Rob Macaire

SOMALIA, KENYA, AND THE UK

I am just back from Addis Ababa, where I have had the chance to discuss with my colleagues from here and London, and also with the Ethiopian government, some regional problems including Somalia.  I spend a great deal of my time on Somalia.  But the situation in the country remains desperate, and there is a long way to go before Somalis can look forward to a more normal, stable existence.

Kenyans tell me that they are increasingly concerned about the problems that instability in Somalia brings over the border: refugees, small arms, all manner of threats.  People complain that money from piracy is behind the price of housing in Nairobi!  I am not so sure the arithmetic stands up for that claim, but there is no doubt that people here are directly affected by the situation in Somalia.  Actually, so is the UK.   With one of the largest Somali diasporas in the world, we have a direct interest in helping to resolve the ongoing crisis in that country.

That’s why we put money into both humanitarian and development assistance; support the AU force who are courageously defending the capital from rebels, and taking casualties from terrorist attacks (AMISOM);  work with our EU and other partners to support political moves towards stability; and back the Transitional Federal Government both diplomatically and practically.   One of the allegations I have little time for is people in the region saying that the international community “must do more” on Somalia.   It’s right up near the top of our international priorities.  But one thing we’ve learnt over the painful years since Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991 is that the outside world can easily do more harm than good by intervening.   The whole world needs to be resolute in supporting the widely-recognised government in the face of attacks from extremists.  But I believe that Somalis, not foreigners, will be the ones to bring eventual peace and development to their country.

But from the perspective my posting here in Kenya, I sense a bit of a danger that people will indiscriminately blame the Somalis living in Kenya (and even Kenyan Somalis) for the threats coming from over the border.  I'd be interested in any comments on that - especially if you are a Kenyan Somali or refugee.

Posted at 08:32 25 September 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[3]

UK and Kenya: The problem of piracy

Somali pirates have been much in the news recently - not just here in the region, but across the international press.  People are rightly concerned about the threat to trade, not least into Mombasa, and a lot of people have welcomed the robust action taken recently by the US and France.   But of course this is just the tip of the iceberg: there are a lot more piracy incidents going on than hit the press, and likewise a continuous and intensive international effort to tackle them.  I agree with those who say that the problem won't be sorted finally until there is greater law & order and economic development on land.   The UK is a strong supporter of the peace process to reconcile the parties in Somalia and bring more stability and growth to the country.  

But in the meantime, many nations, including ours, are engaged in tackling the piracy threat at sea.  And it is impressive to see the responsible leadership role Kenya has taken, in being willing to take pirate suspects into detention and try them through the courts.   Now other regional countries should join that effort, so that there's a proper sharing of the burden between naval powers patrolling the waters, and regional states who stand to gain most from effective anti-piracy operations.  

A great example of international cooperation to tackle international threats.  So I'm saddened to see some of the misinformation in the press about Kenya being a "dumping ground" or putting itself at more risk by joining this international effort:  a bigger threat would come from not tackling piracy.

I see my colleague John Duncan has been blogging about this from the point of view of the international arms trade - I commend his blog.

Posted at 15:58 20 April 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[6]