Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama on Thursday urged the United Nations (UN) to grant Africa, a continent of 54 nations at least one permanent seat with a veto power at the UN Security Council (UNSC).
Mahama made the call in his persuasive address to the 80th UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, urging comprehensive reforms of the global body.
“If not now, then when?” Mahama wondered rhetorically, after reiterating the call by African leaders for an end to the injustice done their continent by denying them the right to permanent status at the UNSC.
Mahama stated unequivocally that the UN founding charter is outdated when it comes to representation, since the most powerful World War 2 nations were still being rewarded with an almost totalitarian guardianship over the rest of the world.
“And yet, the first sentence in Chapter 2, Article 1 of the UN charter declares that; ‘The Organisation is based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all its members,’” he observed.
Mahama added, “If this were truly the case, a continent as large as Africa with its numerous UN Member states would have at least one permanent seat on the Security Council. Furthermore, veto power should not be restricted to five nations, nor should it be absolute.”
“There must be a mechanism for the General Assembly to challenge a veto. No single nation should be able to exercise an absolute veto to serve its own interests in a conflict,” he urged.
The Ghanaian leader recalled that in 1995, during the 50th anniversary of the UN, Nelson former South African President Mandela addressed the UNGA and declared, “The United Nations has to reassess its role, redefine its profile, and reshape its structures. It should truly reflect the diversity of our universe and ensure equity among the nations in the exercise of power within the system of international relations.”
But 30 years later, Mahama observed that African leaders were still making the same request: for a permanent seat on the Security Council, with the power of veto. So, today, “Madam President, I stand here in this exact spot, asking: if not now, then when?”
“We demand not only a reform of the Security Council, but also a reset of the global financial architecture, which is currently rigged against Africa. Africa must have a greater say in the world’s multilateral financial institutions,” Mahama declared.
The Ghanaian president also made a strong case for reparations to be paid to African countries on account of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade and the colonization of the continent.
“The slave trade must be recognized as the greatest crime against humanity. As African champion on reparations, Ghana intends to introduce a motion to this August body to that effect,” the Ghanaian president stated
He noted 12.5 million Africans were forcibly taken against their wills and transported to create wealth for the powerful Western nations, recalling that Western governments happily paid reparations to former slave owners as compensation for the loss of their “property” after the abolition of the slave trade—and “that “property” for which compensation was paid referred to enslaved people who had been freed.”
“We demand reparations for the enslavement of our people and the colonization of our land that resulted in the theft of natural resources, as well as the looting of artifacts and other items of cultural heritage that have yet to be returned in total,” he added.
The Ghanaian president also called for the removal of the age-old blockade on the Caribbean island nation of Cuba, adding, “As Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, our nation’s founder, famously said, ‘We seek to be friends of all and enemies to none.’ The Cuban people shed their blood on African soil in the fight against apartheid. Indeed, Cuba has been, and continues to be, a faithful friend to Africa.”
He urged Israel and Palestine to cease hostilities and return to the negotiating table to implement the two-state solution to bring peace to the Middle-East.
Writer: Justice Lee Adoboe