The Africa Liberal Network held a Strategic meeting during the LI Congress which took place in Marrakech 9-11 November 2006. The meeting was coordinated by ALN Officer Imen Trabelsi, Chaired by Pr. Ibrahim Lipumba (Chairman of Tanzania’s Civic United Front ) and attended by representatives of member parties as well as representatives of non-member African parties and other international institutions.
The meeting provided an opportunity for member parties to discuss the future direction of the network, how to make it more effective and responsive to the needs of its members and to put in place a structure that will improve the way it functions.
During the meeting, the proposed ALN Constitution was unanimously adopted after members have had the chance to make their comments and propose amendments. Among the provisions agreed was the creation of an Executive Committee (EC) which will take the lead in coordinating the activities of the Network and setting the agenda for its future work. The EC will be made up of a President who, among other things, will represent the ALN worldwide; five Vice-Presidents representing the five regions of Africa; and a Treasurer.
Another notable provision was to open the network to liberal organisations and individuals.
Member parties also approved the introduction of annual membership fees of US$600 for full memebrs, US$300 for observer members and US$50 for associate members. This was regarded as an expression of their commitment to the ALN and their determination to make it work

Operating democratic elections and campaigns in an oppressive environment is very problematic.  Poor economic conditions, civil conflict, corruption, and political instability can be negative forces working against democratic elections.  However, the power to counteract these negatives lies with independent electoral committees and observer bodies who can regulate the electoral process and promulgate the growth of democratic elections.
The challenges faced in this year’s controversial elections in Zimbabwe, Central African Republic, Togo, Guinea-Bissau, and Ethiopia speak to the difficulty of running unscathed democratic elections while under a state of threat and oppression.  The successful handling of some of these elections (Central African Republic and Guinea-Bissau) and the problematic outcome of the others (Zimbabwe, Togo and Ethiopia) is a testimony of the necessity of peaceful, transparent, free and fair elections handled by efficient, and well-staffed and resourced, independent electoral commissions.
Looking at the various elections across Africa reveal that progress towards democracy is being made, even in the context of oppression.  The lowered incidents of voting fraud and election related violence highlight the chief areas of improvement.  Now, the key to realizing the principles of democracy throughout elections and campaigns lies with independent electoral commissions and observer bodies that ensure transparency and accountability can trump the forces of oppression.
Some of our member parties like the Civic United Front (Tanzania), Rassemblement des Républicains (Cote d’Ivoire), Alliance National des Démocrates pour la Reconstruction (DRC) are most probably going to be facing elections this year under particularly difficult circumstances.  There are signs that a strained environment might mark the electoral processes in these countries. Consequently, there is a need for the political and civic actors in these countries and their international partners to ensure that the electoral process is peaceful, inclusive, and democratic.
The best way to guarantee this and foster democracy is to enhance the role of independent electoral commissions in the preparations and organisation of elections.
By Erin Smith and Nelson Muffuh
•    The Quest for Peace in Cote d’Ivoire
•    Towards Elections or Chaos in DRC?
•    Liberalism and Plans for Africa’s Development
The Quest for Peace in Cote d’Ivoire
The main political factions in Cote d’Ivoire agreed on the 29th of June 2005 to kick-start a much-delayed process of disarmament and reaffirmed a commitment to hold presidential elections on 30 October.
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Towards Elections or Chaos in DRC?
La situation politique en RDC reste préoccupante suite à la crise politique provoquée par les partis politiques qui ont refusé de siéger dans les institutions de la transition.
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Liberalism and Plans for Africa’s Development
Recent attempts to address poverty in Africa, such as the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad), have taken on the form of partnerships between African nations and the developed world. Similar initiatives have followed, the most recent of which is British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Commission for Africa. Yet for all their good intentions, most of these proposals are still struggling to get off the ground.
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The first meeting of the international representatives of the Africa Liberal Network took place on 12th – 15th June, 2003 in the Sandton Park Plaza Hotel, Johannesburg, South Africa. The meeting was well attended, with delegates from almost all member parties: the PDS in Senegal, the RDR in Cote d’Ivoire, CUF in Tanzania, the UC in Morocco, the PSL in Tunisia, the UPND in Zambia, the SNP in the Seychelles, UDF in Malawi, the UDP in Tanzania, the DA in South Africa, MFM in Madagascar, the PLD in Angola and ANADER in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Observers also attended from Liberal International, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, and the National Democratic Institute.
