Center for Peace and Democracy (CPD)

US committed to working with 'partners' to end unrest in Somalia

2006-05-19T16:54:00.000+03:00

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The White House expressed its commitment to working with "regional and international partners" in Somalia to establish a functioning central government, and to prevent Islamic extremism from taking root there.

"The United States strongly supports the transitional federal institutions in Somalia, because they are trying to reestablish a functioning central government within Somalia that can bring the Somali people out of the period of civil conflict," White House spokesman Tony Snow said at a press conference.

Snow said that Washington has long been concerned that ongoing unrest could turn lawless Somalia into a haven for terrorists.

"You've got instability in Somalia right now, and there is concern about the presence of foreign terrorists, particularly al-Qaeda, within Somalia," Snow told reporters.

"In an environment of instability, as we've seen in the past, Al-Qaeda may take root, and we want to make sure that Al-Qaeda does not in fact establish a beachhead in Somalia," he said.
"These are problems that we've seen in other ungoverned regions in the past. The terrorists are going to seek to take advantage of the environment and use that kind of chaos in order to put together camps and therefore mount operations around the world," the spokesman added.

"We will continue to work with regional and international partners wherever we can to crack down on terrorism and also to try to prevent its rising," Snow said.

Somalia has been engulfed by deadly violence, with the latest surge of violence over the past several days around the capital Mogadishu killing nearly 140 people.

The US spokesman on Wednesday skirted questions as to whether the United States was supporting one of the parties in the conflict the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism (ARPCT).

The horn of Africa nation of some 10 million people has been without a functioning central authority since the 1991 fall of strongman Mohamed Siad Barre plunged it into anarchy, with warlords battling for control of a patchwork of fiefdoms.

More than a dozen attempts to restore stability have failed, and the current government has been racked by infighting and unable to assert control.

Snow said that the unrest in Somalia has implications for US security interests.
"The president has said that his primary responsibility as commander-in-chief is to keep the American people safe. That's a solemn task," he said.

He added: "In the long run, the answer to your concerns is an effective, functional government of Somalia, which obviously we do not at the moment have."

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Foreign Islamist Fighters Are Reported in Somalia

2006-05-19T16:51:00.000+03:00

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 17 (AP) — A secular alliance of warlords battling fundamentalist Islamic militias in Somalia said Wednesday that the militias were being strengthened by fighters from the Middle East, Pakistan and elsewhere, and said it had the bodies to prove it.

"Foreigners were fighting alongside the local terrorists and were killed," said Hussein Gutale Ragheh, a spokesman for the alliance. No one was caught alive, he said, but among the dead were Arabs and others who looked like Pakistanis, Sudanese and Oromo fighters from neighboring Ethiopia.

The report could not be verified.

The possible presence of foreign Islamists has heightened fears that Al Qaeda is trying to make Somalia a staging ground, a State Department spokesman said Wednesday. The United States is widely believed to be supporting the secular alliance, but officials refused Wednesday to confirm or deny that.

"Our concerns with regard to Somalia and terrorism lie primarily in the potential presence of foreign fighters in Somalia," said Sean McCormack, the State Department spokesman. The United States is working with a wide spectrum of leaders, and he said he did not know whether that included the warlords.

Somalia, which has had no effective central government in 15 years, has been roiled by a surge in violence that has killed more than 140 people this month in and around Mogadishu, the capital. Most victims have been civilians caught in cross-fire or hit by shells.

The Islamic fundamentalists portray themselves as capable of bringing order to the country. Their growth in popularity and strength, and the possibility that they have outside support, is reminiscent of the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan in the late 1990's.

Somalia's descent into chaos began in 1991 with the overthrow of the longtime dictator, Mohammed Siad Barre. Since then, warlords who divided the country into clan-based fiefs have fought one another, though some recently joined a United Nations-backed interim government.
On Wednesday, hundreds of Somalis marched through Mogadishu chanting, "Down with the warmongers and down with their supporters!" and carrying signs saying, "War is not a solution." But some groups that had helped plan the rally boycotted it after militia members showed up.
A cease-fire was signed over the weekend, but its effect was limited.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Transitional government hails visit by UK minister

2006-05-19T16:36:00.000+03:00

NAIROBI, 18 May 2006 (IRIN) - The Somali government has described a surprise visit on Wednesday by British international development minister Hilary Benn to the town of Baidoa as a sign of the UK's support to the fledging government.

"It showed Britain's solidarity with the Somali people and a recognition of their new institutions," said Abdirahman Dinari, the government spokesman, on Thursday. "We hope that other powers will do the same.

"Baidoa, 240 km southwest of the capital, Mogadishu, is the current base of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia.

Benn, who was visiting the East Africa region, met Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Gedi and pledged to boost aid to the government. "He promised support in institution-building and humanitarian assistance," Dinari said.

The TFG has a long road ahead in establishing stability in Somalia, which has had no functioning government for almost 16 years. In Mogadishu, hundreds of people took to the streets on Wednesday to appeal for peace, three days after a ceasefire that ended seven days of fighting between heavily armed militias, in which at least 190 people were killed and hundreds more injured.

The demonstrators, including women and children, marched to express their anger at the recent violence between the Islamic courts and the newly created Alliance for Peace and the Fight Against International Terrorism, which comprises several Mogadishu-based faction leaders, some of whom are also cabinet ministers. Carrying banners and chanting slogans for peace, the protestors demanded an end to the carnage, a resident said.

Abdullahi Shirwa, a member of a civil-society group that organised the event, said the demonstrators later converged at the Mogadishu stadium where Mahamud Hassan Ade, the governor of Benadir [Mogadishu and its environs], delivered an address. He appealed for urgent humanitarian assistance for thousands displaced by the fighting.

Shirwa said people who had left their homes because of the fighting were still at makeshift camps "under the most difficult conditions and in desperate need of help.

"Meanwhile, militia loyal to the Islamic court were involved in clashes on Wednesday with those loyal to Muhammad Omar Habeb, the self-proclaimed governor of Middle Shabelle Region, near the village of Warsheikh, 40 km northeast of Mogadishu. "The clash took place at a checkpoint manned by militia loyal to Muhammad Dheere [Habeb, a member of the anti-terror alliance]," a resident said. "Conflicting reports put the death toll at between two and five." The clash was the second outbreak of fighting since the ceasefire was announced on Sunday, which raised fears of renewed violence.

"It is an unfortunate incident, but I don't believe it would have much effect on Mogadishu," Shirwa said. "It is more likely to have an impact in Jowhar and Middle Shabelle."

"These skirmishes indicate that the two sides may take their differences to other regions," said another source in Mogadishu. "The Islamic courts may be telling Muhammad Dheere that if he keeps coming to Mogadishu, Jowhar [his stronghold] won’t be safe.

"In a related development, the prime minister has issued an ultimatum to cabinet ministers who have refused to come to Baidoa. "The PM has given them seven days [from Wednesday] to come to Baidoa," said Dinari, who added that Gedi would take "appropriate action" if the ministers failed to comply.

The order is reportedly aimed at three Mogadishu-based cabinet members who are also part of the so-called anti-terror alliance, said a Somali observer. "The main targets of this order are Qanyare [Muhammad], Yalahow [Muse Sudi] Finish, [Muhammad Omar].

" President Yusuf recently warned ministers that they could not expect to be in the cabinet and wage war against the Somali people.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Warlord Terrorism & the Devil’s Pact in Somalia

2006-05-19T16:18:00.000+03:00

This short essay examines the etiology of terrorism in Somalia

Abdi Ismail Samatar University of Minnesota ©

I. Introduction:

For the last fifteen years of military rule (1976 -1991) the Somali people longed for the return to democratic rule. Unfortunately, they failed to establish nation-wide organizations that could develop the appropriate strategy to make the fanshen feasible. Instead, opportunist elements of the elite organized clanist networks and militias to fight the regime. These sectarian clicks refused to cooperate with one another and each pursued a tribalist agenda. The emergence of sectarian entrepreneurs reinforced the regime’s own divide and punish strategy. Others who were aware of the dangers of such a duo were too inert and risk averse to take up the challenge.

As the regime pursued its scourged earth policy against select communities and the absence of an alternative civic movement, people mistakenly sought refuge in clanist associations. Once the regime collapsed so did the nationalist order. The leaders of the organized sectarian opposition were in no mood to give up their sovereignty over “tribal fiefdoms” in order to re-establish national government.

Furthermore, the civil war turned nasty as the faction leaders, particularly within groups in the south, fought for supremacy and ruined whatever little economic, political and cultural infrastructure the old order left behind. The only partial exception to this mindlessness has been the northwest of the country where the public rejected naked intra-communal violence as the vehicle for political primacy. Despite the absence of undisguised terror in the latter region, armed intimidation is never far from the surface. Elsewhere violence continues to be the only instrument of political discourse and warlords have been its masters.

Warlord rule means personal and total appropriation of public power and assets, and the use of private militias to control the population. This system has turned the population into hostages since 1992 and, as a consequence, the quality of life has declined drastically. For instance, fewer than eight percent of school aged children receive some kind of instruction compared to nearly 40 percent in the mid-1980s. Moreover, life expectancy has declined by as much as 9 years since the early 1990s due to the destruction of the public health infrastructure, hunger and violence. Essentially, the merchants of violence have turned the southern region of the country and particularly the old capital city into a huge concentration camp.

The international community, led by the USA, attempted to restore peace and public authority in the early 1990s but that effort ended in disarray. Three factors led to this failure. First, the operation’s mandate was unspecified. Second, the militias in Mogadishu, which was the operational center of the intervention, were not disarmed and that gave the faction leaders enough opportunity to do mischief. Finally, the international community accepted the notion that this was a tribal civil war rather than a struggle among factions over power and resources. The combination of these factors led to the withdrawal of international troops from Somalia and initiated a new phase of the civil war. There were only two warlords in Mogadishu at the time of the UN departure, but their numbers have proliferated since, and consequently the city and the region have been Balkanized into warlord Bantustans.

II. The IGAD Process: “Empowered the Warlords and Enfeebled the Civics.”

The world turned away from Somalia and the population was left at the mercy of the warlords. Numerous attempts were made to strike a compromise among the warlords in order to form a national government but they failed to terminate the chaos. Each and every reconciliation conference was subverted by several unhappy warlords who could not achieve everything they lusted for and who were instructed to do so by their Ethiopian overlord. The government of Djibouti, pained by the abominable predicament of the population endeavored to take a stab at Somali reconciliation and invited delegates from various communities to take part in the Arta conference.

Many Somalis responded but most warlords refused to join in as they demanded to have a veto power over the selection of delegates. In spite of Arta’s shortcomings, such as the use of genealogical groups as political units, the conferees agreed to a draft constitution, selected members of a transitional parliament, and appointed a president and cabinet.

Most Somalis were relieved that, at long last, a consensus has emerged and hoped for the appointed leadership to deepen reconciliation and fully discharge the responsibilities enunciated in the charter. Their wish, as in so many other instance came to naught. Five factors perverted the promise of revival.

First, the appointed leaders failed to grasp the significance of the moment, the fleeting nature and contingent support of the public, and gave precedence to self-enrichment and personal rule. Second, the donor community was skeptical from the start and refused to give the TNG the diplomatic and material support necessary to sustain it until it gained the ability to restore order and collect taxes. Third, the regime in Addis Ababa, which was envious because its warlord clients could not gerrymander events in Arta argued that the peace process was still incomplete as it was not inclusive and that senior members of the new government had links to Islamic terrorists. Consequently, it provided military and diplomatic support for a number of warlords to form the SRRC, who opposed the TNG. Fourth, Mogadishu-based warlords refused to join the government and work for the stabilization of the Banadir region. Finally, the absence of a purposively organized national civic movement meant that the public watched from the sidelines as the promise of Arta pulverized. Such combination of forces orphaned the TNG and dashed the people’s hope.

As the TNG floundered, the Ethiopian regime intensified its subversive efforts and finally convinced the IGAD states and donors of the need to “complete” the Arta process. Consequently, another reconciliation conference was held in Kenya in which the so-called International Partners sanctioned a process completely dominated by warlords. A few individuals within the donor camp were horrified by the prospects of a world engaged in a global war on terrorism midwifing and chaperoning a government of warlords.

The outcome of the torturously long process was the triumph of Ethiopia and its clients warlords. In spite of the distaste the public had for the odious “peace process” they reluctantly accepted its outcome with the faint hope that the warlords cum government would lead.

Unfortunately, it took only a few months before the new masters of Somalia demonstrated that they were only interested in sustaining the rule of the armed men rather than restoring the rule of law. Further, some of the key figure of the TFG openly revealed their devotion to their Ethiopian handlers rather than to the Somali people. Nearly a year and one half has lapsed since its inception and no progress has been made except the never ending attempts to reconcile the warlords within the government. Thus, the people’s business languishes. In the meantime, members of the international community continue to utter their vacuous expression that they are ready to help Somalia once Somalis come to a serious agreement. The pertinent question for the internationals is which Somalis they have in mind: the hostage or the jail keepers (warlords) whom they brought to power?

III. Warlords are Terrorists

A bit over two month ago the warlords in and around Mogadishu formed what they called the Alliance against terrorism and restoration of peace. Their declared objectives were to root out a foreign terrorist cell which they claim to be in the city and the Islamic Courts in Mogadishu that supposedly harbor them. They also allege that they have been encouraged and financed by a major power and members of the international community engaged in the war on terror. It appears that there is a rock of truth in the pronouncement as substantial amount of foreign exchange has found its way into their hands. It is the cash deliveries that have opportunistically united the same individuals who have recently fought against each other and that have supported different factions of the TFG.

The Alliance initiated their first attack on the Islamic Courts in late February and this engagement led to the murder of nearly several dozen innocent victims in addition to death of scores of militia gunmen. Contrary to their public claims the alliance has suffered a major setback during this first assault and they have been regrouping to reverse their defeat. They have rejected the mediation efforts by all intermediaries of goodwill and the slaughter of the innocent is on again. Meanwhile, two of the three most seniors “leaders” of the TFG have uttered either contradictory statements –in support of or against the warlords – or irresponsibly suggested to the two sides to go to the outskirts of the city and fight it out. It is as if the latter is eager to see this tussle go to the finish since that will weaken two of his strongest opponents in Mogadishu regardless of the human cost.[1]

The people of Mogadishu are scurrying for refuge as another nasty conflagration has begun. Several hundred innocent people (including many children) have been killed and thousands of indigents are displaced. This atrocity will fortify the cage the population has been in for over a decade while the international community seems least moved by the unfolding disaster and the internment of an entire people.

The plight of the Somali people is tantamount to a life in terrorist camp. In spite of the absence of a commonly accepted international definition of terrorism, I offer the following: terrorism is cruelty against civilians with the intention of causing fear in order for the perpetrators to maintain illegitimately gotten gains, including political power. As the recent BBC[2] panel on the subject noted state and non-state actors can commit terrorist acts. This definition succinctly portrays the abominable activities the warlords have been engaged in for over a decade. The costs of warlords terrorism, as we noted earlier, have been the death of hundreds of thousands of people, young and old, and two to three million others who exist under some of the most inhumane conditions in the world. In addition, millions of children’s lives have been stunted and condemned to a blighted future.

IV. What is Next? No More Terrorism!

In spite of the stereotype that Somalis are violent people, the vast majority of the population has not been involved in the endless civil war except in self-defense. In fact, their reluctance to proactively challenge the merchants of violence is partly why the warlords’ tyranny has endured this long. The public has been willing, for the sake of “peace,” to forgive their tormentor and accept whatever they demanded, including a claim to the mantle of national leadership.[3] But it has become apparent that the warlords are not interested in turning the page and embrace the rule of law. This is the etiology of terror in Somalia.

The interplay between several factors prolongs Somalia’s agony. First, the apparent disorganization of civic minded Somalis and their not daring to challenge the warlords is a major obstacle to change. Second, the Ethiopian government which is opposed to Somali unity and independence (see the long record since the 1940s) has attempted to impose its agenda on the Somali people through it Trojan warlord horses. Having failed to do so, it stokes the forces of violence and social fragmentation. Third, the international community’s lackadaisical attitude has not been robust enough to help Somalis help themselves by establishing a national government that will serve them as well as honor its international obligations. These conditions have created a milieu that serves neither Somalis nor the international community and which therefore is not tenable. What then must be done?

Several things must occur in a graduated sequence in order to transform circumstances that reward terror and restore civilized norms to Somalia. First, international actors who support some of the warlords as allies against terrorism must accept responsibility for the massacre of hundreds of innocent people and the thousands displaced, and urgently redirect their involvement in support of the civics and the ailing TFG. To paraphrase the words of Somalia’s most immanent democrat, those who support the warlords must recognize that they are involved in a “devil’s pact.” Second, concerned Somalis can no longer be spectators waiting for someone else to salvage their domain. Instead, they must come to the fore and form a broad based civic organization whose purpose is to help form a national government dedicated to democracy and accountability.

Given the poverty of resources in the country and the dangers involved in challenging domestic terrorists, the international community -for reasons of self interest- should support this movement materially and diplomatically. Further, it should treat local and international terrorist alike and seriously warn the warlords to cease their heinous activity and disband their militias. Such stance will galvanize the majority of the population and rekindle the nationalist project – the key to the creation of a sane political order. Third, those involved in the Shariica courts must understand that the only way for a cultured Islamic nation to reemerge is through the rule of law. As the country’s nationalist poet laureate forewarned nearly four decades ago:

Darajada Ilaahay ninkii doonaya hele / Those who toil for Allah’s blessings are rewarded
Nin ka duday distoorkiyo waxyiga diinti ka carrowye / Those who stray from the constitution and the divine revelations are outcasts
Dugsi male qabyaaled waxay dumiso mooyaane / Clanist politics provide no solace, it only destroys
Hadaydaan xumaanta iyo dilkiyo daynin kala qaadka / If we do not terminate this savagery and mend our ways
Dibaddan ka joogna sharciga daacada Illaahe / We are beyond Allah’s grace
Danbarkeygu waa jahanama iyo dobobki naareede / Its reward is jahanama, the cruelest purgatory of all
Abdillahi Sultan Timacadde, 1968

Timacadde’s prophetic words enunciated the close affinity between the divine and constitutional accountability. Those in the Islamic courts need to understand that without constitutional accountability Somalis risk losing their cherished faith. Thus, if they are keen for Islam flourishing in this land, then they must distinguish themselves by laboring for such a salvation. Abdi Ismail Samatar is Professor, geography and global studies at the University of Minnesota and can be reached at: E-maill: samat001@umn.edu

[1] This “distraction” might give other Ethiopian backed warlords the opportunity to step up into the vacuum after the fighting exhausts both sides!
[2]www.bbcnews.co.UK. May2, 2006.

[3] Such generosity is significantly due to the realization that the international community is unwilling to come to the rescue of the innocent hostages, particularly after the warlords’ terrorist tactics traumatized UN forces in 1993.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Is US Embassy in Nairobi 'unaware' of ex-CIA chief's visit to Somalia?

2006-05-17T20:04:00.000+03:00

Adulsamad Ali, The East African: The United States embassy in Kenya has denied knowledge of the alleged visit by the former Central Intelligence Agency director Porter Goss to Somalia in February over terrorism links in the country.

Two weeks ago, Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf publicly criticised the US over claims that it was funding warlords in the country.

However, sources well versed in Somalia affairs told The EastAfrican that the former CIA chief was indeed in the country, during which time strategies for fighting al-Qaeda in Somalia were formulated. The sources, one in the Kenyan armed forces and the other in the transitional federal government of Somalia, said the director’s visit was followed by a trip by CIA and Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) agents to Mogadishu, where selected warlords were given money to help identify and arrest suspected al-Qaeda operatives in the country. Leadership in Somalia is divided between clan warlords, the increasingly popular Islamic courts and the transitional federal government.

US support for the warlords is making it difficult for a democratic government to be put in place, sources close to the transitional government say."It is not clear to us why the US is funding the warlords. If they want to fight terrorists, they should first help us have a functional government, then use it to get them, said a senior advisor to Prime Minister Abdul Ghedi.

It is now feared that Islamic extremists are gaining ground. The support for the once popular warlords has now shifted to their rivals, the extremist Islamic groups, and by extension to al-Qaeda," said a government advisor. Ms Barnes, however, said the US policy towards Somalia is designed to support the re-establishment of a functioning central government capable of bringing the Somali people out of civil conflict.

"An effective, functioning central government in Somalia is the most effective long-term means of addressing the threat of domestic terrorism against Somalis, and international terrorism from Somalia," she said in a statement.She said the United States strongly supports the establishment of transitional federal institutions in Somalia and shares the concerns of a majority of the Somali people regarding the presence of foreign terrorists, specifically al-Qaeda. "The United States remains gravely concerned that a small number of Somalis are harbouring foreign terrorists inside Somalia, which undermines the efforts of those seeking to establish peace in Somalia and threatens the stability of the Horn of Africa, she added.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Is US Embassy in Nairobi 'unaware' of ex-CIA chief's visit to Somalia?

2006-05-17T19:57:00.000+03:00

Two weeks ago, Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf publicly criticised the US over claims that it was funding warlords in the country.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Somali born Dutch Mp Ayaan Hirsi Ali sucked

2006-05-17T19:49:00.000+03:00

I came to Holland in the summer of 1992 because I wanted to be able to determine my own future. I didn’t want to be forced into a destiny that other people had chosen for me, so I opted for the protection of the rule of law. Here in Holland, I found freedom and opportunities, and I took those opportunities to speak out against religious terror.

In January 2003, at the invitation of the VVD party, I became a member of parliament. I accepted the VVD’s invitation on the condition that I would be the party’s spokesman for the emancipation of women and the integration of immigrants.

What exactly did I want to achieve?

First of all I wanted to put the oppression of immigrant women -- especially Muslim women – squarely on the Dutch political agenda. Second, I wanted Holland to pay attention to the specific cultural and religious issues that were holding back many ethnic minorities, instead of always taking a one-sided approach that focused only on their socio-economic circumstances. Lastly, I wanted politicians to grasp the fact that major aspects of Islamic doctrine and tradition, as practiced today, are incompatible with the open society.

Now I have to ask myself, have I accomplished that task?

I have stumbled often in my political career. It has sometimes been frustrating and slow. However, I am completely certain that I have, in my own way, succeeded in contributing to the debate. Issues related to Islam – such as impediments to free speech; refusal of the separation of Church and State; widespread domestic violence; honor killings; the repudiation of wives; and Islam’s failure to condemn genital mutilation -- these subjects can no longer be swept under the carpet in our country’s capital. Some of the measures that this government has begun taking give me satisfaction. Many illusions of how easy it will be to establish a multicultural society have disappeared forever. We are now more realistic and more open in this debate, and I am proud to have contributed to that process.

Meanwhile, the ideas which I espouse have begun spreading to other countries. In recent years I have given speeches and attended debates in many European countries and in the United States. For months now, I have felt that I needed to make a decision: should I go on in Dutch politics, or should I now transfer my ideas to an international forum?

In the fall of 2005 I told Gerrit Zalm and Jozias van Aartsen, the leaders of the VVD, that I would not be a candidate for the parliamentary elections in 2007. I had decided to opt for a more international platform, because I wanted to contribute to the international debate on the emancipation of Muslim women and the complex relationship between Islam and the West.

Now that I am announcing that I will resign from Dutch politics, I would like to thank the members of the VVD for my years in parliament – to thank them for inviting me to stand for parliament, and -- perhaps more importantly -- for putting up with me while I was there, for this has been in many ways a rough ride for us all. I want to thank my other colleagues here in parliament for their help, although some of our debates have been sharp. (Femke Halsema, thank you especially for that!). I would also like to thank the 30,758 people who in January 2003 trusted their preference vote to a newcomer.

But why am I not remaining in parliament for my full term, until next year’s election? Why, after only three and a half years, have I decided to resign from the Lower Chamber?

It is common knowledge that threats against my life began building up ever since I first talked about Islam publicly, in the spring of 2002. Months before I even entered politics, my freedom of movement was greatly curtailed, and that became worse after Theo van Gogh was murdered in 2004. I have been obliged to move house so many times I have lost count. The direct cause for the ending of my membership in parliament is that on April 27 of this year, a Dutch court ruled that I must once again leave my home, because my neighbors filed a complaint that they could not feel safe living next to me. The Dutch government will appeal this verdict and I grateful for that, because how on earth will other people whose lives are threatened manage to find a place to stay if this verdict is allowed to rest? However, this appeal does not alter my situation: I have to leave my apartment by the end of August.

Another reason for my departure is the discussion that has arisen from a TV program, The Holy Ayaan, which was aired on May 11. This program centered on two issues: the story that I told when I was applying for asylum here in Holland, and questions about my forced marriage.

I have been very open about the fact that when I applied for asylum in the Netherlands in 1992, I did so under a false name and with a fabricated story. In 2002, I spoke on national television about the conditions of my arrival, and I said then that I fabricated a story in order to be able to receive asylum here. Since that TV program I have repeated this dozens of times, in Dutch and international media. Many times I have truthfully named my father and given my correct date of birth. (You will find a selection of these articles in the press folder). I also informed the VVD leadership and members of this fact when I was invited to stand for parliament.

I have said many times that I am not proud that I lied when I sought asylum in the Netherlands. It was wrong to do so. I did it because I felt I had no choice. I was frightened that if I simply said I was fleeing a forced marriage, I would be sent back to my family. And I was frightened that if I gave my real name, my clan would hunt me down and find me. So I chose a name that I thought I could disappear with – the real name of my grandfather, who was given the birth-name Ali. I claimed that my name was Ayaan Hirsi Ali, although I should have said it was Ayaan Hirsi Magan.

You probably are wondering, what is my real name?

I am Ayaan, the daughter of Hirsi, who is the son of a man who took the name of Magan. Magan was the son of Isse, who was the son of Guleid, who was the son of Ali. He was the son of Wai’ays, who was the son of Muhammad. He was the son of Ali, who was the son of Umar. Umar was the son of Osman, who was the son of Mahamud. This is my clan, and therefore, in Somalia, this is my name: Ayaan Hirsi Magan Isse Guleid Ali Wai’ays Muhammad Ali Umar Osman Mahamud.

Following the May 11 television broadcast, legal questions have been raised about my naturalization as a Dutch citizen. Minister Verdonk has written to me saying that my passport will be annulled, because it was issued to a person who does not hold my real name. I am not at liberty to discuss the legal issues in this case.

Now for the questions about my forced marriage. Last week’s TV program cast doubt on my credibility in that respect, and the final conclusion of the documentary is that all this is terribly complicated. Let me tell you, it’s not so complex. The allegations that I willingly married my distant cousin, and was present at the wedding ceremony, are simply untrue. This man arrived in Nairobi from Canada, asked my father for one of his five daughters, and my father gave him me. I can assure you my father is not a man who takes no for an answer.

Still, I refused to attend the formal ceremony, and I was married regardless. Then, on my way to Canada -- during a stopover in Germany -- I traveled to the Netherlands and asked for asylum here. In all simplicity this is what happened, nothing more and nothing less. For those who are interested in the intimate details of my transition from a pre-modern society to a modern one, and how I came to love what the West stands for, please read my memoir, which is due to be published this fall.

