Monday, December 06, 2010
 Somali pirates being arrested, file photo |
"It's a good thing that Somalia is training an anti-piracy force," said Alan Cole, the head of the anti-piracy program at the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.
However, he noted that he wants to know the identity of the donor, the laws governing the force, how recruits are screened and the chain of command.
The United Nations and the US have expressed concern about the lack of transparency of the project. Two men previously working for CIA and the US State Department are said to be leading the plan and advising the government about its implementation, the Associated Press reported.
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There are also concerns about the financial sources of the project. The US has denied any involvement. About 1,050 men are going to be trained to work in Mogadishu, the capital, and Puntland -- a semi-autonomous northern region -- for the counter-piracy plan.
They are also worried that the project may violate a UN-ban which precludes the shipment of military armaments to Somalia, a country torn by civil war for twenty years.
Source: PressTV