane, South Africa, 23rd May 2014 Your Excellency President Thabo Mbeki, Patron of The Thabo Mbeki Foundation; Your Excellency the Vice President of Gambia, Madame Aisatu N'Jie-Saidy; Members of the Board of Trustees of the Thabo Mbeki Foundation; Honourable Ministers; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen; All protocols observed. As we are all very much aware that on Africa Day, we formally commemorate the creation of the Organisation of the African Unity in 1963, 51 years from this Sunday, as well as the inception of its successor, the African Union, just 12 years ago. Obviously, these landmark occasions signify the achievements of our liberated continent, the collective assertion of freedom, equality, and a distinctly pan-African identity as we reflect on our colonial past and as we define the future direction for our individual countries and our continent as a whole. We also take this day to honour the countless lives that were dedicated to our struggle, those whose contributions shall for ever continue to inspire us and remain indispensible in our collective efforts to realise a peaceful, stable, prosperous, and united Africa, much sooner than later. 1 Let me, therefore, hasten to pay my special tribute to you, President Thabo Mbeki, for your own personal contribution in that regard. Your tireless efforts in bringing peace and developing new thought leadership on accelerated socio- economic development on the continent, is well appreciated and greatly valued. I therefore take this opportunity to say, thank you very much President Mbeki for dedicating your entire life to the liberation and meaningful socio-economic transformation of our continent. The African continent left behind by the likes of Kwame Nkrumah; Gamal Abdel Nasser; Julius Nyerere; Ahmed Ben Ben Bella; Modibo Keita; Aboubakar Tafawa Balewa; Emperor Haille Sellasie; Kenneth Kaunda; Jomo Kenyatta; Patrice Lumumba; Amilcar Cabral; Eduardo Mondlane; Agostinho Neto; Sylvanus Olympio; Sir Milton Margai; Felix Houphouet Boigny; Leopold Sedar Senghor and your very own Oliver Tambo; and our recently departed leader and hero, Tata Nelson Mandela, just to mention a few who constituted the ‘Freedom Generation’ of African leadership finds in you, President Mbeki, a committed foot soldier, as the continent seeks to confidently march into the future and make the 21st Century, rightfully its own! Excellencies Ladies and Gentlemen, As I was preparing for this lecture I reflected on my own experiences in dealing with the problems of our continent, and especially with issues relating to the struggle for freedom and human dignity. I spent a greater part of my youth and considerable part of my adult life dealing with these issues. I did so at home in Tanzania where I took active part in Students and Youth organizations in Zanzibar from the age of Seventeen; in New York where I served as envoy of my 2 country to the United Nations and also as the Chairman of the United Nations Committee on Decolonization (Committee of 24) for eight years; and in Addis Ababa where I served as Secretary General of the Organisation of African Unity for three terms lasting twelve years. I especially reflected on the situation of South Africa and what the people of this country were going through and the concrete support given by Africa in particular and the international community in general. In the course of this reflection, four events, in which I was directly associated in one-way or the other came to my mind. First, was the historic decision of the United Nations to expel the delegation of the apartheid regime from participating in the UN General Assembly. This happened in 1974 in a month, which I was the chairman of the African Group and together with my African colleagues we spearheaded the move for the rejection of the credentials of the regime’s representative. For a number of preceding years, South African credentials were rejected by the Assembly following the move take by African, Asians and other delegations. The President of 26th Session of the General Assembly in 1970, Mr Advard Hambro of Norway, interpreted the rejection of those credentials as amounting to a solemn warning, as solemn as it can be, against the South African regime for its apartheid policies. This approach was similarly taken in subsequent years by other Presidents of the General Assembly. This time however, African delegations were determined to see to it that a mere warning was not enough and thus we had agreed to have the rejection of the credentials to be interpreted as tantamount to the eviction of South Africa participation in the assembly proceedings and were prepared to move a resolution to that effect. Such a resolution became unnecessary, as the President 3 of the General Assembly, then the Foreign Minister of Algeria and now Head of State, President Bouteflika, in his interpretation of the rejection of the credentials, declared that the rejection meant that the delegation of apartheid regime could not be in the assembly which was challenged by some western countries, was however sustained by the General Assembly. This was a major blow against the apartheid regime and a significant support to the South African struggle and especially its liberation movement and other democratic forces led by the ANC, whose representatives worked closely with us. The second event was the consideration by the United Nations Security Council of the Soweto uprisings in June 1976. I was then the Permanent Representative of Tanzania in the Security Council and there was quite bitter and acrimonious debate when the representative of the regime tried to justify the wanton killings of unarmed young boys and girls by the security forces. It was an emotionally charged atmosphere given the callous disregard for human beings demonstrated. Quite frankly I lost my temper and did not spare the distinguished representative. The third event was interesting and fascinating but less dramatic. In January 1976, I was the President of the UN Security Council when the council was deliberating on the illegal occupation of Namibia by South Africa. I was privately informed by one of the western members of the council that the Ambassador of South Africa wanted to see me. Given the principled position of most African Countries and the realities of the situation whereby most of the African Representatives wanted nothing to do with the representative of the apartheid regime, this western ambassador who was a good friend of mine, opined me that I could see the representative quietly and privately without any publicity. He went 4 on to suggest that such a meeting could take place outside the UN building. I told the Ambassador, that if the representative of South Africa wanted to see me as the representative of Tanzania I saw no point of such a meeting. However, if he wanted to see me as the President of Security Council and considering that the topic of discussion directly involved on South Africa, I saw no reason whatsoever to play a hide and seek game. I would receive the representative in the office of the President of the Security Council in the UN building as I considered that to be my responsibility as Council President. My western colleague seemed surprised and almost disbelieving, a reaction that surprised me. For diplomatic reasons, the identity of this colleague cannot be reveled. The last event was when I visited South Africa for the first time in my life. This was in 1993 when the country was preparing for its first democratic elections. I led the OAU delegation comprising of different senior officials of various nationalities and for me and to my other African colleagues, it was an emotional moment to land in Johannesburg. It will be recalled that Tanzania and many African States had a policy of clearly prohibiting its nationals from visiting South Africa for as long as apartheid system prevailed. Coming to South Africa at that time under changed circumstances was like a dream come true. On that occasion I was able to meet and had discussion with Madiba in Umtata, President De Klerk in Cape Town, Prince Buthelezi in Ulundi, Kwazulu Natal, President of Pan African Congress Mr Makwetu in Johannesburg and Leaders of the Freedom Front including General Viljoen, the former Chief of the Armed Forces here in Pretoria. I also met with other leaders and officials of different organisations. 5 I have decide to recite these experiences only to affirm that I, like many other African colleagues, felt very close to the struggle against apartheid and considered it as our own struggle. I purposely began my submission by recognising the role that had been played by the ‘Freedom Generation’ of the African leadership, simply to underscore three obvious issues that relate to the central role that effective leadership plays in changing the fortunes of our individual countries and our continent, in the past and as we strive for a prosperous future. In the first instance and through the individual and collective legacy of the ‘Freedom Generation’ leadership that still continues to inspire the masses of our people, it has become an undisputable fact that Africa is capable and has indeed, produced strong, effective, reliable and world-class leaders. Leaders who could and have effectively met the challenges of their time and their generation, however difficult the circumstances may have been! Secondly, it is the
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