Hashim

I had the opportunity to ask the following question the British Foreign Office: With the permission of the Foreign Office, I obtained following response that I like to share with my fellow countrymen around the world. Please join me in thanking Hiiraan Online for accommodating my request in publishing this piece:

British Government has been key supporters of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), to which we have contributed over £10.7million so far. We continue to encourage African partners to contribute troops to the mission. On 16 January 2009 we agreed a United Nations Security Council resolution (UNSCR 1863) on Somalia. The resolution includes agreement on reinforcing AMISOM following the withdrawal of the Ethiopian troops from Somalia and the commitment to consider mandating a UN Peacekeeping Operation in six months time. You can find the text of the resolution on: www.un.org.

In parallel we are looking at ways of providing additional support for the peace process represented by the Djibouti Agreement. Lasting peace in Somalia can only be established as a result of a Somali-led political settlement - not by international military intervention. We work with Somali and international partners to build political stability, including working closely with the United Nations Special Representative to the Secretary General for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, and the UN Political Office for Somalia. We welcome the decision of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the opposition Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS) in November 2008 to form a unity government and to continue work on justice and reconciliation issues. We fully support the Djibouti peace process and hope it will deliver a long-term solution for peace and stability in Somalia. 

We are deeply concerned by the dire humanitarian situation in Somalia. The UK is the second largest bilateral aid donor to Somalia. We have committed £30million for this financial year. All aid donations are made to the United Nations Development Programme and international NGOs. We call for all parties in Somalia to reject violence, commit to dialogue, guarantee humanitarian access and respect human rights.  Those with a genuine wish to help Somalia should be working together to make this happen. This will help marginalise extremist elements, who have been behind a great deal of the recent violence, and improve the daily lives of the Somali population.  We continue to work closely with our partners in the EU and the UN, and with the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General and the International Contact Group on Somalia to urge them to do likewise.

Source: British Foreign Office 

Hashim Duale, UK