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UN Radio
UN and Africa
Programme Number: 119
Week of: Sunday, 24th September, 2006
Recording Date: Thursday, 28th September, 2006
Topical Issue(s):
" The Foreign Minister of Kenya Raphael Tuju says
the international community should do more to help Somalia
resolve its political crisis. Mr. Tuju, whose statement
to the General Assembly focused on Somalia, told UN
Radio that if nothing is done to help Somalia, the country
may become a haven for criminals and terrorists.
" In Geneva, the UN independent Expert on Human
Rights in Somalia, Ghanim Alnajjar, told the UN Human
Rights Council that events during the past six months
in Somalia have had serious implications for the human
rights of the Somalis.
" In Kenya, the World Food Programme is warning
that the increasing number of Somali refugees is putting
a strain on the food stock for the refugees who are
already in camps in Kenya. WFP spokeswoman Penny Fergusson
warns that if the agency does not get additional funding,
it may have to cut its food rations by November.
Editor / Presenter: Ransford Cline-Thomas
Producer: Derrick Mbatha
Production Assistant:Beng Poblete-Enriquez
Studio Engineer: Roy Yokelson
Duration: 15'00"
RESENTER: This is United Nations Radio in New York.
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and hold under narr.)
PRESENTER:
Hello and welcome to UN and Africa, I'm Ransford Cline-Thomas.
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hold under)
PRESENTER:
In this edition, we focus on the crisis in Somalia.
The Foreign Minister of Kenya, Raphael Tuju has issued
this warning about the situation in Somalia.
CLIP 1: RAPHAEL TUJU
"If the situation deteriorates so that it becomes
that enclave where criminal elements, terrorist elements
may go and hide, then what is going to happen in the
future, anyway, is that the international community
is still going to have to intervene but the international
community will be intervening when it is too late."
PRESENTER:
The ongoing crisis in that country is forcing hundreds
of Somalis to flee to Kenya as we hear from Penny Fergusson
of the World Food Programme.
CLIP 2: PENNY FIRGUSSON
"The number of new arrivals coming across the border
from Somalia into Kenya has been high this year and
is rising exponentially. Everyday there are between
300 and 400 people arriving."
PRESENTER:
Also in the programme an independent expert in Geneva
says that the conflict in Somalia has serious implications
for human rights in the country.
So, stay tuned to UN and Africa.
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until first sentence.)
PRESENTER:
As the United Nations General Assembly concluded its
general debate this week, the Foreign Minister of Kenya,
Raphael made an impassioned appeal to the international
community to help Somalia rebuild itself. Since the
country lost central authority in 1991, Kenya has been
in the forefront of trying to help restore order in
Somalia. The crisis has taken on a new turn in recent
days as the Union of Islamic Courts, which drove the
warlords out of the capital Mogadishu continue to gain
more ground, while the interim government which is internationally
recognized is still based in Baidoa and has been unable
to establish itself in Mogadishu. I caught up with Kenyan
Foreign Minister Raphael Tuju after he addressed the
General Assembly and asked him why he felt so strongly
that the international community must intervene in Somalia.
5'16"
TUJU: If the situation deteriorates so that it becomes
that enclave where criminal elements, terrorist elements
may go and hide, then what is going to happen in the
future, anyway, is that the international community
is still going to have to intervene but the international
community will be intervening when it is too late. The
earlier there is some intervention, the better for everyone
concerned because intervening we'll have to because
there is no way by which we can have a state existing
in the world of today without a government. And I brought
to the attention of the Assembly that in an increasing
small world, a global village, every country is a neighbour
of Somalia. Recently we had to deal with the problem
of those Chinese and South Korean fishermen who were
hijacked by pirates. And that is some 8,000 to 10,000
kilometres away. So really all of us are neighbours
to Somalia.
CLINE-THOMAS: Now you are saying that the international
community is not paying much attention to Somalia this
time and that at some point it may be necessary to have
some form of intervention. Now, what precisely would
you like the international community do at this time?
TUJU: A couple of things. One, of course, is humanitarian
support. I did give the example of children in your
house and I have had my children. And I remember when
my children were ages seven to ten, if they stayed the
whole day without food they became very short-tempered
and they became extremists in the house. In Somalia
people there are deprived. The young people are living
under very difficult circumstances. So if that is not
addressed, then you are coming up with a very explosive
situation in the country. Apart from that, we do have
a transitional federal government which was created
through a two-year process which involves actually the
election of a president using an electoral college of
about 2,000 people drawn from different clans in Somalia.
