US concerned by NGO arrests in Somalia

Officials from the US State Department and the US Agency for International Development told Gedi that the crackdown "undermine efforts for a national dialogue and political reconciliation," a department statement said.

The arrests and detentions, including those from respected non-governmental organizations, were not in line with a general amnesty issued by the war-torn state's President Abdillahi Yusuf Ahmed, the department said.

They urged Gedi, who is head of a Somalia transitional government in the run up to 2009 elections, "to ensure the immediate release of individuals currently in detention consistent with the terms of the amnesty, and prevent further harassment of the opposition and the press".

The meeting was part of US efforts to bring about "lasting peace and stability in Somalia," it said, adding that the officials also underscored at the talks the importance of political accommodation with key Somali stakeholders.

They highlighted expectations that an upcoming national reconciliation meeting in Somalia would result in improved representation in the transitional federal government, the statement said.

The United States, it said, emphasized to Gedi that "efforts undermining this dialogue process or the National Reconciliation Congress are unacceptable".

The officials also underlined US commitment to continue providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations within Somalia and called upon the government to protect Somalis affected by conflict and flooding.

Violence has surged in Mogadishu since Somali government troops, backed by Ethiopian forces, quelled an insurgency in April after months of fighting that left hundreds dead and hundreds of thousands displaced.

Source: AFP

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