Concerned by a growing insecurity in Somalia, East African Community (EAC) contemplates to impose sanctions against Somalia war mongering politicians.
Citing the continued lack of security in Somalia as a threat to the EAC peace and security, the EAC Sectoral Council on Co-operation in Defense recently proposed sanction against all Somalia politicians.
“Lack of engagement in the Somalia crisis could lead to instability in the whole Eastern Africa region. Accordingly, there is urgent need to galvanise solidarity and more resources for this cause,” the sectoral council report reads in part. The EAC Council of Ministers meeting recently in Arusha adopted the decisions of the Sectoral Council on Co-operation in Defense and forwarded the same to the Heads of the State Summit for consideration and guidance.
Though both EAC organs’ reports are silent on the form of sanctions to be meted out, sources say they will involve a travel ban and a probably freeze of financial assets of politicians considered an obstacle to the Somalia peace process.
Somalia is the sole country in the world where people instigate war, commit crimes against humanity and get away with it. Analysts have supported the EAC move saying it is a right decision in an effort to end impunity with which militants conduct their mischief.
“Sanction is a good idea, though sanctions have proved to be ineffective in solving crisis in African countries, taking the case of Zimbabwe for instance where myriad of western sanctions couldn’t make any difference,” says Dr Gasper Mpehongwa, Lecturer of Development studies at Tumaini University in Moshi, Kilimanjaro region, adding “it is worth to act anyway”.
Mpehongwa proposes that the EAC embargo should be comprehensive with an eye to cripple the financial muscle of the Somalia politicians mainly, accrued from booming piracy trade.
The EAC embargo deal comes amid a backdrop of the African Union (AU) call to the international community to hand down sanctions to instigators of the war in Somalia. The passionate appeal was made recently by the AU special representative to Somalia, Ambassador, Boubacar Gaoussou Diarra, where he requested donor countries to back the transitional federal government to strengthen its ability to coordinate reconciliation in Somalia.
The diplomat, Boubacar believes that as soon as word of availability of the sanction reaches Somalis, their mindset would change and the chance for positive political resolution would rise.
AMISOM
The EAC Sectoral Council on Co-operation in Defence also was of the view that the mandate of the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) needs to be re-defined in order to give the right outcome.
Their report says that there is need for the International Community to support the efforts by AMISOM in order to deal with insecurity in Somalia: “AMISOM requires additional forces to stem instability in Somalia. However, the issue of adding force strength is possible only if there is good defined framework and resources,” the report reads.
The Sectoral Council further recommended that a standing committee of the Summit on emerging security challenges such as the Somalia Crisis be established as well as the need for the Summit to urge the International Community to speak with one voice in addressing the crisis in Somalia.
Piracy
Somalia crisis started 20 years ago after its government collapsed. No one could think that the nation’s state of lawlessness would in due course spawn piracy into a global malady that so far has warranted seven United Nations resolutions, one of which authorised all necessary means to tame piracy and armed robbery at sea.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY
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