From: Biniam Haile \(SWE\) (eritrea.lave@comhem.se)
Date: Wed Aug 05 2009 - 09:48:31 EDT
Eritrean Information Minister Rejects 'Carrot and Stick' Policy
05/08/2009
By Kamal Idris
Jeddah, Asharq Al-Awsat- As Susan Rice, the United States Ambassador to
the United Nations, threatened to impose sanctions on Eritrea for what
she called attempts to destabilize Somalia, Eritrean Information
Minister Ali Abdu Ahmed reiterated his country's stand on the Somali
issue, saying that the solution of this issue lies in the hands of the
Somali people without any external interventions.
In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, Abdu Ahmed said that Somalia is
passing through a fateful phase and developments that have brought it to
a crossroads. He said that the third illegal government is waiting for
its death certificate like its predecessors. He pointed out that the
task of the Somali people at this stage is to rebuild their country and
homeland that is facing challenges represented in the actions of various
forces that are trying to abort this approach by placing obstacles on
the way in the service of their aims and interests. Abdu added:
"Everyone knows that the diplomacy of these forces in their relations
with the states and governments of the world is based on the policy of
the carrot and the stick to bring to their knees those that do not
submit to their policies". He pointed out that Eritrea's position on
this issue has been clear since the beginning. Eritrea has been
reiterating at every occasion that the Somali issue is being falsely
portrayed as extremism when it has nothing to do with extremism. It is a
matter of existence or non-existence of a united and sovereign Somalia,
he said. Eritrea has also publicly stated its firm stand that the
"balkanization" of Somalia and the imposition of imported governments on
it that have been tailored outside based on standards that fit its
designers is illegal. He added that neither the United Nations Security
Council nor the United Nations has the right, power, and legitimacy to
be above the law and the international charters. Thus they cannot be
above the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia.
The Eritrean information minister went on to say that his country's
stand that it declared openly and publicly did not please some countries
that pressured the United Nations and its Security Council to resort to
the carrot and the stick. This approach, he said, is unacceptable to the
Eritrean government. It is an autocratic policy that does not work with
it and in which it does not believe. The Eritrean minister criticized
Uganda's stand on his country. He said: "What is more perplexing in the
implied threats of the United Nations Security Council is the stand of
Uganda that is the representative member for Africa in the Security
Council. Instead of using this forum to defend the issues of this
continent and its peoples that are suffering from many crises and
ordeals, Uganda has turned into a pliant tool in the service of
countries that have exposed and known interests in the region". The
Eritrean minister added: "Just as a reminder, Eritrean President Isaias
Afworki invited President Yoweri Museveni to Eritrea to clarify the
dimensions of the Somali issue and the threads of the plot being woven
against this country. However, the shameful Ugandan position was similar
to that of IGAD [Intergovernmental Authority on Development in Eastern
Africa] and its states that became a party to the problem instead of
looking for solutions with impartiality. This makes us reiterate that
the origins of the crisis - not just the Somali crisis but also the
crisis in the region as a whole - is the government in power in Ethiopia
and its approach that is totally subservient to and that serves the
interests of countries that have designs in the region".
The Eritrean information minister said that the interests of the United
States in a divided Somalia were represented in the signing of the
provisional government in Somalia of an agreement with a US company to
manage the financial affairs of Somalia. He said that the priorities
required the establishment of security and stability first and the
restructuring of the state institutions. After that comes the issue of
managing these institutions. He compared this to the plan that the
United States adopted in Iraq in the days of Paul Bremer's
administration. He wondered about the United Nations stand on the
referendum that the "Republic of Somaliland" intends to hold regarding
independence. In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat yesterday [ 1 August],
Somali Foreign Minister Muhammad Omar Abdullah had demanded penalties on
Eritrea for what he described as Eritrean constant and direct
interference in the Somali crisis. He accused Asmara of supporting the
various extremist groups in Somalia to overthrow the government. He
pointed out that Eritrean President Isaias Afworki refused to recognize
the legitimacy of the transitional power in Somalia, describing it as a
blatant defiance of the will of the international community.
Susan Rice, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, said that her
country is worried and frustrated with the conduct of Eritrea in
Somalia, including its actions to arm and fund the Islamist insurgents
in Somalia. She said, "Eritrea has little time left to stop undermining
the security of Somalia. Otherwise, it will face sanctions from the
United Nations".
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