Minister Henry Bellingham greets the President of Somaliland
On Friday, 26 November, in a meeting chaired by former British Minister for Africa, Lord Triesman, President Silanyo addressed a wide ranging audience of international government officials, academics, journalists and business leaders at Chatham House in London. In one of Chatham House’s most popular seminars in history, over 200 people attennded with scores of others turned away.
A full transciprt of the President’s speech is below:
Address to Chatham House, Royal Institute for International Affairs
26 November 2010
H.E President Ahmed .M. Silanyo
Ladies and Gentlemen, distinguished colleagues and friends,
A. General
It gives me great pleasure to be with you here as the representative of my people and our country, Somaliland. I am most grateful to Chatham House and the Royal Institute for International Affairs for extending this kind invitation to us. It is symbolic of the longstanding interest and commitment to constructive dialogue and positive engagement on the important issues affecting the Somali people that the Royal Institute for International Affairs and its members have illustrated over many years and decades.
I am also aware of your recent work on the livestock trade in the Horn of Africa as well as your recent examination of the problems of insurgency, terrorism and economic hardship in the region. These are areas of fundamental importance for Somaliland and the region more widely. At the same time, I know that your interest in our corner of the world is only a small part of the larger work done by Chatham House in its catalytic role in encouraging international debate about our continent, Africa.
I would also like to take this opportunity to salute the Somaliland Diaspora living in the United Kingdom, without whose unflinching support, encouragement and commitment to the cause of their people, Somaliland would be a thoroughly different place. I am delighted to see some members of that community represented here today.
I should also like to express my profound gratitude to the British Government, including Prime Minister David Cameron, Minister for Africa, Mr. Henry Bellingham and members of the Somaliland All Party Parliamentary Group led by Alun Michael MP for their consistent support and continuing engagement on the key issues of concern for the people of Somaliland. We in Somaliland have always been keenly appreciative of the special friendship between our two nations deeply rooted in history, and a commitment to democracy, human rights and freedom. My Government and I look forward to further strengthening those links, and collaborating on issues of mutual interest for the benefit of our countries and our people.
My message to you today is one of HOPE, in an otherwise often bleak region of the Horn of Africa. We in Somaliland are no longer content to be Africa’s best-kept secret but have launched upon the unstoppable trajectory towards becoming a full functioning and responsible member of the international community of states, in keeping with our rights and obligations under international law. I shall take the opportunity today to talk to you briefly about recent developments, as well as issues of importance for our country.
B. Elections
6. Following in the footsteps of the first Presidential election in 2003 and the Parliamentary elections of 2005, the Presidential elections on 26 June 2010 marked almost 20 years since Somaliland reclaimed its sovereignty, and 50 years since the end of the British Protectorate.
7. Despite security threats aimed to discourage and stifle the will of the electorate, over a million people queued from early dawn, in the blistering summer heat, determined to peacefully cast their ballot and vote. Many of these voters were women and the youth. International observers determined the results of the elections to be free and fair. My popular mandate derives from this process of which I’m very proud and humbled. With the ensuing peaceful transition and handover, Somaliland once again, set itself apart from many countries in Africa and distinguished itself in a corner of the world often synonymous with instability, lack of security and absence of rule of law.
8. We believe that the success of our elections has demonstrated Somaliland’s commitment to the “democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law and good governance”, which are enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union. I am immensely proud of the achievements of my people born out of struggle for survival and recognition in the face of isolation and hardship. I want to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the people of Somaliland, and ask them to remain steadfast in their commitment to peace, democracy and the rule of law.
9. I also want to express my profound gratitude to our growing number of friends in the international community, including Great Britain, who stood by us throughout our struggles and whom we will continue to draw on for support, wise counsel and friendship in the days, months and years ahead.
C. Local Elections
10. One consequence of the delayed Presidential elections is that local elections have also been pushed back. However, the Government will press ahead with these as a matter of priority. We are determined that all Government, including at the local level should be accountable to the people. We are talking to the National Electoral Commission, political parties and donors about the timeframe for holding the local elections and expect to finalize arrangements very soon.
Minister Henry Bellingham with the President of Somaliland Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo and his delegation
D. Development
11. My Administration has ambitious development plans. There is an urgent need to tackle poverty, enhance institutional Governance capacity and increase access to basic services including, health and education. We will need support in this endeavour.
12. Having previously suffered from years of neglect by Mogadishu, and compounded by the conflict that followed, as well the somewhat uncertain approach of the international community, Somaliland had a difficult past. However, a tremendous amount has been achieved in the past 20 years.
13. Under my Administration, we will seek to find new opportunities building on the achievements of the past 2 decades – to promote the social and economic welfare of our people.
14. While we are very grateful to the international community for the humanitarian support which they provided, we would like to see more emphasis on development to ensure a successful transition from humanitarian assistance to recovery. The peace dividend must be manifest in concrete results for the people of Somaliland.
15. We look forward to closer cooperation with the United Nations and international organizations, as well as strengthened bilateral links with donor community who have positively signaled their commitment in this regard.
E. Trade and investment
16. Development assistance alone will not do enough to lift Somaliland out of poverty. Investment and economic diversification will be key. Since the Kulmiye Administration came to power, it has made a concerted effort to raise revenue and broaden its sources. As a result, the last quarter saw a 24% increase in revenue.
If sustained, the Government will be able to spend more of our own money on economic and social development.
17. My Government also recognizes the need to boost Somaliland’s exports and diversify its markets. Provided that the issue of veterinary certificates can be overcome, we do not believe that it is fanciful to think of exporting our lamb – which is excellent, by the way – to the European Union. The lifting of the ban on the export of livestock from the Rift Valley by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was an important and welcome development, but the ban demonstrated the need for Somaliland to have other outlets for its trade.
18. Somaliland also needs better roads and telecommunications. The Berbera Corridor, including the port of Berbera itself, is of vital importance to our future economic prosperity as well as being important to our landlocked neighbor, Ethiopia. The Government is seeking foreign direct investment in infrastructure, and is prepared to make investing in Somaliland more attractive to foreign companies. Such improvements will be powerful drivers of economic growth and much needed revenue. Smaller scale projects at the community level will be equally important. Here, I believe that the Somali Diaspora has an important part to play in leveraging its considerable resources.
19. More widely, there is a clear need to promote Somaliland as a trade and investment, opportunity. That is part of the reason why I am here in the UK where we have just inaugurated the first Anglo-Somaliland Chamber of Commerce (on 23 November 2010). Over the course of the past week, I have met with many business leaders and potential investors who recognize the unique opportunities of investing in the emerging markets of Somaliland. I hope that you will spread the word that Somaliland is open for business!
F. Recognition
20. I make no secret of the fact that my Government’s ultimate goal is full international recognition of Somaliland’s independence as a sovereign State. We believe that such international recognition, long over due, will allow us to unlock more direct assistance, promote more trade and investment, maintain our security and further the social and economic well-being of our people.
21. Secession was not born out of a top down approach, but was the popular expression of the overwhelming majority of the Somaliland people who sought to exercise their international legal right to self-determination, similar to Kosovo, East Timor and elsewhere. Upon gaining its independence from Great Britain in 1960, the Republic of Somaliland was recognized by some 35 countries before the entering into a voluntary union with Somalia in the same year.
22. The dissolution of that union and the resumption of Somaliland’s independence nearly 20 years ago was not based on territorial expansion as its present borders are the same as those of 1960. This is particularly relevant to African Union principle of respect for borders existing on achievement of independence. We also wait with great interest on outcome of the upcoming referendum in the South Sudan early in the New Year.
G. Situation in Somalia
23. Despite our non-negotiable position on independence, Somaliland bears no ill-feeling towards our neighbour Somalia, as it’s in nobody interest to see the conflict in the Somalia perpetuated, and wishes the administration of President Sharif, and other relevant parties in that country success in ending the long suffering of their people.
24. At the same time, my Government views with deep concern the continuing violence and instability in Somalia, which poses a direct threat to the Somaliland, the region and in the international community. The recent terrorist attacks, including in Kampala during the world cup, clearly illustrate the need for concerted international cooperation on security issues.
25. The use of Somalia as a base for operations by pirates – the consequence of the breakdown of central Government – has given the crisis in Somalia an international dimension that stretches far beyond its shores. I am heartened to see the successful conclusion recently of the Chandler’s kidnapping after more than a year in captivity. For our part, we have successfully sought to prevent pirate operations on or near our own coast, and have taken concrete steps to combat that insidious threat. We will continue to strengthen our capacity as a security provider in our own region with international support, as necessary.
26. Clearly the search for a durable peace in Somalia – which has to date remain elusive – is paramount. Whilst the international community has invested immeasurable resources, time and commitment to the resolution of the Somalia crisis– these efforts have been constrained in part by the fact that they were often externally driven. In the case of Somaliland, a grassroots approach, utilizing the best aspects of the traditional conflict resolution at the community level provided the basis for dialogue and peace. It was neither quick nor easy but we believe that elements of that model could be successfully replicated in Somalia, as appropriate.
