African Union
Notable African Union (AU) initiatives include article 4 (h) and article 30 of the African Union Constitutive Act. Artcle 4(h) speaks directly to the prevention of genocide by specifying the right of the Union to intervene in instances of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Additionally, article 30 of the Constitutive Act states that governments which come to power by unconstitutional means shall not be allowed to participate in the AU.
The AU has also created a Peace and Security Council and a special committee to advise the Peace and Security Council. As of 2006, 23 countries had acceded to the peer review mechanism of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), a mechanism which seeks to assess, monitor and promote good political, economic, and corporate governance and human rights practice.
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ECOWAS
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has developed a strong early warning, peacekeeping and mediating role in West Africa. What is early warning?
The ECOWAS Early Warning and Response Network (ECOWARN) in particular is precedent-setting for the role of regional organizations in observation and monitoring for conflict prevention. As set out in Article 58 of the revised 1993 ECOWAS Treaty, its establishment and functioning are defined by the Protocol Relating to the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping and Security of December 1999. ECOWARN’s implementation began in October 2003.
ECOWARN is comprised of two operational branches, the Observation and Monitoring Centre based in Abuja, Nigeria, and a second branch consisting of four sub-regional zone offices. The Observation and Monitoring Centre, equipped with a Situation Room, tracks and analyzes event data, developments in the field and other information, working with analysts, experts and ECOWAS personnel. 94 pre-defined indicators are used as a framework to analyze risks and rapidly detect security trends.
The four sub-regional zones covered by ECOWARN are: (I) Cape Verde, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal; (II) Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali and Niger; (III) Ghana, Guinea Conakry, Liberia and Sierra Leone; and (IV) Benin, Nigeria and Togo.
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European Union
The European Union's European Neighborhood Policy details a number of policy instruments and sets up a framework for conflict prevention in neighboring EU countries. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is heavily involved in conflict prevention through its Conflict Prevention Center and the Office of the High Commissioner on National Minorities, which is a highly regarded early prevention mechanism. The North Atlantic Treaty Organizations (NATO), originally formed to combat the Soviet threat, now increasingly responds beyond its intended reach. Finally, the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) charter stresses collective responsibility for regional peace and security and is also collaborating with the United Nations to strengthen its capacity for early warning, prevention and reaction.
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Organization of American States
The Organization of American States (OAS) has a similar stipulation to that of the AU with respect to the assumption of power through unconstitutional means. In 2001, the OAS adopted the Inter-American Democratic Charter ensuring peaceful coexistence amongst democratic states and pledging to respond in the event of “unconstitutional constitution alteration of member states."
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