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Note: This document is from the archive of the Africa Policy E-Journal, published
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Horn of Africa: Peace and Security
Horn of Africa: Peace and Security
Date distributed (ymd): 020416
Document reposted by Africa Action
Africa Policy Electronic Distribution List: an information
service provided by AFRICA ACTION (incorporating the Africa
Policy Information Center, The Africa Fund, and the American
Committee on Africa). Find more information for action for
Africa at http://www.africaaction.org
+++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: East Africa
Issue Areas: +security/peace+ +economy/development+
SUMMARY CONTENTS:
This posting contains several documents related to two peace and
security issues in the Horn of Africa: (1) the just announced
Boundary Commission decision on the disputed border between
Ethiopia and Eritrea, and (2) U.S. policy towards Somalia, and
particularly last November's decision to shut down the Somali money
transfer and telecommunications company al-Barakat. Included is a
link to the April 13 New York Times investigative article stating
that even many American officials now acknowledge the weakness of
their case linking al-Barakaat with al-Qaeda.
+++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"New Chapter" in Relations, UN Says
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
http://www.irinnews.org
[Note: Those wishing to receive IRIN reports via e-mail can
subscribe through the web site or contact subs@ocha.unon.org.
IRIN reports also appear regularly on http://allafrica.com
IRIN reports may not necessarily reflect the views of the United
Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post
any IRIN item, please retain this credit and disclaimer.]
April 11, 2002
On the eve of a crucial border ruling, the head of the U
peacekeeping mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) has spoken
of a "new chapter" in relations between the two countries.
Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, who is the Special Representative of
the UN Secretary General, told IRIN that the impending
announcement on Saturday by an independent Boundary Commission
was a chance for peace for both countries.
"I am an African, and these are two African countries which have
shed a lot of blood in the war that ended in 2000," he said in
the Eritrean capital, Asmara. "Therefore I will be the happiest
man on earth if the decision is announced and we go forward to
help them demarcate the border and thereafter live in peace as
neighbours."
"The decision is the start of a new chapter for Ethiopia and
Eritrea and to tell you the truth, in advance of the announcement
of the decision, I wish them the best," he added.
In 1998, Ethiopia and Eritrea, which are among the poorest
countries in the world, began a bloody two-year border war that
cost thousands of lives. In December 2000, they signed the
Algiers Peace Agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, both
sides agreed to allow some 4,200 UN peacekeepers to patrol a 25
km-wide buffer area, known as the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ).
They also agreed to the establishment of an independent Boundary
Commission in The Hague which would rule on border delimitation,
to be followed by the physical demarcation. The verdict, they
agreed, would be final and binding with no right of appeal.
"It is a decision that is the whole raison d'etre for the peace
process," said Legwaila, who was appointed to head UNMEE in
September 2000.
"The peace process is supposed to culminate in the normalisation
of the boundary between Eritrea and Ethiopia and the normalisation
... is the opening of a new chapter for peaceful relations between
the two countries," he said. "That's why the decision is very
important."
Legwaila said the ruling was also crucial for UNMEE. "What it
means for UNMEE is that the two parties have succeeded in
resolving their dispute, that is if there is no problem with the
decision," he stated. "It would mean that UNMEE has been able to
help the two parties solve their border problem, at least so far
as delimitation is concerned because the border still has to be
demarcated."
He also said UNMEE would maintain a strong presence for many
months to come while the physical demarcation of the border was
carried out. "UNMEE's role is not drawing to an end," he told
IRIN. "Our mandate only terminates with the planting of the last
pillar on the border.
"Therefore we still have lots of months to be here, to continue
to keep the forces of the two sides separated while the boundary
is demarcated...We are not winding down simply because the
decision of the Boundary Commission will be announced on
Saturday."
UNMEE has been been asked by the commission to "take the lead" in
removing mines so that the border can be marked. "If the decision
is announced on Saturday and we are told by the president of the
Boundary Commission that we should go ahead with demining for
demarcation, we will do so," he added.