To return to the present day, may I say that it is difficult to live with so many threats on your life and such a level of police protection. It is difficult to work as a parliamentarian if you have nowhere to live. All that is difficult, but not impossible. It has become impossible since last night, when Minister Verdonk informed me that she would strip me of my Dutch citizenship.

I am therefore preparing to leave Holland. But the questions for our society remain. The future of Islam in our country; the subjugation of women in Islamic culture; the integration of the many Muslims in the West: it is self-deceit to imagine that these issues will disappear.

I will continue to ask uncomfortable questions, despite the obvious resistance that they elicit. I feel that I should help other people to live in freedom, as many people have helped me. I personally have gone through a long and sometimes painful process of personal growth in this country. It began with learning to tell the truth to myself, and then the truth about myself: I strive now to also tell the truth about society as I see it.

That transition from becoming a member of a clan to becoming a citizen in an open society is what public service has come to mean for me. Only clear thinking and strong action can lead to real change, and free many people within our society from the mental cage of submission. The idea that I can contribute to their freedom, whether in the Netherlands or in another country, gives me deep satisfaction.

Ladies and Gentlemen, as of today, I resign from Parliament. I regret that I will be leaving the Netherlands, the country which has given me so many opportunities and enriched my life, but I am glad that I will be able to continue my work. I will go on.

Voor meer informatie: vvdvoorlichting@tweedekamer.nl

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

U.S. Secretly Backing Warlords in Somalia

2006-05-17T19:36:00.000+03:00

More than a decade after U.S. troops withdrew from Somalia following a disastrous military intervention, officials of Somalia's interim government and some U.S. analysts of Africa policy say the United States has returned to the African country, secretly supporting secular warlords who have been waging fierce battles against Islamic groups for control of the capital, Mogadishu.

The latest clashes, last week and over the weekend, were some of the most violent in Mogadishu since the end of the American intervention in 1994, and left 150 dead and hundreds more wounded. Leaders of the interim government blamed U.S. support of the militias for provoking the clashes.

U.S. officials have declined to directly address on the record the question of backing Somali warlords, who have styled themselves as a counterterrorism coalition in an open bid for American support. Speaking to reporters recently, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the United States would "work with responsible individuals . . . in fighting terror. It's a real concern of ours -- terror taking root in the Horn of Africa. We don't want to see another safe haven for terrorists created. Our interest is purely in seeing Somalia achieve a better day."

U.S. officials have long feared that Somalia, which has had no effective government since 1991, is a desirable place for al-Qaeda members to hide and plan attacks. The country is strategically located on the Horn of Africa, which is only a boat ride away from Yemen and a longtime gateway to Africa from the Middle East. No visas are needed to enter Somalia, there is no police force and no effective central authority.

The country has a weak transitional government operating largely out of neighboring Kenya and the southern city of Baidoa. Most of Somalia is in anarchy, ruled by a patchwork of competing warlords; the capital is too unsafe for even Somalia's acting prime minister to visit.

Leaders of the transitional government said they have warned U.S. officials that working with the warlords is shortsighted and dangerous.

"We would prefer that the U.S. work with the transitional government and not with criminals," the prime minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi, said in an interview. "This is a dangerous game. Somalia is not a stable place and we want the U.S. in Somalia. But in a more constructive way. Clearly we have a common objective to stabilize Somalia, but the U.S. is using the wrong channels."

Many of the warlords have their own agendas, Somali officials said, and some reportedly fought against the United States in 1993 during street battles that culminated in an attack that downed two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters and left 18 Army Rangers dead.

"The U.S. government funded the warlords in the recent battle in Mogadishu, there is no doubt about that," government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told journalists by telephone from Baidoa. "This cooperation . . . only fuels further civil war."

U.S. officials have refused repeated requests to provide details about the nature and extent of their support for the coalition of warlords, which calls itself the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism in what some Somalis say is a marketing ploy to get U.S. support.

But some U.S. officials, who declined to be identified by name because of the sensitivity of the issue, have said they are generally talking to these leaders to prevent people with suspected ties to al-Qaeda from being given safe haven in the lawless country.

"There are complicated issues in Somalia in that the government does not control Mogadishu and it has the potential for becoming a safe haven for al-Qaeda and like-minded terrorists," said one senior administration official in Washington. "We've got very clear interests in trying to ensure that al-Qaeda members are not using it to hide and to plan attacks." He said it was "a very difficult issue" trying to show support for the fledgling interim government while also working to prevent Somalia from becoming an al-Qaeda base.

A senior U.S. intelligence official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was a "Hobbesian" situation -- that the transitional government operating from Kenya was in its "fifteenth iteration" and that it, too, was a "collection of warlords" that played both sides of the fence. The official said that it presented a classic "enemy of our enemy" situation.

The source said Somalia was "not an al-Qaeda safe haven" yet, adding, "There are some there, but it's so dysfunctional." U.S. officials specifically believe that a small number of al-Qaeda operatives who were involved in the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Nairobi and Tanzania are now residing in Somalia.

Analysts said they were convinced the Bush administration was backing the warlords as part of its global war against terrorism. "The U.S. relies on buying intelligence from warlords and other participants in the Somali conflict, and hoping that the strongest of the warlords can snatch a live suspect or two if the intelligence identifies their whereabouts," said John Prendergast, the director for African affairs in the Clinton administration and now a senior adviser at the nongovernmental International Crisis Group.

"This strategy might reduce the short-term threat of another terrorist attack in East Africa, but in the long term the conditions which allow terrorist cells to take hold along the Indian Ocean coastline go unaddressed. We ignore these conditions at our peril."

"Are we talking to them and doing some of that? Yes," said Ted Dagne, the leading Africa analyst for the Congressional Research Service. "We fought some of these warlords in 1993 and now we are dealing with some of them again, perhaps supporting some of them against other groups. Somalia is still considered by some as an attractive location for terrorist groups."

The issue of U.S. backing came to the forefront this winter when warlords formed the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism after a fundamentalist Islamic group began asserting itself in the capital, setting up courts of Islamic law and building schools and hospitals.
Soon after, the coalition of warlords were well-equipped with rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and antiaircraft guns, which were used in heavy fighting in the capital last week. It was the second round of fighting this year, following clashes in March that killed more than 90 people, mostly civilians, and emptied neighborhoods around the capital.

In a report to the U.N. Security Council this month, the world body's monitoring group on Somalia said it was investigating an unnamed country's secret support for an anti-terrorism alliance in apparent violation of a U.N. arms embargo. The experts said they were told in January and February of this year that "financial support was being provided to help organize and structure a militia force created to counter the threat posed by the growing militant fundamentalist movement in central and southern Somalia."

In March, the State Department said in its terrorism report that the U.S. government was concerned about al-Qaeda fugitives "responsible for the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam and the November 2002 bombing of a tourist hotel and attack on a civilian airliner in Kenya, who are believed to be operating in and around Somalia."

The United States relies on Ethiopia and Kenya for information about Somalia. Both countries have complex interests and long-standing ties and animosities in the country. In December 2002, the United States also established an anti-terrorism task force in neighboring Djibouti, with up to 1,600 U.S. troops stationed in the country.

Africa researchers said they were concerned that while the Bush administration was focused on the potential terrorist threat, little was being done to support economic development initiatives that could provide alternative livelihoods to picking up a gun or following extremist ideologies in Somalia. Somalia watchers and Somalis themselves said there has not been enough substantial backing for building a new government after 15 years of collapsed statehood.

"If the real problem is Somalia, then what have we done to change the situation inside Somalia? Are we funding schools, health care or helping establish an effective government?" Dagne said. "We have a generation of Somali kids growing up without education and only knowing violence and poverty. Unless there is a change, these could become the next warlords out of necessity for survival. That's perhaps the greatest threat we have yet to address."

Somalis far from the factional fighting in Mogadishu said they were waiting for anyone to help ease their destitute lives during the worst drought in a decade. In Waajid, a dusty town about 200 miles northwest of the capital, thousands of villagers have left their farms for squalid camps, searching for water and living in open, rocky fields under low-lying, fragile shelters of sticks and rags that look like bird's nests.

Many people here say they feel that the United States has ignored Somalia since the failed 1993 military intervention. Today many Somalis said they regret that chapter in their history and thank the United States, the largest donor of food and funding for water trucks during this season's drought.
However, they said that news that the U.S. government was talking with warlords has awakened feelings of resentment.

"George W. Bush, we welcome the Americans. But not to back warlords. We need the U.S.A. to help the young government," said Isak Nur Isak, the district commissioner in Waajid. "We won't drag any Americans through the street like in 1993. We want to be clear: We don't want only food aid, but we do want political support for the new government, which is all we have right now to put our hopes in. We can't eat if everyone is dead."Wax reported from Waajid, Somalia, and Nairobi. DeYoung reported from Washington.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Secretary-General calls for immediate ceasefire in Somali capital Mogadishu

2006-05-15T19:57:00.000+03:00

12 May 2006 – United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called on the warring factions in the Somali capital Mogadishu to declare an immediate ceasefire, after days of fighting claimed the lives of more than a hundred people and displaced thousands of non-combatants in the worst violence to grip the city in almost a decade.

Speaking to reporters in New York, his spokesman said Mr. Annan was “deeply concerned” at the increasing violence and “urges all parties to support the Transitional Federal Institutions in their effort to implement the Transitional Charter,” referring to efforts to bring peace to the impoverished Horn of Africa country.

The UN Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia, Ghanim Alnajjar, also backed calls for an end to the fighting, highlighting that “in situations like these, most of the victims are civilians who are caught in the crossfire, some of which are children.”

“I appeal to these militia forces to end these hostilities immediately, and I wish to remind all concerned of the need to fully respect humanitarian law during conflict and of the duty to protect the human rights of civilians at all times,” said Mr. Alnajjar, who carries out his duties on an independent voluntary basis.

It is reported that up to 120 people have been killed and scores injured during the past five days in what is the second round of fighting this year in Mogadishu, following violence in March that reportedly killed 90 people.

Yesterday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour told reporters that Somalia urgently needs international attention, saying there was frustration that “the international community was insufficiently engaged in a country that needed a huge amount of assistance and where a large part of the country still needed governance to take root.”

On Wednesday, the Security Council re-established for a six-month period the mandate of the Monitoring Group on Somalia, set up to investigate the 1992 arms embargo, and the top United Nations envoy to the war-torn country appealed for all sides to end the bloody violence in the capital and “step back from the brink.”

The latest report from the Monitoring Group highlighted that “arms, military materiel and financial support continue to flow like a river to various actors, in violation of the arms embargo,” and the Group identifies the Transitional Federal Government, the Mogadishu-based opposition alliance, the militant fundamentalists, the business elite, pirate groups and feuding sub-clans as “the main actors” receiving the arms.

Somalia has been torn by factional fighting ever since the collapse of President Muhammad Siad Barre’s regime 15 years ago.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Mogadishu Islamic Court Justice: Stabbing to death in public

2006-05-06T19:47:00.000+03:00

“For we have reached the place … Where you will see the miserable people, those who have lost the good of the intellect". (Canto III) DANTE, Inferno (Adopted from Links by Nuruddin Farah)

A few days ago in Mogadishu, a young boy of 16 stabbed his father’s killer to death in front of hundreds of spectators who watched as a photographer from Shabellenews took pictures that portray the graphic horror that unfolded before them.

No one tried to stop the horror. The poor man, who stood near a tree, with a hood covering his head and chains tying his feet and hands, fell to the ground after being stabbed in the neck. The boy finished him off by stabbing him repeatedly in the chest while the poor soul lay writhing on the ground.

Regardless of the guilt of the man, the manner of his execution makes one shudder in disgust and horror. It seems that the death sentence and mode of execution were passed by one of the multitude of Islamic courts that sprang up in Mogadishu with the lack of a strong central government.

Islam instructs us to slaughter sheep humanely by using a sharp knife that cuts the jugular vein quickly to prevent the suffering of the animal. In Saudi Arabia , one of the few countries that practice public beheading, the executioner uses a sharp sword that cuts the head of the accused with one stroke bringing immediate death. The barbaric execution that took place in Mogadishu violates these instructions and gives us a picture of cruelty, barbarism, misguided justice and failure to appreciate the value of human life.

This cruel execution brings to my mind a story in the novel links by the great Somali Writer Nuruddin Farah in which the main character in the book, Jeebleh, stops a young boy from torturing an Alsatian dog in labour. Jeeble intervenes forcefully and drives the boy away. He then helps the dog deliver its litter. Jeebleh nearly lost his life when two young men sneak into his hotel room and try to murder him. Jeebleh wonders whether the assassins were after him for the way he treated the elders of his clan in an earlier encounter or for helping the Alsatian.

When I saw the pictures of the execution, I thought that I was in a dream and reading a chapter from Links. But this is was no fiction. It is a real story that actually took place in Mogadishu. Only in this case of the poor man stabbed to death by a 16-year old boy, the crowd lacked a courageous soul like Jeebleh to prevent the barbarous act. Any one trying to protect the poor man would probably have faced the same fate.

The case of this man raises an important issue apart from the way that he was executed. Was the man from a small clan that could not protect him and demand a proper way of execution?

There are precedents to this in Somalia.

A friend of mine told me about a man from the south who was hanged by a mob in a village between Qardho and Bosasso. The man allegedly raped an old woman in the village and his punishment was death by hanging. Another friend of mine told me about a woman that was stoned to death in Hargeisa after the city fell to the SNM. Although the three incidents are different, they share the same mode of barbaric and cruel execution. They also share the fact that the executed person may have hailed from a minority clan that could not protect his/her poor soul.

In Mogadishu there are hundreds of murderers who kill and rape with impunity. Their crimes go unpunished because of the strong clans protecting them. The Islamic law of Mogadishu seems to apply to the poor, weak and unprotected. No one condones the act of murder committed by the executed man, but the manner of his execution is reprehensible. If there was a need for his execution, it should have been carried in a proper Islamic manner.

This incident clearly portrays the need for a strong central government in Mogadishu that brings back law and order to this troubled city held hostage by warlords and Islamic courts controlled by cruel individuals who practice laws that are far removed from true Islam.

Let us all condemn this barbaric act and pray for the people of Mogadishu.

Ali H Abdullaaliegeh@gmail.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Somalia’s plight: What can be done?

2006-05-05T15:09:00.000+03:00

History has taught us that nations are born, grow and develop like a child, and it is their leaders who organize and assist the people in becoming more productive. Leaders provide the boost and the citizens carry on improving the quality of life for individuals, families, communities and society as a whole. But we know that any country’s standard of living is calculated on how its people have access to the basics of food, housing, education, health services, employment, safety and security and so forth. When the people of a nation take pride in their citizenship, their country also becomes increasingly competitive and is looked upon with respect of its social, cultural, political, and economic achievements.

However, many people are not sure if Somalia is a nation or merely a bunch of factions. Somalia has an ambassador at the United Nations but there are no formal public institutions, defence, banking system, schools, hospitals or police force. The fact is that the power of authority is in the hands of warlords and their prowling gunmen.

In my point of view, I would equate Somalia’s situation as a damaged house that is not completely destroyed. I say that it is not all destroyed because the land, livestock, people with some know-how and skills, the exchange of money, even modern communications are still there. Yet, it is perplexing that no one seems to know what can be done and that Somalis do not seem able to help themselves?

When I am raising these questions, I am not implying that there is no big problem in Somalia, or that collapsed countries like Somalia do not need help from the other world. I am not saying that Somalia’s problem will not affect the interdependency of other countries. There are big problems and there regional issues to take into consideration. Nevertheless, I think we Somalis have a character of waiting to have our job done from the outside. Perhaps we inherited this culture of passivity from our colonizers who introduced civil government and its institutions to us. If this is the case, especially if such government was imposed, then we have never really had a sense of ownership over the government form the world expects of us. Is it our choice or theirs to return civil government and the civil society to Somalia?

Even when no one is interested in us, we are inclined to find excuses that we do not have enough resources, knowledge, expertise, or funds to build up ourselves. We say that we need assistance to develop an economic foundation so that we will reach the point where we can do business equally with other nations.

Moreover, some of us are very skilful in creating crimes, violence and civil wars as determinants of financial gains and profits (as in the case of latest Mogadishu fighting), which are conversely the causes and consequences of Somalia’s dilemma, and poverty. These harmful and deadly actions happened because of certain elements’ wrong assumptions and choices. The results reflect who they are.

When I discussed these issues with some of my colleagues, many of them cite the problem as a lack of leaders who can lead the people not with killing but with negotiation and contract. The assumption is that our Somali leaders cannot steer the ship even when the sea is calm because of their lack of vision. furthermore, those so called leaders do not have a sense of selecting good knowledgeable persons to do for them what job they want to be done; a case of the blind leading the blind (leaders and the people), resulting in both going down into the ditch.

This observation points out that the warlords have many obedient civilians, who are unable to stand up for their own rights. Civilians who feel that warlord’s needs and rights are more important than their own. Civilians who presume that their own ideas are worthless compared to that of the warlords. Further, the warlords are stuck with their old preferred leadership style of corrupting and punishing, despite having proved to go nowhere for more than fifteen years. They are reluctant to change according to the will and the needs of the people.

Naturally, when your house is damaged your common sense encourages you to consider at least a number of options, such as fixing the damaged part of the house, building the house portion by portion until the entire house is installed, or completely abandoning the old house and immediately putting up a new house.

Based on my experience in working with people seeking help in managing their situational problems, people like Somalis need help to gain some control over their troubled feelings of distress. A sense of control will enhance their ability to cope with the changing demands of their lives. Nonetheless, the will, intention, and action for change have to come from the Somalis.

The impression is that as a nation, our future should depend on us by putting together our passions with our best interests, and combining our honest efforts, education, and skills. Since we have been talking our rights for about sixteen years, we may start demanding our rights and confronting every warlord who is not accepting the reality that they cannot fit anymore the situation or the society in a meaningful way. We should understand that our life time is very limited and that now is the time to do it right.

Definitely, our success will be easy if we recognize our desires, coordinate our thoughts, aims and actions. If some Somalis cannot believe these ideas and their application in Somalia, it doesn’t matter. Every society has some people who spend all their day walking through the forests, but who may never see firewood at all. On the other hand, other views supported the idea that Somalia’s present situation makes it necessary to work with these unkind leaders with tolerant caution. As the saying goes, “Give the suckers an even break, may be they will not be so bad after all”. This concept gives priority to working together with the existing regional administrations, by creating and funding programs designed to help people who are in a disabling decease, injury or addictions to return to normal functioning.

They are considering the fact that there is always an affinity between leaders and the people they are leading, which is our today’s reality that we have to face. They also express their feelings of disappointment regarding today’s world leadership, particularly the United States, which preaches democracy when speaking publicly but practically rewarding the wrong behaviour of some world leaders, who are not good for their people, while punishing other heads of states who are good for their people and their people like them.

In any case, I don’t think that we can deny that some of us are opportunity wasters. For years we have been waiting help from others, or we behaved believing that somebody will do it someday. But someday may never come. It is now, the present and the only time that we have. We have to try to do it now with positive thinking, nerve and courage. Even if we can’t work collectively, we can work individually with the right mental attitude and hope that it may later converge with collectivism. We should replace our closed and clanish drained mind with an open and national mind. As the saying goes, “Minds are like parachutes, and if they are closed they won’t hold you up”.

Fred Frohock (1979), in his book of public policy-scope of logic, states three main types of political actions that leaders can use according to the situation. They are: power control, bargaining, and gaming. He suggests that a leader can give an order only when she/he has law enforcement that can back-up and support it. If not, the leader has to use the bargaining, give and take method to reach a satisfactory outcome since people cannot, or will not control one another. If both of the above are not possible, Frohock indicates gaming (Dhuumaashow/ Kadhimay-Kadhim) as the only remaining tactical option. It is the condition of no authority and probably the true situation of Somalia. Therefore, if the Somali leaders are unable to lead because nothing would or could work for them, then he/she should accept the last option, which is submitting his/her resignation. They cannot lead by corrupting or killing the people. It won’t work.

In conclusion, I believe at least that if we as individuals think good, feel good and do well for our people and the country, it will help infuse new hope into some of the core causes of Somalia’s conflict such as economic anguish, social injustice and political oppressions. Trust me. This will restore our communication, and when our communication is restored, everything will be possible. It can make a difference. Just try it.

Omar Ugas, Master of Social Work and Registered Social Worker
Ottawa, Canada

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

North-Eastern Province: Shame of a semi-arid region condemned to self-destruction

2006-04-23T20:18:00.000+03:00

Most Kenyans are too young to remember that the only external war that our army ever fought concerned what we now call North-Eastern Province (NEP). So the question is vexed: For what good reason did we pour untold resources to retain a region in which we were not really interested?

A section of displaced villagers camping at Dukana Primary School prepare a meal in the open. For the glaring fact is that, ever since we won that war, our successive governments have done exactly nothing to make the NEP an integral part of Kenya.

Actually, the problem has much deeper historical roots. Like most political problems that now beset us, we owe it squarely to colonialism – specifically to the Berlin treaty of 1885 by which Europe arrogantly partitioned Africa.

The first poser that faced Mzee Jomo Kenyatta upon independence in 1963 was how to defeat a secessionist rebellion in the eastern part of what the colonial regime called Northern Frontier District (NFD).

The NFD was composed of what is now North-Eastern and the northern sections of Eastern and Rift Valley provinces. But this secessionist bid was confined to the eastern part, the one inhabited by ethnic Somali.

Security alert: Armed homeguards form a shield around residents of Dukana location in Marsabit district camping at Dukana Primary School. This follows heightened tension between warring communities along the Kenya-Ethiopia border.Photos by William Oeri The rebellion had two completely understandable causes. The first was a burning "pan-Somali" desire. As it had done to many other African peoples, colonialism had divided the Somali nation into many colonies.

There were Djibouti (French Somaliland), Ogaden (Ethiopian Somaliland), Juba (Italian Somaliland), Punt (British Somaliland) and eastern NFD (also administered by Britain but from Nairobi).

As independence approached (for Punt and Juba), the Somali nationalists committed themselves to Somalia Irredenta (Unredeemed Somalia) and swore that Uhuru would be complete only if the five lands reunited.

It was in this spirit that the Somali Republic (Punt and Juba) sponsored the secessionist movements in the NFD and Ogaden and went on to fight (and lose) debilitatingly costly wars with both Kenya and Ethiopia.

Divide-and-rule

The second reason was paradoxical. The British were past masters at the divide-and-rule tactic which Roman imperialism had perfected for them 2,000 years earlier. Because the Somali, a Hamitic people, have skins a shade lighter than the other "natives", the British grouped them with the Asians and the Arabs on a social rung a tad higher than the other natives.

Yet, for all that, colonial Nairobi invested absolutely nothing in developing the NFD. The probable reason was that the region was arid and semi-arid and did not seem to have any economic promise.

Semi-aridity is what may, at least partly, also explain why the British invested more in educating the Kikuyu, the Luo and the Luhya than in educating such Nilo-Hamitic peoples as the Kalenjin, the Maasai and the Turkana.

At independence, then, colonial neglect, and the kith-and-kin question, gave the ethnic Somali the quite understandable feeling that they would be much better off in Somalia than in Kenya and Ethiopia.

But to succumb to Mogadishu's demands would have opened a can of worms all over the continent. How many other peoples – divided or not – would not have demanded separate ethnically solid republics of their own?

Consider, for instance, the Luo cluster. They were (and still are) in Tanganyika, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, the Sudan and what were once Belgian Congo and French Central Africa.

To carve out a single entity incorporating all the Luo peoples would have entailed dismantling the entire Berlin boundary system which defined all the newly independent African states.
Even the redoubtable nationalist Kwame Nkrumah defended Berlin, pointing out that to redraw the borders according to tribal affinity would logically end up in puny mono-ethnic states with hardly any economic viability.

But it is true that Berlin has caused independent Africa insuperable problems. To its division of the continent without any regard to ethnic and cultural affinity is the cause of all our border demands and counter-demands.

To its lumping together into single colonies of many hitherto independent ethnic entities – with disparate economic and demographical fortunes – we owe the entire phenomenon of tribalism.
Yet Nkrumah was right. Berlin is by far the more cost-effective reality that we must live with. To attempt to redraw Africa's political map would be mind-bogglingly costly, not only in terms of money, but even in terms of temper and war.

Cheaper solution

The much cheaper solution was to try everything possible to bridge the yawning gaps of material progress that existed between the various tribes that the European powers had lumped into single colonies.

This remains the only solution to tribalism. If, instead, tribalism is intensifying all over the continent, it is because these material differences now gape more widely than the Rift Valley.
Put another way, it is because we have not tried to satisfy proportionately the providential needs of all the ethnic components of what we claim to be "nations".

This is probably the most spectacular of all the countless failings of Africa's entire nationalist and post-nationalist leadership.

All African heads of state and government have ruled as tribal chieftains – allocating resources and apportioning crucial decision-making jobs to members of their tribes, clans and families. They have thus succeeded only in terribly alienating other tribes, clans and families, thus making the task of ruling much more difficult for themselves. Africa's multi-party politics is basically inter-tribal conflict.

Kenya's successive leaders are excellent examples of failure at conflict-resolution. You cannot diffuse a conflict by stoking the fire that has caused it. Inter-tribal discord is now more intense than ever.

The refusal to invest in the NFD to make its people feel that they are a part of Kenya – and thus to rule them with their consent and, therefore, with greater ease – is the most glaring failing of presidents Kenyatta, Moi and Kibaki.

It does not make any sense that hundreds of northerners and their livestock perish every year for lack of food and water when people in other parts of Kenya drown in floods which are then allowed to go to complete waste.

If we were willing to channel all our April downpours into huge reservoirs linked through huge pipes to all our arid and semi-arid areas, we would have put paid permanently to the problem of drought.

If we dealt effectively with drought, we would obviate the deadly struggle for life which daily pits tribes against tribes, clans against clans, families against families and individuals against individuals.

Public resources

Resources abound (which I hope to describe later). But they include an armed force which has never fought a war since the Shifta menace of 1963, but which daily guzzles huge public resources for doing sweet nothing.

Our military has the best engineers, hydrologists, agriculturalists, doctors, vets, every kind of expert. The need is to deploy them to the NEP to help that part of Kenya onto the path of economic self-sufficiency.

All Kenyans should willingly pay even more for it because it is the only way we can proudly say that the NEP people are our brothers and sisters.

Source: Daily Nation, April 23, 2006

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Somali Lawmakers Make Baidoa Temporary Seat

2006-04-23T20:02:00.000+03:00

Somalia's parliament has voted to move the country's temporary capital to the southern town of Baidoa.

Somali officials say the government will be based in Baidoa until the official capital, Mogadishu, can be made safe again. Two rounds of fighting between rival factions in Mogadishu have killed around 100 people this year.

Somali political leaders have been split for months over where to set up the country's transitional government, formed in Kenya in 2004.

One faction led by the parliament speaker (Sharif Hassan Shaikh Adan) has pushed for Mogadishu, while another faction concerned about security has insisted on the town of Jowhar.
The interim parliament met in Baidoa as a compromise in February.

The government has yet to assert its authority over Somalia, which has been essentially lawless since warlords overthrew dictator Mohammed Siad Barre in 1991.

About two-thirds of the 275-member parliament approved the Baidoa motion in Saturday's vote. More than 90 legislators were absent.Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.

