A/HRC/18/2 would be critical in addressing this issue. Somalia had repeatedly warned the international community about the risk of a potential crisis and humanitarian disaster, but no one paid attention to the information provided by Somalia. 297. The prolonged internal armed conflicts had for more than two decades weakened Somalia’s legal, political and social infrastructure. However, Somalia had recently made important achievements. On 6 September, following consultations with all relevant stakeholders, the Transitional Federal Government, the regional administrations of Puntland and Galmudug and the Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a movement had adopted a road map for ending the transition. The Kampala Accord of 9 June 2011 had permitted a one-year extension to the transitional federal institutions, and the road map set out the steps to implement the Accord. The road map contained four priority tasks for ending the transition before 20 August 2012, namely, security, constitution, reconciliation, and good governance. The Transitional Federal Government and other stakeholders also agreed that the road map would be implemented in accordance with the principles of Somali ownership, inclusivity and participation, and monitoring and compliance with the benchmarks and timelines as prescribed by the Kampala Accord. 298. The Government of Somalia was committed to continuing this pattern of consultation and inclusivity. The second consultative meeting under the road map would be held in Puntland in October 2011, and focus on the draft constitution. The Government had also invited Al-Shabaab to lay down their arms and join the table for peaceful negotiations and dialogue, without preconditions. 299. The Government of Somalia praised the civil society bodies working in Somalia for their valuable contributions; for example, the newly-constituted National Disaster Management Agency was made up entirely of individuals from Somali civil society. The Government reiterated its commitment to engaging proactively with civil society, and encouraged it to continue to work with the Government to support the national agenda for change. 300. Despite the constraints and challenges, Somalia had engaged proactively with the Human Rights Council for the past three and half years, resulting in the adoption of five important resolutions and the outcome of the stand-alone interactive dialogue on technical assistance to Somalia. Another key achievement of Somalia in 2011, in terms of its engagements with international human rights mechanisms, was the submission and presentation of its universal periodic review national report in Geneva on 3 May 2011, the first time that Somalia had been able to prepare a national report and engage with a human rights mechanism, productively and cooperatively, since 1984. 301. The lack of engagement in the past 25 years should not, however, be interpreted as a lack of interest or a lack of respect for human rights. Somali culture was imbued with humanitarianism and respect for human rights. In times of hostilities, the Biri-Ma-Geydo (“spared from the spear”), namely, Somalia’s own “Geneva Conventions”, which came into existence long before the adoption of the Hague and Geneva Conventions, mitigated and regulated the conduct of clan hostilities and the treatment of certain groups. 302. Somalia was committed to making human rights the foundation of the transition to a new Somalia based on democratic values. Nonetheless, the implementation of human rights could not be achieved by Somalia alone, and cooperation with and technical assistance for Somalia in the field of human rights was essential to make progress. It was critical that the key tasks in the road map be accomplished on time, with the strong political will in Somalia and the support of the international community. 303. The Government called on States to continue to provide the country with urgent assistance to enable the Government to extend the territory under its control and to deliver services, and to prevent warlords from re-emerging to fill the vacuum left by the GE.12-17756 123