On March 11, 2006 Africans converged in London to work out a plan for the building of the African World tribunal to put white power on trial in Berlin, Germany.
Africans came from Holland, Germany, France, Belgium, Israel, Sierra Leone, U.S and Britain. There are Africans who send messages of their desire to attend the next meeting in Paris; and those who could not participate, sent suggestions to help build the conference, or proposals to be read at the conference itself.
Omali Yeshitela, the Chairman of the African People’s Socialist Party, explained that Berlin was the chosen location for the Tribunal because it is the scene of the crime, where Otto Von Bismarck, the German Chancellor host the Kongokonferenz, or Congo conference, where 14 European states: Austria–Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden–Norway (United until 1905 ) and Germany carved out Africa for themselves. This conference also served to save greedy European nations from fighting one another over Africa’s land and resources.
The basis of participation was unity with the proposal written by Omali Yeshitela as the Point Leading Person (PLP). This task to write this proposal was assigned to him at the Berlin conference held in October 2005. As usual, in order to bring the dispersed African nation together on an issue that unites us completely and profoundly — the return and repossession of our stolen resources for our own benefit and happiness — Chairman Omali went to task with dedication and love for African people. He completed his task on time, and circulated a draft as early as January 2006, for this March conference in London.
The leadership of the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP) did not save any effort as it reached out to all organizations that could participate in this unifying project to attend the conference. This was true for all contending forces within the Global Afrikan Congress (GAC) — an organization formed in the wake of the United Nations-sponsored World Conference Against Racism in 2001 that has been torn from internal struggle — as well as to other forces involved in reparations work throughout the world. We proposed the rules of participation, to secure an orderly and serious meeting.
The rules were as follows: participants must recognize the Chairman as leadership of this Tribunal; participation in this conference is based on unity with the Berlin proposal document; participants must respect and be respectful of each other; in cases of contention, a vote will be taken; and decisions are carried out based on a majority vote.
The objectives of the meeting were: to establish unity based on the political proposal; to establish a plan of action for moving forward; to unite with the structure and fill positions; to determine location for next meeting scheduled for June 3, 2006; to make a definite decision on the location of the venue for the Tribunal; and to establish a fundraising process.
Tribunal will quantify impact of slavery, colonialism and theft of resources
Chairman Omali stressed also the importance of having the Tribunal to present facts and figures to quantify the political, economic and psychological impact of slavery and colonialism on Africa. He said that it should also quantify the theft of African culture and intellectual property, historic and present, in all its various forms, including music, the arts, sciences, inventions and the massive appropriation of our historic arts and artifacts in museums throughout the western world, giving examples of Picasso, James Brown and African Mummies.
“We must have State power if we want to be able to apply the justice of the oppressed against the oppressors. Our people will have to control a State apparatus with our own courts and means of carrying the will of a sovereign people against imperialist oppressors.”
The conference broke up into two kinds of working groups. The first one was based on geographical regions: the African, Caribbean, European, and North America regions. After 35 minutes, each working group had to report on the vision, objective, mission, plan of action, time line, budget plan and PLP for their region.
The second set of working groups took on the task of working on the profiles of judges and observers; the venue, tribunal and event; information and outreach; and Berlin on site issues.
The conference ended with a social evening meal at an African restaurant owned by Sister Rebecca, a supporter of the Uhuru Movement.
The significance of this March 11 conference is profound. It was the launching point of an unstoppable process that will contribute to building the emerging African International Liberation Movement around the world. It is here where the leaders will be found who will be organizing for the decisive next round of the 500-year-old struggle between African people and imperialism.
It is part of the creation of a new world from the bottom up, and it is vision of the oppressed African people defining our reality in our own terms for our own benefit. It is an enlargement and deepening of the APSP-held first World Tribunal on Reparations of 1982 that put the U.S. government on trial within U.S. borders. This time, it is all of imperialist white power that is on trial.
World tribunal will serve as instrument of state power for African workers
This African world tribunal brings the legitimate and just struggle of the African people on the international arena where all oppressed nations are battling the oppressor nations. This African world tribunal intends to take cases of African political prisoners like Mumia, Sundiata Acoli and others, or the case of Belgian imperialism’s murder of Lumumba, the enslavement of African people. It would take these cases to our own court on world scale.
It is a project that will establish a nucleus of an international black power State, born in contention with white imperialist power and its black puppets allies. We need a State power in order to retake our stolen resources from the hands of imperialism.
We must have State power if we want to be able to apply the justice of the oppressed against the oppressors. Our people will have to control a State apparatus with our own courts and means of carrying the will of a sovereign people against imperialist oppressors.
