Lastweek Somalia elected its new president, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. As a moderate, hefaces a daunting task of bringing change to his country that has not had acentral government for eighteen years and has resisted powerful forces andbrought down towering figures.
Opposition to hiselection gained momentum when four Islamist factions announced plans to mergeand declare war against the new government that he is yet to form.
Paula Roque, aresearcher for the Africa Security Programme based in South Africa told VOA?sAkwei Thompson Sheikh Sharif is facing several obstacles.
?First of all the expandedparliament of 550 members will now have to be based in Djibouti since Baidoawas taken by al Shabab. Also, there has been an escalation in violence aroundMogadischu, in fact, the greatest obstacle and, perhaps also the greatestsolution to the crisis is going to be the creation of an inclusive and broadlyaccepted government?,? the research analyst said.
Ms.Roque did not seethe threat by four Islamist factions including al Shabab to merge into onegroup to fight the Somali government as a negative for Sheikh Sharif.
?Well?he wants tobring the Islamist into an inclusive arrangement for peace and stability so hismessage was very much conciliatory, which is a very positive move?,? she said. However,Roque said Somalis do not have the disposition for radical Islam and that alShabab may be losing its appeal.
She contends that byits actions taken in Kismayo and throughout south-central Somalia ?includingthe desecration of the toombs of clerics, which in fact propelled the uprise ofthe new movement of Suna, Shabab may be losing its appeal in south-centralSomalia.?
Moreover, Roque saidit might be easier for the new president to deal with a group merged from four factionsthan to negotiate with with them individually.
And now with thenew formation of a group, perhaps it could be easier to negotiate with this onegroup instead of having to negotiate with several factions,? she said.
On the issue of escalatedviolence in Mogadischu, Roque thinks an independent investigations of theviolations of Geneva Convention are needed. She also found it ?incrediblyunhelpful that the top UN official to Somalia has dismissed the recent incidentin which Ugandan troops were accused of killing civilians, as propaganda.?