Source: VOA, April 23, 2006
The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Factional fighting kills 3, wounds 9 in Mogadishu

2006-04-23T19:34:00.001+03:00

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - At least three Somalis were killed and nine wounded in Mogadishu on Sunday as fresh clashes erupted between rival militia groups responsible for the capital's worst violence in years, witnesses said.

They said fighting was triggered when forces allied to the Islamic courts tried to pass a newly-established checkpoint held by militiamen linked to the Mogadishu Anti-Terrorism Coalition, an alliance of powerful warlords.

The same factions were behind clashes that killed up to 90 people last month.
"We're escaping from the new clashes in Hamarweyne district," said Haji Abdi Yusuf, 56, running down a road.

Frightened locals said they could still hear gunfire and many were afraid it would spill to neighbouring districts.

"The fighting will spread to new areas, unless there is a quick ceasefire," resident Hassan Mohamed told Reuters.

Analysts say the upsurge in street battles between the two sides suggests the failed Horn of Africa state is becoming a new proxy battleground for Islamist militants and the United States.
Washington has long viewed Somalia as a haven for terrorists and many Somalis believe it funds and equips the warlord alliance.

The U.S. government denies the charge but the widely held perception prompted Islamist hardliners to confront the warlord forces hours after the coalition was formed in February, in a fight that killed 37 people.

Many residents say the Islamic courts, which have created a semblance of order in lawless Mogadishu by providing justice under sharia law, want to fight any move to undermine their authority in the city of 1 million.

Reports that re-armed fighters from both sides have moved to strategic positions have fuelled fears of worse to come.

Somalia descended into lawlessness in 1991, when warlords ousted military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

The fighting in Mogadishu shows how little control a fledgling government formed in Kenya in 2004, but weakened by internal power struggles, has over the nation of 10 million.
On Saturday, Somali lawmakers voted to seat the government, which hitherto had no fixed location, temporarily in the southern city of Baidoa. President Abdullahi Yusuf has long argued that Mogadishu, where he is an outsider, is still too dangerous to host the government.

Source: Reuters, April 23, 2006

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

US appeals for Peace in Mogadishu

2006-04-23T19:34:00.000+03:00

MOGADISHU, April 21 -- The United States appealed for calm in Somalia, urging leaders to work together and exercise restrain as tension mounts over a new round of fighting for control of the capital, Mogadishu.

A statement issued by the US Embassy in Nairobi on Thursday urged the Somali leaders to seek reconciliation through dialogue, calling on all parties to cooperate with the Transitional Federal institutions.

"In response to reports of increasing tensions in Mogadishu, the United States calls upon all Somalis to work together to encourage restraint and calm in the city," the US said in a statement.

"Provocations and fresh outbreaks of violence in Mogadishu can serve only the interests of extremist elements," it added.

The US statement came amid reports that two factions which recently clashed in Mogadishu are moving militias to strategic positions for a fresh round of battle for control of the Somali capital.
Mogadishu residents said tension in the city was high as each side stockpiled weapons and ammunition, moved fighters into position and strengthened their 'technicals' -- flat-bed trucks mounted with anti-aircraft guns.

"The United States urges all parties to seek reconciliation through dialogue and cooperation with the Transitional Federal Institutions," the US said in a statement.

The fighters have been observing a temporary cease-fire from last month but efforts to secure a permanent cease-fire between rival militias have hit a snag after one of the groups delayed sending emissaries to the venue of the talks.

Many Somalis believe the United States is funding the influential warlords as part of Washington's war on terrorism but the U.S. government denies it.

Source: xinhuanet, April 21, 2006

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Experts warn of humanitarian emergency in the south

2006-01-19T21:21:00.000+03:00

NAIROBI, 19 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - At least 1.7 million people in Somalia are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance following the failure of rains in 2005, the Food Security Analysis Unit (FSAU) of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization warned on Thursday. The situation is particularly acute in the southern regions, according to a recent FSAU food security and livelihood survey. Malnutrition rates, the FSAU added, had reached over 25 percent in some areas and were expected to get worse in the coming months."Fifteen percent is a humanitarian emergency and we are already at 25 percent," Nick Haan, FSAU chief technical advisor, told reporters in Nairobi.FSAU estimated that crop production for this year would be 50 percent of the post-war average - the lowest cereal production in over 10 years. Cattle deaths in the worst affected areas had reached 20 to 30 percent and could reach 80 percent by April."Currently, we are in a humanitarian emergency. We are one phase away from famine," Haan said. "If it [famine] will happen, it will happen very quickly."The worst affected areas are Gedo, Lower and Middle Juba, and Bay and Bakool. FSAU warned that there was a "moderate risk of famine" in the Gedo region and surrounding areas before the next expected rainy season in April-June 2006.UN Somalia resident representative and humanitarian coordinator, Maxwell Gaylard, noted that although the humanitarian agencies had some resources, the scale of the crisis was beyond what the Somali people, the Transitional Federal Government or the aid agencies could cope with."We need external assistance," Gaylard said. "It is not a dry season or a drought period, it's a drought," he added.Christian Balslev-Olesen, the representative of the UN Children's Fund Somalia, warned that the longer a large-scale intervention was delayed, the longer people continued to suffer and the worse the security situation would become. "It will deteriorate the political situation," he noted. "People will start looting, they will start hijacking and insecurity will get worse very quickly."He urged the Somali authorities to use the looming crisis as a political opportunity, however, to encourage rival factions to work together to mitigate the suffering. Gaylard also urged donors to take into account the regional dynamics of the drought, which has also affected northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. With a regionally coordinated approach, he noted, mass cross-border movements towards areas that were receiving more generous assistance than others could be avoided."This crisis easily compares with any other humanitarian crisis going on around the world today," the FSAU's Haan said."Early predictions are already forecasting below average rainfall during the Gu [rainy season] in April, May, June," he warned. "This would take the crisis to a whole different level, it doesn't bode well." Haan said, however, that there was still a window of opportunity "to prevent the starving baby images". Agencies were already responding, he added, but assistance needed to be "ratcheted up" urgently. "Under normal conditions, Somalia is one of the poorest and most food insecure countries in the world, and these are not normal conditions," Haan added. "It is a humanitarian crisis - it is a food crisis, a water crisis, a health crisis and a protection crisis."

[ENDS]

Source: IRIN, Jan. 19, 2006

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Drought sparks food shortage in Africa

2006-01-19T16:26:00.000+03:00

DENAN, Ethiopia - Two months ago Ayan Abdi struggled to tell her newborn twins apart. Tragically, she has no difficulty now.
The skin of her malnourished son Nemo stretches tightly over his tiny skeletal frame, while his sister Asma still retains some of her rounded features. Ayan, who earns $7 a month selling firewood, is so weak from malnutrition herself she can produce only enough breast milk to feed her daughter.Millions are at risk of famine in eastern Africa after a potentially devastating drought wiped out this year's crop. Aid organizations warn that unless urgent supplies of food, water and medicine are delivered to the region, more people could die than perished in the drought of 2000 - which killed nearly 100,000 in Ethiopia alone.
"People will die because we are already too late with our help," said Abdullahi Ali Haji, the government's health officer for this area of eastern Ethiopia. "This is our warning that without immediate help a famine will soon follow."
Preliminary assessments show those affected by the drought include an estimated 3.5 million in Kenya, 1.75 million in Ethiopia, 1.4 million in Somalia and 60,000 in Djibouti.
Poor rains over the last nine years have left many families living on a knife's edge. This year the rains failed completely. Food prices are up as much as 50 percent, while the value of prized livestock has plummeted, hitting hard the nomads who rely on cattle, sheep, goats and camels for food and income.
The warning signs of famine appear long before it takes hold in this corner of Ethiopia, about 870 miles southeast of the capital, Addis Ababa. The bones and rotting carcasses of cattle mark the landscape. Children, whose immunity systems are hopelessly compromised by insufficient nutrition, are beginning to fall sick.The handful of malnourished children that used to be brought to Haji's hospital in Gode, about 50 miles southwest of Denan, has now turned into steady trickle.
The two doctors assigned to cover 1 million people in the region are totally overwhelmed. They have just a handful of drugs to combat widespread measles and diarrhea from drinking dirty water."As ever, women and children will bear the brunt of this disaster," said Bjorn Ljungqvist, the U.N's Children's Fund Country Representative.
Aid agencies do not have money to buy food from districts with surplus harvests to feed those hit by the food shortages, said Peter Smerdon, spokesman for the World Food Program."WFP is short $44 million now to feed 1.1 million people because of the drought," Smerdon said in Kenya on Tuesday. "Without new donations, WFP will run out of food to distribute in drought affected areas by the end of February."
Efforts to help the region's hungry have also been troubled by a low-level conflict between the Ethiopian army and separatist rebels in the area. In recent months, trucks carrying food aid have been attacked and, in some cases, burned.
Violent clan disputes, a spillover from the feuding warlords in neighboring Somalia, have deterred aid workers and the U.N. from entering the region.
"We have received nothing," said Aden Abdi, who has nine hungry mouths to feed in the wind-blown town of Kelafo. Water wells are empty and the nearby Wabe Shebelle River, which at this time of year can be as much as 65 feet wide, is now easily traversed by foot.
"We have been forgotten," the oval-faced woman sighed, sitting outside her one-room stick shack where her family struggles to survive on $8 a month. "No one cares if we live or die, as long as they don't see."In Kenya, however, British International Development Secretary Hilary Benn met President Mwai Kibaki on Tuesday and pledged $5.3 million to help alleviate the crisis, according to a statement released by the president's office.
One-third of the money will go to dealing with food shortages and the remaining two-thirds will go to providing water in drought-stricken areas, the statement said.
In Ethiopia, one aid group has been working on a project to help cattle herders develop ways of coping with drought in the region.
The project, developed by the U.S.-based aid agency CARE with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development, will help cattle herders negotiate access to land when a crisis develops, provide a market so they can sell part of their herds and supply emergency food and water.
"We hopefully are going to get away from these emergency responses in the region," said Carey Farley, a program manager for CARE, from the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.

Associated Press Writer Chris Tomlinson contributed to this report from Nairobi, Kenya.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

No end in sight for East Africa Drought

2006-01-19T16:22:00.000+03:00

The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) says there is no end in sight to the drought in parts of Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia.The warning comes as Switzerland prepares to join the countries concerned, aid agencies and the United Nations at a donor and coordination meeting in Nairobi on Thursday.

According to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), millions of people across the Horn of Africa are in urgent need of food supplies.

On Tuesday the WFP said it would have to stop food distributions in Kenya from February if the international community does not provide more financial help.

Jacques Bovier, the coordinator of SDC regional activities who is based in the Kenyan capital, told swissinfo that the Swiss government was focusing not on particular countries but on the region as a whole.

"Since this is a regional problem, affecting not just Kenya but also the southern part of Somalia and some parts of Ethiopia and Djibouti, we have to plan on a regional basis," he said.
He added that one of the key challenges for aid agencies was to ensure that emergency food rations reach those who need them most.

"Take the problem of piracy off the coast of Somalia. If you try to bring food to Somalia by sea, the shipment may be attacked and the food will never reach the country.

"So right now the supplies have to go to Kenya, before being brought by road from there to Somalia. But this food destined for Somalia may still be attacked or stolen by people in Kenya who are also suffering from drought."

Food suppliesThe SDC has made the safe passage of food aid between Kenya and Somalia one of its key priorities.

The agency has welcomed an investigation by the Kenyan government into how food aid destined for famine victims recently ended up for sale at a market.

"This has been a small problem, but the authorities are looking into it to make sure that food donations reach the beneficiaries," said Bovier.

Humanitarian and aid organisations are preparing to meet in Nairobi later this week to review the scale of the drought.

"The meeting on Thursday between the countries concerned, the UN, donor countries and NGOs is a chance to look closely at the situation in Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia," said Bovier, who will be attending the talks on behalf of the Swiss government.

He expects the meeting will lead to a fresh appeal for international assistance and says that the SDC is "definitely" considering stepping up its humanitarian aid effort across the region.

Swiss aidAssistance will be primarily provided in cooperation with the WFP, but the SDC also expects to help finance projects coordinated by Swiss non-governmental organisations working in the region.

Switzerland has said that it is ready if need be to assist the Swiss-run International Committee of the Red Cross in ensuring that "food convoys" are not disrupted and that in the event of clashes between different communities the aid continues to reach the people who need it.

"We have to ensure that convoys are not robbed and that food and water get to the right places. This is very important, because too many clashes could lead to a serious problem in the region," said Bovier.

"The situation is deteriorating. There is no rain in sight, and even if rain does come ? normally in April or May - it will be months before the next crop is ready. So the food shortages will become even more severe."

Swissinfo, Ramsey Zarifeh

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Aden Agreement could signal end of Somalia's warlord era

2006-01-19T16:15:00.000+03:00

Can you imagine Somalia’s Transitional Federal President, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, hugging the Speaker of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Parliament, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, an unlikely event only a week ago.

It happened, however, in early January when the two top officials met in Sana, Yemen, following an invitation from Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Salah.

What surprised many and delighted others was the speed at which the two Somali politicians sorted out their differences, moved to the coastal city of Aden and concluded a landmark deal – it all took just three days. They stayed in the same hotel, dined together and at all times maintained the most cordial relations, in stark contrast to the bitter words they had been exchanging ever since they were respectively elected head of state and Speaker of the House.

To many Somalis, it was an unexpected Idd-el-Adha gift because when the two men met in Yemen mid last year, they agreed to disagree on every national issue they discussed, between the so-called Ministers in Mogadishu Group led by the speaker and the main government body that opted to make Jowhar town, 90 km north of the capital, the temporary base of the government.

JUST THREE days after the signing on January 5 of the now popular Aden Agreement, the residents of a neighbourhood in Mogadishu decided to confront an armed group that had established a roadblock at Adan Adde junction in Wardhighley district. Youngsters from the area volunteered to challenge the dozen men who were demanding leejo, an unlawful payment, from passing vehicles at gunpoint.

The confrontation between the volunteer youngsters and the armed group took place on January 7; it marked the first time communities in Mogadishu had opted to challenge the city's heavily armed militias. For days afterwards, many city dwellers were visiting the area to confirm for themselves that the area was truly free from armed groups.

ON JANUARY 6, a roadblock was re installed at Bakara crossroads, a strategic section of the heavily used Wadnaha Street. A group of armed militia claiming to be loyal to the Minister of Internal Security, Mohamed Qanyare Afrah, manned the roadblock, demanding leejo.

The public reaction was one of outrage, as people could not believe that someone claiming to be a government minister could allow armed youth to harass people, especially motorists and their passengers. The "Minister in Mogadishu" did not issue a statement disassociating himself from the youngsters’ acts, further infuriating the city’s residents.

In Karan district, a stronghold of Al-Hajji Muse Sudi Yalahow, the Minister of Commerce, the situation is even worse. There are armed youth everywhere and gunfire is frequent, giving the lie to the minister's claim that he would make the city completely free from violence.

The growing expression of opposition to warlords in Mogadishu is an obvious reaction to their obstruction of the president and the prime minister. Their promises to disarm their forces have not materialised and the militia they assembled at two camps outside the capital have long been disbanded.

The "Ministers in Mogadishu" promised to set up an administration for the capital, despite being warned against doing something they where not mandated for, because the premier and his executive Cabinet were not involved. They set up a 64-member council in December 2005, but the warlords now appear to be unhappy with the city council whose formation they masterminded.

City residents are little sure that the new council is going to be effective because its architects are already squabbling over how to control it. Each warlord wanted to have influence over the council, but local assembly members have begun to follow more independent lines.

The "Ministers in Mogadishu" know that their failure to control the council they initiated is likely to cost them a lot of political capital.

Soon after the formation of the TFG in Nairobi, the tsunami hit the Somali coast. No real state response took place since an internal rift immediately paralysed the new governmnt.

SECURITY IN Somalia, especially in Mogadishu, has never been assured as disarmament plans were not allowed to be implemented. Igadsom, a mission to deploy forces from the Igad states to help the disarmament of the armed groups in the country, was made impossible by the "Ministers in Mogadishu" causing a hullabaloo about foreign intervention.

Abdulkadir Khalif is freelance journalist based in Mogadishu

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Lessons from Somalia

2006-01-17T09:21:00.000+03:00

ON December 2, 2005, His Excellency Eng. Hussein Mohammad Farah Aideed, deputy prime minister (politics and security), minister of interior, Transitional Federal Government of the Somali Republic, called, by appointment, on India’s high commissioner in Nairobi, Surendra Kumar.

He was dressed in a dark blue suit, tie and leather-strap sandals. The ‘Eng.’ before his name was similar to ‘Dr’: Engineers now like to be known that they are thus qualified. In Somalia the preferred title of Hussein Aideed is ‘General’, a claim by hereditary right.

His father, General Mohammad Farah Aideed, became the world’s most famous warlord, immortal in local lore and deified by Hollywood, when, in 1993, he broke American will by downing two Black Hawk helicopters and killing 18 American Marines whose bodies were dragged through the streets of Mogadishu, capital of Somalia. A reward of a million dollars was placed on his head, and he was nicknamed, for some obscure reason, Yogi the Bear. The father did not die in an American prison, but in his own city. His son was living in America, and had trained to become a reserve Marine. When his father died, he returned to Somalia to inherit the title and the loyalty of his father’s militia, though not the respect that his father commanded. Neither father nor son believed that the term "warlord" was appropriate. Aideed means "one who rejects insults".

He seemed sincere, said ambassador Kumar. Hussein Aideed promised peace would finally come to Somalia in about six months, thanks to the latest deal brokered by mostly well-meaning (or simply fed-up) neighbours. He asked for Indian assistance in demining southern Somalia, building roads, assisting in healthcare and training the police.

Uniforms and guns for the police would not be unwelcome. Since there is nothing called a police force in Somalia at the moment, perhaps Hussein Aideed wanted arms and training for his own force. Kumar was diplomatic in his response; the visitor’s charm was not sufficient to reduce the host’s scepticism. The news is that India is not in any hurry to arm and train anyone, or rebuild roads, which are controlled by AK-47-wielding bands who laugh as they collect their tax on any vehicle brave enough, or desperate enough, to travel. The government of Hussein Aideed used to be based in Nairobi until the Kenyans exhausted their patience and told them to go.

Somalia is not a country in search of a government. It is a government in search of a country. From the air, Mogadishu is entrancing, lean and stretched out against the Indian Ocean, a city of two million in a country of seven. It begins in the greenery of banana trees in the south, curves along the pristine beaches untouched by the large waves that break much before the shore. The city ends where the sand rises to cliff height in the north before spreading into the arid and endless desert. We flew into an airport in the north on Saturday in a Red Cross plane. The Red Cross is now the only international organisation with a national presence in Somalia, working to bring a touch of contemporary concern to a land that has been driven back into a pre-industrial past by criminal greed and mindless violence.

The breeze cools the midday sunshine and throws sand into our eyes as step off. The airport was built by Osman Hassan Ali Atto, warlord and politician, to ferry khat, a local nerve-soother. When the international airport closed down, its fortunes boomed. Wisely, Mr Atto decided to share such fortunes with a fellow warlord. The commerce is limited but it is a commercial hub of sorts.

In 1998, two Red Cross officials disembarked at this airport from a similar plane and wandered off to answer a call of nature behind a nearby sand dune, a reasonable need after a two-and-a-half hour flight. They were lucky. The rest of the group was kidnapped by gunmen who appeared over a small hill, and held hostage for 10 days. Somalia is now one of two regions where the Red Cross uses armed guards, rather than the humanitarian credibility that keeps it safe elsewhere. The only other place is Chechnya.

There are three structures at this airstrip, nearly indistinguishable from the colour of the surrounding desert. The first, about 10 feet wide with a sloping tin roof, is both the cafeteria and the bank: you can get a soft drink while you change foreign exchange for Somali shillings. There was a time when a dollar fetched 30,000 shillings, but the rate has stabilised at 15,000. Warlords print the Somali currency. There is an advertisement of a cellphone company on the second hut, which is possibly an office. The third structure on an airstrip devoid of any human habitation for miles is a mosque, an Ottoman crescent atop its minaret.

A small craft of Aviation Sans Frontieres is waiting to take off when we land: the two NGO planes constitute the business of the day. A man near the tarmac with a cap, a piece of cloth wrapped around both ears, a football-referee whistle in one hand and a tasbeeh (prayer beads) in the other is the air traffic clearance authority. Each item has a function. The cap is for the sun. The cloth is for the sand. He keeps in touch with the pilot with the whistle. He keeps in touch with God with the prayer beads.

Our plane is refuelled while we wait. Three skinny, industrious men, two of them in the trademark lungi, kick-roll dented drums from a Dyna 350 semi towards the plane. A wheelbarrow, carrying a hose and a small engine, accompanies them. The drums contain the fuel. Each is opened, with some effort, by a metal strip that fits into a groove in the cap and twists the cap around. On end of the hose goes into the drum, the other into the plane. The engine is pulled into a gurgle. Oil begins to flow up. They travel about a hundred metres or more ahead, obscured by a windscreen of powdery desert dust: nine men on the back of a powerful Toyota, their legs dangling over the side, each with an AK-47 of varying power, and enough ammunition to start a small war. In the centre is a mounted heavy machine-gun, manned by a burly brother in a bandana, with don’t-fool-with-me in his eyes and a pistol in his belt. In local parlance, they constitute a "technical". No self-respecting warlord travels with less than four "technicals". Since this one has been hired to protect us, I suppose this ‘technical’ is on the side of the angels, but loyalties are variable in a cash-and-carry business.

We drive over sand and rock towards the world’s largest, or perhaps only, ghost city. An occasional man sleeps under a desert shrub. Lonely men squat on the edge of the track, waiting for nothing, their faces drained of all expectation. Women, in rare ones or twos, are defined by the bright colours of their dress, principally a dramatic red interspersed by a soothing yellow. The rest is silence in a vast emptiness, broken only by the periodic and minimal radio exchanges between our SUV and our "technical".

Suddenly, to our left, appears a huge scrapyard, a crazy museum of twisted, shattered metal, carcasses of cars, machines, yesterday’s homes, anything that could be pillaged. It is owned by Bashir Raghe, a warlord. A minute later we see a large ship sitting impassively offshore. This is the scrap metal trade, a lucrative byproduct of a destruction-economy, and yet another fortune for warlords to kill over. "Do you know where the scrap is headed?" asks a friend whom I shall leave unnamed. I don’t. To India.

To the right, in another minute, is what seems to be a mirage: a pink villa from an Italian seashore. Who lives there? A businessman. What is his business? He owns a bone factory. A destruction-economy has more than one byproduct.

So far, I note, I have seen seven beneficiaries of this economy: the warlords; Japanese vehicle manufacturers (all registrations in Dubai or Sharjah); the Russian armaments industry; Belgian pistol-makers; telecommunications equipment makers; shipowners and Indian scrap merchants. Add an eighth, I am told. Coca-Cola. There is a flourishing Coca-Cola factory in the south of the city. Life goes better with Coca-Cola, particularly amidst death. The first sight of Mogadishu is unreal. It is like seeing ruins from the wrong end of time.

The jagged edges of Rome’s or Amman’s amphitheatre symbolise the achievements of 2,000 years ago. In Mogadishu, you see the ruins of a flourishing 20th century city in an environment that has regressed 2,000 years. Only a few of the shell-shocked homes seem inhabited; strangely there is utter silence even among the sparse patches of life.

I am given a guided tour of devastation: here what was once an enclave of diplomatic homes or an embassy row during the era of the Soviet-supported President Siad Barre, there nothing where once the Indian embassy existed. Every hundred paces is dull repetition of what used to be. The true sadness of Mogadishu is not what it has become, but what it once was, and what it could have been.

The radio crackles. We cannot go to the Italian cathedral built when they colonised this part of Somalia. The "technical" has reported that a gunbattle is going on in front of the cathedral. And so, without any fuss, we turn left a little before the gunbattle and drive into what was once the pride of the city: the main street, full of banks, businesses, government offices, cars, pedestrians, restaurants, bars and hotels. The street ends at the embankment. A majestic hotel sweeps in a classic Italian curve to our left, architecture that once hummed to the music of hundreds of rooms. It has now been blasted apart, shattered by tank battles that destroyed this street and city.

We get off at the embankment, which is broken at one place leaving a large gap. One tank, unable to brake, crashed through at this point. The tank lies on the rocks of the ocean shore, rusted, its turret tilted up, still searching for an enemy of the same colour and blood. It is as distressing a memory as the Fascist pillar nearby that has survived on the promenade from the time of Mussolini. We are at the Hammaruin. We change guard. Literally. Our gunmen are all smiles as they wave goodbye; their replacements smile more broadly as they welcome us. But they don’t smile at one another.

This is the dividing line between the north and south of Mogadishu. Militia from the north cannot enter the south, and naturally vice versa. In the ocean, a handful of children chatter and skip over the rocks, the shallow water being their only entertainment. On the street, young men with nothing to do but clutch triggers at their nerve-ends watch as we switch vehicles and guards. A gun is part of the normal dress code of normal young men.

Engineer Hussein Aideed, leader of the United Somali Congress/Somali National Alliance, is yet to reach middle age. His mother, Asli Dhubat, his father’s first wife, took him to the United States as a teenager. He joined the US Marine Corps Reserves in 1987, became a corporal and told the Associated Press in Somalia: "Once a Marine, always a Marine". He has, he believes, a wonderful idea for Somalia’s future.

There are no passports in Somalia; even Kenya does not recognise a warlord passport any more. Hussein Aideed told ambassador Surendra Kumar that he was negotiating with an Indian IT company to create e-passports. The cost was estimated at $25 million. He had worked it out. An account would be opened in a prestigious international bank; 80 per cent of the passport fee deposited in this account would go to pay for the initial cost and 20 per cent would be sent on to Somalia. This would eventually pay the $25 million. It seems a great idea for California.

Eminent intellectual and author M J Akbar is the editor-in-chief of The Asian Age and Deccan Chronicle newspapers. He is currently on a visit to Somalia.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Human Rights Violations in Galgadud and South Mudug regions

2006-01-13T19:24:00.000+03:00

Introduction:

A new civil war broke out and it is the civilians who suffer most. The fighting between the two neighboring clans in Galgadud and South Mudug regions of Somalia intensified with one more clan joined giving support to one of the warring clans. This has inflamed and worsened the situation and created a negative impact on those involved in the mediation process. At least they will be forced to change strategy and look for new ways and means to mediate the warring parties.

These clans having fighting in Galgadud and South Mudug regions for about two years and their fighting is based on land dispute and land ownership in the concerned areas

The last five days only the fighting left 60 people dead, fifteen of them innocent civilians and wounded 90 more while twenty-two of them are in a critical health condition. The medical facility in the area is very poor while there are insufficient of doctors and medical supplies available at the place.

This has degenerated the livelihood conditions of the major pastoral communities, which were paralyzed and debilitated by severe drought, painful food crisis, and shortage of water supplies, malnutrition, human and livestock diseases.

In addition to that, the presence of the international organizations and or agencies is very inadequate compared to the other regions of Southern Somalia. These two regions host the smallest number of the international organizations working in Somalia even though the attendance of the international organizations in Somalia is always very unsatisfactory compared to the needs and the vulnerability of the Somali populace in general.

