Forum theme takes back seat as AU summit ends

By Martin Mutua in Kampala, Uganda

As the curtains fell on the 15th African Union Conference in Kampala, Uganda, it was evident issues to do with health - the theme of the meeting - took a back seat.

Regional politics dominated the talks that had brought together more than 30 heads of states.

Problems ranging from the conflicts in Sudan to the terrorist activities in Somalia overshadowed the conference theme of ‘Maternal, Infant and Child Health and Development in Africa’.

Somalia issue took centre stage. The AU plans to scale up the current 6,000 AU troops to 15,000 and is lobbying to have their mandate changed from peace keeping to peace enforcement in order to combat the al Shabaab militia.

Guinea, Djibouti and another country whose name was not made public have pledged to send troops.

Whereas the issue of maternal deaths was discussed during one of the sessions, no critical decisions were taken.

Inadequate resources, poverty, shortage of medical personnel and poor facilities came out as the major obstacles in fighting maternal deaths. Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi with his retinue of close to 15 bodyguards clashed with Ugandan security when they attempted to force their way into areas that they were not allowed.

The first clash occurred during the official opening of the conference when Gaddafi arrived at the venue and the bodyguards were stopped to minimise the number of people and guards proceeding to restricted area.

Ugandan security guards stood their ground and shoving ensued, prompting the Libyan officials to intervene.

Gaddafi fury

At one point Gaddafi slapped his protocol official in full presence of delegates and journalists after the man led him into a wrong meeting room.

At the end of the conference, AU chair Bingu wa Mutharika told off the West. He said the West is responsible for the many problems bedevilling the continent. "Many young people keep going to Europe because our resources and minerals were taken away from us and these youth are following those minerals and resources," he said amid applause from the delegates.

Mutharika, who is a strong proponent of the Pan Africanism, said Africa is capable of solving its problems and did not require help from the West to do so.