Africa
Somalia: the Law of the Jungle
After sixteen years of chaos, in 2004 the main politicians and warlords finally signed a deal for a new government. Last summer, though, an Islamist movement (UIC) gained control of much of the south, including the capital Mogadishu, and imposed Sharia Law. With the backing of Ethiopia and the U.S., by the end of 2006 forces loyal to the government had defeated the Islamists. Can this be classified as a clash of civilization or just geopolitical conflict? The role of U.S. and of the Arab countries in a war in which prevailed only one rule: the law of the jungle.
Refugees are not allowed. Kenya closes the borders
According to Human Rights Watch, during the two years that followed the outbreak of the civil war (1991-1993), about 300,000 Somalis fled to Kenya. Things have not changed. Following the recent conflict in Somalia, thousands of Somalis fled once again, across the Kenyan border, but what they found was a closed boundary. Kenyan Foreign Minister Raphael Tuju explained that since Kenyan authorities cannot determine whether those asking to enter are refugees or combatants, they are not allowed to cross the border. Criticism by the United Nations.
Story of an international conflict
Somalia is a country trying to free itself from precarious uncertainty. For six months the people of Mogadishu and the south of the country have been living under the control of the Union of Islamic Courts, in a state of relative but illusory calm. Now intervention of American and Ethiopian troops in support of the provisional government has ousted the Islamist forces, plunging the country once again into instability and transforming a local conflict into one with international implications, with clear opposing stances adopted by Al Qaeda’s number two, Ayman al Zawahiri, and the Bush administration. The future of the country, however, remains as uncertain as ever.
“And we are washing our hands of it” – the disappointment of the Arab press
“The situation is plunging into crisis, the US is using every means possible to increase its influence in the Horn of Africa, and yet for the Arab world Somalia does not exist. The Arabs have failed to confront the Somali crisis, and have washed their hands of it.” Thus the Libanese daily Al Hayat criticizes the indifference of the Arab world towards the fate of a country which has been a member of the Arab League since 1974. It is an opinion which seems to be shared by the majority of the Arab-speaking press. “Perhaps,” comments the newspaper Al-Safir, “Arabo-Islamic states are hoping that this action will enable the Americans to combat terrorism”.
Geopolitical interests in the African ‘bush’
“On the one hand Ethiopia has striven in recent years to prove itself the most loyal, most believable and most militarily efficient of the United States’ allies. On the other, Saudi Arabia and Egypt cannot lose contact with the Islamic forces within the region. It is difficult to speak of legality in the Horn of Africa, and in today’s world”. This is the comment of Giampaolo Calchi Novati, one of Italy’s most respected experts on African affairs, on the conflict in Somalia.
“Why the American intervention is deeply risky”
Those who portray it as a clash of civilizations only want to serve propagandist aims and their own interests, because the Somali conflict “has much more to do with geopolitics than it has to do with religion or civilizations”. In this interview, Ken Menkhaus, associate professor of political science at Davidson College (North Carolina) and a former special advisor to the U.N. operation in Somalia, argues that the American involvement in Somalia is deeply risky: “as it now directly links the U.S. with the Ethiopian intervention. Somalis are going to hold the U.S. directly responsible for the long-term impact of this intervention if it goes badly.
Unesco Philosophy Day, Reset Dialogues in Morocco
In 2002 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) established World Philosophy Day, which had its fifth celebration this year. Morocco hosted the event in Rabat on November 15-18, and ResetDoC presented a round table called "Religious Revival and Open Society." Its participants included Minister Giuliano Amato and the intellectuals Sadik Al-Azm, Abdou Filali-Ansary, Fred Dallmayr, Giancarlo Bosetti, Alessandro Ferrara, Sebastiano Maffettone, and Nina zu Fürstenberg.
Learning from Cairo
The West and the East do not understand each other. But amidst mutual incomprehension, terrorism and clash of civilizations, we still have a soft but effective arm: dialogue. Should religion be a part of it? What’s happening in Egypt, where our association held its first international conference.
Coexistence is an inevitable destiny
Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Bosnia-Herzegovina, China. But also London and the French banlieues. Is it possible to live together? Globalization speeds up, migrations increase, more and more cultures find themselves in the same territories. Is there an alternative to war and conflict? Andrea Riccardi, founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio and a member of Reset DoC Scientific Committee, explores the topic in his latest book, in which he draws a map of the cultural, religious and ethnic conflicts that stain the world with blood.
''Drawing a distinct line between religion and politics''
Who should be the partners in a dialogue between the West and the East? According to Mohammed Salmawi, it should be "the two civil societies, which are facing the same problem, the intrusion of religion in daily life. Otherwise we cannot co-exist". The president of the Egyptian writers considers himself “civil” (“secular”, in western terms), and says that Egypt is more secular than other Arab and Muslim states, but less secular than Western ones. He warns that, even though “Egypt has never been a religious state, it is true that the line between religion and politics is no longer as distinct as it was before, and that the West is also suffering from the same malaise”.