Thursday, September 26, 2013
Somalia is commended for its political progress though the human
rights and national security situation present challenges, a U.N. rights
official said.
The U.N. Human Rights Council held a special session Wednesday in Geneva on assistance to Somalia.
The European Union last week hosted a one-day summit outlining a "New
Deal" for Somalia. Delegates to the summit pledged their support as
Somalia focuses its development agenda on consolidating political gains
made since forming its first functioning central government in more than
20 years last year.
Flavia Pansieri, deputy high commissioner for human rights, said
Somalia was recognized for political progress but had lingering
challenges to address.
"Continued attacks by al-Shabaab reminded all about how much work
remained to be done in the fight to ensure security for all people
living in Somalia," she said in a statement.
Al-Shabaab was blamed for a siege on the Westgate Mall in Nigeria that left more than 60 people dead.
Pansieri added the situation in Somalia "continued to be very
challenging." Civilians, she said, were paying the price by getting
stuck in the cross fire.
Somali Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shridon told the Human Rights
Council his country was taking action to ensure "perpetrators of such
crimes [terrorism] were dealt with in accordance with the law."