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AfricaFocus Bulletin
Country-focused Bulletins
Dec 14, 2008 USA/Somalia: Obama's First Africa Test
With so many crises calling for attention, it may seem strange to
single out any one of them as the "first" test for the Africa
policy of the incoming Obama administration. Yet Somalia stands out
not only because it represents an international failure to respond
(as also in Darfur, the Congo, and Zimbabwe), but also for the fact
that in recent years short-sighted United States policy has
actively contributed to worsening an already desperate situation.
This policy disaster, moreover, has occurred with practically no
public debate, and no signals as yet that incoming officials plan
to change course.
Nov 22, 2008 Somalia: Piracy and the Policy Vacuum
"While the responsibility for this crisis [in Somalia] lies first
and foremost with the Somali leadership, the international
community, principally the U.S. government and members of the UN
Security Council, has also failed ... They have failed repeatedly
to take a principled engagement to solve the crisis, acknowledge
the power realities on the ground, support peace negotiations
without imposing external agendas, or provide independent
humanitarian assistance." - Refugees International
Apr 6, 2008 Somalia: "Most Neglected Crisis"
Forty humanitarian agencies appealed to the international community
late last month to pay attention to the crisis of some one million
displaced on ongoing fighting in Somalia. Refugees International
termed it currently "the most neglected crisis in the world," And
Donald Payne, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on
Africa told the New York Times (http://tinyurl.com/yo8avl), "We're
Baghdad-izing Mogadishu and Somalia."
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