That resulted in the current transitional federal government
and the transitional federal institutions like the parliament
and the transitional charter, which have been recognized
by the United Nations, by the African Union, by IGAD,
of course, which means that there is an institution
that has been created that has got political and international
legitimacy. Unfortunately they were not given the support
which is essential for them to be able to establish
themselves in Somalia because of an arms embargo. So
one of the things that we have proposed to the United
Nations Security Council is not to lift the arms embargo
but to provide exemptions so that these fledgling transitional
federal government is able to establish some kind of
civil protection force.
CLINE-THOMAS: This is certainly just one among many
things that the African leaders themselves can do about
the situation in Somalia. What about other necessary
measures because you talk at the same time about the
international community pitching in and taking appropriate
action? What about Africa and the African leaders themselves?
TUJU: The issue of Somalia was taken to the African
Union several years ago and the IGAD countries, that
are seven countries or so, that's Kenya, Uganda, Sudan,
Ethiopia, Djibouti and Eritrea who are immediate neighbour
of Somalia, were given responsibility to be the focal
point for efforts to deal with the problem of Somalia.
But IGAD is only an agent of the African Union. The
African Union is a part of the United Nations, is a
member of the United Nations. So, in a way what we are
trying to do in the region is to do what we can, but
at the same time it is a global problem.
CLINE-THOMAS: Now you have also proposed the establishment
of an international joint committee on Somalia. What
would you expect such committee to do and to achieve?
TUJU: Well, one of the things that is interesting about
the peace-building effort in Somalia is that, in fact,
the transitional federal government as it is today is
the fourteenth attempt at resolving the Somali problem.
There were thirteen others which did not succeed. This
year there have been a couple of meetings over Somalia
So it is much better that we come together as organizations
that are interested in this and therefore we are able
to audit everything that comes out.
CLINE-THOMAS: In the face of all the attempts to resolve
the Somalia crisis and problems which you have mentioned,
are you optimistic that any resolution can come to the
situation in Somalia?
TUJU: Well, I think that we have no choice but to be
optimistic because if we decide to be pessimistic about
this then we throw our hands up in the air and give,
but we cannot do that.
CLINE THOMAS: And you don't think the situation will
get any worse and therefore make the resolution of this
crisis even more difficult in the light of the fact
that the Islamists are making an inroad and gaining
greater ground by controlling more territory?
TUJU: Well one thing I have said about the Islamists
because I have met them and I opened the window for
them for dialogue in Nairobi, you have some very reasonable
people. In fact, those that I have met, one of them
is a lawyer and others are doctors. But also you find
the type of people who shot the nun. You find the type
of people who shot at a TV screen when young people
were watching the World Cup and they had issues to pick
with that so they stopped you from watching the World
Cup. If we do not do something as soon as possible in
terms of the mixed interventions that I have proposed,
then it can only get worse.
PRESENTER:
That was Raphael Tuju the Foreign Minister of Kenya.
STING/JINGLE: UN AND AFRICA THEME
PRESENTER:
A similar call for the international community to urgently
intervene to help resolve the political crisis in Somalia
was made in Geneva where the United Nations Human Rights
Council is meeting. Gill Fickling sent us this report.
2'42"
NARRATOR:
As the conflict in Somalia between the Union of Islamic
Courts and the Transitional Federal Government escalates,
independent human rights expert calls for urgent funds
from the international community. This would help secure
peace in the region and avoid a humanitarian crisis.
Mr Ghanim Alnajjar, the Independent Expert on human
rights in Somalia tells the United Nations Human Rights
Council meeting in Geneva that events during the past
six months in Somalia have had serious implications
for the human rights of Somalis
CUT 1: GHANIM ALNAJJAR
In the period covered by the report Somalia was still
generally characterized by widespread insecurity, extrajudicial
killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, threats to
press freedoms, violations of the human rights of women
and children and infringements on economic, social and
cultural rights.
NARATOR:
Whilst there have been talks in Khartoum between the
two parties since the period covered by the report,
from March 2005 to February 2006, Mr. Alnajjar says
that this progress is too slow. He urges more progress
at the forthcoming talks scheduled for the 31st of October.
CUT 2: GHANIM ALNAJJAR
These positive talks are not enough. These initiatives
must be moved along and supported by more engagement
from the international community in order to further
consolidate peace building efforts.
