MOGADISHU (Reuters)
Hoping to open an embassy in chaotic Mogadishu, Kenya's acting envoy to Somalia said on Wednesday the Horn of Africa country has all the potential to be a top tourist destination despite 16 years of violence.
Ken Vitisia, who is in Mogadishu waiting to present his papers to President Abdullahi Yusuf, also urged other African nations to consider reviving diplomatic ties with Somalia and send their troops to help restore peace.
"This country is beautiful," he said at his hotel rooftop in southern Mogadishu. "We believe Somalia has had a conflict for too long. It can be a good tourist destination. The buildings can be renovated if peace prevails."
Somalia's coastal capital lies next to beaches and azure waters Somalia's once architecturally beautiful coastal capital lies next to beaches and azure waters that prompt many visitors to remark on its tourism potential as they fly in. The country has continental Africa's longest and least-policed coastline.
But since the 1991 fall of a military dictator plunged Somalia into anarchy, its beaches have, instead, seen militia in battlewagons racing over sand dunes on their way to war.
Mogadishu remains one of the world's most dangerous cities, with Islamist rebels and clan militia fighting a guerrilla war against government troops and their Ethiopian military allies.
Vitisia also urged all warring parties to end their differences amicably in the ongoing peace talks and called on African countries to send troops to help restore stability. |
