African Unification Front
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HOW TO CONSOLIDATE PEACE EFFORTS IN THE AFRICAN UNION
The best means to fortify the Lusaka Accord involves a guarantee against the recurrence of genocide and war. Ultimately this will require a PERMANENT commitment by the African Union to prevent the arming of militias, and to prevent the unilateral deployment of regular army divisions across state borders (or even within state borders). But first there has to be amalgamation and military reform. And it is possible to achieve reform in a few years.
The demilitarization of the Congo has to be followed by a phased reduction of troop sizes in all African states, and the amalgamation of African armies under a single joint command.
Along with the amalgamation of a new single African force must be an end to individual states importing weapons, or unilaterally deploying army units anywhere (even within their own borders) without the express permission of the Joint Military Commission consisting of senior army commanders from all over Africa, who report to the Conflict Resolution mechanism and political committee of the African Union.
There must be a complete amalgamation of soldiers and equipment under a single military authority. Initially the amalgamation must be at sub-divisional level, and each division is to consist of combat teams from various regions.
THE NEW RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
In order to secure peace in the African Union, rules must be put in place in order to prevent military coups and warfare. At the constituent state and province level, these rules are as follows:
[1] No state may buy weapons, nor have an army, nor have a general staff. Only the Joint Military Commission of the African Union may function as a general staff.
[2] No state may manufacture weapons without the express authorization of the African Union Political Committee and the Pan African Parliament.
[3] All military hardware, bases, and information belong to the African Union Government.
[4] No state may deploy or withdraw an army unit of any size for any reason whatsoever. Only the African Union government must be authorized to deploy army units, and only with the express permission of the state where troop movement is going to take place.
[5] In a state of emergency the Joint Military Command may only take those actions mandated by the AUF Guidelines for Military Interposition. The government may only withdraw or deploy units according to the guidelines.
[6] No state may allocate a budget for military spending. Only the Pan African Parliament may allocate a budget for military spending for the African Union.
[7] No state may have a complete complement of war industries.
[8] No state may conscript or train troops other than those supplied for continental defense by the Joint Military Commission of the African Union.
[9] The military should only be deployed in peace operations where they have a clear comparative advantage over civilian agencies.
[10] Before deployment the mission must be clearly defined, its objectives derived from political policy, the rules of engagement finalized, have a reasonable time frame, as well as a mechanism for the extraction of forces.
[11] The interposition must be an all-African effort under of the African Union. The army must have the ability to maintain impartiality in all intra-African conflicts. The army must always be peacekeepers and must never present as the enemy of the community.
Best regards,
Dan Kashagama
African Unification Front
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