on the occasion of the visit to South Africa by the Minister of Defence, Cote
D'Ivoire, honourable N' Guessan Muchel Amani, Pretoria
3 December 2007
Minister of Defence of Cote D'Ivoire, the honourable N' Guessan Michel
Amani
Secretary for Defence, January Masilela
Chief of South African National Defence Force, General Godfrey Ngwenya
Senior officials and officers of both delegations
Members of the media
Ladies and gentlemen
Honourable Minister N' Guessan Michel Amani, it gives me great pleasure to
welcome you and your delegation to our country. The association between our two
countries has gone from strength to strength.
South Africa has visited your country on many occasions. I must confirm that
a highlight to date has been our visit to Cote d'Ivoire for the ceremonial
lighting of the Flame of Peace in Boukke on 30 July 2007, and for the Grand
Peace and Reconciliation Ceremony in Abijan on 10 October 2007. I am indeed
honoured to formally welcome you to our Defence Headquarters.
Your visit is a fitting occasion to reflect upon the many significant
achievements which have been taking place in Cote d'Ivoire recently.
The successes to date have been the result of a number of constructive
interventions. These as you will recall were given impetus by the mandate,
granted by the African Union to President Thabo Mbeki on 12 November 2004, to
serve as a mediator, to broker peace in your country. These efforts have been
supported by active participation of many role players, and sustained by the
hard work of the people of Cote d'Ivoire, together with others on the
continent, such as Burkina Faso.
These efforts have culminated in the forging of the Ouagadougou Agreement
earlier this year. The event was celebrated by the people of Cote d'Ivoire,
along with President Laurent Gbagbo and Prime Minister Guillaume Soro, during
the ceremonial lighting of the Flame of Peace in Yamoussoukro on 30 July 2007.
This saw the symbolic destruction of weapons from both sides, a victory for
peace not only for the people of Cote d'Ivoire, but for the African continent
as a whole.
The victory was affirmed on 10 October 2007, by the Grand Peace and
Reconciliation Ceremony. The ceremony saw men and women from various
ideological perspectives united in the name of peace. They made a clear
statement that peace was desired above all.
We note with pleasure the positive stance being maintained towards the peace
process, as well as the concerted effort being made towards convening
democratic elections, which, it is hoped, will take place in 2008.
We observe too, the symbolic launching of the 'Audiences Foraines' which
commenced in Ouragahio and Ferkessedougou at the beginning of October, and has
now spread more broadly. The success of this initiative will be critical in
order to fast track the other programmes pivotal to the peace process. It is
thus imperative that the technical, financial and logistic challenges are
collectively addressed.
It is encouraging that the security situation in Cote d'Ivoire remains calm,
this being indicative of the good working relationship between all parties. We
urge you to maintain the focus being directed at integrating all military
forces into a strong, united Defence Force.
Honourable Minister, we remain convinced that peace and stability are
critical precursors to economic growth, both in our two countries, and more
broadly on the continent.
It is this which has seen South Africa seized with the objective of
consolidating the African Agenda, and working hard to support the objective of
integrating the region economically and politically.
We are pleased to report that a number of milestones have been reached in
this regard.
Working with Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African
Union and the United Nations, South Africa was instrumental in furthering the
peace process on our continent, with the consolidation of democracy in Burundi,
followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We affirm that similar
initiatives taking place in the Cote d'Ivoire, Sudan in the region of Darfur,
enjoy our highest priority. We remain convinced that South African resources
expended with the aim of ensuring economic prosperity on the continent, are
resources well invested for all our peoples, including our future
generations.
Further impetus has been granted by the launching of the SADC Brigade,
consisting of military, police and civilian components of all Southern African
Development Community Member States, on 17 August 2007 in Lusaka, Zambia. This
Brigade has been constituted to address the challenges of peace, security and
stability that face our region. It represents, in concrete terms, the resolve
of our region and continent to rely on its resources effectively to ensure
peace and security throughout Africa.
Honourable Minister, the peace efforts being progressed in Cote d'Ivoire are
fundamental to economic prosperity, not only in your region, but the continent
as a whole. Key to any peace effort is a strong, united military component,
loyal to the Constitution of the country, and inspired by the ethos and
principles of that Constitution.
Honourable Minister, after attaining our freedom and independence in 1994,
South Africa faced the challenge of integrating seven very diverse forces into
a unified South African National Defence Force. We trust, therefore, that we
may be able to make a meaningful contribution to your endeavours to integrate
your Defence Force successfully. Remain assured of our continued support in
this regard.
I thank you
Issued by: Ministry of Defence
3 December 2007
