POLITICS-SOMALIA: Conference Plans for a Chaotic Capital

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Joyce Mulama

NAIROBI, Mar 14 2007 (IPS) - Interim Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Gedi appealed Wednesday for some 42 million dollars to secure his country’s capital, Mogadishu, and to fund a reconciliation conference in the war-torn state.

“I take this opportunity to appeal to the members of the international community, partners and friends of Somalia to assist our efforts towards achieving a comprehensive reconciliation, good governance and durable peace in Somalia,” Gedi said while addressing journalists in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, where he had earlier met donor representatives.

The National Reconciliation Congress is expected to bring together about 3,000 Somalis from across the board, including clan and faction leaders, politicians, business persons, representatives of religious communities – and nationals in the diaspora.

It is scheduled to get underway Apr. 16 in Mogadishu and last for two months, during which delegates will address injustices committed against Somalis in the course of conflict that began in 1991 with the ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

“Social reconciliation is important to heal the wounds caused by the civil strife in order to pave the way for reconstruction and development of Somalia,” Gedi noted.

These words were echoed by Mohammed Abdi Hayir, the minister of reconciliation. “We are sure that a lasting peace will come from the conference. We are looking forward to it, because we know it will transform Somalia,” he told IPS.

The collapse of Siad Barre’s administration opened the door to factional struggles that claimed thousands of lives and displaced many more, as Somalia went for more than a decade without central government.

Several failed attempts to restore order to the country were followed by the creation of a transitional government in 2004. However, persistent insecurity forced the new administration to set up operations in Baidoa rather the capital, and also prevented interim officials from extending their authority beyond the southern, provincial town.

Gedi was the target of an attempted assassination in November 2005, in Mogadishu, while interim President Abdullahi Yusuf survived a suicide attack in Baidoa last year.

In mid-2006 the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) managed what the interim government had not – establishing control over the capital and large parts of southern Somalia. The UIC was overthrown by interim forces supported by Ethiopian troops in a campaign that began towards the end of last year, and an African Union (AU) peace-keeping force is now being deployed in Somalia.

But, Mogadishu is in the grip of escalating violence.

Yusuf moved to the capital Tuesday, the day after parliament voted for the whole government to relocate to Mogadishu, only to have his residence targeted in a mortar attack that took place just hours after his arrival. While government figures put the death toll for this incident at two, residents of the area claim it was close to 15. Yusuf was not injured during the strike.

Interim and Ethiopian forces in Mogadishu have reportedly come under attack from insurgents. Many Somalis harbour antipathy towards Ethiopia, which has a history of tense relations with Somalia.

A plane carrying Ugandan peacekeepers is also said to have been shot at last week, with the aircraft catching alight as it prepared to land in the capital.

Such violence has begun to take a toll even on those who don’t get caught in the crossfire.

“Most Mogadishu residents seem worried, desperate and helpless. Most of the things like transport have been affected, and people can hardly venture out,” a source in the capital told IPS.

“People have started fleeing…I spotted people in Sheikh Suffi estate, which was also hit by mortars, fleeing with bedding on their heads towards Barawe town – about 40 kilometres from Mogadishu,” the source added. “Everybody is tense and concerned because of the indiscriminate mortar shelling, which continues unabated.”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that 40,000 people fled the capital in February as a result of unrest.

Somali authorities are blaming remnants of the UIC for the insurgency in Mogadishu, and renewing claims that the courts have terrorist affiliations. Both Ethiopia and the United States have raised concerns about possible links between the union and al Qaeda – claims the UIC, in turn, has denied.

“During the (UIC) attacks, they had support from terrorist organisations. These terrorist are still trying to fuel the insurgency. But they will not succeed,” said Gedi, noting that 4,000 national forces were in the capital to bring about stability.

A total of 8,000 AU troops are scheduled to take control of key installations in Mogadishu, although not all of these forces have yet been pledged, reports indicate.