By: Marie-Martine Buckens
The European Union is concerned by the political situation in Somalia
“The Atlanta mission aims to protect merchant vessels and food aid shipments to Somalia” © The European Parliament
The French presidency of the European Union has said it is “deeply concerned” by the latest political developments in Somalia, especially the dismissal of Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein Adde. "The announcement of the decision by the President of the Transitional Federal Government to dismiss Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein Adde from his duties appears to be particularly inopportune. It threatens to destabilise the political process at a key moment for Somalia and is inconsistent with the Transitional Federal Charter,” added the declaration. It went on to state that: “The Presidency of the Council of the European Union believes that it would be unacceptable for internal disputes to jeopardise the continuation of the peace process entered into six months ago by further weakening the transitional government. It urges the Transitional Federal Government leaders to end these conflicts and to concentrate on the real challenges faced by the Somali people, notably peace, stability and reconciliation.” Paris also reminded the parties of the UN sanctions regime against “individuals who threaten the peace process.” Somali President Abdulahi Yusuf Ahmed Tuesday appointed Mohamed Mohamoud Gamadere as Prime Minister, replacing Nur Hassan Hussein, whom he had dismissed Sunday. This appointment came in the wake of the vote by Parliament renewing its confidence by a large majority in Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein and in his government, thereby going against the decision taken by the President to dismiss Mr. Hussein. The latter, who is in profound disagreement with Mr. Yusuf on various issues, indicated that he would only leave his post if Parliament voted against him.
Atlanta, an insufficient mission, believe the MEPs
The European naval mission "Atlanta", launched by the European Union last week, will not be sufficiently effective to put an end to acts of piracy in Somalia. That is in any event the view of MEPs. While they all agree on the need for concerted action to stabilise the situation in the field, opinions remain divided on the origin of the problem and the nature of Europe’s role in regard to Somalia over recent years. “It is very difficult to manage the acts of piracy but I believe that the response to this problem must be firm or the number of attacks will increase,” stated Mr. Filip Kaczmarek (Polish, member of the Group of the European People’s Party and European Democrats - EPP- ED). He also stressed the importance of treating the pirates as “terrorists”. However, for Mrs Ana Gomes (Portuguese, member of the Party of European Socialists - PES), vice-chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence, "the pirates are not necessarily terrorists. We must understand that at root they were simple fishermen who tried to defend their fishing zones, pillaged by foreign fishing. Of course, they subsequently understood that acts of piracy brought more rewards than fishing.”
Launched by the EU on 8 December, the year-long Atlanta mission must prevent and repress acts of piracy in an area equivalent to the Baltic Sea. About 12,000 persons are taking part in this operation: the United Kingdom, France, and Greece are currently contributing actively to the mission while Germany, Italy, Spain the Netherlands and Belgium are due to join later.
Somalia
A period of anarchy followed the death of the dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
The UN peacekeeping missions ended in 1993 and 1995.
According to the United Nations, civil wars, drought and inflation plunged Somalia into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
3.2 million Somalis are in need of humanitarian aid. 1.1 million have been displaced inside the country.
An African Union peacekeeping mission with 3 400 soldiers is currently present in Somalia.
The two agree on the following point: the military operation launched by the European Union (EU) will not be sufficient to put an end to the acts of piracy. They believe that even if the mission is a good thing what is needed is a state that functions and a stabilisation of the situation in Somalia.
One hundred acts of piracy have been recorded in Somalia this year.
It was on Monday 8 December that the Atlanta mission was launched to protect merchant vessels and ships delivering food aid to Somalia.
For 12 months, Atlanta’s mission will be to avert and repress acts of piracy in an area equivalent to the Baltic Sea. About 12,000 persons are taking part in this operation: the United Kingdom, France, and Greece are currently contributing actively to the mission while Germany, Italy, Spain the Netherlands and Belgium are due to join later.
About 100 acts of piracy and armed robbery against vessels were recorded in Somalia this year, making the region one of the most dangerous in the world. Somali pirates are estimated to have extorted almost 90 million euros and 17 vessels are currently in the hands of pirates.
Political stability for less piracy?
Mrs Gomes calls into question the EU’s role in the protection of vessels: “I find it immoral that the European Union protects commercial vessels and the fishing vessels that benefit from the inability of the Somalis to control their natural resources and forgets that the Somalis are dying due to the anarchy in their country.”
But Mr Kaczmarek warns against exaggeration: "I do not think it has anything to do with fishing. The European Union has fishing agreements with many countries. Of course this limits the opportunities for local fishermen but it is not sufficient reason to become a pirate. In Somalia there is no authority that controls the situation so the pirates do not fear anyone. That could be stopped by the local, regional and national authorities, but they simply do not exist.”
Economic stability therefore seems to be the solution for putting an end to acts of piracy in Somalia.
