I know, this is meant to be purely a travel blog, but the terrorist bombings in Uganda deserve a comment. In case you haven’t heard about it yet, you can read the news in BBC, CNN, and several other websites.
If truly it is the Somali Al Shabaab militia that carried out the attack, there’s real need for the entire African continent, and indeed the whole world, to move with greater speed to rectify the situation in Somalia. I know, we already have an African Union peace keeping mission on the ground, but obviously it is not achieving the desired results. The transitional national government is still very weak, while Al-shabaab and other similar radical groups seem to be gaining strength every day. By expanding their tentacles beyond Somalia, they are sending a strong signal that they want to remain a force to reckon with.
I am a travel blogger, and my knowledge of security matters is minimal, but I know one thing for sure: if Al Shabab or any other terror group gets rooted in the Eastern Africa region, it will adversely affect our travel industry, among other things. The 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, plus the 2002 Kikambala bombings in the Kenyan coast taught us quite as much. Tourism is an important part of the economy of at least four countries in Eastern Africa: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Ethiopia. And, of course, you can not overemphasize the importance of peace and stability to our economy. In this era of globalization, Africa and the world cannot afford the consequences of a destabilized Eastern Africa region.
We may have neglected Somalia for long, probably thinking that their internal woes cannot affect us, but we should know better now. It is not too late: The world can and should act to end the lawlessness in Somalia. The Uganda bombings should be our wake up call. Could it be time for us to petition the United Nations to act more decisively on Somalia? Other online petitions have had great success in the recent past, perhaps someone with a louder voice than mine should start one on Somalia. What do you think? Please feel free to leave your comments below.
Happy and safe travels!