Background

It is not the international agencies or organizations that are mostly needed in Galgadud and South Mudug regions but also the existence of Local Non Governmental Organizations (LNGOs) and or Community Based Organizations (CBOs) is below zero while measured up to the other parts of Somalia.

The Center for Peace and Democracy (CPD) assessing the situation, analyzing the need and considering the rights of the people under these regions have set up its head quarter in Central Zone Somalia in 2004. Since then, CPD carried out quite a number of activities in the above regions by empowering the Traditional leaders, Women groups, Youth organizations, Community elders, School teachers, Religious groups and so forth holding them for workshops, seminars, symposiums and open discussions and lectures.

During the above exercise, the Center for Peace and Democracy (CPD) used and applied conflict transformation tools, conflict resolution strategies, mediation tactics, negotiation skills, peaceful transformation systems, working for peace programs and applying lessons of success extracted from some other countries in the world.

CPD provided quite a number of workshops and seminars where the importance of promoting peace and democracy has for the global people in general and to the residents of Hiran, Galgadud and South Mudug regions in particular.

As indicated by a short and quick survey conducted by CPD in the last three months, the power of the traditional leaders, community elders, women groups, youth organizations and the religious groups has increased considerably after the workshops, seminars and symposiums provided by CPD. They have doubled their activities in favor of the community while they now normally participate conflict and violence cessation activities in the areas concerned.

The quick survey has also indicated the need for CPD to continue its operations and showed the absence of international support in the areas concerned. We cannot take too lightly the need for international support to enable CPD continue its operations in the long run.

The provision of funds and grants to support the work CPD is currently doing in Central Zone Somalia will be a benefit to the targeted beneficiaries in the above concerned regions as well as to the Somali citizens in general and the global world because building peace and democracy in one part of the world is always a mutual benefit to the rest of the world.
Creating a democratic world free from terrorism, terrorist perpetrators, warlords, interest driven dictators and so forth needs the cooperation and collaboration of civil society organizations around the world. This effort also needs qualified and noble human resources, leadership, and ambition, moral and material support where all units of the stakeholders will be engaged into the exercise for the common good of all.

Each organ of the stakeholders system is unique and therefore significant for the smooth running of the whole operation. Donors will be important for they are covering almost all the necessary expenses the program needs, implementing local organizations or CBOs are also important for the reason that they are doing the job technically with their hands, and the other parts of the stakeholders have their own consequence over the smooth running of the whole program AND the absence of one of the stakeholders organs will make the program unproductive and imperfect. This means each organ is complementary to the other organ of the stakeholders.

Human Rights Violations:

Whenever a fighting broke, the result is a human catastrophic death and loss of properties. The damage and the destruction a single war might result will be different from that of another war because the magnitude is not always the same.

The wounds suffered by human and livestock, the destruction of properties, the displacement of innocent inhabitants are always the signs of violence and instability in one area or another causing huge violations of human rights.

For the last five days (7th January – 11th January 2006) only, three deadly successive fighting’s in Galgadud and South Mudug regions of Somalia left 60 people dead, quarter of them innocent civilians, 90 people wounded, twenty-two of them in a critical condition, hundreds and hundreds of families left displaced and thousands more traumatized by the magnitude of war. It could not be underestimated the degree of loss of properties.

This has worsened the situation of the already suffering communities badly hit by severe droughts, famine, and malnutrition, human and animal diseases. Besides that, the health facilities of the hospitals in the area are very insufficient, water and pasture is very inadequate for the pastoral communities.

Due to the above consecutive violence, it is not only the combatants whom the war has an effect on but the innocent civilians are those paying huge prices as the result. Children are killed, women raped, innocent elders killed and or kidnapped for ransom and many more brutal and unscrupulous actions reported by our people on the ground in Galgadud and South Mudug regions

CPD has conducted quite a number of workshops, seminars and other activities in Galgadud and South Mudug in an effort to empower the traditional leaders, community elders, religious groups, youth groups and women groups and by providing awareness regarding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and how necessary it is all sides to respect and promote the application of those conventions.

Throughout the above activities CPD has emphasized the rights of non-combatants as well as the combatants and need for justice and protection among all the groups.

CPD has reminded all stakeholders concerned the need for them to play their roles and take responsibility, reiterating the need for the traditional leaders, elders and religious groups and women to take the lead in closing down the hostilities. The power, ambition and the willingness for the stakeholders to take in charge and cease the hostilities have improved to some extent but not yet enough to take complete effect.

The need for CPD to continue such activities in empowering the community leaders, elders, women and religious groups and by providing them with all necessary tools and knowledge such as conflict resolution, conflict transformation, mediation process, negotiation skills, the best way to work for peace, the anatomy of peace, the biology of peace and the right and the need for peace by every one.

Constraints Faced:

Without the necessary financial resources, no organization or company will ever exist and reach its desired goals in the long run. Each organization needs to secure financial resources to smoothly operate and implement its mission.

The Center for Peace and Democracy (CPD) has done all it could to protect the rights of all the people in Somalia weather combatants and noncombatants and convinced the majority of Somali people to know their rights of expression, freedom of speech, rights to live in peace and security, rights to education and the rights to political and social participation, rights to assembly and non violent organizations.

Even though CPD has noble, qualified human resources, the ambition and the willingness to do the job, but is unfortunately lacking the sufficient financial and logistical support to carry out its operations successfully and proficiently.

The lack of financial and logistical assistances has hindered our mission and will cause CPD to shortfall its vision in the long run.

Need for Funds

I am once again asking your deemed office, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which as far as I know provides funding and grants to organizations involved in promoting global democracy and peace to support the operations and activities of the Center for Peace and Democracy (CPD) which has been actively doing in favor of global democracy and peace since its establishment in 2003.

We are just lacking the financial as well as logistical assistance to support our operations but we do have the necessary credibility, name, and goodwill, have influence to the stakeholders and hope you will take your position and complement our operations for the common good of global democracy and peace.

We are kindly waiting your approval for the project proposal (Hostilities Cessation Project in Galgadud and South Mudug), which I have submitted to you earlier.

In addition to that, please share this brief report with us, which will give you full picture of the current situation in the proposed project area.

It is our responsibility to brief the international community about the current situation on the ground as when necessary. We will not be fooled to provide you with the human rights violation and atrocities against the innocent people in our areas as well as Somalia as a whole.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Rebuilding Somalia Focus of Three Day nairobi Meeting

2005-11-26T09:43:00.000+03:00

In Nairobi, a three-day meeting got underway today to plan the reconstruction and development of Somalia. More than 100 representatives of Somali groups, donors, the World Bank, NGOs and the United Nations are taking part.

The Somali Joint Needs Assessment, or JNA, aims to form a five-year timetable for reconstruction beginning in 2006. Among those attending is Somali Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Abdirizak Osman Hassan. From Nairobi, he told English to Africa reporter Joe De Capua that he has high hopes for this week’s meeting.

He says, “This is a model. This is something that Africa has never done, simply because Somalia is a unique case. And that uniqueness is offering to us all an opportunity to do something perfect. That is participatory. That is people-driven planning and at the end of that exercise we expect when we have a final document, which contains the needs of reconstruction and development of the country, we will take it to a donor conference which is planned to take place in Rome, Italy, next year, sometime in June or July. And we hope we will succeed to present a convincing document that can be accepted by the donors.

”As for Somalia’s immediate needs, Mr. Hassan says, “Many, many – the priorities are many. This country in the last 15 years had total destruction. Social service completely destroyed, infrastructure basically is non-existent. Public institutions do not exist, so we have to start from scratch. Security and law enforcement institutions are not in place…they are priorities.

”Solving these problems will require the cooperation of the various Somali clans, who have been at war on and off for years. Nevertheless, he believes they’ll cooperate. “100 percent. You know, when we went back to Somalia, when our relocation took place…we found Somali people throughout the country want two things. One is peace, second is government.”

Source: VOA New

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

American company to fight pirates off Somalia

2005-11-26T09:39:00.000+03:00

NAIROBI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The Somali government has signed a two-year contract with an American marine security company in a bid to end an upsurge of piracy off the lawless Horn of Africa country, officials said on Friday.

Waters off the coast of Somalia are considered among the most dangerous in the world. Pirates firing rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns earlier this month tried to board a U.S.-owned cruise liner about 100 miles (160 km) off the Somali coast.

New York-based Topcat Marine Security Inc. signed a deal worth more than $50 million with the Somali Transitional Federal Government in Nairobi to escort ships plying Somali waters.

Prime Minister Mohamed Ali Gedi, who witnessed the deal, said his government recognised the damage caused by pirates and hoped Topcat would help end the piracy menace."The agreement signed today will defend Somalia's territorial waters, defeat the pirates," Gedi said, "The government wishes to express its dismay at these abhorrent actions.

"Peter Casini, Topcat's head of research and development, said once in operation his company would target a mother ship used by the pirates to launch attacks on passing vessels."We will end the piracy very quickly, there is no question about that," Casini told reporters. "There is a ship that is launching small ships 75 to 100 miles from the shore, our goal is to take the mother ship."The International Maritime Board has said that after two years of relative calm, 32 pirate attacks had been reported in Somalia since mid-March.Somalia has been without a central government since 1991, when rival warlords ousted Mohamed Siad Barre.

Source: Reuters

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Stabilizing East Africa

2005-11-26T09:10:00.000+03:00

For centuries, East Africa has seen many unnecessary wars that were based on border disputes, religious affiliations, and lack of fair governance in the hands of self-proclaimed leaders who subjugated the public to indecency.

Our grandfathers, fathers, and ourselves have waged wars against each other on border and religious disputes and it appears, unless of course we put in place a reasonable and long-term solution to these wars, we will pass the tragedy that has long consumed our people to our children.

I have attempted in the following paragraphs to uncover the solutions that may lead to a lasting solution to East African’s nightmare of endless and meaningless wars that have consumed the region, with some commentaries to each subject before I pen my suggestions.

Border Disputes: So many East Africans who would have contributed much to the region and continent at large have perished in the hands of ‘border disputes’ while leaders who couldn’t add any value to the lives of those under their rule used the issue of ‘border disputes’ as a cover for their lack of meaningful leadership. For instance, the continent, especially East Africa, has been and continues to be a victim of starvation, disease outbreaks, and uneducated societies that have devastated each other with wars based on lack of resources. Governments in East Africa have done very little to address all issues, but rather, are delighted to go around the world, begging for free giveaways which they most often reroute to personal bank accounts in donor countries’ banks, while the rest they use to buy arms and ammunition for the purpose of ensuring they reign in power.

Ethiopia and Somalia have waged the most devastating war East Africa had seen, while now, little Eritrea which has been in war for the last 40years seems divined to wage yet another unnecessary war with Ethiopia over some mountainous land that can hardly support life for livestock, let alone humans. What has any of the three countries gained from those wars? One might answer with, ‘Eritrea’s independence’. But, couldn’t Eritrea’s separation from Ethiopia have been gained through meaningful and peaceful means? Or would Eritrea’s ‘independence’ from Ethiopia have ever materialized had the Soviet Empire not collapsed and abandoned its former agent in Ethiopia, Mr. Haile Miriam?

I think Eritrea’s ‘independence’ had little to do with successful wars it waged with Ethiopia but the collapse of the Soviet Empire which gave way to the fall of Ethiopia’s Marxist Leader, Mr. Haile Miraim, and the Western World’s commitment to disengage the Soviets from East Africa. As such, I think, the end result of Eritrea’s 30year war with Ethiopia was nothing more than colossal loss of human life and ruined economies on the people of East Africa, regardless of on whose’s side. However, had the government of Ethiopia been a democratic government where the people elected the leadership, I think, such wars of protest would have not been necessary.

Today, we have the leaders of those militias who costed the peoples of the region much pain and sorrow who are, themselves, becoming dictators, and waging unnecessary wars within the people.

If the people of the region are allowed to self-govern, I am absolutely convinced, there will be no environment for wars to be waged, because, leaders who can’t resolve disputes through mediation and public counsel will be voted out. It is a fact that the peoples of East Africa are far too tired to see another war, or wars, being lit in the region.

However, some of the governments of East Africa, for instance of the dictator in Eritrea, who continuously denies the people of Eritrea the right to vote, will lead wars for the purpose of disguising his inabilities to contribute to the daily lives of the people, as has been done by the leadership of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi who has, to surprise and dismay of many, transformed Modern-day Ethiopia to a more just and peaceful nation under one God. God of Peace.

Religious Affiliations: While most of the world, especially the early religious world of the Muslims, the Christians, and the Jews regarded Ethiopia’s contribution and tolerance of religions, modern-day religious ‘leaders’ from around the world have, for a good number of centuries now, ignited religious wars within the one country that has long been just to all Prophets and prophecies. The ancient history of Ethiopia is filled with justice for all, regardless of religious affiliations. For instance, it was the late Prophet Muhammed, CW, who dispatched his early followers to ancient Ethiopia so that they would be save from persecution in the hands of their enemies who wanted to persecute them. I, for one, think we owe to the land that has always been just to people of all religions.

Early Muslims found save shelter in Ethiopia; early Christians found comfort and acceptance in Ethiopia; and early Jews have found a save heaven from persecution in the hands of injustice.

Now, is it fair that modern-day world, especially the Muslims and the Christians, should, as they have done in the last few centuries, set the peoples of East Africa against each other for religious dominance? Why is it that the rulers of the West and Middle East support one group of people against another when the majority of the people of the East African Lands engulfing Ethiopia , and their ancestors, have long been just towards each other and to God’s religions? Or should they have a right to arm or finance one group against another? And finally, what is in it for them, whether the people of East Africa believe in one religion, or another, or even none?

Isn’t life ‘a living in the moment’, rather than the endless and fact-lacking world of the heavens that are nothing more than stories that were passed down to us over the centuries, with the instructions to ‘believe as you are told or else risk going to hell’?

I know of no hell outside of the life I have spent in the refugee camps as a youngster, or that which the innocent child in East Africa is in today. Why do I have to worry about another hell that is beyond my reach, when I have one right in my hands: Starvation, wars, pain and sorrow, and lack of justice in East Africa. What is it that the next world will deliver that I must wait while so many innocent children are starving, dying, and becoming victims of injustice and all its companions?

God doesn’t dictate upon the people of East Africa, so, why shall a man be able to do so? In fact, God has ALWAYS been kind to the people of East Africa, I think, and has depended upon them to deliver save shelter to those in need of shelter, whether they be the early Muslims, Jews, or even Christians.

For the likes of the people who chased the early Muslims to send unjust religious leaders to East Africa for the purpose of imposing upon the people while God and Kings have given them absolute right to freedom of religion is, I think, a disgrace to the religions, God, and the Ancient Kings of East Africa. As such, the ‘right to freedom of religion’ must be protected by modern-day East African leaders, under all just circumstances.

Fair Governance: It would be far too premature for me to argue wars that have long inflamed the region were all too premature and had no physical ground. When people are oppressed and victimized to all that is indecent, they, more often than is necessary, resort to violence as a means to ease or eliminate their pain and sorrows. As a result, many wars in East Africa, the last being the wars that overthrew the governments of Mr. Siad Barre, and Mr. Haile Miriam, were based on the need for people to self-govern in a just and democratic environment. However, such wars must not reoccur with the only means to safeguard against recurrence being the establishment of democratic governance of the region where people are bestowed with the power to elect their leaders in a save and democratic environment, or else the region will always be in turmoil, thus, denying the people of the region normal life and progress.

I propose the following to combat the chronic wars of East Africa:

1) - East African Peace Task Force located in the smallest country in the region (mainly Djibouti), and whose function would be to Guard against and prevent:

a) Regional wars between the countries of East Africa;

b) Civil wars within the various countries;

c) Religious wars in the region, regardless of the country;

d) Development and introduction of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), and

e) Undemocratic government(s) that would deny people their birth right to live freely and elect their leaders

2) - East African Supreme Court which would be based in Somalia, the most volatile State in the Region’s history, which would:
a)Protect against, Investigate and Rule on all regional disputes between the countries;

b)Investigate and Rule on all crimes against the peoples by any government in the region, including voter irregularities, denial of the rights of freedoms of religion, civil expression of thoughts, and rights of property;

c) Rule on and regulate the rights of people to practice free market business while safeguarding against monopoly business practices in the region;

d) Protect and enforce, through the State courts, the right of every child to be schooled properly and without any government or parent interference, and thus ending the Nomadic lifestyle as is most often practiced by Somalis;

e) Poses authority over all Supreme Federal Courts of the East African region,

f) Serve the East African Peace Task Force with the necessary legal mandate to act on behalf of the peoples of East Africa, when necessary and

g) Put cap on arms spending by the various governments of the region while setting increased expenditure limits for education, health care, and economic development for each country, thus overseeing the development of the peoples of the region.

Arte Moalin III email: carte@core.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Regrettable Episode Unfolding Again!!

2005-11-25T09:37:00.000+03:00

Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Ghedi’s recent comments on the issue of “One Somalia” principle (or Somali Weyn concept) raised some eyebrows [1]. The Prime Minister spoke about the relations between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and the neighbouring countries of Kenya and Ethiopia, pointing out that there is no territorial (and people) dispute between them. Ghedi’s comments underlined that Somalia and its neighbours together, as IGAD members, could form the starting point for securing stability in the region and building an economic and political cooperation. This, in turn, can guarantee the basis for a new socio-political framework of permanent well-being of all Somalis in the Horn of Africa.

This “optimistic outreach” has been interpreted differently, especially Somalis in the Diaspora. However, the majority of the Somalis in the Diaspora insist that Ghedi chose to shorten his journey to political ascendancy; and more importantly, the new TFG which also opted to mute Somali Weyn cause will surely find itself navigating in unmarked, maybe dangerous waters, like the elected 1967 civil government. To realize to the extent of the problem, many Somalis in the Diaspora have never, to begin with, accepted the peace-brokered efforts of Ethiopia and Kenya as genuine; they believe that it was a careful orchestrated scheme set up to lead Somalis to relax its Somali Weyn vigilance. In gathering places, you see Somalis fiercely debating whether any peace brokered by Somali neighbours could be real!

Furthermore, some political analysts have recently drawn to the conclusion that the Somali nation-State, as it was before the civil wars, is hardly to re-emerge. Yet, as an ethnic group, Somalis do play a vital role in the stability and the development of the region. This paradox is seemingly but exceptionally contradictory. Somali nomads were roaming in the Somali Peninsula for centuries, mostly without a Central Authority. Despite the many instances of clan-warfare, dismemberment, and anarchy, Somalis have always maintained the capabilities to deflect any permanent domination/occupation. There is always a common Somali denominator in the minds of the nomads, even though it does not manifest in their dealings of clan-politics. Therefore, foreign observers often find difficult to read nomads’ clan-politics; and therefore reach an elusive conclusion which frequently manifest itself in futile. This short paper will therefore attempt to reflect on the history of foreign complicity and manipulation in making “One Somalia” principle somehow redeemable.

Since 1991, Somali neighbours (particularly, Ethiopia and Kenya) have launched a series of political maneuvers to realize their determination of convincing the general Somali populace to swallow the unassailable Somali Weyn identity and unification. Taking advantage of the current Somali debacle, our neighbours have regularly intimidated Somali clan-elders, faction leaders/warlords, and regional leaders to first and foremost abandon any attempts that unify the Somalis and thus regenerate challenges against the existence artificial boundaries inherited from the European colonial administrations in the region. Thus, whenever a Somali peace reconciliation conference is held in Ethiopia or Kenya, the host takes a more drastic, but obvious covert actions to indicate to the Somalis that its toleration of any tendencies of Somali Weyn is wearing thin. However, failure of such political maneuvers to generate the desired intimidating effect will surely force the neighbouring countries to resort to either more reckless military attacks on Somalia or galvanize the West to “contain” Somalia for them. To measure Kenya and Ethiopia’s success or failure in resolving the territorial disputes, one has to look back the 1960s conflicts in the region.

The 1960s Scenario

At the inception of the Somali Republic in July 1st 1960, Somali leaders openly put forth their ambitions to rehabilitate the sovereignty of all Somalis in the Horn of Africa, including the Ogaden region of Ethiopia and the Northern Frontier District/Province of Kenya. This political line has immediately strained the relations between the new born Somali Republic and Ethiopia. For some time, the two sides accused each other for territorial violation and armed aggression on its borders. These border clashes led Somalia to seek military aid from the former U.S.S.R. On an interview conducted in English at his office in November 30, 1963, the Prime Minister of Somalia, Abdirashid Ali Shermarke, declared that “military aid promised by the Soviet Union is being accepted only because Somalia must defend itself from the Ethiopian attacks and pillaging of the Somali peoples.” Premier Shermarke also explained Somalia’s critical dilemma from an economic stand point in which he underlined that “ Somalia’s treasury could not much longer cope with the problem of feeding and sheltering thousands of Somali refugees”, escaping from the mayhem caused by the Ethiopian soldiers in the Ogaden region [2].

Extensive Political and media provocations between the two sides have instigated a sudden but sporadic bloody border clashes, as early as January of 1964. The Somali Foreign Minister, Abdullahi Isse Mohamud had submitted an official protest letter to the Ethiopian Ambassador in Mogadishu, Ahadu Sabura. By March of that year, the conflict widened into a full-scale war, both arms confronting at border between Somalia and Ethiopia. In these border clashes, Ethiopian military planes destroyed numerous police posts and civilian houses inside Somalia. Ethiopian military campaigns caused indiscriminate killings of civilians and wounding many others. Ethiopian border soldiers raided livestock belonging to Somali nomads and opened fire when the nomads resisted.

Moreover, Ethiopia and Kenya agreed to form a mutual defense pact that they referred as “a joint measures of dealing with the Somali disturbances” – a move which Somalis considered “as contrary to the spirit of the OAU” [3]. The few reconciliation efforts, in regional level, that have been arranged also failed to produce any peace settlements. At the Organization for African Union (OAU) Summit Conference in Cairo (July 23, 1964), African leaders have attempted to reach a ‘Resolution’ that satisfies on both sides; however, it failed to do so. Somali News in Mogadishu published that “Somalia will not be bound by the OAU ruling [which states] that its member-States’ present frontier are to be maintained”, in which the Somali National Assembly had passed a motion against OAU ruling, in October of 1964. That is, the Somali government officially rejected the outcome of the Cairo Conference, regarding on frontier issues.

In a net assessment of the outcome of the Somali-Ethiopian border skirmishes is that Super Power interventions in the region have officially began. Somali sought the military and technical aid of the Soviets; while the Ethiopian regime involved actively in convincing, as it seems, the American Administration to tackle Somali Weyn cause.

In September 1974, a conference held in Washington, sponsored by the Center for the National Security Studies was presented proceedings and papers on the subject of “The CIA and Covert Action”. Roger Morris and Richard Mauzy presented a comprehensive piece of research which is, as they state, based on both written sources and many oral conversations that they had with US decision-makers and foreign policy officials who supplied them many of their research discourse [4]. The title of their research paper is: Following the Scenario: Reflection on Five Case Histories in the Mode and Aftermath of CIA Intervention.

Morris and Mauzy unveil that the U. S. Central Intelligence Agency had been clandestinely funneling mainly a financial support to the political actors in Somalia since mid 1960s, in an effort to ward off Somali Weyn tendencies inside top brass leadership. In 1967 election campaigns, for example, the CIA provided thousands of dollars to assist in the election of the Prime late Prime Minister Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal and some of his fellow Somali Youth League (SYL) members. Here is a selection from Morris and Mauzy’s case history of CIA ‘campaign of financing’ in the 1967 Somali elections:

An impoverished land of less than three million along the northeastern coast of Africa where the Indian Ocean meets the Gulf of Aden, Somalia was of concern to Washington for a number of reasons. Irredentist claims threatened border warfare with both Kenya and Ethiopia, the latter a long-time U.S. client state under Haile Selassie and the site of a major intelligence base. Somalia was also an early recipient of Soviet aid in Africa, and its coastline held potentially strategic ports for any future rivalry in the Persian Gulf or Indian Ocean, an interest shared by France and Britain. At that, however, the country was apparently not an urgent concern in U.S. diplomacy. When Somalia predictably rejected a 1963 American offer of "defensive" arms, conditioned on the exclusion of all other supplies, the State Department leaked its "displeasure" but seemingly did no more.

Over the next four years, 1963-1967, official U.S.-Somali relations were distant and U.S. aid next to nothing while Somali leaders visited the Soviet bloc, Somali newspapers published anti-American forgeries planted by Soviet intelligence, and the country fought a brief but bloody border war with Ethiopia. Then suddenly, early in 1967, history took a turn for the better. President Abd-i-Rashid Shermarke was elected for a six-year term as President in June and in July appointed as Premier Muhammad Egal, American-educated and avowedly pro-Western. By fall, U.S. aid was resumed in amounts twice the previous total since independence, and Somalia had concluded a border agreement with Ethiopia [see the footnote to read the 1967-68 Somali Border Agreements with Ethiopia and Kenya] [5]. In 1968 Egal visited the United States, following a visit to Somalia by Vice President Humphrey, and was hailed by President Johnson as "enormously constructive in a troubled area of Africa." What the two leaders did not discuss, say official sources, was how "constructive" the CIA had been for Mr. Egal, whose rise, to power was reportedly facilitated by thousands of dollars in covert support to Egal and other pro-Western elements in the ruling Somali Youth League party prior to the 1967 Presidential election.

In retrospect, this clandestine bankrolling in Somalia seems very modest by CIA standards, only a tiny fraction of what the Agency has spent in a month in Southeast Asia or even what it spent in the Congo in the early sixties. And its immediate benefits-in rising U.S. influence, in the detente with a grateful Ethiopia-no doubt seemed real enough at the time. In any event, several sources say the subsidies were discontinued in 1968. But the withdrawal was to be perhaps too late. On October 15, 1969, while Egal was again visiting the United States, President Shermarke was assassinated. A week later the Army seized power, dissolving the National Assembly and Constitution and arresting the entire Cabinet, including Egal. Among the charges against Egal would be corruption of the electoral process and complicity with foreign intelligence services. Ironically, the bizarre CIA political contributions before 1967 may have been a decisive factor in the eventual fall of the Agency's candidate [6].

Reflecting the unwise decisions made by the CIA about its covert political interventions and subsidies, Premier Egal’s government lasted less than three years. In October 21st 1969, a military led coup d'état replaced the civilian government, detaining and charging (as mentioned above) the civilian Prime Minister of ‘complicity with foreign intelligence’. The military men have actually spoiled the CIA agenda – whether this was also instance of complicity of another foreign factor/s or genuine local revolutionary respond that vehemently opposed to the unfolding scenarios of border agreements, is debatable. However, one thing was sure: the military takeover was a bloodless transition that succeeded to frustrate the pro-American elements in the country and ended the American subsidiary civilian government. Italian writer, Luigi Pestalozza, who observed and recorded the early unfolding events of the Somali military Revolution states that “No tears were shed for the men who thus left the stage forever, disappearing from the [political] history of Somalia [7].”

The military regime soon declared to the commitments of “Greater Somali” doctrine, stressing that colonialism comes in all shades: White and Black – i.e. there are both White (European) and Black (referring to Ethiopians) colonizers. Despite the ousted government’s ‘marathon’ Border Agreements, the revolutionary regime simply regarded all border treaties as null and void; and thus an atmosphere of “no war and no peace” was created in the region.