"As far as we are concerned we have virtually demined access
roads, not for demarcation, but we have been demining access
roads because we use these roads in our patrolling of the
Temporary Security Zone," Legwaila said. "Therefore all we would
need to do is demine the areas where the pillars are planted." He
noted that if the resources were available, the demining should
not take too long.
According to Legwaila, despite the fact that the ruling was just
days away, there were no signs of tension along the border. "Our
people in the field on both sides of the border of the Temporary
Security Zone have not reported anything unusual, no unusual
activity by the two sides," he said. "So everybody seems to be at
peace with themselves awaiting the decision on Saturday."
He added that UN Secretary General Kofi Annan would make an
announcement about the ruling on Saturday.
Border Ruling Vindicates Eritrea, Asmara Says
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
April 14, 2002
NAIROBI, 14 April (IRIN) - Eritrea has said the ruling on
delimitation of its border with Ethiopia is a vindication for
Asmara and a victory for both peoples.
A government statement, faxed to IRIN on Sunday, said both sides
accepted that the decision would be final and binding when they
signed the Algiers peace accord of December 2000. "Hence the
question of acceptance of the decision is superfluous and does
not require belaboured commentary and verbal acrobatics," the
statement said.
An independent Boundary Commission, established under the terms
of the Algiers peace agreement, issued its ruling on the border
between the two countries on Saturday. The two sides fought a
bitter two-year war, triggered by a border dispute in May 1998.
Ethiopia was quick to pronounce victory after the ruling, stating
it had retained all the territories under its administration
including the villages of Badme and Zalambessa where some of the
heaviest fighting took place.
But in its statement, the Eritrean government retorted that "as
to the question of in whose favour the decision went, the
determination and its implications provide clear answers".
"The flowery and bombastic statements that were issued today
[Saturday] cannot erase from our collective memories the
statements and actions of the past four years. Nor can we forget
that Badme, which was included in the map of Tigray [issued by
the Ethiopian authorities in 1997], was used as a pretext for
Ethiopia's declaration of war."
The statement said Eritrea had "consistently maintained that the
border dispute could only be resolved by peaceful and legal
means". "Today's determination by the Border Commission has
reaffirmed what was clear four years ago and has vindicated
Eritrea," it said.
The statement went on to say that "learned commentary" was not
needed "to clarify in whose favour the decision went and the
Ethiopian people are best placed to give their judgement".
"In the final analysis, the end of the war on the basis of a
legal determination is a victory for both the Eritrean and
Ethiopian peoples. It is a victory for the people of Ethiopia,
but it is the Eritrean people who have emerged most victorious,"
the statement said.
Both Sides Claim Victory in Border Ruling
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
April 14, 2002
Addis Ababa - Several thousand Ethiopians on Sunday gathered in
Meskel Square, the central square of the capital Addis Ababa, to
celebrate a ruling on the border with Eritrea.
Both sides were claiming victory, following Saturday's
announcement of the crucial ruling on border delimitation by an
independent Boundary Commission in The Hague. The countries
fought a bloody two-year war, triggered by a border dispute in
May 1998 which claimed tens of thousands of lives. But after a
peace agreement signed in December 2000 they agreed that the
Boundary Commission would finally rule where the disputed 1,000
km border should lie.
The announcement on Saturday was immediately hailed a victory by
Ethiopia. The Ethiopian foreign minister Seyoum Mesfin accused
Eritrea of "forcing the war" on the country. "This decision has
rejected any attempt by Eritrea to get reward for its
aggression," he said. "This decision was fair and legal."
But Eritrea hit back accusing Ethiopia of propaganda and branding
its claims of victory as a "lie". In a statement, the Eritrean
government said: "It is a victory for the people of Ethiopia, but
it is the Eritrean people who have emerged most victorious."
According to the Ethiopian government, territory awarded to
Ethiopia includes Zalambessa, Aiga, Alitena, Yona Shihak,
Kolobirda, Adi-Kutu (central), Badme, Bada and Bure. Some land
west of Badme had been awarded to Eritrea as this had not been
previously under Ethiopian administration, the government said.
