MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Somalia
3.7.2018 - (2018/2784(RSP))
pursuant to Rule 135 of the Rules of Procedure
Cristian Dan Preda, Michaela Šojdrová, José Ignacio Salafranca Sánchez‑Neyra, Marijana Petir, Tomáš Zdechovský, Jaromír Štětina, Željana Zovko, Bogdan Andrzej Zdrojewski, Ivan Štefanec, Luděk Niedermayer, Pavel Svoboda, Anna Záborská, Patricija Šulin, Lorenzo Cesa, Elisabetta Gardini, Tunne Kelam, Brian Hayes, Bogdan Brunon Wenta, Milan Zver, Csaba Sógor, David McAllister, Mairead McGuinness, Adam Szejnfeld, Romana Tomc, Eduard Kukan, Lefteris Christoforou, Giovanni La Via, Seán Kelly, Deirdre Clune, Dubravka Šuica, Sandra Kalniete, Ivana Maletić, Ivo Belet, Joachim Zeller, Ramón Luis Valcárcel Siso, Inese Vaidere, Francisco José Millán Mon on behalf of the PPE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B8-0323/2018
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Somalia,
– having regard to the briefing of 15 May 2018 to the Security Council of the UN Special Representative for Somalia,
– having regard to the UN Security Council press statement of 25 January 2018, 25 February 2018 and 4 April 2018 on Somalia,
– having regard to the Council conclusions of 25 June 2018 on the Horn of Africa, of 17 July 2017 on addressing the risks of famine and of 3 April 2017 on Somalia,
– having regard to UN Security Council resolutions 2015(2018) and 2408(2018),
having regard to the press release of 4 May 2018 of the UN Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia urging action to stop children being kidnapped and used as fighters,
– having regard to the UN Secretary General reports of 26 December 2017 and 2 May 2018 on Somalia,
– having regard to the Communiqué of the UN Somalia Security Conference of 4 December 2017,
– having regard to the AMISOM statement of 8 November 2017 announcing its intention to initiate a phased withdrawal of troops from Somalia starting in December 2017, with the intention of a full withdrawal by 2020,
– having regard to the report of September 2017 of the UNHCR Special Envoy for the Somali Refugee Situation,
– having regard to the Nairobi Declaration of 25 March 2017 on durable solutions for Somali refugees and reintegration of returnees in Somalia,
– having regard to the conclusions of 13 July 2017 of the UN Working Group on Children and armed conflict on Somalia,
– having regard to the Cotonou Partnership Agreement,
– having regard to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights,
– having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict,
– having regard to Rules 135(5) and 123(4) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the Somali security situation remains a major concern; whereas deadly terrorist attacks against civilian and military targets continue to occur throughout the country, including car bombings, random shootings, targeted executions and abductions; whereas a majority of the attacks have been attributed to Al-Shabaab;
B. whereas most recently, on 1 April 2018, Al-Shabaab led a car bomb attack on an African Union peacekeeper base in Bulamarer and nearby villages; whereas on 25 February 2018, two terrorist attacks occurred in Mogadishu, killing at least 32 people;
C. whereas reports on the human rights situation in the country are still extremely worrying; whereas vulnerable groups are still the main targets of abuses and violence, including women, children, IDPs and minorities;
D. whereas school targeting, abductions, killings, recruitment and use of children have kept increasing since 2015, by Al-Shabaab but not only; whereas Somali security forces are also recruiting children in violation of international human rights law and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child ratified by Somalia;
E. whereas a Human Rights report of 21 February 2018 points at the violations and abuses suffered since 2015 by hundreds of children held in government custody due to their terrorism-related activities, including beating, torture, confinement and sexual violence; whereas in Puntland, children have been sentenced to death for terrorism offenses;
F. whereas sexual and gender-based violence still occur massively in total impunity, particularly in conflict areas;
G. whereas broad powers of investigation are granted to the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA), resulting in significant violations, including harassment, intimidation and arbitrary arrests and detention, in particular of journalists; whereas security forces are never held into account;
H. whereas a Joint Programme on Human Rights was signed in February 2018 in order to strengthen the protection of civilians and ensure that their rights are upheld;
I. whereas since the election of President Abdullahi Mohammed in February 2017, international partners have praised his determination to pursue economic, political and security reforms, as well as a positive transformation of the country; whereas in May 2018, the Somali government held a National Constitutional Convention, marked by a strong commitment to an inclusive constitutional review process, aiming at strengthening the rule of law, stability and reconciliation;
J. whereas however, the political situation is unstable and governance remains weak, impeding progress on justice and security sector reform; whereas Somalia is the most corrupt country in the world according to Transparency International;
K. whereas despite its essential role, AMISOM has started in December 2017 to gradually withdraw troops in the view of handing over security responsibilities to Somali security forces; whereas in March 2018, the five contributing countries have called on the UNSC to delay the removal until 2020 given the current distressing instability and security situation in the country, notably in the territories that are still under the control of terrorist groups;
L. whereas on 4 December 2017, the Somali President, together with the UN and the AU, convened an international security conference in Mogadishu where participants agreed on the urgent need to implement the National Security Architecture, to develop a realistic transition plan for the transfer of responsibility from AMISOM to Somali security forces, and to continue international support to security and institutional capacity building.
