African Union: Incoming leadership must prioritize and stand up for human rights

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As African heads of state and government prepare to elect and appoint the new leadership team of the African Union (AU), including a new chairperson, during the 38th African Union Summit on 15 and 16 February, Amnesty International is calling on the incoming chairperson and the AU to prioritize human rights.

The summit comes amid the escalating conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sudan where fighting between the warring parties has intensified in recent weeks, leaving a trail of civilian casualties and hundreds of thousands of women, children and men in dire conditions. In other parts of the continent, long-running conflicts, including in the Sahel and Somalia, continue almost unabated.

Amnesty International’s Africa Advocacy Coordinator, Japhet Biegon, said:

“The next chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) must place human rights at the heart of the continental body, ensuring it responds boldly and decisively to protect civilians in armed conflicts and end states’ clampdown on government critics.

“The new chairperson will join the AU at a watershed moment, inheriting an in-tray full of deepening human rights crises across the continent. The new chairperson will need to be swift and effective in their response, leveraging the full array of statutory powers at their disposal to exert pressure on parties to conflicts to comply with international humanitarian law and international human rights law.”

Across the continent throughout 2024, Amnesty International recorded a pattern of systematic repression of human rights by states. Among other violations, there was a rampant clampdown on government critics and a brutal assault on the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

“Amnesty International calls on the next chairperson to stand up for human rights from day one on the job. The chairperson must consistently raise human rights concerns, demand justice for victims, ensure the rule of law, and call out states that commit human rights violations.”

Background

On 15 February, African heads of state and government will conduct elections for the top leadership of the African Union Commission (AUC), the secretariat of the African Union. The election will cover the positions of the chairperson and deputy chairperson. The candidates for the position of the chairperson are Mahmoud Ali Youssouf of Djibouti, Raila Amolo Odinga of Kenya and Richard Randriamandrato of Madagascar.  The successful candidate will serve for a four-year period.

On Amnesty International in Africa podcast, we explore more on the track record of the continental body.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amnesty International.

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