H. Integrating with the region
27. Somaliland is not an island: for good or ill it is affected by events in neighboring countries. Far from wishing to turn our backs on our neighbors, my Government wants to improve its interaction with them and with regional organizations such as IGAD and the AU, to make sure that Somaliland’s voice is heard, its interests are promoted, and the security of its people and neighbours assured.
28. Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya will be key partners in the region. In the same vein, we want closer links to the EU, the UN and its specialized agencies, and the League of Arab States. We also hope to secure stronger ties with individual donors, not least the United States, which recently announced its dual-track policy that will see direct aid and cooperation with Somaliland increased. I very much welcome this as a positive step in keeping the realities on the ground.
I. Relations with the UK
29. Before concluding, I would once again like to reiterate the special bond between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Somaliland. We will continue to look to Great Britain to be at the forefront of the Somaliland question, including in supporting our bid for formal representation at international forums, such as the United Nations.
30. I would like to thank the Government and British people for the humanitarian and development assistance, which they continue to generously provide during difficult times, and for the hospitality and sanctuary provided to the Somaliland community here. With the British government’s support and assistance, including in the areas of security cooperation and economic investment, we continue to make positive strides in the development of our country, and will create conditions conducive for those displaced globally wishing to return voluntarily, with safety and dignity.
J. Conclusion
31. In sum, Somaliland has achieved democracy, peace and stability largely through its own efforts. As a new administration we have also met many of the benchmarks we set ourselves for our first 100 days. With the support of our people, we are determined to go to the next level and build a state on the foundations of the rule of law, democratic principles and good governance. With the help of the international community, and the support of our regional partners, I am confident that Somaliland will take its rightful place amongst the community of States.
The Somaliland Administration has repeatedly issued hostile public statements regarding Puntland’s efforts to ensure its own security. We want to clarify that Puntland Government security forces have duties to defend the State by fighting terrorists, pirates, human traffickers and all forms of organized crime. Puntland government forces are obligated to ensure internal security and stability. Therefore, it is a big surprise that the Somaliland Administration sees this security effort as a threat.
It is noteworthy to mention that the Puntland Government has conducted a number of anti-piracy operations to free vessels carrying goods for Somaliland, and Puntland security forces incurred casualties during these operations. The series of public statements made by Somaliland officials in Hargeisa, culminating with the chairman of KULMIYE ruling party’s BBC interview on 30 Dec 2010, once again underlines the incitement, the beating of war drums, and the speaking of minerals in language that is identical to Al Shabaab spokesman Mohamed Said Atom, that Somaliland still provides a safe haven and is organizing support for the fleeing remnants of Al Shabaab terrorist group, which was recently defeated in Galgala hills area (Al Medo mountain range).
Puntland is always ready to help Somalia, to maintain good neighborly relations, to promote cooperation, and is not an enemy to anyone. Furthermore, Puntland is busy advancing grassroots reconciliation among all Somalis, as Puntland has already brought together Islamic scholars, Somali women’s conference, and most recently, the 18th Somali National Football Tournament that was held for the first time since 1987 (23 years) and concluded in Garowe on 31 December 2010. The Puntland Government is committed to improving its own security to ensure social and economic development, which is a precondition to creating an environment that permits Somali and foreign investment. Puntland encourages and indeed supports any Somali region that does the same.
It is Somaliland that attacked regions and people that do not support its separatism policy and is currently in those regions by aggression. Likewise, Somaliland is currently engaged in organizing conflict based on rebel militia culture and reviving remnants of Al Shabaab terrorist group who fled to safe havens in western part of Sanaag region. We suggest to the Somaliland Administration to concentrate on its own internal challenges and to value good neighborly relations, rather than beating war drums and creating illusions.
We call upon the international community to carefully note Somaliland’s baseless allegations and militant aggression. Once again, we emphasize that Puntland Government security forces stand for and are an integral component of the Horn of Africa regional security paradigm.
Finally, Puntland is always ready to resolve all Somali disputes and crises through peace and dialogue.
Just to share some of the experiences we come across as AP53 embarks on its initiatives within the Horn of Africa. Finding solutions to the challenges within the Horn of Africa is not easy at ALL!
The ICG convened its 18th session on Monday and Tuesday this week in Madrid. The meeting was chaired for the first time by Ambassador Mahiga, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, who emphasized that crucial decisions were needed. He called on the international community to convey its concerns to the TFG as well as recommendations for effective action and for implementation of the transitional tasks needed for the new political dispensation after August 2011. He called for the speedy appointment of a new Prime Minister and for a united and cohesive cabinet. Ambassador Mahiga appealed to the international community to redouble its efforts to assist the TFG and AMISOM to address the political and security challenges facing the TFG. He urged full implementation of the agreements signed between the TFG and Ahlu Sunna wal Jama’a, and encouraged the TFG to engage all groups ready to contribute to peace and renounce violence. Extended political space and a more secure environment would facilitate the speedy delivery of humanitarian assistance throughout Somalia. He welcomed the recent elections in Somaliland, and underlined the continuous security and economic challenges facing Puntland. The international community has rallied behind the governments of Iraq and Afghanistan. It should do the same for Somalia.
President Sheikh Sharif of the TFG expressed the hope that its outcome would provide tangible assistance for the Somali people. He called on the international community to confront Al-Qaeda and its affiliated terrorist groups in a serious manner. He expressed the readiness of the TFG to make every effort to accomplish the transitional tasks before next August. Referring to the existence of differences within the TFG leadership, he praised the ability of the TFIs to handle the challenges. He called on the international community to redouble its efforts to strengthen the police, military and intelligence services to enable the TFG to build peace and stability.
During the meeting, the representatives of the United States and Norway urged the TFG leadership to stay cohesive. They called on the international community to provide the necessary support to the TFG and AMISOM. Dr. Tekeda Alemu, Ethiopia’s State Minister of Foreign Affairs, highlighted the justified frustrations of the international community over the continuous squabbles within the TFG, but also emphasized that there was no alternative to supporting the TFG. The Djibouti Process was the only peace process available and the international community must make more efforts to strengthen it. He warned against being hoodwinked by statements from those whose activities were still devoted to undermining the TFG and the peace and stability of Somalia, and indeed more widely. He stressed the international community should always act on the basis of empirical evidence not on the basis of mere assertions.
It was noted that some in the international community have been trying to unravel the Djibouti Peace Process and question the legitimacy of the TFG. On the other hand, others including IGAD, the Arab League, the African Union, the Organization of Islamic Conference, were united in expressing their support for the TFG, pledging to continue to strengthen it. They agreed that Al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam were not prepared to accept peace or national reconciliation. Delegates from Sudan and the Arab League noted that Sheikh Hassan Dahir ‘Aweys’ had been invited to Sudan from Asmara in April 2008 in an attempt to persuade him to make peace with the TFG. Despite ten days of effort, they had made no progress; Sheikh ‘Aweys’ remained adamant in his determination for conflict.
Delegates emphasized the need to support areas that have created relative peace and stability. The ICG applauded the successful election held in Somaliland and underlined the need to increase support to enable the people of Somaliland to sustain their relative peace and stability and their democratic progress. Somaliland was also the subject of a sideline meeting called by the UK and Norway on Tuesday. This commended the peaceful transfer of power after the election, and emphasized the need to provide the necessary support to ensure continuity of democratization, in terms of direct budgetary support and capacity building, in security issues and to encourage the new administration in its reform agenda. There was agreement on the need to assist in enhancing infrastructure, including the Berbera corridor, as well as building up social services, including, for example, Hargeisa’s water supply. Partners agreed to create a coordination framework for helping the administration immediately. Somaliland had set an example to all Somalis, and indeed to Africa in general, in democratization; and it had also played a major role in regional security. While its new administration hasn’t abandoned the issue of recognition, it also attaches great importance to development cooperation and to having close working relationships with partners. The sense of the meeting was that as much as possible should be done to assist its progress short of recognition. The same applies to Puntland.
The ICG meeting itself produced a series of recommendations. The TFG was called on to produce within two months a roadmap outlining management of the remaining transition period. The Transitional Federal Institutions must intensify their efforts to complete the key transitional tasks, particularly the finalization of the Constitution-making process, and explore various options for the post-transition arrangements. While making clear the Djibouti Peace Process remains the sole basis for the achievement of Peace and National Reconciliation in Somalia, the ICG called on the TFG to increase its outreach and reconciliation efforts towards all those who have expressed their willingness to join the Peace Process and renounce violence, and take immediate and concrete steps towards full and effective implementation of the agreement signed with Ahlu Sunna wal Jama’a.
