Washington sanctions Somali officials for not meeting election schedule

The U.S. has imposed visa restrictions on a number of Somali officials, including regional leaders, suspected of obstructing the electoral process. This is in response to the missed deadline for the completion of Somalia’s long-delayed elections.

The country’s National Consultative Assembly, which is chaired by Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble, has extended the deadline for completing parliamentary elections to March 15. The previous deadline was February 25.

In a press release announcing visa restrictions targeting some unnamed Somalis, the United States demanded the swift completion of parliamentary and presidential elections in a transparent and credible manner. According to Washington, the travel ban is intended to promote accountability and punish Somali officials who obstruct the electoral process. Some Somalis welcomed the measure.

In Mogadishu, there is a broad consensus that visa restrictions should be imposed on Somali leaders to prevent them from traveling to the United States, where many Somali politicians’ families, some of whom hold dual citizenship, reside. Somalis hope that visa restrictions imposed by the U.S. and other countries will encourage local leaders to speed up the electoral process.