7/1/1998
Last night (Wednesday 7/1/1998) there was a big reception here in Southampton University in which British Foreign Secretary, Mr. Robin Cook, gave a speech coinciding with the inauguration of the start of the six months Rotational Presidency of the European Union (EU) in which Britain holds it presently till July this year (1998).
It was kind of big dinner gala, and a set-piece speech afterwards pertaining to an in-depth explanation of British hopes/aspirations in European Foreign Policy during this Presidency, and it was an outline by Mr. Cook with effective elucidation and in great details. After that the invitees (to which most postgraduate research students were invited, and most didn’t bother to turn up, and also incidentally I happen to be one of the few that turn up), were given the chance to put questions to Mr. Cook. Also, later anyone wanting more time with the Secretary could wait out and mingle after the speech and the formal session was over, in which by that time it was free for all kinds of discourse, of course, with drink in one hand! (those who are inclined to down the stuff!!), and a rapt conversation with gestures in the other, you couldn’t have been out of place with the assembled crowd.
Anyway, several of us had the chance to converse and inquire with Mr. Cook in regards to our particular concerns/issues we had. Luckily, I was the only Non-European (i.e.white) who was present at that reception that was interested generally in British foreign policy outside of Europe, and specifically it’s contours as it effects Somaliland, and I had ample time and opportunity to converse with the British foreign Secretary.
I had put several questions to Mr.Cook, which took about approximately 20 minutes, and here are my written text (in which I had typed from the taped conversation that I recorded it) about the questions and their answers:
Q. Mr. Secretary, let me begin by first asking you about the present British labour Government position and policy on the independence of the Somaliland?
Mr. Cook : Its the British position (and soon we’ll try to reach a consensus with the rest of Europe) that the internal affairs of Somalia/Somaliland should be matters of deep concern to Somalia as whole!!.
Q :Mr. Secretary, what effective measures is Britain planning to introduce to the European council of ministers (to which Britain chairs at the moment) in order to advance/resolve the acute political situation in Somalia/Somaliland?
Mr. Cook : First of all we (The British) believe that the European Union should take every measures possible to facilitate any discussion between the parties themselves, by that I mean we should as a community undertake to guarantee the financial support, logistics and mediation that can be made available to the Somali parties, and British government will do it’s share if the Somali interlocutors come forward with their agreed (between themselves) common request.
Q : Mr. Secretary, what is the British government’s position on the Cairo accord that recently has been reached in Cairo between Somali factions in the Southern Somalia?
Mr. Cook : We the British government welcome that accord if it’s the beginning of establishing central government in Somalia, and we will do all in our powers as well as under the European name to make this latest accord the one that will stick and finally ends the agony of that much blighted country [his words in verbatim].
Q :Mr. Secretary, Given that the people of Somaliland as opposed to whole of Somalia had declared their self-independence from the former Somalia, given that there are historical, political as well as legalistically sound justification for the self-declared independence of Somaliland, given that the people of Somaliland show every indication of cherishing their bloodily-paid and dearly-earned liberty and freedom, what are the reasons in which the British government and European Union are holding on regardless of those facts to their respective position of not recognizing this newly- liberated state?
Mr. Cook : First of all we welcome the strides made by the Somaliland administration in pacifying and making generally peaceful the territory they presently rule. We also encourage the way in which the current Somaliland administration made all the possible effort in establishing that part of Somalia something closely resembling a civil authority, which I am sure will augur well for the future political disposition of Somalia.
Secondly, it has been the case of constant bipartisan British foreign policy position ever since the state of Somaliland came to being not to do or give credence anything that will prejudice the over-all and eventual internal settlements of Somalia, till the Somali parties themselves agreed on a rock solid bottom and internationally acceptable as well as legally binding constitutional arrangements, in which it’s outcome is far from decided at this present moment, and because of that, the British government in the past has and in future will, to their credit do and have done everything to remain a position of sincerely open mind about that future prospects!!.
Thirdly, although we (The British) had so far done everything possible to help Somaliland communities and will continue to do so in future (through the various British NGOs); however, it’s the position of various members state in the EU whom we believe may be more knowledgeable than us about internal political situation in Somalia, that a premature recognition of state of Somaliland in which some members states in (EU) believe sincerely that it (the recognition) will further damage the delicate balance of the uneasy peace in the Somaliland communities. Also not to say nothing about the wider search of political settlements in Somalia.
