Somalia is a Sunni Muslim country located in the Horn of Africa. It has experienced almost continual civil and political strife since its independence from Italy in 1960. The 2006 invasion from neighboring Ethiopia was only the most recent instance of conflict with its neighbor. The capitol city is Mogadishu of "Blackhawk Down" fame. Its people are dying of hunger.
In a story released today, the BBC indicated that the number of people in the country in dire need of food assistance will reach approximately 3.5 million in this year. That is about 1/3 of the population of the country.
The political and religious climate as well as the lack of a controlling governmental force makes it extremely difficult to provide aid to these starving people. Humanitarian groups are threatened and often attacked by various militant forces when they attempt to deliver aid. Such delivery is further complicated by the constant movement of people seeking refuge from those same militant forces and from the harsh, drought-prone climate. Many of them will die.
Humanitarian aid isn't the answer for the country. It only treats a symptom. Political stability is what is needed. The collapse of the government has led to widespread capitalism instead of the socialism that was present previously. It is the capitalism of survival through opportunism. It is also dominated by warlords whose protection is necessary for survival.
My question to you is this: Would it be a just war to invade Somalia for the purpose of bringing stability to the nation?
Pragmatically, we would have little to gain. The country contains no known deposits of oil or natural gas. There are no major natural resources for exploitation. The history of warfare between the various tribes is unlikely to ever result in a stable self-government. Stability might reduce the amount of humanitarian aid that is sent there every year. Yet, people there continue to die of starvation.
2 comments:
Actually Somalia does have something to offer America. Like Iraq, it is strategically located and as recently noted in an article published by the Center for National Policy, was a horrible failure as a breeding ground for terorists. However, it has a nice proximity to Kenya which has turned out to be an excellent breeding ground for terrorists. It seems the Somali warlords exploited and demanded protection money from the terrorists and that sent al Qaeda packing.
Stabilize Somalia, in exchange for military bases. Some might not like it, but the exchange might do some good.
As well, Diego Garcia, that little atoll owned by Britain is pretty tiny to serve as our only base in the Indian Ocean, The Horn of Africa offers a lot militarily.
Of course in a perfect world we'd be able to help them to help themselves for nothing in return except the goodness of it.
Samantha: The strategic location did occur to me. In a way, I suppose that I was avoiding the purely military case for invasion. My personal feeling is that there are purely humanitarian reasons. That feeling comes out of my commitment as a follower of Christ. I doubt that either the military or the humanitarian option plays well with the average American.
Post a Comment