The meeting was a great success. The founding principles of the Africa Liberal Network were set out in the Johannesburg Declaration, which appears on the next page, and a statement of support was issued for the MDC of Zimbabwe, who were unable to attend the event.
Welcome to the second edition of the Africa Liberal Network newsletter. There has been great progress since the time the last newsletter came out, and we should all be proud of the way our network is progressing. The meeting of party international representatives was a great success, and resulted in both a declaration of the founding principles of the ALN (The Johannesburg Declaration) which can be found on page 3, and a statement of support for the MDC of Zimbabwe who were unfortunately unable to attend the meeting due to the worsening situation in their country. This statement is on page 4 of the newsletter.
The next ALN meeting is the meeting of party leaders, which takes place in Dakar Senegal on 22nd October 2003, and is generously hosted by a great liberal leader, President Wade. This event coincides with the Liberal International Congress, which takes place for the first time in Africa. It is therefore fitting that the Africa Liberal Network should be applying for the status of co-operating organisation at this Congress, contributing to Liberal International’s growing strength in Africa.
The network is starting to attract new parties, some of whom will be attending the Dakar leaders’ meeting as guests, where they will be able to meet current member parties and see the network in action!
A series of future activities are planned for the ALN, starting with a training workshop to take place in winter 2003. The topic for this workshop will be decided in consultation with member parties during the meeting in Dakar.
Last but not least, the ALN will soon have its own website. The domain name has been chosen and reserved as www.africaliberals.org, and work has started on preparing the first pages. There will be links to member party websites, the history and principles of the ALN and details of future and past activities, so please keep us informed of what your party is doing, so that this information can be included.
I look forward to seeing you in Dakar, and continuing the good work!

Welcome to the first edition of the Africa Liberal Network (ALN) newsletter.  The Africa Liberal Network is a loose affiliation of liberal democratic African political parties, which was initiated at the Liberal Summer School, held in Mombasa, Kenya, in July 2001.
The purpose of the ALN is to facilitate communication and co-operation between like-minded liberal democratic political parties in Africa.  This will be done through the regular circulation of this newsletter containing news on all member parties and their countries.  The ALN will also be organising meetings and workshops on specific issues of interest to member parties, as well as raising the profile of liberal parties in Africa in the local and international media.
Membership of the ALN is determined by the party’s status in the parent organisation, Liberal International.  The present member parties of the ALN (in alphabetical country order) are:
Members
Full Members
Partido Liberal Democratico (Angola) http://www2.ebonet.net/pld/
Union Democratica Nacional (UDENA) (Equatorial Guinea) (No party website)
United Democratic Front (Malawi) http://www.udfparty.com/
Parti Démocratique Sénégalais (Senegal) http://www.sopionline.com/
Democratic Alliance (South Africa) http://www.da.org.za
Observers
Alliance Nationale des Democrates pour la Reconstruction (ANADER) (DRC) (No party website)
Rassemblement des Republicains (Cote d’Ivoire) http://www.rdrci.org/
Mouvement pour le Progres de Magagascar (MFM) (Madagascar) (No party website)
Mouvement Populaire (Morocco) (No party website)
Union Constitutionelle (Morocco) (No party website)
Seychelles National Party (Seychelles) http://www.seychelles.net/snp/
Civic United Front (Tanzania) http://www.cuftz.org/
United Democratic Party (Tanzania) (No party website)
Parti Social Liberal (Tunisia) (No party website)
Contacts
United Party for National Development (Zambia) http://www.upnd.org/
Movement for Democratic Change (Zimbabwe) http://www.mdczimbabwe.com
Potential New Contacts
The ALN is also open to new parties who fit the criteria.  To find out more about potential new member parties, please see the dedicated section at the end of the newsletter.
This newsletter will be a monthly publication, and will be circulated to all member parties.  If you wish to submit an article concerning your party, country, or an issue of interest to ALN members, please contact Ellen Kelly at the address given in the Feedback section.