Somalia is grappling with the challenge from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Therefore, two challenging questions before it could be deferred.
What are the two challenges?
Due to the public health emergency,
June 8 public hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Somalia’s maritime dispute with Kenya may be postponed.
The general elections scheduled for later this year may be postponed [Somalia seeks to restore universal suffrage after five decades.]
What is the maritime dispute?
Friction - Somalia and Kenya have locked horns for over a decade on the delimitation of the maritime boundary in the Indian Ocean.
At issue is a 1 lakh sq km area containing huge deposits of oil and gas.
Under a 2009 Memorandum of Understanding, each granted the other no objection to presenting separate submissions to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
These submissions concern the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.
The parties also committed to finding a settlement in accordance with international law on the basis of the CLCS’s recommendations.
Intensification - But friction intensified following Kenya’s 2011 despatch of troops into Somalia, ostensibly to counter the al-Qaeda affiliate, al-Shabab.
Kenya’s backing for the semi-autonomous Jubaland region has also caused consternation in Somalia.
ICJ’s involvement - Given the diminishing prospects of a mutual compromise on the dispute, Somalia petitioned the ICJ in 2014.
Somalia won a symbolic victory of sorts in February 2017.
The Hague court in the Netherlands rejected by a majority Kenya’s argument challenging the admissibility of Somalia’s application, as also the court’s jurisdiction in the case, in view of the MoU.
The court held that this MoU was in no way breached just because one of the parties decided on an alternative mode of dispute resolution.
Moreover, while the agreement was legally binding, there was nothing to suggest that judicial proceedings could take place only after the CLCS issued its own recommendations, said the court.
In a diplomatic row - In 2019, Kenya recalled its ambassador and expelled Somalia’s envoy.
In parallel, the African Union has intervened to find a settlement out of court via a mediator.
As regards the judicial proceedings at The Hague, a decision is expected on the public hearings scheduled to commence June 8, 2020.
[The case was postponed twice last year.]
What is the issue with elections?
After 5 decades - In this year’s election, people of Somalia will for the first time since 1969, will exercise their right to political participation under universal suffrage.
Law - The one-person one-vote law received President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed’s assent in February, 2020.
This law is a milestone in Somalia’s path to democratic governance after enduring military rule for two decades and the long transition following the civil war.
Path towards democracy - There was a 100-fold increase in the number of delegates in the 2016 electoral college.
This electoral college chose the 275-member House of the People and the 54 senators-strong upper chamber.
There are fewer women legislators in the current parliament than the 30% seats allotted to them.
But a steady increase in the number of female representatives witnessed in successive elections is an encouraging sign.
Suppression of Press - Somalia has systematically suppressed a free press that is vital to a vibrant democracy.
Amnesty International said that 8 journalists have been killed and many have fled the country during Mr. Mohamed’s term as the al-Shabab and the police behave with impunity.
The Committee to Protect Journalists said in 2016 that as many as 59 media personnel were killed since the 1991 civil war.
In the backdrop of such systemic constraints and the current pandemic, the implementing universal suffrage would be practically difficult.
Authorities and activists can, however, take comfort in the fact that the alternatives would be far less desirable.
Source: The Hindu
Quick Fact
International Court of Justice (ICJ)
The ICJ was established in 1945 after half a century of international conflict in the form of two World Wars.
The ICJ functions with its seat at The Hague, Netherlands.
It has the jurisdiction to settle disputes between countries and examine cases pertaining to violation of human rights.
It adjudicates cases according to the tenets of international law and is the judicial arm of the United Nations.a
