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INSIDE AFRICA
International Forces Chase Pirates Near Horn of Africa; Somali Refugees Forced to Make Dangerous Voyage
Aired May 31, 2008 - 12:30:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Isha Sesay. Welcome to INSIDE AFRICA, your weekly window to the continent.
On the program this week, lawlessness beyond the shores. Our David McKenzie takes us on an embed with international forces as they chase pirates off the Horn of Africa.
Risking it all -- we look at the plight of Somali refugees who choose a dangerous voyage of a life in their own country.
And notes from a reporter. Our Robyn Curnow gives us her perspective as a South African on that country's recent outrage of xenophobic violence.
We begin off the Horn of Africa, in some of the world's most dangerous waters, where pirating is up 20 percent since last year. CNN's David McKenzie traveled to this region to cover international efforts to combat the problem. He just happened to be there when Somali pirates hijacked a Dutch-owned ship that had been on its way from Kenya to Romania. And a Kenyan maritime official says two more cargo ships were hijacked in the same area on Thursday.
As David reports, these hijackings are examples of a growing problem which threatens a key trade route.
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DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Coalition navy of the Horn of Africa. A maritime protection force patrolling some of the busiest and most dangerous waters on the planet. The USS Shoup guided missile destroyer skirts the Somali coast in search of pirates, terrorists and smugglers. It's a serious problem.
MICHAEL LEHMAN, COMMANDER, USS SHOUP: That element of criminal activity that's out there can interrupt global trade, interrupt the freedom of use of the seas out here.
MCKENZIE: The Somali coast has seen an alarming rise in piracy in the past several months. Today's modern buccaneers are well-armed with rocket- propelled grenades and automatic weapons. They work from motherships and can attack far out at sea. The weak Somali government has little control over them.
BLAKE LINDSAY, LIEUTENANT: One of our important missions is to go out and build a good rapport with the local maritime communities. We want to be here to make sure that they feel safe.
MCKENZIE: These warships have become the beat cops of the sea, patrolling a 2.5 million square mile block of ocean, checking on merchant vessels, ready with boarding teams if the distress signal comes.
Destroyers like the USS Shoup were originally designed for large-scale naval attack and defense, but now they're taking a military policing role of the coast of Somalia. But the Gulf of Aden is a massive stretch of ocean, and they cannot go into territorial waters.
International law stops them. They have the strike capabilities, but they need to stay 12 miles off the coast, far beyond where the pirates often find shelter.
Aboard the FS Marne, refueling and command ship for the fleet, the French commander of the coalition task force is frustrated with their rules of engagement.
JEAN L. KERIGNARD, REAR ADMIRAL, CTF-150: To enter into territorial water, you need to have a deep clearance. That means that the agreement of the state of Somalia in this case to enter into the territorial water.
MCKENZIE: With that permission, they have the manpower and the specialists skills to take on pirates. French commanders staged a mock raid on the Marne. We can't show you more, because their tactics are classified.
PHILLIPE EBANGA, CTF-150: What the French have in the area, so you need to have ability to go ahead and chase down like we saw with the pirates on the (inaudible), they will chase them down and will eventually go on board if that's needed.
MCKENZIE: The U.S. and French governments have proposed a resolution at the U.N. Security Council to allow coalition forces to go into the territorial waters of Somalia. If it passes, it could help end the scourge of the seas. Commanders believes then and only then will the waters that connect the western half of the planet to the east be truly safe for maritime travel.
David McKenzie, CNN, Djibouti.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: The very circumstances that allow Somali pirates to thrive on the high seas are causing a humanitarian crisis that stretches across the Gulf of Aden.
Still ahead, Yemen speaks up on the need for international involvement in its Somali refugee crisis. Stay with INSIDE AFRICA.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SESAY: Welcome back to INSIDE AFRICA.
Each year, thousands of Somalis decide that their life in their country is so unbearable, they'd rather take their chances on a dangerous voyage across the Gulf of Aden. And each year, hundreds die in a crossing. Yemen is their intended destination, but there they find few resources and a dim future. Recently, Yemen hosted a U.N. conference to raise awareness of the problem.
