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Original Post Date: 2010-09-15 Time: 05:00:05 Posted By: News Poster
A 17-page report issued on 9 September 2010 by the U.N. Secretary-General’s office has noted the ongoing efforts by the Puntland government in northern Somalia to fight against Al Shabaab insurgents and to detain pirates, Radio Garowe reports.
The report cites major developments in Somalia in recent months, including political, security and humanitarian issues, particularly in the zones of Mogadishu, Puntland, and Somaliland.
Flag of Puntland State of Somalia
The reports says that, during the Istanbul Conference (May 21 – May 23, 2010), which was co-hosted by the U.N. and Turkey, “there were several appeals from many of the participants for the President and his Government [TFG] to put in place a credible government and minimize internal disputes.”
Furthermore, the report takes note of ongoing efforts by the African Union, and regional bloc IGAD, to boost troop levels of the under-manned 6,300-strong AMISOM peacekeeping force that protects TFG institutions in Mogadishu from an Al Shabaab takeover.
While the report indicates that 76% ($149.6million) of funds pledged at the April 2009 Brussels Conference on Somalia have been received, it protests that those resources do not “adequately pay the police and civil servants” of the TFG and do not “reimburse countries contributing troops to AMISOM.”
South-Central Somalia
The U.N. Secretary-General’s report assesses the political rift between leaders of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu, the regional impact of Al Shabaab’s violence in light of the 7/11 bombings which killed over 70 World Cup fans in Uganda, and developments regarding the new Draft Constitution for a federal system in Somalia.
The report notes “several internal disputes” between TFG President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and his Prime Minister, Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmake. The internal disputes have “increased concern” among Somalis and the TFG’s international partners, the report states.
On security in Mogadishu, the report notes “fierce battles” between TFG/AMISOM forces and insurgents, led by Al Shabaab fighters. While noting a “sharp decline” in TFG/AMISOM deaths, the report says: “The frequency of attacks with improvised explosive devices has however led to an increase in civilian casualties.”
The report cites “sporadic clashes…with no significant changes in control of territory” between Al Shabaab insurgents and Ahlu Sunna faction, a pro-government faction based in the central regions, particularly Galgadud region.
Additionally, the reports observes that “Hizbul Islam was severely weakened,” while referring to a clan-based Islamist faction led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys and based in the Elasha Biyaha displacement camps between Mogadishu and Afgoye, a town 30km south of Mogadishu.
The report states that the anti-government faction Hizbul Islam’s weakness has prevented it from “gaining positions from Al Shabaab in various regions in southern central Somalia.”
According to the report, “a number of contentious issues, including the adoption of a presidential versus a parliamentary system of government, the role of sharia, and the status of Mogadishu in the context of federalism,” would be up for discussion during the constitutional consultation process.
Overall, the report paints a bleak human rights and humanitarian situation in south-central Somalia, and particularly Mogadishu, where insurgent violence has prevented aid from reaching needy populations.
The TFG leadership rift, which sparked in May when President Sharif attempted and failed to fire Prime Minister Sharmake, took a worse turn when the TFG leaders disagreed over the draft constitution.
Many Somali nationals remain cautious about the new constitution’s use of Shari’ah (Islamic) law and about Mogadishu’s questionable status as capital under a federal Somalia, given that Mogadishu is dominated by a single clan since 1991.
Somaliland and Puntland
On Somaliland’s June election, when former opposition leader Ahmed Silanyo was elected the unrecognized separatist region’s new president, the report says that the election “was described as free, fair and transparent by international observers.”
Map of Somalia, showing Sool and Sanaag regions
However, the report notes that Somaliland’s security situation “remained stable…with the exception of a few security incidents related to the ‘presidential’ elections held in June,” while adding: “Isolated clashes were reported in the disputed Sool and Sanaag regions, in particular the Buuhoodle border area between a group known as the Sool, Sanaag and Cayn (SSC) militia and ‘Somaliland’ troops.”