M. whereas on 19 April 2018, the Security Transition Plan was approved by the Council of Ministers; whereas the Plan was later endorsed by the AU Peace and Security Committee on 30 April, and provides for reinforced capacity in the areas of justice, local governance, freedom of movement and service provision;
N. whereas the humanitarian crisis in Somalia remains one of the world’s most longstanding emergency; whereas the threat of a large-scale famine has been looming since 2017 and the humanitarian impact of drought is devastating;
O. whereas more than 6 million people, half of the population, is currently in need of humanitarian assistance or protection, with approximately 1,2 million children expected to suffer from acute malnutrition and 3 million people living in crisis or emergency food security conditions;
P. whereas, violent extremism, extreme weather conditions and conflict have resulted in hundreds of thousands of people being displaced in the past year alone, and over a million Somalis having fled the country so far; whereas although the efforts and hospitality of neighbouring countries need to be commended, many refugee live in unsafe settlements, where women and children in particular face recurrent abuse and violence;
Q. whereas the EU has since 2016 progressively increased its annual humanitarian support to Somalia, in particular in response to the severe drought affecting the country, allocating EUR 120 million to humanitarian partners in 2017; whereas the international humanitarian response plan is only funded up to 24 per cent;
R. whereas the EU has provided EUR 486 million through the European Development Fund (2014-2020), focusing on state- and peacebuilding, food security, resilience and education; whereas the EU is also supporting AMISOM through the African Peace Facility;
1. Expresses its deepest sympathy with the victims of the recent terrorist attacks in Somalia; reiterates its strong condemnation of the recurrent terrorist attacks attributed to the Al-Shabaab group; insists that all those responsible for these killings should be held accountable;
2. Deplores that civilians are paying the highest price of violence, conflict and terrorism in Somalia, with an estimated number of 1,200 casualties in 2017 according to Human Rights Watch; recalls the Somali authorities of their obligation to guarantee human rights and protect the civilian population in all circumstances;
3. Insists that respect for human rights is vital to a functioning, legitimate state; is deeply alarmed at the reports of abuses committed by Somali security forces, including killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, torture, rape and abductions; calls on the authorities to ensure that all violations are fully investigated and that perpetrators are brought to justice;
4. Recalls that freedom of expression plays a central role in the building of a democratic state and therefore condemns the widespread intimidation on journalists and media outlets; calls on the Somali Government to review the penal code, the new media law and other legislation in order to bring them into line with Somalia’s international obligations regarding the right to freedom of expression and the media;
5. Calls for stronger measures to be put in place, with the support of international partners, to protect children affected by armed conflict; urges the authorities to treat children suspected of association with Al-Shabaab primarily as victims and to consider the best interests of the child and international protection standards as guiding principles;
6. Condemns the recruitment and use of children by security forces, armed and terrorists groups as soldiers and as informants; calls on all armed groups to immediately put an end to this practice and release all children currently enrolled; recalls the Somali authorities of their commitment to rehabilitating former child soldiers and bringing those responsible for their recruitment to justice;
7. Welcomes the adoption of the Joint Programme on Human Rights, and calls for its effective and full implementation, including with the setting up of a Human Rights Commission;
8. Underlines the need to put an end to impunity and to ensure accountability for violations, abuses and crime in Somalia, including crimes against humanity and war crimes; to this end, calls on the EU to strengthen its support to the Somali institution-building efforts and in particular to the justice sector reform in order to establish an independent, accountable and effective judiciary; welcomes in this regard the launching last year of a nationwide judicial training curriculum by the government in cooperation with the UN and the EU;
9. Welcomes the adoption on 30 May 2018 by the Somali government of the Sexual Offences Bill as a first step in the fight against sexual violence; calls on the Somali authorities to take all necessary measures to ensure that the bill is effectively implemented and enforced;
10. Condemns all attacks against humanitarian actors and peacekeepers in Somalia;
11. Notes the progress made in the implementation of the National Security Architecture; however, stresses that AMISOM’s presence remains critical to build security and protect civilians across the country; welcomes the extension of its mandate until the end of July and reiterates its full support to the mandate of the mission; in the meantime, calls for the effective implementation of the Security Transition Plan;
12. Calls on the EU to continue to support the peace and reconciliation process in Somalia through the Somalia Compact in order to bring long-lasting stability in the country; insists on the importance of regional and interregional cooperation in the fight against terrorism and welcomes the essential role played by the African Union in this regard; reiterates its support to the work of the EU Special Representative for the Horn of Africa and the UN Special Representative for Somalia;
13. Calls for more coherence between security and development actions in order to effectively address the root causes of terrorism and violence, including poverty, bad governance, unemployment and fragility;
14. Deplores the dire humanitarian situation that is threatening the lives of millions of Somalis; urges the EU, its Member States and the international community to step up their assistance to the Somali population, to improve the living conditions of the most vulnerable and tackle the consequences of displacement, food insecurity, epidemics and natural disasters;
15. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the African Union, the President, the Prime Minister and the Parliament of Somalia, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations Human Rights Council, and the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.