A/HRC/12/44 page 6 protection of human rights in Somalia. The Prime Minister agreed to appoint a focal point in the Ministry with whom, among others, the Human Rights Unit of UNPOS, one of whose staff had accompanied the independent expert at the meeting, would be able to liaise with in this regard. The independent expert thanks the Prime Minister again for his assurances. The independent expert hopes it will be possible to arrange for more in-depth meetings with the Somali authorities in the future. 12. The independent expert was impressed by the will of the Minister for Constitutional Affairs to involve the Somali people through participatory processes, by drawing up a new constitution for Somalia based on the ideals and aspirations of the people. The independent expert was pleased to learn that the United Nations had already set up a mechanism to coordinate support in this regard. This is an area where a great deal of technical assistance and capacity-building is needed. 13. The independent expert’s meeting with three members of parliament representing the minority clans of Somalia was extremely useful to understand the situation of Somalia from their perspective. They shared their views on how minority rights and interests in Somalia could be safeguarded in any future arrangements. 14. The Ambassador of the African Union to Somalia, based in Nairobi, provided a very useful analysis of the national, regional and international perspectives of the Somali crisis, as well as equally important information on the role and activities of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISON) troops. The independent expert raised reports on alleged human rights abuses by the troops, which led to a discussion on the extremely difficult circumstances and severe restrictions under which the troops have to serve in Somalia. 15. The meetings held with the community of non-governmental organizations, both national and international, were, as usual, a source of most useful information on the human rights situation on the ground. Most of the organizations were linked to other non-governmental organizations, humanitarian workers and human rights defenders on the ground in Somalia. The independent expert was again impressed by the dedication of the latter, who work in Somalia under most difficult and dangerous circumstances. Without them it would be difficult for the international community to obtain a reasonably reliable picture of the terrible plight of the people. They are often the only source for verifying information on human rights abuses by different parties to the conflict. B. Visit to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya 16. Owing to the fact that the independent expert was unable to visit south-central Somalia, where the violence and human rights violations are more endemic, he had to depend during his three missions on talking with recently arrived refugees from these areas, in Kenya or Yemen, to find out about their experiences in Somalia. His visit this time to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya took place in the context of very large arrivals. About 36,000 new Somali refugees arrived in Dadaab in the first six months of 2009. With some 300,000 refugees, the Dadaab camps host the largest concentration of refugees in any single area of the world today.