Darfur Consortium: Action: Press Releases

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Contact: Oladapo Awosokanre at + 251 912 129 331

NGOs hail election of Ghana to the presidency of the African Union

(ADDIS ABABA, 29 January 2023) The Darfur Consortium today welcomed the accession of the Republic of Ghana to the Presidency of the African Union (AU).

This afternoon in Addis Ababa Africa Heads of State meeting at the 8th African Union summit decided that Ghana’s President H.E. John Agyekum Kufuor would succeed President Denis Sassou-Nguesso of the Republic of Congo as President of the 53 member Union.

“We have every expectation that President Kufuor will continue to demonstrate at the helm of African Union the level of commitment he has shown to promoting peace and security in Darfur” said Achieng Akena, a spokesperson for the Consortium.

Ghana has taken a generous and principled stand on the responsibility to protect civilians in Darfur in African Union and United Nations since the outset of the crisis, including through contributing personnel towards the African Union Mission in Darfur (AMIS) and co-sponsoring UN Security Council Resolution 1706 calling for inter alia the strengthening of AMIS.

“We look now to President Kufuor to continue this leadership” added Ms Akena.

The Consortium calls on President Kufuor to work urgently with the African Union and African States to ensure that:

* Sudan observes a clear timetable for the implementation of the three phases of the hybrid AU-UN force deployment to which it has agreed and moves effectively disarm its Janjaweed militia;
* African States send more troops to Darfur – Africa is still mandated to lead the force and must fulfil its responsibility to protect;
* African States support the deployment of UN peacekeepers to Chad where over a half a million displaced Darfurians and Chadians are desperately in need of security;
* meaningful and inclusive peace negotiations on Darfur are revitalised.

1 TOGO SANS ETHNIES

Action Professionals Association for the People

Aegis Trust Rwanda

African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies

African Center for Development

African Center for Justice and Peace Studies

Africa Internally Displaced Persons Voice (Africa IDP Voice)

African Security Dialogue and Research (ASDR)

African Women's Development and Communications Network (FEMNET)

The Ahueni Foundation

Alliances for Africa

Amman Centre for Human Rights Studies

Andalus Institute for Tolerance

Anti-Slavery International

Arab Coalition for Darfur

Arab Program for Human Rights Activists

Association Africaine de Defense des Droits de l'Homme (ASADHO)

Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies

Centre for Minority Rights Development (CEMIRIDE)

Centre for Research Education and Development of Freedom of Expression and Associated Rights (CREDO)

Citizens for Global Solutions

Conscience International

Conseil National Pour les Libertés en Tunisie

Darfur Alert Coalition (DAC)

Darfur Centre for Human Rights and Development

Darfur Leaders Network (DLN)

Darfur Reconciliation and Development Organization (DRDO)

Darfur Relief and Documentation Centre

East Africa Law Society

Egyptian Organization for Human Rights

Femmes Africa Solidarité

La Fédération Internationale des Droits de l'Homme (FIDH)

Forum of African Affairs (FOAA)

Human Rights First

Human Rights Institute of South Africa (HURISA)

Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa

Institute for Security Studies

Inter-African Union for Human Rights (UIDH)

Interights

International Commission of Jurists (ICJ Kenya)

International Refugee Rights Initiative

Justice Africa

Justice and Peace Commission

Lawyers for Human Rights

Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections

Legal Resources Consortium-Nigeria

Ligue Tunisienne des Droits de l'Homme

Makumira University College, Tumaini University

Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)

Minority Rights Group

National Association of Seadogs

Never Again International

Open Society Justice Initiative

Pan-African Movement

Rencontre Africaine Pour la Defense des Droits de l'Homme (RADDHO)

Sierra Leone STAND Chapter

Sisters' Arabic Forum for Human Rights (SAF)

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP)

Sudan Organization Against Torture (SOAT)

Syrian Organization for Human Rights

Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC)

Universal Human Rights Network

WARIPNET

Women Initiative Nigeria (WIN)