AHG/Decl. 1 (XXXVIII)
Page 1
OAU/AU DECLARATION ON THE PRINCIPLES
GOVERNING DEMOCRATIC ELECTIONS IN AFRICA
I.
PREAMBLE
We, the Heads of State and Government of the Organization of
African Unity, meeting in Durban, South Africa, at the 38th Ordinary
Session of the Assembly of the OAU, have considered the Report of the
Secretary General on strengthening the role of the OAU in election
observation and monitoring and the advancement of the
democratization process.
Considering the principles and objectives of the African Union
enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union, particularly in
its Articles 3 and 4;
Reaffirming the Algiers Decision of July 1999 and the Lomé
Declaration of July 2000 on the Framework for an OAU response to
unconstitutional changes of government, which laid down a set of
common values and principles for democratic governance;
Considering the CSSDCA Solemn Declaration adopted by the
Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the OAU in Lomé, Togo,
in July 2000, which underpins the OAU’s agenda of promoting
democracy and democratic institutions in Africa;
Considering the New African Initiative (NAI) now referred to as
the New Partnership for the African’s Development (NEPAD) adopted
by the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government in Lusaka,
Zambia, in July 2001, by which, through the Democracy and Political
Governance Initiative, African Leaders undertook to promote and
protect democracy and human rights in their respective countries and
regions, by developing clear standards of accountability and
participatory governance at the national and sub-regional levels;
Reaffirming the importance of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights adopted in December 1948, as well as the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights adopted in December 1966,
which recognized the will of the people expressed through free and fair
elections as the basis of the authority of government;
Reaffirming also the significance of the African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights adopted in Nairobi, Kenya, in June 1981,
which recognized the right of every citizen to participate freely in the