The Somali military leadership also declared without hesitation that they will employ the use of force, as an ultimate answer, to unite Somalis in the region and resolve the territorial dispute between Ethiopia and Somalia. The leader of the Somali Revolution, Mohamad Siyad Barre, expressed his dissatisfaction with the OAU and the UN efforts to solve the prolonged Somali dilemma; and subsequently, he prepared the Somali nation to go to war.

Therefore, the lessons to be learned from the 1960s’ foreign intervention in the politics of the Somali State have been disastrous. So far, all the previous means utilized by foreign forces/agencies to intervene in Somali politics – including misinformation, manipulation, and conspiracy against the Somali nation-State – produced bad harvests or may I say remained in the memories of few Somali individuals.

Premier Ghedi’s Remarks: Flippant or Optimistic Outreach

Unless we overturn Premier Ghedi’s remarks (on Somali Weyn issue) and read it in the context of ‘optimistic outreach’, mainly catered to the ‘spirit’ of IGAD propositions and efforts of regional stability and cooperation, the 1960s futile strategies of “I jiid aan ku jiidee” scenario inside the Somali parliament seems unfolding again. For example, in mid 1964, an uproar and misunderstanding created a heated debate in the parliament, splitting the Somali National Assembly when the then Prime Minister, Abdirizak Haji Hussein put forth a sensitive program on the table, regarding the issue of Somali Weyn. Regrettably, the program was named: “The Destiny of the Somalis Living in Ethiopian Territory and NFD.” The importance and the sensitivity of the Somali Weyn feelings, inside the walls of the Somali Parliament, have been recorded expressively by Jeanne Contini in this manner:

All opposition speakers chose to interpret the reference to “in Ethiopian territory, etc.” as government acknowledgment of Ethiopian and Kenyan Sovereignty over Somali in-habited areas, thus concluding that the government had no intention of liberating the territories under foreign rule. The Prime Minister explained that there had been a misprint in the first published version of the program, and that the reference was later corrected to read “The Destiny of Somali Territories under Ethiopian and Kenyan Domination.” In countering the attack, he also called the attention to the fact that a Minister (without portfolio) for Somali Affairs had been included in the Cabinet for the first time, and that his function was expressly to deal with the problems of “Greater Somalia.” (One deputy thereupon criticized the title of the new Minister as having been inspired by foreigners, because it should have been “Minister for the Somali Affairs under Foreign Rule”) [8].

Bearing in mind the history of Somali Weyn controversy, conventional wisdom also informs us that due to the current tragic situation the TFG would not dare now to risk losing the support of Ethiopia and Kenya for the sake of Somali Weyn Principle. In addition, the clan-infested Somalis of today might also be reluctant to deal now any border disputes with their neighbours. Although we could not be certain about how Ethiopia and Kenya may respond to the re-emergence of Somali Weyn tendencies in Somalia, a military option will be their least option. Our neighbours are aware of the fact that Somali clannism presented them a valuable gift – i.e. an opportunity for covert operation. An open conflict between Clan-loyalty and State-loyalty is now fighting on the common grounds of Somali once again. It is therefore very difficult to tell a Somali from a Kenyan or Ethiopian; in fact, all sides are represented by Somali clans. A token subsidy can provide opportunities for recruiting clan-oriented Somalis as foreign agents.

Publicly, Prime Minister Ghedi should not however risk appearing to be too soft on “One Somalia” Principle because, as he is aware of it, recruiting Somali nomads by foreigners will not last that long. After all, nomad-loyalty is like a moving cloud which often betrays, and often shows us the nakedness of the true blue-sky. Thus, he should rather be remembered for achieving a “truce’ and understanding that concerns on our neighbours, without creating a political blunder. Yet, he has also to make sense to attract Somalis in order to look credible and trustworthy.

In doing so, the Prime Minister freezes his local enemies without a battle; he alienates them without insulting them and crushes their Isbaaro fiefdoms without military operations. To succeed in this strategy, the Premier has to convince all sides of the equation that he is prepared to act as a goodwill politician who is willing to avoid flippant remarks, irrespective of the consequences. In this way, the Prime Minister can reason his intent to tone down his declamatory speeches on the issue of Somali Weyn, unlike the forthright declamation speeches delivered by his predecessors. Finally, he should remind the Somali populace to espouse and commit their efforts to rebuild their shattered Somali Republic; and only then, when the Republic earns the rightful international recognition for the status of “recuperated” Somalia, can the issue of border talks resume on an equal footing.

A. S. Faamo
Roobdoon Forum
Toronto, Canada
roobdoon2000@yahoo.ca

______________________

References:

[1] A telephone- interview with the BBC World Service, Somali Section, on November 11, 2005.

[2] An interview conducted at the Premier’s Office in November 30th 1963. Sources from The New York Times and Hindustan Times, New Delhi.

[3] Africa Confidential, No. 1, (January 10, 1964), p. 7.

[4] Rogers Morris and Richard Mauzy, “Following the Scenarios: Reflections on Five Case Histories in the Mode and Aftermath of CIA Intervention”, in The CIA File (New York: Grossman Publishers, 1976), edited by Robert L. Borosage and John Marks, p. 28.

[5] On the first week of September, 1968, the Ethiopian Herald covered Premier Egal’s four-day official visit to Addis Ababa. Mr. Egal signed a joint communiqué with Ethiopia that aimed to create a good neighbourly relation between the two countries. Immediately after he signed the communiqué with his counterpart, Mr. Akilu Habtewold, Ethiopian Herald published Egal’s comments about the talks between the two sides, stating that he has said, “It is going to be the beginning of a new era in the Ethiopian-Somali relation.” Also, Roobdoon Forum has posted the Somali Border Agreements on the following websites:

http://www.biyokulule.com/somali%20border.htm
http://www.dhahar.com/articles/roobdoon101105.html
http://www.laasqoray.net/article.php?articleid=565
http://www.radiosanaag.com/roob.htm

[6] Rogers Morris and Richard Mauzy, “Following the Scenarios: Reflections on Five Case Histories in the Mode and Aftermath of CIA Intervention”, in The CIA File (New York: Grossman Publishers, 1976), edited by Robert L. Borosage and John Marks, p. 3-38.

[7] Luigi Pestalozza, The Somalian Revolution, translated from Italian by Peter Glendening (Paris: Editions Afrique Asie Amerique Latine, 1974), p. 40.

[8] Jeanne Contini, “The Somali Republic: Politics with a Difference,” Africa Report, Vol. 9. No. 10 (November, 1964), p. 6.

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Open Letter to Former President of the TNG: Abdi Kasim Salad Hassan

2005-11-16T10:40:00.000+03:00

I am pleased to be writing to you with all the well wishes of Eid to you, your family, and our nation of Somalia. I have studied your conduct and position during the nation’s early years in its civil war, and your tenure as president. I commend you for not having gone out of your way to practice the old African Traditions of vengeance on the Transitional Federal Government, whose members -- or at least some of them – may have been very vocal and public about your Presidency.

Your restraint shows integrity and command of diplomacy. You are a true statesmanship and I appreciate it sincerely. However, Mr. President, I am, to the same degree, disappointed you stopped short of winning it all by publicly campaigning on behalf of the TFG, while in pursuit of re-instating Law and Order in the Capital city of the nation.

I am convinced that it took all of Somalis -- including its politicians as well as its public, both at home and the Diaspora folks who financed the civil war’s worst period -- to have dismantled the capital of the nation to its current status, and as such, I am convinced the only way it can be resuscitated is by all Somalis working together from all fronts. No one individual or Transitional Government can rekindle all the lamps around Muqadisho alone, for the city to be back to its rightful place. And no leader can or should expect to govern like the days of the October 21, 1969 regime. The times are different and so are the citizens to be governed.

I am therefore asking Your Excellence to contribute to the re-establishment of the capital city of the nation; that you work with the Prime Minister of the TFG, Prof. Ali M. Gedi, and all the members of his Administration, FOR the sake of the nation and its citizens. I will remind you, Mr. President, that your children, grandchildren, and the generations to follow, will forever be appreciative of you and your contributions.

Former President of TNG Mr. Abdulqasim S. Hassan & the Current Somali PM Mr. Ali M. Gedi
Please note, the greatest of men have been those who did the unthinkable and broken all the man-made rules and regulations of diplomacy. For instance, President Abraham Lincoln of the United States stood to all the Southern Farmers in the United States and Freed Black slaves while declaring that all men are created equal, only for him to have lost his life in pursuit of freeing the innocent lives that were in-chains; and the late President of Egypt, Mr. Anwar Asadat, flew in the middle of a war to land on his opponent’s territory for the purpose of ending a war he knew cost his nation far too much, while Mr. Ghandi of India stood against all odds and resisted oppression and abuse with peaceful disobedience, which lead to the collapse of the Empire that was known as the United Kingdom around the world.

And following in Mr. Ghandi’s footsteps, Dr. Martin. L. King Jr. of the United States peacefully resisted Segregation in America and won the hearts and minds of America’s Southern citizens as well as its Northern Yankees, who gave their wealth and time to his cause which became America’s cause for the betterment of all of its citizens; and finally, the late Yitzak Rabbin of Israel crossed the borders of normal-day-politics of the Middle East and shook hands, despite all the threats against his life.

Today, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel is a living example of a man who possesses and practices so much courage and strength while in pursuit of his former foe, the later Prime Minister, Mr. Yitzak Rabbin, who departed as a guiding light of principal summoned in one character.

Now, Mr. President, the question to you is: Will you be Somalia’s man, equal in Statue to the World’s heroes in Mr. Rabbin, Mr. Ghandi, Dr. King Jr, Mr. Asadat,, and resign from your position of silence and stand alongside the Prime Minister, Prof. Ali M. Gedi, and his Administration, and help resuscitate Life into the capital of the nation? Or will you be behind the scenes, orchestrating elements of opposition to the President of the TFG, President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, who may not have comforted you in your days as President of the TNG?

Could it be, Mr. President, that we -- including you and the current members of the TFG heads -- are all victims of our enemies because our enemies may have planted the seeds for us and in us so that Somalia stands stagnant, as a nation without men of courage and strength to see far into the future for the well-being of their nation, while sidelining their past and present differences?

I would be pleased if you would publicly address the nation and people, and accept the challenge before you --- to work with the Prime Minister, Prof. Ali M. Gedi--- and be a Former President who shines even in retirement as does the ONLY President in Somalia’s History, Former President Adan Cade, who stood aside for the sake of his nation, and REFUSED to take primitive positions when pursued even by the late Dictator.

I can assure you Mr. President, Somalia’s Most Beloved and Respected President will always be regarded by generations to come as a man of character and wisdom, who cared for his nation; he had the human strength to realize the country and the people whom he is one of deserved a leader equal to him in character and wisdom; and that is why he refused to return to politics while the likes of the abundant were in pursuit (or in possession) of the highest office of the nation. Somalia’s history will ALWAYS hold him HIGH IN SPIRIT and be KIND to him.
Now Mr. President, since the title of the “Most Beloved and Respected President” has already been claimed, will you take the NEXT NATIONAL TITLE --- such titles being bestowed upon one by the Will and Admiration of the public (for instance, Somalis, regardless of Tribe, hold President Adan Cade in High Spirit) --- and be wise enough to resist the minuscule politics of the few and build your image for the better days to come? If not, what will you leave for Somalia and the generations to come for some 20plus years in Somali politics?

I can assure you Mr. President, unless you win the hearts and minds of the people --- and of course the BEST TIME being when it is least expected from the unexpected from, and may I add most Somalis doubt you will stand to such a call by one of your nation’s citizens --- Somalia’s history will hardly remember Your Presidency with delight. After all, it is considered a failed Presidency in all aspects, regardless of the circumstances. Remember, you won’t be around in 50years to explain to such future generations why the TNG failed.

Please, don’t be consumed by the perceptions of the moment but of the future since the Future is Endless compared to the Current Seconds on the Clock.

You have already gained much for not having gone out publicly in opposition of the TFG, in response to those who were very vocal about your presidency. Now, no victory could be sweeter for you, I think, than the President who in fact worked with his foes for the betterment of the Somali nation. And your former opponents could lose no more ground to you in the eyes of the public than they would with you working with them for the sake of the nation, while denying them any ground to accuse you of working behind the scenes to derail TFG.

Arte Moalin III

E-mail:carte@core.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Somalia Appeals for Global Help in Fighting Terrorism

2005-11-16T10:05:00.000+03:00

Kevin J. Kelley, Special CorrespondentNew York

Somalia's United Nations representatives and the UN's special envoy for Somalia urgently appealed last week for international action on a growing threat to security throughout East Africa and the Horn.

"The Somali problem is no longer a Somali problem," said Idd Beddel Mohamed, Somalia's deputy UN ambassador.

Speaking at a UN headquarters news conference on November 8, the country's ambassador, Elmi Ahmed Duale, added, "There is now more urgency than before.

"The diplomats spoke days after a failed assassination attempt on Somalia Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi and a pirate attack on a cruise liner in the Indian Ocean near Somalia's coast.

Francois Lonseny Fall, the special UN envoy for Somalia, underscored the need for action in remarks to the Security Council on November 9. Lonseny Fall said he told a closed meeting of the Council that "extremist groups were growing not only in Mogadishu (the capital) but in the rest of the territory.

"When you have a failed state like Somalia," Lonseny Fall continued, "when there's no authority, it gives opportunity to all the terrorist groups to grow. It happened in Afghanistan and the same thing can happen in Somalia. "The security of the entire region may be imperilled, he added.

The Security Council did unanimously adopt a resolution on November 9 condemning the attempted assassination of Somalia's prime minister and expressing "serious concern" over the spate of pirate attacks off Somalia's coast. The 15-member Council further condemned "the increased inflow of weapons into Somalia and the continuous violations of the United Nations arms embargo.

"Many observers say, however, that such rhetorical denunciations on the part of the international community are insufficient and ineffective. They note that UN member-states have taken no action to strengthen the Somalia arms embargo that has been in force for 13 years but is routinely violated.

A recent report by the UN's embargo monitoring group found that the number of major weapons transactions involving Somalia had increased by 350 per cent in the first eight months of 2005 in comparison with the same period last year. The monitors identified Yemen and Ethiopia as the source of some of the illicit arms shipments and also pointed to a third country that was not named in the report but that UN officials have identified as Eritrea.

The four-person, Kenya-based monitoring group which includes a Kenyan (Harjit Singh Kelley), an American, a Belgian and a Colombian had its mandate extended last week for another year.

Somalia's UN representatives are specifically seeking greater help from the African Union in establishing a coastal police force to combat piracy. Somalia itself lacks the resources to enforce the rule of law within its boundaries, said Deputy Ambassador Mohamed.

The Somalis and the special UN envoy also acknowledged the peacemaking efforts undertaken by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), a seven-member grouping of East African states. Some Somali police officers are now being trained in Kenya and Uganda, which are both members of Igad, and UN officials say they intend to expand this initiative into Somalia itself.

A reporter attending a UN press briefing by special envoy Lonseny Fall asked whether Igad could indeed be considered helpful to Somalia when two of its members Ethiopia and Eritrea are arming various warlord factions in Somalia in violation of the UN embargo.

Lonseny Fall reiterated his praise for IGAD, noting that the group had initiated and facilitated the Somalia peace process. The Security Council had to find solutions to the problem of arms embargo violations, the envoy added.

Source: The East African

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Prospects for Sustained Peace in the Federal Republic of Somalia

2005-11-16T09:56:00.000+03:00

Since the division of the Somalia, at the Berlin Conference (1884-1885) as a result of the resolution of the conflict opposing imperial Africa conquering powers, the struggle for or against the Somalia has always been international, roughly opposing unidentified camps

Like people everywhere, Somalis want security and comfort, but the great majority of Somalis face daily hunger, homelessness, violence and starvation. Yet these suffering people are entrepreneurial and full of creative energy. They would be perfectly able to build their own security and comfort if only allowed to do it within a stable framework. In most Somalia’s regions, however, it is legal to start a business without a license, and getting start a business usually involves bribery or good connections with the warlords.

The real freedom Somalis need is not just shows of democratic reform but real institutional reforms: safety rights and the rule of law, allowing them to produce and trade freely, to save and to prosper, free of overbearing warlords and NGO’s corruption. The real trade "justice" they need is safely free trade with each other, within their countries and with each other's countries, free of compulsory-purchase marketing boards, of customs barriers and of preferential licenses.

THE ROOT OF THE CRISIS

The capacities of the national leadership at independence were not sufficient to start tackling correctly the problems of the country in the World divided by Cold War, given the country’s strategic position. In fact, very soon the leadership that fought for independence and had some sense of its significance was replaced as a presumed solution to the crisis of independence. The resulting troubled Somalis history made it difficult to develop those necessary capacities. Western dependency mentality, on the part of would-be-leaders, has increased than decreased: each time the country faces a problem the call is made for outside help. To the extent that Western direct involvement tends to be a problem, basic problems remain unresolved.

The impression given by the nature of help which comes is that the Somalia is seen as “a sick person that must be kept alive in an intensive care unit, but not allowed to be totally cured.” There has been no real vision to guide the transformation of a conquered and colonized territory, freed with precipitation, into a self-reliant Nation, responding positively to the basic interests of the Somalis majority of people. The Somalis people have, thus, had no confidence in the existed post-colonial institutions and their actors. The latter have failed to develop mutual trust with each other, and each actor, in the main, has had no self-confidence. And while occupying a strategic position, the country’s public consciousness has never reached the level required by that position.

Crucial problems have not been mastered. The country, so large, has not been even physically sufficiently integrated. Surrounded by 3 bordering countries, the country’s well understood national interest can only be articulated with some consideration of its relation to those of the neighboring countries. 2 out of the 3 countries have had or are still undergoing political instability—which, due to the decomposition of our State, has been slipping over the Republic of Somalia, making it easier for external interventions into the country. The international dimension of the country has not been mastered. The nature of the post-colonial State, as a colonial legacy, i.e., a State created through conquest and non-responsive to the basic needs of the conquered peoples, has not been practiced and transformed to make it responsive to the needs of all Somalis. The economy, dominated by a problematic of destruction and extraction of natural resources whose hungry markets are outside of the country, entertains violent civil war and famine. This makes it unresponsive to the basic needs of impoverished masses of people. The centuries’ history of the Somali’s internal capital investment and wealth has been a complete and total failure in terms of human and socioeconomic conditions of the Somali society. In the absence of a true middle class and a patriotic political class, it is difficult to achieve and sustain the necessary structural break from the existing political economic structure. This break, if accomplished, would allow both foreign investors and Somali society conceptualize, define and articulate their respective interests, requirements and needs as equal stakeholders in mutual beneficial partnership based relationships. The primary sources of conflict, in the Somalia, are political and socioeconomic structural problems. They have national, regional and global dimensions.

The protracted crisis has always had concrete symptomatic forms of expression in each situation. Presently, we are facing principally a major political crisis, whose symptoms are as follows:

A) An absence of legitimate political institutions serving openly all the Somalis and responding positively to their basic needs and aspirations and in which they have confidence and trust;
B) An absence of a democratically rooted constitutionalism, since the 1969 coup d’Etat, constitution-making has been devoted to underwrite and justify dictatorial powers;
C) An absence of a relatively independent, self-reliant and truly patriotic national political leadership mobilizing the population to keep at bay interventionist forces and tendencies;
D) An insufficient national consciousness among the people;
E) A de facto balkanization of the country;
F) A continuous warlord militarization of the secessionism administrative structure; being closer to or having recourse to arms as a way of getting to or keeping power is seen as a good thing and warlords seen as heroes awarded with the title of ‘leader’/Minister;
G) An absence, especially within the structures and institutions of leadership, of political ethics ( public morality, respect for the republic, active opposition to corruption and other negative values, the will to truth, active pursuit of a healthy intertribal conviviality, ultimate concern for human life, respect for political adversaries or dissidents, etc.).

The debasing of Somali intellectuals, devoting their intellectual work to the celebration of faction leaders, to spreading fear in the population or in gravitating around mediocrity; with the lapsing of the political model of ‘liberation movements’ and the crisis of faction form, the existing numerous factions (close to 40 well known) function as NGO’s almost the same way as civil society NGO’s with no clear vision or organized people mobilization; even after the end of the Cold War and the overthrow of military ruler’, a transition to democratic rule has been indefinite—the country giving the impression of having embarked on a self-destructive course and a real possibility of partition.

SOME CONFLICT RESOLUTION PROBLEMS IN DEALING WITH THE SOMALIS CRISIS

IGAD sponsored search for peace in the Republic of Somalia-- leading to the Nairobi Reconciliation Conference, its Cease-Fire Accord-- and the long lasting Inter-Somalis political negotiations—leading to the Global and Inclusive Accord-- have singled out the end of the anarchy, peace, the re-unification of the country and a transition towards a new political dispensation as their targets. The complexity of the problem, the shaky determination of the Somali Warlords and its relative financial and material poverty allowed the international community to take over the active “sponsorship” of the overall process. This long and frustrating process of inter-Somalis negotiations eventually led to the Global and Inclusive Accord, one year ago has being implemented. Due to the nature of the Somali “political class” and the mediation methodology, some real dialogue over the Somali crisis did not took pllace. Negotiations were subordinated to the imperatives of power sharing—between the major Somali tribes (you must get a State post or chair or …die)! The mediation team was composed of representatives of the UN (the UNSG’s Special Envoy), IGAD members, AU, EU, and the Arab Union. The delegates chose the Federal system and has been selected 275 MPs who elected the president of the TFG.

TRANSITION TO DEMOCRACY AS A SOLUTION TO THE CONFLICT.

The transition, so far has succeeded in the Somalia. A new attempt has taken off, with the formation of the Transitional Federal Government. Will this transition succeed? Of course, the crisis of legitimacy has been at the center of the Somalis political crisis, not size of the country, tribalism or the mere presence of the ‘fabulous’ potential of natural resources. Transition to democracy aims at dealing precisely with the legitimacy question. Forces (domestic and external), opposed to democracy, have made democratic transition in the Somalia almost impossible

To assess the chances of success of this new attempt, two questions need to be addressed separately: what is ending and what is starting? Basic principles which guide the process of transition have been arrived at on the basis of a formal consensus between Somalis parties reached and sustained under foreign pressure.Allthough mistrust between Somalis actors still prevails. The profound pacification of the population at large, the presence of people political mobilization and the absence of political will on the part of some warlords to deal with crucial issues of the crisis make the people at large interested and politically powerful to exercise pressure for the transition to be non-conflict bound and successful.

So, what is ending? People want the war and balkanization to end as a way also of ending the State decomposition and collapsing. The reconstructed State is supposed to transform the conditions of existence of the protracted Somalis crisis. Foremost, it is supposed to organize credible, free and fair elections to lie to rest the problem of legitimacy. With the choosing of Federation System, the specter of the “strong man” or “providential man” politics seems to have diminished. Perhaps, such as a situation may end the secessionisms and balkanization phenomena. Even if there is no debate, and thus clarity, on what type of State is going to be reconstructed. The people want it to be the one responsive to their needs; this will need to be struggled for.

And what is starting? Federalism with Pluralism is creating a real possibility of debates on national issues. Political battles are likely to be conducted on the basis of ‘policy against policy’ (politique contre politique) and battles may be more focused on points of public consciousness.

With this, different forms of political organization of politics are likely. The question of what kind of relationship to power is possible for power to be openly serving the Somalis people is going to be raised and confronted more consciously. If institutions of democratic empowerment are allowed to function relatively independently, transition will be more focused on bringing about credible, free and fair elections.

These possibilities will be very much constrained by the everlasting weight of external forces opposed to the transformation of the structural socio-economic conditions of the Somalis crisis. The result of the now being planned IGADS leaders will be the test of the political will of the regional political leadership and the international community to opt for sustained regional peace, equity, representative democracy, social justice, mutual trust based pursuit of regional security and pro-people developmentalist regional cooperation. It is a big challenge; it requires stronger and more open and trustworthy types of political leaderships within each country and in the region.

By Jama A. ELMI PhD,

Toronto, ON CANADA

Email elmij@yaho.com or elmija@gmail.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Mogadishu: Yet another wake-up call!

2005-11-16T09:52:00.000+03:00

Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi has survived from a second assassination attempt in less than six months. This despicable act of terrorism is aimed at derailing the rebirth process of the Somali State, and indeed is yet another wake up call for the international community.

There is no doubt that Somalia has suffered from, unprecedented atrocities over the past fifteen years or so. But, this latest attempted assassination against a Somali leader is out of tradition and marks a new turn of the Somali conflict.

In normal circumstance, such act in a member state of the United Nations would have warranted not only a universal condemnation at every level, but also an immediate initiation of a joint criminal investigation. Forensic scientists, and other international experts would have been flown inn to Mogadishu to assist the government in identifying the perpetrators and, presumably, establishing possible involvement of international groups - if any.

Notwithstanding however, no foreseeable help from the international community is in the horizon mainly due to security concerns in Mogadishu.

Whilst, the questions of who’s behind these attacks? What kind of material has been used? Are every body’s guess, those who oppose to the peace process have indeed a lot to answer!

In the mean time, Somalia remains a scar on the face of the civilized world. It is widely recognized that ignoring to resolve the Somali issue over the past fifteen years, has provided an appropriate incubation time and conditions for, among other things, genocide against humanity, terrorism and indeed high seas piracy.

The latter along the Southern coast of Somalia is an unprecedented new chapter in the recent history. This has been best explained by a new report from the London based Environmental Justice Foundation in which an estimated number of 700 illegal fishing vessels are operating to deplete Somalia’s natural resources. The audacity and ferocity of the pirates, be they armed foreign looters or out of law Somalians, has reached new levels threatening even commercial shipping lines in the Indian Ocean. It is to the world's best interest to tackle the root problems head on instead. Clearly, this will require a joint action by the new Somali government, regional governments, the United States, International Maritime bodies, and UN agencies.

In addition, despite repeated warnings that Somalia may become a breeding centre for terrorism, the civilized world has also chosen to turn a black eye on the issue.

The atrocities against humanity in Somalia has also not been dealt with. Today, a handful of warlords accused of genocide and mass killing freely fly in and out of the world capitals with the exception of the recent attempt by the Swedish authorities.

Above all, in spite of the hard preconditions, the world community has, so far, failed to genuinely support the outcome of the peace process sponsored by them. There are still – nonsense - arguments with regard to the relocation of the new government to Mogadishu. The current assassination attempt proves president Yusuf's point, that Mogadishu is a dangerous place and could not be secured without external help.

Clearly, Somalia does not need new envoys and fact-finding missions, but rather it needs building “accountable national institutions” - period. Failure to do so will most obviously have serious adverse effect on the regional stability and the world peace at large.

Dr. Abdishakur Abdulle, Ph.D.
Shakur5@hotmail.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Pirates and jihadis shake up Somalia

2005-11-16T00:59:00.000+03:00

Although it was only the attempt on a luxury cruise ship that made headlines, Somali pirates attacked five vessels last week, with shipping experts saying the operations were apparently directed from a mysterious "mother ship" prowling the busy Indian Ocean corridor.

