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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
SOMALIA: Lifting of arms embargo dangerous, UIC says
NAIROBI, 7 Dec 2006 (IRIN) - The Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) condemned on Thursday a decision by the United Nations Security Council to lift an arms embargo on Somalia, warning it would lead to further instability. The move paves the way for the deployment of African troops to protect the interim government.
"This is a misguided decision," Ibrahim Hassan Adow, the UIC’s head of foreign affairs, said. "It will contribute to further instability in the country."
The UIC, which controls much of southern and central Somalia, warned countries that might consider sending troops that "such an act will be seen as a declaration of war and act of aggression against our country".
The Security Council on Wednesday authorised the establishment of an African protection and training mission in Somalia under the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to defend the fragile Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs). According to the resolution, the peace-support mission, comprising about 8,000 troops - to be known as IGASOM and with an initial mandate of six months - would exclude forces from countries bordering Somalia.
The forces are charged with "protecting members of the TFIs, including the government; training those institutions' security forces to provide their own security and help re-establish national security forces; maintaining security in Baidoa, where the TFIs are based; monitoring progress on dialogue between the TFIs and the Islamic Courts; and ensuring the free movement and safety of all those involved in the dialogue process".
However, Adow said those pushing for this resolution "did not want to see peace and stability in Somalia".
Matt Bryden, a regional analyst, said the UN resolution was "much better than the US draft but the peace process is clearly at a make-or-break stage and the passage of the UN resolution on Somalia at this time could tip the scales in favour of war rather than peace".
For its part, the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) welcomed the resolution and called for the deployment of peacekeepers immediately.
"We welcome the resolution. It is good for Somalia and will contribute to peace and stability," Information Minister Ali Jama Jangali said. "It should be implemented as soon as possible and to the letter."
However, Muhammad Nur Ga'al, deputy head of Civil Society in Action, a coalition of civil-society groups, said: "The timing of this resolution is bad. It does not help the on-going process of dialogue between the two sides."
Ga'al said civil-society groups were now meeting and would issue a more detailed reaction later, "but injecting foreign forces into the country at this time will make matters worse. The UN should have put more pressure on the two sides to continue with the Khartoum peace talks," he added.
The two sides have met in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, twice but failed to reach any lasting agreement.
Meanwhile, Uganda, one of the countries expected to deploy troops in Somalia, said it was ready to comply with the resolution.
Maj Felix Kulaigye, Uganda People's Defence Forces spokesman, told IRIN: "We [the UPDF] made a decision to send forces to Somalia a long time ago, and were waiting for the UN to give us the go-ahead.
"A battalion, trained in peacekeeping, has been ready since last year," he said. "Our internal mechanisms can now start, including acquiring parliamentary approval - we expect the minister [of defence] to present a bill sooner rather than later."
However, many observers doubt whether such a force will be deployed any time soon - if at all. "If neighbouring countries have been ruled out, where will the force come from, since Uganda is only one, so far, willing to commit troops?" questioned one.
The issue of who will pay for the force will also have to be addressed. "In my opinion it will be a long time before you see IGASOM deployed," he added.
Somalia's transitional government was installed in late 2004 in an effort to bring peace and security to the Horn of Africa country, which has not had an effective government for 16 years.
In June this year, the Islamic Courts' militias defeated warlords who had controlled the city since 1991, following the collapse of the regime headed by Somalia's last real president, Muhammad Siyad Barre.
Ah/mw
[ENDS]
This material comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2006
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