Currently, some 4,200 United Nations peacekeepers are on high
alert in the region. They are patrolling a 25 km buffer zone
between both countries.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Saturday welcomed the ruling
and called for its immediate implementation. Noting that the two
countries had maintained a ceasefire since June 2000, he stated
that "this accomplishment, which deserves to be commended, must
now be built upon by working expeditiously to implement the
Boundary Commission's decision".
"The peoples of Eritrea and Ethiopia who have suffered greatly
deserve no less," he said.
The border now has to be physically demarcated by erecting stone
pillars. But before that happens tens of thousands of mines which
were laid by both forces have to be removed.
No Trading Peace for "Territorial Expansion" - Meles
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
April 16, 2002
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has said the recent ruling
on the border with Eritrea will enable his country to build peace
and democracy, and these would never be exchanged for
"territorial expansion".
In an interview with Ethiopian television and radio on Monday, he
said the decision had "unequivocally emphasised" that any border
conflict should only be resolved by law. "The ruling has
supported and complied with the stance that we were pursuing from
the outset," he said. "In my opinion this is our major victory."
An independent Boundary Commission, based in The Hague, on
Saturday handed down its verdict on where the border between
Ethiopia and Eritrea should lie. The Commission was established
when the two sides signed the Algiers peace accord in December
2000 after two years of bitter war over their disputed border.
"Peace, development and democracy cannot go hand in hand with
territorial expansion or ruling people without their wish," Meles
said. "We will not hand over our peace and democracy for the sake
of [the Eritrean port of] Assab or any other issue."
Opposition parties in landlocked Ethiopia have been calling for
access to the sea and say the issue of Assab should have been
included in the border arbitration.
Meles also lashed out at Eritrea, accusing its leadership of
"military adventurism", the pro-government Walta Information
Centre reported. "It would be unrealistic to expect that the
[Eritrean] regime would refrain from acts of provocation aimed at
derailing the peace process," he was quoted as saying.
Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin said the Eritrean
government was trying to cause "confusion" by stating it had been
awarded the village of Badme. In an interview with 'Abyotawi
Democracy', the newspaper of the ruling Ethiopian People's
Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), he said the ruling had
shown Badme "to be an integral part of Ethiopian sovereign
territory".
Eritrea says that based on the border line drawn by the Boundary
Commission in the western sector, "it has been confirmed that all
the [disputed] areas, including Badme ...are sovereign Eritrean
territory."
There is confusion over who has been awarded Badme, the area
where the border dispute flared up into full-scale war in 1998.
Analysts told IRIN both governments were putting forward
diametrically opposed views of the ruling to convince their
citizens that the sacrifices and loss of life had not been in
vain.
UNDP Helps Avert Shutdown of Somali Remittance Flows
United Nations Development Programme (New York)
April 11, 2002
For further information, please contact Sonya Green, UNDP Somalia
(sonya.green@undp.org), or Omar Gharzeddine, UNDP Communications
Office (omar.gharzeddine@undp.org).
New York - UNDP Somalia has helped pave the way for Wells Fargo &
Co. in the US to delay a decision to close down the accounts of
Dahabshil, Somalia's largest remaining money transfer company. UNDP
has developed an action plan to help such Somali companies comply
with international financial rules to avoid closure, which could
cause great hardship to thousands of Somalis who depend on
remittances from abroad for their livelihoods.
Since 11 September, Somalia's money transfer companies have come
under increasing international scrutiny, and the threat of sudden
closure. The US Treasury froze the funds of the largest operator,
Al Barakat, in October.
If the accounts of Dahabshil - the next largest - were closed, the
combined impact on Somalia's economy could be grave, according to
UNDP Somalia.
Already there has been a crisis of confidence in remittance
operations, a slow-down of private sector investment and labour
opportunities, reduction in construction and transport activities,
and the loss of a major source of income to some poor households.