Most vessels escaped, but one was commandeered, bringing to seven the number of vessels now being held captive along with their crews by pirates operating along Somalia's coastline, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said.

Rocket-propelled grenades and assault rifles were fired at the US-owned Seabourn Spirit, carrying 150 western tourists, by gunmen in two small speedboats, but the ship's captain managed to change course and speed away. Thousands of merchant ships carrying oil and other critical coommodities pass the Somali coast to the Cape of Good Hope every year. (IOL, Nov. 12).

Meanwhile, events within Somalia are largely overlooked by the world media. Heavy fighting apparently sparked by an Islamic militia's moves to close cinemas and video stores in Mogadishu killed at least seven people and wounded more than 12 over the past two days. Fights between gunmen loyal to Mogadishu's strict Islamic courts and local militia defending the densely populated Yaqshid district began on Nov. 12.

Gunfire could be heard from all over Mogadishu, home to 1 million of Somalia's 10 million people and scene of frequent street battles during 14 years of lawlessness.

"We have not opened the schools this morning, because of the shooting and heavy bullets which are falling down," said school teacher Abdullahi Hassan. The wounded reportedly included a child hit by a bullet in the chest.

In the 14th attempt to restore central government since 1991, Somalia's new President Abdullahi Yusuf returned from Kenya this year but has failed to establish authority. He has set up base in Jowhar outside Mogadishu due to insecurity in the capital. Rival warlords have effectively carved up the nation since ousting dictator Mohamed Siad Barre 14 years ago.

Political violence also continues. Khadar Osman Elmi, son of the second deputy speaker of the Somali parliament Osman Elmi Boqorre, was gunned down in south Mogadishu Nov. 12.

Speaker Elmi, who has just defected from a Mogadishu-based faction of the new government to the Jowhar group, told reporters he believed the killing was politically motivated.

One house recently attacked by the Islamic militia was used during a recent visit by Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Ali Gedi, who belongs to the Jowhar group of the divided transitional government. (Reuters, Nov. 13).

A court in Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland has sentenced eight people to death for killing three foreign aid workers. Seven others were sentenced to life in prison for their role in the murder of two British aid workers in 2003 and a Kenyan in 2004. Somaliland, which is not internationally recognized, broke away from Somalia after it descended into chaos following the overthrow of Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. (VOA, Nov. 14)

Source: World War 4 Report, Nov. 14, 2005

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

The Birth and Rise of Al-Ittihad Al-Islami in the Somali Inhabited Regions in the Horn of Africa

2005-11-15T16:59:00.000+03:00

Summary
Fourteen peace conferences were held for Somali factions since 1993 to foster clan reconciliation and restore central government in that beleaguered country. None has been successful. The wounds of the bitter clan conflict that ravaged Somalia in the past decade are yet to heal. The last peace conference held in Kenya was concluded in October 2004, producing a new Transitional Federal Government (TFG) after two years long negotiations.

The TFG has split into two rival factions soon after its birth and remains largely a titular government with no jurisdictional powers. It is neither in exile nor in control of state territory. Hence, genuine reconciliation and sustainable peace among the rival Somali factions and the restoration of functioning broad-based central government seems elusive as ever. As a “failed state” Somalia is today a country without a central government, laws and judiciary system. It is a country where uncertainty abounds; where the rule of the gun is the only recognized rule. It is a country where clan-ties are stronger than religious convictions, where clan is in reality a bone of contention and the main, if not the only, source of conflict.

In present-day Somalia, criminal offence and human rights abuse are ordinary occurrences and perpetrators are largely not liable to punishment. Trade in small weapons is booming and light automatic assault guns are easily available for sale throughout the country. The unregulated arms proliferation and traffic is threatening the stability of the entire Horn of Africa region. The country has become a breeding ground for fundamentalist religious groups promoting extremism and intolerance. A number of extremist groups, allegedly having links with international terrorist groups, have taken shelter in southern Somalia, taking advantage of the prevailing anarchy and vacuum in governance. Southern Somalia is increasingly becoming a conduit for drugs, guns, crime, Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism that can undermine the stability of an already volatile Horn of Africa region and beyond.

Islamic extremists have succeeded in filling the vacuum left by the demise of the government. Today, radical Islamic groups provide education, health, welfare, justice, employment and other services to a large number of the disadvantaged Somalis. religious extremists established Islamic schools ranging from Koranic study centers to Islamic universities.

Taking advantage of the prevailing lawlessness and state breakdown, a shadow force is in operation in Somalia today; stealthily working, from behind the scenes, to frustrate international efforts geared towards the restoration of central government in Somalia. This shadow force has played a pivotal role in the failures of successive Somali peace conferences. The Somali people, including prominent warlords in Mogadishu, are indeed hostages to this potent shadow force. Nonetheless, both Somalis and the well-wishing international community have failed to take serious note of the potential menace posed by the ghostly spectre haunting the unsuspected populace and its formidable bearings on social, economic and political life of war-weary Somalis.

In the following pages we will try to unveil that sinister and mysteriously shrouded dark force.

II. The Genesis of Al-Ittihad in Somalia (1967 – 1991)

The Somali people are predominantly adherents of the Shafi’ya school of thought of Islam, one of the four main branches followed by Sunni Muslims. Muslims are generally divided into followers of two main sects: Sunni and Shia. The majority of the Muslims, all over the world, follow the Sunni sect. The majority of the Shia followers reside in Iran. The Sunni Sect early on separated into four main schools of thought, i.e., Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’ya and Hanbali.

Wahabbiya (Wahabbism), a derivative of the Hanbali branch that form the basis of the political and spiritual ideology of the Saudi Monarchy, had been endeavouring to make inroads into many parts of the Muslim world, including the Horn of Africa, for many years. Wahabbism was founded by Abdul Wahab (1703 – 1792) as a religious movement with the aim of cleansing the Arab Bedouin from the influence of Sufism, the mystical trend of Islam. The Saudi government officially sponsors the spread of Wahabbism, also called Salafi, into the Muslim communities around the world. Over the past several decades, Wahabbis have been active in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosavo, Philippines and the Horn of Africa.

Wahabbism (Wahabbiya, as is well known locally) was formally brought to Somalia in 1947 by Sheikh Nur Ali Olow (Majertain, Ali Saleebaan). He introduced it to the northeastern and central regions of Somalia and later to Mogadishu. Wahabbiya’s teachings were soon detected to be in contradiction with the widely-held Shafi’ya teachings and tradition. Rejecting the tenets of the Wahabbiya, the traditional clerics issued rulings banning its propagation. It was eventually reduced to a certain belief held by few individuals perceived as heretics.

Subsequent to the independence of Somalia in 1960, the government turned, initially, to the West, and later to the Soviet Union, for economic support and technical assistance. External aid was indeed crucial for the newly-born republic to attain modernization of education and develop human resources potentialities required for the management of public institutions and the infrastructure. However, the initial Westernisation drive of the Somali government infuriated, at once, some of the traditional religious leaders and the more enlightened Islamic scholars trained in Egypt. This has coincided with the early proliferation of Islamic fundamentalism, at the height of popularity of Muslim brotherhood, an Islamic movement that swayed immense influence among the Muslim populations of Asia and Africa.

In southern Somalia, the anti-Western reaction crystallized into the formation of a little known Islamic organization called Al-Ahal in 1967, founded by a certain Abdulqadir Sheikh Mohamed. Al-Ahal broke up into two organizations, subsequently: Attakfir and Assalafiya. In northern-western Somalia, the anti-Western reaction culminated in the creation of Muslim Youth Union (Wahdada) by a group of religious leaders in Hargeisa, in late 1960s. Assalafiya and the Muslim Youth Union merged subsequently in a meeting held in Burao in 1984, and jointly gave birth to a new organization to be known as the Al-Ittihad Al-Islami (Islamic Union/Islamic Unity). Sheikh Ali Warsame (Isaaq, Habarjeclo) assumed the leadership of the newly founded Al-Ittihad Al-Islami.

From the inception, Al-Ittihad has been created as a compound of a number of entities whose constituent units operate with relative operational freedom although still inter-dependent, financially and organizationally. The units have sufficient contacts between them and, at times, impact on each other’s decisions and actions, though each still acts self-sufficiently as a part of a whole. While an extraordinary umbrella framework has been instituted in the form of Al-Ittihad, a unified command structure has neither been visible nor identified from the start. Empirical observations suggest Al-Ittihad as a highly decentralized movement with no known or identified command and control centre. However, its broader objective of establishing an Islamic state in the Horn of Africa has been, unmistakably, clear from the onset. What has never been clear, though, is the content and substance of its political programme.

Several other groups remained outside the newly-born Al-Ittihad organization. Groups within the Wahdada and Assalafiya declined to join due to misgivings on the likely future ideological direction of the new organization and owing to negative accounts on Assalafiya propagated by the Muslim Brotherhood. Al Islah , another Islamic group that branched off from the Muslim Brotherhood, with large followers in Somalia, opted to exist and operate independently even though it generally espoused similar religious ideology and pursued common objectives with Al-Ittihad. Al-Takfiir, a militant extremist group that virtually detached itself from the society, operated within the Al-Ittihad establishment in complete seclusion. Due to its subtle and discreet activities and physical detachment from the general public, it is sometimes mistakenly regarded as a separate and independent outfit or a sort of a splinter group that branched off from Al-Ittihad. The group was responsible for providing care and livelihoods for the orphans of the deceased Al-Ittihad members. Al-Takfiir is considered to be the closest to al-Qaeda in terms of ideological dispositions and modus operandi, and is widely believed to have sustained operational links and collaborative relationships with Osama Bin Laden.

During the period between 1984 and 1991, Al-Ittihad registered significant organizational growth; its membership swelled through grassroots enrolment alluring the disadvantaged, particularly the downtrodden and less fortunate segments of the society. It managed to penetrate into the civil service, the military and academic institutions, as its peaceful and sophisticated methodology of getting across its Islamic awakening message won popular acceptance, and due to the fact that it, relatively, refrained from meddling into the affairs of the government. In what amounted to a major departure from the religious tradition, it started to lay the foundations for a solid economic base launching a network of interdependent small businesses in major cities and towns, introducing slowly but steadily, bits of Wahabbiya culture and philosophy on the way. All of these programs were consciously executed with subtlety and sophistication, ringing no alarm bells. The intelligence agencies of the then Somali government failed to detect any danger signals.

Due to the magnetism of the oil boom in the 1970s and perhaps lured by the petrodollar, tens of thousands of Somalis flocked to Saudi Arabia for employment opportunities in the 1970s and 1980s. Thousands more were offered scholarships by the government of Saudi Arabia. The majority of the Somali students who turned up in the kingdom found their way into the Islamic University of Medina. Others studied at Um-Alqura University in Mecca and the Imam Saud University in Riyad. The Somali students in these universities were provided with lavish benefits and financial assistances, such as free accommodation and food, generous pocket money or monthly stipends, marriage allowances and yearly round-trip tickets. The large outflow of thousands of manual labourers and young educated males to the Gulf States in the 1970s gave the Arab radical religious groups an opportunity to interact with, cultivate and eventually indoctrinate the fertile minds of essentially non-radical Muslim Somalis. Hence, for the first time, a large number of Somali youth came in contact with political/radical Islam, activist Islamic groups and transnational Islamic issues. Upon their return to Somalia, newly converted Somali Islamists became instrumental in the activation of circles of Islamic study groups linked with Muslim Brotherhood in major urban centres. Closely-knit cells of Muslim Brotherhood composed of educated and professionals became active, especially in Mogadishu, Hargeisa and Burao cities, afterwards.

Throughout this period, it was the policy of the Saudi government to prevent Somalia in pursuing oil explorations in its territory. The Saudi government has also been tacitly supporting Somalia’s relentless efforts aimed at obstructing extraction of oil in the Somali region of Ethiopia. In return, Saudi government provided free oil and substantial financial support to Somalia. With this financial incentive, Saudi government relatively influenced the internal policy of Somalia, especially in the promotion of Arabic language and Islamic culture. Competing with Saudis and certainly interested to stem the growing influence of the Saudi government in Somalia, the Al-Azhar University of Egypt offered scholarships to thousands of Somali students, in the 1970s. These were students who have completed Egyptian secondary schools in Mogadishu, namely, Jamal Abdinasir and Sheikh Suufi. Egypt also constructed and financed primary and intermediate schools in Hargeisa, Burao, Galkayo, Belet Weyne, Mogadishu and Kismayo. Students who have completed these schools were enrolled in the two Egyptian secondary schools in Mogadishu. Hence, thousands of trained professionals who have graduated from Egyptian educational institutions eventually got their way into the rank and file of the civil service and the military.

On 21 October 1969, the Somali army commander, General Mohamed Siad Barre, took power in a bloodless coup. Siad Barre declared Somalia a socialist state and initiated a range of socialist economic programmes. The National Assembly was dissolved and political parties were declared illegal. The military government proclaimed “Scientific Socialism” as the political ideology of the state and set out to build a socialist-oriented system with the help of the Soviet Union. It adopted Latin script as the official script of the Somali language. The proclamation of “Scientific Socialism” and the choice of the Latin script for Somali language, instead of Arabic script, dealt a big blow to the Islamists and enraged the Arab ruling classes.

Underground radical religious movements and organizations supported by the Arab Islamic fundamentalists started ill-timed grassroots campaigns intended to provoke public resentment against the government. In response, the state machinery launched massive campaigns against religious leaders, especially those branded as anti-Socialism. In 1975, Siad Barre executed ten religious leaders for publicly opposing the government’s new Family Law.

Many of the radical religious figures were subsequently sent to detention centres. Those who were not arrested either left the country or went underground. Those who left the country eventually settled in the Gulf Arab states. As a consequence, Islamic fundamentalism failed to regenerate itself throughout Siad Barre’s regime.

III. Proliferation of Al-Ittehad in the aftermath of the demise of Somali government
In the closing days of Barre’s regime, radical religious groups began to unveil their camouflage cover. Taking advantage of the emerging chaos and the breakdown of law and order, radical religious groups got the courage to preach openly and call for the imposition of the Sharia Law and for the establishment of an Islamic State in Somalia. Al-Ittihad, the most militant of the Islamic groups mushrooming in Somalia, capitalized on the power vacuum.
The ground was ripe for Al-Ittihad’s takeover of Somalia in 1991. With high degree of organization and ample financial resources, it has effectively replaced the demised governmental institutions. It quickly took over the business sector, setting up booming and lucrative entrepreneurial trade network in all over Somalia. It established many profitable businesses such as banks, import-export trading companies, bakeries, shopping centers, small industries, telecommunications, credit schemes, transport networks, relief organizations and well-financed religious schools (not traditional Koranic schools), similar to the religious Madrassas in Pakistan. Al-Ittihad supplanting some of the collapsed state functions began to administer Islamic Courts and to enlist its own militia force, buying huge quantities of the weaponry left behind by the disintegrated Somali military. In the absence of a central government in Somalia, Al-Ittihad became the major employment opportunity provider to the largely impoverished ordinary Somalis. Furthermore, taking advantage of the presence of UNISOM in Somalia in early 1990s, Al-Ittihad became a major contractor and supplier for the UN. It has also provided security escort services for the UN, receiving huge revenues, in return.
At the same time, Al-Ittihad has been linked to a number of kidnappings and murder of aid workers that took place in southern Somalia and in Somaliland in 2003 and 2004. The military wing of Al-Ittihad has admitted responsibility for a series of bomb attacks that rocked Addis Ababa in 1996 and 1997. The US government has accused Al-Ittihad of having ties with Al-Qaida .

According to the Centre for Defence Information (CDI), Al-Ittihad “has known ties with other Islamic terrorist organizations, notably al-Qaida, and advocates the spread of Islamic fundamentalism as well as a vehement hatred of the West and secular government”. The report further states that Al-Ittihad “received financial support from terrorist financiers in the Middle East and Diaspora remittances from abroad as well as weapons, funding, recruitment and logistical training from al-Qaida” . Al-Ittihad members have received training in Afghanistan . During the height of the Afghan War, more than 1,000 Somalis fought alongside the Afghan mujahidin fighters. Many of the Somali Afghan war veterans and some of the Somali students who have studied at the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Pakistan, are believed to have joined the rank and file of Al-Ittihad in early 1990s. “A new jihadist network based in Mogadishu – which also has al-Qaida ties – emerged in 2003” , writes Nate Leskovic. “This new group”, Leskovic continues, “led by Afghanistan-trained former al-Ittihad commander Aden Hashi Ayro –has been implicated in the assassination of four foreign aid workers and at least 10 Somali military and police officers”.

Like the Taliban of Afghanistan, Al-Ittihad is a mysterious organization engaged in clandestine operations. Its activities are largely undercover and beyond the legal bounds. Its operations are painstakingly deliberated with maximum care, preparation and in complete secrecy. Like the Taliban, it receives huge financial support from radical Islamic institutions, religiously radical Arab elites in the Gulf States and through complex fund-raising schemes.
Like the Taliban, Al-Ittihad has regional and international links with transnational radical religious movements and is in pursuit of expansionist strategies that could have adverse security implications for the countries of the Horn of Africa and beyond. Like the Taliban, it is hostile to fellow Muslim compatriots who do not espouse similar Islamic ideals and to non-Muslims whom it regards as infidels.

But unlike the Taliban, Al-Ittihad is run by a highly educated, sophisticated and professionally trained leaders and is likely to avoid premature takeover of power in Somalia that could expose its very nature and actual identity. Unlike the Taliban, it is actively engrossed in money making businesses, generating its own funds. Its financial network and resources are expanding, increasing further its capacity to finance terrorist, and insurgency operations. Unlike the Taliban, it has been unable or unwilling to hold territory and retain exclusively control over it. And unlike the Taliban, Al-Ittihad is engaged in trans-state terrorism and keeps professionally trained terrorist cells.

IV. Al-Ittihad’s Areas of Influence in Somalia

IV.1 Somaliland

Somaliland has been the birthplace and the stronghold of Muslim Youth Union (Wahdada [1968 – 1984]), one of the founding groups of the extremist Islamic organization of Al-Ittihad. The Muslim Youth Union (MYU) was founded by Islamic scholars who have studied in Egypt and some of the traditional religious leaders who were in opposition to the influence of Western culture in Somali society. The architects of the Muslim Youth Union intended to register their rejection to the spread of Western “pop culture” and love, sex and violence-dominated movies. The MYU was founded by:

1.

Omer Abdirahman (Isaaq) commonly known as Eesh, a teacher trained in Egypt in the 1950s.
2.

Sheikh Abdirahman Hashi (Isaaq), a well-known traditional religious leader who later received higher education in Saudi Arabia
3.

Abdiqadir Haji Jama (Isaaq), a teacher who learned Islam through self-effort

Omer Hadraawi (Isaaq), an erstwhile socialist-oriented politician who turned religious, afterwards.
4.

Sheikh Ali Warsame (Isaaq) - the brain-child of both the MYU and the Al-Ittehad Al-Islami – is a mysterious, reclusive ideologue of Islamic fundamentalism who resides in Burao, the capital of Togdheer region.

In early 1970s the Muslim Youth Union, locally known as the Wahdada, widely influenced and appealed to the mainstream of youth in the secondary schools in the cities of Hargeisa and Burao. It was during this period that women in veils and beard-growing men were seen in the streets of these cities, for the first time. The number of religious centers (madaressas) increased exponentially, transforming into “centers of propagations” of the ideals of the Wahdada. The only existing library at the Egyptian cultural center in Hargeisa served the movement as a venue for covert meetings, indoctrination and a propaganda base. As a result, the Somali government closed down the Egyptian cultural center in 1976. Egypt was accused of encouraging and supporting the anti-government activities of the Wahdada movement.
Subsequent to stern government crackdown and public disapproval of their outlandish values and ethics, the movement went underground. Some of their leaders were arrested, some fled to Saudi Arabia, and many others joined the Somali National Movement (SNM), an armed opposition movement dominated by Isaaq clansmen launched in Ethiopia in early 1980s, against Siad Barre’s regime.

Under the charismatic leadership of Sheikh Ali Warsame (Isaaq, Habarje'lo), Al-Ittihad established full-fledged presence in Hargeisa, Burao and Borama cities of Somaliland, soon after the demise of the Somali government. Sheikh Ali Warsame has been successful in enrolling almost all the urban dwelling community of the Habarje'lo clan into the mainstream of the Al-Ittihad organization. Although Sheikh Ali Warsame has been the leader of the Al-Ittihad forces that seized the port city of Bosaaso in 1992, he opposed war, while the military wing under Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aways prevailed and executed the 1992 conflict in Bosaso. Incidentally enough, the Al-Ittihad wing in Somaliland provides solid support base for the KULMIYE opposition political party lead by Ahmed Silanyo (Isaaq, Habarje'lo). Mr. Silanyo himself is not a religious figure in any sense. But the fact the Al-ittihad followers bring into the party clan loyalty, energy and money serves simply to demonstrate how radicals, regardless of their trans-national agenda, are unable to unfetter themselves from the cancerously binding of clan kinship.
History indeed repeats itself. The town of Burao, the original birthplace of the Al-Ittihad became the true bastion of the organization, after the demise of the Somali government. Burao has another strategic advantage for Al-Ittihad. It is the biggest livestock market in the Horn of Africa. Through peaceful and non-violent ventures, Al-Ittihad took command of the entire business sector in Somaliland. To avoid regional authority’s supervision and regulations, a new marketplace has been set up by Al-Ittihad in a place called Yarowe, southeast of Burao, in early 1990s. Yarowe soon became the most important business hub in the territory of Somaliland.
From Burao and Yarowe, Al-Ittihad quickly expanded its coverage into Hargeisa and Borama. It eventually established a military training center in Amoud in the outskirts of Borama in early 1990s. It established direct flight links with the Arab Gulf States through a number of unmanned airstrips in Somaliland, such as the one at Kalabaydh, close to the Ethiopian border.

Most of these airfields have no custom authorities or officials representing the Somaliland administration. In mid 1990s, evading, yet again, the observations of the local administrations, Al-Ittihad declined using the Berbera and Bosaso ports. It started to launch and harness its own rudimentary port facilities on various undisclosed locations in northwestern coastline of Somalia. The strategy was to avoid detection of the nature of their imported goods, movement of their leaders in and out of Somalia and to cover up the identity of the members of the international Islamic radicals entering Somalia to facilitate trainings and logistics operations.

Mysterious killings:

Al-Ittihad has been attributed to a number of mysterious, targeted killings that took place in Somaliland between 2003 and 2004. A Swiss businessman was killed in Hargeisa in January 2003, after unknown assailant shot him at the head from a close range in front of a busy supermarket. On October 5, 2003, an Italian veteran aid worker was shot dead in Borama where she has established a local hospital that provides treatment to TB and HIV/AIDS patients. On October 19, 2003, a British couple, a teacher and his wife, were killed in the town of Sheikh, where they were teaching at an SOS school. In another unpleasant incident, on April 19, 2004, unknown assailants ambushed a vehicle belonging to a German NGO, GTZ, on the highway linking Hargeisa to Berbera, killing a Kenyan expatriate woman and wounding a German staff member of the organization.

The motives behind these targeted assassinations are not known and no one claimed responsibility for these cruel and horrifying assassinations. In light of the above historical background to the strength of Al-Ittihad, the Somaliland authority’s claim to shift the blame on Al-Ittihad’s Mogadishu branch is not plausible. It is entirely possible that the perpetrators of the above mentioned crimes are home-grown terrorists. Political pundits observing developments in Somaliland are of the opinion that these attacks are highly organized, interconnected and premeditated.

These targeted assassinations against international expatriates are believed to be the work of professional killers. All of these slain expatriates were hit right on the forehead. According to local sources, the guns used by the assailants were fitted with silencers. Hence, those close to the site of the crime have not heard the blast of the gunshots. The degree of proficiency displayed in the execution of this mysterious assassinations and the lip-sealing silence that ensued bear testimony to the involvement of an externally motivated terrorist organization.

Currently, although not engaged in violence, Al-Ittihad fully dominates the booming business sector in Somaliland. It manages a network of social organizations that provide employment and livelihoods to tens of thousands of ordinary Somalis. In a nutshell, it symbolizes a government in waiting, and seems to comfortably co-exist with the authority in Hargaisa.

IV.2 Puntland

Though stable and at peace, a serious power vacuum evolved in Puntland soon after the downfall of Siad Barre’s government in 1991. A perilous gap in administration that has been in the making in the closing days of Barre’s rule began to widen, as local community leaders and politicians were caught off guard by the sudden collapse of the government. The Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF), a majertain dominated armed opposition movement that has been fighting against Barre’s government for nearly a decade was virtually in disarray at the time. Its leader has been in prison in Addis Ababa since early 1980s, after he fell out with his erstwhile benefactor, Mengistu Haile Mariam, Ethiopia’s military dictator. Disoriented, many members of its military wing have joined Siad Barre’s regime, subsequently. Most of the ex-SSDF forces were later inducted into the military and deployed in the northwestern region to fight the SNM, in late 1980s.

The downfall of the government and the end of the rule of a central authority has given tremendous opportunities to Al-Ittihad. Geographically perched on a conveniently accessible region, Puntland has a long coastline with both the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean and is situated in a close proximity to the Arabian Peninsula. It provided strategic advantage to Al-Ittihad’s militaristic trust. Wasting no time, with the consent and the blessings of the unsuspecting public, it quickly seized the overall control of the northeastern regions of Somalia, formerly knows as Majertainia. Al-Ittihad ruled the region during the period between March 1991 and June 1992.
To counter-balance the influence of the Hawiye-dominated USC, which has taken control of Galkayo city in central Somalia, former SSDF leaders initiated the revival of the now defunct SSDF. Gen. Mohamed Abshir Muse, a former police commander, has been appointed to lead the reformed movement. Upon his release and return to the area, Col. Abdillahi Yusuf reclaimed his chairmanship of the SSDF, in 1991. In order to avoid internal conflict that could potentially distract their forces from challenging the USC, the clan leaders wisely formulated a power-sharing formula acceptable to both of the contenders. Gen. Muse has been appointed to remain the political chairman of the SSDF, while Col. Yusuf has been assigned to lead the military wing of the movement.

At that juncture, Col. Yusuf’s first priority was to dislodge the USC from Galkayo and to stem its territorial conquest. He started to mobilize the youth, former fighters of the SSDF and ex-military personnel to form operational force capable of confronting the USC and to ensure the security of the regions under the nominal jurisdiction of the SSDF (Al-Ittihad kept sway of the real authority). However, his mission has been quickly constrained by Al-Ittihad, which prompted an economic embargo on Col. Yusuf, bringing to halt commercial goods and other supplies coming out of the port city of Bosaso, which remained under the sway of the militant Islamic group.

Since the bulk of the Al-Ittihad forces operating in Puntland were of Hawiye origin, the predominantly Majertain population of the region reacted with anger against the measures taken by the radical Islamic organization. The measures were also interpreted as a concerted anti-Darood effort aimed at imposing a Hawiye-dominated rule on Somalia. Hence, the majertain public rallied behind Col. Yusuf, rejecting the conciliatory tone adopted by the political chairman of the SSDF, Gen. Muse, who was strongly disinclined to support any move that could result in bloody confrontation between Al-Ittihad and the SSDF.

