Decision on the Report of the Chairperson of the Commission on Terrorism and Violent Extremism in Africa - Doc Assembly/AU/7(XXV)

DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION
ON TERRORISM AND VIOLENT EXTREMISM IN AFRICA

Doc. Assembly/AU/7(XXV)

The Assembly,

1. TAKES NOTE of the report of the Chairperson of the Commission on the threat of terrorism and violent extremism in Africa and on the implementation of the communique PSC/AHG/ COMM. (CDLV) adopted by the 455th meeting of the Peace and Security Council held in Nairobi on 2 September 2014;

2. REITERATES its deep concern at the worsening scourge of terrorism and violent extremism in Africa, as evidenced by the growing presence of the Islamic state in Africa to which some groups have pledged allegiance, as well as the continuing ignoble attacks by different terrorist groups, including al- Shabaab in Somalia and Kenya, The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Central Africa, Boko Haram in Nigeria and in other countries of the Lake Chad Basin; al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), al-Murabitoun in northern Mali and the Sahel in general, the Ansar Al-Sharia and other terrorist groups in North Africa;

3. STRESSES once again that terrorism cannot be justified in any circumstance and that it cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or particular group. The Assembly strongly condemns all terrorist acts perpetrated on the continent, irrespective of the perpetrators, place and motivations. The Assembly expresses AU's full solidarity with the affected countries and victims of terrorism;

4. NOTES WITH CONCERN the growing links between terrorism and violent extremism on the one hand, and transnational organized crime, on the other;

5. REITERATES the relevance of the instruments adopted by the OAU/AU in recent years to fight against the scourge of terrorism and violent extremism, particularly the 1999 Convention on the Prevention and Combating of terrorism and its 2004 additional Protocol;

6. WELCOMES the efforts of Member States, through the strengthening of their legislative frameworks and operational capabilities and hails the establishment of security cooperation mechanisms at the regional level, including the Fusion and Liaison Unit (UFL ) of the Sahel, the Nouakchott Process on enhanced security cooperation and operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahel-Saharan region and the Regional Cooperation Initiative for the Elimination of the Lord’s Resistance Army (ICR-LRA);

7. ALSO COMMENDS the efforts undertaken by the Commission, including through the African Centre for Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT) and those of the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the Commission in charge of counter terrorism cooperation in support of the measures taken by Member States to combat terrorism;

8. RECALLS that, despite the significant progress made by the continent in developing a normative and operational framework against terrorism, further sustained efforts are required to ensure the monitoring and effective implementation of the commitments made by Member States. Accordingly, the Assembly endorses the call made by the PSC in favour of an action-oriented approach;

9. WELCOMES the measures taken within the framework of the implementation of the Nairobi communique, including: (i) the continued implementation of the Nouakchott Process on enhanced security cooperation and operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture in the Sahel-Saharan region, (ii) the implementation by the countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) and Benin of the Joint Multinational Force (FMM) responsible for combating Boko Haram terrorist group, and (iii) the launching of the Djibouti process on strengthening security cooperation in East Africa;

10. ALSO WELCOMES the progress made in the operationalization of the African Police Cooperation Mechanism (AFRIPOL), as well as the establishment, by the Commission, of an advisory team responsible for supporting the AU in monitoring and implementation of the relevant provisions of communique PSC / AHG/COMM. (CDLV), and notes with satisfaction the emphasis placed by the Team in combating radicalization. The Assembly WELCOMES the African Centre for Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT) for initiatives taken to strengthen national capacities of Member States;

11. REQUESTS Member States and the Commission to redouble their efforts to implement expeditiously the outstanding provisions of the communique PSC/ AHG/COMM (CDLV), including:

1. the signing and ratification of the relevant African and international instruments by those Member States that have not yet done so and the effective implementation of the provisions contained therein;

2. the submission by the Member States parties to the 2004 Protocol of annual reports to the PSC on measures taken to combat and prevent terrorism;

3. the designation by the Member States which have not yet done so of National Focal Points to liaise and coordinate with the ACSRT;

4. the financial contributions and the provision of technical expertise for the ACSRT;

5. the formulation of an African arrest warrant against individuals accused or convicted of terrorist acts;

6. the assessing of the state of implementation of the 2002 Action Plan for the prevention and combating of terrorism;

7. the organization of an annual consultative forum with international partners on the issue of terrorism and violent extremism.

12. REITERATES the need to respect, in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, the highest standards of human rights and international humanitarian law. The Assembly also reiterates the need to tackle all the conditions that provide fertile ground for terrorism and violent extremism;

13. REQUESTS the PSC to hold a ministerial meeting before the end of 2015 to assess the status of implementation of the communique PSC/AHG/COMM. (CDLV) and agree on the measures to tackle the challenges faced.