Haile Selassie

“ It is in this, We believe, that the real triumph of Africa lies today. Economic development may lag; difficulties may be encountered in working out unanimously acceptable programmes and policies; temporary dissentions may interfere with harmonious relations between individual states. But so long as the spirit of Africa prevails and stirs within us, so long as we continue to think and work and act within the African context which we have created, imbued by the African atmosphere which surrounds and pervades us, We are confident that the goals we seek shall be attained. ”

“ It is for the right of the people of any nation to adopt that economic and political system which the majority of them freely elect to follow. It is for the right of men and nations freely to take their stand on the great issues of the day, as their consciences and their sense of right and justice - and these alone - dictate. ”

“ Let us not delude ourselves in thinking that these facts, for such they are, are of no significance for the future of Africa. But let us, at the same time, toil with all our strength to alter them.
When we consider political neo-colonialism, our desires, although perhaps no less difficult of attainment, are at least easier of articulation. We seek to avoid a rigid and inflexible posture which prejudices our position on the major issues before the world. We seek to avoid alignment, to achieve true non-alignment. ”

“ Unless we find the requisite courage and fixity of purpose to rise above our petty selves; we shall be broken on the wheel of our own invention, slaves of our own despotism. The spirit of Africa, which surrounds our deliberations here, is deserving of the greatness which Africa demands of it. ”

“ What we seek to create is flexible, not inflexible; a moral force to be used for world peace, for economic development, for the benefit of humanity. We cannot impose our views by force. We have only the power of moral persuasion. This is our strength - and a great strength - if we will but use it.
And, finally, there exists today, not for Africa alone but for all mankind, the danger of the extinction of the human race by nuclear holocaust. We have supported it in the past, and We reiterate now, that Africa must be declared a denuclearized zone. ”

“ What is needed, above all, is patience which accepts delays while striving to overcome them and tolerance which comprehends our weaknesses, our selfish ambitions, and our narrow self-interest, while seeking to strengthen our will and stiffen our moral fibre and devotion to principle and international morality: which can alone arm and shield and support us in the daily strife which is our fate as we toil to better the lot of Africa and all men everywhere. ”

“ We can accept assistance from those who seek the same ends only if the other precious freedoms which we equally cherish are not thereby prejudiced.
In our struggle to eliminate from the African continent the ugly sore of apartheid, so repugnant and loathsome to us Africans, unhappily, all too little progress has been recorded. Much has been said and written in condemnation of this most ignoble and inhuman form of the abasement by man of his fellows, each one of us here has roundly and unequivocally condemned this evil. ”

“ Neo-Colonialism Neo-colonialism today takes two forms: economic and political. We recognize that economic dominance is not only often the more difficult to eliminate, but often serves as the entering wedge for political domination. We further recognize that, given the history of our continent, and the conditions under which we came to freedom, it is not unusual that, despite our best efforts, the economic independence which we seek is long and difficult in coming. Long-established patterns of trade are not easily or quickly reoriented. ”

“ Find Solutions We are convinced that it is in our search for African unity that we shall discover the solutions to the vexing problems which confront us. We have taken upon ourselves the liberation of the remaining dependent territories of the African continent such as Angola, Mozambique and Southern Rhodesia and the elimination of apartheid. This battle must and shall be won; but if our victory is to be real and not ephemeral, it is we Africans who must achieve it. ”

“ It is all too often under the guise of territorial disputes and through the medium of subversive activity directed against legitimate governments that the foreign influences which we seek to bar from our continent endeavour to exert their power and establish for themselves a foothold from which to expand their activities. We must guard against the insidious substitution of one form of dominance and rule for another; we must be vigilant to inhibit the growth of what is called neo-colonialism. ”

“ During the past year, We paid State Visits to nearly a dozen African nations, and in the views which We exchanged with other African leaders We encountered a sense of purpose, of dedication, of vision, which, We are persuaded, found its genesis in the common acceptance of the ideal of African unity, in the common response to the unique challenge which modern Africa presents to each of us in the common crusade in which we are each enlisted. ”