Sool and Sanaag regions are predominantly inhabited by clans who share blood and kinship ties with Puntland, which claims legitimacy over these regions. However, both Somaliland and Puntland have banned the SSC clan-based militia, which the two administrations see as anti-government rebels.
On June 10, the report states, an international trust fund that supports anti-piracy measures “unanimously approved seven projects amounting to more than $2.4 million. Six of the projects will help to strengthen judiciary and correctional institutions in Seychelles and Kenya, as well as in ‘Puntland’ and ‘Somaliland’.”
The report also cites technical-level anti-piracy cooperation between officials from TFG, Somaliland and Puntland, designed to increase cooperation, monitoring and information-sharing between the three political entities in Somalia.
On justice, the report notes that a judicial training program has began for officials in Somaliland and Puntland, adding: “It is expected that all of the judges in both regions will have completed an eight-month course by the end of 2011.”
Furthermore, the report notes the Puntland government’s heavy crackdown on piracy-related criminality, saying: “It is important to note that prison facilities in ‘Puntland’ are increasingly strained, owing to the rising number of pirates in detention, adding pressure to an already weak penal system.” The report adds: “The ‘Puntland’ prison population has grown by approximately 10 per cent per month.”
Puntland’s government claims that more than 350 pirates or suspected pirates are currently in its prisons, making it home to the world’s largest concentration of piracy inmates. But Puntland officials say that the international community has regularly ignored Puntland’s lone struggle to subdue pirate gangs on land.
Additionally, the report cites that “‘Puntland’ hosts more than 100,000 internally displaced persons, mainly from southern Somalia,” while taking note of “security sweeps” in Puntland targeting persons whom Puntland authorities suspect of “having connections with the insurgency [in southern Somalia] or of being potential targets for recruitment by the insurgents.”
The report also highlights the Puntland government’s cooperation with UNHCR, saying: “…refugees and asylum-seekers identified by UNHCR were handed over to the office for registration and documentation.”
Puntland vs. Al Shabaab
Finally, the U.N. Secretary-General’s report claims that Puntland’s overall security situation has “become more volatile” due to inter-clan disputes and targeted assassinations of Puntland government officials.
The report states that security conditions in Puntland have been exacerbated by the “increased activity of a clan militia located in the foothills of the Golis mountain range, believed to have close connections to Al Shabaab.”
Furthermore, the report cites July 23 as the first day when the Al Shabaab-linked militants “attacked five villages and a military checkpoint…which triggered fierce clashes with ‘Puntland’ forces.”
Since July, Puntland’s government has fought to crush an insurgency in Galgala hills, which are part of the Golis mountain range, in northern Somalia. The Galgala militants, whom Puntland authorities accuse of being responsible for bombings and assassinations, have vowed to fight Puntland’s elected civilian government and to install Islamic law by military force.
It is not clear why the U.N. Secretary-General’s report did not clearly identify the SSC militia as a clan-based militia that opposes the Somaliland “occupation” of Sool region, home to Puntland clans.
However, that same report identified the Galgala militants as a “clan militia” whilst underscoring those same militants’ loyalty to Al Shabaab, and thereby endorsing the Puntland government’s claims to be at war against Al Shabaab insurgents.
No clan in Puntland has publicly supported the Galgala militants’ public vow to fight against Puntland’s elected government, which came to power through a democratic exercise and not through violent means.
Puntland’s clan-groups have been alienated by the rhetoric of the Galgala militants’ leader, Mr. Mohamed Said Atom, who has repeatedly claimed on radio interviews that he is fighting against Puntland and its partners, namely the Ethiopian and American governments. Independent analysts say that Mr. Atom’s rhetoric is identical to Al Shabaab’s violent anti-America propaganda.
Since early August, Puntland troops seized control of all three facilities used by the Galgala militants, including a militant training camp where bomb-making materials were found by authorities.
More than 60 insurgents have been killed in ongoing Puntland military operations, according to government officials.
However, remnants of the insurgents are still hiding out in the Golis mountain range and Puntland security forces have vowed to continue military operations to flush out the insurgents.
Original date published: 15 September 2010
Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201009150016.html?viewall=1