The meeting made concrete suggestions to strengthen existing partnership and coordination mechanisms within the security sector, to address the impact of piracy and its causes, to build sustainable institutions and to increase humanitarian assistance. The ICG meeting this week was the latest in a series of meetings which have underlined the importance of bringing an end to the status quo in Somalia, of stopping Al-Shabaab’s offensive and assuring the security of the TFG. There was the extra-ordinary Council of IGAD Ministers’ meeting, the IGAD Chiefs of Defense Staffs meeting, and the IGAD Heads of State and Government Summit. This defined the crisis clearly and accurately as a conflict between the people of Somalia and international terrorism. The African Union Summit in Kampala endorsed this. So did the UN’s mini-summit in New York. Now the ICG meeting has taken place in Madrid. All of these have highlighted the Djibouti Peace Process as the sole basis for peace and reconciliation in Somalia and stressed the necessity for the TFG to really push for this. There can be no accommodation with Al-Shabaab and extremism, nor can there be any compromise with those who continue to support Al-Shabaab. This is why it was a mistake to invite Eritrea to the Istanbul conference on Somalia. This is why all IGAD countries rejected the idea of allowing Eritrea to participate in the mini-summit in New York. Eritrea has refused to respond to UN resolutions, and even in the last few weeks has sent armed fighters into Ethiopia’s Somali Regional State, and flown arms supplies down to Al-Shabaab in Kismayo. Eritrea has, in fact, shown no capacity, no interest and no will to be involved in peace-making. As IGAD members made clear Eritrea has been so deeply involved in acting as a “spoiler” or a regional trouble-maker that it would have been a mockery for it to be represented at such a conference.
The contemporary Somalia attests to be a classical case of failed state, distinguished from that of medieval Somalia cited in thePeriplus of the Erythraean Sea and numerous books written in the middle ages as a prosperous country connecting Africa to Arab World and as far as Southeast Asia.
The Moroccan scholar, Abu Abdullah Mohammed Ibn Battuta, considered as the greatest traveler in his time, wrote in his Rixla that Mogadishu – Somali capital – was one of the most affluent cities in 1331, larger than Damascus, which was the capital of Mamluks at the time. In the words of Ibn Battuta: “Mogadishu is a very large town. The people are merchants and very rich. They own large herds of camels…and also sheep. Here they manufacture the textiles called after the name of the town; these are of superior quality and are exported to Egypt and other places.”
He further described the city as a town of enormous size: “Its merchants are possessed of vast resources; they own large numbers of camels, of which they slaughter hundreds every day (for food), and also have quantities of sheep. In this place are manufactured the woven fabrics called after it, which are unequalled and exported from it to Egypt and elsewhere.” The civilisation was evident in the city-state as the Sultan sent Ibn Battuta two small welcoming gifts: a plate of betel leaves and areca nuts, and a vial of Damascus rosewater. Mentioning the possession of the ruler from the palace to the mosque, Ibn Batutta made this invigorating description:
Sounded drums Over his head were carried four canopies of colored silk, with the figure of a bird in gold on top of each canopy. His garments on that day were a large green mantle of Jerusalem stuff, with fine robes of Egyptian stuffs with their appendages underneath it, and he was girt with a waist wrapper of silk and turbaned. In front of him were sounded drums and trumpets and fifes, and before him and behind him were the commanders of the troops, while the qadi, the doctors of the law and the sharifs walked along side him. People of Mogadishu, as Ibn Battuta observed, were generous, urbane, fat and erudite. In fact, they were genuine followers of Prophet Muhammad’s instruction: “Travel in search of knowledge, even though that adventure takes you to China.” Piracy was extraterrestrial to Somalis when Ibn Battuta was stormed by Hindu pirates off the coast of India. Medieval Mogadishu, which boasted to be a city-state, was under the rule of Sultan Abubakar Sheikh Omar, who preached tolerant and cohesive Islam dissimilar to born-again ‘jihadists’ whose interpretation of Islam justifies today that murdering innocent civilians is a part of wider ‘jihad’ toward infidels.
What went wrong Ibn Battuta was not the first to record such an account and chronicle on Somalia, but he was the first explorer to write in detail. Ibn Said and Al-Idrissi were Arab travellers who visited Mogadishu, Merka, Seylac, Berbera and other cities. Most historians agree that cattle and camel were plentiful and meat was in abundance in those cities during this period. So the sociological and anthropological questions that hunt for answers now are what went wrong, then. How exactly did we get here? The purpose of this article is to examine these questions and attempt to look at how Somalia descended into from Schopenhauerian World to Al-Shabaab’s Shawshank. It is historically believed that some time in the end of middle ages Somali people began to fight along clan lines, as occurred in 1991 after many years of brutal rule and state fragmentation. Using every metal and weapon available to them at the time, they destroyed ruling kingdom Ajuuraan, which was a powerful empire that ruled Mogadishu and most parts of Somali territory. During the rule of this kingdom, an ancient cotton-weaving industry was profitable in Mogadishu, though people rebelled for rising unpayable taxation and constant fines. Prior to this time, there were other kingdoms, Ifat and Adal, which ruled other parts of Somalia, even though there still is a historical debate about the ethnic composition of those kingdoms. One finding by Oxford History of Islam reveals that Ifat and Adal, which emerged as major Muslim kingdoms from 1420 to 1560, were Arabs who recruited its military force mainly from Somalis. Under the command of Ahmed Gurey, the Imam and General of Adal sultanate, Somalis were crucial for the campaign historically known as the Conquest of Abyssinia or Futuh al-Habash in which Muslim population in the Horn of Africa conquered two thirds of Solomonic territories of Ethiopia, defeating Ethiopian Emperor Lebna Dengel along with Portuguese reinforcements.
Defeat and death Most historians in the Horn of Africa acknowledge that strong Somali forces contributed much input to Imam’s victories. It appears that Gurey’s defeat and death in 1543 by Portuguese sharpshooter marked the beginning of an end for Somalis, who were always deeply divided along clan and sub-clan lines and suddenly started to suffer. It would take many centuries to come to recover a trauma caused by Imam’s death. The result was experiencing Ethiopian expansion and its consolidation of control among nomadic Somalis, European colonisation and post-colonialism period. Before European settlers; Britain, Italy and France divided Somalia into five territories, the country was at odds into clan fiefdoms. For instance, Mogadishu alone, in this particular time, had two sultans and was divided into two sections: Shingani and Hamarweyne. It was when French explorer Charles Guillain visited Sultan of Geledi, and Britain’s Richard Burton went to Haji Sharmarke Ali Saleh, the Sultan of Seylac. Some other explorers came also to see clan sultanates in the area, discovering customs, cultures and traditions to pave the way for future colonization. It should probably be later on when the East African man uttered stridently, “Somalis, Bwana, they no good; each man his own sultan.”
Hostile history Equally astounding was when certain clans created their own sultanates, imposing their power on others, like Sultan of Bender Qasim and self-styled Sultan of Hobyo. Consequently, each clan had its Sultan and traditional leader as well as a very long hostile history of its own. As clans made traditional boundaries, no-one was authorized to enter the others’ precincts. It was exactly the same way as present-day Somalia when every clan is electing its own president, and fiefdoms and semi-states, like Somaliland, Hiiraanland, Puntland, Ximan and Xeeb, Galmudug, Maamulka SSC, Bartamahaland, to mention just a few, are booming to produce a situation of ‘each sub-clan, one state’ system. Undoubtedly, the history of the Dir clan differs in some details from the history of the Raxanweyn, the history of Hawiye clan differs from the history of Daarood, the history of Reer Hamars differs from the one of Bravenese, the history of very skilled clans of Tumaal, Madhibaan, Gabooye, Midgaan, Yibir differs from that of Jareerweyne, yet Somalis are quite similar in many ways. They share common language, religion, culture and tradition.
(Mohamed Haji Ingiriis is a Somali based in London who writes extensively about Somali history and politics. He has a background with philosophy, media law and administration. He contributes to local London newspapers. ingiriis@yahoo.com).
Today, the United Nations Secretary-General convened a Mini-Summit on Somalia, with high-level representation from the region and the wider international community. The President of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia, H.E. Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, briefed the mini-Summit on recent political and security developments in Somalia. The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Jean Ping, provided an update on the operations of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
With less than one year remaining in the transitional period, the TFIs need to further consolidate their internal cohesion and unity, in order to counter the threat posed by increased insurgent attacks by al-Shabaab and other extremists. Against this backdrop and the lack of sustainable funding for the TFG security forces and AMISOM, the mini-Summit provided an opportunity to consolidate unity of purpose and action in several important areas.
First, the Mini-Summit reaffirmed that the Djibouti Peace Agreement and the Peace Process represent the basis for a resolution of the conflict in Somalia. The meeting also reaffirmed the strong determination of the United Nations and the international community to work with the TFIs and the people of Somalia to break the cycle of lawlessness, violence and despair in the country. Collective and coordinated action is crucial to building a peaceful and prosperous future for the Somali people.