In Berlin next year, we will show the world that Africa was better off until we met the European imperialist barbarian.
Join us to in this movement to bring the criminal white imperialism to court.
Machi 11, 2006 - Waafrika walikusanyika London kuandaa mpango wa kujenga mahakama ya Afrika ya Dunia ili kuhoji nguvu nyeupe huko Berlin, Ujerumani. Waafrika walitoka Uholanzi, Ujerumani, Ufaransa, Ubelgiji, Israeli, Sierra Leone, Marekani na Uingereza. Kuna Waafrika ambao hutuma ujumbe wa kutaka kuhudhuria mkutano ujao huko Paris; na wale ambao hawawezi kushiriki, walituma mapendekezo ya kusaidia kujenga mkutano, au mapendekezo ya kusomwa kwenye mkutano wenyewe. Omari Yeshitela, mwenyekiti wa chama cha Afrika cha Socialist Party, alieleza kuwa Berlin ni eneo lililochaguliwa kwa ajili ya mahakama hiyo kwa sababu ni eneo la uhalifu, ambapo Otto von Bismarck, Kansela wa Ujerumani, alikaribisha Kongokonferenz, au mkutano wa Kongo, ambapo nchi 14 za Ulaya: Austria, Hungary, Ubelgiji, Denmark, Ufaransa, Uingereza, Italia, Uholanzi, Ureno, Uhispania, Sweden, Norway (kuungana hadi 1905), na Ujerumani zilijenga Afrika. Mkutano huo pia ulitumiwa kuokoa mataifa ya Ulaya yenye pupa wasipigane kwa ajili ya ardhi na rasilimali za Afrika. Mkutano huo ulifanyika kwa kuunga mkono pendekezo la Omali Yeshitela, ambaye ni kiongozi wa chama cha PLP. Kazi ya kuandika pendekezo hili ilipewa katika mkutano wa Berlin uliofanyika Oktoba 2005. "Kama kawaida, ili kuleta taifa la Afrika lililotawanyika pamoja juu ya suala ambalo linatuunganisha kabisa na kwa kina - kurudi na kurudisha rasilimali zetu zilizoibiwa kwa faida na furaha yetu wenyewe - Mwenyekiti Omari alienda kwa kazi kwa kujitolea na upendo kwa watu wa Afrika. """ Alifanya kazi hiyo kwa wakati, na kueneza rasimu ya maandishi hayo mapema Januari 2006 kwa ajili ya mkutano wa Machi huko London. Uongozi wa chama cha Afrika cha Socialist People's Party (APSP) haukuweka jitihada yoyote wakati ulipofikia mashirika yote ambayo yanaweza kushiriki katika mradi huu wa kuunganisha kuhudhuria mkutano huo. Hii ilikuwa kweli kwa vikosi vyote vinavyopingana ndani ya Global African Congress (GAC), shirika lililoundwa baada ya Mkutano wa Ulimwengu dhidi ya Ubaguzi wa Rangi uliofadhiliwa na Umoja wa Mataifa mnamo 2001, ambayo imevunjwa na mapambano ya ndani, na pia kwa vikosi vingine vinavyohusika katika kazi ya fidia ulimwenguni. Tulipendekeza sheria za ushiriki, ili kuhakikisha mkutano wenye utaratibu na mzito. "Masharti yalikuwa kama ifuatavyo: ""Washiriki lazima wamtambue Mwenyekiti kama uongozi wa Mahakama hii; ushiriki katika mkutano huu unategemea umoja na hati ya pendekezo la Berlin; washiriki lazima waheshimiane na kuheshimiana; katika kesi za mabishano, kura itachukuliwa; na maamuzi yanafanywa kwa msingi wa kura ya wengi.""" Lengo la mkutano huo lilikuwa kuanzisha umoja wa kisiasa, kuanzisha mpango wa hatua za kuendelea, kuungana na muundo na kujaza nafasi, kuamua mahali pa mkutano ujao uliowekwa Juni 3, 2006, kufanya uamuzi wa uhakika juu ya mahali pa Mahakama, na kuanzisha mchakato wa kukusanya fedha. "Msimamo wa mahakama hiyo ni ""kuchunguza athari za utumwa, ukoloni na wizi wa rasilimali,"" na pia ni muhimu kwa mahakama hiyo kutoa ukweli na takwimu ili kuamua athari za kisiasa, kiuchumi na kisaikolojia za utumwa na ukoloni katika Afrika." "Mwandishi huyo alisema, ""Ni lazima pia kuelezea wizi wa