Tchad:Open letter to the Heads of State and Government of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU)

Your Excellencies,
We, members of the Chadian Diaspora Concertation Platform, like all Chadians, have been waiting with great interest and impatience for your Council’s reaction to the political situation in our country, Chad, at the end of the 18-month transition period triggered by the still unclarified demise of the late Idriss Deby Itno. You organized a meeting to assess the political situation in Chad on 11 November under the Protocol’s provisions establishing the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU).

We expected that, for the sake of coherence and credibility, the AU PSC would pronounce clear sanctions against the transition leaders regarding their failure to respect the principles of the AU and the commitments they have made before our continental institution, particularly before the Chadian people. These principles and commitments were 1/ a transition period of no more than 18 months and 2/ the non-eligibility for elections of the transition actors at the end of the transition period. Transition authorities used conclusions of the expeditious and non-inclusive dialogue as a basis for not respecting any of these commitments.

Unfortunately, your meeting of 11 November 2022 was unable to reach a decision, apparently due to a lack of consensus. We would like to congratulate and thank the Member States that voted for the enforcement of sanctions against the clannish military junta for their consistency and their commitment to the values and principles of the African Union.

For those countries that abstained from voting for sanctions for security reasons and challenges in the region, we humbly recall the failure to respect the commitments and principles of the AU that led to the demonstrations of 20 October 2022. Hundreds of Chadians lost their lives, and thousands of others, wounded by bullets, tortured and/or deported, will suffer lifelong consequences. Furthermore, resolving conflicts and instability in Africa requires respect for democratic principles and the economic development of countries, all of which have been cruelly lacking in Chad for several decades.

Like other peoples of Africa, the Chadian people aspire to live in a country where only democracy and the rule of law will allow access to power, not the power of weapons. One of the lessons that the AU should draw from the recent demonstrations and the military coups in Africa is this notion of the particularity of the transition in Chad. It is not only not shared by Chadians but also paves the way for legitimizing coups and third terms of office due to constitutional changes.
The PSC would make a final decision at a Heads of State and Government meeting. We are counting on the wisdom of the Heads of State to take courageous, coercive decisions against the transitional authorities in Chad to bring them to respect their commitments and the principles of the AU, including respect for human rights. We also hope that the African Union will assume full responsibility instead of subcontracting the matter to ECCAS based on a questionable principle of subsidiarity.

Countries in the Central African region are notorious for not respecting the principles of democratic transmission of power and the violation of freedoms and human rights. The credibility of the largest continental institution, peace and security in Chad and elsewhere in Africa, and the anchoring of democracy on our continent are at stake.

Please accept, Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government, the expression of our highest and most devoted consideration.

For the Chadian Diaspora Concertation Platform,

Laya Djonabaye