From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Sun Jul 26 2009 - 04:59:16 EDT
Ahmedou Ould Abdallah: Neutral Broker or Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's "Roaming
Ambassador"
By Sophia Tesfamariam, USA
Jul 26, 2009, 07:17
http://www.shabait.com/staging/publish/article_0010203.html
I read the 21 July 2009 Washington Post article written by Ahmedou Ould
Abdallah, the UN Special Envoy for Somalia and I can't say that I am
surprised. He has long compromised his credibility, integrity and neutrality
by presenting himself as the Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's apologist and
cheerleader. The UN Envoy is hell bent on shoving the illegitimate TNG down
the throats of the Somali people and is today threatening to withhold
international support if they don't accept the UN installed government for
Somalia. Ould Abdallah wants the Somali people to accept a foreign decision
was not enhanced through an all inclusive dialogue, but one imposed through
threats and pressure.
Ould Abdallah in his recent Washington Post article warned Somalis opposed
to the Transitional National Government of Somalia that was established in
Djibouti, under UN auspices, with the "moderate" Sheikh Sharif Ahmed at the
helm. Writing about the conflict in Somalia between the TNG militia and
those that oppose its rule, Ould Abdallah wrote:
".This is not a classic civil war but an externally funded attempt to
overthrow a legitimate, recognized government. President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
was elected by a parliament specially expanded to include opposition members
who wanted to be involved in the U.N.-brokered peace process. Ahmed, who ran
Mogadishu in 2006 under the Islamic Courts Union, has attended the U.N.
Security Council as well as summits of the African Union and League of Arab
States."
The TNG lacks legitimacy and if there is any external funding and attempt,
it is the funding and attempt by the US led international community to
establish a government for the Somali people in violation of their sovereign
rights to choose their own leaders. N matter how he wants to spin it and
present it to the international community, the only foreign forces in
Somalia that are aggravating the situation in that country is the presence
of Ethiopian forces and others invited by Sheikh Sharif to "prop up" the
TNG. The hastily put together UN brokered peace process was fundamentally
flawed.
Expanding the "parliament" to accommodate "opposition members" does not mean
that the Somali people were represented there. What about those that did not
want to attend the Djibouti talks? Does the acceptance of the Djibouti
invitation and attendance of Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and a few chosen
individuals mean that the people of Somalia were adequately represented?
Were those present chosen by the people of Somalia to represent them? Were
Somalis who reside in Somaliland, Puntland, Kismayo etc. etc. also
represented, if the answer is no, why not, if the answer is yes, by whom?
Mr. Ahmedou Ould Abdallah, the TNG was established externally and the people
of Somalia have rejected it, not just because it was formed outside Somalia,
but rather because it is unable to govern Somalia without being "propped up"
by external forces, such as AMISOM and other mercenary entities. The TNG's
legitimacy is not just a question of not being popularly elected, but rather
it is about its inability to meet the basic needs, such as food, security
and health care for the people of Somalia. To achieve legitimacy requires
the rule of law and the provision of infrastructure, justice, security,
healthcare, education and other services that make populations better off
than they would be without government.. As for attending the UN Security
Council, African Union and League of Arab States summits, that is all well
and good, but that still does not make him legitimate in the eyes of the
Somali people.
As the UN Envoy for Somalia, Ould Abdallah needs to maintain his neutrality,
impartiality and integrity if he wants the entire Somali people to accept
him as an honest broker. In this article and in previous Press Conferences,
he sounds more like Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's " roaming ambassador" or
spokesperson, than a man seeking to reconcile Somalis. Ahmedou Ould Abdallah
has to stop insulting the intelligence of the Somali people and stop telling
them what they can and cannot have. He should also stop telling them to
settle for less than what they deserve and what is rightfully theirs.
For instance, in a 29 May 2009 in a Press conference, Ould Abdallah
admitting the weakness of Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's government said:
".it had as strong a claim to legitimacy as most African Governments."
How condescending!
Is he is insinuating that the Somali people have to accept the externally
imposed government, or governments such as the ones in Ethiopia and Kenya
and else where in Africa, where the people's votes have been stolen, are
ruling their people against their will? The sacrifice paid by the Somali
people entitles them to much better..not less.
Mr. Ahmedou Ould Abdallah wrote in the Washington Post article said that:
".those who attacked Mogadishu in May are extremists with no common agenda
except to seize power by force. They include individuals on the U.N.
Security Council's list of al-Qaida and Taliban members and a few hundred
experienced fighters from other areas of Africa, as well as Arabs and
Asians. While the world focuses elsewhere, groups of foreign extremists are
trying to take control of a strategically placed country."
First of all, regurgitating accusations made by Sheikh Sharif and his
handlers serves no purpose. The "foreign fighters" line is a deceptive tired
old scare tactic and the UN envoy need not resort to fear mongering to
garner the international community's support for the people of Somalia.
Second, the persons and groups placed on the US State Department's list are
not necessarily on the UN list; Ould Abdallah ought to check his facts
before writing such defamatory pieces about Somalis who are defending
Somalia's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Yes, Somalia is a strategically placed country and those seeking to control
the Horn of Africa have set their eyes on it, including the world powers.
Somalia is not neighboring two "regional powers" as Ould Abdallah puts it,
it is in fact neighboring two corrupt failed States who have taken advantage
of the chaos in Somalia to advance their own interests there. Somalia's
strategic location and ports are desired by landlocked Ethiopia and those
who have maritime interests in the strategic Horn region. As for Kenya,
Ahmedou Ould Abdallah should know, he was party to, and brokered, the recent
illegal maritime agreement signed by Kenya and the TNG in Somalia. This a
violation of the UN Charter
As for providing for the Somali people, the US-led international community
has a duty to support the Somali people and alleviate their suffering as it
is a result of the UN and US-backed Ethiopian invasion and occupation of
Somalia. The reconstruction and rehabilitation of Somalia, its pulverized
villages and farms, destroyed infrastructures including schools, clinics,
hospitals etc. etc and the welfare of over 2 million Somalis who have been
displaced from their homes is the responsibility of the United Nations.
Ould Abdallah wrote:
".Their opponents keep changing their "justifications" for the continued
violence. For example, one group had maintained that its sole objective was
to force Ethiopian troops out of Somalia. Those troops left early this year,
yet these Somalis are still killing their own people, creating a renewed
cycle of suffering, displacement and violence."
Obviously, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed has not filled him in on the latest decision
by the TNG to allow Ethiopia to remain in Somalia. It should be recalled
that when residents in a Somalia border town with Ethiopia recently said
they saw Ethiopian troops there, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed said that authorities
had discussed the matter "and they have agreed that Ethiopian troops will
remain inside their [Somalia's] border." So, there is no change in the
"justifications"-the presence of Ethiopian, AMISOM and other mercenary
forces on Somali soil remain the casus belli for the conflict in Somalia.
The UN Special Envoy for Somalia should seek to reconcile all differing
groups and not fuel the conflicts amongst them. He ought to be representing
the people of Somalia and not Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and his handlers. He can
begin by enforcing international law and the UN Charter and calling for the
unconditional removal of all foreign forces, including Ethiopia and AMISOM,
from sovereign Somali territories.
The rule of law must prevail over the law of the jungle!
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