Second, participants called on the TFI leaders to complete the remaining transitional tasks by August 2011, in particular the constitution-making process, which should include wide consultations within Somalia and with the Diaspora. Other priority tasks for the TFIs include: agreeing on post-transition arrangements in coordination with the UN and the international community; reaching out to more opposition groups that renounce violence, with a view to expanding its political base; strengthening the capacity of TFG security forces; and improving the delivery and access to basic services for the Somali people. In this context, participants called for a road map of achievable objectives and clear timelines to be developed for the remaining transitional period.
Third, achieving these priority transitional tasks requires more cohesion within the TFIs. It is therefore crucial for the Somali leaders to resolve their internal differences and to work together towards peace and stability, in the spirit of the Djibouti Agreement.
Fourth, participants commended the contributions of the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD), African Union (AU) and the League of Arab States, in their efforts towards the stabilisation of Somalia. They also expressed their appreciation to the Governments of Burundi and Uganda for providing troops and equipment to AMISOM.
Fifth, the mini-Summit welcomed and encouraged the UN's efforts to improve its internal coordination and effectiveness in Somalia, as well as its intention to enhance its political presence in Mogadishu and establish a light foot print, security permitting, as well as in "Puntland" and "Somaliland". The meeting welcomed the efforts of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to advance the political process in Somalia, including through the revitalization of the High-Level Committee and the Joint Security Committee, and urged him to work closely with regional initiatives.
Sixth, the meeting expressed great concern about the humanitarian situation and condemned all attacks on humanitarian aid workers including al-Shabaab’s September 16 expulsion of humanitarian aid organizations from Somalia. Participants condemned the terrorist acts in Uganda in July 2010 as well as the repeated attacks by al-Shabaab and other extremist groups against the civilian population, TFIs and AMISOM personnel, which have resulted in population displacements and aggravated Somalia’s humanitarian situation.
Seventh, participants recognised the challenges posed by piracy and welcomed the commitment shown by the international community and the TFG to address the roots of the problem, in particular through the enhancement of the lives and livelihoods of affected population and through the efforts of the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia.
Finally, participants noted that gains in the political and security areas needed to be supported by reconstruction activities to ensure long-term stability. In this context, participants recalled that the Istanbul Declaration identified six initial priority areas for intervention and welcomed the Task Force formed under the co-chairmanship of Turkey and the Islamic Development Bank to follow up. They also commended the work of the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Conference in Somalia.
Participants also noted the meeting of the International Contact Group on Somalia that will take place in Madrid on 27-28 September, which will offer an opportunity to continue discussing the important issues addressed today.
The participants welcomed the pledge from the TFG to continue its outreach and reconciliation efforts and expand partnerships with regional and local administrations, in line with the Djibouti Peace Agreement. The TFG also vowed to consolidate unity and cohesion within its institutions and address any divisive forces that may hinder its work. The TFG confirmed its commitment to finalising the draft Constitution without delay. The TFG also reaffirmed its responsibility to provide security to the people of Somalia by increasing the number of trained Somali recruits, ensuring integration of all security forces, including those of the Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a into the national army, and improving the control and command structure of the Somali Forces.
The participants in the mini-Summit on Somalia were: Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Burundi, China, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Somalia, Spain, Sweden, Tanzania, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, African Union, European Union, League of Arab States, Organization of Islamic Conference, United Nations.
PRESS RELEASE | The government of the Puntland State of Somalia welcomes the statement by the US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Ambassador Johnnie Carson during his September 24, 2010 joint press conference at the United Nations General Assembly with P.J. Crawley, US Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs unveiling the United States’ new “two-track” Somalia engagement policy. The government of Puntland appreciates this new and pragmatic approach which we think better reflects the current political reality in the country as well as how best the long lasting present quagmire can be ended. The TFG’s glaring lack of capacity to fulfill its mandate by upholding the charter, fostering national reconciliation, embracing and encouraging the constitutional development process, and fighting and defeating violent extremist groups can no longer be ignored. This new policy will not only be viewed as a strategic reward of the commitment to peace and institutional governance chosen by the people of Puntland and Somaliland, it stands also, if vigorously pursued, to create demonstrable incentives significant enough to entice the rest of Somalia to appreciate the fruits of peaceful state building, adherence to the rule of law, good governance and the rejection of the kind of anarchic tendencies that encourage terrorism, piracy and similar criminal activities. Puntland State stands ready to work with the government of the United States and the rest of the international community in creating a terror-free, peaceful and democratic Somalia at peace with herself and with the rest of the international community including our neighbors. The United States’ new engagement policy will most certainly help us move closer to the attainment of this much cherished albeit heretofore elusive goal. Puntland will cooperate with the international community in particular, the United States, the EU, the United Nations, the AU, the OIC, the LAS and IGAD among others in the search for more effective ways of rebuilding and strengthening the federal institutions in Somalia. To this end, we are ready to, if necessary, provide to both the most essential international agencies and key transitional federal institutions with safe and operational office space inside Puntland for as long as needed. Moreover the government of Puntland will spare no effort to do everything possible to ensure the success of this new American policy toward Somalia and calls on the rest of Somalia as well as the international community to welcome this fresh approach by the US government. Finally, the government of Puntland welcomes and deeply appreciates Ambassador Carson’s strong and unambiguous support for Somali unity, national sovereignty and territorial integrity. H.E. Abdulkadir Abdi Hashi Minister of State for Planning and International Cooperation Puntland State of Somalia Garowe, Puntland, Somalia Mobile (World) 410. 872-6976 Mobile Somalia. 25290794234 Email: stateministermopic@gmail.com
Somalilanders are an optimistic lot. They have been waiting for recognition from the international community for almost twenty years without success yet not once have they doubted that their holy grail is just round the corner; that Africa, America, Britain Ethiopia or perhaps even Israel will see the justice of their cause and award them the recognition they believe they richly deserve.
Watching Europe and America recognise over twenty new nations in Europe and Eurasia during the same period they were struggling for the same right does not seem to dim their cheery expectation that their day will come too. Being resolutely ignored and on occasion deliberately humiliated by all regional and international institutions is dismissed as mere temporary impediments on their historic journey to ultimate glory.
One can only admire their naïve convictions but there is a terrible truth Somalilanders must one day wake up and face: they are not going to be recognised any time soon and perhaps never will be. Not by Europe loth to have yet another begging-bowl stretching African non-state calling on their recession depleted foreign aid packages. Not by America whose African policy is currently shaped by a cabal of African-Americans brought up on the romantic notions of Negritude and Pan-Africanism and who consider any further breaking up of `big village mother Africa’ as tantamount to racial treachery.
And they are certainly not going to be recognised by dictatorial Arab nations viscerally opposed to any form of geopolitical change in their region lest it gives their restless populations unwanted ideas. Somalilanders dillydallying with that tiresome Western stuff called democracy does not help matters at all.
And forget the AU members, unless, perhaps, Somalilanders could muster a slush fund to grease the palms of those eager, smiley lawmakers across the continent who are open to negotiations on all affairs, for the right price. Somaliland has no access to such wealth at this stage; partially because they are forced by lack of recognition to spend most of their meagre resources on maintaining an oversize army in order to survive in this bad neighbourhood. Analysts in Hargeisa, the capital like to point out if Somalia were to attack Somaliland tomorrow as it did in the late 80s it will not be seen as a foreign invasion but as a civil war or even, incredibly, a Nation State justifiably ‘pacifying’ a rogue region.
And finally to kill off any chance of this desert entity ever getting on a world map, they have managed to accumulate an extraordinarily diverse collection of enemies determined to smother the place to death before it gets born. Egypt is one such enemy. Cairo believes that a strong, united Somalia is essential element in its biblical, existential struggle with Ethiopia over the life-giving waters of the Nile. Cairo is completely deluded as usual (Modern Egypt has a history of bad analysis, planning and strategy on regional matters) because Somaliland will never be part of Somalia again but the Mubarak regime still issues telling statements about ‘the sovereignty…and territorial integrity’ of Somalia every time the issue of Somaliland is raised by sympathisers in the AU, UN or the Arab League.
Saudi Arabia is equally hostile to the very idea of a free, democratic, secular little new nation across its red sea waters. The UN bureaucracy is so hostile to the place it even refuses to mention its name.
All of this rule out any chance of recognition unless there are tectonic, miraculous political sea changes in the area. Somalilanders may still hope but miracles only occur in ancient religious tales not in cold, modern-day political realities. They need to face this awful truth not matter how painful and spend their energies on ways of living without recognition rather than hankering after its mirage.
