Somaliland paper says UK Minister Mullin faces critical questions during visit

[Suldaanka]

Somaliland paper says UK Minister Mullin faces "critical questions" during visit

 

October 24, 2004 4:41am

Asia Intelligence Wire

 

Text of editorial entitled "Critical questions for Mr Mullin" by Somaliland's English-language weekly The Somaliland Times on 23 October

 

There is no doubt that Somalilanders will warmly welcome Britain's minister for Africa, Mr Chris Mullin, when, he arrives in Hargeysa today at the head of a UK delegation.

 

Mr Mullin, the highest ranking British official to visit Somaliland for over a decade, will come to a country that has risen from the ashes of death and destruction to tackle the arduous tasks of peace making, nation-building, reconstruction, disarmament, repatriation and democratization without international help.

 

Mr Mullin will also find Somalilanders whether government officials or private citizens as friendly towards Britain - a situation rarely encountered there days in the rest of the Muslim world where anti-British sentiments emanating from UK's role in Iraq prevail.

 

As former allies of Britain in two world wars, Somalilanders do feel bitter of course about British government's reluctance until now to recognize their country as an independent state.

 

This despite the fact that as Somaliland's former colonial rule, Britain was under moral responsibility to back this country's demand to exercise its right for self-determination.

 

But the critical questions that Mr Mullin will be asked by his Somaliland hosts will besides the issue of recognition, revolve around the outcome of the Mbagathi talks and the continued occupation of some Somaliland territories by an armed militia belonging Abdullahi Yusuf, the man that the international community has just installed as Somalia's new president.

 

On the question of Somalia's new government, Mr Mullin raised concerns in the region when he told reporters in Nairobi few days ago that Britain was prepared to help Abdullahi Yusuf's government train security forces and to disarm armed militias.

 

The UK minister might have been ill-advised by David Bell, who represented the British government at the recently concluded talks on Somalia, as to hastily endorse British involvement in the disarmament of Somalia's militia groups.

 

The truth is that no disarmament and demobilization effort will succeed in ex-Italian Somalia unless a genuine reconciliation has been achieved first among the clans and factions that were killing and looting each other there for the last 13 years.

 

Unfortunately, however, the issue of reconciliation was left untouched during the Mbagathi talks. And Abdullahi Yusuf is not the type of a leader who would choose to go the difficult path of reconciliation from bottom up.

 

He always believed in enlisting military and financial support from international sponsors in order to overcome his rivals.

 

He tried to do that during the eighties when as leader of an armed group (The Somali Salvation Democratic Front) opposed to Siyad Barre, Somalia's former dictator, he convinced Al-Qadhafi that all what it took to march into Mogadishu was to give him a lot of money and heavy weapons.

 

Qadhafi supplied him with tanks, long-range artillery and undwindling logistical support through Mengistu's Ethiopia.

 

Mr Yusuf's plan however got no where and instead he used his Libyan connection to silence his critics within his SSDF through assassination and to bully the SNM [somali National Movement] which was then fighting for the liberation of Somaliland from Somalia's rule.

 

As Puntland's defacto ruling warlord for the last 6 years, Mr Yusuf treated the resources of his administration as his personal income.

 

The only institution that mattered for him was the militia which he used for terrorizing his own ********* people or picking up fights with Somaliland with the aim of undermining the latter's international reputation as a peaceful place and hence its chances for gaining international recognition.

 

Whatever the nature of the message that Mr Mullin is carrying with him from Mr Abdullahi Yusuf might be, one thing must be very clear: the international community can't possibly continue defying Somaliland's demands for recognition and at the same time expect Somaliland to restrain itself any further in the face of the presence of Mr Yusuf's militia on Somaliland soil.

 

Somaliland is the only part of the former Somalia that can easily mobilize 100,000 war veterans to be ready for combat within 48 hours.

 

If force is the only commodity that regional and international powers seem to respect, then President Riyale shouldn't be blamed if and when he is finally compelled to seek evicting the spoiled warlord of Garoowe from Somaliland's territories through military means.

[nuune]

October 24, 2004 4:41am

Asia Intelligence Wire

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