United States Depar tment of State · I stress America™s desire to do ... will be explaining that our assistance programs for Africa are an investment in our common future

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December 1999 ■ Focus on the Issues: Africa

Excerpts of testimony speeches, and remarks byU.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright on Africa

United States Department of State

AFRICA Focus on the Issues

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Focus on the Issues: Africa ■ December 1999

Public Information SeriesUnited States Department of StateBureau of Public Affairs

December 1999

Focus on the IssuesAfrica

Excerpts of testimony, speeches, and remarksby U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albrighton Africa

For full text of these and all testimony, speeches,and remarks by the Secretary see the StateDepartment website at http:// www.secretary.gov

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ForewordAfrica, today, is more democratic than it has

ever been�more economically open and morefocused on building civil society. And although itsuffers from instability in some regions, there isreason for optimism about its future as we ap-proach the new millennium.

Focus on the Issues: Africa highlightsAmerica�s evolving partnership with Africa and thecommon interest both share in ending conflicts,promoting democracy, and supporting economicreform across the continent. It is the third in aplanned series of publications of excerpts fromtestimony, speeches, and remarks by U.S. Secre-tary of State Madeleine K. Albright that highlightkey policy issues.

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Secretary General Kouyate, ECOWAS residentrepresentatives, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen:Thank you for your warm welcome on this, my firstvisit to Nigeria.

Although I am new here, I do not feel like astranger�for I have watched Nigeria�s progressover the past year with the same mix of solemnityand joy that I felt a decade ago to see tyrannyoverthrown and nations reborn across centralEurope. I had never given up the belief that I wouldone day hear freedom ring again in the streets ofPrague, my native city. And I had never stoppedhoping that I would be able, during my time asSecretary of State, to visit a Nigeria whole and free.

Today, it is possible to envision Nigeria becom-ing, at long last, what Wole Soyinka has called �anunstoppable nation, rich in human and materialresources, a nation endowed with a seeming gift ofleadership, one whose citizens anywhere in the worldwould be revered. . . simply by the very possessionof a Nigerian passport.�

And when the history of this decade is written,Nigeria�s transformation has every chance ofstanding beside the Czechoslovak Velvet Revolutionand South Africa�s long walk to freedom, as ashining example of the strength of human dignity�and the depth of the desire for freedom.

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AfricaAddress before the EconomicCommunity of West African States (ECOWAS)and the Nigerian CommunityAbuja, NigeriaOctober 20, 1999

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Two days ago, I saw that same dignity and desirewritten across the faces of the people of SierraLeone. I saw people who had suffered unspeakablehorror, yet who sought not revenge but renewal.

I met African children eagerly learning to useprosthetics from an American veteran, himself adouble amputee. I watched the most bitter enemiesslowly learning to talk to each other. And I had thepleasure of reviewing ECOMOG troops�Nigeriansand other West Africans�who are providing thestability Sierra Leone needs to begin again.

There is no message of easy optimism in thecamps of Sierra Leone or on the long path Nigeriahas still to travel. But there is an opportunity to builda true partnership between the United States andAfrica�to leave behind the attitudes and habits of thepast and seize opportunities to work together toachieve shared goals.

I am proud of what we have achieved thus far.President Clinton and his Cabinet, myself included,have made an unprecedented investment of time andenergy to develop our ties with Africa across a broadnew range of subjects�from agriculture and trans-portation policy to promoting trade and fightingcorruption.

Our nations are working together to end conflictsand build peace: combat the crime and terror thatknow no borders; promote economic reform andintegration; and support democratic institutions andaccountable government. It matters profoundlywhether we succeed, and it matters nowhere morethan here in Nigeria. Nigeria is important to theUnited States and the world because you have thepotential to be an economic powerhouse for Africaand global markets, because you are already a leaderfor peace and because, ever since your struggle forindependence, you have been a signpost for others insearch of freedom.

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President Obasanjo has already done much torestore Nigeria�s democratic institutions. The stepsstill to come include the repeal of the last repressivelaws, the return of Nigeria�s judiciary to its formerrenown, and the consolidation of civilian control ofthe military. These are the long-term changes whichwill ensure that, this time, democracy has come toNigeria to stay.

Nigerians are also showing great determination tocome to terms with the abuses of the past. I applaudrecent progress toward bringing to justice the killersof Kudirat Abiola, Shehu Yar�Adua, and others. Iwelcome President Obasanjo�s courage and farsight-edness in appointing a panel to investigate humanrights abuses committed since 1984, as well asestablishing a committee to review dubious govern-ment contracts signed since by previous regimes.These investigations, if they are fully and honestlycarried out, are an opportunity to break�for good�the cycle of impunity that has claimed so many livesand done so much to discredit legitimate authority.

We also want to do all we can to help establishjustice and permanent peace among Nigerians ofevery ethnicity and creed. Later today, I will visitKano, to gain a better understanding of that part ofNigeria�s rich mosaic.

And I follow with concern the extraordinarychallenges that Nigeria faces in the Niger Deltaregion. Communal tensions there have been fed bypast government neglect, police and military brutality,and extreme poverty and despair�even as tremen-dous oil wealth is pumped from the Delta every day.

I want to commend President Obasanjo for hisefforts to defuse the crisis and to hear the concernsof the Delta peoples. I stress America�s desire to dowhat we can to help find solutions that are based onthe rule of law, not the law of force�solutions thatgive the Delta peoples a voice in their own future anda stake in the future of Nigeria.

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I believe we can help find ways to work withAmerican oil companies on these issues. They, too,have a stake in seeing Nigeria�s transformationsucceed. And they can be partners in developing theDelta and bettering the lives of its people.

Nigeria�s success in meeting the challenges ofdemocracy will be a welcome inspiration acrossAfrica. For our part, the United States will continueto be a strong supporter of democratic forces acrossthe continent. We work with governments seeking tomake the transition. And we support the elements ofcivil society, such as the journalists, labor unions,women�s groups, and other activists that have keptNigeria�s democratic vocation alive.

President Clinton has pledged to work to returnAmerican assistance to Africa to its past high levels.We will be making the case to the American peoplethat Africa�s peace and well-being are closely boundwith our national interests, whether fighting crimeand terrorism or promoting exports and trade. Wewill be explaining that our assistance programs forAfrica are an investment in our common future.We will be working with Congress to achieve asubstantial addition to our funding, including a three-or four-fold increase in our assistance to Nigeria.

As President Clinton stressed at the UN GeneralAssembly last month: The fight against poverty andunderdevelopment is a critical part of our struggle fordemocracy and stability in Africa. . . .

The United States will continue to supportAfrica�s modernizing economies and encourageAmerican investors to take a closer look at theopportunities Africa has to offer. . . .

We will continue to seek out and initiate conti-nent-wide projects such as our Safe Skies Initiative,which is making African commerce easier by makingair travel safer and more secure. We will continue tobe a leader in reducing the crushing burden ofinternational debt which African nations face. The

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international financial institutions and the G-7 haveapproved President Clinton�s plan to make it easierfor countries to qualify for debt relief, to providerelief more rapidly, and to ensure that savings areused to meet social needs.

Ultimately, private sector investment will be theengine of long-term growth across Africa. And ifdomestic investment is to be profitable, and foreigninvestment attractive, the battle against crime andcorruption must be won. . . .

As we work to fight transnational threats, wemust find ways to end the conflicts that blockAfrican development and threaten regional peace.

I have said repeatedly that our involvement inpeacemaking in Kosovo, East Timor, and elsewherearound the world is not an excuse for inaction inAfrica; it is a challenge to do better. One of the areaswhere the international community must improve isin developing the resources of our African partnersso that we can move together, quickly and effec-tively, to prevent and respond to crises: that is whythe United States is the largest contributor to theOAU�s Conflict Management Center; that is whyPresident Clinton�s Africa Crisis Response Initiativehas already trained and equipped battalion-sizedcontingents from six countries for peacekeeping.

Yesterday, I reviewed a battalion of Malian troopson its way to Sierra Leone. They are trained byAmericans, supported by the Dutch, and will servewith soldiers from Nigeria, Guinea, Ghana, andelsewhere. Such partnerships are an important step�and ECOWAS is a vital partner�toward ensuring thatthe nightmares of Sierra Leone, and Rwanda beforeit, will not be repeated.

For much of this decade, ECOWAS has been onthe front line of the struggle for peace in Africa. Toooften, in fact, you have been the only line separatinginnocent civilians from utter chaos. Much has beenasked of you in Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, andLiberia. You have stretched limited resources farther

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than the international community had any right toexpect, and you have achieved more than anyonedared hope.

