U.S. Claims Somali Aid Shortage Not Political

by Daniel J Gerstle · 2010-02-22 16:10:00 UTC
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In my previous post, "Somalia, Too Many Get Caught in Crossfire of U.S. Policy," I questioned the logic of the U.S. falling short on humanitarian funding to Somalia, a shortfall which has been perceived as a move to starve the Al Shabab Islamic radical insurgency.

Now, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice claims that it wasn't a political decision, but one linked to the limited security of aid teams, particularly those of the World Food Programme's, who seem to get shot at or abducted when they drive into the hardest hit places. For those of us who've worked in and on Somalia, the security issue is well understood, but Rice's answer seems to bring more questions.

As re-asserted by a recent call from the Danish Refugee Council and other aid agencies for more aid to IDPs in Puntland, the northeastern part of Somalia, the humanitarian demand is not a single national decision or some all or nothing game.

If the U.S. has slowed down humanitarian funding because of security issues, the slow down should not be across the whole portfolio, or a decrease in the total, but should be reflected in a redistribution within the country. If the Benadir coast and Mogadishu are too violent for aid to get in, devote those funds to staging it in the areas where families are fleeing to. Aid 101.

While Rice has good points about security, deflecting the UN's criticism about the lack of support by claiming it had to do with security in several regions sounds a bit like avoiding the question.

However, I do have to stand tall and say, maybe I erred in implying that the U.S. funding shortfall was, as claimed by critics, an attempt to starve insurgents. I believe this could still be the intent, but maybe the more likely case is that the U.S. just doesn't understand how much of a priority humanitarian aid and peacebuilding among Somalis is for the future of American national security as well as for global peace.

Photo credit: Daniel J Gerstle (Displaced families drive north from Mogadishu to Puntland, Somalia)

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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