utamaduni wa Kiafrika na mali ya kiakili, ya kihistoria na ya sasa, katika aina zake zote, ikiwa ni pamoja na muziki, sanaa, sayansi, uvumbuzi na ununuzi mkubwa wa sanaa zetu za kihistoria na vitu vya kale katika makumbusho kote Magharibi, na kutoa mifano ya Picasso, James Brown na Mumia wa Kiafrika.""" <unk>Ni lazima tuwe na nguvu za Serikali ikiwa tunataka kuwa na uwezo wa kutumia haki ya wenye kukandamizwa dhidi ya wakandamizwa. "Watu wetu watalazimika kudhibiti mashine ya serikali na mahakama zetu wenyewe na njia za kutekeleza mapenzi ya watu wenye enzi dhidi ya wakandamizaji wa kifalme. ""Mkutano uligawanyika katika aina mbili za vikundi vya kazi." Ya kwanza ilitegemea maeneo ya kijiografia: maeneo ya Afrika, Karibea, Ulaya, na Amerika Kaskazini. Baada ya dakika 35 kila kikundi cha kazi kilipaswa kutoa ripoti juu ya maono, lengo, utume, mpango wa hatua, ratiba ya muda, mpango wa bajeti na PLP kwa mkoa wao. Kikundi cha pili cha makundi ya kazi alichukua juu ya kazi ya maelezo ya majaji na waangalizi; mahali, mahakama na tukio; habari na ufikiaji; na Berlin juu ya masuala ya tovuti. Mkutano huo ulimalizika kwa chakula cha jioni cha kijamii katika mkahawa wa Kiafrika uliomilikiwa na Dada Rebecca, msaidizi wa Uhuru Movement. """Muhimu wa mkutano huu wa Machi 11 ni mkubwa." Ilikuwa ni hatua ya uzinduzi wa mchakato usioweza kukoma ambao utachangia kujenga harakati ya kimataifa ya uhuru wa Afrika inayoibuka ulimwenguni kote. "Hapa ndipo viongozi watakapopatikana ambao watakuwa wakipanga mzunguko ujao wa vita vya miaka 500 kati ya watu wa Afrika na utawala wa kifalme.""" Ni sehemu ya uumbaji wa ulimwengu mpya kutoka chini hadi juu, na ni maono ya watu wa Afrika waliokandamizwa kuelezea hali yetu halisi kwa maneno yetu wenyewe kwa faida yetu wenyewe. Hatua hiyo ni ya kupanua na kuimarisha mahakama ya kwanza ya kimataifa ya kulipia hasara iliyopitishwa na APSP mwaka 1982 ambayo iliweka serikali ya Marekani mahakamani ndani ya mipaka ya Marekani. Wakati huu, ni nguvu zote za wazungu wa kimapinduzi ambazo ziko mahakamani. Mahakama ya Dunia itatumika kama chombo cha nguvu ya serikali kwa ajili ya wafanyakazi wa Afrika Mahakama hii ya Dunia ya Afrika inaleta mapambano halali na ya haki ya watu wa Afrika kwenye uwanja wa kimataifa ambapo mataifa yote yaliyodhulumiwa yanapigana na mataifa ya udhalimu. Mahakama hiyo ya Afrika ina nia ya kuchukua kesi za wafungwa wa kisiasa wa Afrika kama vile Mumia, Sadiq Ali, na wengine, au kesi ya mauaji ya Lumumba na utawala wa ubeberu wa Ubelgiji, utumwa wa watu wa Afrika. "Tutachukua kesi hizi kwa mahakama yetu wenyewe kwa kiwango cha ulimwengu.""" Ni mradi ambao utaanzisha kiini cha serikali ya kimataifa ya nguvu nyeusi, iliyozaliwa katika utata na nguvu nyeupe za kimapinduzi na washirika wake wa wanasesere weusi. Tunahitaji nguvu ya serikali ili kuondoa rasilimali zetu zilizokuwa zimeibiwa mikononi mwa utawala wa kifalme. Ni lazima tuwe na nguvu za serikali ikiwa tunataka kuweza kutumia haki ya wenye kukandamizwa dhidi ya wakandamizwa. """Watu wetu watalazimika kudhibiti mashine ya serikali na mahakama zetu na njia za kutekeleza mapenzi ya watu wenye uhuru dhidi ya wakandamizaji wa kifalme." """Katika Berlin mwaka ujao, tutaonyesha ulimwengu kwamba Afrika ilikuwa bora zaidi hadi tulipokutana na wazalendo wa Ulaya." Kujiunga na sisi katika harakati hii kuleta uhalifu nyeupe imperialism mahakamani.