Following the signing of the Djibouti Agreement on 19 August 2008 (mediated by the SRSG for Somalia), the UNSC passed UNSCR 1844 (20 November 2008) to apply targeted sanctions against individuals who might undermine the terms of the peace agreement, violate the arms embargo, and obstruct the delivery of humanitarian assistance. No designations were made until 12 April 2010, when the Security Council shifted its focus to securing the transitional government’s position in the country. This was motivated in part by the military gains of Al-Shabaab, an Islamist offshoot of the UIC that had splintered in 2006 following the Ethiopian invasion of the country, which had engaged in armed opposition to the Transnational Federal Government of Somalia (TFG), to Ethiopian forces, and to AMISON since 2006.
Growing concern for the linkages between piracy and instability in Somalia (including the role piracy may play in financing arms embargo violations), as well as the threat of piracy to the delivery of humanitarian aid to Somalia, led the Council to authorize states and regional groups cooperating with TFG to use all necessary means to repress acts of piracy and armed robbery within the territorial waters of Somalia (UNSCR 1846, December 2008). Exemptions to the arms embargo were authorized for anti-piracy efforts, but no sanctions for piracy were agreed to by the UN (due to concern for the criminalization of ransom payments).
N/A.
Constrain forces challenging the TFG (and the 2008 Djibouti Peace Agreement) or violating the arms embargo.
Signal support for the peace process.
Ongoing arms imports embargo on all parties to the conflict (with conditional government exemptions) extended also to designated individuals and entities.
Newly imposed travel ban and asset freeze on listed individuals / entities (including rebel factions).
No individual targets specified.
UN sanctions can have some non-discriminating impact on the general population, since they include arms embargoes, diplomatic sanctions, and/or restrictions on the conduct of particular activities or the export of specific commodities.
Sanctions Committee and Monitoring Group in place. Designation criteria were specified but targets were not designated. Enforcement authorities not specified.
N/A.
N/A.
Al-Shabaab engaged in armed opposition to the TFG, as weapons continued to be freely available in the country.
The presence of AMISOM and Ethiopian forces is most significant to the outcome. No designations were made during the episode.
The lack of focus in articulation of purposes in the UNSCRs during the episode – challengers to the Djibouti Agreement, Al-Shabaab, piracy, support for the transitional government, condemnation of external intervention – combined with the absence of designations, contributed to a poorly articulated signal.
The presence of AMISOM and Ethiopian forces is more significant to the signal. The authorization of individual sanctions following the Djibouti agreement supported the peace process, although the absence of designations weakened the signal of sanctions.
Increase in corruption and criminality, strengthening instruments of the security apparatus of senders, resource diversion, humanitarian consequences, decline in the credibility and/or legitimacy of UN Security Council.