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posted on WED 18 JUL 2012 3:40 PM
Somalia Political Briefing and Sanctions Committee Consultations
Tomorrow afternoon (19 July) Security Council members are scheduled to
hold consultations, first on the political situation in Somalia, then
on the Somalia and Eritrea 751/1907 Sanctions Committee. Special
Representative Augustine Mahiga is scheduled to brief on the political
developments in Somalia and it seems a press statement on the
political situation is likely. Following Mahiga’s briefing, the chair
of the Sanctions Committee, Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri (India),
will present two separate reports of the Monitoring Group on Eritrea
and Somalia and brief on the work of the Committee. (The Monitoring
Group is composed of eight experts—some covering Somalia and others
Eritrea.)
The Sanctions Committee has met twice in the past week to discuss the
reports of the Somalia/Eritrea Monitoring Group and its
recommendations. The report of the Humanitarian Coordinator for
Somalia has also been circulated, and the Sanctions Committee received
a briefing on it from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs on 11 July. It appears that that report recommends extending
the humanitarian exemption to the sanctions regime. The mandate of the
Monitoring Group expires on 29 July, and a renewal of that mandate is
currently scheduled for 25 July.
Mahiga, who last briefed the Council on 15 May, is expected to provide
an update on progress in Somalia towards ending the transition by the
20 August deadline. Council members will likely be interested in
learning more about recent delays in convening the National
Constituent Assembly, and how this may impact the end of the
transitional process. (The National Constituent Assembly was
originally scheduled to convene on 12 July and conclude its work by 20
July. Media reports now suggest the Assembly will not meet until after
20 July.)
An additional area of concern for the Council is likely to be the
issue of spoilers. The report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia
details rampant corruption within the Transitional Federal Government.
The report also contains recommendations regarding the establishment
of the Joint Financial Management Board (JFMB), which may also come up
for discussion. Additional recommendations regarding piracy and the
activities of private security companies in Somalia are also likely to
be of interest to Council members.
There appears to be little controversy over the recommendations of the
Monitoring Group in its report on Eritrea. That report suggests that
sanctions against Eritrea have been successful and should continue. On
17 July, Eritrea’s Permanent Representative, Ambassador Araya Desta,
addressed the Sanctions Committee and it is possible that the chair
might update the Council on that briefing.
On Somalia, however, there are differences among Council members
regarding the scope of the Council’s response to the issues raised by
the Monitoring Group’s report. While the report recommends that the
Council request the establishment of the JFMB in a resolution, some
members feel that this may be unnecessary. Another seemingly
controversial recommendation relates to the suggestion that additional
bodies be established to investigate Somali piracy and to identify
pirate leaders, as well as to regulate private maritime security
companies operating in the region. There is some resistance to both
proposals among certain Council members. This issue may be raised
during a meeting when Somali representatives address the Sanctions
Committee at the end of the month.
At press time, it did not appear that the mandate of the Somalia and
Eritrea Monitoring Group—whose renewal is set for Tuesday next
week—would be changed substantially. The new resolution will likely
continue the additional measures added in resolution 2023 (2011)
designed to prevent Eritrea from using its diaspora tax or mining
sector revenues to commit violations of the sanctions regime. The
resolution also seems likely to strengthen the charcoal ban added to
the mandate by resolution 2036 of 22 February this year.
At press time, the length of the mandate extension for the Monitoring
Group remained unclear, although an extension of 13 months—as has been
done with several other sanctions committees recently—is possible.
This would enable the Monitoring Group to have enough time to complete
its work and allow for a smooth continuation of its work if its
mandate is renewed this time next year. (The Monitoring Group for
Somalia/Eritrea traditionally does not seem to have been as
politically sensitive as some other groups of experts: it is composed
of nationals from Belgium (2), Canada, France, Nigeria, South Africa,
Tunisia and the US.) The Council is also likely to extend the
humanitarian exemption to the Somalia sanctions regime for the same
period.
Received on Thu Jul 19 2012 - 10:41:32 EDT
