NEW YORK, September 28, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The
following communiqué was...
By: UNITED NATIONS
29/09/2011 09:29 GMT
NEW YORK, September 28, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The
following communiqué was issued after the mini-summit on Somalia, held in
New York, 23 September:
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, convened a
high-level meeting on Somalia in New York on 23 September 2011. Participants
included representatives of Burundi, China, Denmark, Djibouti, Ethiopia,
France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Norway, Russian Federation, Saudi
Arabia, Somalia, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, United
States, Uganda, African Union, European Union, League of Arab States and the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, Prime Minister of
the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, and Jean Ping, the
Chairperson of the African Union Commission, gave an update on recent
political and security developments in Somalia, as well as the humanitarian
situation.
Participants reaffirmed respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity,
political independence and unity of Somalia. They noted that recent
political and security developments created an opportunity to further peace
and reconciliation in Somalia, and stressed the importance of establishing
broad-based and representative institutions through an inclusive political
process. Participants welcomed the Kampala Accord and reiterated their
support for the Djibouti Peace Agreement and the Somalia Transitional
Federal Charter, which collectively constitute the political framework for a
sustainable solution in Somalia.
Participants expressed appreciation for the international community's
humanitarian relief efforts in Somalia, including from African countries,
Arab countries and other non-traditional donors, and urged them to continue
these efforts. They underlined the need to address the root causes of famine
and to reconstruct Somalia's infrastructure and public institutions,
including hospitals and schools. They also called for additional efforts in
the provision of aid in south-central Somalia, “Galmudug”, “Puntland” and
“Somaliland”.
Participants welcomed the recent adoption by Somali leaders of the Roadmap
for ending the Somali transitional period by August 2012, consistent with
the Djibouti Peace Agreement and the Somali Transitional Federal Charter.
Participants welcomed the guiding principles of the Roadmap, namely, Somali
ownership and inclusiveness; political outreach to all major Somali
stakeholders, including the regional entities and Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama'a;
full engagement of civil society; efficient use of resources; and adherence
to monitoring and compliance mechanisms.
Participants urged Somali leaders to fully implement the Roadmap and to
complete the tasks it contains within the agreed time frame in the following
priority areas: security, including the adoption of effective maritime
security and counter-piracy policy and legislation; completion of the
constitution-making process, reform of Parliament and holding of elections,
including for the posts of President and Speaker of the Parliament; national
reconciliation; and good governance. Recognizing that the primary
responsibility for the achievement of peace in Somalia rests with the Somali
leadership, participants stressed the critical importance of compliance with
the commitments undertaken in the Roadmap as a key requirement to ensure the
continued international support to the Transitional Federal Institutions.
Participants welcomed the growing cooperation among the United Nations,
African Union, Intergovernmental Authority on Development, League of Arab
States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in promoting and
facilitating discussions on the implementation of the Roadmap involving the
Transitional Federal Institutions, Somali civil society, local and regional
administrations, as well as regional and international partners.
Participants also welcomed the expeditious formation of the Technical
Committee for the implementation of the Roadmap. They committed to
mobilizing international support for the implementation of the Roadmap, in
line with a Resource Mobilization Plan to be agreed by the Transitional
Federal Government and the international community.
Participants stressed the importance of conducting popular consultations on
the draft constitution and the reform of Parliament to enable adoption of a
new constitution by a representative body without delay. They called on the
Transitional Federal Government to build on recent efforts in Garoowe and
Gaalkacyo, notably the implementation of the cooperation framework with Ahlu
Sunna wal Jama'a, and to bring other groups that renounce violence to join
the peace process. They also welcomed the commitments made by the “Galmudug”
and “Puntland” administrations to stop the fighting in and around Gaalkacyo
and to increase cooperation between the two regions. Participants invited
the regional entities to engage constructively with the Transitional Federal
Institutions for the stabilization of Somalia.
Participants condemned all violence, including terrorist attacks on the
Transitional Federal Government, the African Union Mission in Somalia
(AMISOM), the civilian population and the obstruction of the delivery of
humanitarian aid. They urged opposition groups to lay down their arms, join
the peace process and ensure full, safe and unhindered delivery of
humanitarian aid. Participants also called upon all States, particularly
those in the region, to fully implement the arms embargoes imposed by the
United Nations Security Council on Somalia and Eritrea.
