raadamiir Posted July 28, 2006 Eighteen Somali ministers and other top officials quit the interim government yesterday and lawmakers moved to oust the prime minister, in moves intended to draw rival Islamists into peace talks and avert war. Government sources said the manoeuvres could open the way for Islamists to take ministerial posts. Power-sharing is seen as the best way to stop a descent into war in the Horn of Africa nation. The Islamists took Mogadishu in June and control a swathe of the south, threatening the authority of a government set up in 2004. It was the 14th attempt to restore central rule since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre. In a consolidation of their power in Mogadishu, Islamist militia yesterday took over one of the city's most famous buildings, a Barre-era presidential palace called Villa Somalia. It had been held by gunmen loyal to a defeated warlord. The Islamists inaugurated a new sharia tribunal, the "Presidential Palace Islamic Court", at the bullet-scarred, hilltop mansion. Former fighters for the warlord joined Islamist ranks, and an arsenal of weapons was handed over. Lawmakers said a vote of no confidence in Ali Mohamed Gedi, the prime minister, had been presented to the parliamentary speaker and would be debated on Saturday in Baidoa, seat of the Western-backed interim authorities. The list of high-level resignations included seven ministers, seven assistant ministers and four state ministers. "We have decided to vacate all the seats for the Khartoum talks," outgoing state minister of parliament and government relations Abdirahman Haji Adan said. The two sides held one round of talks in the Sudanese capital last month before negotiations broke down. A new round is slated for early next month. - Reuters Click here to send this article to a friend ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ MOGADISHU, July 27 (Reuters) - Eighteen Somali ministers and assistant ministers resigned on Thursday from the fragile interim government in what they said was a move to facilitate peace talks with rival Islamists. "We have resigned because we have failed to fulfil the needs of the Somali people. We have decided to vacate all the seats for the Khartoum talks," state minister of parliament and government relations Abdirahman Haji Adan told Reuters. Analysts say the achievement of a power-sharing agreement in talks slated to take place in Sudan could be the only way to avert war in the Horn of Africa nation. The resignation of ministers, whose posts could possibly be filled by Islamists in any future administration, will be interpreted by many as a genuine attempt to bring that about. First talks took place in Khartoum in June, but the government boycotted a second round this month in protest at alleged Islamist violations of a pact against military expansion. The Islamists took Mogadishu from U.S.-backed warlords on June 5 and now control a swathe of southern Somalia. Their rise has challenged the authority of the Western-backed government, set up in 2004 in the 14th attempt to restore central rule to Somalia since the 1991 ousting of a dictator by warlords ushered in an era of anarchy. AlertNet news is provided by Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
