By Dr. Yusuf Al- Azhari
Sunday, February 07, 2010

Whereas Somalis of good intention  appreciate  the concern and role played by  international peace brokers in the horn of Africa and its environs, little known  are hidden major obstacles on the restoration of peace in Somalia torn apart by civil strife for nearly two decades.

Fundamentalism, occupation of the seashore by foreign trawlers  and piracy  pose major threats to peace  in Somalia than clan rivalries that  seem to have overshadowed  other major  human interest stories in the media.

The Somali  Pirate  Conference  laid bare  the facts  to the international  community  on the  piracy menace, religious  extremist and invasion of the Somali coast by trawlers.  Pirates  are not  only  a problem to maritime fleet but are  a hindrance  to humanitarian shipments. Humanitarian assistance  including World Food Programme  cargo cannot  reach the  hungry, the  sick, the  elderly, women and children in dire need of relief.

It is no exaggeration that peace and democracy are under serious threat by religious extremists but  the   media and mediators downplay the havoc wrecked  by  foreign trawlers and newfound allies pirates on the one side and religious zealots on the other.  While one group kills, maims  or blackmails in the name of God, the other carries  out  atrocities in the name of commerce. Foreign trawlers and their allies inflict atrocities of a  magnitude  akin to those  carried out  by  extremist Terrorist.

In the ensuing scramble for fishing rights in the seashore, innocent people lost lives, others maimed, fishing gears and boats destroyed in the bloody confrontation that never saw the light of day in the media. Violent lustful fortune seekers are the present day  occupants of the  tuna rich Somali sea coast which they occupied   after  a fierce bloody fight with the local fishermen. Policing  the  coastline is a  risky undertaking   by a weak government whose credibility is questionable   and  constantly challenged  by  ruthless gangs.

Consequently, Somalia’s  3,600 kilometre coastline is out of bound for the feeble transitional Somali government and even its religious fundamentalist rivals cannot dare police  the territorial waters. The seashore is today home to ruthless tax collectors from trawlers or heavily armed sea pirates capturing maritime fleets or fishing boats in the Somali territorial waters and at the Gulf of Aden.

Ransom in terms of  million dollars are paid to the  organized pirates who see this  as more of a lucrative industry than  many hours in the sea in search of fish. It is safe  to conclude that the complicity between trawlers and pirates has compromised the security of the lawless nation.

Ship owners and  trawlers seem to have given up on the fight against piracy menace and appear to have struck a silent deal with the pirates on peaceful co-existence in exchange for fishing rights. Trawlers pay taxes against daily catches while captured ship owners pay handsome ransom without much ado or publicity. Tax defaulters risk death in the hands of these lawless and extortionate gangs.

Condemned to destitution, fishermen resolved not to surrender their economic lifeline to the invading enemy. In the tactical retreat, fisher folk gave serious thoughts to alternative sources of livelihood but not far away from the sea. In the quest to survive, the one time prosperous fishermen returned to the shore smarter than the aggressor. Armed to the teeth, they ambushed the  unsuspecting  trawlers in a pitched battle in which lives were lost and property of unknown value destroyed.

In the circumstances, the invaders are not prepared to leave the Somali territorial waters  in the foreseeable future and it is their prayer that peace remains elusive in  the horn of Africa  for a much longer time. The return of peace means huge losses of income to both the pirates and trawlers.

It is  time  that Somalis  in the  country  and the Diaspora  to campaign for a  strong, viable  and visionary  government that  would  view  clans  as  part of the  territory  and involve the  same  in  the  fight against   external  and internal terror gangs. A strong leader of impeccable credentials and exposure and above everything else, a non egocentric patriot with a new clear vision is required for steer the country out of Its present quagmire, It  is  in these campaigns  that  Somalis  appeal to the international community not to lose sight of trawlers and terrorists as a fresh threat to peace  and political stability. Time to go for durable peace is now not tomorrow because silence could be costly not only to Somalia but to the  region as well.