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Gandalf Grey
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Let's Hear It For the War on Terror: Somalia
By Barry Lando
Created Apr 6 2007 - 9:37am
On April 5th, there was a moving ceremony at the State Department. Assistant
Secretary Barry Lowenkron presented-as mandated by the U.S. Congress-the
fifth annual Supporting Human Rights and Democracy Report, which, said the
secretary, " documents the many ways the United States worked worldwide last
year to foster respect for human rights and promote democratic government."
Then, citing one of the globe's great champions of human rights, " As
President Bush has said, what every terrorist fears most is human freedom -
societies where men and women make their own choices, answer to their own
conscience and live by their hopes instead of their resentments."
Of course, in that war on terror, as in any war, you've got to be tough
minded. You do what you have to do: torture, kidnap, murder, whatever. You
also find your allies where you can, right? Like in the horn of Africa where
Al Qaeda has been active-killing and bombing for years. One place they were
supposed to be operating was Somalia, Black Hawk Down country: the very
definition of a failed state, a seething, ungovernable land of perpetually
warring clans. Between 1991 and last year, 13 governments came and went.
Then, last year a coalition of Islamic groups managed to bring calm to the
capital of Mogadishu by getting the feuding clans to disarm their militias,
and convincing Somalis, the majority of whom are Sunnis, to accept Islam as
the solution to their turmoil.
That calm lasted for six months. The problem was that, as the U.S. saw it,
while militant Islam might pacify the Somalis, it could also offer sanctuary
for groups linked with Al Qaeda to regroup and train for future
attacks-attacks like their bloody bombings in 1998 of the U.S. Embassies in
Kenya and Tanzania.
U.S. Special Forces went to work with their military buddies in neighboring
Ethiopia. And so it was that in December 2006, the Ethiopians attacked and
Somali crowds cheered in the battered streets of Magadishu as the Islamists
were sent packing. The Ethiopians and their U.S. advisors patted themselves
on the back. This was the beginning of a new era for Somalia. It was like
Baghdad after the fall of Saddam, or Kabul after the Taliban were evicted.
Similarly as well, the Ethiopian military scooped up scores of
people -people of all ages, some apparently just passing through-and packed
them off to clandestine prisons. Added to those were several hundred more
who had fled to neighboring Kenya. International reaction was not long in
coming.
According to the Associated Press, "Human rights groups, lawyers and several
Western diplomats assert hundreds of prisoners, who include women and
children, have been transferred secretly and illegally in recent months from
Kenya and Somalia to Ethiopia, where they are kept without charge or access
to lawyers and families." They include citizens of 19 countries, including
the U.S. Canada, France, Sweden.
While the Ethiopians deny they have any secret prisons in their country.
American officials admitted to the AP that the FBI and CIA have been allowed
"limited access" to question prisoners as part of their counter-terrorism
work."
As Paul Gimigliano, a CIA spokesman, put it "To fight terror, CIA acts
boldly and lawfully, alone and with partners, just as the American people
expect us to."
U.S. officials, however, claimed that America had nothing to do with the
arrests or imprisonment. But John Sifton, a Human Rights Watch expert on
counter-terrorism, charged that, on the contrary, the United States has
acted as "ringleader" in what he labeled a "decentralized, outsourced
Guantanamo."
O.K. so what goes on in the prisons of Ethiopia, America's partner? You
could ask Human Rights Watch, which of course talks of torture and beatings.
But we know what knee-jerks the HRW folks are. To get the real truth, we
turn to the U. S. State Department and its current report on Human Rights
around the globe.
Their summary on Ethiopia?
"Human rights abuses reported during the year included: limitation on
citizens' right to change their government during the most recent elections;
unlawful killings, and beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees and
opposition supporters by security forces; poor prison conditions; arbitrary
arrest and detention, particularly those suspected of sympathizing with or
being members of the opposition; detention of thousands without charge and
lengthy pretrial detention".and so on.
You get the picture.
Meanwhile, back in Somalia, turns out that, after the initial euphoria, the
regime installed by the Ethiopians and -one presumes-their American
advisors, has been incapable of bringing together the major clans. Large
numbers of African peacekeepers who were supposed to take over from the
Ethiopians have, for more the most part, yet to show up. Meanwhile, as the
interim government, which was supposed to be a transition on the road to
democracy, has become ever more authoritarian and isolated, a new insurgency
has grown. It began with some clans linked to the Islamists, but has now
greatly expanded.
The past weeks have seen increasingly bloody battles in Mogadishu.
Government troops often refused to take action , while the Ethiopians,
feeling no such restraint, have reportedly been launching devastating and
indsicriminate barrages into heavily populated urban areas. Mogadishu is
once again filled with death and destruction. Over a hundred thousand
Somalis have fled.
Impressive, while we've been obsessed with Iraq and Afghanistan and Iran,
the progress being made elsewhere in the War Against Terror.
_______
--
NOTICE: This post contains copyrighted material the use of which has not
always been authorized by the copyright owner. I am making such material
available to advance understanding of
political, human rights, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues. I
believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright
Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107
"A little patience and we shall see the reign of witches pass over, their
spells dissolve, and the people recovering their true sight, restore their
government to its true principles. It is true that in the meantime we are
suffering deeply in spirit,
and incurring the horrors of a war and long oppressions of enormous public
debt. But if the game runs sometimes against us at home we must have
patience till luck turns, and then we shall have an opportunity of winning
back the principles we have lost, for this is a game where principles are at
stake."
