CM/Res.1620 (LXIII)
RESOLUTION ON SOMALIA
The Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity, meeting in its Sixty-Third ordinary Session in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 26 to 28 February 1996,
Having considered the Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Somalia, document CM/1912(LXIII)E,
Having listened to the statement by the Foreign Minister of Ethiopia on Somalia,
Concerned over the situation in Somalia and the stalemate obtaining in efforts to launch a process of national reconciliation and to establish a broad-based national authority,
Concerned also about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Somalia:
Reiterating its position that ultimately the responsibility for finding a solution to the conflict in Somalia lies with the Somali people themselves,
Reaffirming the leading role that must be played by Africa in the search for a lasting resolution of the Somali conflict,
TAKES NOTE of the Report of the Secretary-General;
EXPRESSES its appreciation to H.E. Mr Meles Zenawi, Prime Minister of Ethiopia and Current Chairman of the OAU, who also has a special mandate on Somalia, as well as to the Secretary-General of the Organization, for their efforts in the search for a negotiated, political solution to the conflict in Somalia;
URGES the Somali factions to desist from activities that could plunge the country into a generalized situation of warfare;
CALLS UPON the Somali leaders to recognize the imperative need to act urgently to promote dialogue aimed at the establishment of a broad-based national authority and the pursuance of national reconciliation;
DECIDES that the Tripartite Mission undertake another visit to Somalia in order to maintain direct contacts with the various Somali factions and to determine the actual situation on the ground;
APPEALS to the Member States and the international Community to provide humanitarian assistance in view of the worsening humanitarian situation in Somalia;
URGES the Somali leaders to work towards the creation of conditions of security which are
conducive to the facilitation of such assistance;
FURTHER APPEALS to all OAU Member States and the international community to desist from supplying war materials to any of the factions in Somalia so as to avoid an escalation of the crisis;
CALLS UPON the Current Chairman of the OAU as well as the Secretary General of the organization to continue their efforts aimed at finding a lasting solution to the crisis in Somalia;
FURTHER CALLS UPON the UN and the other Inter- Governmental Organizations, including the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, to closely co-ordinate their efforts with the OAU in the search for a solution to the conflict in Somalia;
REQUESTS the Secretary General to continue to monitor the situation in Somalia and report thereon to the Sixty-Fourth Ordinary Session of Council.