SOMALIA: Talks on course says Kenyan mediator

[General Duke]

SOMALIA: Talks on course says Kenyan mediator

 

1 Aug 2003 (IRIN)

 

 

- Ambassador Bethwel Kiplagat, the chairman of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) technical committee and Kenya’s special envoy to the Somali peace talks, told a press conference on Friday that the Somali peace talks were on course and a new Somali government should be formed soon.

 

The IGAD-sponsored talks on Somalia began in October 2002 in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret, but were moved to the capital, Nairobi, in February this year.

 

Kiplagat said any government formed at the conference would be universally accepted. "We are confident in our efforts that the government formed here will obtain prompt international acceptance and diplomatic recognition."

 

He said "the final draft version of the charter" had been distributed and "will be submitted to the delegates on Saturday" for debate and discussion.

 

He denied suggestions that the draft charter would lead to the dismemberment of Somalia.

 

According to Kiplagat, chapter one of the charter addresses the issue thus:

 

"1. The unity, territorial integrity, political independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Somalia shall be independent, sacred, inviolable and indivisible. 2. The territorial sovereignty shall extend to the land, the islands, territorial sea, the subsoil, the airspace above and the continental shelf. 3. Boundaries: The Republic of Somalia shall have the following boundaries: a. North - Gulf of Aden; b. Northwest - Republic of Djibouti ; c. West - Federal Republic of Ethiopia; d. South-Southwest - Republic of Kenya; e. East - Indian Ocean."

 

Some Somali groups have accused the mediators of presenting a charter that will divide Somalia. In this respect, Kiplagat reiterated that the conference was for all of Somalia and "not a section of it".

 

The press conference comes two days after Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, president of Somalia's Transitional National Government (TNG), walked out of the talks saying his concerns had been "ignored and trivialised".

 

 

[ENDS]

[BN]

We'll need peacekeepers, Somali mediators say

 

By William Maclean

 

 

NAIROBI, Aug. 1 — Mediators trying to end anarchy in Somalia said on Thursday they hoped to form a government soon despite increasingly fractious negotiations but added it would need the support of an international peace force.

 

''We are all looking forward to the formation of a transitional Somali government very soon which... will wrench the country from the present state of despair and devastation,'' chief mediator Bethuel Kiplagat told a new conference.

 

''We cannot go there (the capital Mogadishu) without a peacekeeping force. We will definitely require a peace force for Somalia,'' added Kiplagat, a retired Kenyan diplomat.

 

''The country cannot be allowed to bleed.''

The nine months of Kenyan-hosted talks -- the 14th Somali peace effort in a decade -- aims to form a government composed of Somalia's many clans to end the chaotic reign of warlords.

But diplomats say matters have been complicated by regional rivals such as Ethiopia, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti and Egypt, some of whose observers at the talks appear to want to engineer the installation of their own compliant ruler.

 

Somalia has been torn by war since the overthrow of military ruler Mohammed Siad Barre in 1991.

The current interim president, Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, stormed out of the talks on Wednesday complaining that delegates were plotting to divide Somalia.

 

Abdiqassim's Arab-backed Transitional National Government (TNG) was set up in 2000 to try to restore some stability to Somalia but it controls only parts of the capital and tiny pockets in the rest of the country of seven million.

 

Abdiqassim fears a transitional constitution being negotiated in Kenya could encourage Somalia's break-up on federal lines and marginalise Islam and the Arabic language. But Kiplagat maintains there will be no impact on Islam or Arabic.

 

The TNG's mandate runs out in mid-August. Kiplagat said the United Nations and African Union (AU) would study what to do if delegates failed to form a new government by that time. The AU has asked seven countries on the continent to supply 81 observers to monitor violations of a nine-month-old ceasefire.

 

Kiplagat said east African states would appeal to the international community for contributions to a separate force of peacekeeping troops once the new government had been formed.

 

Source: Reuters, Aug 01, 03

[General Duke]

Press Statement By Kenya's Special Envoy... Mr Bethuel A Kiplagat.

 

Press Statement By Kenya's Special Envoy And Chairman Of The IGAD Technical Commiittee To Somali National Reconciliation Conference, Mr Bethuel A Kiplagat.

