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Ethiopia Denies Undermining Peace Talks Concerning Somalia

Addis Tribune (Addis Ababa)
NEWS
September 24, 2004
Posted to the web September 24, 2004

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin has denied that his government is
undermining the Somali peace process, while threatening to arrest two Somalis
warlord.
He told Al-Jazeera television network that allegations against Ethiopia
concerning Somalia were baseless.
He said that there were many Somalis living in Ethiopia and that if his
government tried to undermine the Somali peace process, things would also take
a turn for the worse, and that this would have security implications for his
own country.
According to the Mogadishu based Radio Shabeelle, the Ethiopian government had
threatened to arrest Somali warlords Muhammad Said Hirsi Morgan and Barre
Hirale, involved in fierce fighting near the port town of Kismayo, in southern
Somalia.
Ethiopia's envoy to the Somali peace talks in Nairobi, Abdulaziz Ahmed Aden,
speaking to Shabeelle radio, condemned the two warlords - Gen Morgan and Col
Hirale - and demanded that they immediately return to Nairobi to rejoin the
peace talks.
He added that it was necessary for Somalis to recognize those who are against
the peace process. Ambassador Aden said that Ethiopia had recognized that the
two warlords are an obstacle to the peace process and threatened that they
would be arrested if found on Ethiopian territory.
The Ethiopian official warned the two men to stop fighting immediately.
The Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) asked these two warlords
to come back soon. One of them already is an MP and the other one, Gen Morgan,
was among the faction leaders attending the talks. If they fail to rejoin the
peace talks within days, they will face sanctions.
Meanwhile, IGAD foreign ministers have expressed their support for the newly
elected [Somali] Speaker of parliament, asking all Somali MPs to cooperate with
the new Speaker, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan.

   

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