ANC Today --------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume 2, No. 22, 31 May - 6 June 2002 --------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK: * Letter from the President: Comores an example of African cooperation at work * Youth Month: Young people mobilise for service and development * Higher Education: Bold changes to meet South Africa's challenges --------------------------------------------------------------------- LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Comores an example of African cooperation at work Last Sunday we were in Moroni, the capital of the island state of the Union of Comores located in the Indian Ocean not far from South Africa, to witness the swearing in of President Azali Assoumani. The Union of Comores is made up of the small islands of Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli, with Mayotte still under the control of France. President Azali's inauguration was a welcome and joyous event because it marked the country's full return to democracy. This was after four years of turmoil and instability occasioned by the secession of the island of Anjouan in 1997 and the subsequent unconstitutional military take over of Government. After enduring years of uncertainty about the very future of the country, President Azali Assoumani has emerged as the democratically elected choice of the people of a united country. In this Letter we speak of the evolution of the Comores from colonial days to date to indicate its shared history with many other African countries and to illustrate some of the challenges that face us. The history of these islands is similar to the history of our countries that were subjected to slavery and later to colonial subjugation. The early inhabitants of the islands were Africans followed by Arab merchants - hence the dominant religion of Islam. Like Cape Town in our country that was turned into a half way station between India and Europe by Europeans who were trading in spices, the islands of the Comores were used as a centre for traffic in slaves as well as the trade centre of spices from India. The Arabs were the first to colonise the Comores followed by the French. Like most of the African countries it opened its arms to welcome the visitors. However those that it welcomed had other plans to conquer and subjugate the indigenous people, turning their country into a colony. Following the 1885 Berlin Conference that agreed on the division of Africa, it became a French protectorate in 1886. In 1912 it was officially declared a colony of France. In 1914 it was made part of Madagascar by the French colonisers. As the colonial struggle took firm root on the continent, the island people began to agitate for their right to self-determination and national independence. In the end, France relented and organised a referendum in 1974 to enable the people to express their will. The people voted overwhelmingly for independence. Whereas the Comorians understood the referendum to be national in character, the colonial power decided to determine the outcome on the basis of the votes in each of the four islands. Because the majority in Mayotte had voted against independence, France decided to separate this island from the rest of the country and declare it part of France. In 1975 President Ahmed Abdallah led the rest of the Comores into the Organisation of African Unity as a Member of the organisation. After achieving its independence, the islands of the Comores never had peace and stability in their country. The mercenary activities led by that notorious Bob Denard, a French citizen, constantly destabilized the Comores, leading to a spate of military coups that resulted in the death of President Abdallah. In 1997 the islands of Anjouan and Moheli unilaterally seceded from the federation on grounds of discrimination in socio-economic development practiced by the central government. These islands sought their integration back into France's domain. For a long time fighting ensued among the warring factions in Anjouan who only spoke to each other through the language of the gun. Those who were not so long ago compatriots turned into deadly enemies in the endless game of breaking up their country. The OAU sent a multinational force led by South Africa to go help calm the situation but to no avail. The Organization of African Unity and all of us have always maintained that it was only in the context of the unity and territorial integrity of the Comores, in keeping with the long-standing OAU decision on borders, that the country could return to normality. Following an Inter-Island Conference in Madagascar, which itself is now torn apart by conflict, significant progress was made with all parties with the exception of Anjouan, resulting in the signing of the Antananarivo Agreement. The Anjouanese delegation promised to respond to the decisions of the conference after consulting with their people. Instead of doing this, it held a referendum that confirmed the decision to secede from the federation of the Comores. The death of President Taki of the central government in the midst of all these events compounded the situation further and was followed by a military coup led by Colonel Azali. This complicated the situation for the OAU, as it had now to deal both with the re-unification and the democratisation of the country. In the face of the defiant position of the Anjouanese in favour of the dismemberment of the Union of the Comores, the OAU had no alternative but to authorise a variety of measures that would compel them back into the union. These measures included travel and financial bans, as well as military intervention if necessary, under the auspices of the OAU. After much persuasion, Anjouan acceded to the proposal to sign the Fomboni Agreement with the central government. The agreement included the drafting of new constitutions for the central government and for each island, confirming the federal nature of the state. The new President sworn in last Sunday and the new Presidents in each of the islands, were elected on the basis of the new constitutional order. This outcome has also led to the lifting of the sanctions and begun the long road towards stable peace in a united Comores. A problem that arose as the country was progressing towards the restoration of democracy, was that there was no money to implement the Fomboni Agreement. The OAU then requested the countries of the region to make contributions. South Africa contributed $1.1 million to help with elections and other countries in our region gave an additional $110,000. South Africa 's contribution also covered the humanitarian needs of the islanders. The collective constituted by the people of the Comores, South Africa as Co-ordinator of OAU regional sub-committee on the Comores, the OAU Secretary-General through his Special