The United States has been ECOMOG�s largestsupporter, providing well over $100 million thisdecade. We have allocated an additional $11 million inlogistical support for your mission in Sierra Leone.This week, we will vote in the UN Security Councilto send a peacekeeping mission to Sierra Leone tohelp relieve the burden you have carried so long.We are also ready to help strengthen ECOWAS itself,both in its security architecture and in its efforts topromote regional economic integration and trade.

Elsewhere on the continent, the United States hastaken a lead role in reenergizing a regional peaceprocess in Sudan. We are working with the Organiza-tion for African Unity to help end the conflict be-tween our friends Ethiopia and Eritrea. We areworking to defuse the escalating tensions in Burundi.And we will help implement the peace agreement inthe Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Each of these conflicts is a serious roadblock inthe way of Africa�s development, but they are not thesum of Africa�s present or its future. Since becominga diplomat, I have come to Africa half a dozen timesand have seen both the continent�s problems and itspromise. From Addis to Luanda, and from Gulu toCape Town, some of what I have witnessed hassaddened me. But I have also been inspired.

Nowhere in the world are there stronger or braverpeople than those working now to secure justice,prosperity, and lasting peace across Africa. In recentdays, I have been reminded of the immense debt thatthe world owes to President Nyerere and millions ofAfricans like him, who in our lifetime have shown ushow to be champions of peace and forces of liberty.Mwalimu was unique, capable of soaring vision anddeep humility. He believed, profoundly, in what Africacould be. And he lived his beliefs as best he knewhow.

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Sixteen years ago, the writer Chinua Achebewrote that �One shining act of bold, selfless leader-ship from the top, such as unambiguous refusal to becorrupt or to tolerate corruption at the fountain ofauthority, will radiate powerful sensations of well-being and pride through every nerve and artery ofnational life.�

I expect that I will see that pride on the faces ofthousands of Tanzanians tomorrow, as I join them inpaying Mwalimu homage. I see that pride here today,in the faces of Nigerians who struggled for so long,performing countless acts of bravery while refusingto see their democratic will denied.

I believe that Nigeria�s new hope and pride willradiate beyond your borders, just as the courage ofNyerere, Mandela, and their million less-knowncolleagues illuminated not just a continent but theworld. I believe they will spark more acts of leader-ship toward a better, freer tomorrow.

When I think about the future in Africa, I amreminded of another great force for freedom, VaclavHavel. He has said that �I am not an optimist,because I am not sure that everything ends well. Noram I a pessimist, because I am not sure that every-thing ends badly. InsteadI am a realist who carries hope. And hope is the beliefthat freedom and justice have meaning. . . and thatliberty is always worth the trouble.�

I am a realist�or, as a Malian newspaper calledme yesterday, an Afro-realist. In Africa, as across thetime zones and from pole to pole, liberty is alwaysworth the trouble. I hope you will join me in strivingto give freedom and justice one true meaning for usall.

Thank you very much. ■

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. . .I appreciate deeply the chance to speak withyou this morning, because your 90 years of hardwork have made your name a synonym for justice.Year in and year out, you have helped America toconfront its contradictions and move closer to itsideals.

Your message has been heard far beyond class-rooms and courtrooms here at home. The NAACPlong ago went global. Your founding inspired thecreation of the African National Congress.

You helped forge an invaluable partnershipbetween the people of the United States and thepeople of Africa. It is this partnership that I wouldlike to discuss this morning. I do so at a time whenthe United States and NATO have made a big com-mitment in southeast Europe to reverse ethniccleansing, return refugees, and help a war-tornsociety to rebuild. That is the right approach forKosovo and the Balkans.

In the wake of that commitment, it is no surprisethat some of you are asking�and comparisons arebeing made with our policy toward Africa. But noone would say that we must do the same thingeverywhere. And no reasonable person would saythat we should have done less in Kosovo because wecould not do the same everywhere.

Address to the Annual Convention for the NationalAssociation for the Advancementof Colored People (NAACP)New York CityJuly 13, 1999

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It is true that we have been able to do far more toend conflicts in Europe than in Africa. In Europe theUnited States has allies to share the risks and costs ofresponding to crises. We have strong regionalorganizations to promote understanding, and eco-nomic integration to foster peace.

In Africa, such resources are scarce. But that isno excuse for disengaging or giving up. Instead, it isa challenge, as President Clinton has suggested, touse the lessons of Kosovo to help us do better inAfrica.

In the weeks ahead, Africans and the internationalcommunity together face tests in the DemocraticRepublic of the Congo and Sierra Leone. If the peaceagreements that have been signed in those twocountries are implemented�and we pray that theywill�then we must find the resources to supportpeacekeeping, reconstruction, and reconciliation. Ihope I can count on your support as I work withCongress to make sure we do our share.For we should have learned by now that Americacannot be secure if millions elsewhere are trapped bystrife and scarcity.

I visited Africa several times as America�sAmbassador to the United Nations, and every yearsince I became Secretary of State. And I saw that thecontinent is more democratic than it has ever been,more economically open, and more alive with theenergy of a growing civil society.

But I also saw that Africa is being pulled twoways. I watched war crimes investigators in Rwandaexcavate with great care the skeleton of a child aboutthe size of one of my grandsons, and the sights ofthat day made vivid Eleanor Roosevelt�s statementthat �within all of us there are two sides. One reachesfor the stars, the other descends to the level ofbeasts.�

Five years ago, when a campaign of genocidewas launched in Rwanda, neither America, nor thenations of Africa, nor the rest of the internationalcommunity did enough, quickly enough, to try to

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stop it. It is no secret that I was not satisfied withour efforts then. And I say to you today that we mustdo all we can now to see that such a nightmare isnever repeated.

I take great pride that the United States took thelead in creating an international criminal tribunal forRwanda. The tribunal has offered the world a lessonby prosecuting not just the perpetrators but theleaders of genocide. And it has established, once andfor all, that those who see rape and sexual assault asjust another weapon of war must answer for theircrimes.

Nowhere in the world are there stronger or braverpeople than those Africans working at the grassrootsfor justice and lasting peace. I look forward tomeeting with these people�as well as the region�sleaders�when I return to Africa this fall. I will alsoseek their counsel on how we can help make Africansocieties more peaceful and safe, more democratic,and more prosperous, healthy, and free.

This morning, I want to focus on two areaswhere the NAACP is also taking a leading role �supporting Africa�s economic development andassisting Africans in the search for lasting securityand peace.

Economically, the key to progress in Africa, aselsewhere, is creating good jobs and sound economicstructures. So the Clinton Administration, startingwith the leadership of the late Ron Brown, hasworked hard to encourage American investors tomake the most of the opportunities Africa has tooffer.

In March, I hosted representatives of 50 Africannations for the first-ever U.S.-Africa Ministerial. Itwas the largest gathering of American and Africanofficials ever, and an important opportunity to hearthe concerns of the continent�s leaders.

At the ministerial, African leaders told us in nouncertain terms that one of the most helpful thingswe could do would be to obtain passage of the

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African Growth and Opportunity Act. This Act willgive a hand up to leaders who have been reformingand modernizing their economies�and give newreason for others to do the same. It offers a smartpath for Africa into the global economy.

I want to thank the NAACP for its decision lastyear to endorse this measure. It is the most importantpiece of legislation on Africa I can remember.Together, we have fought for its enactment. Andtogether, we must win that fight . . . .

At the March ministerial, many of Africa�s leadersalso told us that international debt burdens werecrippling their ability to provide even the most basicsocial services for their citizens. We have responded.Last month, the G-7 agreed to the President�s plan toprovide up to $90 billion in additional debt relief fordeveloping countries. The prime beneficiaries will beAfrican.

At the same time, President Clinton has commit-ted to work with Congress to restore U.S. assistanceto Africa to its historic high levels. These steps areessential. But economic growth is linked, as well, topolitical development and peace.

The United States is a strong supporter ofdemocratic forces across the continent. We know thecritical importance to Africa�s future of the successof Nigeria and other new democracies.

We are also working hard to halt conflicts and toaddress the massive human suffering they havecaused. In the Sudan, for instance, we have taken amajor role in trying to energize a regional peaceprocess that could finally settle that country�sdisastrous 16-year-long civil war which has affectedthe region.

As we seek an end to war, we also seek concreteprogress from the Sudanese Government on terror-ism and human rights, an end to slavery and religious

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persecution, and steps to address the historicalgrievances of the south.