(Next time: Ways of surviving in State of non-recognition)
NEW YORK, Sept 24 (Reuters) - The United States is increasing ties with two semi-autonomous regions in Somalia, hoping to build stability for the embattled central government and African Union forces deployed in the virtually lawless nation, a top U.S. diplomat said on Friday. Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson said U.S. officials were developing ties with authorities in both Puntland and Somaliland, both of which declared themselves independent in the early 1990s when the Horn of Africa nation descended into civil war and anarchy.
Carson said the United States did not plan to recognize either government as an independent state. But he said increased U.S. cooperation, particularly on aid and development, could head off inroads by Islamist Al Shabaab insurgents, who stepped up their fight to topple Somalia's Western-backed central administration last month.
"Both of these parts of Somalia have been zones of relative political and civil stability and we think they in fact will be a bulwark of extremism and radicalism that might emerge from the south," Carson told a news briefing.
Carson said the United States would also reach out to groups in south central Somalia, including local governments and family clans, that are opposed to Al Shabaab but not aligned formally or directly with the government in Mogadishu.
Carson stressed he United States would continue to recognize only a single Somali state and would work to strengthen the transitional government of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, which has lost control of much of Mogadishu and much of southern and central Somalia to the Al Shabaab rebels.
"We do not contemplate and we are not about to recognize either of these entities or areas as independent states," Carson said.
But he added that both regions could expect more concrete U.S. help with education, agriculture and water projects. "In the past we have not engaged these areas and political entities aggressively. We will now start to do so," Carson said.
FUNDING MORE PEACEKEEPERS
The United Nations this week convened a "mini-summit" on Somalia on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York, hoping to drum up fresh support for expanding the peacekeeping operation in the country.
Al Shabaab, which has links to al Qaeda, is increasingly seen as a regional threat and have used suicide bombers to devastating effect over the past two years, killing five government ministers and dozens of African Union peacekeeping troops. The group was also behind attacks in Uganda in July that killed at least 79 people.
There have been repeated calls to strengthen the African Union force, known as AMISOM, made up of about 7,200 troops from Burundi and Uganda.
Uganda has said it is ready to contribute more troops, but that it will need help to fund them. Carson said the United States was actively pressing both Asian and Arab nations to help with cash and military equipment.
"We believe that the problem in Somalia is both a regional and a global problem and in fact should be shared globally," Carson told a news briefing, arguing that increased piracy off Somalia's coast is a direct threat to both oil shipping and other trade between Europe and Asia.
Carson said he had spoken to Japan about increasing its support, but believed countries such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia also had a direct stake in stabilizing Somalia.
Dominique Lafont, CEO of Bollore Africa Logistics, announced in Nairobi that the facility will help ease Ethiopia import and export needs through maritime transport system and open new income stream for the government of Somaliland. "We shall be setting the port up as the national port of Ethiopia," said Lafont. The port will be run under concession basis, which marks the company’s entry into the infrastructure concessions in East Africa. The company already manages the ports of Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Cameroon and the Republic of Congo. It also manages the rail lines of Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Cameroon. "We are interested in entering concession agreements for ports in East Africa and along the Indian Ocean but the challenge is that most of the ports are run by the governments." "We are keen to work along the development of transport systems within the East Africa Common Market," said Lafont. The company has a strong presence in East Africa and around 40 African countries through its logistics arm SVD Tansami.
"... there were a variety of ways to define what constituted a civil war. One methods requires the conflict to claim 1,000 lives overall. Another method says unrest can only be categorised as a civil war if it results in 1,000 deaths each year.Other definitions have much lower thresholds, ranging between one casualty and 25 casualties per year."
Halvard Buhaug, senior researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo's (Prio) Centre for the Study of Civil War.
According to Buhaug Climate change is not responsible for civil wars in Africa,...traditional factors - such as poverty and social tensions - were often the main factors behind the outbreak of conflicts.
"Climate variability in Africa does not seem to have a significant impact on the risk of civil war,"
"If you apply a number of different definitions of conflict and various different ways to measure climate variability, most of these measurements will turn out not to be associated with each other."
Zamzam Abdi Adan the former principal of Ahmed Guray School is the new Minister of Education in Somaliland. This news has elicited a positive reaction from many people in the educational community in Somaliland.
Africa Project 53 agrees with Obama on how to engage in Somalia and is the model upon which we seek to initiate our activities and engage in the Horn. One of the many possible ways of engaging in the region is by zoning in to the areas that have relative peace and stability and begin working on development activities. Hoping that the positive outcomes will be contagious and spread to other regions in the Horn. The whole region is not at war, most notable the regions in the north of the horn namely Somaliland and Puntland!
"So we desperately want Somalia to succeed....And we want to be a partner with Somalia in that effort, and we will continue to do so...And some of it is financial, some of it is developmental, some of it is being able to help basic infrastructure. In some cases, we may try to find a portion of the country that is relatively stable and start work there to create a model that the rest of the country can then look at and say, this is a different path than the one that we’re taking right now."
President Obama during the Young African Leaders Town Hall Meeting at the White House August 3rd, 2010
The Whole Transcript: THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you, everybody, please have a seat. Have a seat.
Well, good afternoon, everybody.
AUDIENCE: Good afternoon.
THE PRESIDENT: Welcome to the White House, and welcome to the United States of America. And that includes even our friends from Ghana, who beat us in the World Cup. (Laughter.) Where are you? Over there? That's all right. It was close. We’ll see you in 2014. (Laughter.)
It’s my great privilege to welcome all of you to this Young African Leaders Forum. You’ve joined us from nearly 50 countries. You reflect the extraordinary history and diversity of the continent. You’ve already distinguished yourselves as leaders —- in civil society and development and business and faith communities —- and you’ve got an extraordinary future before you.
In fact, you represent the Africa that so often is overlooked -- the great progress that many Africans have achieved and the unlimited potential that you’ve got going forward into the 21st century.
Now, I called this forum for a simple reason. As I said when I was in Accra last year, I don’t see Africa as a world apart; I see Africa as a fundamental part of our interconnected world. Whether it’s creating jobs in a global economy, or delivering education and health care, combating climate change, standing up to violent extremists who offer nothing but destruction, or promoting successful models of democracy and development —- for all this we have to have a strong, self-reliant and prosperous Africa. So the world needs your talents and your creativity. We need young Africans who are standing up and making things happen not only in their own countries but around the world.
And the United States wants to be your partner. So I’m pleased that you’ve already heard from Secretary of State Clinton, and that we’re joined today by leaders from across my administration who are working to deepen that partnership every day.
I can’t imagine a more fitting time for this gathering. This year, people in 17 nations across Sub-Saharan Africa are proudly celebrating 50 years of independence. And by any measure, 1960 was an extraordinary year. From Senegal to Gabon, from Madagascar to Nigeria, Africans rejoiced in the streets —- as foreign flags were lowered and their own were hoisted up. So in 12 remarkable months, nearly one-third of the continent achieved independence —- a burst of self-determination that came to be celebrated as “The Year of Africa” -- at long last, these Africans were free to chart their own course and to shape their own destiny.
Now, 1960, of course, was significant for another reason. Here in the United States of America it was the year that a candidate for president first proposed an idea for young people in our own country to devote a year or two abroad in service to the world. And that candidate was John F. Kennedy, and that idea would become the Peace Corps -- one of our great partnerships with the world, including with Africa.
Now, the great task of building a nation is never done. Here in America, more than two centuries since our independence, we’re still working to perfect our union. Across Africa today, there’s no denying the daily hardships that are faced by so many -- the struggle to feed their children, to find work, to survive another day. And too often, that’s the Africa that the world sees.
But today, you represent a different vision, a vision of Africa on the move -- an Africa that’s ending old conflicts, as in Liberia, where President Sirleaf told me, today’s children have “not known a gun and not had to run”; an Africa that’s modernizing and creating opportunities -- agribusiness in Tanzania, prosperity in Botswana, political progress in Ghana and Guinea; an Africa that’s pursuing a broadband revolution that could transform the daily lives of future generations.
So it’s an Africa that can do great things, such as hosting the world’s largest sporting event. So we congratulate our South African friends. And while it may have been two European teams in the final match, it’s been pointed out that it was really Africa that won the World Cup.
So once again, Africa finds itself at a moment of extraordinary promise. And as I said last year, while today’s challenges may lack some of the drama of 20th century liberation struggles, they ultimately may be even more meaningful, for it will be up to you, young people full of talent and imagination, to build the Africa for the next 50 years.
Africa’s future belongs to entrepreneurs like the small business owner from Djibouti who began selling ice cream and now runs his own accounting practice and advises other entrepreneurs -- that’s Miguil Hasan-Farah. Is Miguil here? There he is right there. Don’t be shy. There you go. (Applause.)
