7755th Security Council Meeting: Situation in Somalia

Upcoming elections are a ‘historic opportunity’ for more representative governance in Somalia, Security Council stresses, urging Respect for revised timetable, at 7755th meeting

• Categories: Meetings & Events / Security Council
• Video Length: 00:04:26
• Production Date: 19 August 2016
• Asset Language: Arabic; Chinese; English; French; Russian; Spanish
• Subject Topical: DEMOCRACY; ELECTIONS; GOVERNANCE; REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT
• Geographic Subject: SOMALIA
• MAMS Id: 1693924
• Parent Id: 1692656

Description

Welcoming the continued political and security progress in Somalia, the Security Council today underscored the need to maintain the momentum towards democratic governance with an inclusive, transparent and credible national electoral process this year as a stepping stone to universal suffrage elections in 2020.

In a presidential statement (document S/PRST/2016/13) read out by Council President Ramlam Bin Ibrahim (Malaysia), the 15-member body welcomed the recent meeting of Somalia’s National Leadership Forum on the implementation of the 2016 electoral Process.

The Council noted the Forum’s consensus decision to extend the timeline for the parliamentary and presidential electoral processes until 25 and 30 October respectively so that technical modalities to ensure an inclusive process could be implemented. Further, Council members noted the Forum’s consensual decision to extend the current mandates of the federal institutions to respect the revised timeline.

Expressing regret for the delay in the original electoral timeline, the Council called on all Somali stakeholders to work constructively to implement the revised calendar without further delay.

Noting that the electoral process was an historic opportunity to deliver more representative governance to the people of Somalia, the Council welcomed the decision of the Forum on representation of minority clans and the Banadiri community. In that context, Council members also recalled the federal Government of Somalia’s commitment to reserve 30 per cent of seats in the Upper and Lower Houses for women.

The Council urged the federal Government of Somalia to ensure that the electoral process would be conducted in a transparent and credible manner; in a climate of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedoms of expression and association.

The Security Council also emphasised the importance of adhering to the political road map with a view towards reaching one-person, one-vote elections by 2020.

The meeting began at 10:23 a.m. and ended at 10:28 a.m.