The panel started off with the invitation of the chair inviting participants from other African nations and around the world to be a part of the panel and participate in the formulation of recommendations for the Ministerial meeting of the Community of Democracies.

The chair recognized that there was confusion in African democratization theories. The trend for democracy in African nations has become democratic consolidation. Liberalism has dominated the politics of Africa but the persistence of corruption has led to democratic stagnation. There are many democratic experiments going on in African politics but all seem to follow the trend of violence, poverty, and social exclusion. With the discussion of promoting democracy in African nations, the chair presented possible key points to discuss as the basis for formulating recommendations.

• Political trends and departure from Warsaw Declaration principles.
• What respective countries had accomplished in Africa to uphold the Warsaw principles. It was decided that the panel should look to other governmental meetings for a self-assessment of what was going on.
• How could democratization be accelerated in African countries.

Ayo Obe (President, Civil Liberties Organization, Nigeria)

Ms. Obe posed the question why African countries belong to the Community of Democracies. She questioned whether it was to or for the betterment of societies. However, she noted that failure to do so sometimes led nations to drop democratization and opt for dictatorship. Monetary support should not be the motivation for democratization in Africa. The purpose of democratization and the opening of society should be for the betterment of societies.

Many countries that had been democratizing in Africa are guilty of backsliding, for example, Zimbabwe. A good example of less visible backsliding is Nigeria, which is now getting attention not so much because of a perceived breakdown of democracy but because people are being stoned to death for menial offenses. There are also issues regarding the process of democratic elections on the local level. When civilian rule returned in 1999, the constitution guaranteed democratic local government. However, local election committees depended on national electoral committees to fund local registration of voters. With insufficient funds the local elections became a political football and an insignificant part of democratic elections.

The Community of Democracies must intervene when the democratization process stagnates as in Nigeria, where the government denies its citizens voter registration and other rights. Its habit of rushing to elections at the last minute also degrades the electoral process.

The Nigerian leadership is either not aware or does not consider the efforts of the human rights groups This should not be the case. For example, the Civil Liberties Organization engages the legislative process by working to enact human rights laws.

Adamou Ndau Njoya (President, Union of Cameroon Democrats and Opposition, Cameroon)

Mr. Njoya focused on the problem of coups in Africa. Why were there problems when democratization was moving forward? The answer is that many citizens are not educated about democratic processes. The main concern is how to organize democratic institutions, to teach about democracy, to be clear about responsibilities, and to create conditions for democratization. The latter is essential to counter instability. A democratic constitution is a starting point but there is often confusion over its contents and application.

Blessing Chebundo (Secretary for Health and Child Welfare, Movement for Democratic Change, Zimbabwe)

The panelist regretted having to tell participants about the problems in Zimbabwe . After its independence from British rule twenty-two years ago, Zimbabwe was seen as a model of democratic rule on the African continent. Today, Zimbabwe is always in the news because of the breakdown of democracy. Corruption has escalated. The constitution gives far too much power to the president. There are no rules when it comes to elections.

Widespread violence makes a mockery of the rule of law and contradicts the charter of the Southern Africa Development Community. Zimbabwe does not want foreign involvement to help solve its political crisis, For the revival of democracy, civil society must generate and then push to implement necessary measures.

David McQuoid-Mason (Professor, University of Natal, South Africa)

Mr. McQuoid-Mason discussed the present situation in South Africa in both the national and regional context. He outlined the positive and negative aspects of South Africa’s move towards democracy in the region.

South Africa’s elections were successful. An interesting development was the citizenry’s support for a proportional representation Laws on proportional representation changed when minority parties challenged the idea of floor crossing because the constitution had no such provisions. The issue of separation of powers came up when the judiciary and the government had differing views in provision of medical aid, a right guaranteed in the constitution.

The regional efforts of South Africa have been both positive and negative. It has helped Burundi by deploying peacekeeping forces. But it has failed to help in Zimbabwe, deciding not get involved in that country’s political crisis.

Following the presentations, the panel chair directed the discussion around two key points: 1) The role of elections in existing democracies and the need to prevent governments from enacting undemocratic laws; and 2) Problems surrounding opposition parties and national constitutions. There is a need to establish democratic norms and increase NGO influence in democratic opposition movements. Other issues discussed during the session included terrorism and disregard for the rule of law, defense of pluralism, how economic conditions contribute to conflicts in Africa, and the freeing of airwaves for freer flow of information. These problems were formulated into recommendations to present to the Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies.

Recommendations/Conclusions

• Any measures taken by the members of the Community of Democracies in pursuit of the war against terrorism must be in conformity with the rule of law and due process.
• The Community of Democracies must review the economic strategies of the international financial institutions that create or aggravate economic social inequalities because they represent a major threat to new democracies.
• The Community of Democracies must require its member states to adhere to democratic standards as established under the Warsaw Declaration of Principles and by regional and sub-regional organizations, such as the African Union, Southern Africa Development Community and Economic Community of West African States.
• Members of the Community of Democracies must give preference to those countries, which adhere or seek to adhere to democratic standards in considering development aid, assistance and debt relief.
• Members of the Community of Democracies must ensure freedom of access to information and to the means of distributing such information. This requires special attention to the issue of ownership of the media and access to airwaves.