Kampala — The African Union summit yesterday bowed to pressure from the United Nations and turned down a request that it support a change in the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in war-torn Somalia.
After three days of deliberations, the AU Summit, however, closed with a promise of more troops from more African countries to join Uganda and Burundi, which together currently have their soldiers serving under the African peacekeeping mission in Somalia (Amisom).
Pre-emptive strikes
It was also agreed that Amisom, which has until now been hobbled by a mandate which restricts its troops to firing back only when attacked, now enjoy a change in rules of engagement - meaning they are free to carry out pre-emptive strikes against the al Shabaab radical Islamist militants.
The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General to Somalia Augustine Mahiga had on Monday delivered the message to a meeting attended by the presidents of Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, Tanzania, prime minister of Ethiopia and other foreign ministers that there is no need to change the current mandate.
Yesterday, Mr Johnnie Carson, the US assistant secretary of State for African Affairs quoted Mr Mahiga as telling a closed door meeting also attended by three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council; United States, France and Britain, that: "It was his view that under the existing mandate, the forces on the ground could act in a more responsible but robust fashion."
Uganda and the Somali Transitional Federal Government had prevailed on the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to call for a change of mandate saying the situation in Somalia warrants peace enforcement and not peacekeeping. With Uganda putting 2,000 additional soldiers at the ready, the number of Amisom troops headed for Somalia, could still top the 20,000 mark that leaders of IGAD want.
What's needed
Quoting Mr Mahiga, Mr Carson told a press conference in Kampala that Chapter 7 of the UN Charter gives the 6,300 Amisom force in Mogadishu "precisely what they need to undertake the kinds of operations that are required".
That provision signed in San Francisco, California on June 26, 1945, authorises the world body's Security Council to determine military and non-military responses to threats to peace or any act of aggression.
Weeks after the al Shabaab, a self-declared affiliate to terrorist network, al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the July 11 bomb attacks in Kampala that killed at least 76 people, President Museveni has been quoted telling BBC that the peacekeeping mission in Somalia remains "confused" by the current mandate. "They don't understand what they are doing. So they need a robust answer, a robust incisive answer," he told BBC.
Yesterday, the Chairman of the AU Commission, Mr Jean Ping said: "We had a request to change the mandate, which is under consideration. But there are implications. If we change the mandate, we need more equipment ..."
Mr Ping told journalists at the closure of the Summit that discussions with the USA, UK and France on reinforcing AMISOM with five helicopters were promising. He said the AU would also increase the soldiers pay from the current $ 500 dollars $750 dollars.
Separately, Mr ping said the Summit unanimously rejected the International Criminal Court indictment of Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Darfur region of that country. Arguing that the indictments are an abuse of African sovereignty for a non-African entity to seek the trial of a sitting president from the continent, the Summit demanded a 12-month suspension of the ICC arrest warrants against Mr Bashir. During this time, Mr Ping said, an African process would review the alleged evidence against the Sudanese President before action is taken.
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Here we go again, Museveni acting as the best monkey amongst the African dicators. He is willing to go it alone against Somalia, a country far away from Uganda, not linked by border or culture, why does he do it? Well, because the white man says so!
Its like the old story of a monkey and his master, the master trains the moneky by throwing the banana higher, then the monkey jumps and catches it, this time the story is Museveni and the White man throwing little opportunity to make some money and perhaps a recognition to his dictatorial regime that refused to step down even if the constitution requires him to step down.
Whenever a white man has to say something, there is always a desperate African dictator seeking attention responds, as a matter of fact in the case of African disctators they compete for war, as long as the order comes from a white man. I suppose, Museveni has been selected for this project, for he is a good and obedient monkey who has proven by jumping over Kenya to volunteer in Somalia to prove his obedience by killing fellow Africans.
The last time round, the moneky was Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, and we have seen what happened, three yerars later, NOTHING but more chaos! What's goint happen this time with a different accent monkey from Uganda? Well, NOTHING but more chaos!
I am still very confused about the overall mission of AU forces in war ravage Somalia. I wonder why African leaders and other world leaders cannot understsand that sitting on their tails and wait Alshaabab to attack and kill innocent civilians and peace keeping soldiers, as if there is any peace to keep in the first place. African leaders must change the mandate of their forces in Somalia from the so called peace keeping, there is and has never been any element of peace to keep in Somalia. An all out war must be declear on all terrorist groups in Somalia being Alshaabab or otherwise to bring this horific decade old conflict to an end. If the AU is reluctant to do just that I think they should fold their tails and leave Somalia to the terrorists, since it seems they are entangled in the semantics of war wordings, peace keeping, peace enforcement, I go for all out wqar against Alshaabab terrorists.
You are absolutely right, there is no peace in Somalia to keep. The reason for that is the misguided policy of the previous US administration. In June of 2006 Somalis established a government of their choice, Islamic Court Union (ICU). Thanks to the silly policy of disturbing the peace program, the previous administration decided to pay for the invasion of Somalia, in late December 2006 and the regime sent to invade Somalia was Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, and with well equipped military force, the Ethiopian dictator failed to pacify ICU with rag-tag army. Three and half years later we have a mess, more mess than we started with. Now tell me, invading Somalia by a different Army can bring anything different? You have to also consider the rights of the Somali people who have been the victims of the previous invasion program, and they have not seen peace in the last twenty years, EXCEPT FOR THAT SIX MONTHS (June 2006 - Dec 2006).
Do something smells fishing; they are always against Africa but pretends as if they are they best of friends for Africa. Africa watch out, there are always backstabbers against you; and this as we said, when our African Leaders will have a true vision and go beyond all negativities and develop their African countries and Africans in all aspects without pretending. When ????