Visit by Somali minister relaunches ties to Canada
OTTAWA – Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird proclaimed the start of a new era in Canada’s ties with Somalia Tuesday, one week after a Somali terrorist group’s brazen attack on a shopping mall in neighbouring Kenya, and 20 years after Canadian soldiers left the country in disgrace.
Ties between Canada and Somalia have been practically non-existent since the Canadian soldiers departed the country under a cloud of controversy after torturing and killing a Somali teenager in 1993.
The situation wasn’t helped by the fact Somalia had no functioning government between then and last year, during which time the country was gripped by civil war and chaos.
But the combination of a new government appointed in September 2012, and last week’s deadly mall attack in Nairobi, have injected both optimism and urgency into Canada’s approach to Somalia.
On Tuesday, Baird appeared alongside his Somali counterpart, Fawzia Yusuf Adam, to herald what he described as not just a new page in the relationship, but a “new volume.”
Canada had been wary of engaging the new Somali government too soon as previous iterations have succumbed to corruption and infighting.
But he praised the new government, even as he pledged $6 million to help bring peace and stability to Somalia.
At the same time, Baird promised to consider other ways in which Canada can help fight the terrorist group responsible for the Kenya attack, al-Shabab.
Al-Shabab controlled much of Somalia for years, but has since been forced out of the country’s major urban areas following the African Union’s involvement.
It has claimed responsibility for last week’s attack on a high-end shopping mall in Nairobi, which killed at least 65 people, including two Canadians.
Some analysts have seen the mall attack as a sign the group has shifted tactics to more insurgency-type activities following those losses as well as a bout of internal fighting.
Baird acknowledged the gains that have made against al-Shabab in recent years, but added the work is not finished and “in the face of such attacks of despicable terror, we must strengthen our resolve.”
Meanwhile, Adam, who is the first Somali foreign minister to visit Canada in recent memory, sought to dispel perceptions her country remains gripped by war and instability.
In addition to al-Shabab’s shrunken influence, she noted there have not been any incidents of piracy off Somalia’s cost in more than a year.
Somali pirates were considered a scourge in the Indian Ocean several years ago, when they seized several large vessels and held them for ransom, prompting an international military response.
“This is a new Somalia,” Adam said. “A Somalia with hope. A lot of challenges. But these challenges are opportunities.”
Adam echoed Baird’s assertions of a new era, saying her country was excited to “re-ignite this flame of partnership” and indicating Somalia is planning to open an embassy in Canada in the near future.
The $6 million announced by Baird Tuesday is on top of $37 million Canada has already pledged in humanitarian support to the Horn of Africa.
Canada previously contributed $1.5 milllion for counter-terrorism training in the region, and spent $10 million to deploy a Ugandan police unit to the capital Mogadishu last year.
Nearly 2,000 Canadian soldiers served in Somalia from 1992 to 1995 as part of a U.S.-led UN mission aimed at bringing stability to the country, which at the time was controlled by rival militias.
The torture and killing of teenager Shidane Arone, and the top brass’s efforts to cover up the issue, came to be known as the Somalia Affair and tarnished the military’s reputation for years.
montrealgazette.com