Somali Shabab Starving Its Own Communities

by Daniel J Gerstle · 2010-03-02 10:20:00 UTC
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For years, many Somalis have seen the Al Shabab "Youth" insurgent force, like the Islamic Courts Union it once fought for, as the least bad option for opposing warlordism and bringing back an Islam-promoting rule of law.

But this week the AP reported that Shabab has banned food aid from its areas, thus proving that it is not a viable political alternative to corrupt government. It has banned the food aid from UN and related aid agencies claiming that it has been tainted because it is from organizations perceived to be promoting secularism.

This is a pivotal moment for Somalia and its prospects for peace. We are at the beginning of the Shabab's choosing this path. Before many vulnerable people living in their areas are threatened by hunger-related disease, it is time for the Somali authorities, Somali Islamic leaders outside Shabab, and the international community to hit the Shabab hard and describe it as it is, an organization that prioritizes power over the health and safety of its own communities. Rally the support of families who live in those communities to shove off the group's sociopathic leaders so they will not be able to manipulate -- and potentially starve -- the population anymore.

On hunger, Somalis have the capacity to generate their own agriculture or, where agriculture is very difficult due to lack of pasture and soil, the service effort to trade for subsistence despite the rapid desertification. With peace, they could even turn the desertification around. Somalis are often reliant on foreign food supplements much more because of insurgent trouble-making than because of the vast corruption and ineptitude the insurgents claim to fight against. Somali moderates will need to help their countrymen realize that no one is behooved to root for an organization willing to cut them off from UN or non-governmental assistance.

Photo credit: Daniel J Gerstle (Elayo, a town on Somalia's northeast coast which partially collapsed because of desertification and sea erosion)

Daniel J Gerstle is a journalist, human rights researcher, and humanitarian aid consultant. He is Editor and Chief Correspondent for HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine.
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