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SESAY: They arrive early morning on a quiet coast, having escaped the chaos of a war-torn homeland. A group of Somalis joining more than 18,000 refugees who have crossed the Gulf of Aden to Yemen so far this year.
ABEER ETEFA, THE U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY: On a daily basis, there are hundreds of people attempting to make this journey. We don't know how many get lost at sea. It's a terrible situation, and it's increasing. It's becoming a wide scale phenomena.
SESAY: They run from unrelenting violence. 16 years of conflict has driven hundreds of thousands of Somalis to Yemen. Here, they find limited resources to make a life, but the government says they're welcome to stay until it's safe to go home.
ALI MUTHANA HASSAN, DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER: So many of them are our Muslim brothers, and the attitude of the Yemenis, they think that they have to help out, to understand (ph) the Somali crisis. Thanks to God that we don't have that bad feeling to us (inaudible).
SESAY: This small, barren Middle Eastern nation has maintained an open- door policy to refugees for nearly two decades, earning the praise of the United Nations.
But now, Yemen is feeling the strain. The flow of refugees has doubled in recent months. Flare-ups in fighting among government forces, Ethiopian troops and insurgents have combined with food shortages and rising prices to make life unbearable in Somalia. Reason so many Somalis are willing to take their chances at sea.
ETEFA: What we know from refugees and from migrants attempting to make this trip is that it's a very, very harsh trip. It takes them 48 hours, on very small boats. Smugglers abuse people. There are many situations of rape, beatings on board these boats.
SESAY: While exact numbers will never be known, the U.N. Refugee Agency estimates more than 400 Somalis died making this voyage in the first four months of this year alone. Those who survive the trip are often shuttled to overcrowded and under-funded U.N. camps. The Yemeni government says it does what it can for them, but it needs help.
HASSAN: It is really a great issue. I mean, you can call it a crisis. We're trying to help them by all means, and we'd like the international community to come with us. But we'd like the international community to be more involved in solving the political side.
SESAY: This month, Yemen hosted a U.N.-sponsored conference asking for more international involvement. But the government says without a lasting peace in Somalia, there is not much it can do, except keep its borders open to its weary guests from the south.
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SESAY: The Yemen deputy foreign minister says terrorism and piracy in the region are side effects of the Somali conflict.
Now, let's take a quick look at some other stories making headlines around the continent. A U.N. special envoy called a recent outbreak of violence in southern Sudan an absolute human tragedy. He toured the city of Abiye and other areas affected by fighting between rebels and government forces. The U.N. estimates that up to 90,000 people have been displaced by the violence.
The top U.S. military commander for Africa is trying to reassure several African countries about U.S. intentions. General Kip Ward told the Associated Press the new regional command known as AFRICOM will not lead to large numbers of U.S. troops being stationed on the continent. Countries including South Africa, Libya and Nigeria have exposed concerns about an expansion of U.S. influence in Africa.
Nigerian President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua said his country's power shortages will continue until at least 2015. Despite its sizeable oil wealth, Africa's most populous country can't generate enough electricity for its 140 million citizens. One of Musa Yar'Adua's campaign promises was to improve Nigeria's power grid. Critics say he has been slow to deliver.
Amnesty International named Zimbabwe and Darfur as two key flashpoints in its latest global human rights report. When INSIDE AFRICA continues, we'll hear from the group's leader about the underlying causes of human rights failures on the continent, and possible solutions.
And still ahead, CNN's Robyn Curnow explains what it's been like covering the outbreak of xenophobic violence in her native South Africa.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Making business news in Africa this week. Japan plans to nearly double aid to the continent over the next five years. Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda pledged almost $2 billion in new aid at the Tokyo international conference on African development. He also promised up to $4 billion in loans for infrastructure.
The International Coffee Organization reportedly is giving Kenyan coffee producers a new perk that will boost the price of their beans. "The Daily Nation" newspaper reports the group has reached a branding deal that will require importers using Kenyan beans to label their blends accordingly. Kenya's agriculture secretary tells the newspaper the deal also effectively eliminates middlemen and allows producers to market their coffee directly to buyers.
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SESAY: You're watching INSIDE AFRICA. Welcome back.
