SOMALIA: IRIN interview with faction leader Husayn Muhammad Farah Aydid

NAIROBI, 6 October (IRIN) - Mogadishu faction leader Husayn Muhammad Farah Aydid was interviewed by IRIN when he came to Kenya for talks with President Daniel arap Moi. Aydid said he had been invited by the Kenyan president to talk about the situation in Somalia, following the election in August of the interim president, Abdiqasim Salad Hasan.

Aydid, 38 years old and a former US marine, was elected to lead the Somali National Alliance (SNA) by the Habar Gedir sub-clan - part of the of Hawiye clan, which controls Mogadishu. He came to power in 1996 after his father, General Muhammad Farah Aydid, died in a factional shoot-out in the capital.

Husayn Aydid did not attend the Djibouti-hosted peace initiative, which in August culminated in the election of a 225-strong transitional national assembly and the interim president, and has said he does not recognise Abdiqasim as a national president.

QUESTION: What exactly did you talk about with President Moi?

ANSWER: Throughout, since 1994, President Moi has been involved in reconciliation efforts in Somalia, after UNOSOM [United Nations Mission in Somalia] left... We regard him as a partner, and we take his advice very closely, especially since I came to power in 1996. I consult him on steps taken regarding security between our two regions... We discussed ways in which Somalia could benefit from reconstruction and reconciliation, as well as by being made a member of the East African economic grouping, and a future Somali presence in the Commonwealth... ways of cooperating strategically to help the Somali refugees to come back to Somalia now that there has been relative peace over the last four years, and reconciliation. We also discussed what action to take at this final stage, inasmuch as the Arta process did not produce results. There is still a problem...

Q: But Kenya has recognised the new government.

A: That is something you have to ask the government of Kenya - whether they did or didn't.

Q: Well, the Kenyan government has announced its recognition, and attended the inauguration. How do you feel about its position?

A: The United Nations has stated very clearly that for a government to be legally recognised it has to be in control of its territory and airspace. Somalia already has a recognised government - I mean, Somalia has already existed for over 40 years as a nation... What happened was that there was an uprising after people had suffered over 30 years of misrule... It is the policy of the struggle and the SNA, which was founded in 1992 after the removal of the regime, to have national unity, territorial integrity and political independence. This objective was initiated by the SNA, which basically has supporters throughout nine regions... We wanted reconciliation and a final central government, with everyone represented during a transitional period, so that we could eventually draft a final constitution and have a government elected through the a ballot box...

Q: You didn't go to Arta to discuss this, but instead decided to boycott the process - why?

A: We didn't boycott it. We initially welcomed the Arta process... and approved of it... but we asked to be given a chance to make recommendations on reconciliation since we were key players. We knew how the Somali problem could be solved, because we had been the leaders on the ground for the last 10 years. We were the ones who had participated or really understood the problem, or solutions, ever since UNOSOM left.

Q: There has been some confusion over your attitude to the new government. Libya reported you had signed an agreement with Abdiqasim.

A: The meeting ...was organised by the foreign ministry, minister Turayki and the great leader [Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi] over there.... We met there as group leaders. We agreed to discuss the principal points... mainly to examine differences between us and them [the participants in the Arta meeting], because they are the members of the former regime... I was representing not only the SNA but I was also basically representing and consulting with all the leaders in Puntland, as well as leaders in the Mogadishu area and throughout the country... The Arta process was not a reconciliation process, and did not resolve the differences between the various faction leaders on the ground.

Q: The Libyan government said you had signed an agreement to recognise the new government. Did they get that wrong?

A: No, no. Nothing was signed about an agreement...Abdiqasim and his group were in transit there. They came when we were also having a meeting with the leader [Al-Qadhafi]... They suggested a reconciliation. Any talks there are to be will be held in Mogadishu, or or somewhere on which all the leaders will agree. So we were just laying foundations in consultation with different IGAD [Inter-Governmental Authority on Development] and Arab League countries to provide a framework within which we can sit together and solve the problem by way of dialogue...

Q: So you are now looking forward to the new government coming to Mogadishu?

A: No, we do not recognise the government... Mogadishu is our base also, and most of the leaders are there... We will work out a framework there, within which we can sit and discuss this situation and come up with a comprehensive solution to the Somali problem in a Somali way. The [Djibouti] initiative was mismanaged and had its faults... The parliament does not represent the main factions on the ground or the main civil society on the ground.

Q: When do you expect Abdiqasim to come to Mogadishu?

A: He told me that the first step he would take would be to consult his Arta group, relay the message, and then he would come to Mogadishu. I will also consult all the leaders, and once we have a consensus he will come as soon as possible to Mogadishu...

Q: Earlier, you said you would prevent Abdiqasim from coming to Mogadishu, but now, after Libya, you expect to meet him there?

A: I never said I would prevent him. Nor did I say I would welcome him. The key is in that we will do everything possible to find a constructive way to solve the Somali problem, despite IGAD empowering this civil society initiative... We know the result was to produce members of the former regime, and members of fundamentalist groups. The main political and administrative groups on the ground were completely sidelined. There is still a problem, and as Somali leaders we have the responsibility to ensure that the 1991 process [the civil war] is not repeated.

Q: When you talk about sitting together, are you talking about all leaders - including Muhammad Ibrahim Egal of Somaliland and Abdullahi Yusuf of Puntland?

A: All - in Mogadishu, or anywhere the leaders agree to. Also, we have to decide whether we are going to have separate talks or joint talks. It all depends on the leaders and the venue, on how it evolves. These are the early stages...

Q: Abdiqasim agreed to sit in Mogadishu with all the leaders?

A: He agreed that we would meet in Mogadishu... We said we preferred Mogadishu and we agreed on that point.

Q: What position in a new government would satisfy you?

A: Really, the position is not a problem. It's the solution. There must be a comprehensive solution. The SNA point is there must be a compromise at every level because democracy requires compromise... I believe the Somalis must solve a political problem by a political solution and I do not believe that any military solution will solve our problems.

Q: But it seems that the Somali people are now desperate for a real leader. Who do you think that leader should be?

A: The leader should be any leader who enjoys confidence, has worked and represented the people and was in the struggle. [He must] demonstrate he can deliver unity, and national aspirations and dreams, which are to have a democracy, and a complete change from the misrule of the former governments. This is where we stand. We have been elected as the leader of the SNA and the leader of a larger alliance - the SNA and affiliated groups...

Q: What do you think you have contributed to Somalia in the last few years?

A: As the SNA leader, I have contributed reconciliation between warring factions in Mogadishu. The SNA was very instrumental in bringing leaders together... [We also] removed the 'green line' established in 1991... We overcame that civil war and reconciled all the factions... We also succeeded in Kismayo, bringing complete peace up to the Kenyan border... I was very instrumental in the Cairo agreement and the Sodere group of 26 factions in Addis Ababa, and in bringing together exiled factions based in Addis Ababa.....

Q: But you are talking about agreements that have demonstrably failed.

A: No. I cannot say they failed. Somalia was on the brink of war... We prevented that through negotiation and dialogue... We rebuilt our country.

Q: Just to make it clear what it is you feel: is it to get rid of this unrepresentative government, or to talk to it?

A: We believe in talking. If that process can bring something to the Somali peace and reconciliation it is a plus for us. Any good thing coming from the Arta process we will take. Anything that we do not see will contribute to peace, reconciliation and democracy on the ground which will not be in our national interest [we will reject]... And on the ground we have the resources, when it comes to security... The SNA controls most airports and ports, as well as most of the infrastructure in the capital. We are ready to constructively build for the sake of our unity of our nation. After all, we are Somalis, and we have to solve our problems.