The White Flag approach
Somalia’s transitional federal government doesn’t have a lot going for it. No control over the territory, no money in the coffers, no ability to tax, and no ability to offer services. This is not exactly a new predicament, but it’s also not getting any better. And so in the last couple of weeks, I’ve noticed ...
Somalia's transitional federal government doesn't have a lot going for it. No control over the territory, no money in the coffers, no ability to tax, and no ability to offer services. This is not exactly a new predicament, but it's also not getting any better. And so in the last couple of weeks, I've noticed a shift in tack from the country's leaders to what I'll call the "white flag" approach.
Somalia’s transitional federal government doesn’t have a lot going for it. No control over the territory, no money in the coffers, no ability to tax, and no ability to offer services. This is not exactly a new predicament, but it’s also not getting any better. And so in the last couple of weeks, I’ve noticed a shift in tack from the country’s leaders to what I’ll call the "white flag" approach.
In laymans terms, one could summarize this as "Dear Lord, please someone anyone please please help." In diplo-speek it looks like this:
President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed: "Somalia is in the hands of al-Qaeda and extremist groups. The whole issue needs urgent treatment …I would like to tell you that Somalia is going through its most dangerous phase in recent times and we are asking for intensified efforts in order to set up an effective military strategy."
Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke: "The Somali government, backed by African Union peacekeeping forces, is gradually extending the rule of law in Mogadishu and elsewhere in Somalia. The hard fight on the ground is ours to win, but we need international support from afar to remain strong if we hope to succeed."
Interesting tack for a country whose last century has largely been a story of failed intervention (first colonial, then Cold War, then U.S./U.N., and then Ethoipian last year.) The trouble is, that also means that almost everyone who has tried to do something (for better or worse) has been burned. And is hardly eager to for another round in Mogadishu.
Tragedy here is that Somalia is probably just as dangerous to the world as it is to itself, as the Prime Minister wrote for FP.
"Constructive disengagement" is a nice euphemism for the same very old and thoroughly failed policies that Western countries have used for years to wrongly argue that Somalia’s problems can remain in Somalia. This was the prevailing attitude of much of the international community during most of the past two decades — until rampant piracy drew navies from around the world toward Somali waters. The presence offshore of a flotilla of warships from the navies of more than two dozen countries illustrates vividly how our country’s internal problems are a pressing international issue.
And the pirates are just the beginning.
Elizabeth Dickinson is International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Colombia.
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