African leaders to dicuss new state for Haitian homeless

Buenos Aires News.Net
Saturday 6th February, 2010

The African Union (AU), following a suggestion from President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal, is considering the creation, within Africa, of a new state for the thousands of Haitians left homeless and destitute by the January 12th earthquake.

Wade called also for the nationalization of all Haitian refugees seeking to return to Africa.

He drew on the history of Haiti to emphasize the long-standing links between the island nation and Africa, saying that the homeless Haitians, as descendants of slaves taken from Africa, had the right to return and start a new life on the continent.

Jean Ping, Chairman of the African Union, told African leaders at the organization’s annual summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that they would consider Wade’s suggestion.

“It is out of a sense of duty and memory and solidarity that we can further the proposal to create, in Africa, the conditions for the return of Haitians, who wish to return after the effect of the disaster that ravaged Haiti,” Ping announced.

He described the tragedy as one that “transcends borders” and reiterated that “we have attachment and links to that country. The first black republic in 1804, that carried high the flame of liberation and freedom for the black people and has paid a heavy price for so doing.”

The idea for the creation of a new state harkens back to the formation of Liberia in the 19th century as a state for newly freed slaves.

State formation, however, is always a long and arduous process. It was almost twenty years before Liberia would achieve official independence in 1847.

However, in signs that the proposal might be seriously considered, the AU commission has already opened a special account for Haiti at the African Development Bank.

President Wade has also called for a continent-wide adoption drive to repatriate the thousands of children made homeless by the earthquake.

Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General, attending the summit thanked the regional body for their support of Haiti. “The nation of Haiti is an ocean away, yet I know it is close to every African heart,” he said.

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