Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
MEDIA STATEMENT OF SOUTH AFRICA'S INSTRUMENT OF RATIFICATION OF THE AFRICAN NUCLEAR WEAPON-FREE ZONE TREATY (TREATY OF PELINDABA) WITH THE OAU.
South Africa deposited its Instrument of Ratification of the African Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Treaty, commonly known as the Treaty of Pelindaba, with the Secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) on 27 March 1998. The OAU will inform all signatories of the Treaty of Pelindaba formally in due course.
In terms of the Treaty, the Parties undertake not to acquire and possess nuclear explosive devices and to prevent the stationing of such devices on their territories. The Treaty also prohibits nuclear testing, the dumping of radioactive waste and safety of nuclear installations. It aims to strengthen the international non-proliferation regime, promoting cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, promoting general and complete disarmament and enhancing regional and international peace and security.
Ambassador Welile Nhlapo, South Africa's Permanent Representative to the OAU, deposited the Instrument of Ratification with the OAU Secretary-General, Dr Salim Ahmed Salim at the OAU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim congratulated the South African Government on the decision to ratify the treaty and expressed his gratitude for the contribution made by South Africa in the preparation for the Pelindaba Treaty and for playing a leading role in the realisation of the Treaty.
The African Nuclear Weapon-free Zone requires 28 ratifications to enter into force. To date it has been ratified by Mauritius, Gambia, Mauritania, Algeria and South Africa.
The Headquarters of the Secretariat of the Treaty, The African Commission on Nuclear Energy (AFCONE), as envisaged by the Treaty is to be situated in South Africa. The deposit of the Instrument of Ratification follows the earlier ratification of the Treaty by the South African Parliament in November 1997.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS PRETORIA 31 MARCH 1998
FACT SHEET:
The African Nuclear-Weapons-Free-Zone Treaty (The Pelindaba Treaty)
The concept of Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zones:
The African Nuclear-Weapons-Free-Zone treaty (ANWFZT):
South Africa played an active role in the negotiation of the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone (ANWFZ) Treaty. The Treaty is also known as the "Pelindaba Treaty" because it was adopted at the Pelindaba headquarters of the Atomic Energy Corporation (AEC) in South Africa on 2 June 1995 by the Group of Experts which drafted it. The Pelindaba Treaty derives its name for the Zulu words "Phelile indaba" which roughly translated means "the matter is closed/settled" - a fitting and symbolic description for a Treaty characterising the closed chapter of an apartheid nuclear weapons programme.
The Treaty was approved at the 31st Ordinary Session of the OAU Assembly of Heads of State and Government during June of 1995 in Addis Ababa, and was endorsed at the 50th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York later than year.
The Pelindaba Treaty was signed on 11 April 1996 in Cairo at a ceremony hosted by President Hosni Mubarak. Forty-five African countries signed the Treaty on that date and the total signatories now stands at Fifty-three. So far the following countries have ratified the Treaty: Mauritius, Gambia, Algeria, Mauritania and South Africa. Article 18 stipulates that the Treaty will enter into force upon the date of deposit of te twenty-eighth Instrument of Ratification.
The Headquarters of the Secretariat of the Treaty, The African Commission on Nuclear Energy (AFCONE) as envisaged by the Treaty is to be situated in South Africa.
South Africa has also become the custodian of the United Nations resolution on the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone and is annually committed to drafting the text of the resolution on the Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone on behalf of the members States of the OAU.
Some terms of the Treaty:
In terms of the Treaty, Parties undertake not to acquire and possess nuclear explosive devices and to prevent the stationing of such devices on their territories. The Treaty also prohibits nuclear testing, the dumping of radioactive waste and armed attacks on nuclear installations. It aims to strengthen the international non-proliferation regime, promoting cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, promoting general and complete disarmament and enhancing regional and international peace and security.