Amnesty International has just released its annual report, and as expected, it highlights a number of human rights failures in Africa. I went through the group's latest findings with its secretary general, Irene Khan. She says while governments have created a human rights system of treaties and laws in the 60 years since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but that in many countries, a large gap still exists between law and life. We discussed some of the worst examples in Africa.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IRENE KHAN, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: The key areas that we're looking at are what we're calling the human rights flashpoints. These are entrenched conflicts and human rights crises that can explode and engulf regions. We have Darfur. We have Zimbabwe, the Middle East, Iraq, Burma. And what we're calling on world leaders is to recommit themselves to human rights once again.
SESAY: You mentioned Darfur and you mentioned Zimbabwe. I think it's interesting that particularly in this world we're living now, we're in a globalized world, and we live at a time where the problems of one country spill over quite rapidly to others. You know, I read it, you describe it like a virus spreading.
KHAN: That's right. If you look at Darfur, you can see the refugees fleeing into Chad, into the Central African Republic, destabilizing that region. Look at Zimbabwe, look at the problems now in South Africa. You can see that human rights problems cannot be isolated. They have regional and global implications, and therefore, responsibility for the entire international community to resolve them.
SESAY: Where are the major players, the major -- the major powers in the world, where are they on these issues? I mean, where is their attention?
KHAN: Well, they're not engaged enough. And we've seen a sort of a destructive impact of the war on terror, where human rights have been undermined by leading governments, distracted from other issues, and that's part of the problem in Africa. Darfur -- world opinion is very aware of Darfur, a lot of pressure, and yet on the ground the U.N. peacekeepers are still not there; helicopters aren't there; logistic problems are coming up. The government of Sudan is dragging its feet on some of these issues. So you see progress is not taking place, and people are paying a price for it.
SESAY: You mentioned the war on terror. Speak to us a little bit on the position of the U.S. and, as you describe it, had lost its moral compass.
KHAN: The world is looking to leadership from the United States. That's the reason why we're focusing on the U.S. Because if it is to lead, it must regain its moral authority, and it must start doing so by putting its own house in order. And that's why closing Guantanamo and either trying the detainees or releasing them will send a very clear message. Denouncing torture will send a very clear message to others not to practice torture.
SESAY: Going forward for 2008, what are Amnesty's objectives? What are you focusing on?
KHAN: Well, we have some very concrete recommendations that we've made. And we're calling, for example, Zimbabwe, much more focus on it. We've seen an increase of violence in the lead-up to the elections. We'd like to have international monitors. We would like southern African governments to ensure that there are international monitors on the ground, who can ensure that elections will be free and fair.
We'd like to see the international community engage with Sudan, and make sure that peacekeepers are on the ground quickly. And then we want to throw light on the situation in Somalia, which hasn't got much attention, but where Amnesty's rich research has shown some of the most brutal methods of killing, thousands of people dead, hundreds of thousands of people displaced. So we want to see action on Africa.
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SESAY: Khan says regional organizations, such as the Southern African Development Community and the African Union, have important roles to play in solving human rights problems on the continent. But she says they need more international support.
INSIDE AFRICA viewers are reacting strongly to our coverage of xenophobic violence in South Africa. After a short break, Robyn Curnow takes us behind those disturbing scenes.
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SESAY: Welcome back to INSIDE AFRICA. South African officials say they want to improve living conditions for immigrants displaced by xenophobic violence. But they don't want shelters to become permanent. The government has promised to move people out of police stations, churches and town halls where they have sought refuge for about two weeks now.
Tensions are running high among the displaced. Outbreaks of violence were reported at a camp near Pretoria. And police say about 300 people, mostly Somalis, went on hunger strikes.
Attacks on immigrants have left more than 50 people dead and about 40,000 displaced. President Thabo Mbeki has called the violence, quote, "an absolute disgrace."
Our viewers have reacted strongly to the violent images from South Africa. We received a number of e-mails expressing shock and outrage, and CNN's Robyn Curnow received more than 100 comments each for two blog entries she wrote for cnn.com. I asked Robyn what it was like as a South African to witness such brutality.