As you work to create jobs and opportunity, America will work with you, promoting the trade and investment on which growth depends. That’s why we’re proud to be hosting the AGOA Forum this week to expand trade between our countries. And today I’ll also be meeting with trade, commerce, and agriculture ministers from across Sub-Saharan Africa. It’s also why our historic Food Security Initiative isn’t simply about delivering food; it’s about sharing new technologies to increase African productivity and self-sufficiency.
Now, no one should have to pay a bribe to get a job or to get government to provide basic services. So as part of our development strategy, we’re emphasizing transparency, accountability, and a strong civil society -- the kind of reform that can help unleash transformational change. So Africa’s future also belongs to those who take charge of that kind of transparency and are serious about anti-corruption measures.
Africa’s future belongs to those who take charge of their health, like the HIV/AIDS counselor from Malawi who helps others by bravely sharing her own experience of being HIV-positive -- that’s Tamara Banda. Where is Tamara? There she is right there. Thank you, Tamara. (Applause.) So our Global Health Initiative is not merely treating diseases; it’s strengthening prevention and Africa’s public health systems. And I want to be very clear. We’ve continued to increase funds to fight HIV/AIDS to record levels, and we’ll continue to do what it takes to save lives and invest in healthier futures.
Africa’s future also belongs to societies that protects the rights of all its people, especially its women, like the journalist in Ivory Coast who has championed the rights of Muslim women and girls —- Aminata Kane-Kone. Where is Aminata? There she is right there. (Applause.) To you and to people across Africa, know that the United States of America will stand with you as you seek justice and progress and human rights and dignity of all people.
So the bottom line is this: Africa’s future belongs to its young people, including a woman who inspires young people across Botswana with her popular radio show, called, “The Real Enchilada” —- and that’s Tumie Ramsden. Where’s Tumie? Right here -- “The Real Enchilada.” (Applause.)
As all of you go to -- as all of you pursue your dreams —- as you go to school, you find a job, you make your voices heard, you mobilize people —- America wants to support your aspirations. So we’re going to keep helping empower African youth —- supporting education, increasing educational exchanges like the one that brought my father from Kenya in the days when Kenyans were throwing off colonial rule and reaching for a new future. And we’re helping to strengthen grassroots networks of young people who believe -- as they’re saying in Kenya today -— “Yes, Youth Can!” “Yes, Youth Can!” (Laughter and applause.)
Now, this is a forum, so we've devoted some time where I can answer some questions. I don't want to do all the talking. I want to hear from you about your goals and how we can partner more effectively to help you reach them. And we want this to be the beginning of a new partnership and create networks that will promote opportunities for years to come.
But I do want to leave you with this. You are the heirs of the independence generation that we celebrate this year. Because of their sacrifice, you were born in independent African states. And just as the achievements of the last 50 years inspire you, the work you do today will inspire future generations.
So -- I understand, Tumie, you like to Tweet. (Laughter.) And she shared words that have motivated so many -- this is what Tumie said: “If your actions inspire others to dream more, to learn more, to do more and become more, then you are a leader.” So each of you are here today because you are a leader. You’ve inspired other young people in your home countries; you’ve inspired us here in the United States. The future is what you make it. And so if you keep dreaming and keep working and keep learning and don’t give up, then I'm confident that your countries and the entire continent and the entire world will be better for it.
So thank you very much, everybody. (Applause.)
All right, with that, I'm going to take questions. Now, here are the rules -- (laughter.) People, everybody who has a question, they can raise their hand. In order to be fair, I'm going to call girl, boy, girl, boy. We're going to alternate. And try to keep your question relatively short; I'll try to keep my answer relatively short, so I can answer as many questions as possible, because we have a limited amount of time. Okay?
I'm going to start with this young lady, right here. And please introduce yourself and tell me where you're from also
Q Okay. Thank you very much. I will express myself in French, if that is --
THE PRESIDENT: That's fine. Somebody will translate for me? Yes? Go ahead. Just make sure that you stop after each sentence, because otherwise she will forget what you had to say.
Q Thank you very much. (Speaks in French and is translated.) Mr. President, hello. And hello, everybody. I'm Fatima Sungo (phonetic) of Mali. I do have a question for you and I look forward to getting your answer. But before I do so, I'd like to begin by telling you, Mr. President, how truly honored and privileged we feel to be with you today, and how privileged we are to express the voices of African youth, of African young leaders, and of course fully appreciate your recognizing us and giving us the opportunity to be here, and also recognizing our own responsibility to take your voice back home.
I'd like to say that I'm convinced this is an important watershed moment, this is the beginning of important change, the wonderful initiative you had to call us all here. I wonder when did you see that particular light? When did you imagine that bringing us here would be such a good idea? I'm wondering what your thought process was, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, one of the things that happens when you're President is that other people have good ideas and then you take credit for them. (Laughter.) So I want to make sure that I don't take credit for my ideas -- for these ideas -- because the truth is my staff works so hard in trying to find new ways that we can communicate not just to the heads of state, but also at the grassroots.
And the reason, I think, is because when you think about Africa, Africa is the youngest continent. Many of the countries that you represent, half of the people are under 30. And oftentimes if all you’re doing is talking to old people like me, then you’re not reaching the people who are going to be providing the energy, the new initiatives, the new ideas. And so we thought that it would be very important for us to have an opportunity to bring the next generation of leaders together.
That's point number one. Point number two -- and I’m going to be blunt occasionally during this forum, so I hope you don't mind -- sometimes the older leaders get into old habits, and those old habits are hard to break. And so part of what we wanted to do was to communicate directly to people who may not assume that the old ways of doing business are the ways that Africa has to do business.
So in some of your countries, freedom of the press is still restricted. There’s no reason why that has to be the case. There’s nothing inevitable about that. And young people are more prone to ask questions, why shouldn’t we have a free press? In some of your countries, the problem of corruption is chronic. And so people who have been doing business in your country for 20, 30 years, they’ll just throw up their hands and they’ll say, ah, that's the way it is.
But Robert Kennedy had a wonderful saying, where he said, some people see things and ask why, and others see things that need changing and ask, why not. And so I think that your generation is poised to ask those questions, “Why not?” Why shouldn’t Africa be self-sustaining agriculturally? There’s enough arable land that if we restructure how agriculture and markets work in Africa, not only could most countries in Africa feed themselves, but they could export those crops to help feed the world. Why not?
New infrastructure -- it used to be that you had to have telephone lines and very capital intensive in order to communicate. Now we have the Internet and broadband and cell phones, so you -- the entire continent may be able to leapfrog some other places that were more highly developed and actually reach into the future of communications in ways that we can’t even imagine yet. Why not?
So that’s the purpose of this. I also want to make sure that all of you are having an opportunity to meet each other, because you can reinforce each other as you are struggling and fighting in your own countries for a better future. You will now have a network of people that help to reinforce what it is that you’re trying to do. And you know that sometimes change makes you feel lonely. Now you’ve got a group of people who can help reinforce what you’re doing.
Okay. It’s a gentleman’s turn. This is why there are leaders, everybody has something to say. But you don’t have to snap. No, no, no. It’s a guy’s turn -- this gentleman right here.
Q Mr. President, my name is Bai Best (phonetic) from Liberia. The late Dr. Solomon Carter Fuller was the first black -- the first black psychiatrist in America and probably in the world. In my country in Liberia, where there are a lot of great people who make landmark accomplishments both in their nation and in the world, many of them are not recognized for their accomplishments. Today, Dr. Fuller’s name is etched where there is a medical -- there is a psychiatric center named in his honor at a place in Boston. There are many other young African and young Liberian talented people who have great ideas and who want to come back home and contribute to their countries, to the development of their peoples. But many times, their efforts -- their patriotic efforts -- are stifled by corrupt or sometimes jealous officials in government and in other sectors. It’s an age-old problem. Many times, they want to seek -- that basically leads them to seek greener pastures and better appreciation abroad instead of coming back home. What are your thoughts on this?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, look, this is a problem that’s not unique to Africa. Given different stages of development around the world, one of the problems that poorer countries often have is that the best educated and the most talented have opportunities elsewhere. And so there’s what’s called the “brain drain” -- people saying, I can make 10 times as much money if I’m a doctor in London as I can if I’m a doctor back home.
And so this is a historic problem. Here is the interesting moment that we’re in, though -- if you look at where the greatest opportunities are, they're actually now in emerging markets. There are countries in Africa that are growing 7, 8, 9 percent a year. So if you’re an entrepreneur now with an idea, you may be able to grow faster and achieve more back home that you could here.
Now, it entails greater risk, so it may be safer to emigrate. But it may be that you can actually achieve more, more quickly back home. And so the question is for young leaders like yourselves, where do you want to have the most impact? And you’re probably going to have more impact at home whether you’re a businessman or woman, or you are a doctor or you are an attorney, or you are an organizer. That's probably going to be the place where you can make the biggest change.
