Africa could be a “black giant” able to solve problems like Darfur on its own if its countries united in a federation, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said on Saturday.
Speaking at an African Union (AU) gathering in his hometown of Sirte, Gaddafi voiced support on Saturday for Sudan’s rejection of U.N. plans to deploy 20,000 troops and police to its troubled western Darfur region by year-end.
He said the violence-torn region was an example of the kind of problem the world’s poorest continent could solve if it was united in a federation rather than existing as separate states vulnerable to outside manipulation.
Reviving a long-cherished dream of a United States of Africa, he said: “Africa should build one federal government as soon as possible. We will have one minister of defense, one minister of finance, and so on.
“This will be the birth of the black giant.”
He was speaking at a AU gathering of African presidents and prime ministers marking the seventh anniversary of a 1999 summit of African leaders that went part way towards Gaddafi’s vision of unity by deciding to start the process of creating the AU.
The union was finally forged in 2002. The 53-member body later set up several other agencies including a parliament as part of its efforts to forge closer unity on the continent.
African leaders have long recognized the need for greater unity to confront the challenge of economic globalization. But most have always stopped well short of endorsing Gaddafi’s call for a rapid move to a United States of Africa.
Dream of unity
But Gaddafi’s dream -- one shared by some of independent Africa’s founding fathers -- remains undimmed.
“Africa should have one identity, one nationality, one people, one currency, one army,” he said to cheers.
“Africa is destined not to fall back into the hands of the whites who used to see us as animals and slaves.”
Giving an example of what he said was outsiders trying to manipulate an African problem, he said would-be colonialists and capitalist opportunists were among those seeking to replace an AU peace force in Darfur with a U.N. peacekeeping force.
He echoed a call made at the gathering by Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for the AU to continue its peace mission in Darfur and said the sending of international United Nations forces without Khartoum’s approval would threaten peace.
Sudan rejects U.N. plans to deploy 20,000 troops and police to Darfur by year-end, likening it to a Western invasion that would attract jihadi militants and create an Iraq-like quagmire.
Khartoum has deployed thousands of troops to the region to confront rebels who refused to sign a May peace accord. The UNHCR said this had triggered fears of a major military offensive that could create yet more refugees.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed and more than 2 million forced to flee to camps during 3-1/2 years of fighting. Mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms accusing the central government of marginalizing the remote region that borders Chad.
Human rights organizations have accused government forces and their Janjaweed militia allies of widespread rights abuses.
