QA on the somali peace talks.

[Liqaye]

The country has been without a central government since 1991, since when it has been wracked by civil war with rival factions battling for control for different parts of Somalia.

 

Does this deal mean the war is over?

 

No, but it is being seen as a huge step forward.

 

Rival warlords and faction leaders have been talking in Kenya for over a year to little effect.

 

Some say that after months of bickering, sometimes over relatively minor issues, if they can agree on a parliament, then the rest might follow fairly smoothly.

 

What is in the deal?

 

They have agreed to set up a parliament, which will choose a president who in turn will nominate a prime minister to form a government.

 

The new parliament will have 275 members - 61 from each the four major clans and a coalition of small clans will select the remaining 31.

 

Each group will decide on how to choose its representatives but they have agreed that traditional elders will have an input - not just the warlords as had been feared.

 

Delegates have also agreed that Somalia will have a federal system, so many powers will be exercised at the level of the clan, which remains extremely important to many Somalis.

 

Do all groups back the deal?

 

With one major exception - the self-declared republic of Somaliland in the north.

 

 

After Somalia collapsed into anarchy, former British colony Somaliland declared independence.

 

It has been more peaceful than the rest of the country and wants to remain separate, although other Somalis insist it should return to the fold.

 

Just before the deal was agreed, a group of powerful warlords returned to the talks after a long absence.

 

It is also backed by Abdulkassim Salat Hassan, president of the Transitional National Government, elected at previous peace talks but who only controls small parts of the country.

 

What is life like for ordinary Somalis?

 

Generally pretty awful.

 

Gun-battles often erupt between the competing factions and civilians are inevitably caught up in the crossfire.

 

The lack of a central government means that services such as schools and hospitals are either non-existent or set up by aid agencies or groups of local people looking after their own area.

 

But somehow people struggle on and indeed some businesses are managing to thrive.

 

Many thousands of Somalis have fled the country to live in neighbouring countries or the west and send money back to their families left behind.

 

What still has to be agreed?

 

The make-up of a new government which the different factions can back.

 

 

Hopes are high that the end may be in sight

But observers say the key is political will.

 

When deciding on the parliament, they established the principle of equal representation for the four main clans plus some for minority groups.

 

If the warlords are serious about wanting to end the anarchy and fighting, it shouldn't be too hard to come up with a similar arrangement for the government.

 

Why has the deal been agreed now?

 

Donors were getting fed up with paying massive hotel bills while the delegates spent most of their time arguing and people in Somalia continued to be killed.

 

They made veiled threats that those who did not sign up to peace would be tried for war crimes.

 

Regional leaders, such as Uganda's Yoweri Museveni, also took an interest.

 

He recently told delegates that the Somali civil war was a "slow genocide".

 

This also contained a veiled threat of Somali warlords being dragged before an international court and may have helped concentrate minds.

 

But after 13 years of war and the failure of many previous attempts to end the fighting, many Somalis will only believe peace when they see it.

[Baashi]

^Very good summary.