Now, you’re absolutely right, though, that the conditions back home have to be right where you can achieve these things. So if you want to go back home and start a business, and it turns out that you have to pay too many bribes to just get the business started, at some point you may just give up.
And that's why one of the things that we’re trying to do -- working with my team -- when we emphasize development, good governance is at the center of development. It’s not separate. Sometimes people think, well, that's a political issue and then there’s an economic issue. No. If you have a situation where you can’t start a business or people don't want to invest because there’s not a clear sense of rule of law, that is going to stifle development.
If farmers have so many middlemen to get their crops to market that they're making pennies when ultimately their crops are being sold for $10, over time that stifles agricultural development in a country. So what we want to do is make sure that in our interactions with your governments, we are constantly emphasizing this issue of good governance because I have confidence that you’ll be able to figure out what changes need to be made in your country.
I’ve always said the destiny of Africa is going to be determined by Africans. It’s not going to be determined by me. It’s not going to be determined by people outside of the continent. It’s going to be determined by you. All we can do is make sure that your voices are heard and you’re able to rise up and take hold of these opportunities. If you do that, I think that there are going to be a lot of people who -- even if they're educated abroad -- want to come home to make their mark.
All right. Let’s see, I’m going to call on this young lady right here.
Q (Speaks in Portuguese and is translated.) Good afternoon, everyone. And thank you, Mr. President, for this opportunity.
THE PRESIDENT: That sounds like Portuguese. (Laughter.)
Q It is, indeed, from Mozambique, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: Great.
Q Knowing, Mr. President, that, of course, America is a reference point for democracy in the world, and that you, sir, are, indeed a protagonist in that context today, I would love to hear from you, sir, what you would recommend to the young people in Africa and to civil society, in particular, in terms of following principles of nonviolence and good governance and democratic principles in our country. Because, of course, our reality is very often quite starkly different. There are 80 percent abstentionism often in elections, and elections that, indeed, lack transparency. And all too often lead, alas, to social conflict. Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, let me say, first of all, that if you are -- just as I said that you can’t separate politics from economics, you can’t separate conflict from development. So the constant conflict, often ethnically-based conflict, that has taken place in Africa is a profound detriment to development and it’s self-reinforcing.
If you have conflict and violence, that scares off investors. That makes it more difficult for business people to create opportunities, which means that young people then don't have work, which means that they are more prone to be recruited in violent conflicts. And you can get a vicious cycle.
So I am a profound believer in not looking at violence as a solution to problems. And I think the moral and ethical power that comes with nonviolence when properly mobilized is profound.
Number two, I think the most important thing that maybe young people here can do is to promote the values of openness, transparency, honest debate, civil disagreements within your own groups and your own organizations, because that forms good habits. If you are part of an organization -- and I’m going to speak to the men here, in particular -- if you are part of an organization where you profess democracy but women don't have an equal voice in your organization, then you're a hypocrite, right? And that is something that -- (applause.) And that is something that we have to be honest about. Oftentimes, women are not getting the same voice in African countries, despite the fact that they are carrying more than their fair share of burdens.
So within your own organizations, within your own networks, modeling good democratic practices, listening to people who you disagree with respectfully, making sure that everybody gets a seat at the table -- all those things I think are very important.
Because part of what I’m going to -- what I’m hoping for is that some of you will end up being leaders of your country some day. And if you think about it, back in the 1960s, when all these -- your grandparents, great-grandparents were obtaining independence, fighting for independence, the first leaders, they all said they were for democracy. And then what ends up happening is you’ve been in power for a while and you say, well, I must be such a good ruler that it is for the benefit of the people that I need to stay here. And so then you start changing the laws, or you start intimidating and jailing opponents. And pretty soon, young people just like yourself -- full of hope and promise -- end up becoming exactly what they fought against.
So one of the things that I think everybody here has to really internalize is the notion that -- I think it was Gandhi who once said you have to be the change that you seek. You have to be the change that you seek. And one of the wonderful things about the United States is that in my position as President there oftentimes where I get frustrated, I think I know more than some of my critics. And yet, we have institutionalized the notion that those critics have every right to criticize me, no matter how unreasonable I think they may be. And I have to stand before the people for an election, and I’m limited to two terms -- it doesn’t matter how good a job I do. And that’s good, because what that means is that we’ve got to -- we’ve instituted a culture where the institutions of democracy are more important than any one individual.
And, now, it’s not as if we’re perfect. Obviously, we’ve got all kinds of problems as well. But what it does mean is that the peaceful transfer of power and the notion that people always have a voice -- our trust in that democratic process is one that has to be embraced in all your countries as well.
Okay? All right, it’s a gentleman’s turn. Let me try to get this side of the table here. This gentleman right here. I’m not going to get everybody, so I apologize in advance.
Q Thank you very much, Mr. President. I'm from Malawi. Mr. President, HIV/AIDS is greatly affecting development in Africa. And if this continues, I’m afraid I think Africa has no future. And I think the young people like us must bring change. And we really need a strong HIV prevention program. But, again, access to treatment must be there.
I attended the recent World AIDS Conference in Vienna, and the critics were saying that the worst -- the U.S. government is not supporting enough HIV/AIDS work in Africa through the PEPFAR and the Global Fund. But, again, on the other side, other HIV/AIDS activists are saying that Africa on its own has not mobilized enough resources to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic and they are largely depending on the West.
I think the challenge for us as African young leaders is to make sure that this comes to an end and we really need to reduce the transmission. I don’t know -- from your perspective, what can we do to make sure that this comes to a stop? Otherwise, it’s greatly affecting development in Africa.
THE PRESIDENT: Good. Well, let me start by just talking about the United States and what we’re doing. I had some disagreements with my predecessor, but one of the outstanding things that President Bush did was to initiate the PEPFAR program. It’s a huge investment in battling HIV/AIDS both with respect to prevention and also with respect to treatment. Billions of dollars were committed. We have built off of that.
So when you hear critics -- what the critics are saying is that although I’ve increased the funding of the PEPFAR program, they would like to see it increased even more, which I’m sympathetic to, given the fact that the need is so great. But understand I’ve increased it; I haven’t decreased it -- at a time when the United States is suffering from the worst economic -- just coming out of the worst economic recession that we’ve seen since the 1930s. Nevertheless, because of our commitment to this issue, we’ve actually increased funding.
Now, we have couched it in a broader initiative we call the Global Health Initiative. Because even as we’re battling HIV/AIDS, we want to make sure that we are thinking not only in terms of treatment, but also in terms of prevention and preventing transmission.
We’re never going to have enough money to simply treat people who are constantly getting infected. We’ve got to have a mechanism to stop the transmission rate. And so one of the things we’re trying to do is to build greater public health infrastructure, find what prevention programs are working, how can we institutionalize them, make them culturally specific -- because not every program is going to be appropriate for every country.
I will say that in Africa, in particular, one thing we do know is that empowering women is going to be critical to reducing the transmission rate. We do know that. Because so often women, not having any control over sexual practices and their own body, end up having extremely high transmission rates.
So the bottom line is we’re going to focus on prevention, building a public health infrastructure. We’re still going to be funding, at very high levels, antiviral drugs. But keep in mind, we will never have enough money -- it will be endless, an endless effort if the transmission rates stay high and we’re just trying to treat people after their sick.
It’s the classic story of a group of people come upon all these bodies in a stream. And everybody jumps in and starts pulling bodies out, but one wise person goes downstream to see what’s exactly happening that's causing all these people to drown or fall in the water. And that's I think what we have to do, is go downstream to see how can we reduce these transmission rates overall.
And obviously -- when I visited Kenya, for example -- just in terms of education -- Michelle and I, we both got tested near the village where my father was born. We got publicly tested so that we would know what our status was. That was just one example of the kinds of educational mechanisms that we can use that hopefully can make some difference.
All right? Okay, it’s a woman’s turn. Okay, this one right here.
Q Thank you, very much, Mr. President. And greetings from Ghana. We are looking forward fervently to 2014 -- (laughter) -- for a repeat. And I recollect that I was hosting a radio program the day of the match. And we have a football pundit in Ghana -- he doesn’t speak English quite well, but very passionate. And so I was interviewing him about what the psyche of our boys should be ahead of the match. And he said to me, “This is not war, it is football. If it were to be war, then maybe we should be afraid because the might of America is more than us.” (Laughter.) This is football. They should go out there and be the best that they could be. And they did.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, they did an excellent job. They were a great team.
Q Mr. President, my question now is that I hear a lot of young African leaders wonder how committed America would be to a partnership. I hear those who are cynical about the notion of partnership. They ask -- and always they ask, partnership? What kind of fair partnership can exist between a strong and a weak nation?