Issued in Nairobi 1st AUGUST 2003

Ladies and gentlemen of the Media, first I would like to thank all of you for coming to this Press Conference. I would also like to commend you for your sustained coverage of the Somali peace process, which is a good indicator of how you rightly view and evaluate the seriousness of the matters at hand.

 

 

Similarly, I would like to convey my thanks to members of the IGAD Technical Committee and our international partners in the Somali National Peace and Reconciliation process for making themselves available. They are here in order to speak on any relevant and pertinent issues that may be better addressed by them as representatives of international organizations and governments who have played a critical role over the past nine months in seeking peace and reconciliation for Somalia.

 

The IGAD frontline states - which were mandated to seek a solution for Somalia and the international community - have exhibited total support to the process. Indeed, the level of commitment by the international community in the provision of diplomatic and political support; and the provision of resources to fund the Conference is highly commendable. I believe that all these well-wishers of Somalia will continue to support the process until the objectives set out early last year by the IGAD Heads of State Summit in Khartoum, and endorsed by the international community - are realised.

 

Aim of briefing: We are on course ...

 

The aim of this press briefing is to inform you about progress and gains so far made by the Conference and to highlight key stages of the process before we embark on the formation here in Kenya of a transitional, broad-based, all-inclusive, government.

 

We are confident in our efforts that the government formed here will obtain prompt international acceptance and diplomatic recognition.

 

 

Where are we now ?

 

We are almost at the end of the most critical phase of the conference - that is Phase II. I say this with some trepidation though with equal justification. In this lap, five working reports for the future government have been completed and adopted. These reports deal with the key issues which must be dealt with by the future government.

 

They are: Demobilization, disarmament and reintegration; land and property rights; economic reconstruction, institution-building and resource mobilization; regional and international relations; and conflict resolution and reconciliation. Their completion and adoption is a major milestone by itself. These reports provide for the future government, almost instantly, with useful and handy tools to deal with the main and immediate tasks ahead. A huge amount of time, talent and financial resources were expended to delineate the plans and to formulate the programmes.

 

I am glad to report that there is general agreement among the Somali delegates and other informed partners that the recommendations, which were approved by plenary sessions, represent a concrete and sensible approach to the tasks which were initially identified in Phase One and the priority areas.

 

The Charter

 

The sixth report- which actually was considered by Committee One is the Charter. I must report that it was and is the most contentious. It has caused some delay in respect of the Conference timetable. In a process of reconciliation, where it is essential to take on board opposing views, more time for reflection and reconsideration was needed. I am glad to report that we have distributed today the Final Draft Version of the Charter which will be submitted formally to the delegates tomorrow - Saturday.

 

I believe you need a bit of background to this. The Charter committee came up with two versions. The IGAD Technical Committee in turn submitted the two versions to the Somali leaders committee for reconsideration with a view to obtaining a harmonized compromise version. After numerous meetings and consultations, the sticky points were identified and resolved.

 

This provided for the historic breakthrough of the 5th July 2003, where all the Charter disagreements were ironed out. It was resolved that the selection of the members of parliament would be done by the political leaders - signatories to the Declaration of Cessation of Hostilities signed in Eldoret on 27th October 2002 - and politicians who were originally and officially invited by the IGAD Technical Committee in consultation with traditional leaders. I am glad to say that all invited leaders are here. There are two who have not arrived and they are on there way here. Similarly, 73 Ugases (traditional leaders) have arrived. I must emphasize here that all the stakeholders fully participated in all the deliberations. In fact, it was after all the concerns were addressed that agreement was reached. Now the stage is set for the Plenary to discuss and debate the Draft Charter.

 

Some misunderstanding

 

In the public domain, there are some incorrect reports which I suppose arise from oversight or misreading or lack of information on the Draft Charter. These need to be corrected. It has been broached that the issue of religion is not addressed. The Draft Charter in Chapter Two Article 10 proclaims: "1. Islam shall be the religion of Somalia. 2. The Islamic Sharia shall be the basic source for national legislation."

 

A unified Somali State The primacy of the Somali language

 

In a similar vein, there are suggestions that the Draft Charter is encouraging dismemberment of Somalia. Such an act is obviously in contravention of the UN Charter and repeated pronouncements of the Security Council; it is also the stance of the AU and the Arab League. In fact, the matter of a unified Somalia is proclaimed in the mandate given by IGAD Summit to the Technical Committee.