"Somalia's remittance sector is critical to the economy, but there
are also legitimate international concerns about the system," said
Andrea Tamagnini, UNDP Somalia Country Director. "To meet both
needs, UNDP Somalia launched a project to legitimize remittance
services offered by the Somali money transfer companies and
eventually bring them under internationally established banking
rules and regulations."
Somalia has been without any commercial banking and financial
institutions since the overthrow of the Siad Barre government 11
years ago. The three major money transfer companies handle some
750,000 transfers to Somalia worth US$500 million each year,
benefiting more than half the Somali population of 6.5 million.
Current remittance operations are reliable, efficient and
inexpensive, but fall short of acceptable international standards
of organization and management. They lack consistency in compliance
with host country laws, rules and regulations, and do not have
pro-active plans to identify suspicious transactions and money
laundering schemes.
UNDP Somalia's action plan includes consultations with remittance
companies, local authorities in Somalia, and other concerned
governments and parties to formulate short and long term solutions.
In the short term, UNDP Somalia will provide technical support to
the remittance companies to ensure compliance with all
international financial rules and regulations -- including
standardized bookkeeping, auditing and reporting -- and conducting
due diligence to developing risk management programmes. These
efforts also include familiarizing management with the
inter-governmental Financial Action Task Force to combat
money-laundering, among other measures.
In the longer term, UNDP Somalia views access to international
regulated banking as a critical part of reconstruction of the
Somali economy and financial services to provide retail banking,
corporate banking, and loans for commercial and social development.
UNDP Somalia will provide technical support to Somali authorities
and private entrepreneurs for private investors to establish
commercial banks, develop the necessary legal framework to regulate
them and enforce those rules, and train workers.
Additional links on Somalia and U.S. Policy
"5 Months After Sanctions Against Somali Company, Scant Proof of
Qaeda Tie" New York Times, April 13, 2002reported by Tim
Golden, Bill Berkeley and Donald G. McNeil Jr.
http://www.ucimc.org/front.php3?article_id=4981&group=webcast
Selected quotes:
" ... several American officials said the government has only
limited evidence of a direct tie between Al Barakaat and Al Qaeda.
One senior official said the information came from a single
source."
"Treasury officials said their most compelling intelligence centers
on reports of Al Barakaat's relationship with an obscure militant
Islamist group in Somalia that the United States has haracterized
as a terrorist group with clear ties to Al Qaeda. But some
officials said the significance of this indirect link to Mr. bin
Laden may have been overstated."
"Until now, the only criminal prosecutions to be brought against
people involved with Al Barakaat do not include charges of
terrorism. Prosecutors in Boston have charged two Somali brothers
with making illegal money transfers, a state misdemeanor that can
be charged as a felony in federal courts. ... Earlier this month,
two Barakaat associates in northern Virginia were indicted on
money-laundering charges that grew out of the November raids."
"Mogadishu: Another Foreign Policy Challenge for the United
States", Addis Tribune (Addis Ababa), April 12, 2002
David H. Shinn Statement at the Somali Confederation in Minnesota
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204120347.html
David Shinn is a retired foreign service officer who served as
State Department Coordinator for Somalia and as Ambassador to
Ethiopia.
Selected quote:
"... until intelligence indicates there is a greater threat than
appears to be the case now, the U.S. should avoid significant
military action in Somalia. In addition, before using military
force in the region, the U.S. would be well advised to weigh the
impact of its actions on regional stability and local Muslim
communities. It does not need the added complications of a
well-intentioned but ill-advised military intervention that leads
to further conflict and confusion in the Horn of Africa."
Earlier postings in Africa Action archive:
http://www.africafocus.org/docs01/som0111.php>
http://www.africafocus.org/docs02/som0201.php>
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by
Africa Action (incorporating the Africa Policy Information
Center, The Africa Fund, and the American Committee on Africa).
Africa Action's information services provide accessible
information and analysis in order to promote U.S. and
international policies toward Africa that advance economic,
political and social justice and the full spectrum of human
rights.
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