Representative, and other international organisations played a cardinal and decisive role in bringing this country back from the abyss of conflict and despair. Nevertheless, the people of the Comores deserve our warmest congratulations for a job well done. It must be recalled that three days before the December 2001 referendum for the new constitution was held, putchists attempted to stage a military coup but were resisted and defeated by the people of the Comores. At the request of the OAU, a small unit of the South African National Defence Force, joined by some soldiers from other countries of the region went to the Comores in March and stayed until after the inauguration of the new Government. During the period of the attempted secession of Anjouan, considerable numbers of weapons had ended up in the hands of many people on the island. As part of the return to normality, it was necessary that these weapons should be collected. The OAU again requested South Africa to lead the multi-national force to carry out this task. Thirty-five South Africans also went to the Comores as observers of the elections. We have also made financial contributions to the holding of the national and presidential election. We did all these things in support of the Comorians guided by our conviction that an unstable Comores is a challenge to all of us as Africans. Our response was informed by the reality that we have a responsibility to contribute to democracy, peace and stability on our continent. We must all stand ready and actually work for peace, democracy, and stability and economic prosperity in all our countries, big and small, if we are to make this an African century. Undeniably, the Union of Comores has a very weak economy. The pervasive poverty and underdevelopment stare you in the face. The country is dependent on the export of vanilla, cloves, and ylang-ylang, which commodities are subject to consistently declining international prices. Now that the Comores has returned to democracy the NEPAD programmes must be used to address the developmental challenges in the Comores. With a population of around half-a-million, it will clearly be unable to meet these challenges on its own, without the support of the rest of Africa and the world. The international community also has a responsibility to help this country to build on the gains achieved thus far. Of importance is the need to establish the institutions that will help sustain peace, democracy, human rights, and good political and economic governance. The launch of the African Union in coming months must put our continent in a better position to deal with conflicts in our countries. Thus, the Peace and Security Initiative as discussed by both the OAU Foreign Ministers and Heads of State and Government of the NEPAD Implementation Committee recently must be able to prevent, mediate and manage such conflicts in future before they get out of hand. For now, we can all be glad that the problem of the Comores has been addressed. We will be glad to welcome the newly elected President of the Comores in South Africa during the launch of the AU. As we celebrate what is truly an African achievement of which is spoken so little, while our failures as a continent are broadcast gleefully, let us all work to resolve other areas of instability on our continent. The positive development in the Comores must serve as an inspiration for other countries such as the DRC, Madagascar and Liberia, which are still grappling with conflict and instability. As a country, we must continue to work together with the rest of our continent to achieve other African victories such as the one that Africa has scored in the Comores. If we all agree, as we surely must, that this is an African century, we have to create the circumstances in all our countries such that the children of Africa can talk proudly of the joy of being an African, without fear of being looked down upon and mocked by their peers. Thabo Mbeki --------------------------------------------------------------------- YOUTH MONTH Young people mobilise for service and development Activities which highlight the role of young people in the economy and in their own development will be undertaken by ANC structures during the month of June. The ANC Youth League, which is leading the month's programme, is launching a Volunteers Corps to organise young people into a movement which will do ongoing voluntary work throughout the country. These activities form part of the ANC's 90th anniversary volunteer campaign, and are being organised under the theme of "Letsema. Youth Service for Sustainable Development". The focus on youth coincides with the anniversary on 16 June of the 1976 student uprising, in which young people challenged the apartheid state. Thousands of youth selflessly embarked on a struggle for freedom and a just and quality education. As this historic event is remembered, the ANC Youth League is calling on today's youth to volunteer themselves to continue that struggle for a better society. Since the beginning of the year, ANC branches and community members have been doing voluntary work in their areas. People have volunteered at schools, clinics and hospitals, police stations, courts and in other public institutions. They have initiated or supported community development and poverty alleviation projects. Now the ANC Youth League plans to build on this work by establishing a national corps of volunteers who can make themselves available for voluntary work on a sustained basis. This initiative is aimed particularly at young people, providing them with opportunities to contribute to their own development and the development of society. One of the first tasks of these volunteers will be to register needy children to access the Child Support Grant. In this way, the ANC and Youth League aim to support government efforts this year to expand the provision of social grants, particularly those impact on children, to all people who are eligible for them. The volunteers will also be involved in cleaning schools and public spaces in communities. The month's activities will include a focus on the role of youth in the economy, particularly on efforts to tackle youth unemployment. Government plans to launch significant job creation projects under the Umsobomvu Youth Fund, while the Department of Labour will be collating a database of all youth development projects. The ANC Youth League will be mobilising young people to take part in mass activities to highlight the need for greater participation of youth in the economy. This will focus on the need for job creation specifically aimed at young people, skills development and transfer, and the development of internship and youth service programmes. Towards the end of the month, the focus will shift to the input of young people into the formation of