The public entirely behind him, Abdillahi Yusuf fought against Al-Ittihad in almost all the main towns of the region, including Garowe, Bosaso, Laskoray, and Las Anod, in June 1992. Facing their baptism of fire, Al-Ittihad organized reinforcements from their strongholds in Somaliland and southern Somalia and as far as the Somali region of Ethiopia. This was the bloodiest of all the battles fought by Al-Ittihad in its entire history. According to eyewitness accounts, thousands of combatants have perished from both sides, as the fighting degenerated into an all-out public uprising. Although at a very high cost, Al-Ittihad eventually received a shattering blow. It was militarily defeated; its forces disarmed and routed out of the region. It was forced to retreat from the towns and other strategic locations occupied and its influence contained, if not fully curtailed.

IV.3 Gedo Region

The Gedo region in southwestern Somalia has been the first area in Somalia in which an Islamic administration has been set up by Al-Ittihad. In the early years of 1990s, the region has been notoriously identified as a formidable bastion of International Islamic extremists, as militants hailing from many Muslim countries congregated there. Religious extremists from Sudan, Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Pakistan convened and coalesced in Gedo to train Al-Ittihad fighters, establish forward logistic bases for terrorist activities particularly directed at Ethiopia and to provide professional security protection to top Al-Ittihad leaders.
For many years, Gedo served as a rear logistics base for Al-Ittihad’s forces fighting against Ethiopia, within the Somali region of Ethiopia. As a stronghold of Al-Ittihad, it prompted brief but recurrent incursions of Ethiopian defense forces into the region, since 1996. Ethiopian troops raided Gedo on several occasions to disable Al-Ittihad, which claimed responsibility for a number of terrorist attacks in Ethiopia.

Al-Ittihad took over the control of Gedo region soon after the downfall of the Somali government in 1991, under the command of Mohamed Haji Yusuf (Mareehan), a former Judge of the Higher Court of Somalia. The town of Luuq became the seat of Al-Ittihad’s administration in Gedo. In a stretch of several years, it established a police force, Islamic courts, Islamic education centers, and health centers, all intricately linked to the principles of Islamic Sharia laws. It outlawed the chewing of Qat (khat), reduced the stature and importance of traditional Islamic leaders, and built special mosques that served, exclusively, as communal centers for Islamists.

The grand strategy of Al-Ittihad in its seizure of Gedo region was to forge inland linkages between Al-Ittihad in Somalia and those in Northeastern Frontier District (NFD) of Kenya. Al-Ittihad maintained strong presence in NFD even prior to the collapse of the Somali government. It dominated the transportation business in both Kenya and Uganda and established and operated a number of Islamic schools.

After the defeat of Al-Ittihad in Gedo region by Ethiopian defense forces, Mohamed Haji Yusuf fled to Mandera town in Kenya to join his wife who was residing there already. The rest of the Al-Ittihad leaders, including Hasan Daahir Aways (Habargidir, Ayr), retreated to Mogadishu. Hassan Daahir Aways, one of the top leaders of Al-Ittihad, settled in Merca after his flight from Gedo, where he established the first Islamic court in Lower Shabelle region. (Hassan Dahir Aways, a former colonel in the Somali army, was the head of the military-wing of Al-Ittehad Al-Islami in Somalia. He is based in Mogadishu)). In 1999, he became in-charge of the southern Mogadishu Islamic court, while his associate Sheikh Ali Dheere (Abgaal) presided over the northern Mogadishu Islamic court.

Although Al-Ittihad has been defeated militarily in Gedo, their socio-economic infrastructure is still in tact. The remnants of Al-Ittihad fighters have finally regrouped around the towns of Elwaq and Buulo Hawo, near the Kenyan border.

IV. 4 Hawiye-dominated Southern Somalia

(Hiran, Mogadishu, Middle & Lower Shabelle)

Al-Ittihad never fought a war in Hawiye-dominated areas. Its war forays were purposely confined to Darod-dominated areas, i.e., Puntland, Somali Region of Ethiopia and Gedo. They have been exceptionally successful in quickly winning the hearts and minds of the local people and in forging alliances with the Hawiye faction leaders. They have never opposed any of the Hawiye faction leaders, so far. Al-Ittihad never took administrative control of any of the Hawiye-dominated regions of Somalia. It flourished and proliferated under the umbrella of the USC-Aided’s wing and under the auspices of Abdiqassim Salad Hassan and his Transitional National Government (TNG) formed in Arta, Djibouti, in 2000. In collaboration with the USC, it established a base in Merca, the capital of the Lower Shabelle region in 1992, taking over the control of the port and setting up an Islamic court.

Mogadishu, the Capital city of Somalia, which is now divided into a number of fragmented portions run by rival militias, is the nerve center of Al-Ittihad. It is the only place in the Somali inhabited regions where demonstrations in support of Osama Bin Laden have been held, after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US.

Al-Ittihad maintains Islamic courts and its own militia force in Mogadishu. They also run various madarassa schools, relief organizations and almost all the business activities in the city, including export-import trading, transportation, telecommunication, storage facilities and banking systems. Al-Ittihad regulates daily currency exchange rates for southern Somalia, including Puntland. It maintains strong commercial ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where Al-Ittihad retains commercial centers, offices and residential premises, and hideouts for its top leaders who mostly are in possession of UAE resident permits and bank accounts.
The higher-ranking Al-Ittihad leaders based in Mogadishu include, Mohamud Esse (Abgal), Sheikh Omer Faaruuq (Reer Aw Hassan), Hassan Daahir Aways (Habargidir, Ayr), Sheikh Ibrahim Suulay (Hawiye), Aden Hashi Ayro (Hawiye, Ayr) and Haji Addani (perhaps the most influential of Al-Ittihad leaders in southern Somalia).

Sheikh Ali Dheere (Abgal), who follows a different version of religious radicalism in Mogadishu, was instrumental in the establishment of the first Islamic court in North Mogadishu. Officials of another extremist Islamic organization, the Altakfiir Wal Hijra, headed by Abdiqadir Haji Mohamud (Majertain), which is believed to be the most intimate and closest to Al-Qaeda, in terms of ideological outlook, are residing in the Hawiye-dominated southern Somalia.
Doing things governments do, Al-Ittihad provides employment opportunities, maintains order, establishes justice, collects taxes, forges alliances, fights wars and influences the socioeconomic and political life of an entire population, who have not seen a semblance of government for more than a decade.

Al-Ittihad has always maintained significant presence in the Lower Juba region, although it declined to take control of the entire region or to dominate the political life of the conflict-ridden Kismayo City. It, however, maintained strong presence in the coastal areas, particularly in Ras Kambooni. It has never taken sides or participated in the numerous factional fighting that took place between forces loyal to Gen. Mohamed Farah Aidid and Gen. Mohamed Saeed Morgan or the USC and the SPM factions. The majority of the Al-Ittihad forces based in the Jubaland region were from the Darood clans. These groups were led by Sheikh Hassan Turki (Ogaden, Reer Abdille).

The port city of Kismayo in the southern Somalia is currently run by a group known as the Juba Alliance, a group allied to Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, President of the former Transitional National Government of Somalia who has links to Al-Ittihad. The Juba Alliance comprises elements from the Mareehan clan as well as from Habargidir (Ayr), the clan of Abdulqassim Salad Hassan and Hassan Dahir Aways.

IV.5 Somali Region of Ethiopia

Al-Ittihad made swift inroads into the Somali region of Ethiopia after it had embraced a devastating defeat in the hands of Col. Abdillahi Yusuf’s forces in Puntland. Al-Ittihad’s appearance in the Somali region of Ethiopia coincided at a time when massive influx of Somali refugees fleeing from the civil war in their country has turned up in the region. It also coincided at a time when the new Ethiopian government (that came to power in 1991) has not fully taken control of the region. For that reason, Al-Ittihad managed to establish full-fledged presence in the region, occupying large areas in Fiiq, Qorahey and Godey zones.

At the end of 1992, Al-Ittihad, launched surprise attacks in the Somali region of Ethiopia. It also took credit for a number of terrorist attacks and explosions that rocked Addis Ababa between 1993 and 1996. Subsequent to a number of bloody combats with Ethiopian defence forces, Al-Ittihad has been routed out of the Somali region of Ethiopia. Most of their leaders including, Sheikh Abdillahi Yare (Ogaden, Reer Abdille), Sheikh Dhaweed (Abskul), Sheikh Bade (Abskul) and Abdillahi Muhumad Irad (Ogaden, Reer Sa’ad) were killed in action. The remaining leading figures of the organization retreated to Mogadishu, subsequently. Those still at large include: Sheikh Abdillahi Omer (Ogaden, Tolomoge), Abdisalan (Ogaden, Makaahiil), Abdiqadir Haji Mahamed (Ogaden, Auliyahan), Ahmed Asoowe (Ogaden, Reer Abdille), and Ali Dhuux Dheere (Abskul).

At present, Al-Ittihad is certainly not a force to be reckoned with in the Somali region of Ethiopia. Its fighting force in the region has been successfully smashed and dispersed. Its top leaders are either killed or forced to flee from Ethiopia. Some of its former fighters have laid down their arms and returned to their villages of origin to resume normal, peaceful living. Others have submitted themselves to the government of Ethiopia, providing inside information on Al-Ittihad’s operations. Although Al-Ittihad is not presently a force to reckon with in the Somali region of Ethiopia, it is neither a spent force. In actual fact, Al-Ittihad is akin to a volcano that stopped spewing its blistering lava but is likely to resume eruption any time.

IV.6 The North-eastern Frontier District of Kenya

The North-eastern Frontier District of Kenya (NFD) has been one of strongholds of Al-Ittihad, even prior to the collapse of the Somali government. Highly organized Al-Ittihad units have been actively operational in both Kenya and Uganda for many years running lucrative transportation businesses and trans-state Khat (Chat) export activities. Al-Ittihad business tycoons have over the years acquired their own small aircrafts that could simply land in any unpaved airstrip. These aircrafts have been used mainly for transporting Khat and wealthy individuals who could afford to charter such planes. During the height of the refugee exodus that ensued the downfall of Somali government in 1991, these aircrafts efficiently served the wealthy and higher-ranking officials of Siad Barre’s government who were trying to enter Kenya without documentations and valid visas. These aircrafts are also used for many unlawful activities, such as money laundering, human and drug trafficking and smuggling of goods. The possibility of these aircrafts being used by those Islamic terrorists who carried out the bombing of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania cannot be ruled out.

Surprisingly, Al-Ittihad has largely restrained itself from launching military strikes against targets and assets within Kenya. Likewise, the government of Kenya has largely glimpsed on blind eye (perhaps squinting on blurred images) to Al-Ittihad’s extensive network of businesses and unscrupulous and secretive operations in Kenya. Ultimately, the uncharacteristic tendency of closing eyes to Al-Ittihad’s dangerous maneuvers and subversive activities could have far-reaching consequences for the region.

V. Concluding Remarks

In the aftermath of the demise of the Somali government and the ensuing disintegration, Somalia has degenerated into a state of lawlessness. The country has fragmented into a disparate fiefdoms run by a bunch of rival and unruly warlords that selfishly capitalize on the suffering of the beleaguered Somali people.

From the white sandy coast of Ras Kamboni to the grazing savanna land of Togdher, from the dangerous alleys of Mogadishu to the forbidding aridity of Qabridahare’s Qorahay, from the bustling bazaars of Hargeisa and Bosaso to the war-torn shorelines of Kismayo and Barbera, Al-Ittihad’s presence is felt one way or another. It maintains a highly secretive network of business and political organizations that dominate the economic and political affairs of Somalis in the Horn of Africa region.

The disintegration of the former Somali Democratic Republic and the absence of a unified and centralized power in Somalia is a major factor in the resilience and growing muscle of this radical religious movement. Massive unemployment and soul-devouring abject poverty and pervasive sense of hopelessness are also the underlying factors that increasingly contribute to the growing influence of radical politico religious movements. Having supplanted the collapsed state institutions, radical religious organizations enjoy popular grassroots support of the large impoverished Somali people.

In the 1990s, the Barre government was successful in uprooting major cells of Al-Ittihad in their shaping, formative stage. Today, unless a functioning government is reestablished in Somalia, Al-Ittihad forces could mushroom in all parts of Somalia and possibly spread to Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti and countries within the Greater Horn of Africa. And that could in the long run destabilize the entire northeast African region. The low profile, or state of near-absence of western powers in the affairs of Somalia has further encouraged radical religious leaders to seek the demise of any effort of reconciliation in the country. It is therefore plausible to conclude that without major effort both by local secular leaders and the international community, Al-Ittihad radicals may dictate the architecture of future form of governments in Somalia.

A. Duale Sii'arag E-Mail:siiarag@yahoo.com
_________

Notes:

Muslim Brotherhood (commonly known by its Arabic name, Ikhwan ul Muslimeen) was founded in Egypt by Hassan al-Banna in 1928 to serve as a political instrument for the founders’ quest for the creation of an Islamic State in Egypt. It later inspired likeminded Islamic radicals in many Muslim countries. Muslim Brotherhood is politically active in Somalia under several names, in addition to its original name, among which are: Haraket Al-Islah (reformed movement) and Al Haraka Al-Islam (Islamic Movement).2 On December 5, 2001, the State Department released statement on the designation of 39 organizations on the USA PATRIOT Act’s “Terrorist Exclusion List”. Al-Ittihad Al-Islami featured top in the list. The US government has also frozen Al-Ittihad Al-Islami funds with the intention “to deter donations to the organization and alert other governments to U.S. concerns about the group’s involvement in terrorist activities”.
3 In the Spotlight: al-Ittihad al-Islami (AIAI), a report on terrorism prepared by the Center for Defense Information. www.cdi.org
5 Ibid
6 Somalia: A haven for Terrorists by Nate Leskovic, The Observer, July 31, 2005
7 Ibid
Readings:
“Al-Ittihad al-Islami”, Patterns of Global Terrorism 2003, U.S. State Department, April 2004. http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/3197.pdf
“In the Spotlight: al-Ittihad al-Islami (AIAI), Center For Defense Information, May 26, 2005. http://www.cdi.org
“Somalia” The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, April 21, 2005. http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/so.html
John Pike, “Al-Ittihad al-Islami”, FAS Intelligence Resource Program, Federation of American Scientists, May 21, 2004. http://www.fas.org/irp/world/para/ogadin.htm
“Statement on the Designation of 39 Organizations on the USA PATRIOT Act’s Terrorist Exclusion List”, International Association for Counterterrorism and Security Professionals (IACSP), April 2005. http://www.iacsp.com/terrorist_ec.html
David Dickson, “Political Islam in sub-Saharan Africa”, The Need for New research and Diplomatic Agenda, May 2005. http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/sr140.html
“Terrorism in the Horn of Africa”, Special Reports: Publications: U.S. Institute of Peace, January 2004. http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/sr113.html
Somali: A Haven for Terrorism by Nate Leskovic, July 31, 2005
Deadly Connections, States that Sponsor Terrorism by David Byman, George Town University, Washington DC
Somalia: Another Foreign Policy Challenge for the United States, by David Shinn, May 21, 2002
Terrorism Research Center, Country profile: Somalia, July 22, 2005. http://www.terrorism.ws

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Who Wants Ghedi Dead?

2005-11-13T12:51:00.000+03:00

Twice the Somali Prime Minister Ghedi visited Mogadishu and twice he has been the target of two deadly bombing attacks in which more than couple dozen lives were lost. The scale of casualties in both attacks appears to be roughly in the same range. Is that a weird coincidence or some odd arithmetic?

In the first incident in the Stadium, Ghedi imperturbably dismissed it as a hapless accident. His inconspicuous account on the accident was to the contrary of his closest allies' allegations. In Nairobi, Aideed Jr. warned that the explosion in the stadium was an intentionally calculated terrorist act. Conceivably, Ghedi was not at the time in sync with his allies' interpretation of the blast. It is worth mentioning that at the time of the explosion, in close proximity to the podium where Ghedi's was giving speech; some big shots from Mogadishu's supposed archrival camp such as Indho-Cadde, Omar Hashi and Qaybdiid were present. They too were in peril and could have perished there.

The three Mogadishu warlord stooges, Ato, Sudi and Qanyare rebuffed Ghedi's Mogadishu stopover and refused to show up or even meet with him in both occasions. These faction leaders somehow managed to distance themselves from these attacks.

In the second bombing, Aideed Jr. was with Ghedi in the same convoy and both men coincidentally escaped the purported assassination plot unscathed. However, a press conference held later, In Villa Somalia, Both the unimposing Prime Minister and his middling Deputy Prime Minister called the detonation assault as a cowardly terrorist act. Here, both Ghedi and Aideed Jr. were on the same chorus and singing the same “blame-the terrorist” gospel. Nowadays, Muslim practicing religious bearded men have become the usual suspects thanks to the American war on “terror”.

No matter whether you call it a political assassination or a terrorist attack, the unsettled issue is who wants Ghedi dead? Who are the people or groups behind these attacks? And why it is that every time Ghedi visits Mogadishu, there is a deadly threat on his life?

Folks in the professed “Fadhi-Ku-Dirir” venues are putting forward some anecdotal and unsubstantiated conspiracy theories. But they are divided and aligned with the two camps and that simply renders their speculations beside the point.

Those who oppose Ghedi have already, with some conviction, construed these attacks as staged publicity mock-up from the Jowhar camp. They argue that all of these bombings are orchestrated tactic to depict Mogadishu as dangerous violent city that is unsuitable to be the seat of the government. They compellingly point to Yusuf's publicly known desire to prove to the international community that the so-called “sharks” in Mogadishu are sadistic criminals and don't want any functioning government in Somalia. They also point out that Mogadishu has lately been a theatre of dirty war where different alien spies and clandestine operatives are lurking in the shadows to plot assassinations and hijackings all in the name of “terrorism” and “counter-terrorism”. These folks cite the death of Kate Peyton of the BBC. Mogadishu observers had linked the assassination of the BBC producer to an Ethiopian Junior officer who was in cahoots with the Ethiopian backed warlords in Jowhar. This was done, they say, to advance Jowhar’s claim that Mogadishu is a very dangerous city.

Definitely, these outrageous conspiracy theories and other far-fetched speculations are a bound. Why would Ghedi allow so many lives to be easily sacrificed for that implausible political end? Or is he another pitiless bloodthirsty warlord in disguise who doesn't give a hoot about the loss of human life as long as his selfish political objective comes into fruition? And what is his political goal anyways? Is it to change the capital from Mogadishu, the city of his birth? What has he to gain by portraying his Mogadishu rivals as terrorist nut-heads? Aren't they members of his cabinet and hail from his clan. What kind of prime minister employs terrorists as ministers? Well, we all know that, in Somalia, the only qualifications required to be part of the government is to be ruthless and to have some armed gangs.

You also have the proponents and spin-doctors in the Jowhar’s camp with their one-sided conjectures. They claim that an alliance of religious extremist elements in Mogadishu and the rival warlords were behind these accidents. The Jowhar supporters allege that some extreme Jihadists, from the defunct Al-Itihad group, are probably working with the warlords since both groups oppose Ethiopia’s involvement and backing of Ghedi and Yusuf. These pro-Jowhar pundits believe the numerous recent assassinations of high profile individuals, from the ex-Somali police force and of the civil society were carried by this fringe extreme Jihadist group. Their conspiratorial assertions also implicate some of the businessmen who own and run the numerous clan based ports in the outskirts of the city. Just think about how out of proportion this premise is. Most of those in Mogadishu, who are content with current status quo, mistrust Yusuf and see him as a threat to their political and economic interest is their reasoning. These businessmen are members of Ghedi’s immediate sub-clan and have made it known to all that their support is for Ghedi as long as he discards the ill-fated proposal of frontline states peacekeeping forces. This kind of appalling depiction from the part of Jowhar advocates should remind us that some people’s logical thinking is really founded on false pretense. Ghedi has a large influential backing in the Mogadishu business community.

One argument is forceful though. Most Mogadishu folks are dissatisfied about Ghedi's lame-duck status vis-à-vis to Yusuf's visible authority. They perceive Ghedi as an unripe “Yes-Man” just willingly kowtowing to the ceremonial president’s political whims.
Those who want genuine peace are also disenchanted with Ghedi's utter passivity to Yusuf and his Jowhar sidekick warlord, Mohammed Dhere. Warlord turned president Yusuf is regarded by many peace loving Mogadishu residents as a conflict ridden clannish figure whose divisive policies could only be contained by a strong prime minister. They say the president is an old man from the aging clannish league of bitter men who are still caught in the days of tribal enmity. The prime minister, young and educated, a celebrated new blood in the Somalia’ messy politics, was supposed to give a innovative better alternative and maybe rehabilitate these dying clannish old guard that Yusuf belongs to. However, many people are disappointed with Ghedi and see him as an ineffective novice incapable of changing the course of Somali politics.

It is true that Ghedi owes much to his startling advent into the Somali political realm to both warlord turned president Yusuf and Mohammed Dhere, the buffoon-like governor of Jowhar. Therefore, that could explain Ghedi's compliant meekness. Who wants to become ungrateful to his bosses?

What would have happened if Ghedi was killed in these violent assaults? Could his murder have led to more chaos and clan conflict in Mogadishu? Remember in Rwanda, the shooting down of the president's plane by extremists was what triggered the horrific genocide of the Tutsis. Something of that evil proportion may have not materialized but for sure the assassination of Ghedi would have created more violent reprisals and blood path between some Mogadishu clans. It is important to be clear about what is at stake if Ghedi would have been killed in these attacks. His death could have caused more dangerous effect than the perceived menace from the Jowhar camp. If Ghedi would have been killed, there is no doubt that there would have been serious unimaginable upheaval in Mogadishu. Some people are so thankful and so happy that the prime minister survived and escaped unharmed from both attempts.

Somalis say “Nin sigtay ma noolo” which could be interpreted as “one who narrowly escapes death is neither alive nor dead”. Ghedi is on familiar terms with bombings and assassination attempts by now and is fully aware that he has unforgiving enemies in Mogadishu who twice sought to murder him. I hope he avoids Mogadishu for good until a viable solution is found to unravel the current impasse between the two camps of this divided transitional warlords’ government.

Shaacir Mataan.

Minneapolis, MN

E-Mail:abaadir2002@yahoo.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

SOMALIA : A NATION BETRAYED

2005-11-13T12:09:00.000+03:00

There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand high in the world. It is to stoop down and lift mankind a little higher. Henry Van Dyke

In October of 2004, for a few brief moments in time, Somalis everywhere rejoiced the birth of a government. The pangs of the labor pain in the grueling and exhaustive 2 year long peace mediation process, the jubilation for a new dawn of peace, security and brotherhood when finally delivered. We swarmed the mother to get a glimpse of the newborn. Was the baby healthy, suckling and growing stronger? We asked each other. We waited and waited and waited and six long months went by with no sight of the infant government. The baby stopped taking the milk of the mother and grew weaker and could not stand on its feet. Then with shock and disbelief, the news came that the child is sick and bedridden and that the infant was stillborn, suffering from heart defects and severe congenital malformation in the neural tube. Somalia is mourning in silence and suffering in solitude. How close we came and how painful it is to loose hope.

What went wrong? How did the infant Transitional Federal Government, TFG, faded so far and so fast into obscurity? What rendered it ineffective and what caused the wound to fester to the degree of inescapable amputation? What led to the divisiveness and the distrust to grow deeper and peace to evade us despite the hopes and promises we pinned in its birth?

If peace and stability is to reign again in Somalia , the TFG must embark on a bath of dialogue and reconciliation. Its combative approach has further alienated communities, sowed more distrust, driving the nation into the brink of another civil war. Circumventing the pillars of the hard won fruits of the Somali Reconciliation Conference held in Kenya has already weakened the prospects of implementing a viable democratic federal government in Somalia .

Meanwhile neglect, death and starvation continue unabated in an alarming scale throughout the country. At the present state of affairs, The TFG is a sinking ship heading straight in to the eye of the storm and must, to redeem itself, reverse its course 180 degrees.

Furthermore, the international community must not reward failure and impose a repressive regime on the Somali people. It must hold this government liable and demand that it stand up to its obligations. Also, neighboring nations who, in flagrant violation of the UN's arms embargo, continue to pour weapons into the country and prolong the agony of the Somali people must re-evaluate their policies. The fire and fragmentation wreaking havoc in Somalia today, could easily spread and engulf the entire region tomorrow.

A nation led by authoritative violent leaders can enjoy neither peace nor stability, nor can a society ruled by kleptocratic maniacs, interested only in amassing personal fortunes on the expense of their people, ever prosper. There is a direct positive correlation between the authoritative tendencies of the TFG and its subsequent failure to win broad based public support or to implement a single mandate of its obligations. The Somali people are tired of an inherently antidemocratic, repressive system which ignores their will and imposes itself by means of force and thru draconian measures. It is incompatible with their culture and way of life. This very same phenomenon is equally attributable to the brutish civil war raging in Somalia for the last 15 years.

Consequently, the many communal fiefdoms dotting the country's landscape is an irrefutable fact of the desire by communities to freely determine their fate and not be subjugated by others. Almost each clan is running its affairs in its own turf. Somaliland , Puntland, Hiran, Gedo, Galgudud, Mudug, Bay and Bakol, Mogadishu and the Benadir Coast are all carved out and delineated with communal boundary lines. This is a testament to the country's rejection as a whole to be dominated by one group which usurps the resources of the nation with impunity and controls every aspect of the nation's socio- political and economic outlets. Hence, Federalism, not force, is the only viable and practical solution to the bloody conflict ravaging Somalia .

In affirmation of the Somali character and its experience, the National Reconciliation Conference in Kenya owed its success primarily because of its guarantees on proportional power sharing and fair representation based on the principles of democracy. The Interim Charter stipulates in Chapter 1, Articles 1 that “ All the sovereign authority belongs to the people of Somalia and may be exercised directly or indirectly through their representatives, in accordance with this Charter and the laws of the country”.

Regrettably, the Executive Office's blatant and unconcealed attempts to wrench legislative power from the hands of the representatives of the parliament, in deliberate violation of the soul, spirit and letter of the charter, is the single most debilitating blow which rendered it stillborn and irreversibly ineffective. Filling the post of the Prime Minister with a “Yes-Man”, bypassing parliament by mainly using decrees instead of passing laws thru it and re-instituting the diabolic colonial policies of divide-weaken- and rule turned the Charter on its head and nullified any hopes of cooperation to resurrect Somalia from its ashes.

The raison d'être of the TFG, its single most important mandate, is to rescue the nation from the grip of violence by advancing peace thru dialogue and reconciliation. Somalia should have been by now well in its way to recovery and nation building. On the contrary, the reality on the ground from the day of the TFG's inception points to unprecedented rivalry, deepening distrust, worsening polarization and societal division surpassing the state of the nation before the outbreak of the civil war. In its very short existence, this government has caused far more damage than solution. The latest report of the UN Monitoring Group on the situational analysis of the country states that the “ D ramatic upswing in the flow of arms into Somalia is a manifestation of the highly aggravated political tensions between TFG and the opposition. This has correspondingly given rise to the increasing militarization of both sides, which has resulted in a severely elevated threat of widespread violence in Central and South-Central Somalia ”.

