AUHRM

After 39 years of existence, and in the wake of the Rwandan genocide as well as the end of Apartheid in South Africa, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) was transformed into the African Union (AU) in July 2002. The principal aim of the transformation was to make the AU a people-centred institution. Now, the AU has as one of its aims the promotion of democratic principles and institutions and promotion and protection of Human Rights. The essence of the AU’s commitment towards the promotion and protection of Human Rights flows from the mandate of the African Union as provided in Article 3(h) of the Constitutive Act of the AU. Following its decision to build its new headquarters and conference centre on the site of the former central prison formerly known as Alem Bekagn (Farewell to the world), the AU made a historic move towards honouring victims of past violations and atrocities.

In April 2004, on the tenth anniversary of the commemoration of the genocide in Rwanda, the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) of the African Union (AU) passed a resolution, sponsored by Rwanda, deciding to make 7th April an annual event in the AU calendar, and also to preserve part of Alem Bekagn prison, where the New AU Conference Building has been built, as a human rights memorial, dedicated to the victims of the Red Terror, colonialism, apartheid and the Rwanda Genocide.

The AU General Assembly of the African Union endorsed the PRC’s Decision to establish a permanent memorial in honour of victims of major human rights atrocities in Africa. Assembly Decision (Assembly/AU/5 (XIV) paragraph 22 (iv) mandated the AUC to ‘initiate steps to build a permanent memorial to the victims of human rights violations, including genocide, within the African Union Headquarters’.

Consequently, on January 28, 2012, the foundation stone for the AUHRM was unveiled by Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma, Benin’s President Thomas Yayi Boni, and many more dignitaries. The inscription on the foundation stone reads as follows:

For all the victims of human rights abuses in Africa, including those of the slave trade and colonialism, and particularly the genocide in Rwanda (1994), the Alem Bekagn prison massacres (1937 and 1974), the Red Terror (1977-78) in Ethiopia and Apartheid in South Africa. Unveiled on the occasion of the commissioning of the AU conference and office complex, 18th Summit of Heads of State and Government. Addis Ababa, 28 January 2012

Establishing the AU Human Rights Memorial is a reminder and recognition of a dark past, an affirmation of the resolve to respect the dignity of humankind, and a commitment to prevent future recurrence of such acts. As the AU pursues and intensifies its efforts towards the promotion of peace and human rights on the continent, the Memorial will emphasise the inseparable linkages between these issues, and build upon progress made by African people and institutions. By raising the profile of memorialisation within the AU, current and future generations will be informed about the causes, consequences and lessons of past wars and episodes of dictatorship and human rights violations. The memorial will build the general historical knowledge of Africans concerning these issues and will;

• Provide information to the public concerning genocide and human rights violations, and thereby raise awareness about these issues;
• Highlight the efforts of African governments and regional institutions in responding to genocide and human rights violations;
• Facilitate opportunities to discuss and promote African peoples’ involvement in democratic citizenship;
• Promote norms of good citizenship, tolerance and transparency, and discourage intolerance, authoritarianism and hatred.

The overarching goal of the AUHRM project is to contribute to the establishment of an AU memorial which will significantly lead to a cultural shift by educating and inspiring the present and future generations of Africans to embrace and advocate for peaceful alternatives to war.
The AUHRM project will:

• Manifest both the duty to remember, providing a continental place of recognition and mourning; and the duty to overcome denial, silence and forgetting by providing opportunities for education.
• Incorporate the input of survivors of genocide and conflict, to give attention to concerns about justice and gender equity, and to undertake practical efforts to promote access to knowledge, while engaging visitors actively.
• Identify African role models for peace, inspire new generations to work to end conflicts, and demonstrate to the world that citizens of the African continent value peace and non-violence.

The African Union Human Rights Memorial Project (AUHRM) aims to preserve the memory of mass atrocities, in recognition of past sufferings and in the interest of future peace and security. The AU established in its Constitutive Act a commitment to continental co-operation on the basis of human rights principles, constitutionalism, and the responsibility to intervene in the case of crimes against humanity, or genocide. Furthermore, the AU Agenda 2063 Aspiration quoted below reaffirms the importance of the promotion of human rights and justice:

‘ … a continent where democratic values, culture, practices, universal principles of human rights, gender equality, justice and the rule of law are entrenched’.

The AUHRM will reflect a series of grave human rights violations and crimes committed against Africans, including the appalling case of genocide in Rwanda. The Policy is an African model and mechanism for dealing with not only the legacies of conflict and human rights violations but also governance deficits and developmental challenges with a view to advancing the noble goals of Agenda 2063, the Africa We Want.

• Honour all victims and survivors of atrocities in the spirit of Pan African Solidarity.
• Document different histories of suffering in Africa, while promoting inter-generational dialogue.
• Educate African youth about past atrocities on the continent and tell the stories of those who strived to resist them.
• Confront genocide, crimes against humanity and human rights abuses in Africa and contribute to creating a human rights culture in Africa.

The project will have the following components:

• Erect a permanent human rights memorial on the premises of AU’s new headquarters;
• Build an educational/resource centre within the premises of AU, which will provide African countries with the necessary historical background to past violations and serve as communication centre for researchers and Universities working on human rights.
• Create a virtual presence (website) that will function as a hub for survivors, various memorial centres, museums, academic institutions, donor agencies and other interested parties.
• Conduct relevant research and studies.