Experts prepare draft code of conduct for armed forces

Experts from various African countries this week adopted a draft code of conduct for military and armed forces at a workshop organised by the Lome-based UN Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa, in collaboration with the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and the Togolese government. "The draft is a stage in a process of harmonising relations between civilians and the military which the UN Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament set in motion almost a year ago," the regional centre's director, Richard Ivor Fung, said at the 27-29 May meeting, held in the Togolese Lome. The draft code of conduct covers laws and regulations governing relations between civilians and the military; relations between armed forces and security forces; armed/security forces and human rights; international humanitarian law; and the implementation of the code of conduct. Its provisions include a requirement that armed and security forces personnel receive education and training in national law, human rights, international humanitarian law; and rules and conventions governing armed conflicts. It states that under no circumstances may governments resort to armed and security forces to restrict the legitimate and peaceful exercise of individual and collective constitutional rights. Armed forces may support national and international humanitarian assistance operations, but within established limits, it also states. They may also participate in the fight against the proliferation of and trafficking in weapons, terrorism, drug trafficking, the trafficking of children and women, and other major crimes. Article 24 of the draft code states that the democratic control of armed and security forces by the state and public institutions will be exercised in a transparent and responsible manner, particularly with regard to planning, budgeting and the purchase of defence and security equipment. Referring to this article, Boh Herbert, the centre's communication officer, said that excessive arms purchases often fuel conflicts. "Rebels often obtain their weapons through the armed forces of other countries which serve as intermediaries in arms deals," Herbert said. "If parliamentarians have a good understanding of the budget of the army and are able to analyse it, they can ensure that military expenditure on arms is reduced to the basics. This would avoid the surpluses which fall into rebel hands." He also said that the code "should, in the long run, be able to discourage armed forces from taking power by force, including rebel forces," he added. Where international humanitarian law is concerned, the draft code says that during states of emergency or siege defined by the constitution, the actions of armed and security forces must conform to national and international humanitarian law. The personnel of armed and security forces shall abstain at all times from murder, any cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment such as torture, corporal punishment, rape and mutilation, hostage taking, collective punishments or any other acts that harm the physical and/or psychological integrity and well-being of individuals. The draft code adopted in Lome will be submitted to the African Union (the successor of the OAU) for consideration by its council of ministers and heads of state and government summit. After they adopt it, it will be implemented in military academies, barracks and other institutions, Fung said. Civilian populations will also be sensitized to it, he added. The countries represented at the meeting were Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. Some diplomats accredited to Togo, and experts from Belgium, Switzerland, Poland, the Organisation of African Unity, the Economic Community of West African States and the UN also