And so as we prepare ourselves for the future, we ask the same question of America: How committed is your country to ensuring that the difficult decisions that young people have to make about trade, about agriculture, about support, are made -- to the extent that they may not be in the interest of America? Because they tell me also that America will protect its interest over and above all else. Is America committed to ensuring a partnership that might not necessarily be beneficial to America, but truly beneficial to the sovereign interest of the countries that we represent?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, let me say this. All countries look out for their interests. So -- and I’m the President of the United States, so my job is to look out for the people of the United States. That's my job, right? (Applause.)
Now, I actually think, though, that the interests of the United States and the interests of the continent of Africa greatly overlap. We have a huge interest in seeing development throughout Africa -- because we are a more mature economy, Africa is a young and growing economy, and if you can buy more iPods and buy more products and buy more services and buy more tractors from us, that we can sell to a fast-growing continent, that creates jobs here in the United States of America.
We have a huge interest in your public health systems because if we’re reducing greatly HIV/AIDS transmissions in Africa, then that will have a positive effect on HIV rates internationally, because of the transmigration of diseases back and forth in an international world. And not to mention, if I’m not spending all this money on PEPFAR, that's money I can spend somewhere else. So I’m going to be incentivized to see Africa do well. That's in our interest.
And the truth of the matter is, is that whereas with some regions of the world, we do have some genuine conflicts of interest -- let’s say on trade, for example -- the truth is that the United States, we don't have huge conflicts when it comes to trade because, frankly, the trade between the United States and Africa is so small, so modest, that very few U.S. companies, U.S. commercial interests are impacted.
That's why AGOA, our trade arrangement with Africa -- we can eliminate tariffs and subsidies and allow all sorts of goods to come in partly because you are not our primary competition.
Now, I don't want to pretend that there aren’t ever going to be conflicts. There will be. There’s going to be difference in world views. There are going to be some agricultural products where there are certain interests in the United States or there are certain interests in Europe that want to prevent those from coming in, even though, in the aggregate, it would not have a huge impact on the U.S. economy. And so there are going to be occasional areas of tension. But overall, the reason you should have confidence that we want a partnership is because your success will enhance our position rather than reduce it.
Also Africa has some of our most loyal friends. Every survey that's taken, when you ask what continent generally has the most positive views about America, it turns out Africa generally has a positive view of America and positive experiences. So I think that you should feel confident even if I’m not President that the American people genuinely want to see Africa succeed.
What the American people don't want is to feel like their efforts at helping are wasted. So if at a time of great constraint, we are coming up with aid, those aid dollars need to go to countries that are actually using them effectively. And if they're not using them effectively, then they should go to countries that are.
And one of the things that I’ve said to my development team is I want us to have high standards in terms of performance and evaluation when we have these partnerships -- because a partnership is a two-way street. It means that, on the one hand, we’re accountable to you and that we have to listen to you and make sure that any plans that we have, have developed indigenously. On the other hand, it also means you’re accountable. So you can’t just say, give me this, give me that, and then if it turns out that it’s not working well, that's not your problem. Right? It has to be a two-way street.
Okay, looks like this side has not gotten a question here. So how about this gentleman right here.
Q Thank you, Mr. President -- I'm from Zimbabwe. Currently our government is in a transition between the former ruling party Zanu PF and the Movement for Democratic Change. And within this same context, Zimbabwe is currently under restrictive measures, especially for those who are party in line with Robert Mugabe under the ZIDERA Act. How has been the success of ZIDERA -- the formation of the inclusive government? Because in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe is still using the rhetoric of sanctions, racist, property rights abuse, human rights abuse, in violation to the rule of law. How has been the success of that towards the implementation -- the success or the growth of young people?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, you probably have a better answer than me. So you should be sharing with our team what you think would make the most sense. I’ll be honest with you -- I’m heartbroken when I see what’s happened in Zimbabwe. I think Mugabe is an example of a leader who came in as a liberation fighter and -- I’m just going to be very blunt -- I do not see him serving his people well. And the abuses, the human rights abuses, the violence that's been perpetrated against opposition leaders I think is terrible.
Now, Changerai has tried to work -- despite the fact that he himself has been beaten and imprisoned, he has now tried to work to see if there is a gradual transition that might take place. But so far, the results have not been what we had hoped.
And this always poses a difficult question for U.S. foreign policy because, on the one hand, we don't want to punish the people for the abuses of a leader; on the other hand, we have very little leverage other than saying, if there are just systematic abuses by a government, we are not going to deal with them commercially, we’re not going to deal with them politically, in ways that we would with countries that are observing basic human rights principles.
And so there have been discussions when I’ve traveled with leaders in the Southern African region about whether or not sanctions against Zimbabwe are or are not counterproductive. I will tell you I would love nothing more than to be able to open up greater diplomatic relationships and economic and commercial relationships with Zimbabwe. But in order to do so, we’ve got to see some signal that it will not simply entrench the same past abuses but rather will move us in a new direction that actually helps the people.
And Zimbabwe is a classic example of a country that should be the breadbasket for an entire region. It’s a spectacular country. Now, it had to undergo a transition from white minority rule that was very painful and very difficult. But they have chosen a path that's different than the path that South Africa chose.
South Africa has its problems, but from what everybody could see during the World Cup, the potential for moving that country forward as a multiracial, African democracy that can succeed on the world stage, that's a model that so far at least Zimbabwe has not followed. And that's where I’d like to see it go. All right?
How much more time do I have, guys? Last question? I’m sorry -- last question. Last question. No, it’s a young lady’s turn. This one right here.
Q Good afternoon, Mr. President, your excellencies. I am from Somalia. I came all the way here with one question, and that is, living in conflict in a country that has confused the whole world, and being part of the diaspora that went back to risk our lives in order to make Somalia a better place, especially with what we’re going through right now -- how much support do we expect from the U.S.? And not support just in terms of financially or aid, but support as an ear, as a friend, as somebody who hears and listens to those of us who are putting our lives and our families at risk to defend humanity.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think you will have enormous support from the people of the United States when it comes to trying to create a structure and framework in Somalia that works for the Somali people.
Now, the history of Somalia over the last 20 years has been equally heartbreaking, if not more so. You have not had a effective, functioning government that can provide basic services. It’s been rife with conflict. And now the entire region is threatened because of radical extremists who have taken root in Somalia, taking advantage of what they perceive to be a failing state, to use that as a base to launch attacks, most recently in Uganda.
And obviously the United States expresses its deepest condolences to the lives that were lost in Kampala -- at the very moment of the World Cup. And it offered two contrasting visions. You have this wonderful, joyous celebration in South Africa at the same time as you have a terrorist explosion in Kampala.
So we desperately want Somalia to succeed. And this is another example of where our interests intersect. If you have extremist organizations taking root in Somalia, ultimately that can threaten the United States as well as Uganda, as well as Kenya, as well as the entire region.
So right now you’ve got a transitional government that is making some efforts. I don’t think anybody expects Somalia anytime in the next few years to suddenly be transformed into a model democracy. Whatever governance structures take place in Somalia have to be aware of the tribal and traditional structures and clan structures that exist within Somalia. But certainly what we can do is create a situation where people -- young people are not carrying around rifles, shooting each other on the streets. And we want to be a partner with Somalia in that effort, and we will continue to do so.
And some of it is financial, some of it is developmental, some of it is being able to help basic infrastructure. In some cases, we may try to find a portion of the country that is relatively stable and start work there to create a model that the rest of the country can then look at and say, this is a different path than the one that we’re taking right now.
But in the end, I think that this metaphor of the success of the World Cup and the bombing shows that each of you are going to be confronted with two paths. There’s going to be a path that takes us into a direction of more conflict, more bloodshed, less economic development, continued poverty even as the rest of the world races ahead -- or there’s a vision in which people come together for the betterment and development of their own country.
And for all the great promise that’s been fulfilled over the last 50 years, I want you to understand -- because I think it’s important for us to be honest with ourselves -- Africa has also missed huge opportunities for too long. And I’ll just give you one example.
When my father traveled to the United States and got his degree in the early ’60s, the GDP of Kenya was actually on partner, maybe actually higher than the GDP of South Korea. Think about that. All right? So when I was born, Kenya per capita might have been wealthier than South Korea. Now it’s not even close. Well, that’s 50 years that was lost in terms of opportunities. When it comes to natural resources, when it comes to the talent and potential of the people, there’s no reason why Kenya shouldn’t have been on that same trajectory.
And so 50 years from now, when you look back you want to make sure that the continent hasn’t missed those opportunities as well. We want to make sure of that as well. And the United States wants to listen to you and work with you. And so when you go back and you talk to your friends and you say, what was the main message the President had -- we are rooting for your success, and we want to work with you to achieve that success, but ultimately success is going to be in your hands. And being a partner means that we can be there by your side, but we can’t do it for you.
Okay, thank you very much, everybody. Thank you. (Applause.)
Minister Henry Bellingham greets the President of Somaliland
Minister Henry Bellingham with the President of Somaliland Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo and his delegation
