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(LUSAKATIMES ZM) President Sata demands for Africa’s permanent seats on UN Security Council

President Sata demands for Africa’s permanent seats on UN Security Council
TIME PUBLISHED - Tuesday, September 25, 2012, 4:46 am

President Michael Sata, yesterday demanded that Africa must have permanent seats on the UN Security Council.

Addressing the High-Level meeting on the Rule of Law in the United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York, President Sata urged Africans to “stand up and be counted”.

“Since the League of Nations up to today, Africa is more of a spectator than a participant. We have no permanent members in the Security Council and yet we represent 54 members in this House,” said President Sata. “We cannot talk of rule of law when we are not respecting each other. Therefore, all Africans must stand up and be counted. We must become permanent members of theSecurity Council.”

The League of Nations was the forerunner of the United Nations.

President Sata’s statement is in line with the Committee of 10, commonly known as C10, which is an African Union (AU)-formation advocating for Africa to have two permanent seats on the UN Security Council with veto powers and extra two non-permanent seats to address the historical injustices that Africa suffered and to adhere to the geo-political realities of the modern times.

Zambia and Namibia are two countries that represent the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region on the C10.
Out of the 193 members of the UN, Africa has 54 states, making it the continent with the highest number of UN member states.

Currently the UN Security Council is composed of five permanent members — China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America — and 10 non-permanent members of which only South Africa, Morocco and Togo are from Africa. The non-permanent seats are on a two-year regional rotation basis.

Labels: MICHAEL SATA, UN

posted by MrK @ 3:18 AM