Rains and kidnappings put Somalis under more pressure

By Shabtai Gold Oct 26, 2011, 12:16 GMT

Johannesburg/Nairobi - The heavy rains falling on parts of southern Somalia in recent weeks are a mixed blessing for a land that has suffered drought for much of the past year.

Farmers and herders were happy to have the downpours, which are improving water and pasture availability for livestock and growing conditions for crops.

But at the same time, over 1,000 families were displaced by heavy flooding in some areas, according to the government, adding to the perpetually growing number of Somalis who have been forced from their homes in 20 years of civil war.

According to the latest UN figures, more than 900,000 Somalis are in exile outside their home country and the number is expected to increase.

Another 1.5 million people are displaced inside the country, many seeking shelter in makeshift camps near Mogadishu, though the area is far from safe.

On the outskirts of the capital, Somali government soldiers, backed by African Union troops, are still waging fierce battles against the Islamist rebel group al-Shabaab.

Heavy shelling is reported frequently around a local hospital, in a sign of the harsh nature of the conflict. The same violence forced aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) to stop a vaccination programme against measles in the area.

'You can't have vaccination teams running around in open conflict,' said Duncan Mclean, a programme manager at MSF.

Al-Shabaab, which has links to al-Qaeda, lost most of its bases in Mogadishu in August, and the government was able to assume control over much of the capital, with the help of the AU. But the risk for the city's residents has not diminished.

'The situation in Mogadishu is no less dangerous than when we had a frontline running through capital,' Mclean told dpa.

With the floods, aid workers are now also on heightened alert for diseases, such as malaria and dengue fever, that could easily spread.

Worse still, the UN has warned that the rains may even add to the conflict. Farmers who went into exile are returning home hoping to take advantage of the rainfall, and property disputes are starting to emerge.

'Such conflict along the Somali border (with Kenya) could soon affect livelihoods,' the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization said.

The border area is also witnessing fighting between Kenyan troops and al-Shabaab. Nairobi sent forces over the border to attack the group after tourists were killed and kidnapped from northern Kenya and two MSF aid workers were captured from Dadaab refugee camp. Al-Shabaab denies any involvement.

The UN agency for refugees (UNHCR) said last week that Dadaab, the world's largest refugee camp, received no new arrivals for the first time in months, possibly because the heavy rains and the Kenyan operation are blocking roads.

People have, however, continued to flock to camps near Mogadishu, indicating there is no respite from the hardships and violence that are causing the displacements.

These same security concerns are also hampering efforts to get aid to the neediest in rural areas still reeling from the drought, the worst in the region for decades.

'Aid must move to areas where the need is greatest. This is happening from time to time but not regularly. Aid can arrive in the capital, but it is hard to get it to the countryside,' Mclean said.

Meanwhile, at Dadaab, all except to life-saving operations have been halted in most parts of the camp since two MSF staff were abducted this month - the event that pushed the Kenyan government to send its military into southern Somalia.

Despite serious overcrowding, all work on building new shelters for refugees has stopped, in one of the starkest examples of the effects of the abductions.

People working in the camp say insecurity is a real and growing problem for both aid workers and refugees.

'We are looking to see how operations can go back to normal,' says Emmanuel Nyabera, a spokesman for UNHCR. He declined to give a precise date for renewing work.

Francisco Villalonga who works with MSF in Dadaab warns that the refugees will not return to Somalia until the situation back home improves. This will not happen soon, political analysts say, because the Somali government is weak and focused on its own survival.

Aid workers worry that if humanitarian projects are not resumed, the worst setbacks would be felt by the refugees, many of whom arrived in dire shape.

'If there was any improvement in the past months it was because of all the work of humanitarian actors in the camp. So the new security constraints are a big concern. We may even see a reversal,' Villalonga said.