Ugandan Troops Say They Are Being Used As Guinea Pigs

Nairobi, Kenya, March 27, 2007 – The Ugandan government is reviewing its involvement in Somalia as its troops await the arrival of peacekeepers from other African countries.

"We are assessing the situation on the ground and the magnitude of the assignment before the government decides on the way forward," Isaac Musumba, the State Minister for Regional Co-operation, said.

He added that he had not received any communication from the African Union regarding when the peacekeepers promised by other African countries would join the Ugandan troops.

Meanwhile, a Ugandan captain in Somalia, who asked not to be identified, said the countries that had promised to send troops were not ready to take the lead. "True, many have pledged to join us, but they are waiting for us to test the waters first," he said, adding that the situation was complicated by the presence of terrorists and the warfare tactics adopted by the Islamists.

Uganda is the first African country to deploy troops to the war-torn country under the aegis of the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom). The 1,500 Ugandans were to be joined by 1,700 troops from Burundi in April, 850 troops each from Nigeria and Malawi in May and 300 troops from Ghana.

However, it seems like the additional troops will arrive much later than that.

Burundi says it lacks equipment for the mission while Nigeria, Ghana and Malawi have yet to deploy their troops.

And Sudan, one of the first African countries to offer to intervene in Somalia, says its statement was misunderstood.

" Sudan has never said it will send troops to Somalia. We offered to facilitate dialogue in that country and we still stand by that," the Sudanese ambassador to Uganda, Hassan Ibrahim Gadkarim, said.

Besides, troops have to undergo special training before being deployed.

During a press conference in Mogadishu last week, the commander of the Ugandan troops, Maj-Gen Levi Karuhanga, appealed to the AU to push other African countries to keep their promise.

The AU's Commissioner for Peace and Security, Said Djinnit, appealed for financial and logistical help, saying the mission faced the greatest challenges in these two areas.

The shortage of peacekeepers is aggravated by outright opposition to the peacekeeping effort by some countries. Eritrea, for instance, has repeatedly called for the withdrawal of Ugandan troops.

The AU mission was authorized by the UN to help the new Somali government find its footing, but its effectiveness is already in doubt due to foot-dragging by states that had promised to help.

Non-AU members have also pledged help: France will equip Burundian troops while the EU will give 15 million euros ($19,500,000) for refunding expenses incurred by Uganda. Britain and the US have pledged 6 million ($7,800,000) and 11 million ($14,300000) euros respectively.

The AU plans to send 8,000 troops to Somalia, but only half that number are on the ground and cannot make much of an impact.

The AU's "White Helmets", as the peacekeepers are known, are expected to provide security and help maintain stability in a country that has been at war for more than 15 years. Already, they have already been attacked by insurgents who had vowed to target the peacekeeping forces.

Two Ugandans have been injured and flown back to Kampala while an Ethiopian and a Somali working alongside Ugandan troops were killed and their bodies dragged through the streets.

The peacekeepers will remain in Somalia for six months, after which Amisom will evolve into a United Nation's operation.

Source: The East Africa