Somalia President Mohammed Farmajo Speaks After ICJ Ruling
The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Mohammed Farmajo, issued a statement following the ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on a maritime dispute with Kenya.
Gathogo Wanjiru 
In its ruling, the ICJ ruled that Kenya will give up part of the disputed maritime territory to Somalia. The court ruled that there was no Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Kenya and Somalia.
Farmajo, who welcomed the Court's verdict, termed it a historic moment, after a protracted legal battle with the Kenyan government to claim parts of the country's maritime territory.
"It was indeed a just struggle that was based on a long vision, a deep knowledge, bravery, patriotism, the protection of public assets, and the defense of the nation and its people. Justice has prevailed. Law and order have prevailed," he stated.
Farmajo thanked the ICJ for upholding the rule of law, adding that the ruling exemplified the integrity and transparency of the international court.
The Somali leader expressed gratitude to the country's eighth parliament, which rejected the MOU instead of adopting the “inheritance protection” resolution.
Farmajo thanked his predecessor, Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud, for initiating the Court process to seek justice and protect Somalia’s maritime borders which were unlawfully claimed by Kenya. He alleged that Somalia had been under enormous pressure from Kenya to surrender the disputed territory.
"The Kenyan leadership started to directly intervene in our country’s political process by mobilizing political groups in Kenya in order to create an atmosphere of chaos and political instability in Somalia that would ultimately lead to the withdrawal of the case from the Court," the statement read in part.
He claimed that after botched pressure tactics, the Kenyan government resorted to direct violations of Somalia's sovereignty. He accused Kenya of spending time and resources in a campaign to politically isolate Somalia, painting a distorted picture of the nation to neighboring countries, and to the international community.
Somali accused Nairobi of waging a military campaign violating its nation’s sovereignty and the public interest of the Somali people.
"This military campaign included indiscriminate air and land strikes inside Somalia’s borders. These strikes targeted the lives and properties of Somali citizens," Farmajo reiterated.
He further accused Kenya of waging a strong campaign at the United Nations to place Somalia under the UNSC 1267 resolution which would have facilitated the labeling of the Somali business community, government officials, and humanitarian workers as terrorists, allow for the arbitrary confiscation and freezing of their assets and ultimately cripple the country’s economy.
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