SOMALIA: Human rights should be "at forefront" of peace talks - Amnesty
NAIROBI, 17 APRIL 2003 (AI)- The London-based rights group Amnesty International (AI) has called for human rights to be at forefront of discussions at the Somali peace conference now being held in Kenya.

In a statement issued this week, AI said a new interim government was likely to emerge from the talks within few months if obstacles to an agreement could be overcome. For that reason, "strong international support for human rights reconstruction is now needed more than ever".

The statement said that despite the Somali parties having signed a ceasefire agreement on 27 October 2002, there had been numerous violations, with many crimes going unpunished due to the absence of "a system of justice and policing". MORE