When I was in Gulu, Uganda, I met with youngpeople who had been abducted from their homes andtaken to Sudan to serve as slaves or child soldiers.Some escaped from the Sudan-backed brutal lord�sresistance army. All had been terribly abused, andnone could imagine a future free of violence andwant.

To make sure America plays its full part in thateffort, I am announcing today that the President willsoon appoint a special envoy who will focus onreducing human rights abuses, improving humanitar-ian responses, and revitalizing the regional peaceeffort led by Kenya. We have taken this step becausethe people of Sudan deserve not delay, but decisive-ness; not starvation, but succor; not boundlessinhumanity, but lasting peace.

The United States remains far and away thelargest contributor to relief efforts in the Sudan,having provided more than $1 billion in this decade.We are also fully engaged in efforts to resolve theother conflicts across the continent, from theseemingly endless civil war in Angola to the bloodydispute between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, we havesupported Zambian President Chiluba�s sustainedefforts to negotiate a cease-fire. The accord signedlast weekend by six countries is an important firststep toward a lasting regional peace settlement. Wecall upon all the insurgent groups involved to sign it.

In Sierra Leone as well, a recent peace agreementoffers the hope of ending a conflict characterized byhorrendous abuses of human rights. If we can helpalleviate the suffering caused by these conflicts, weshould. This is the right thing to do; it is also thesmart thing. But while responding to these conflicts,we must take broader steps to help prevent them;that means supporting the Organization of AfricanUnity. It means enhancing Africa�s peacekeeping

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capacity, as President Clinton�s African CrisisResponse Initiative does. And it means restoring theUN�s rightful place in ending war in Africa�s crisiszones.

We must also be Africa�s partner in a largerstruggle�a struggle being waged around the globebetween those with faith in the rule of law and thosewho believe in no rules at all. From within andwithout, parts of Africa are besieged by whatLangston Hughes referred to as �the force that kills,the power that robs, and the greed that does notcare.� It does not have to be this way.

Those complicit are white and black, African andnon-African. They are diamond runners, armspeddlers, and those who consider public office alicense to steal. They are mercenaries who would selldrugs and guns to a kindergarten if the markup werehigh enough. And they are international terroristgroups that use Africa as a convenient base ofoperations, such as those who killed hundreds ofAmericans and Africans last summer by bombing ourembassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

We will honor those victims in a memorialceremony on August 7. As we do so, we must vownever to forget�and never to be complacent. Theworld must come together with Africa, not tocompete for influence, but to cooperate for peace,development, and law.

One place to start is by backing strong demo-cratic leaders in their fight against corruption. AsNigeria�s new President Obasanjo has observed, inAfrican tradition, gifts are given in public andexcessive gifts are returned. Secret offshore bankaccounts, he adds, are not part of this tradition.

A second priority is the need to halt the uncon-trolled flow of guns and other weapons into Africa. Iknow the NAACP understands this problem well, andI have great respect for your work to reduce gunviolence in our own country.

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In Africa, the end of the Cold War brought largequantities of weaponry into the continent at bargain-basement prices, through transactions that wereneither regulated nor recorded. As a result, thecontinent is awash in arms that feed conflict andcrime.

Today, I am releasing a special State Departmentreport ["Arms and Conflict in Africa"] describing thedimensions of this problem, how the business ofarms sales to Africa works, and what its impacts are.As the report makes clear, although prices are low,the social cost of arms sales is high. Countries thatare among the world�s poorest spend hundreds ofmillions of dollars buying tanks, jet fighters, andsmall arms. Diamonds are smuggled, crops aremortgaged, and relief supplies are stolen to financethese purchases. In each case, it is the African peoplewho are the losers.

Of course, countries have the right to self-defense. Many arms transfers are legitimate, butmany others are not. The United Nations has imposedarms embargoes against two African countries andthree extremist rebel groups, which are responsiblefor more than a million deaths in this decade. Unfor-tunately, the enforcement of these embargoes hasbeen lacking, and the arms have continued to flow.

The international community must do better�andthe United States is determined to do its part. Cur-rently, we are working with the United Nations andAfrican leaders to find ways to strengthen theenforcement of arms embargoes. We are negotiatinga global agreement to prevent the illicit manufacturingor sale of firearms. And we are seeking support forrules governing the export of shoulder-fired missiles�a threat to civilian aircraft and a deadly danger inthe hands of terrorists.

Curbing the illicit or destabilizing sale of armswould help make Africans safer and Africa stronger.The same would be true for progress against an evendeadlier threat, and that is HIV/AIDS.

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Neither numbers nor statistics are adequate todescribe the human destruction being caused by thisdisease, especially in Africa. In the minutes since Ibegan this speech, 100 Africans became newlyinfected with HIV/AIDS. By the time your conven-tion ends, another 25,000 will have been infected.

The imperative in Africa now, as in our owncountry a decade or so ago, is to face squarely thereality of this disease, for we know that with nationalleadership, international assistance and local interven-tions, the tide can be turned.

Uganda was among the first nations to be devas-tated by AIDS, but it has fought back. PresidentMuseveni has urged every cabinet minister, everyschool, every church, and every business to promoteAIDS awareness, prevention, and treatment. Ugan-dans call this �the big noise,� and it has cut HIVinfection rates by 50%.

Today, the big noise is starting to be heard inmore and more African nations. The United Stateshas helped by urging others to heed Uganda�sexample, and by steering to Africa more than one-halfof the $1 billion we have invested in the global fightagainst AIDS.

But so much more needs to be done. So I pledgethis morning that I will do all I can to see that we willdo more�and that we stick with this fight until it iswon.

Many years ago, in a speech at Lincoln Univer-sity, the Rev. Martin Luther King confessed to beingwhat he called a �maladjusted� person. He said thathe simply had not been able to adjust to a world ofdiscrimination. He had not been able to adjust toeconomic conditions that left a few with luxuries andthe vast majority without basic necessities. And hesaid that the salvation of the world may well rest inthe hands of the maladjusted.

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Today, I hope that we, too, will be maladjusted�that we will never adjust to an America where hatecrimes still occur and discrimination persists; or to aworld where too many of our fellow human beingsare abused and exploited, denied fundamental free-doms, and lack the means for a decent life.

I hope that we will be true partners to ourbrothers and sisters in Africa; that we will reach outto those who share our belief in the power of freeinstitutions; and that we will help out those in need ofrelief from illness, hardship, and war.

I hope that we will take our cue from the proudtradition of the NAACP and never cease in ourstriving to build a freer and more equitable world�and by so doing validate the last message of yourfounder, W.E.B. Dubois, that �human beings will liveand progress to greater, broader and fuller life.�

Thank you very much for your attention thismorning and for the work you do every day forAmerica and the world. ■

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Thank you, Mr. President. A year ago, we heldthe Security Council�s first-ever Africa ministerial.We hoped to build a new and lasting partnershipbetween Africa and the world based on commoninterests; mutual respect; and a shared commitmentto peace, prosperity, and freedom.

Since then, some African countries and institu-tions have made inspiring progress: The majority ofAfrican nations are registering economic growth, as aresult of the difficult but necessary steps they havetaken toward participation in global markets.

In nations such as Botswana and Mozambique,democracy continues to put down strong roots. Andnew hope has emerged for Nigeria�s long-delayedreturn to democratic rule.

Organizations such as ECOWAS and the Organi-zation of African Unity are pursuing innovativeapproaches to preventing and ending conflicts.Perhaps most encouraging is the moratorium on themanufacture and trade in small arms proposed by agroup of West African nations.

In December, I had a very successful trip to sixAfrican nations. In March, President Clinton and nineAfrican leaders pledged to work for peace, develop-ment, and the rule of law at the Entebbe Summit. Andin April, here in New York, the Secretary Generalsubmitted a thoughtful and comprehensive report onpeace and development in Africa.

Statement to the UN Security CouncilMinisterial on AfricaNew York CitySeptember 24, 1998

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I wish that we had more good news. But the truthis that tragedy and conflict have led the news fromAfrica this year, and it dominates our thoughts as wemeet today.

Just last month, we were shocked and saddenedby tragic terrorist attacks in Nairobi, Dar es Salaam,and Cape Town. Let me take this opportunity to onceagain congratulate local authorities for their diligencein pursuing those responsible�and to expressAmerica�s sorrow for those who were hurt or lostloved ones.

But acts of terror were not the only disturbingevents of recent months. From the Atlantic Ocean tothe Red Sea, and from Africa�s western coast to itssouthern highlands, countries that had begun torecover from strife are being swept back into it;societies which were beginning to rebuild are seeingtheir labors lost; governments which had movedtoward democracy are retreating into tyranny.

