Africa eyes self-reliant regimes to restore peace, stability

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Visiting African leaders said here Sunday that African countries have made a great effort to restore peace and stability to the continent through their own mechanisms, suggesting they are creating more self-reliant regimes to eliminate insecurity.

William Ruto, deputy president of Kenya, said in a plenary of the Fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development that countries in the Horn of Africa are taking a much more proactive position.

"We are providing a necessary leadership to resolve the issues touching on stability and security in our region. We now, in Horn of Africa, have internal mechanism that facilitates quick response to issues that affect our region," Ruto said.

Meanwhile, South African President Jacob Zuma said that African countries have taken measures to restore peace and stability to the continent, adding the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU) has become "the main decision making body on all matters of peace and stability" in Africa.

He also mentioned that AU has formed a subcommittee on counter- terrorism against the background that maritime piracy, terrorism and violent extremism continue to threaten Africa.

Furthermore, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe said that Africa can not accept that foreign troops have the responsibility for peace and stability in Africa or seek to use instability or conflict in Africa as justification for their intervention and continuing presence.

However, Mugabe said that extremists and international criminal gangs still operate in Africa so that the continent needs international supports to bring peace and stability.

"It is clear that we will need support from our partners and broader international community if we are to effectively combat those schedules," he said.

"Support in the form of partnership and technical and financial assistance designed specifically to strengthen Africa its own peace and security structures or architectures is acceptable," Mugabe added.