Because of that we believe that we should respect those views and take into account those positions in these matters when we the British are formulating under our presidency the wider European common policy for discussion about Somaliland/Somalia affairs and intending to proceed to reach a consensus at the European council of foreign ministers.
Q. Mr. Secretary, could you perhaps elaborate on your third point bit more?
Mr. Cook : Yes : As you may already suspect, the countries I was alluding to are the Italians and, also, to a certain extent, the French (through their connections with Djibouti) whom because of their longer and deeper ties with various part of Somali communities in the Horn of Africa is more stronger, and more informative than that of Britain about the situation in whole of Somalia, and since it’s their belief that there are substantial minorities and political groups in Somaliland itself who are adamantly opposed to the creation of this new state as well as premature recognition by the international community!!, [at this point when I pressed him to indicate and to substantiate that assertion, he politely declined], and because of all of that we the British government came to the conclusion that it’s at the moment the legally correct way to wait and see how the Somali parties themselves will solve their outstanding constitutional problem, and if the final outcome between the two communities of Somalia is to be parting of ways, and if that choice of collectively agreed position is the acceptable and legally verifiable wish, up to an international standard, in which the Somali people conclude two separate independent states they should be, in so far as the final political disposition of Somalia is concern, then that will be the position British government will adopt at that time!! Incidentally, may I also add that is generally the generic position of the European Union (EU) member states, albeit some member states holding that view more stronger than some other members!!.
Q : Mr. Secretary, recently there has been change of policy in the British aid and development assistance as it regards to the Sub-Saharan countries, since your government (labour) came to power, more emphasis is being put onto community-based assistance as opposed to aid to major governmental projects, would you kindly give some indication of the scale as well as the manner in which your government is intending to assist the communities in Somaliland?
Mr. Cook : Yes. As you know the policy of diverting assistance to communities as opposed to the major governmental projects has been in operation for awhile (in fairness to my conservative opponents, may I take the trouble of correcting you, that this policy has been conservative-inspired initiative; namely, by Baroness Chalker, the former Conservative Minister for Overseas Development Administration “ODA”), and at the moment my colleague Clare Short who is the present Minister who deals with our aid initiative will soon bring forward her plan to the Parliament in regards to assistance to most of the Sub-Saharan African countries (whether those initiatives took the form of the debt-relief scheme, or community-orientated business assistance fund, or as in some cases institutional-building support know-how), in specific cases, however, as in the case of Somaliland, I do not have anything concrete proposal at the moment to put to you as in regards the help and other assistance that Britain will offer to Somaliland, but I am positively sure that Clare Short (the Minister) who deals with this government’s aid portfolio will shortly announce various schemes in which the British government is intending to help the people and the communities of Somaliland.
This was the question and answers session I had with the British Foreign Secretary, Mr. Robin Cook, last night, and I had taped all the questions as well as his answers, and this is the written text of that taped interview, which lasted approximately, give or take a minute, about a 20 minutes plus few minutes we spent chatting about the reason I was asking these questions, and generally about myself and what I am doing here in Southampton.
PS : As I said earlier, there was a big dinner gala and speech in which he talked about the British foreign policy in general as well as the their objective for the EU presidency in which they hold presently. Also, I had given him some background information in regards to the Somaliland forum, what we are: i.e. “Somaliland Intellectuals in the Diaspora”, our intention of helping our country, Somaliland, (I had the copy of the press release regarding our opposition to the Cairo accord in which I printed from the screen and I took it to the reception, and I then handed over to him personally on behalf of the “Somaliland Forum”)
He also told me that he will like to encourage us to continue our (as he put it) extremely worthwhile efforts to advance the interests of our country and help its people.
He also gave me his telephone number and fax number (directly to his personal secretary) in case (as he put it) you need on behalf of your people or for that matter this group “The Forum” to meet me or arrange a meeting with my official Ministers and civil servants at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office “FCO” to discuss anything that you believe can be beneficial to your country. That is how it ended, and I graciously thanked him on behalf of the Somaliland forum.