African leaders meet to discuss CAR’s future

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© AFP

Video by Kate MOODY

Text by FRANCE 24

Latest update : 2014-01-09

African leaders are to meet in Chad’s capital N’Djamena on Thursday to discuss the future of the Central African Republic (CAR) in an effort to stem ongoing inter-religious violence in the country.

No official agenda has been drawn up for the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) summit, which was called by Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno.

There have been unconfirmed reports from political sources in CAR as well as French diplomatic sources that the country's President Michel Djotodia, who seized power in March at the head of the Seleka rebels, is to announce his resignation at the meeting, or shortly afterwards upon his return to CAR’s capital Bangui.

A spokesman for Djotodia, however, has denied any such plan.

French and African troops have struggled to stop fighting between Muslim Seleka rebels and Christian militias over the past many weeks, in which more than 1,000 people have died.

‘Powerless’

CEEAC Secretary General Ahmat Allami said that while the summit had not been called to demand a regime change in CAR, the regional bloc would tell Djotodia that his transitional government was not working.

“If you are incapable, if you are powerless in the face of the situation, make way for others who can do a better job,” Allami said in N’Djamena. “It may happen that CEEAC is overwhelmed and cannot continue to support the transition.”

“That does not mean that CEEAC can proceed to simply change the head of state. Central African Republic is not a state under tutelage,” he said.

The meeting in N’Djamena is expected to discuss the various options for continuing the transition, including allowing the president of a National Transitional Council to take over or mandating Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye to run the country until elections, now due by the end of the year, French sources said.

A third option would be to create a new transitional team from scratch, though that could take more time and heighten security risks.

Djotodia, installed as interim president under a deal with regional African states last year, has been powerless to halt the bloodshed, which has displaced some 1 million people and stirred fears of a repeat of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said there was an urgent need to get the Central African state working again, and this would be discussed at Thursday’s meeting, which France will attend as an observer.

“We’re not here to give the thumbs up or down, but there are difficulties with the current team,” he told the Senate. “It’s not for us to decide this but there is a difficult political situation and all those who are or who will be in power must prepare the elections.”

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)