From T.O. to Mogadishu

The Star article actually seems pretty fair and cautious not to jump to too many conclusions. I'd certainly heard US assertions flung around that Somalia is now an al-Quaeda hotbed of terrorism. But I do wonder how grounded these claims are. It's all too easy, in the current climate, to associate Islamic and Sharia principles with terrorism, and assume that all are controlled by one great Evildoer.

But the story of Sharia and Islamic law in Somalia goes back much further than 9/11. Years ago I worked with Somali refugees who, when weighing up the pros and cons of Islamic rule, found that stability was the most important thing, and much preferrable to the time of the UN and US bombings when the entire country was at the mercy of conflicting warlords. One woman said to me that she preferred the fear of the Sharia Law, which might chop off your hand if you were caught stealing, to the fear of stepping out her house and being murdered every day. (Or by being bombed by US or UN warplanes.)

The Somali elections were held in Kenya in 2004, and I was there to see the incredible hope that Somalis and the East African region as a whole had for the country. There was a government, the people were desparate for peace and stability, perhaps this really was a chance for the country to pull itself back together again. We all knew that for this to work would require huge and ongoing support from the West. To see how Somalia has been forgotten since then is really disheartening.

With a weak and unsupported government, charged with rebuilding a country from rubble and almost no infrastructure, it was all to easy for the warlords and chaos to return. I'm not surprised, frankly that the Islamic court stepped in when they did, and have probably, once again, been welcomed by the people who crave stability. If suggestions that the US funded warlords to prevent the Islamic courts getting power are true - then one has to wonder what their goal was? Was it peace in Somalia? Or were the US willing to sacrifice a country for the sake of their own crusade against the enemy that they think they see round every corner?

I really don't know if al-Quaeda has any purchase on the Islamic courts in Somalia. It's quite possible that there are angry radicals who have links. But Somalia desperately deserves a more nuanced attempt by the West to understand the difference between Islam and terrorism, and a people's need for any chance for stability.

The West should give their full and continued support to the elected government, to help rebuild the country and undercut the warlords. Complementary to that, they should seek to understand and dialogue with the Islamic court elements. The more that they seek to push these people away and demonise them, the easier it will be for anti-US sentiment to gain a purchase in Somalia.

Ok Avro I truly am wondering the point of this thread. Is it to try and make people feel sorry for Somalia or what. I'm just not seeing anything of major intrest here.