Few would have expected, a few months ago, that Somalia would supply an example of progress in the struggle to bring a country out of the misery of civil war and destitution. And, yet, this is the case. Somalia is no longer a failed state.
Spoilers may bark but Somalia’s caravan of peace moves on- Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Catherine Ashton
Instead of furnishing the world’s media with terrifying headlines about piracy at sea and bloodshed on the streets, Somalia is providing an example of the old saying that no news is good news. Working with the European Union and other international partners, a new Somalia is defying the cynicism of outsiders. Spoilers may bark but Somalia’s caravan of peace moves on.
A successful military campaign has succeeded in asphyxiating Al Shabaab while, daily, defectors seek to give up violence and find a future in this new Somalia. Piracy in 2012 was 95 per cent down on 2011. Somalis are returning from exile, investing and helping build a new state. Mogadishu, the capital, is bustling. Militias, once the instruments of warlords, are now negotiating their integration into a national army. Regions that had to survive on their own through 20 years of civil war are now engaged in a debate over how they will become part of a federal system.
It is not the stuff of dramatic headlines but it is the stuff of human progress.
We believe that a partnership between Somalis and Europeans has helped lay the foundation for the progress. We shall now consolidate the progress.
Through Somalia’s most difficult moments in the last 20 years, the EU was present, providing support.
It has taken a military campaign in which African countries have fought – and still fight - on behalf of the African Union and with the indispensible support of the EU to provide the security and space for politics to occur, a new President to be chosen and for the process of reconciliation to begin.
But, now, we will secure the peace and work together, to develop a habit of normality in which political disputes are not settled through violence, corruption is not an option, clan interests give way to citizens’ interests and the country is at peace with its neighbours.
There is no room for complacency, delay or a fragmented approach by the international community. We only have to look at the arc of instability circling the southern fringes of Europe, from the Sahel to Syria, to appreciate that a potential success in Somalia becomes an example for greater stability and security for all of Europe.
The Government of Somalia has a plan that will reconcile the nation, build a new federal state, establish the rule of law, ensure transparent financial management and, thus, provide the assurance to its neighbours that it is no longer an exporter of insecurity but a guarantor of regional stability. We believe that this is feasible. But we must act now. If we do not, we leave a vacuum for those who want failure in Somalia.
Today, the priority remains security. The country needs a national army, a police force, a maritime police and a justice system offering fair access to all Somalis. The EU is already at the centre of this strategy. EU funding has supported the rule of law in Somalia and this will be intensified. As this strategy unfolds and shows success, there can be a gradual reduction in the role of the African Union’s mission in Somalia.
With the foundation of security, the Government of Somalia can accelerate the process of reconciliation. This is complex but September’s election showed that the vast majority of Somalis want a fair process of integration rather than survival in disintegration. New local administrations that are inclusive, drawing in many marginalised people, will be set up soon.
These districts and regions will be folded into a federal state structure. The federal government promises that this will be done in a way that Somalia’s neighbours - which are host to Somali refugees and attacks from terrorists - do not feel they are threatened.
Meanwhile, building the capacity of the state is a priority. As Somalia acquires new revenue, this must be well managed and free of any taint of corruption.
Somalia cannot be asked to achieve these goals alone. Success will lie in a partnership between Somalia and the international community, a genuine partnership in which Somalis assume the rights and obligations of a sovereign state. This arrangement, to manage the way to peace and prosperity in Somalia, will be enshrined in a new compact between Somalia and its many friends in the international community. The work has begun and we have both decided that we will create the framework at a conference co-hosted by Somalia and the EU this autumn.
We are confident that the conference will demonstrate something that is as essential as it is rare in today’s world: how patient cooperation to further a genuinely collective cause can tackle even the toughest challenges.
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is President of Somalia and Catherine Ashton is the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.