For example, the dangerous standoff in the Hornof Africa threatens to become a full-scale interstatewar, Africa�s first this decade. A bloody crisis inCongo has undone progress achieved since thedeparture of former President Mobutu. It hasensnared the armies of neighboring countries,sparking interethnic violence, and raising again thespecter of genocide.

And in Angola, the parties have left the path topeace laid out in the Lusaka Protocol and are poisedto drag the country back into civil war, fueled bymonths of new arms purchases. These and otherconflicts are taking a tremendous toll in regional trusteroded, in development opportunities lost, and, mostimportant, in human lives.

The leaders of countries in crisis have a choice:They can stop now and prevent the slide back tofullscale war; they can be statesmen and guide theirnations toward a future of cooperation; or they cancontinue full-tilt into the past�a past of hatred,

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violence, instability, and isolation. No one else�nottheir neighbors and not the international commu-nity�can make that choice for them.

But the international community does havea critical role to play. Our nations, acting together,can make it harder to solve disputes through vio-lence, and we can make it easier for African nationsto choose and keep to the path of peace.

We thank the Secretary General for his personalengagement in these difficult challenges, and wewelcome the response his report has generated.Already we have seen important proposals forimproving cooperation between the UN and the OAU,improving the effectiveness of arms embargoes, anddeveloping African peacekeeping capacity. And theUnited States looks forward to leading the workinggroup on maintaining the security and neutrality ofrefugee camps.

The working group led by Japan has correctlysingled out an area where the international commu-nity could quickly make a great deal of difference: theuncontrolled flow of arms, ammunition, and explo-sives into Africa�s tensest areas. This dirty businessfuels conflict, fortifies extremism, and destabilizesentire regions.

All of us whose nations sell such weapons, orthrough whose nations the traffic flows, bear someresponsibility for turning a blind eye to the destruc-tion they cause. And all of us have it in our power todo something in response.

Together, we should move now to curb armstransfers to zones of conflict in Africa. We shouldbegin by committing to full and timely disclosure ofall arms shipments into those regions. And we shouldseek to build international support, over the next 6months, for a voluntary moratorium on arms salesthat could fuel these interconnected conflicts.

The United States also proposes that governmentsand international and non-governmental organizationsmeet to exchange information on regional armstransfers and to explore further steps.

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Second, arms control and sanctions regimes areonly as strong as their enforcement. And whether thesanctions in question are aimed at a war nearby or awould-be proliferator far away, the internationalcommunity as a whole will gain from strongersanctions regimes.

We, therefore, urge UN Member states, withrelevant expertise, to prepare programs strengtheningthe capacity of African governments to monitor andinterdict arms flows. The United States is currentlyconsidering what training and equipment we couldusefully contribute, and we would welcome propos-als from others.

The UN could also develop a clearinghouse fortechnical information and for rapid exchange of dataon possible violations. Finally, sanctions cannot workwhere there is no national legislation enforcing themand no penalties for violators. Member states that donot have such legislation should strive to enact it.

The threat posed by arms flows, particularlysmall arms, is by no means limited to the AfricanContinent. The Government of Mali and others,notably those of Norway and Canada, have done agreat deal to bring this problem to the world�sattention. Let me take this opportunity to welcomethose initiatives and to propose two urgent steps forworldwide action.

First, we must put in place responsible armstransfer practices that are effective worldwide.Negotiations have begun, under UN auspices, on aconvention based on the pathbreaking OAS Conven-tion Against Illicit Trafficking. We should concludethose talks by the year 2000. That should also serveas a target date to restrict the export of shoulder-firedmissiles.

Second, we should establish an internationalcenter to collect and share information on armstransfers. Last year we left this ministerial with newmomentum behind us and high hopes before us. Themajority of African states continue to move ahead,

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with able leaders and citizens committed to progressand hopeful for the future. Unfortunately, in somekey countries, we have seen a failure in leadership.And in too many places, the rule of law is losing outto the law of force.

Secretary General Annan has eloquently appealedto the continent�s leaders to �summon the will toresolve our problems by political, not military means.For every day that we fail to do so, the innocentpeople of the continent pay a terrible price.� And hehas urged us all, Africans and non-Africans, tosummon our will, and �rise to the challenges� weface in Africa.

I hope that we will all leave New York resolved tosummon our will and to act. I pledge that, throughthe steps I have outlined today and by supportingAfrican aspirations for peace and justice, the UnitedStates will do its part.

Thank you. ■

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Remarks at the site of the bombingat U.S. Embassy NairobiNairobi, KenyaAugust 18, 1998

Mr. Foreign Minister, friends. . .: Good afternoon,and thank you all for being here. I have come toNairobi today�to this sorrowful and now sacredlocation�to deliver in person a message from theAmerican people. That message begins with sadnessand grief. As a result of the cowardly act committedhere, more than 250 people are dead. Five thousandwere injured. Almost every family in every part ofKenya has been touched by this tragedy. So many, sowell loved, have been lost. Our pain is deep�inAmerica, in Tanzania, and most of all here in Kenya.

To the people of Kenya, I express on behalf ofmy country our deepest sympathy. The bombing here10 days ago was a terrible injustice. The dead wereteenage girls, office workers, mothers, children.They were not the enemies of anyone. They wereinnocent, just as Kenya was innocent. Why shouldthis nation of good and proud people be singled outalong with Tanzania? There is no reason. But terror isnot about reason; it�s about hate, and we reject hate.It�s about destruction, and the peoples of Kenya andthe United States reject destruction. We are builders.The terrorists would like nothing better than to driveus apart. We must not let them. We will not let them.

Together, we mourn the friends and loved oneswe have lost. Together, we pray for the swift andcomplete recovery of those who have been injured.Together, we pledge to bring to justice the murderers

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of our loved ones, colleagues, and friends. Andtogether, we must vow to maintain warm relationsbetween our two countries. Our friendship extendsback for decades. Even before independence, theKennedy airlift brought hundreds of Kenyans to theUnited States to receive a higher education. We havelong been partners in supporting peace, stability, andfreedom in East Africa, and we have developedstrong and enduring people-to-people ties.

I know there is anguish about what happened inthe aftermath of the bombings. And I cannot say weacted perfectly, but I believe that allegations ofcallousness are wrong. In the circumstances, amidstthe horror, the fears, and the different jobs that hadto be done, it�s not surprising that there were misun-derstandings. The U.S. Marines limited access notout of indifference but because they were afraid thatthe weakened building would collapse and trap newvictims, in order to keep people away from theburning fuel tanks, and because they were concernedabout the possibility of a second terrorist attack.

Meanwhile, there were many heroes. The peopleof Kenya may be proud of the efforts made withnothing more than muscles, bare hands, and theurgency of desperate caring to retrieve people fromthe rubble and save their lives. A number of foreigncountries, especially the Israelis, earned our admira-tion and gratitude for all they did to help.

The United States, too, contributed much. Weprovided massive quantities of search-and-rescueequipment such as generators, hydraulic machines,and listening devices. An urban disaster support teamfrom Virginia helped in the effort to find survivorsand recover bodies�both from the embassy andfrom Ufundi House. We provided large amounts ofmedical supplies, and our military surgeons andparamedics have been hard at work in Kenyanhospitals. But our efforts to rebuild from this tragedyare far from complete. They must and will continue.When our Congress returns to Washington early nextmonth, the Administration will request substantial

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emergency funds to help Kenya and Tanzaniarecover. We want to work with the representatives ofthe people of Kenya and with the NGO community toidentify and meet specific needs, such as medicalcare, assistance for the victims and their families,repairs to public infrastructure, and security improve-ments. We also want to reaffirm our commitment tohelping the people of Kenya build a more prosperousand fully democratic society.

I know that some have said that the Kenyans whowere killed would not have been killed if America hadnot been here in Nairobi. And that is probably true.But why are we here? The Americans and Kenyanswho worked in our embassy and who were amongthe victims wanted nothing more nor less than toimprove the quality of life for both our peoples. Andthat�s why we have worked, and will continue towork, to broaden economic opportunities, strengthencivil society, promote sustainable development, fightdisease, and safeguard the environment. Theseefforts reflect values and aspirations that Kenyansand Americans share�and no bombing can changethat.

We are also very proud that the efforts of theUnited States are being carried out here by a mostamazing ambassador, Ambassador PrudenceBushnell, and we are all incredibly proud of her andeverything that she has done to maintain solidarityand to hold America�s head up high. Pru, thank youvery much.