NARRATOR:
He continues by urging the international community
to engage with Somali leaders and warns that failure
to do so could lead to great deterioration in the current
situation.
Concluding his address, he strongly appeals to the Council
to take the warning of the crisis threatening Somalia
seriously. International engagement will be critical
to protecting Somali human rights, he tells delegates,
as well as consolidating peace in the country.
CUT 3: GHANIM ALNAJJAR
I wish to appeal to this Council to take seriously
this early warning about the looming crisis in Somalia.
In the coming days and perhaps weeks, the international
community will have a small window of opportunity to
assist Somalia in avoiding an all-out crisis. Even-handed
international engagement will be critical to protecting
the human rights of Somalis and consolidating the peace
and security of Somalia. I want to take this opportunity
to appeal to the international community to engage with
Somali leaders and groups to forestall conflict, before
it is too late.
NARRATOR:
Over two million people, mostly in southern and central
Somalia are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance
due both to the insecurity of the region causing thousands
to flee their homes, and the severe drought. Gill Fickling,
UN Radio, Geneva.
STING/JINGLE: UN AND AFRICA THEME
PRESENTER:
Now the current crisis in Somalia, as you heard from
our reporter in Geneva, is forcing hundreds of Somalis
to flee to neighbouring Kenya where there are already
hundreds of thousands of refugees. The World Food Programme
has expressed concern that if the Somali refugees continue
to pour into Kenya, it will have to cut the rations
it is giving to the refugees in the camps unless it
get more funds. UN Radio's Derrick Mbatha discussed
this problem on the line to Kenya with the spokeswoman
for the United Nations food agency, Penny Fergusson.
2'51"
FIRGUSON: The number of new arrivals coming across the
border from Somalia into Kenya has been high this year
and is rising exponentially. WFP is responsible for
feeding refugees in camps in Kenya. The rising numbers
mean that our resources for our programme are being
severely strained. We may need to consider ration cuts
by November.
MBATHA: And how many refugees are we talking about
here?
FIRGUSON: There are 240,000 registered refugees in
Kenya, but there are thousands more new arrivals. A
number of new comers could rise to 50,000 by the end
of the year. That's about 5,000 people per two weeks.
MBATHA: And you are saying these Somali refugees are
still arriving every day?
FIRGUSON: Indeed. That's correct. Everyday there are
between 300 and 400 people arriving.
MBATHA: And what's their condition on arrival in Kenya?
FIRGUSON: Well it varies depending upon the conditions
under which they have made their journey. Some people
who have had enough money to be able to catch transport
or a bus are not too bad when they arrive, although
anybody who is a refugee and who is desperate enough
their country is obviously not in a well condition.
Others have walked incredibly long distances. I remember
meeting one woman in the camp in Dadaab who is 28 years
old. She had six children. The eldest of those was eight
and the youngest was a toddler and they had walked all
the way from the Guedo region to the border in Dadaab.
MBATHA: So if you were to give me a profile, are we
talking about old people, women and, children or just
one particular group of refugees that are arriving in
Kenya?
FIRGUSON: There are a whole range of people, men, women,
very often, families and the food assistance, of course
reach out to all people. We make particular efforts
to make sure that food rations reach the most vulnerable
quickly. And this is one of the things that we are now
realizing. We are appealing for funds so urgently is
to purchase high energy biscuits to enable us to get
quick food rations to people as soon as they arrive.
Funding that we estimate that we need for the next six
months for the operation in the current numbers is 8.1
million and this will allow WFP to provide more than
forty-and-a-half metric thousand tones of food including
a hundred tones of high energy biscuits.
MBATHA: Now what will happen to the refugees if WFP
were to cut food rations? Is there a serious threat
of starvation in the refugee camps?
FIRGUSON: Nutrition rates are already of serious concern
in Dadaab for a number of reasons. We have noted in
previous surveys that malnutrition rate amongst children
under five are indeed already above the emergency rates.
So, of course, if rations have to be cut, although we
make every effort to ensure that the most vulnerable
do receive food rations, of course there is a very strong
likelihood that those rates will increase.
PRESENTER:
That was Penny Ferguson of the World Food Programme.
SIG TUNE ((Bring up briefly, dip and hold under)
And that's all for this edition of UN and Africa. Our
producer was Derrick Mbatha, Production Assistant was
Beng Poblete-Enriquez and our sound engineer was Roy
Yokelson.
And from me Ransford Cline-Thomas, bye for now.
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