For the first time in 22 years, the leader of western
donor country, the British Prime Minister David Cameron announced on November
14, 2011, the hosting of an International Conference on ‘Somalia’ not fiefdoms in London. In his speech
entitled Foreign Policy in the National Interest,
the PM described Somalia as ‘a failed State that directly threatens
British Interest.’ In essence, The PM’s definition reflects the truth
that Somalia literally lacks a functioning state that can perform state
functions necessary for being a national legitimate Government as well as a
responsible member of the global system of governance. Therefore, the London
Conference on Somalia (LCS), planned to take place on 23rd February
2012, should finally articulate the unified determination and commitment of the
key international actors on the formation of sovereign and effective governance
in Somalia so that all corollary problems can be taken care off. Otherwise, the
conference would be one day fanfare for international bureaucrats. Any attempt
of repackaging the current political and security narratives and strategies propounded
by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), African Mission for
Somalia (AMISOM), the United Nations political Office for Somalia (UNPOS), and
the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) will nurture a culture of
political demagoguery, mafia style governance and insecurity to the disservice
of the Somali people and the International community. Fighting terrorism and
piracy must be primarily an integral part of the Somali government
responsibilities.
The mere announcement of the LCS has raised both the
expectations of the Somali people for the unexpected appearance of special
savior for Somalia on one side and the suspicion of the neighboring and
regional countries as well as the regional and international organizations
controlling and administering Somalia on the other side. Ethiopia did not hide
its irritation and told bluntly to US delegation that the ‘proliferation of
initiatives’ outside IGAD should be stopped. The truth is the Somali plight
shows that the strategies of military intervention, political opportunism and
exploitation of social grievances pursued in the last 10 years have deepened
the Somali political and humanitarian crisis and multiplied the threats to the
international security. According to UN Monitoring report S/2011/433, the
extremist group Al Shabab has expanded its influence beyond the Horn of Africa
region to the point of affecting Nigeria in less than 3 years. The needed
action is not step-change, but completely new policy direction and approach for
putting Somalia under effective government. The international community should
help and allow the Somali people to make their collective decisions freely,
democratically and consciously.
Among the five purposes listed by the PM Cameron for
hosting the conference, the one on addressing the causes of conflict and
instability in Somalia has attracted the hearts and minds of Somalis. No one
has ever raised this crucial issue for solving Somalia’s problem. The PM made
clear his intention to stand up against the radicals and pirates who have
substantially disrupted the international maritime businesses and consequently
lowered the standard of living of large segment of the populations in many
developed and developing countries. Yet, the root causes of Somali conflict
deserve primary consideration as the main source of present predicament.
Twelve countries namely the United States of America,
Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Qatar, Turkey, United
Arab Emirates, and two International Organizations- the United Nations, and the
African Union form the core group for the preparation of the LCS. For unknown
reasons, six countries and two international organizations very much involved
in the Somali politics have been left out. They are Eritrea, Egypt, Saudi
Arabia, Djibouti, China and Russia, the Arab League (AL), and the Organization
of Islamic Conference (OIC). So far, the United Arab Emirates and Kenya are
active in the Conference preparation process, while Qatar is suspected of
providing the funds for the conference. The UK Minister for International
Development Andrew Mitchell has characterized the LCS as a basis for
coordinated and sustained international leadership on Somalia.
It is prudent to look back and re-evaluate
historically what said and done on a problem before undertaking new initiative
on the same problem. On 15 June 2006, the former Assistant Secretary of State
for African Affairs, Jendayi E. Frazer convened an ad hoc meeting at the
permanent Mission of Norway to the United Nations in New York. Participants
have formed the International Contact Group on Somalia (ICGS). The unrealized
group’s mission was to mobilize the support of the international
community for the consolidation of representative and effective governance in
Somalia, capable of addressing the needs of the Somali people as well as common
international objectives. The group has also emphatically underscored
that the Transitional Federal Charter (TFC) and Institutions (TFIs)
provide a legitimate and viable framework for the continued process of
re-establishing governance in Somalia. Today, instead of representative
and effective governance, there is factionalized parliament and inept
Government without national policies. The TFC has been illegally and
arbitrarily replaced by Djibouti Agreement, Kampala Accord, the Roadmap, and
Garowe Principles. All these TFC violations were made for reconciling and
satisfying incompetent unscrupulous individuals of TFG leadership who
transformed the TFIs into private Institutions. The President, the Speaker and
the Prime Minister became individual politicians who are chasing their personal
interests. The LCS should not repeat the same fiasco. The invitation of TFG
leaders or the roadmap ‘stakeholders’ to the LCS on behalf of the Somali people
would be a grave mistake or deliberate humiliation.
Various sources hint that the US Administration, UNPOS
and TFG share the view that the political process underway for ending one
transition period with the inauguration of another one falls outside the LCS
scope. The US Government wants to see the immediate completion of Federal
Constitution and the installation of parliament ultimately selected by Roadmap
‘stakeholders’ possibly before March/April 2012. To make matters complex, the US
dual track policy will be replaced by local stability policywith the same objectives. Moreover, UNPOS and TFG consider the LCS as an
exercise for progress assessment and fund raising. These positions dash the
hope for building a Somali State capable of serving its people and the world
community.
Nevertheless, two important preliminary clarifications
made in the preparatory papers deserve special attention. The first
clarification is the recognition that Somalia was not only a failed state but
it has been sliding backwards for the last 20 years and the second
clarification is related to the UK’s commitment to the territorial integrity
and sovereignty of Somalia by inviting Somaliland to the Conference as part of
Somalia’s problem.
Recognizing that Somalia has been sliding backwards
for the last 20 years reaffirms what the international human rights and
Humanitarian organizations have been saying all along. This was supposed to be
the truth that guides the international efforts rather than the misleading
slogans of marginal progress with incalculable cost. In fact, the United
Nations requested 1.5 Billion dollars for Humanitarian Assistance for Somalia
for 2012, while it requested only 174.11 million dollars for 2006. This means
that human suffering in Somalia increased by ten times in the last five years.
For misguided international efforts, Somalia became hotspot for terrorism,
radicalization, piracy, dumping of toxic waste and illegal fishing.
It has been stupefying to witness the indifference of
the international leaders in the face of the tear-jerking reports of the United
Nations humanitarian organizations, NGOs like Oxfam and Human Rights Watch, all
presenting shocking facts and figures of unimaginable human sufferings and
abuses committed against the Somali people. Specifically, the adoption of the
Human Rights Watch reports- (Civilians under siege in Mogadishu)
dated 12 August 2007 and the (War Crimes in Somalia) dated 15 August
2011, and Refugees International’s report (Not the Time to look Away) dated 12
December 2011- during the conference would have honored the victims of
political indifference in Somalia.
The UK’s commitment to Somalia’s territorial integrity prevents the surge of fresh conflicts in the stable regions of Somalia and encourages a national dialogue among Somalis for long term political dispensation. This commitment must be followed with concrete political statements by other western countries for dispelling ambiguity on the issue. The western positions will not force the population of Somaliland or other areas to be or not to be part of Somalia, but it will facilitate a dispensation based on legal and political process without violence. Rebuilding the failed state of Somalia requires first and foremost a Somali popular Accord on reconciliation and governance woven with policies for fighting extremism, terrorism and piracy. The international commitment, resources and cooperation are necessary ingredients for the state building process in Somalia.
Mr. Mohamud M Uluso
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London Conference: Somalia needs sovereign and effective Governance
The first clarification is the recognition that Somalia was not only a failed state but it has been sliding backwards for the last 20 years and the second clarification is related to the UK’s commitment