UK foreign secretary William Hague (L) speaks during a press conference at the Hilltop presidential palace in Mogadishu, on February 2, 2012. Hague is the first British foreign secretary to visit Somalia for 20 years. AFP PHOTO
By LUCAS BARASA
[email protected]
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Tired of the persistent insecurity in the country that has also posed a threat to peace globally, a number of nations and organisations now want to take advantage of the lull and ensure lasting peace and stability in Somalia.
As a result, a number of high-ranking officials have visited Mogadishu, a city earlier seen as a no-go zone and the most dangerous on earth subject to frequent bomb attacks and rampant insecurity.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was the first leader from outside Africa to visit in August last year to draw attention to famine sweeping across the Horn of Africa that left millions of Somalis at risk.
Mr Erdogan said he wanted to demolish the idea that the city was a no-go area. The Turkish leader promised his country would set up an embassy in Somalia and fund major infrastructure development.
Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi was also in Somalia last August to visit the famine-hit areas and oversee the process of delivering aid to the country. Djibouti’s president Ismail Omar Guelleh was also in Mogadishu in the same month.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon became the first UN boss to set foot in the war-ravaged country in almost 20 years last December and promised to relocate the United Nations’ political office for Somalia from Nairobi to Mogadishu.
The relocation process started last month. “We are now at a critical juncture – a moment of fresh opportunities for the future of Somali people,” Mr Ban said then. But, he warned, “we have a very limited window of opportunity.”
A United Kingdom delegation visited Mogadishu in early January to set the stage for Foreign Secretary William Hague’s tour last Thursday.
Mr Hague’s visit to Mogadishu is the first by British foreign secretary since 1992. (READ: Britain's thumbs up to Somalia mission)
“This historic visit followed political security improvements in the region, which are offering the people of Somalia an opportunity to lay the foundations for a greater long-term strategy,” Mr Hague said.
In Mogadishu, Mr Hague held talks with the Somali President, the Prime Minister and Mogadishu mayor “to stress the importance the UK attaches to completion of political transition this summer.”
The term of the Transitional Federal Government, which was extended by 12 months last year, ends in August.
Mr Hague also met with members of civil society to discuss a January 23 conference on Somalia in London.
During the visit, the UK’s new ambassador to Somalia Matt Baugh presented his credentials to President Sheikh Sharrif, and Mr Hague said the move demonstrated his country’s long-term commitment to Kenya’s neighbour.
The foreign secretary said the UK is “actively” seeking to re-open an embassy in Mogadishu as soon as local circumstances permit.
But asked by journalists in Nairobi after a meeting with Kenyan leaders the reason for the UK’s and the international community’s renewed interest on Somalia, Mr Hague said circumstances in the country had changed and that there were opportunities to be taken to return the country to lasting stability.
Although Britain was the largest donor of humanitarian aid to Somalia, Mr Hague said there was now improved security, something that should be followed up with improved quality of life.
He said plans should be made for the transition. “The London conference on Somalia aims to agree practical steps to support a new political process, including assistance to Somalia’s regions, funding for Amisom, more effective arrangements to disrupt piracy and terrorism, increased humanitarian coordination, and a stronger international leadership,” Mr Hague said.
He said the steps would improve the situation in Somalia and would make a direct contribution to international security, including that of Britain.
Large parts of Somalia are controlled by extremists and criminal gangs who use it as a base to launch terrorist attacks and kidnappings that have targeted foreign nationals.
Mr Hague said millions of Somalis now have an appetite for peace and development after years of war.
The foreign secretary said Britain was pleased with the way Kenya has been on the frontline in addressing the problems of Somalia and paid special tribute to the Kenyan Defence Forces.
Mr Hague, who arrived in Kenya on Wednesday, added that Britain will support the ongoing diplomatic push at the United Nations Security Council to have Kenya forces join Amisom.
Mr Hague further said Britain had provided development aid to Kenya and Somalia to help stabilise Somalia.