UN peace-building mission recommended

In a report to the Security Council, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan welcomed the establishment of the Somali Transitional National Government (TNA) and said Somalia now faced massive challenges of reconstruction and development. He pointed out that “no country has ever been so long without central authority” and that the TNA had “begun the process of establishing itself on Somalia soil and expanding the areas under its influence.” Recovering from a decade of statelessness and conflict would involve “not only the remaking of political society but also the total reconstruction of the country’s basic infrastructure”, the Secretary-General said.

In the report, submitted 19 December, Annan said he was ready to prepare a proposal for a peace-building mission for Somalia, which should be based inside Somalia. But he said such a mission would only be possible when security in Mogadishu had been established. “It would be a good sign if full operations for all traffic were restored in both the seaport and airport and if free and safe access to all districts of the city were guaranteed, with no ‘green lines’ to cross.”

Annan appealed for potential donors to “contribute without delay” and emphasised the need for the international community to give “sympathetic understanding and support”. He called on international monetary institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to “take up the challenge”.

However, the report pointed out that although the Djibouti-hosted peace talks involved representatives from all clans, there remained strong opposition by faction leaders, including leaders in Somaliland (northwest Somalia) and Puntland (northeast Somalia). These territories were “relatively calm” compared to the “uncertain and sometimes extremely tense” situation in south Somalia. It was the responsibility of the new government, led by interim President Abdiqasim Salad Hassan, to establish a government of unity and reconciliation through peaceful means, Annan told the Security Council.