The African Bar Association (AfBA) has endorsed the bid to lift the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe which have ruined the country’s economy.
In a resolution issued recently, AfBA indicated that the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by the United States of America and the European Union in 2002 have damaged the country’s economy, leaving its citizens languishing in poverty.
In a 20-count resolution issued at the end of the African Bar Association (AfBA) conference last Thursday, the AfBA called on African leaders to do their utmost to ensure that sanctions imposed on some African countries are lifted.
The African Bar Association indicated that they are concerned about the situation facing the African continent, noting that this prompted the crafting of the resolution.
In the resolution, the AfBA called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to put an immediate halt to the proceedings against former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo and his official, Charles Ble Goude, who are being tried for pre-electoral violence that claimed the lives of some 3,000 persons.
Gbagbo, the first head of state to stand trial in The Hague, and his official Goude were both cleared of crimes against humanity in January and released under conditions the following month.
The African Bar Association conference brought together the brightest legal minds for the betterment of Africa.
The AfBA was established in 1971 as a non-governmental organization by a group of progressive-minded lawyers to unite individual lawyers and national legal associations in Africa.
It is a federation of national legal associations, corporate and unincorporated legal entities and individual lawyers.
The Association seeks to, among other objectives, foster exchange of opinions and experiences among members, formulation of policies that would better re-positioning the continent’s socio-economic and political development and advancement with the law as the bedrock for these developments.
The Association brings together the five African sub-regional lawyers, their respective national associations spread across the African continent.
The AfBA 2019 Annual Conference held in Liberia brought together over 300 legal minds from all parts of the continent to discuss issues affecting the continent and how to solve them.
In remarks, the President of AfBA, Hannibal Uwaifo, thanked President George Weah, Supreme Court Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor, and the Liberia National Bar Association (LNBA) for accepting to have the conference in Liberia which brought together young lawyers from all parts of the continent.
He praised President Weah for promoting the image of Liberia and Africa at large internationally.
“President Weah brought the name of Liberia to the limelight; he brought light when there was darkness. However, Liberia deserves more from their president; Liberia must demand an independent and free judicial system,” Uwaifo pointed out.
In remarks, LNBA President Tiawon Gongloe urged national leaders to put aside their political differences and work together for the growth and development of their nations.
The conference ran from October 21-24, 2019.
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