I was very moved last week to read a story abouta man who was pulled from the Ufundi CooperativeBuilding 36 hours after the bombing. He said he hadsurvived because �the courage of the mind is greaterthan the body.� �I never gave up hope,� he said.Those brave words remind us that the strategy ofterror is based almost entirely on replacing hope withfear. It is a strategy of intimidation. It is designed tomake us forget our aspirations, to hunker down and

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become passive, and turn against one another. I saythere is more real strength in a single tear among themillions shed for the loved ones killed here than therecan be in any terrorist act. We grieve because wecare for each other, and that is also why we build�and why we have faith that if we work together, wecan create a future far better than the past.

Let us choose as those who died here would havehad us choose: to honor their memory by comfortingtheir families, caring for the injured, rebuilding theirsociety, and holding the guilty accountable; and tohonor their example by redoubling our efforts toforge a future of greater freedom, security, andprosperity not just for some, but for all people.


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Testimony before the SenateFinance CommitteeWashington, DCJune 17, 1998

Good morning, Mr. Chairman and members ofthe committee. I am delighted to be here to testify onbehalf of one of our top legislative priorities: theAfrican Growth and Opportunity Act.

My focus this morning will be on the foreignpolicy rationale behind the Act. And that rationale istruly powerful, for this legislation frames a new U.S.approach to a new Africa. For a century or more,outsiders have either been telling Africans what to door manipulating loyalties for geopolitical advantage.We have a chance now, which we must seize,to usher in a better era based on changed attitudesand a changing African reality.

I do not minimize Africa�s continuing problems.And I will comment on two of them briefly before Itake your questions. But it would be a grave error tolet problems rooted in Africa�s past blind us to theimmense possibilities in Africa�s future.

Consider that within the past 10 years, thenumber of democratically elected governments inSub-Saharan Africa has more than quadrupled.Consider that of the 48 nations in that region, nofewer than three dozen have begun economicreforms�so that the lost decade of the 1980s isbeing replaced by the growth decade of the 1990s.

Consider that a new generation of Africans hascome of age, raised in the era of independence,liberated from Cold War divisions, ready and increas-ingly able to assume an equal place at the world table.

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And consider that today, we export fully one-thirdmore to Africa than to all the states of the formerSoviet Union. To those who think the United Statesdoes not have important interests in Africa�s success,I say�think again. Already, 100,000 American jobsdepend on our trade with Africa. Already Africasupplies more than 13% of our oil�nearly as muchas the Middle East. And already there can be no doubtthat a stronger, more stable and prosperous Africawill be a better partner for security and peace�andfor our efforts to counter global threats such as drugtrafficking, terror, and crime.

In decades past, U.S. policymakers, when theythought of Africa at all, would ask: What can we dofor Africa, or what can we do about Africa? Today,the right question is what can we do with Africa�tobuild real democracies based on open markets andrespect for human rights?

By asking this question, we undertake the mostfundamental change in our policy toward Africa sincethe independence movement blossomed on thatcontinent four decades ago. And that change isclearly embodied in the African Growth and Opportu-nity Act. This legislation was developed, on a biparti-san basis and with strong Administration support,here on Capitol Hill. It reflects our strategy forplacing trade and investment at the forefront of oureconomic relations with Africa, as they are with otherregions around the globe.

The philosophy behind the Act is simple. Americastands ready to help those African countries that helpthemselves. Specifically, the Act would achieve thisby providing duty-free access to U.S. markets formany additional African products.

It would provide reform-oriented African coun-tries with special preferential access for textiles andother labor-intensive products. It would pave the wayfor hundreds of millions of dollars in new investmentthrough two new OPIC funds. And it would facilitate

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technical assistance to help Africans take maximumadvantage of all the opportunities inherent in theworld economy.

The benefits contained in this bill are not entitle-ments. They will not be available to every country.Some object to that. But, quite frankly, Mr. Chair-man, we would be doing no favor to Africa or toourselves if we failed to recognize in our laws thestrides that African reformers are taking.

This bill is designed to encourage African govern-ments to place their economies on a sound financialfooting, to allow private enterprise to function withinthe rule of law, to permit outside investment, and toliberalize trade. At the same time, the bill encouragesAfrican countries to tend to such developmentimperatives as poverty reduction, providing adequatehealth care, creating educational opportunity, andencouraging a new generation of African entrepre-neurs.

This last factor is vital, because nothing willcontribute more to Africa�s future. That�s why thelegislation specifically supports microenterprise and�improved economic opportunities for women.�Those are the smart things for Africa to be doing.And they are the right things for America to besupporting.

I believe one of the most striking arguments forthis bill is that it is supported by many Africangovernments that may not even qualify initially for itsbenefits. This reflects the dramatic change in philoso-phy that has been sweeping Africa.

Throughout the continent, this legislation is seenas a catalyst for deepening reform and for openingthe door over time to full participation for manyAfrican countries in the world economy.

During his visit to that continent this spring,President Clinton heard warm praise for this legisla-tion from most African leaders. And as the committeemay know, it is ardently supported by Africa�sdiplomatic corps here in Washington. Indeed, almost

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every government in Sub-Saharan Africa, includingSouth Africa, is now on record in support of thisproposal. Given the diversity of Africa, that isamazing evidence that the time is right, the time isnow, to enact this legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I do want to emphasize that,although trade and investment are increasing inimportance in our relations with Africa, that does notmean we can ignore the continuing need in manyparts of Africa for aid. The Act does not impose newconditions on current assistance. Instead, thislegislation explicitly states that we should continue toprovide development assistance to help establish amore receptive environment for trade and investment.And let me stress that we are continuing such aid.During this decade, we have contributed more than$15 billion in assistance to Africa.

Senators, as you know, some have expressedconcern that the African Growth and Opportunity Actwill lead to a major exodus of American jobs, espe-cially in the area of textiles. The Administration takesconcerns of this type seriously, because we arecommitted to strengthening core labor standardsaround the world�and we do not want to seeAmerican workers undercut.

So it is important to recognize a limit on thelegislation we are now considering. Because of thedifference in the size of our economies, its impactwill be felt far more in Africa than in the UnitedStates.

An International Trade Commission�ITC�studyconcluded that even if all quotas and tariffs onAfrican textiles and apparel were lifted, Africanimports still would constitute just 1% of total U.S.imports in these categories. So let�s keep things inproportion. Last year, our domestic textile andapparel production was approximately $160 billion.Our imports of these products from Africa amountedto less than one four-hundredth of that amount. The

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ITC estimates that the African Growth and Opportu-nity Act could impact, at most, 700 U.S. jobs. In thecurrent economy, we create more than 10 times thatmany jobs every day of the year.

Moreover, American businesses, workers, andfarmers will benefit greatly over time as Africabecomes more prosperous and open. The continent ishome to two-thirds of a billion potential consumers�as many as Japan and Southeast Asia combined. Yetour exports represent just 7% of this vast untappedmarket, compared to Europe, with more than 40%.

Mr. Chairman, in 1965, Nigeria�s GNP was equalto Indonesia�s�and Ghana�s was the same as SouthKorea�s. Over the past three decades, enormousopportunities were lost in Africa, just as they wereseized in Asia. Today, we have a chance, with ourAfrican partners, to begin to make up some of thatlost time. If we succeed, we can contribute to ourown well-being and to a world that is safer, moreprosperous, and more free than it otherwise wouldbe.

That would be a great gift to the future. And it isample reason, in my judgment, for the Senate to actpositively and soon to approve the African Growthand Opportunity Act. . . . ■

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Address at George Mason UniversityFairfax, VirginiaMarch 19, 1998

. . . I am very glad to be able to discuss with youUnited States policy toward Africa and to provide apreview of the President and the First Lady�s trip tothat continent next week.

This historic visit will be the first comprehensivetrip to Africa ever undertaken by a sitting AmericanPresident, and it is occurring at an especially auspi-cious time, for a new generation of Africans hascome of age�raised in the era of independence,liberated from Cold War divisions, and determined toassume an equal place at the world table.

As a result of their efforts, within the past 10years, the number of democratically elected govern-ments in Sub-Saharan Africa has more than qua-drupled. More than three dozen nations have beguneconomic reforms, so that the lost decade of the1980s is being replaced by the growth decade of the1990s. Economies are expanding. U.S.-Africa trade isbooming. Today, we export more to Africa than to allstates of the former Soviet Union combined. . . .

Africa continues to face daunting problems ofpoverty, debt, and instability. In many countries, thedemocratic experiment has barely begun, and theGreat Lakes region remains a tinderbox. We cannot�and are not�ignoring these challenges. But we alsowant the President�s visit to spotlight the other Africa:the new and forward-looking Africa; the Africa that iseager to participate fully in the world economy.

