Seminar on the Somali Crisis

A Seminar on the Somali Crisis

Geneva, 3-4 January 2007

The Urgent need for dialogue between Somalis

The direct engagement of Ethiopian forces in Somalia, with the backing of other foreign powers, has increased fears that the conflict would degenerate and exacerbate the suffering of the Somali people. The deteriorating situation in Somalia calls for an urgent action to bring together all protagonists from Somalia in order to engage in direct talks. Such a need has been reasserted by the international community, particularly the African Union, the Arab League as well as the UN in its resolutions 1724 and 1725.

With the aim to facilitate such talks and after preliminary contacts with Somali factions, the “Centre for Conflict and Peace Studies” is organizing a two-day meeting in Geneva, on January 3-4, 2007, to address the current conflict in Somalia.

The aim of the meeting is to allow Somali representatives to engage in direct talks and pave the way to further steps that will help Somalia out of its long lasting crisis. The “Centre for Conflict Resolution” will provide all the logistics for this meeting.

About the Cordoba Foundation and the Centre for Conflict and Peace Studies (CCPS)

The Cordoba Foundation is a Geneva-based non-profit organisation. Its aim is:

• to promote the exchange between cultures and civilisations in the spirit of Cordoba;
• to foster research and debate about peace issues in the world.

The mission of the CCPS is to conduct theoretical and practical studies, and to organise training sessions on the following topics:

• Contribution of the various cultural traditions to peace promotion.
• An approach taking into account the cultural dimension to issues such as: a) conflict prevention and resolution, b) peace-making, peace-keeping and peace-building, c) promotion and protection of human rights.
• Practical application of culture-sensitive approaches to peace issues in the Arab and Muslim world.

The CCPS also intervenes in conflicts in (or involving) the Arab/Muslim world. Last year the CCPS focused its intervention on Irak, Somalia and Darfur conflicts, and on the crisis triggered by the Danish Jyllands-Posten cartoons.

Contact information

CCPS, Cordoba Foundation

Vignes 2bis, 1209 Genève

Phone: +41 22 734 10 07

Fax: +41 22 734 10 08

Mobile: +41 79 449 58 64

Email: info@cordoue.ch