“ The creation of a permanent machinery to settle intra-African disputes is one such. We must take up where the colonialists left off in transforming the social and economic patterns of our nations. In order to decrease our economic dependence on the developed nations, trade among Africa's nations must be expanded. Transportation and communication facilities among us must be expanded and improved. A unified African Development Programme which utilizes to the fullest the individual resources of the individual African states must be prepared and implemented. ”

“ Africans, however, like all other peoples possess not only virtues but weaknesses and it is perhaps inevitable that differences will arise among us from time to time. Just as Africa, as a single entity, and the several African states individually toil for the peaceful settlement of disputes among states, so must we ensure that disputes in Africa are settled peacefully. If our continent is not free of internecine strife, how can we hope to influence others whose disputes endanger the peace of the world? ”

“ Once more, Africa's leaders have convened to consider in concert the past accomplishments, the present problems and the future goals of their mother continent. Today, the eyes of the world are directed anew to a distinguished gathering of African statesmen and leaders. ”

“ If we are truthful with ourselves, we must admit that there yet remains far to go in eliminating racial discrimination from our continent. We must, first of all, look to our own efforts. We have declared that all economic ties with South Africa must be terminated. ”

“ The agenda before us is long. Each of its topics deserves our most thoughtful and careful attention. We pray that our deliberations will be characterized by the same spirit of oneness, the same inspiration, the same courage and determination, which marked our meeting at Addis Ababa. ”

“ Those who righteously denounce one side on every major problem or issue while reserving nothing but praise for the other cannot claim to be non-aligned, we may from one day to the next find ourselves now opposing, now supporting, now voting against, first the East, next the West. ”

“ Since this is fundamentally a human question, we can take heart in the fact that at our side in our struggle against apartheid are ranged the vast majority of human race. But to justify their support we must ourselves scrupulously and militantly enforce the measures which we have agreed upon. ”

“ The achievements of the months since May of 1963 stand, as well, as a favourable augury for the long road which still remains to be travelled to our stated goal of African Unity. The Organization of African Unity is today a solid and tangible achievement. ”

“ We seek the closest collaboration with those others - Asians, Europeans, North and South Americans - who share our desires and who are willing to co-operate with us. We seek that self-sufficiency which will enable us to play our rightful role in international affairs and live in full harmony with all men. ”

“ Our Child We have created this spirit; it is our child. To bring it to its full potential we must, firstly define with precision and clarity the programmes which will advance us along the path we have chosen, whilst simultaneously avoiding those dangers which could frustrate what has been so laboriously won. ”

“ Some Objectives What must we do to transform our aspirations into reality, to overcome the dangers to which We have referred, to advance to the destiny we have marked out for ourselves: We have spoken in the past of some of the concrete measures to be taken. ”

“ It is the worth of the policies themselves, We Say, and not their source or sponsor, which determines the position of one who is truly non-aligned.
Non-Alignment We repeat that non-alignment is in no way anti-Eastern, or anti-Western, any more than it is anti-Northern or anti-Southern. It is neither anti- nor pro- in any absolute fashion. It is largely affirmative, not negative. It is for peace and freedom. It is for a decent standard of living for all men. ”

“ Spiritual Vitality But perhaps more important than the individual events of these months has been the demonstrated vitality of the spirit of Africa, a vitality which has permeated every aspect of intra-African relations and has, in the short space of fourteen months, produced a basic and fundamental change in the African scene. ”

“ It should be clear, however, that as Africans embracing this principle we are not choosing to form a third bloc, a supra-power which can only speak with a single voice because it is controlled and dictated by a single organ. ”

“ Heavy Task Admittedly the task is not an easy one. Immediate sacrifices are required. Ethiopia's ties with Portugal stretch back to the 16th Century, and our relations with that nation have always been amicable. ”