 

This is what the Draft Charter says on this issue in Chapter One Article 2.0:

"1. The unity, territorial integrity, political independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Somalia shall be independent, sacred, inviolable and indivisible.

"2. The territorial sovereignty shall extend to the land, the islands, territorial sea, the sub-soil, the airspace above and the continental shelf.

"3. Boundaries: The Republic of Somalia shall have the following boundaries.

a. North - Gulf of Aden; b. Northwest - Republic of Djibouti; c.West - Federal Republic of Ethiopia; d. South-Southwest - Republic of Kenya; e. East - Indian Ocean." That is what the Draft Charter says. As you can see the boundaries are not only specified but are also defined.

 

The primacy of the Somali language

 

The language issue has also been embellished beyond belief. Suggestions abound that the Arabic language has been relegated or even worse in some reports - has been dropped totally. Here are the facts. The Draft Charter proclaims in Chapter Two Article 9: "The official languages of the Republic of Somalia shall be the Somali language (Maay and Maxaatiri) and Arabic. 2 The second official language of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia shall be English."

 

Let me reiterate here, that the Conference is about the Republic of Somalia and not a section of it. And that is what my colleagues and myself are mandated to fulfill. Efforts have been made in the past to ensure that all parts of the country is fully represented in the conference. And as I speak, we have not relented or given up on seeking the participation of all parts, groups or representation of all shades of opinion. The parliament formed will be made up of all clans. On the issue of Ugases (Sultan, traditional leaders), 73 are already here in the Conference.

The security issue is of paramount importance for Somalia and a major concern for her neighbours and the international community. The country cannot be allowed to continue to bleed. On this front, a committee - with the full support of the AU and the UN - is working tirelessly on security matters.

 

Finally, ladies and gentlemen we are all looking forward to the formation of a transitional Somali government very soon which, with the help of the international community, will have the capacity to seize the enormous opportunities and goodwill under offer; and will wrench the country from the present state of despair and devastation. Ultimately the Somali people will determine their destiny through free and fair polls after the expiry of the interim dispensation which will be formed here.

I hope as we enter the third phase - which will principally be about power-sharing - we shall have more press conferences of this kind so that we share in the joy of breaking good tidings to Somalis, Africans and the World.

[BN]

Somalia talks to continue despite leader's pull-out

 

By NATION Correspondent

 

Somalia peace talks will proceed despite the Transitional National Government leader's withdrawal.

 

The next phase of negotiations resume today at Mbagathi, Nairobi, the Inter Governmental Authority on Development (Igad) technical committee that has been directing the talks for the past nine months through its Kenyan mediator, Mr Bethuel Kiplagat, said yesterday.

 

Negotiators will debate the draft federal charter, select a parliamentary speaker and president of a transitional government to govern Somalia for four years before general elections are held.

 

Mr Kiplagat yesterday sought to play down Mr Abdiqassim Salad Hassan's departure last Wednesday as well as the continued boycott by Somaliland which broke away from the rest of Somalia in 1991 and declared unilateral independence two years later.

 

He said: "We are looking forward to the resumption of the next phase of the negotiations tomorrow, delegates will begin to debate the draft charter."

 

Ethiopia's special envoy to the talks, Mr Abdulaziz Ahmed, declared on the sidelines of Mr Kiplagat's briefing that the departure of the TNG leader was of no effect. "He is an individual, he can go, the TNG is here," said implying that Mr Hassan no longer represented the mainstream of the transitional government.

 

Mr Ahmed also denied Mr Hassan's allegation that Ethiopia was arm-twisting Igad and Mr Kiplagat to achieve its unspecified strategic goals at the negotiations.

 

He said: "Our hope is that he will return, we will keep talking to him, we will send a delegation to him and also to Hargeisa."

 

Mr Kiplagat also said the door to the negotiating room would remain open to Mr Hassan and the authorities in Hargeisa.

 

He denied allegations of bias levelled against him, Ethiopia and Igad by the TNG leader when walking out of the talks.

 

Mr Hassan accused them of pretending to hold talks in the open while plotting with Ethiopia to break up Somalia, deprecate Islam and the Arabic language.

 

Yesterday, Mr Kiplagat said the issues Mr Hassan was raising been discussed and consensus arrived at.

 

 

Source: Daily Nation, Aug 02, 03