Somali government returns to reconciliation negotiations
Somalia, Politics, 3/18/2003

The Somali government has retracted from its stand to boycott the negotiations of the Somali reconciliation conference currently held in Nairobi. The Somali prime minister Hassan Abshar Farah and the speaker of the parliament who lead the team of the provisional government returned back to the table of negotiations.

The government's boycott of the negotiation which lasted for weeks was almost to lead to the collapse of the conference as a whole.

Some 21 ministers and members of parliament representing the government delegation split last week from the government's official position in boycotting the conference and took part in the meetings but they were not permitted to talk on behalf of the government during its absence from the negotiations.

However, this government step of "returning back to negotiations" came following intensive meetings held by the chairman of the conference's organizing committee Bathiol Kablejat with the government's delegation to the negotiations and with the "8- group" of the war lords who took a stand similar to that taken by the government.

The Somali government received assurances to meet its demand in including representatives for the "republic of the 'land of Somalia'" -- announced unilaterally in the northern part of the country -- to the conference and also alienating Ethiopia from the conference's organizing committee which is accused by Makadishu as working for undermining it by supporting several leaders of the Somali opposition.

Kablejat said that IGAD is studying all protests of the Somali sides and their comments on the process of the conference but he refused preconditions set by certain sides for their participation in the negotiations.

Kablejat, on the other hand, called for convening an urgent meeting in Nairobi, to be attended by all leaders of the 22 Somali groups leaders and the provisional government at the current reconciliation headquarters in Kenya in order to discuss the next final form of the Somali government. He extended the invitation to four of the war lords inside Somalia.

He added that the urgent meeting of the Somali war lords will discuss important issues, including formulating the final shape of the next Somali government, the truce agreement signed by the Somali sides on October 27th, 2002 as well as discussing the reports prepared by the 6 basic committees, that stemmed from the reconciliation conference

Previous Stories:
  Kuwait, Somalia for boosting bilateral relations   (3/17/2003)
  Ethiopia denies deployment of forces in Somalia   (3/15/2003)
  Security Council condemns violence in Somalia, calls for peace and relief access   (3/13/2003)

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