Regional Power Politics Under Cover of SADC: Running Amok with a Mythical Organ

The ambiguous nature and purpose of SADC have been exacerbated by recent initiatives aimed at rationalising the organisation

Established for the purpose of harmonising subregional economic policies, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has increasingly come to be regarded as a security arrangement of the type envisaged under Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter. Over the past few years, the organisation has entered areas far removed from that of development co-ordination and facilitation, and Africa and the rest of the international community have expressed great hopes that SADC will play a major role in peacekeeping endeavours in sub- Saharan Africa.

The ambiguous nature and purpose of SADC have been exacerbated by recent initiatives aimed at rationalising the organisation to enable the more effective pursuit of its economic integration aims, and by the articulation of ambitious goals in the realm of politics, defence and security by SADC heads of state and government during 1996. However, the urgent issue of structuring the proposed SADC Organ for Politics, Defence and Security has deliberately been excluded from the agenda of subsequent SADC summits — including the latest held in Mauritius during September 1998.  

Author

Mark Malan, Peace Missions Programme, Institute for Security Studies