By ISAAC ONGIRI
Somali MPs attending a conference for the Pan African Parliament in Addis Ababa have demanded the immediate withdrawal of Kenyan and other Amison forces from Somalia.
The MPs said an independent force would reduce suspicion between the countries in conflict and those contributing to the peacekeeping forces.
Member of Parliament Abdulaziz Abdulahi, who is leading the Somali delegation to the forum, called for withdrawal of all foreign forces.
“We are calling on Africa and the world to help the Somali government build capacity for their own forces, so that the people of Somalia can take responsibility for their territorial peace and harmony,” Mr Abdulahi said at the conference.
Although he praised Kenya for helping liberate many parts of Somalia, including Kismayu, the MP said the Kenyan military’s continued stay was not good for either country.
“Kenyan and other foreign troops must leave now. They must invest the resources at their disposal to facilitate the rebuilding of Somalia’s military instead,” Mr Abdulahi said.
Earlier this month, the Kenyan Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations asked the government to cut ties with Somalia following the decision by Mogadishu to take Kenya to the International Court of Justice over a maritime boundary dispute. The MPs claimed that the move was hostile and undiplomatic.
Earlier on, a report by the committee on Somalia and international boundaries recommended repatriation of all Somali refugees and a shutdown of the Dadaab refugee camp, the world’s largest. The report also called for the withdrawal of Kenyan troops from Somalia in protest.
READ: Only 3,000 out of 10,000 Somali refugees going home Nominated Senator Janet Ongera, who is leading the Kenyan team to the conference, said the AU should establish its own peacekeeping force to manage increasing conflict in the region.
The conference is deliberating on the promotion, domestication and implementation of the African Union legal instruments for the East African regions. She said the African military should operate professionally in order to provide adequate support.
“There are countries where the military is misused by those in power. In Kenya, for example the government deploys the military without consulting parliament. This is not right,” Ms Ongera told the conference.
Nairobi County women’s representative Rachael Shebesh said Kenya has suffered for stepping in to help stabilise Somalia. She said having a standby military unit for the AU would save countries like Kenya and Uganda from bearing the burden of a war they have nothing to do with.
“So many Kenyans have been killed in Somalia. If the AU had its own independent force, neighbours like Kenya would not have to send in their forces,” Ms Shebesh said.
Senator Fatuma Dulo, the vice chair of Kenya’s Senate Committee on Security, said Somali refugees should return to their country.
“Kenya has been insecure due to the Somalia situation, with terror threats everywhere. It is important that repatriation of Somali refugees be expedited to enable them to go back to the liberated parts of Somalia and start their life there,” Ms Dulo said.
Source: The East African
