Somalia:Texts adopted by EU Parliament

The European Parliament ,

–   having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Somalia,

–   having regard to the previous statements on Somalia made by the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy of the Council of the Union, Mr Solana, and by Commissioner Louis Michel,

–   having regard to the Memorandum of Understating signed in Brussels on 28 March 2006 by the President of Somalia, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, and the President of the Commission, Manuel Barroso, the Somali Prime Minister, Ali Mohamed Ghedi, and Commissioner Louis Michel,

–   having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

B.   whereas the militia of the Union of Islamic Courts seized control of much of southern Somalia – including the capital Mogadishu – on 4 June 2006 when they drove out the faction leaders who had controlled Mogadishu since 1991, when the central administration of Muhammad Siyad Barre was toppled,

C.   whereas, unfortunately, Somalia has not had an effective national government for over 15 years and the Union of Islamic Courts has started creating radical Islamic courts with a view to taking charge in the areas it controls; whereas, however, tension persists due to clan loyalties,

D.   whereas the United Nations Security Council has required the adoption of a National Security Plan in response to the request by the African Union for a partial lifting of the arms embargo limited to supporting the peace-keeping mission under UN mandate,

E.   whereas there are fears that the Union of Islamic Courts includes groups accused of having links to Al-Qaida and international terrorism, which may threaten the security of not only neighbouring countries but also the European Union and the rest of the world,

F.   whereas the Arab League initiated a dialogue in Khartoum on 22 June 2006 between the Transitional Federal Institutions and the Union of Islamic Courts in which the Transitional Federal Government recognised the ‘reality’ of the Union of Islamic Courts which, in return, recognised the ‘legality’ of the government; whereas the two parties thereby agreed not to fight each other but to continue to engage in dialogue for peace and reconciliation,

G.   whereas the recent meeting of the Union of Islamic Courts delegation with US officials in Khartoum has opened new prospects for confidence-building measures among the various parties,

1.  Strongly condemns the recent fighting in and around Mogadishu and the events in Jowhar and elsewhere in the country, which resulted in the loss of life of numerous Somali civilians and the murder of Mr Martin Adler, a Swedish freelance photographer at a pro-Union of Islamic Courts meeting;

2.  Appeals to all parties concerned to refrain from any action likely to escalate the current tensions, to pursue the path of dialogue and to extend the necessary cooperation to the Transitional Federal Government and parliament as the legitimate central authorities in Somalia governed by the framework of the Transitional Federal Charter;

3.  Maintains that, if the international community considers the transitional institutions to have sole legitimacy, pending the holding of free elections for Somali citizens, they must be given the necessary resources to establish the necessary institutions, such as a police force;

4.  Supports the initiatives taken by the African Union, the Arab League and the International Authority on Development (IGAD) – including the communiqué issued by the extraordinary session of the IGAD Council of Ministers held in Nairobi on 13 June 2006 – as well as their central role in the efforts aimed at sustaining the peace and reconciliation process in Somalia;

5.  Urges the Transitional Federal Institutions and the Union of Islamic Courts to fully assume their responsibilities in the implementation of the dialogue initiated in Khartoum;

6.  Calls on the newly formed International Somalia Contact Group, consisting of the African Union, the United Nations, the European Union, the United States, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Tanzania and others, to focus on issues of governance and institution-building, humanitarian assistance for the whole of Somali people and improving regional stability and security as a means to greater policy coordination among members of the international community;

7.  Calls on the EU, in coordination with the African Union and working closely with IGAD and the Arab League, to provide the requisite political, financial and logistical support to facilitate the peace process, including the deployment of the African Union Peace Support Mission reaffirmed by the recent African Union Summit in July 2006;

8.  Calls on the international community, and the EU in particular, to increase the provision of humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons and the populations in need;

9.  Calls on all parties concerned to respect international humanitarian law and allow relief agencies access to the populations in need, as well as to ensure the protection of humanitarian workers;

10.  Urges strict application and monitoring of the arms embargo against Somalia imposed by the UN in 1992, for which scant respect is shown, and insists that a partial lifting of the embargo should in no way be linked to a possible UN-mandated peace support mission;

11.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Secretaries-General of the UN, the African Union and IGAD, the President of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, the Chairman of the Union of Islamic Courts and the Pan-African Parliament.

Source: The European Parliament, July 6, 2006