Photo: Credit UN
The UN head in Somalia James Swan has expressed and called the leaders of Puntland and Jubaland leaders to attend the ongoing electoral talks in Dhusamareb noting the meeting was he underlined that the type of elections to be held in the country should be inclusive and independent,
James Swan also told the council that the removal of Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire had negatively impacted progress of the Dhusamareb conference and political parties reacted negatively to the abrupt removal of the Prime Minister from the office. In the war against Al-Shabaab, the UN head said generation of more Somali forces had been hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic warning of an increasing trend in attacks by the militant group.
James Swan also called for the reintroduction of the 2020 Sexual Offenses Bill notes the newly introduced Bill by some lawmakers ‘violates protections against child marriage and forced marriage, and it is not in conformity with international human rights commitments to which Somalia is a party.’