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This broader focus is important for two reasons.First, we as a nation still have much to learn aboutAfrica. For many, our impressions are dominated byimages of famine and strife, exotic wildlife, and vastdeserts. The President�s trip can help paint a morecomplete picture, including modern cities, first-rateuniversities, fast-developing economies, andhardworking people with aspirations very similar toour own.

Second, the people of Africa should understand�and many of them need convincing�that when theUnited States says it wants to work with them on thebasis of shared interests and mutual respect, we arenot just blowing smoke; we mean it�and, in a bigway, over the long term�not only because it is rightbut because it is smart.

Today, connections among nations exist on somany levels that peace and prosperity are contagious.But so, too, are chaos and conflict. People every-where will benefit from an Africa that is growing,developing strong institutions, and taking firm chargeof its own destiny. But we also understand that thenature of the relationship between Africa and the restof the world has changed.

It used be that U.S. policymakers, when theythought of Africa at all, would ask, what can we dofor Africa, or what can we do about Africa? Today,the right question is what can we do with Africa tobuild on the progress that is being made and toencourage other nations to resolve conflicts and tomove from authoritarian to more open economic andpolitical systems.

Over the next 10 days, the President and the FirstLady will visit six African countries and attend asummit in Entebbe hosted by Uganda�s PresidentMuseveni. Throughout, they will promote twooverarching goals. One, which I will discuss later, isto work with Africa to defeat global threats. Theother is to accelerate Africa�s full integration into theworld community and the global economy; and, by

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so doing, establish lifelines of commerce and invest-ment that will help Africans reduce poverty, raiseliving standards, and equip their people with 21stcentury skills.

To spur progress and promote U.S.-African trade,President Clinton announced last June a Partnershipfor Economic Growth and Opportunity. Under thatplan, we are committed to helping Africans who aredoing the most to help themselves by

� Granting duty-free access to U.S. markets formany African products;

� Increasing our technical assistance to helpAfricans profit from the opportunities inherent in adynamic world economy;

� Paving the way for hundreds of millions ofdollars in new investment by working to extinguishAfrican debt, both bilateral and multilateral; and

� Meeting annually with African leaders to mapplans for economic cooperation and mutual advance-ment.

This past week, the House of Representativesendorsed the President�s approach by approving theAfrican Growth and Opportunity Act. This bill wassponsored and approved on a bipartisan basis. Itenjoyed key backing from the African diplomaticcommunity. It embodies our strategy for placingtrade and investment at the forefront of our relationswith Africa. And it reflects a firm, broad-basedcommitment to the African people by the representa-tives of the people of the United States�all of whichmakes it even more important that the U.S. Senatejoin the House and approve this legislation as soon aspossible.

Although trade and investment are increasing inimportance, we cannot, and have not, ignored thecontinuing need in many parts of Africa for aid. Wehave contributed more than $15 billion in assistanceto Africa this decade. An increasing focus of our

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programs is the empowerment of African women.We have found that when women gain the knowledgeand power to make their own choices, they are oftenable to break out of the cycle of poverty. Birth ratesstabilize; environmental awareness increases; thespread of sexually transmitted disease slows; andsocially constructive values are more likely to bepassed on to the next generation. This is how socialprogress is made and how peace and prosperity arebuilt.

Today, throughout Africa, we find grassrootsorganizations made up of women and health carepractitioners, educators, and small farmers who arereaching out to create the foundations of a civilsociety to build the future from the ground up�oftendespite great hardship and poverty and prejudice.American policy is to support these efforts and tostrengthen them.

That�s why I met with several such groupsduring my recent trip to Africa. It is why I am sograteful to the First Lady for her efforts to inspirecommunity-building efforts around the globe. And itis why I will continue to work closely with Congressand USAID, and with American non-governmentalorganizations, to see that we have the resources weneed to support the programs that work to aid peoplewho deserve our help.

It is essential to sow the seeds of prosperity ifAfrica is to become a full participant in the worldeconomy. It is also necessary to build democracy. Inthis decade, people everywhere have learned thatdemocracy is a parent to development, for peoplewho are free to choose their leaders, publish theirthoughts, organize their labor, and invest their capitalwill build richer and more stable societies than thoseshackled by repression.

As President Clinton will stress during his trip,free elections are necessary�but not sufficient�tocreate democracy. And that is why we are working in

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46 African countries to assist homegrown efforts todevelop durable and effective democratic institutions.The fruits of these efforts will be on display inseveral of the countries on the President�s itinerary,including South Africa, whose peaceful transitionfrom apartheid to multiparty democracy is one of thelandmark events of this century. . . .

Today, our relationship with South Africa hasmoved beyond the celebration of its transition tobecome one of our most serious, wide-ranging, andmature. We share South African concerns aboutchallenges posed by crime and uneven development.We consult often on regional and global issues. Andalthough we do not always agree, we have developeda strong friendship based on shared values and on thecommitments to prosperity, stability, and justice ourpeoples have in common.

Unfortunately, the democratic trend so evident inSouth Africa and in other nations such as Mali,Senegal, Ghana, and Botswana is not universal. Manycountries have found potholes on the road to partici-patory democracy. In some, even elected leadershave placed undue restrictions on political activity,press freedom, and the work of NGOs.

We Americans understand that every democracy,including our own, is a work in progress. Werecognize and respect diversity in the democraticinstitutions of other countries in the West, in LatinAmerica, central Europe, and Asia. We should respectdiversity in Africa as well. But we cannot retreatfrom our conviction that human rights are universalor from our knowledge that democratic values,stability, and prosperity go hand in hand.

In many African societies, national identities andinstitutions are fragile. A regime that suppresses therights of its people will destroy the very foundationupon which a united and prosperous nation maybe built. A regime that respects those rights will

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empower its people, no matter how diverse, andcreate in them a sense of ownership of the nation�sinstitutions and a commitment to its future.

Without compromising our principles or ourstandards, we will sometimes be engaged in Africa,as elsewhere, with countries that have flawedgovernments. Some of these nations are strugglingagainst long odds to recover from natural disaster orwar. Many have been victims in the past of Cold Warmanipulation or neocolonial ambition. We could walkaway from these societies to avoid any appearance ofsupport for policies we do not endorse. But thatwould do no good at all, and it would not pursueanybody�s interests.

We will encourage our friends in Africa to takesteps in the right direction, even if those steps aresmall. Moreover, we will continue to press the casefor freedom and human rights. And we will join withAfrica�s best leaders in declaring that the era of thebig man who comes to power, stays for life, androbs his country blind, is over. A new era of ever-deepening democracy must be built. . . .

Throughout the President�s visit to Africa, theissue of conflict prevention will be prominent. Asociety cannot progress if it is being ripped apart byviolence. And a region cannot integrate itself into theworld community if nations within it are disruptingstability, generating refugees, deepening ethnictensions, and illegally trafficking in arms.

The United States is sponsoring the Africa CrisisResponse Initiative to enhance the capacity of Africannations to prevent and contain disasters. This is partof a larger international effort and corresponds to thedesire within the region to find African solutions toAfrican problems.

The President will review with his counterparts anumber of specific situations, including efforts toovercome the remaining obstacles to a durable peacein Angola. And he will express support for efforts to

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counter terrorism and to negotiate a peaceful end tothe long and destabilizing civil war in Sudan. He willalso announce concrete steps to promote stability,democracy, and the rule of law in the troubled GreatLakes region.

One of the most unforgettable moments in myprevious job as U.S. Ambassador to the UnitedNations occurred in Rwanda a couple of years ago. Ivisited a church where many of the victims of the1994 massacres had sought refuge, only to be killedand dumped into a mass grave, from which bodieswere only then being excavated.

I don�t think I have ever seen a place morebeautiful or a sight more horrible. There is noforgetting genocide. And there can be no truereconciliation without accountability. But neither canthere be a real future for the Great Lakes regionunless the cycle of violence and revenge is broken.This will only happen if the peoples of the region�Hutu and Tutsi alike�find a way to live and worktogether peacefully, as they did for so many years inthe past. African leaders can help by pointing toAfrican models of cooperation and by advocatingnonviolent solutions.

And the United States can help by supportingthese efforts and by working with the countriesinvolved to promote reconciliation; broaden politicalparticipation; lay the groundwork for economicrecovery; and�through the President�s Great LakesJustice Initiative�help build systems of justice thatare credible, impartial, and effective.

Ensuring justice is essential in this region, becausepeople who have survived terrible violence deserve toknow�and will not be able to live normal lives unlessthey know�that the experience will not be repeated.That requires a recognition on all sides that thosewho initiate violence will be opposed, held account-able, and stopped.