The meeting affirmed the importance of the development of Government
institutions and civilian capacity-building across Somalia. They urged the
international community to mobilize additional support to the Transitional
Federal Government, as well as the local and regional administrations in
this regard. Participants urged early endorsement of the draft National
Security and Stabilization Plan by the Transitional Federal Parliament. They
called on the Transitional Federal Institutions to redouble their efforts to
develop Somali national security forces with effective command-and-control
structures and procedures. They encouraged the Transitional Federal
Institutions to adopt additional accountability and transparency measures,
and to facilitate and coordinate international humanitarian aid delivery and
relief assistance.
Participants commended the significant security gains recently made in
Mogadishu by Transitional Federal Government forces with the support of
AMISOM, and expressed gratitude to Uganda, Burundi and the Transitional
Federal Government forces for the sacrifices they continue to make to
advance the cause of peace and stability in Somalia. Participants stressed
the importance of consolidating these hard-won gains and preventing a
re-emergence of warlords. In this regard, they agreed to mobilize support
for the implementation of the Transitional Federal Government's Mogadishu
Security Plan and the United Nations Mogadishu Stabilization and
Rehabilitation Plan. Participants also recalled the commitments made in the
Istanbul Declaration (May 2010). They welcomed Turkey's intention to host a
follow-up conference to the Istanbul meeting and urged support for this
effort.
The meeting expressed concern at the expanding reach and increased levels of
violence employed by pirates and agreed that anti-piracy efforts needed to
focus simultaneously on deterrence, security and rule of law, and overall
development efforts. In this regard, the meeting took note of the
communiqués of the Contact Group on Piracy Off the Coast of Somalia.
Participants welcomed the work of the Kampala Process as well as the
relevant benchmarks agreed on in the Roadmap, and encouraged the concerned
parties to engage constructively and cooperatively in the process.
Participants emphasized the need for the Transitional Federal Institutions
to continue taking concrete steps to improve the situation of human rights
in Somalia. In this connection, they welcomed the inclusion in the Roadmap
of measures for the protection of civilians in armed conflict and adherence
to international humanitarian and human rights laws, including measures to
prevent the presence of children in the armed forces. The meeting also
stressed the role of women's leadership in peacebuilding and in conflict
resolution, as called for by Security Council resolutions 1325 (2000) and
1889 (2010), as well as in the relevant provisions of the Somali
Transitional Federal Charter, particularly the increased representation of
women in public institutions.
Participants stressed the importance of predictable, reliable and timely
resources for AMISOM in order for it to better fulfil its mandate. They
urged as a matter of priority the rapid deployment of the remaining 2,500
troops for AMISOM to reach its authorized level of 12,000, and expressed
support for the efforts being deployed by the African Union and donors to
facilitate the deployment. Participants urged the international community,
including new donors, to contribute urgently and without caveats to the
United Nations Trust Fund for AMISOM, or make bilateral donations in support
of AMISOM, particularly for contingent-owned equipment, force enablers and
multipliers, and welfare provisions. The meeting urged donors to work
closely with the United Nations and the African Union to ensure that the
appropriate funds and equipment were provided promptly.
The meeting took note of the steps being taken by AMISOM to protect
civilians, including, in particular, corrective measures where necessary.
The meeting encouraged further efforts in this regard, such as enhanced
support to the development of the Somali Police Force and the rapid and full
deployment of the mandated (270) AMISOM police elements. Participants
supported the intention of AMISOM to establish a guard force dedicated to
the protection of United Nations and international staff, international
visitors and specific properties in Mogadishu.
The meeting welcomed the efforts of the African Union, Intergovernmental
Authority on Development, League of Arab States, Organization of Islamic
Cooperation and other regional organizations to promote peace and stability
in Somalia. Participants encouraged the United Nations and the African Union
to further increase their presence in Mogadishu and other parts of Somalia.
The meeting welcomed the re-opening of the Turkish Embassy in Mogadishu, as
well as the intention by Italy and the United Kingdom to do the same.
Participants called upon members of the international community to scale up
their diplomatic presence in Mogadishu and their support to the efforts of
the Transitional Federal Institutions aimed at consolidating peace and
stability in the newly liberated areas in central and south Somalia.