Chapter 7 - International Reactions to the Crisis pages 461 to 499

Summary

257f. United Nations General Assembly, 54th Session, 9th Plenary Meeting, 22 September 1999

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[1] Address by Mr. Ismail Omar Guelleh, President of the Republic of Djibouti: […] [15] The Somalis, too, have human rights; they have the same right as others to be protected from opressive, malicious and power-hungry individuals who continually and freely move from one capital to another, raising funds and securing armaments. Although these individuals are responsible for the destruction of their country, for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent civilians, countless numbers of casualties and for the paralysis that immobilizes the country to this day, the international community did not intervene in Somalia, “to defend humanitarian principles and to stand up for the values of civilization and justice”, as one Western leader stated in justifying the Kosovo operation. The United Nations Operation in Somalia was also saddled with ambiguities in its mandate and there was never an intention to rid the country of the warlords.

Furthermore, Kosovo represents a clear case of determined and vigorous action to achieve a specific objective – to drive the marauding Serb army from Kosovo. Furthermore, the United Nations operation in Kosovo is vested with unprecedented power, because the circumstances warrant the exercise of nearly sovereign powers. It has authority over the territory, the people of Kosovo, the legislative and the executive powers of Kosovo, including the administration of the judiciary system.