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Tragically, we have not yet fully reached thatpoint. Last December as I was leaving Rwanda,another massacre of innocent civilians occurred, andI sent back my special adviser on war crimes toinvestigate. Clearly, the Rwandan extremists whohave been exploiting ethnic fears and goading theirpeople into violence are false prophets. They have ledtheir people into misery and exile. They have madetheir followers victims and, worse yet in too manycases, murderers.

There is an opportunity now to move ahead onthe basis of international norms. Leaders in Rwandaand Burundi have made a commitment to do so. Inboth countries, there are growing efforts from thenational level to the grassroots to marginalize theextremes, end the killing, and establish political andsocial networks based on interethnic cooperation.President Clinton�s goal, as a participant in theEntebbe Summit, will be to encourage this fragileprocess and to consult with African leaders on boldways to strengthen and sustain it.

As I said earlier, the second overarching U.S. goalin Africa is to work with the region to counter globalthreats. Frankly, we have not always paid as muchattention as we should have to these challenges inAfrica. But now, we are determined to move aheadon all fronts to develop a continent-wide counter-narcotics strategy; to foil the efforts of rogue statesto gain a foothold for terrorists; to end the threatposed by land mines to civilians everywhere in Africaby the end of the next decade; to fight malaria andprevent AIDS; and to promote environmental bestpractices and join Africans in ratifying the Conventionto Combat Desertification. . . .

During their visit to Africa, the President and FirstLady will emphasize America�s desire to developproductive and lasting relationships throughout thecontinent. They will convey our pledge to consultwith African governments regularly about opportuni-ties and problems, both urgent and long-term.

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Above all, they will articulate a message, whichwe hope Africans and Americans everywherewelcome, that a new chapter is beginning in U.S.-Africa relations, and it is a chapter with many pages.The President�s visit is a dramatic beginning but onlya beginning. I will be returning to Africa. OtherCabinet members will visit regularly. And thePresident�s special envoy for democracy, the Rev.Jesse Jackson, will continue to play an indispensablerole.

Before becoming a diplomat, I was a professorwho specialized in the study of history and politicalscience. No lesson is more central to history thanthat circumstances change and the fortunes ofsocieties rise and fall. History provides no guarantees,but neither does it impose artificial limits. And forAfrica today, the reality is starting to catch up withthe dream.

Nelson Mandela said once that, in the history ofnations, generations have made their mark byappreciating critical turning points and seizing themoment. A new and better life will be achieved only ifwe shed the temptation to proceed casually along theroad; only if we take the opportunities that beckon.

I am determined that the United States do all itcan to assist the peoples of Africa as they seize theopportunities that beckon today. That is the best wayto bring the international system in which we Ameri-cans have the largest stake up to its full strength. It isthe smart thing to do for our economy, our security,and our interest in a world free from global threats.And it is the right thing to forge productive partner-ships with people who share our values, our inter-ests, and our commitment to the future.

To this new partnership for the new century, Ipledge my own best efforts for as long as I amSecretary of State. And I respectfully ask your wisecounsel and full support.


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. . .On my first visit to the continent as America�sSecretary of State, I do not come with a ready-madesermon, a long list of requests, or a sack full ofpromises. I come rather to open a dialogue with youand with people from all parts of Africa�whetherthey are powerful or impoverished, high officials, orrefugees.

This is my first visit as Secretary, but it will notbe my last. And our dialogue will reach new heightswhen President Clinton makes his planned trip toAfrica.

I have come because it is time for the people ofthe United States to open a new chapter in ourrelations with the people of this continent. It is timebecause Africa�s best new leaders have brought anew spirit of hope and accomplishment to yourcountries�and that spirit is sweeping across thecontinent. They know that the greatest authority anyleader can claim is the consent of the governed. Theyknow that the greatest challenges to their plans arethe twin threats of corruption and cynicism. And theyknow the value of cooperation�within their ownsocieties, with their neighbors, across the continent,and throughout the international community. . . .

The United States and the international commu-nity have not always worked together with Africa andAfricans as well as we might. In my view, if we are

Remarks at the Organization for African Unity,Economic Commission for AfricaAddis Ababa, EthiopiaDecember 9, 1997

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all more ready to listen, if we all push ourselves tounderstand, and if we are ready to work as truepartners, we can do better. And we must do better.

We must do better because Africa matters. Andright now, no place matters more in Africa than theGreat Lakes.

Achieving lasting peace in this region will be asdifficult as implementing the Camp David agreementand as complex as sustaining the Dayton accords. Yetthe rewards are surely as great�and success no lessimportant to us.

The region�s natural and human resources as wellas its strategic location make it either a catalyst or astumbling-block to African unity. Central Africa cansteady or destabilize half a continent. It can inspire orretard economic growth from Kampala to CapeTown.

I have begun my trip here at the OAU because Iwant the people of Africa to know that the people ofthe United States care about what happens in Africa.We care because we have our own importantinterests�economic, political, humanitarian. And wecare for the sake of Africans.

But we also care because Africa�s leaders haveembarked on one of the great projects of our time.Can viable democratic societies be built to withstandthe challenges of our times, such as globalization,environmental degradation, overpopulation? Thatenterprise demands the ideas and energy of peopleeverywhere.

I will travel to the Great Lakes region to say thatbuilding an enduring peace will require more thanwords of concern and more than a few visits. Wemust make the effort to know each other well, tolearn from each other, and eventually to trust eachother.

I will seek out the region�s young people�in schools and hospitals�clubs and refugee camps,because Africa�s youth have been for too long thevictims of our failures. They must instead be thefoundation of our success.

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In the Great Lakes today, we have an opportu-nity�unprecedented since African states gained theirindependence�to build a true partnership. A success-ful effort will support peace and the rule of law,promote good governance and democracy, andencourage economic development and integration.

The United States is prepared to engage deeply inthis shared effort�and to act as a catalyst to gain thesupport of others. Together we must break the cycleof violence within and between societies. Fordecades, Central Africa has been the scene ofmultiple conflicts fueled by the tragic legacy ofcolonialism, by destabilizing Cold War rivalries, andby a recent history of international neglect.

In too many places, those conflicts continue �driven by ethnic rivalries, long-held grievances, orsimply lust for power.

We must put an end to the culture of impunitythat has claimed so many lives and done so much todiscredit legitimate authority throughout the region.To do our part in addressing this challenge, theUnited States hopes to work with leaders across theregion in a Great Lakes Justice Initiative, to developjudicial systems that are impartial, credible, andeffective.

We are working to make $30 million available tosupport national initiatives to train court and policeofficials, rebuild legal machinery where it has falleninto disrepair, and assist programs that promotereconciliation and healing after conflict. . . .

The commitment of regional leaders to the social,political, and economic empowerment of all theircitizens is fundamental. It is through such empower-ment that citizens gain a meaningful stake in theirsocieties.

Those who would build democratic institutionsand market-based economies in the Great Lakes facetremendous obstacles: societies weakened by pro-tracted and brutal conflicts; devastated governmentinstitutions; and the legacies of authoritarian rule.

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The process will be long. And there will besetbacks. Democracy is always and everywhere awork in progress. But in all its forms�and there aremany�democracy has universal qualities thattranscend institutional choices: the primacy of thewill of the people; respect for the rule of law.

Openness and transparency in government willalso help release the region�s economic potential.Some of the region�s governments are alreadymaking important progress in reforming their econo-mies, and their growth rates show it.

Through debt relief and President Clinton�sPartnership for Economic Growth and Opportunity,we are committed to helping countries that undertakeeconomic reforms find capital to develop theirindustries and markets to sell their products. APresidential delegation of businesspeople, Membersof Congress, and U.S. Government officials was inAddis Ababa just yesterday, as the Secretary Generalmentioned looking at ways that this initiative canreinforce reforms already in place.

Whether economically, politically, or socially, weknow that regional integration has worked wondersfor peace around the world�from Europe to SouthAmerica to Southeast Asia. None of us has all theanswers. Could it be that, for peace to take hold inthe Great Lakes, the barriers must come down andthe region must open up�to free trade, to free travel,to free exchange of ideas?

In this and other areas, I want to work with theregion�s leaders to ask the right questions. And onesubject on which you are asking very legitimatequestions, and where we must help provide answers,is the responsibility of donor countries, internationalorganizations, and African nations to learn from oursuccesses and failures to:

� Ensure that humanitarian aid is not used tosustain armed camps or to support genocidal killers;

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� Find more effective ways of preventing conflictand reconciling former adversaries;

� Achieve justice and accountability in the after-math of largescale human right violations; and

� Resist the emergence of new tyrannies.

