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Invitation
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and the South African Institute of International Affairs cordially invite you to a two day conference:
Strengthening the UNSC: Tapping into the German and South African Experience
The South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation (KAS) and the Hanns-Seidel-Foundation (HSS), with the support of the German Embassy, are jointly convening a two-day conference to discuss ways and means of strengthening collaboration between the South African and German governments during their 2011- 2012 tenure at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
This joint tenure provides an opportunity to discuss the future of the UNSC and its interaction with regional bodies such as the AU and the EU, as well as to share lessons learnt in peacekeeping and conflict resolution. The conference will also raise the question of how and where South Africa and Germany can maximise their collaboration in order to achieve common goals during their tenure in the UNSC.
This conference will bring together scholars and policy-makers from South Africa and Germany, as well as officials and experts from and on regional bodies.
Date: 30-31 May 2011
Time: 08:30 am for 09:15am
Venue: Burgers Park Hotel Pretoria, Cnr. Van Der Walt and Minnaar Streets, Pretoria
RSVP by 20 May 2011 to UNSCconference@issafrica.org
Event Background
Charged with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Security Council occupies a very important and powerful position in the United Nations and in global security governance – not least because of its power to make decisions that are binding on member states. The composition of the current Security Council (2011-2012), in which both Germany and South Africa are to serve as non-permanent members, has been bandied as one of the most diverse in the history of the UN. Both countries, like the other non-permanent members of the Council, will have to face challenging decisions, while also trying to seize the opportunities for cooperation with other members that may present themselves.
Hence, one of the questions that arises during their tenure in the Council is that of how South Africa and Germany can maximize their collaboration in areas of joint interest, while finding common ground on issues where their views and perspectives diverge. This question is even more pertinent in light of the fact that in the coming years, and as has been the case in the past, African issues are most likely to be very prominent in the agenda of the UNSC. As an aspiring regional leader, South Africa has a unique and vested interest during its current tenure in the Council to influence African issues. Although the perspectives of both South Africa and Germany over African and other international issues may not necessarily always converge, it would be in the interest of the two countries to seek for ways and means to deepen their cooperation during the tenure in the Council, particularly in light of the long historical ties that bind the two nations and by virtue of their stature as global reformers. It is against this background that SAIIA, KAS, ISS and HSS, with the support of the German Embassy, are jointly convening a two-day conference (30-31 May 2011) intended to discuss ways and means of strengthening collaboration between the South African and German governments during their tenure at the UNSC, particularly with regard to conflicts on the African continent.
Objectives
The overarching objective of the conference is to contribute to the efficiency of the actions of the Security Council with an African focus, as well as improving multilateral dialogue with other members, including promoting discussions on a potential reform of the Council. The conference is intended to assist all partnering institutions to better understand and analyse relevant Security Council debates with a view to providing strategic policy advice. Furthermore, it also aims at serving as a platform for exchanges / interaction between South African / African and German policy makers so as to deepen the understanding of each other’s perspectives on
the UNSC.
Expected output
The conference is expected to provide a better understanding of South Africa’s and Germany’s perspectives on key African and global issues that are likely to be tabled at the UNSC. It is also expected to enable partnering institutions and other participants to share their ideas and perspectives with policy makers of the two countries. The Conference will be sanctioned by a conference report that will be widely disseminated to relevant stakeholders.
Format / methodology
This two-day conference will assemble select scholars and policy-makers from South Africa and Germany, as well as representatives of the African Union and the European Union. The proceedings will take the form of thematic sessions with panel members presenting different perspective on various aspects of each theme.
Event Programme:
Day One
08:30-09:15: Registration
09:15–09:30 Welcome
Jakkie Cilliers, Executive Director ISS
Dieter Haller, German Ambassador to South Africa
09:30–10:45 Keynote Session
Lindiwe Zulu, International Relations Advisor to the President of the
Republic of South Africa tbc
Michael von Ungern-Sternberg, Director General United Nations
Affairs, German Foreign Office tbc
10:45–11:15 Break
11:15–13:00 Session I: Building consensus in the UNSC
This session will unpack the mechanisms for building consensus on key issues that are brought before the UNSC. How effective are permanent and non-permanent members in their engagement on polarising issues? Who are the bridge-builders? What mechanisms are being employed to ensure consensus? Which areas require reform to enable more effective engagement?
Speakers: Ambassador Leslie M. Gumbi, Chief Director United Nations,
South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation tbc
Michael von Ungern-Sternberg, Director General United Nations Affairs, German Foreign Office tbc
Collin Keating, Director UNSC Report tbc
Eduard Lintner, former Member of Parliament, Germany
Moderated by: Francis Nguendi, ISS
13:00–14:30 Lunch
14:30-16:30 Session II: Regional bodies and the UN Security Council: the AU and the EU
This session will unpack the modalities of engagement between regional bodies and the UNSC. It will take a comparative look at how the AU and the UNSC engages on African conflict situations and the division of labour between the two bodies, versus the EU and its engagement on European questions . Who takes the lead? How are resources mobilised? How does one ensure coherence of effort and political agreement? (It will discuss the extent to which the AU is able to steer conflict prevention initiatives with UNSC support. This session will also unpack how effectively the Africa group operates as a lobby group in the UN on critical African issues that are brought before the UNSC.)
Speakers: Jürgen Schröder, former German Member of the European Parliament
Roland van de Geer, Ambassador of the Delegation of the European Commission tbc
Ambassador Nomasonto Sibanda-Thusi, Chief Director Western Europe, South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation
Dr. Timothy Murithi, Head Transitional Justice Programme, Institute for Justice and Reconciliation AU representative (Secretary, Peace and Security Council) - tbc
Moderated by: Dr. Petrus de Kock, SAIIA
17:30 Reception by invitation of the German Ambassador Dieter Haller
at the German Residence, 393 Edward Street, Waterkloof
Day Two
Session III: Comparative Case Studies
Both South Africa and Germany have been involved in peacekeeping and conflict resolution in Africa. This session will explore two examples. The first is the DRC, where Germany headed up EUFOR in the run-up to the 2006 elections and SA played a crucial role in the negotiation process and the organising of the elections. The second example is Sudan, where SA chairs the AU Committee on Post- conflict Reconciliation and Development. These sessions will investigate the various modalities of engagement by the UNSC on issues that are brought before it. What is the role of special rapporteurs and special envoys? How is non-compliance dealt with? How effectively are regional organisations brought into international initiatives?
09:00-10:45 Case Study 1: Democratic Republic of Congo
Speaker: Speaker tbc
Ambassador Albrecht Conze, German Ambassador to Zimbabwe
Moderated by: Dr Garth le Pere, Senior Partner, DAJO Associates & Visiting Professor, University of Pretoria
10:45-11:15 Break
11:15-12:45 Case Study 2: Sudan
Speaker: Charles Nqakula, Special Envoy to Sudan, South Africa tbc
Speaker tbc
Torben Brylle, former EU Special Envoy to Sudan
Walter Lindner, Director General for Africa, German Foreign Office tbc
Moderated by: Anthoni van Nieuwkerk, Wits School of Public and Development Management
12:45-13:45 Lunch
13:45-15:45 Session IV: A way forward for German-South African cooperation?
This session will wrap up the previous ones and draw on South African and German positions in the UNSC. What and who are the bridge-builders? How and where can they ensure consensus? How can the two states work together more closely and more effectively?
Speaker: Günter Nooke, Personal Representative of the German Chancellor for Africa, German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
Lindiwe Zulu, International Relations Advisor to the President of the Republic of South Africa tbc
South African representative, South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation tbc
15:30-16:00 Summary and Conclusion
SAIIA |
