Famine in Somalia

[GordMay]

The United Nations has declared a famine in two areas of southern Somalia as the region suffers the worst drought in more than half a century...
... An estimated 10 million people have been affected in East Africa by the worst drought in more than half a century. More than 166,000 desperate Somalis are estimated to have fled their country to neighbouring Kenya or Ethiopia...
... Across the country nearly half of the Somali population - 3.7 million people - are now in crisis, of whom an estimated 2.8 million people are in the south...
More ➥ BBC News - UN declares Somalia famine in Bakool and Lower Shabelle

... In a separate development, Amnesty International says children in Somalia are being systematically recruited as child soldiers by militant groups such as al-Shabab...
More ➥ Children in Somalia facing war crimes | Amnesty International

[capn_billl]

Maybe if they spent a little more time on farming infrastructure, (digging ditches, laying pipelines, digging wells, etc...), and a little less time killing their neighbors, exporting terrorism, waging war, overthorowing their government, etc...

Just saying

[MarkJ]

One of the difficulties this time around may well be reluctance for people in western countries to donate.

Not only many see Somalia as a pirates, many people have donation fatigue - just too many causes have battered on our doors.
The Red Cross in China flashing cash (http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-06/world/china.redcross_1_netizens-china-red-cross-society-posts?_s=PM:WORLD ) but other countries over the years. Even in Australia the charities have been syphoning off donations.

Even when we give the money/food.aid may never reach the starving children because of piracy stealing it (thats happened often! http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.ph...Sea&Itemid=106 ) and the various warlords and military factions stealing it. Somalia: Warlords Block Food Aid By Land and Sea


Finally, in the view of at least some westerners, they hate us.


It could well be the toughest crisis.

[Capt Dan]

Capn Billl is spot on.
Really, what good would donations do anyway? Just look at the history of Haiti since 1791. And then all the money donated recently to Haiti. Some of these countries are simply doomed to fail if left to their own devices.

[capn_billl]

Wait! I know we can solve the food crises in Somalia by soliciting a group of EU countries to donate unsold outboards, and provide them with several thousand small skiffs they can use to fish with.... OH wait we already tried that.

[goboatingnow]

What a bunch of selfish people you are. Ordinary innocent Somalis people are dying including children.

I am reminded of " let them eat cake" well you'll all be first up against the wall when the revolution comes.

Dave

[David M]

The problem is the gangs and war lords who do not allow for a structured government which could then provide societal stability and develop the infrastrcture for farms, factories etc that could provide food or money to purchase food and other basic necessities.

Japan and a number of countries have little to nothing for natural resources and yet are not starving or living in filth. This is because they have a structured society not run by thugs.

[Lucky Larry]

Does this have anything to do with Cruising or Sailing???

[jholder]

Originally Posted by Lucky Larry

Does this have anything to do with Cruising or Sailing???

Well, it is in the "off topic" section...

[Lucky Larry]

Originally Posted by jholder

Well, it is in the "off topic" section...

Good point. I stand corrected.

[Capt Phil]

My long passed father was a Director of a well known international charity that raised millions in the 50's and 60's. A keen yachtsman, he travelled the world visiting many distressed countries and tried to encourage investment in boat building to support local coastal economies in Africa and Central America.
He resigned after discovering that approximately $.09 out of every $1 collected went to those who were prominently displayed in adverts encouraging people to donate. The rest went to 'expenses' and staffing.
He was particularly upset because he paid his own way for his humanitarian efforts while others sat in plush offices and collected 6 figure salaries which was big money back then.
Somalia was one of the countries he visited several times and I recall him describing it at the time as a 'stone age' society. That was only 40 years ago and it sounds like they haven't progressed very far. Capt Phil

[keyspc]

from Victory in Tripoli: Lessons for the War on Terrorism | The Heritage Foundation

Take, for example, the 1786 meeting in London of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the Tripolitan ambassador to Britain. As American ambassadors to France and Britain, respectively, Jefferson and Adams met with Ambassador Adja to negotiate a peace treaty and protect the United States from the threat of Barbary piracy.
These future United States Presidents questioned the ambassador as to why his government was so hostile to the new American republic even though America had done nothing to provoke any such animosity. Ambassador Adja answered them, as they reported to the Continental Congress,

that it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman [Muslim] who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise.
Sound familiar?

Note that America's Barbary experience took place well before colonialism entered the lands of Islam, before there were any oil interests dragging the U.S. into the fray, and long before the founding of the state of Israel.

Send the marines back in! give 24 hour notice that piracey laws are going to be enforced and bring lots of rope.
Then and only then have UN forces take over, maitain peace and provide humanitarian aide.

[Red Mantis]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

What a bunch of selfish people you are. Ordinary innocent Somalis people are dying including children.

I'm actually quite generous, donating time and money to worthy charities both locally and abroad. But I'm not stupid, and I'm not wasteful with my time and treasure.

If you can point me to a worthy charitable group that is doing good work with those who are actually suffering, I'm all ears. The only groups I've seen so far are those who siphon off considerable amounts in "expenses," and then spend the rest on projects that benefit the corrupt locals in power, who ironically enough are the ones causing the suffering in the first place. What good is it to give ten tons of grain, when 95% of it winds up in the storehouses of the warlords, where it gets used as a political weapon for feeding supporters and starving any potential reformers?

Go ahead and pat yourself on the back for thinking happy thoughts. Try not to consider that you're encouraging the deaths of your fellow sailors for the "crime" of insufficient charity, and helping those who literally put their rivals "up against the wall" on a regular basis.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by keyspc

Then and only then have UN forces take over, maitain peace and provide humanitarian aide.

The UN would never mandate it so it would be unilateral action by which ever country wanted to kill off soldier and lose the next election.

So we are back to square one: Wondering what the hell will be the future of these starving children? Oh, I just answered my own question.... Hell.

[hummingway]

Thread closed.

It is still a requirement that the Off Topic forum be in some way related to sailing and cruising. While events in Somalia are in someways important to cruisers this thread doesn't seem destined to be of value in that context.