Let me be totally clear on where we stand. TheUnited States has made a strong commitment tosupervise our refugee assistance far more closely andto work to keep humanitarian aid from falling into thewrong hands. Prime Minister Meles and the OAUhave taken an important step toward learning frompast mistakes by proposing that an international panelof eminent persons be convened to study the recentgenocidal violence, to examine the internationalcommunity�s response, and to consider how suchhumanitarian disasters might be prevented in future.

The United States strongly supports your pro-posal. We will cooperate with you in every waypossible to help such a commission do its work. Letme begin that process here today by acknowledgingthat we�the international community�should havebeen more active in the early stages of the atrocitiesin Rwanda in 1994 and called them what they were�genocide.

We also welcome the joint initiative the OAU andUNHCR have undertaken to promote respect forhumanitarian principles. In this as in so many otherareas, the OAU is at the forefront of the search forAfrican solutions to African problems.

But even more important than these steps towarda new chapter in our relations is the tone in whichour partnership is conducted. It must rest on sharedresponsibility, mutual respect, and mutual self-interest. It must allow us to speak frankly anddisagree openly, without putting into question theprinciples we share.

And it must contain a long-term commitment tomeet formidable challenges�by promoting peace,building democracy, and supporting economicgrowth.

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Today we have a choice. We can pursue short-sighted rivalries, seek short-term gains, and makeonly commitments of short duration. Or we candecide to move forward from the failures andrecriminations of the past and begin to forge prag-matic, enduring responses to the immense challengeswe face.

We have reached a point in history when nonation need be left out of the global system, andevery nation that seeks to participate and is willing todo all it can to aid itself will have America�s help infinding the right path. This view is not based on anyillusions. Africa, and its friends, have seen far toomuch of poverty and suffering to indulge in senti-mentalism. But we live in a world that has beenenriched immeasurably by those who have emergedfrom the ravages of war to rebuild their lives,recreate their communities, and renew the progressof their nations.

It is from the best efforts of those citizens that anew Africa can be built. It is my belief that we areseeing just that from Africa�s groundbreakingleaders�and people. And we pledge our best effortsto nurturing a new partnership that will work to thebenefit of Africans and Americans alike. ■

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Statement at the UN Security CouncilMinisterial on Africa National InterventionNew York CitySeptember 25, 1997

The United States welcomes this ministerialsession of the Council and the opportunity it affordsto recognize and support a new quality in Africa�srelations with the world. . . .

Ours is a supporting role. We must listen carefullyto what African leaders and African citizens have tosay about the challenges they face and the solutionsthey favor. We must be clear about what our owninterests are and about what we are prepared to do tohelp Africans to guide change in directions that createnew opportunities for their people.

We are requesting that the Secretary Generalreport on how we can better identify sources ofconflict, prevent or resolve them, and help Africanslay the groundwork for peace and prosperity. And we take this opportunity to urge support for theSecretary General�s reform proposals, which providean important opportunity for the UN to use better itsresources to address security, humanitarian, anddevelopment needs in Africa.

Our starting point is peace and security�theCouncil�s traditional responsibility�but we shouldtake this opportunity to look at the broad picture ofour interactions with Africa. A decade ago, Africawas the scene of multiple conflicts fueled, in large

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measure, by Cold War rivalries�and, in southernAfrica, by the vicious and destabilizing effects ofapartheid.

Today, the greatest threats to peace are posed bycivil strife caused by ethnic tensions or by a straight-forward competition for resources and power. Thesethreats are aggravated by the lack, in some societies,of strong and representative institutions of govern-ment and by economic prospects so poor that hope isstarved and desperation fed.

In this environment, a security strategy mustinclude political, economic, and humanitarian compo-nents. But to implement these components, a climateof relative safety must be established and maintained.The UN is central to meeting those challengesthrough its peacekeeping operations, good-officesmissions, and emergency relief programs.

Throughout Africa, the United States supports theOAU�s role in preventing and responding to crises,and we are assisting its plan to build a conflictmanagement center and improve its ability to reactquickly to emergencies. We urge the SecretaryGeneral to strengthen the ties between the UN, theOAU, and Africa�s regional security organizations inrecognition of the work they are doing.

In Liberia, we congratulate ECOWAS for itssuccess in helping to end the civil war and monitor-ing democratic elections. We also commend theefforts of ECOWAS�s C-5 group of ministers to bringpeace to Sierra Leone, and we are strong supportersof the peace process there.

In Angola, as one of three observer states to theLusaka Protocols, we endorse strongly the efforts ofthe UN, supported by SADC, to ensure full imple-mentation. We will use the powers of this Council topenalize any party that fails to meet its obligations.

The United States is also working, in partnershipwith Africans and donors, to enhance the ability ofAfrican nations to respond when peacekeeping is

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needed. This is a capacity-building initiative, withlong-term goals, openly conducted and aimed solelyat preventing, ending, and alleviating the conse-quences of conflict.

The United States would also welcome theSecretary General�s ideas on improving the overallresponse of the international community to complexhumanitarian emergencies in Africa, including thetransition from crisis to development.

We should pay special attention to lessons learnedduring the past 4 years in the Great Lakes region andconsider steps for ensuring that refugee camps arenot used as a safe haven for war criminals or as abase for military operations�and for achievingjustice and accountability in the aftermath oflargescale violations of human rights. We suggest thatthe Secretary General outline a comprehensiveapproach for the issues still confronting the GreatLakes�preventing further conflict and promotinghuman rights, democratization, and reconstruction.In shaping his ideas, we urge the Secretary Generalto consult closely with leaders in the region and toencourage a spirit of mutual respect and mutualresponsibility.

At the same time, Africans themselves must rejectthe culture of impunity that has protected those guiltyof gross violations of human rights or the export ofterror to other nations. In this regard, let me saytoday that there can be no compromise with Libyawhen it comes to terrorism. With respect to the caseof Pan Am 103, the responsibility for the effect ofthis Council�s actions on the people of Libya restssquarely on the Government of Libya. We must beunited in our demand for full compliance with thisCouncil�s resolutions. To do less is to insult thememory of those who died so tragically and to denythe victims� families the demands of justice.

UN efforts also play a central role in Africa�splans for development�development that givescitizens more opportunity, government more capac-ity, and peace a firm foundation.

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Today, we know that in Africa, as elsewhere, theprimary impetus for economic growth must comefrom the private sector. That requires strategies thatmake indigenous investment rewarding and foreigninvestment welcome. It requires privatization, moreopen markets, and regulatory and financial reform.And it requires efforts to improve education, training,and health care, so that all people�men andwomen�may reach their potential.

Today we know that aid cannot substitute forreform. But that does not mean stepping back fromthe good that only aid can do. Last year, the U.S.contributed more than $1.5 billion in direct humani-tarian and development aid, plus another $1 billionthrough multilateral organizations such as the WorldBank and the African Development Bank. In addition,more than 2,400 Peace Corps Volunteers are workingin Africa�in a total of 29 countries. And PresidentClinton has proposed a Partnership for EconomicGrowth and Opportunity to stimulate commerce,reduce debt, encourage investment, and providetechnical aid.

It is no accident that Africa�s current economicupturn is paralleled by a growing embrace of demo-cratic principles. Today, more than half of the 48countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have leaders chosenin elections that were deemed by internationalobservers to have been free and fair. This is impor-tant politically and economically, because develop-ment depends on people. A democratic people free toexchange ideas, publish thoughts, organize labor, andinvest capital will build a richer�and ultimately morestable�society than a people shackled by repression.Free elections are a necessary part of democracy, butthey are not sufficient in themselves.

The United States is committed to working withAfrica and the international community to helpdevelop durable and effective democratic institutions,such as legislative assemblies, judiciaries, and an

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independent press. We have democracy-buildingprograms in 20 countries and are also helping tostrengthen civil society in order to improve gover-nance and bolster the rule of law.

Finally, we welcome Africa�s increasing contribu-tions to the solution of global problems that concernus all, such as proliferation, crime, terrorism,environmental degradation, and the spread of infec-tious disease.

Today, the greatest divide in the world is notbetween East and West or North and South. It isbetween those trapped by the grievances and precon-ceptions of the past and those who have the visionand courage to shape the future.

We are all here this morning to salute the Africanswho have that vision and courage�and to make surewe have the vision and determination needed tosupport them. . . .■

Documents

United States Depar tment of State · I stress America™s desire to do ... will be explaining that our assistance programs for Africa are an investment in our common future