Ethiopia urges international troops for Somalia
By Tesfa-alem Tekle
December, 4 2007 (ADDIS ABABA) — The Ministry of Information called on the international community to swiftly carry out its responsibility in the efforts launched to bring sustainable peace in Somalia.
In a statement it issued yesterday, the Ministry said hopes of bringing sustainable peace, tackling “terrorism” as well as building capacity of the weak Somali transitional federal government(TFG) is over shadowed, as the international community is showing no interest of sending peace keepers, though there where repeated promise to provide all rounded assistance needed.
Of the 8,000 peacekeepers demanded to ensure peace in Somalia, only 1,500 Ugandan troops are actually on the round.
“Deployment of peacekeeping force was among the major pledges made by the international community” the Ministry said, however ”deployment of peacekeeping contingent was not carried out promptly and as it was expected.”
The lack of enthusiasm the international community has demonstrated on the issue is to some extent dragging back the promising efforts being primarily made by the Somali TFG and people as well as the Ethiopian government.
According to Ethiopian government the delays of deploying peace keepers in Somalia is pulling back Ethiopia’s pullout from Somalia.
“The reluctance of the international community towards the issue has created negative impacts on the over all political process in the country” it added.
Ethiopia has single-handedly been playing its role by bearing the huge responsibility that the international community and countries failed to accomplish in collaboration or individually, the statement stressed.
The legitimate government of Somalia, with the assistance it obtained from peace loving Somalis and the Ethiopian defence force, since last year has been taking tangible measures to uproot an international terrorists group that was a threat to the East Africa region including Ethiopia.
The Ministry also said that the measure taken by the Ugandan government in deploying peacekeeping contingent is exemplary in assisting the tangible effort Ethiopia is making.
If the swift and coordinated assistance of the international community is obtained, the existing reality in Mogadishu is a testimony that durable peace could be achieved in Somalia in a short span of time, it said.
The Ministry stressed that the African Union and the United Nations member countries should discharge their responsibility towards the success of the mission they supported previously.
(ST)