The Conflict in Somalia
Written by Mark Van Steenwyk : December 29, 2006
Because thousands of East Africans live in Minneapolis (a good many in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood), I have an above-average interest in the goings-ons in Somalia. I just read the following from the Pew Forum’s news feed:
Troops from Ethiopia and Somalia’s weak transitional government cornered Islamic fighters Wednesday in their stronghold of Mogadishu, and witnesses said the once powerful religious alliance was rapidly disintegrating. Some key Islamist leaders resigned their posts and were seen attempting to flee by boat, officials said early today.
A weeklong assault led by Ethiopia’s military, which sent about 4,000 troops into Somalia at the request of the transitional government, has resulted in a surprising reversal of fortune for the Islamists, who have lost nearly all of the territory they seized in the last six months.
The Islamists lost two more key areas Wednesday, including the town of Jawhar and the port city of Kismayo, officials said. Ethiopian and transitional government troops moved within 18 miles of Mogadishu, and government forces were preparing to enter the capital today.
Islamists distributed guns to civilians, urging them to help fight off an attack. But some fighters were rejoining their former clan-based militias; others shaved their beards and removed Islamic caps in an effort to blend in with the population.
My hope and prayers are for peace in Somalia. And while conflict SEEMS to be somewhat curbed, my gut tells me that this is simply a false ending to conflict in Somalia. My fear is that Somalia is an emerging front line in growing conflicts between Islamists and somewhat pro-Western forces. We, the Church, need to think very carefully about how we–the embodiment of Christ’s presence on earth–respond to this particular situation, and all the coming conflicts which arise on the edges of Islamist power.
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I’d also be concerned that the war is Sudan is spreading as part of the Oil/Gas wars, in what could also emerge in Turkmenistan.
dlw
Yes…the Oil/Gas Wars. Part of the evil plot by The Venusians, along with Bush and Haliburton conspiracy, to crank out deadly green house gasses to turn Earth into a destitute planet of methane and carbon dioxide. They have their squinty little alien eyes all over the mountian ranges where they plan to build resorts similar to the ones in Jamacia, which will naturally be under water because the polar ice caps are melting.
Remember those little paper hats you use to make in grade school? The ones that could also be used as a boat? You can to that with tin foil as well.
…the Bush and Haliburton conspiracy…
…You can do that with tin foil as well…
ugh.
There’s been talk before of the coming oil/gas wars. It’s hardly conspiracy, but rather what has been predicted.
I think the only way out is for us to agree to have EU-style gas/oil taxes levied by our gov’ts and accompanied by income transfers, like with the Basic Income Guarantee.
dlw
ugh. The guy (Van S) is talking about his concern for the people he feels called to reach out to, and you come out of left field with some crap about gas and oil wars. Somalia has none, and the lack of oil has often been sited as the reason the U.S. hasn’t taken any human interest there. You come off sounding like a paranoid psychophrenic (Ooo! The big bad government is out to get me!) when you make the leap from humanitarian concern to political drama.
It’s not like the two aren’t ever connected, humanitarian concerns and political dramas.
According to Richard Clarke, our entanglement with Iraq has impaired our ability to curtail numerous wars in Africa and much much more…
dlw
Richard Clarke? You quote one of the least credible resources availible, especially in dealing with problems in Africa. Ironically, Richard Clarke (the White House counter-terrorism chief who has accused Bush of ignoring the terrorist threat in 2001) chaired an inter-agency task force in 1994 that discussed peacekeeping in the National Security Council and played a central role in developing options for U.S. action and coordinating the response to the genocide in Rwanda. The response? Nothing! He ignored it! Bill Clinton actually almost apologized for the lack of action.
Clarke was also the White House coordinator for the whole failed Somailia operation (of Black Hawk Down fame). He partially to blame for the total break down over ther in the first place.
Don’t pick sources that are determined to rewrite history to cover their back sides.
And, invoking Iraq further points out my being right about you being all paranoid.
He’s not rewriting history. His points deal with today, not the past.
You think he’d know a thing or two about the folly of ignoring serious developments due to his past failures.
My point was very simple. The political is part of humanitarian dramas. My initial point was an expression of concern that Somali is part of a wider development of conflicts rooted in a struggle for political control or influence over oil/gas.
If you disagree, then just say so and we’ll go our separate ways.
dlw
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that countries use covert ways of fighting eachother and that things aren’t always what they seem to be. I just heard on the NPR Foreign News Podcast that a growing number of Iraqi citizens believe that what is now happening in their country is the US fighting Iran on their ground.
There was a protest in Minneapolis last week by some Somalis wherein they said that the US was backing Ethiopia (at least complicitly) who is backing the transitional government in getting rid of the Islamic Courts who are said to be backed by Al Quaeda and others.
It’s never easy to figure out what exactly is going on and who is to blame. In the end, we won’t probabbly be really be able to “point the finger” of blame until all of the facts come out. But in the case of the JFK assasination and other famous cases, there isn’t always a full set of information available.
In the meantime, how do we interact with our neighbors? Talking politics is valid, but all-too-often, we give in to the temptation to define the situation via politics. I’d say that this is a way that we try to avoid being confronted by the question of what to do with the Somali immigrants here in our city, how to reach out to them as responsible Christian stewards.
I think the focus on reaching out to the Somali immigrants among us is a good focus. I agree that talking politics can simply result in frustration and guise our selfishness.
For me, I think we also need to pray for wisdom for our leaders, with wisdom including the brokenness to admit publicly that they were wrong and to accept the consequences of that.
dlw
Arrrggg…
If you (dlw) would have ended with “we also need to pray for wisdom for our leaders”, I would have agreed, but when you added the qualifier the our leaders publicly admit they are wrong…
You keep proving my previous point that you are a conspiracy geek, and quite possibly a paranoid psychophrenic.
I was doing to walk away. Leave it alone. But you, in the same comment, say that talking politics can be a guise for our selfishness, then in the very next sentence call for our leaders to publicly admit being wrong and accept the consequences?
Mixed messages, dude.
SD, I don’t get you. There’s no contradiction in my statements. Politics can be a cover and it still matters, particularly for there to be civility and transparency in the decision-making that affects us all.
Sinful pride and a refusal to turn away from mistakes by our political leaders can cause serious damage to people’s lives and the ability of Christians to fulfill our calling to advance the kingship of God. This is why we are called to pray for them. It is also why we act to help set up checks on their authority.
The key is to set up disciplines whereby we can perform adequately our civic responsibilities in ways that complement not subsume our true citizenship with our fellow believers/followers of Jesus Christ.
dlw