Famine Stalks Somalia: UN Urges World Action
Monday, July 11, 2011 at 3:19PMSomalia is facing a level of famine not seen since the 1980’s, senior UN officials have warned, calling for massive humanitarian assistance for the southern part of the country.
An acute drought and continued fighting have forced hundreds of thousands of civilians into already overcrowded refugee camps in neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia, where over 1400 new refugees are seeking shelter every day.
“I believe Somalia represents the worst humanitarian disaster in the world” UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Gutteres told journalists during a visit to a refugee camp in Kenya on Sunday. “And that is why we need to do everything everything we can to make it possible to deliver massive humanitarian assistance inside Somalia.”
Threats from militias and a worsening security situation over the past months have left much of Southern Somalia out of the reach of aid agencies. Last week UN officials in Somalia welcomed the decision by al -Shabaab, a militant Islamic organization in control of large portions of the country, to allow humanitarian access to those in need.
But the rapidly growing number of displaced peoples has also put additional strain on neighboring states. Kenya and Ethiopia, who are struggling to manage the effects of the food crisis on their own populations, are continuing to see a large influx of displaced people.
The town of Dadaab in Northern Kenya is currently home to the largest refugee encampment in the world and operating well beyond its capacities. Over 350 000 people have sought shelter there, and 10,000 new Somali refugees are arriving every week.
Over the weekend, Kenyan government officials turned down a UN Refugee agency request to open an other nearby camp to better manage the overflow of displaced people.
“You can imagine what it is like in a camp that was built for 90 000 people that now host over 360 000 people” UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos told reporters today. “The implications in terms of access to water sanitation, our ability to supply the most basic services to those people are extremely limited.”
Amos said she was “disappointed” the Kenyan governments decided to turn down the UN request and urged the international community to do more for the Horn of Africa.
“We urgently need a united approach to the relief effort so we can avoid a descent into the famine like conditions last seen in the 1980’s.” she said “It’s clear that the effects of this drought are going to last for at least the rest of this year, and the situation in drought affected areas is expected to worsen. The need to do more now is urgent, but in addition, we also need to plan for the longer term, to help people rebuild their lives when the situation improves.”
DOD Official: Sailors Should Fight Somali Pirates Themselves
The most effective way to deal with piracy off of the Somali coast is for the sailors to defend themselves, according to a Defense Department representative testifying to the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
Michele Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, said that of the recent pirate attacks in Somalia the most effective means of fending off the pirates came from actions taken by the crews themselves.
“The single most effective short-term response to piracy will be working with merchant shipping lines to ensure that vessels in the region take appropriate security measures themselves,” Flournoy said. She continued that it is not possible for the U.S. military to prevent or intervene in every pirate attack, but if crews take appropriate measures, “the vast majority of pirate attacks can be thwarted without any need for military intervention.”
There were 122 attempted pirate attacks in 2008, of which only 42 resulted in crewmembers becoming captured. Of the unsuccessful attacks, 78 percent of them were stopped by the crews actions, with the others being stopped by military intervention, according to Flournoy.
Flournoy divided crew countermeasures into two categories: passive and active defense measures. Passive measures are those which don’t necessarily require direct confrontation with the pirates, and can include physical obstructions to boarding points, avoiding high-risk waters, creating fortified “safe rooms” in the ship, posting lookouts at all times, and maintaining contact with maritime security forces. Active defense measures can include using fire hoses and small arms to repel pirates and a military presence on the boat. Both of these defensive measures are important for crews to talk to defend themselves, Flournoy said.
She believes that the complexity of this situation necessitates a multifaceted approach, which is why the aforementioned measures should be combined with greater military patrols and economic development. Additionally, the Defense Department would like to see more states willing to prosecute the pirates. Presently, Kenya is one of the only nations to actually place Somali pirates on trial.
According to Flournoy, since August 2008 36 pirate vessels have been destroyed or confiscated, small arms have been seized, and 146 pirates have been turned over to law enforcement officers.