-Thomas Jefferson
By Barry Lando
Created Apr 6 2007 - 9:37am
On April 5th, there was a moving ceremony at the State Department. Assistant
Secretary Barry Lowenkron presented-as mandated by the U.S. Congress-the
fifth annual Supporting Human Rights and Democracy Report, which, said the
secretary, " documents the many ways the United States worked worldwide last
year to foster respect for human rights and promote democratic government."
Then, citing one of the globe's great champions of human rights, " As
President Bush has said, what every terrorist fears most is human freedom -
societies where men and women make their own choices, answer to their own
conscience and live by their hopes instead of their resentments."
Of course, in that war on terror, as in any war, you've got to be tough
minded. You do what you have to do: torture, kidnap, murder, whatever. You
also find your allies where you can, right? Like in the horn of Africa where
Al Qaeda has been active-killing and bombing for years. One place they were
supposed to be operating was Somalia, Black Hawk Down country: the very
definition of a failed state, a seething, ungovernable land of perpetually
warring clans. Between 1991 and last year, 13 governments came and went.
Then, last year a coalition of Islamic groups managed to bring calm to the
capital of Mogadishu by getting the feuding clans to disarm their militias,
and convincing Somalis, the majority of whom are Sunnis, to accept Islam as
the solution to their turmoil.
That calm lasted for six months. The problem was that, as the U.S. saw it,
while militant Islam might pacify the Somalis, it could also offer sanctuary
for groups linked with Al Qaeda to regroup and train for future
attacks-attacks like their bloody bombings in 1998 of the U.S. Embassies in
Kenya and Tanzania.
U.S. Special Forces went to work with their military buddies in neighboring
Ethiopia. And so it was that in December 2006, the Ethiopians attacked and
Somali crowds cheered in the battered streets of Magadishu as the Islamists
were sent packing. The Ethiopians and their U.S. advisors patted themselves
on the back. This was the beginning of a new era for Somalia. It was like
Baghdad after the fall of Saddam, or Kabul after the Taliban were evicted.
Similarly as well, the Ethiopian military scooped up scores of
people -people of all ages, some apparently just passing through-and packed
them off to clandestine prisons. Added to those were several hundred more
who had fled to neighboring Kenya. International reaction was not long in
coming.
According to the Associated Press, "Human rights groups, lawyers and several
Western diplomats assert hundreds of prisoners, who include women and
children, have been transferred secretly and illegally in recent months from
Kenya and Somalia to Ethiopia, where they are kept without charge or access
to lawyers and families." They include citizens of 19 countries, including
the U.S. Canada, France, Sweden.
While the Ethiopians deny they have any secret prisons in their country.
American officials admitted to the AP that the FBI and CIA have been allowed
"limited access" to question prisoners as part of their counter-terrorism
work."
As Paul Gimigliano, a CIA spokesman, put it "To fight terror, CIA acts
boldly and lawfully, alone and with partners, just as the American people
expect us to."
U.S. officials, however, claimed that America had nothing to do with the
arrests or imprisonment. But John Sifton, a Human Rights Watch expert on
counter-terrorism, charged that, on the contrary, the United States has
acted as "ringleader" in what he labeled a "decentralized, outsourced
Guantanamo."
O.K. so what goes on in the prisons of Ethiopia, America's partner? You
could ask Human Rights Watch, which of course talks of torture and beatings.
But we know what knee-jerks the HRW folks are. To get the real truth, we
turn to the U. S. State Department and its current report on Human Rights
around the globe.
Their summary on Ethiopia?
"Human rights abuses reported during the year included: limitation on
citizens' right to change their government during the most recent elections;
unlawful killings, and beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees and
opposition supporters by security forces; poor prison conditions; arbitrary
arrest and detention, particularly those suspected of sympathizing with or
being members of the opposition; detention of thousands without charge and
lengthy pretrial detention".and so on.
You get the picture.
Meanwhile, back in Somalia, turns out that, after the initial euphoria, the
regime installed by the Ethiopians and -one presumes-their American
advisors, has been incapable of bringing together the major clans. Large
numbers of African peacekeepers who were supposed to take over from the
Ethiopians have, for more the most part, yet to show up. Meanwhile, as the
interim government, which was supposed to be a transition on the road to
democracy, has become ever more authoritarian and isolated, a new insurgency
has grown. It began with some clans linked to the Islamists, but has now
greatly expanded.
The past weeks have seen increasingly bloody battles in Mogadishu.
Government troops often refused to take action , while the Ethiopians,
feeling no such restraint, have reportedly been launching devastating and
indsicriminate barrages into heavily populated urban areas. Mogadishu is
once again filled with death and destruction. Over a hundred thousand
Somalis have fled.
Impressive, while we've been obsessed with Iraq and Afghanistan and Iran,
the progress being made elsewhere in the War Against Terror.
_______
--
NOTICE: This post contains copyrighted material the use of which has not
always been authorized by the copyright owner. I am making such material
available to advance understanding of
political, human rights, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues. I
believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright
Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107
"A little patience and we shall see the reign of witches pass over, their
spells dissolve, and the people recovering their true sight, restore their
government to its true principles. It is true that in the meantime we are
suffering deeply in spirit,
and incurring the horrors of a war and long oppressions of enormous public
debt. But if the game runs sometimes against us at home we must have
patience till luck turns, and then we shall have an opportunity of winning
back the principles we have lost, for this is a game where principles are at
stake."
-Thomas Jefferson