ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE SUTDIES SCHOOL OF LAW PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW AFRICAN UNION PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL: TO COMPETE OR COMPLEMENT THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL? A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of LL.M. Degree in Public International Law BY: Zekarias Beshah Prepared under the Supervision of Dr. Girmachew Alemu December 2010 Plagiarism Declaration I ZEKARIAS BESHAH ABEBE, do hereby declare that the thesis ‗AFRICAN UNION PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL: TO COMPETE OR COMPLEMENT THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL?‘ is my original work and that it has not been submitted for any degree or examination in any other university. Whenever other sources are used or quoted, they have been duly acknowledged. Signature: ……………………… ZEKARIAS BESHAH ABEBE Date……………………………… This thesis has been submitted for examination with my approval as Supervisor. Signature………………………… Dr. GIRMACHEW ALEMU Addis Ababa University Date……………………………… i Acknowledgement First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Dr. Girmachew Alemu for his guidance and support in developing the thesis in a more sensible way. I am also grateful to Ato Mohammed Habib (Assistant Professor of Law) for enlightening me the central theme of the thesis and for his cooperation. My deepest gratitude goes to Ato. Kirubel Getachew (AUC Library Cataloguer) for his immense and tireless help in providing materials. Without him, it would have been very difficult to complete this thesis. Ato. Sirak (AUC/Clerck/Archives) and Ato. Girum Tadesse (AUC/Clerck) also deserve my special thanks. I also wish to thank Dr. Kambudzi (Head of African Union Peace and Security Secretariat) and Mr. Fafre Camara (Legal Officer) for their willingness to arrange interviews despite their tight program at office. Finally, I would like to thank my beloved family and best friends for keeping me strong. Thank you all! Zekarias Beshah ii Acronyms AMIB- African Union Mission in Burundi AMIS- African Union Mission in Sudan AMISOM- African Union Mission in Somalia ASF- African Standby Force AU- African Union AUC- African Union Commission AUPSC/PSC- African Union Peace and Security Council/Peace and Security Council CA- Constitutive Act CEWS- Continental Early Warning System CFA- Ceasefire Agreement CFC- Ceasefire Commission CMD- Conflict Management Division CPA- Comprehensive Peace Agreement DPA- Darfur Peace Agreement ECOWAS- Economic Community of West African States GoS- Government of Sudan HCFA- Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement ICC- International Criminal Court ICU- Islamic Court of Union IGAD- Intergovernmental Authority on Development IPA- International Peace Academy JEM- Justice and Equality Movement JSR- Joint Special Representative MILOBs- Military Observers OAU- Organization of African Unity PSC Protocol- The Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union PSCS- Peace and Security Council Secretariat PSD- Peace and Security Directorate PSOD- Peace Support Operations Division RECs- Regional Economic Communities ROEs- Rules of Engagements ROs- Regional Organizations SADC- Southern African Development Community SLM/A- Sudan Liberation Movement/Army SOFA- Status of Force Agreement SOMA- Status of Mission Agreement iii TFG- Transitional Federal Government UN- United Nations UNAMID- UN/AU Hybrid Mission in Darfur UNMIS- United Nations Mission in Sudan UNSC/SC- United Nations Security Council/Security Council iv Table of Contents Contents ............................................................................................................................. Pages Plagiarism Declaration ............................................................................................................. i Acknowledgement .................................................................................................................. ii Acronyms .............................................................................................................................. iii ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................ I CHAPTER ONE .........................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................1 1.1. Background ...................................................................................................................1 1.2. Statement of the problem ..............................................................................................4 1.3. Objectives .....................................................................................................................5 1.4. Research Questions .......................................................................................................6 1.5. Significances of the study..............................................................................................6 1.6. Scope ............................................................................................................................7 1.7. Methodology .................................................................................................................7 1.8. Structure of the study ....................................................................................................8 CHAPTER TWO ........................................................................................................................9 INISTITUTIONAL DESIGN AND STRUCTURE OF AUPSC ..................................................9 Introduction .............................................................................................................................9 2.1. Members- who are allowed to participate? ...................................................................... 10 2.2. Mandates- What is the overall purpose of the PSC? ........................................................ 11 2.3. Scope- What are the range of issues that the institution is designed to handle? ................ 12 2.4. Norms- What are the guiding principles of PSC? ............................................................ 12 2.5. Formal Rules- How decision is made?......................................................................... 13 2.6. Structure of PSC- Who assists the PSC? ......................................................................... 14 2.6.1. Commission of the AU (AUC) ..................................................................................... 15 2.6.2. The Panel of the Wise .................................................................................................. 16 2.6.3. Continental Early Warning System (CEWS) ................................................................ 17 2.6.4. The African Standby Force (ASF) ................................................................................ 18 2.6.5. Military Staff Committee ............................................................................................. 20 2.6.6. The Peace fund ............................................................................................................ 20 CHAPTER THREE ................................................................................................................... 22 AUPSC: HISTORICAL AND LEGAL ANALYSIS ................................................................. 22 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 22 3.1. The genesis of AUPSC ................................................................................................ 23 3.2. Legal Framework ........................................................................................................ 32 3.2.1. The Constitutive Act (CA) ....................................................................................... 33 3.2.1.1. ―Treaty-Based Intervention‖ under International Law .......................................... 34 v 3.2.1.2. The right of intervention under the CA- with or without SC‘s authorization? ....... 38 3.2.2. The PSC Protocol .................................................................................................... 43 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 48 CHAPTER FOUR ..................................................................................................................... 50 THE PRACTICE ...................................................................................................................... 50 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 50 4.1. Case Reviews.................................................................................................................. 51 4.1.1. African Union Mission in Burundi (AMIB).................................................................. 51 4.1.2. African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) and UN-AU Hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)............................................................................................................................ 55 4.1.3. African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) ............................................................ 65 4.2. Synthesis .......................................................................................................................