the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). As part of this 'Africa Dialogue', the National Youth Commission is organising a national seminar on the African Renaissance in Johannesburg. More Information: ANC Youth League http://www.anc.org.za/youth --------------------------------------------------------------------- HIGHER EDUCATION Bold changes to meet South Africa's challenges Government this week unveiled bold new plans for a higher education system to the meet the needs and challenges of a developing South Africa. The result of many years of research and consultation, the new plan will see major changes to the structure and form of the country's higher education institutions. The new system will comprise of 21 higher education institutions, including 11 universities, 6 technikons and 4 comprehensive institutions. The comprehensive institution is a new type of institution which merges universities and technikons to provide technikon-type services to areas of the country that are currently under-serviced. In addition, there will also be two National Institutes for Higher Education, in the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga, which bring higher education opportunities to areas where no higher education institutions exist. This week's announcement is part of a broader agenda of transformation outlined in the National Plan for Higher Education, adopted last year. This agenda aims among other things to increase the number of students entering higher education, while redressing past inequalities. Currently only 15 percent of 20-24 year olds are enrolled in higher education. The target of government is to increase this to 20 percent over the next 10 years. Institutions will be required to develop strategies to promote the access of disabled students. A five percent target will be set for the admission of mature students and other 'non-traditional' students. Announcing the plan this week, Education Minister Kader Asmal said special attention would be paid to ensure fee structures and admission requirements of the restructured institutions did not hinder access. "Language will not be allowed to act as a barrier to access or success," he said. Historically Afrikaans-medium institutions would be required to provide dual or parallel medium instruction in strategic and high cost programmes. While the overall number of institutions will decrease from 36 to 21, all the existing sites of higher education provision will continue to operate. No institution is left untouched by the restructuring proposals. "Our change agenda has no sacred cows. All institutions will be expected to make its contributions to the achievement of national goals and objectives," Asmal said. "Particularly those institutions not directly involved in merger processes will be required to pay urgent attention to meeting equity targets for both staff and students and to the development of more inclusive organisational cultures," he said. IN THE EASTERN CAPE, Port Elizabeth Technikon and the University of Port Elizabeth will be merged into a comprehensive institution, including the Port Elizabeth campus of Vista University. Border Technikon and Eastern Cape Technikon will be merged, with primary sites in East London and Umtata. The infrastructure of the University of Transkei will form the core of the academic activities in Umtata of the new technikon. The University of Fort Hare will remain as a separate institution, incorporating the East London campus of Rhodes University and the Medical School of the University of the Transkei in Umtata. Rhodes University will be retained as a separate institution. IN THE FREE STATE, Technikon Free State will be retained as a separate institution, incorporating the Welkom campus of Vista University. The University of the Free State will be retained as a separate institution, incorporating the Bloemfontein campus of Vista University and the Qwa Qwa Campus of the University of the North. IN GAUTENG, the Rand Afrikaans University and Technikon Witwatersrand will be merged to form a comprehensive institution, incorporating the East Rand and Soweto campuses of Vista University. Wits University will be retained as a separate institution. The University of Pretoria will be retained as a separate institution, incorporating the Mamelodi campus of Vista University. Technikon Northern Gauteng, Technikon North-West and Technikon Pretoria will be merged. The Vaal Triangle Technikon will remain as a separate institution, incorporating the infrastructure and facilities of the Sebokeng campus of Vista University. IN KWAZULU-NATAL, Mangosuthu Technikon will be merged with the new Durban Institute of Technology and will include the Umlazi campus of the University of Zululand. The University of Durban-Westville and the University of Natal will be merged. The University of Zululand will become a comprehensive institution with its future growth linked to the Richards Bay region. IN THE LIMPOPO PROVINCE, the University of the North, University of Venda and Medical University of Southern Africa will be merged. The new institution will extend the range of offerings available in the province by developing and introducing technikon-type vocational programmes and qualifications, in keeping with the needs-profile of the region. IN THE NORTH WEST, Potchefstroom University and the University of the North West will be merged. The Vaal Triangle campus of Potchefstroom University will be retained, at least in short to medium-term, as part of the merged institution, incorporating the students and staff (but not the facilities) of the Sebokeng campus of Vista University. IN THE WESTERN CAPE, the University of the Western Cape, the University of Cape Town and the University of Stellenbosch will all remain as separate institutions. The Cape Technikon and Peninsula Technikon will be merged. National Institutes for Higher Education will be established in Mpumalanga and the Northern Cape as hub for the provision of higher education programmes, largely through programme collaboration between the higher education institutions currently operating in the two provinces. Following the formal announcement of each of the proposed mergers, likely to take place next week, there will be a three month period for comments before the finalisation of each of the mergers. More Information Documents on transformation of Higher Education, 30 May 2002 http://education.pwv.gov.za/DoE_Sites/Higher_Education/Higher_Education_Index.htm --------------------------------------------------------------------- This issue of ANC Today is available from the ANC web site at: http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/anctoday/2002/at22.htm To receive ANC Today free of charge by e-mail each week go to: http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/anctoday/subscribe.html