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ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Of course, it's been very depressing, very disappointing, and you also feel very powerless seeing all of this violence and thuggery and brutality firsthand.
You know, we were on the ground and we saw a number of incidents of brutality against foreigners, disturbing things of people laughing at people who were injured. And of course, then, you know, also we saw that - - that scene where there was a very badly injured man on the ground, and the police seemed when we arrived -- seemed more interesting in keeping us away from him than actually trying to help him, trying to keep us behind the security cordon which they were setting up at the time. So we were forced to stand behind that, and, of course, that is -- you do feel powerless. And I said to the police -- policeman, one of the policemen as this was unfolding, you know, can't someone just hold his hand? You know, he is dying. And the guy just said to me, you know, looked at me as if I was a bit mad.
So it's that sort of personal sort of questions that you come back home at the end of the day, and you just think oh, that sense of lack of empathy and the anger and the hatred that I experienced from, you know, and seeing my own fellow South African feel that way -- you know, it was -- it was sad.
But you know, I think when it comes down to it, we're reporters, and that's what we have to do. We have to tell that story, and I think the impact those stories make, you know, you hope maybe that changed people's opinions. Maybe in the long run, it can get governments to work faster. You know, that's what our job is.
SESAY: What do you see as the root causes behind this?
CURNOW: I think it's important to remember that thuggery and sort of deep- rooted antagonism towards immigrants is not uniquely South African. You know, just look at Europe. You know, those sort of issues are very much in the political fold in Europe at that moment.
But I think for South Africans, to see this has been very disturbing, and I think a lot of people have been trying to soul-search and say, "what is it? What is the root cause of it?"
And of course, on a very basic level, it is this fact that, you know, food prices have gone up, fuel prices have gone up, which means people can't afford, you know, the loaves of bread they could afford, you know, just a few months ago. (inaudible) lines (ph) have increased significantly here. Joblessness, real unemployment is around 40 percent. People are struggling to survive here.
And, of course, the issue in Zimbabwe has played very much into this. You know, many people thought that after the Zimbabwean elections, there would be some sort of closure to this issue, that many of the Zimbabwean immigrants who're here in South Africa -- and there are millions of them -- would go back home, that there'd be some resolution to the Zimbabwean crisis. The fact that there wasn't made many people think, oh, more people are coming over the border, and there's going to be more, you know, competition for scarce resources, particularly from Zimbabweans.
SESAY: With those tensions boiling over, everyone's looking at the South African government to see what they're going to do next. What's your assessment of how they've handled this situation, as a South African first and a journalist second?
CURNOW: I think, you know, all of us supporters were in those areas in (inaudible) settlements, in Primrose, you know, within the first days, in Alexandria (ph) in the first days of this violence happening. And I think there was a clear sense that there was no real senior leadership coming onto the ground and saying to South Africans, "stop doing this. This is unacceptable."
Granted, Thabo Mbeki, the president, came out just a few days ago on national television and called it a disgrace. But many people felt that it was too late, that the message had already been lost.
But the fact is, now there are issues of so-called refugee camps that are having to be set up in many areas that, you know, the immigrants are no longer welcome in South African communities. So, there is now this added concern that there are going to be these sort of displaced people areas in South Africa, which is -- which is very contradictory for many South Africans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Well, you can read blog entries by Robyn Curnow and other CNN correspondents as well as viewer comments by going to cnn.com/inthefield.
We've also received a number of "I Report" photos on the South Africa story. Oscar Gutierrez (ph) describes himself as a Guatemalan photographer living in South Africa. He snapped this shot of marches in Johannesburg as they demonstrated against the violence.
And I-Reporter Chris Dawcy (ph) documented the efforts of local churches to provide shelter for displaced immigrants in the Capetown area. Chris says that temporary refugee camps like this one are on the verge of a humanitarian crisis.
If you're seeing news happening on the continent, please let us know. Just go to our Web site, cnn.com/InsideAfrica, and click on the I Report logo. There, you will find simple instructions on how to upload photographs or video. And please, be careful gathering images. We don't want our viewers to put themselves in any danger.
And there we must leave this week's show. I'll be back next week with a brand new edition of INSIDE AFRICA. Thanks for watching.
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