It is unethical and unconscionable to subordinate the primacy of the noble endeavor to rescue Somalia to mere politicking and personal gain, specifically in these difficult times when the very existence of the nation, as we know it, is under such serious and grave danger to completely disintegrate. If a grain of goodwill or concern to the plight of the people existed, the pre-requisites for filling the premiership post would have been based on strong leadership qualities with an impeccable integrity, political savvies, unquestionable loyalty and patriotism. A prime Minister who is a healer, unifier and who could build bridges between communities would have been sought. Those qualities were shoved under the carpet, despite a large pool of qualified brilliant politicians available and willing to serve, and a naïve easily manipulated political novice with no appeal or ability to bring skeptical groups on board was picked solely for being the lackey of Mohammed Dhere, the Jowhar strong man and the closest ally of the president.

Inarguably, the sole purpose behind Mr. Geeddi's appointment was to concentrate power in the hands of the president and his henchmen, thus incontrovertibly throwing away the principles of the Charter in power sharing and fair representation to building trust and to achieve a democratic federal government. Furthermore, it can be deduced from the actions of the Presidential Office, that there was never a sincere and genuine desire to truly affect positive change in Somalia but to use the prestige of the office for sinister objectives. This act alone reneged every commitment agreed on the Interim Charter and sealed its fate to null and void. Power mattered more than country and saving lives. Somalia was betrayed.

Certainly, upon approval of parliament, the constitutional powers vested in the president entitle him to nominate the prime minister, in a manner which promotes national reconciliation, unity and based on democratic values. Hardly could the appointment of the prime minister be qualified in those terms. Mohamoud Ahmed Nur, an eye witness to the election process in Nairobi , correctly writes in his article, “ the authority of the prime minister, who the charter envisages to hold the highest power in the executive branch of the government, diminished. Furthermore, since the opposing factions did not have a say in his appointment, he ended up toeing the president's line in every issue. Unless this imbalance is corrected, the government will not work and is bound to collapse” 1 .

The country's skepticism and reluctance to embrace the TFG is far from fondness of the status quo or blind tribal allegiance to the warlords' abuses of the general public or the misuse and loot of resources, but a legitimate fear on the intentions of this nascent government and its tendency to metamorphose into a ruthless dictatorial regime.

Close observation of the modus operandi of the executive branch on its decision making processes on important national policy matters, as well as the behaviors of regional authorities closely associated with it reveal fearsome tyrannical entities with unparalleled appetite for brutality and repression. A wide range of human rights violations including intimidation, unlawful arrest on bogus charges, torture, ill-treatment and extra-judicial killings are carried out right under the noses of the President and the Prime Minister in Jowhar. Disturbing human rights violations and the curtailment of press freedom and arbitrary incarceration of dissidents and journalists are the norm in Puntland, where the president has perhaps the greatest political leverage yet choose not to face these egregious abuses. Birds of feather flock together.

Not withstanding the abysmal track record of the president himself with respect to human rights and political inclusion, reinforced by incessant venomous rhetoric and the glorification of force to solve the deeply entrenched complex Somali problem with force, has spread unease and suspicion on the true intentions of this administration. From the day of his inauguration, this president has yet to address the nation from his pulpit, even once to appeal for cessation of hostilities. Despite the crying shame of malnutrition and starvation devastating the country, he has yet to appeal for food donations from the international community to feed the hungry, medication for Diarrhea, Tuberculosis and other preventable diseases that are wiping out thousands of lives on daily basis. Ironically, the only commodity which this president has vigorously appealed for is the lifting of the arms embargo for more weapons. For what? To speed up finishing the already dying!

The Somali people have endured long and excruciating pain of civil war, death, hunger and disease more than their fare share to be forced back to where they were exactly a quarter century ago - under a ruthless autocratic ruler. Therefore, the prevalent chaos and lawlessness must not justify imposing a dictator on Somalia for the sake of short term goals. Despite the seemingly insurmountable political impasse, anarchy and the disastrous humanitarian situation, peace is still attainable in Somalia , because no other nation in Africa has the unique familial bond in social and cultural affinity in ethnicity, language and faith like the Somalis. It can in no time be resuscitated from its death bed into vibrant, peaceful and democratic nation.

It is still an opportune time to lift this nation from its drudgery if the international community holds this nascent government to its obligations and makes support and the delivery of aid contingent upon accountability, transparency, good governance and the pursuit of peace thru dialogue and reconciliation. Furthermore, a nation is for perpetuity and man mortal. Neighboring nations must realize that a Somalia , democratic, stable and at peace with itself is far more conducive to regional stability and economic progress than a fragmented Somalia.

Their imposition or support of a dictatorial regime in Somalia is a sure recipe for more instability, refugees and a renewed cycle of violence on their door step with the potential for more human suffering and chaos engulfing the entire Horn of Africa. Investing in the Somali people rather than on an individual or on a despotic group of individuals is the wiser alternative and politically safer route.

[1] “ Is There a Way Out of the Somali Morass ?” Mohamoud Ahmed Nur; www.MarkaCadeey.com, October 18, 2005

Rashid Yahya Ali Baltimore ,

Maryland

E-mail:

United Nations' Incompetency and Incoherency are Hard To Die

2005-11-12T16:24:00.000+03:00

Reason is the essential ingredient in problem solving. Rational problem solving involves not one decision but a series of choices, ending only when and if the problem is resolved. The trick, of course is to reason well, weigh and consider the facts, identify and evaluate alternatives, choose an alternative and implement it.

United Nations Security Council Resolution 733 (Implementing an Arms Embargo on Somalia), at its 3039th meeting, on 23 January 1992, was adopted at the height of the civil war conflict in Southern part of Somalia as stated in the resolution as following:

“Gravely alarmed at the rapid deterioration of the situation in Somalia and the heavy loss of human life and widespread material damage resulting from the conflict in the country and aware of its consequences on the stability and peace in the region. Concerned that the continuation of this situation constitutes, as stated in the report of the Secretary-General, a threat to international peace and security.

This was a well timed and indeed a useful resolution. But the political realities in the 1990’s that were the premises of this resolution have changed. Today, with the help of the international community including the UN, the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and its institutions (the Parliament, the President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet) and the transitional Charter are all in place.

Unlike the era of warlords 1991 to 2004, the international community cannot principally and morally justify the continuation of the arms embargo, when in the history of modern civilization there never was a government nor will be that established law and order while denied the very means to do so. Political writer and philosopher, Ayn Rand once explaining The Nature of Government vs. Anarchism stated “ … a society without an organized government would be at the mercy of the criminal who came along and who would precipitate it into the chaos of gang warfare. … even a society whose every member were fully rational and faultlessly moral, could not function in a state of anarchy; it is the need of objective laws and of an arbiter for honest disagreement among men that necessitates the establishment of a government.”

No wonder, pirates fired rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns at the luxury vessel Seabourn Spirit on the Somali Coastline, no wonder, a cabinet minister is threatening to shoot down civilian planes in Somali airspace and no wonder the Prime Minister convey is ambushed in Mogadishu.

Again, the UN Security Council in its 5227th meeting, acting under Chapter VII of the Charter and through the unanimous adoption of resolution 1587 (2005), the Council requested the Group to continue the tasks entrusted to it, including the investigation of the implementation of the arms embargo by Member States and violations, as well as actions taken by the Somali authorities. The Council here justified its resistance among other arguments as follows: “ Expressing concern at the recent disagreements threatening the viability of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Institutions, the Security Council this afternoon urged the immediate conclusion of a national security and stabilization plan, to include a comprehensive and verifiable ceasefire agreement leading to final disarmament.” It looks as if the Security Council is “putting the cart before the horse”.

The above statement is mind-boggling to Somali people who are aware the so-called “disagreement” was debated and approved overwhelmingly in both the Council of Ministers meeting and Parliament session. May, I remind the UN officials that Democracy is the rule of the majority under the law and not the rule of few individuals. We, Somalis are asking, “If democracy is only for non-Africans or maybe according to UN officials, it’s just a lip-service utterance that has no application?” I can see the parallel here to Langstone Hughes poem in Black Man Speaks:

I swear to the lord
I still can’t see
Why democracy means
Everybody but me!

We submit, that the Charter of the United Nations, under Chapter 1 (Purpose & Principles), article 1, states: The Purposes of the United Nations are:

To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of the threats of peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;

Again, we submit, on October 25, 2004, the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) meeting attended by representatives of the UN, the European Union, the League of Arab States, the chair of IGAD Partners’ Forum (IPF) and the chair of the Stockholm Donors’ Conference for Somalia, all participants agreed on a proposal and principal to deploy IGASOM to Somalia. They also affirmed to collectively sanction and punish those who act against the establishment of law and order by the government.

Under Chapter VIII (Regional Arrangements) of the UN Charter, articles 52-54 dictates the Security Council to encourage and help regional action to deal with such matters relating to the maintenance of international peace and security.

Somali people are yearning for law and order and want their transitional government to be accorded the means, material and sovereign rights to enforce the laws. Security Council’s inconsistency with current realities shouldn’t be used to tie down the hands of Somali government or diminish the very objective and goals of UN Charter they pretend to protect.

Finally, let me remind the United Nations leadership, in the fight of good against evil, neutrality means indifference and evading responsibility. I conclude with Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s “ There is no one incident in the history of humanity in which defeatism led to peace which was anything other than a complete fraud.”

Old habits are hard to be broken, it was under Kofi Annan’s stewardship on UN peacekeeping forces that the massacre of at least 7,500 Muslim men and boys from the town of Srebrenica in 1995, took place. This is how UNPROFOR soldier recalled it “The saddest thing about Srebrenica is that it could easily have been stopped. The UN peacekeeping operation in the former Yugoslavia was a joke.

I served as a British soldier in UNPROFOR in 1993, and we were prohibited from intervening in all but the most extreme of situations, and for a combat soldier to be placed in such a predicament was torture. Peacekeepers must be able to enforce the peace rather than just observe. I only hope that the UN can learn the same lesson.” CM, Norfolk, UK Again, the genocide - in which some 800,000 people died, occurred when Mr. Annan was head of UN peacekeeping forces.

The UN Security Council failed to reinforce the small UN peacekeeping force in the country. "The international community failed Rwanda and that must leave us always with a sense of bitter regret," Mr. Annan said. "I believed at that time that I was doing my best, but I realized after the genocide that there was more that I could and should have done to sound the alarm and rally support."

In April 2000 the UN Security Council admitted responsibility for failing to stop the genocide. Well, as Native American’s say when they hear an empty promise “it’s all thunder but no rain”. By refusing to even partially lift the arms embargo on Somalia, in order IGASOM achieve its limited mandate to help TFG secure law and order. It’s evident that Mr. Annan’s regret was dead on arrival. It also obvious the UN Security council’s admission of failure to stop Rwandan Genocide wasn’t even worthy it on the paper written on.

The head of the small UN peacekeeping force in Rwanda at the time, Lieutenant General Romeo Dallaire, told the conference that no one was interested in saving Rwandans and the bulk of his force was ordered to leave.

He suggested that attitudes now had not changed. "I still believe that if an organization decided to wipe out the 320 mountain gorillas there would be still more of a reaction by the international community to curtail or to stop that than there would be still today in attempting to protect thousands of human beings being slaughtered in the same country."

The third piece of the puzzle is Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, François Lonsény Fall, who many Somalis believed is being paid by Mogadishu warlord to draw a picture of divided government and therefore confuse the international community. “those who stand for nothing fall for anything” –Alex Hamilton

The final piece is the UNDP officials in Nairobi who are responsible on Somali affairs. These officials are administering the money given to Somalia by donor governments. No wonder they create an atmosphere of re-negotiation by encouraging the Mogadishu warlords hunker down. Their roadblocks: CMC, SACB and now the JNA are equally harmful to TFG’s efforts to consolidate its power in Somalia as roadblocks (ISBAAROS) in streets of Mogadishu by warlords and extremists.

Ugandan President, H.E. Yoweri Museveni, addressing to IGAD defences ministers gathering in Uganda said "I do not remember any positive change in Africa brought about by the UN or Europe," he said. "It is a shame for one of the ancient races in Africa to suffer for so long as we look on, what are we waiting for?"

We appeal to our African brothers to ignore this unjust decision as NATO dutifully and responsibly did it when Bosnia and Kosovo needed intervention. By recalling that Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter recognized the role of regional arrangements in dealing with such matters relating to the maintenance of international peace and security as are appropriate for regional action; African nations must respond immediately to help Somali government to preserve peace, security and stability in all areas of the country.

Ali Farah
Communication Director
Somali-American Community Alliance of USA
Annandale, VA

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

TERRORISM ANALYSIS: THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SOMALI PIRATE ATTACK

2005-11-12T15:53:00.000+03:00

In spite of the news media distancing the recent attack on a cruise ship off the coast of Somalia from global terrorism, intelligence experts believe this is just the latest operation initiated against the United States and the West by Al-Qaeda.

Recently a failed assassination attempt on the prime minister of Somalia, as well as the attempt to hijack a luxury American cruise ship, has intensified apprehension and fear that the shaky Somalian government is losing to Al-Qaeda and Wahhabi terror groups.Three people were mortally wounded in a terrorist attack on the Prime Minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi,while he was visiting the war-torn capital of Mogadishu.

He survived the deadly encounter which entailed an explosion set off near his convoy, according to security experts. Mr Gedi was merely visiting since his government is in quasi-exile in Jowhar. The danger in the Somali capital is so great that the transitional government must avoid setting up their headquarters there.Since 2003, Somalia has witnessed the growth of a brutal network of Jihad with strong ties to Al-Qaeda. In fact, when the US forces faced a bloody battle in 1995 during what became known as the Black Hawk Down incident, it was Al-Qaeda joining with a local warlord who killed and wounded US special operations soldiers.Somalia has been without a functioning national government for 14 years, when they received their independence from Italy.

The transitional parliament created in 2004, but has failed to end the devastating anarchy. The impoverish people who live in the ruined capital of Mogadishu have witnessed Al-Qaeda operatives, jihadi extremists, Ethiopian security services and Western-backed counter-terrorism agents engaged in a bloody war that few support and even fewer understand.In an incident that gained American press attention, Somali-based terrorists armed with rocket-propelled grenades launched an unsuccessful attack on Seaborn Spirit as it rounded the Horn of Africa with American, British and Australian tourists on board.

For unexplained reasons, the attack is being treated as an isolated incident and the terrorism link is being all but ignored by journalists. The term "pirates" is routinely used with only a few reporters calling the attackers "terrorists."The ship came under attack during the early morning hours when the heavily armed terrorists in two speedboats began firing upon the ship with grenade launchers and machine guns.

They assailents were repelled by the ships crew who implemented their security measures which included setting off electronic simulators which created the illusion the ship was firing back at the terrorists..According to passenger accounts of the attack, there were at least three rocket-propelled grenades or RPGs that hit the ship, one hit a passenger stateroom without inflicting injuries.

There are now some counterterrorism officials who wish to deploy a naval task force to try to prevent attacks, and kill or apprehend these modern-day pirates in Somali waters. Most travel advisories issued by nations throughout the world recognize this area as being among the most dangerous in the world.There are some who oppose this combative approach fearing the opening of a new front in the war on terrorism.

But these opponents of using force have no suggestions for dealing with these dangerous terrorists and thugs who prey on people on land or at sea.During the 1990s, a group of Saudi-educated, Wahhabi militants arrived in Somalia with the aim of creating an Islamic state in this dismal African country. Also, the renowned Al-Qaeda established an operations base and training camp. They would routinely attack and ambush UN peacekeepers.

In addition, they used Somalia to export their brand of terrorism into neighboring Kenya.Leading members of Al-Qaeda continue to operate, mostly in secrecy, in Somalia and have built up cooperation with some of the warlords who control food, water and medicine. And the people of Somalia starve, mourn and die.

Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police. He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. He writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others, and he's a columnist for TheConservativeVoice.Com, AmericanDaily.Com,MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.

Source: Montana News Association

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

SOMALIA: Annan reappoints arms embargo monitors

2005-11-10T13:02:00.000+03:00

NAIROBI, 9 Nov 2005 (IRIN) - At the request of the UN Security Council, Secretary-General Kofi Annan has reappointed a four-member group that has been monitoring the movement of weapons into Somalia since early 2004.

The panel was established to monitor violations of an arms embargo imposed by the UN on the strife-torn Horn of Africa country in 1992.In a letter to the president of the Security Council released on Tuesday, Annan extended the mandate of the four experts for six months.The members are Melvin Holt, Jr, of the US and Joel Salek of Colombia, who have been members of the panel since its inception; Harjit Singh Kelley of Kenya, who once served on an expert panel on Liberian sanctions; and Bruno Schiemsky of Belgium, who was part of a team monitoring the embargo against the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The mandate of the group, which is based in Kenya, includes investigating "the points of entry and exit of arms and the flow of weapons into Somalia; the mode of transport used; the destination of the weapons; the warlords, faction leaders or businessmen receiving the arms and weapons; the areas or regions under the control of the faction leaders, warlords and businessmen and their associates" as well as the operation of arms markets in Somalia and the source of the arms.They will assess the actions of Somali authorities and other UN member states through field-based investigations in the region to ensure the full implementation of the arms embargo.In a resolution in October, the Security Council condemned the increase in the flow of arms and ammunition into Somalia.The resolution followed findings by the monitoring team that violations - both by the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG), its opponents in the capital, Mogadishu, and certain states in the region - had recently taken a "sustained and dramatic upswing".

Source: IRIN

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Security Council condemns increasing violations of Somali arms embargo

2005-11-10T12:49:00.000+03:00

Stressing that any resort to military force to solve the current differences between Somalia's transitional federal institutions is unacceptable, the United Nations Security Council today strongly condemned the increased inflow of weapons into the Horn of Africa country and the attempted assassination of the Prime Minister on Sunday.Security CouncilThe condemnation came in a presidential statement read by Ambassador Andrey Denisov of Russia, who holds the rotating Council presidency for November, after a closed briefing by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, François Lonsény Fall."The Security Council condemns the increased inflow of weapons into Somalia and the continuous violations of the United Nations arms embargo," the statement said.The Council reminded all States of their obligation to comply fully with the measures imposed on them by the embargo resolution and urged them to take all necessary steps to hold violators accountable."The Security Council expresses its concern over recent reported military activities and hostile rhetoric and emphasizes that any resort to military force as a means for dealing with the current differences within the transitional federal institutions is unacceptable. The Council condemns in the strongest terms the assassination attempt on 6 November 2005 against Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Gedi in Mogadishu," it said.The Council emphasized that the primary responsibility for restoring an effective functioning government lay with the leaders and members of the Somali transitional federal institutions and expressed "its concern and disappointment over the lack of progress in ameliorating the contention between the leaders of the transitional federal institutions, and over the non-functioning of the Transitional Federal Parliament, which has an essential role in promoting the peace process."The UN has been leading international efforts to find a peaceful solution, but tensions between Jahwar-based Prime Minister Gedi and President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed on the one hand, and Speaker of Parliament Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan and ministers based in Mogadishu, on the other, have been exacerbated.The Security Council also called on national and international organizations to address the increasing incidents of piracy off the Somali coast and the recent hijackings of vessels in the area, particularly of ships carrying humanitarian supplies to Somalia."The Security Council expresses its growing concern over the situation of 1 million Somalis in a state of humanitarian emergency or suffering from severe livelihood distress and the rising civil and food insecurity in parts of Southern Somalia, where malnutrition levels have increased," it said.The Security Council commended the neighbouring countries, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU), the League of Arab States, the European Union (EU) and concerned Member States for their keen interest and persistent efforts in supporting the country's peace process.In a press encounter after the Council meeting, Mr. Fall said warring factions in Somalia had to engage in dialogue to resolve their impasse and move the political process forward.The Security Council had said that it would take some action against the piracy, which it did not specify, he said, adding that exceptions had already been made to the embargo to allow for the training of Somali police. Such training was taking place in Uganda and Kenya and plans were being made to bring that training to Somalia, he said.The Council would also have to find a solution to the problem that countries in the region were shipping arms to Somali factions, he said. Meanwhile, it had asked IGAD and the AU to work out an agreement on the composition of their upcoming peacekeeping operation, the IGAD Peace Support Mission to Somalia (IGASOM), Mr. Fall said.

Source: UN News Centre

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Somalia: Steps on a path to fragile peace in a shattered country

2005-11-05T14:39:00.000+03:00

Somalia is looking at its best chance for peace in 15 years as the reconciliation process moves into a new and crucial phase and with UN poised to ramp up its humanitarian assistance. But rampant insecurity poses a steep challenge to this endeavour as most international media give the country a wide berth.

The Story

The country that used to dominate coverage a decade ago as a symbol of a collapsed state has been left out of media limelight lately, although the nation is facing a crucial challenge. The ongoing fragile reconciliation process represents Somalis’ best hope since the 1990s of rebuilding their nation in peace. At great risk, a fledgling government-in-exile, formed through a national conference involving most of the rival factions, is trying to establish itself in the country from its base in neighboring Kenya. However, rampant insecurity, fueled by arms embargo violations and continued factional violence, poses steep challenges to this endeavour.

The insecurity has also kept the presence of international media to a minimum at a time when this story needs a bright light from the outside helping to put all parties on notice that the world is watching. Greater media exposure can also help to mobilize humanitarian aid to the country which continues to face drought and famine in addition to the recent deaths and damage to its coastline and fishing villages from the recent Indian Ocean Tsunami. Meanwhile, the United Nations is providing humanitarian and development aid as best it can under the conditions, while preparing a stepped-up political presence that could solidify the reconciliation process and help Somalis establish a working government. The Security Council has welcomed the establishment of the Transitional Federal Government and has urged the international community to lend political and economic support.

The Context

Somalia is the only country in recent history that has endured such a prolonged period of state collapse.During a recent whistle-stop tour of the country, leaders of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) were well-received by Somalis, but they dared not even venture into the capital, Mogadishu, still awash with guns and gangs.

Somalis continue to suffer from intermittent clan conflicts and recurrent droughts. The country is home to 400,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and 800,000 returnees.Although recent rains have provided some respite, four consecutive years of drought have led to massive livestock losses.

Overall, the drought has resulted in a livelihood crisis, indebtedness and economic stagnation.Somalia consistently ranks among the lowest in the world on key indicators of human development, amid high mortality and malnutrition rates.According to UN relief officials, top aid priorities include the delivery of assistance in water and sanitation, health and education sectors to the most vulnerable groups, including IDPs, returnees and minorities who represent 20 percent of the population.

Source: ReliefWeb

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Are the donor countries serious about reinstating the new Somali nation state?

2005-11-03T10:12:00.000+03:00

This question and the question I posed to the Somali people sometime ago regarding the conspiracy of the Mogadishu warlords, are all members in some sense of the same family, but specifically they represent in very different directions. Because, this question is less to do with the warlords, but more to do with the disinclination of the Intergovernmental Western Countries for funding the new Somali Transactional Federal Government (TFG). Before trying to answer the question, this paper will briefly go over history of the state and its incremental achievements for the past eight hundred years. It will also underline that in many ways the state and society are intimately bound to each other. Afterwards, I shall endeavour to find out the key elements that are believed to have perpetuated the fact of Somali people being stateless for more than decade. The paper will move further by noting the donor countries that they had previously neglected and left Somalia in this disturbed time, while they were actively resolving the plights of other African countries, such as Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Liberia etc. And yet, there is a clear perception that donor countries do not have a strong desire to provide the necessary financial and political support to assist the new Somali government so as to reinstitute its law enforcement bodies.

Before attempting to illustrate their reluctance to this matter, let me begin with my deep gratitude to the Kenyan Government for chairing the two years of the Somali Reconciliation Conference in Nairobi, where the new ‘inclusive’ government was ultimately formed. In the same way, I accept as true that Somali delegates were mandated to seek a solution for Somalia as long as they reinstated the Somali state, despite that there remains much more to be done to develop a lasting peace and sustainable government. Having said that, as it is known there has recently been and there still is an acrimonious dispute and political infighting within the government including around half of the MPs. Regrettably, such open conflict undermines the reconciliation efforts; in spite of some truces of common sense can be found in the government to handle the conflict.

In the political discourse, the creation of the state needs tolerance, compromise and adequate resources as the Greek outstanding thinkers, like Aristotle and Plato had made clear centuries ago. If we briefly look back to the 13th century, there were stateless societies, who had a very strong attitude towards the concept of the state and held that coercive power lodged in the state is the primary cause of human misery. They lived with no formal rules, no civil service and no police, no military forces and no courts, nonetheless at any rate of their sizes they had unwritten customary laws that were binding on all members of the community. This was the only viable way to solve certain conflicts. Meanwhile, such forms of rule demonstrated that force was not absent, but it was running along different channels within which those societies were able to make collective decisions usually in a peaceful fashion. In the late part of the same century, the state was created in the image of the empire through the principle of Roman law and corporation theory, but was not utilized till the 16th century.

The Greek theorist Aristotle had indicated that the best way to take decisions and to improve standard lives of the people is to define the idea of the polis as a state.

The key issue was to establish public power that was formally above ruler and ruled. According to Thomas Hobbes, “the process was meant to spend billions of pounds” so as to get away from the stateless situation and to dominate those, who hardly tried to maximize the influence of a small community to live under informal rule. Lastly, the state procedures had experienced several stages until it achieved the ability to provide universal public welfare for its citizens to meet their minimum needs, such as healthcare, housing, education system, jobs and security several hundred years later.

Flash-forward to the end of the 20th century by which time the Somali people became stateless society for a number of reasons. The first two serious mistakes that caused anarchy and the currant political mayhem were (a) the rival factions and the unholy warlords, who have carved up the country into fiefdoms, since the Somali state collapsed in 1990. And (b) since the UN failed to initiate a delicate diplomatic process to bring the Somali politicians together in the early 1990 the world has turned out its lights, closed the doors and has completely forgotten about the place, leaving Somalia in total chaos following the most serious disaster in its foreign policy. Another drawback could have been (in my view) though the Somali people have strong sentiments of national esteem, yet they tend to guard secrets of their ant-sovereignty culture, which is slightly similar to the pre-state society’s culture. Realistically, this traditional culture is based on trust-less and enjoys criticising any government with no good reason. That's why; almost each and every civilized society on earth assumes that if the Somali people would have been politically flexible enough they would never have been a stateless society in the 21st century. As, well-known author Christopher Clapham said in his book “the Somali people are proudly independent, aggressive and wary of outside influences, while they have no traditional ethos and mores to respect the majority when it comes to solve of their differences” All of these indications and many more I may have omitted guided the Somali people to become stateless society 44 years after their independence. Even as their colonial masters forgot its colonial responsibility to cope with the situation before matters became incontrollable.

Notwithstanding, the UN operation in Mozambique started immediately after the symptoms of the Mozambique situation were sharply highlighted by the western countries in 1992-3. The processes of the new national army and demobilisation schemes were simultaneously established shortly after the Frelimo and Renamo signed peace accord. The International Organisation Migration (IOM) and International Labour Organisation (ILO) were also set up. The first organisation transported ex-militias to their preferred destinations all over the World. The second organisation had to arrange for vocational kits, consisting of agricultural tools, needs and food to be given to the militiamen when they left their assembly areas. Similarly, the six months of demobilisation paid off with the creation of an occupational skills development program were provided for them. At the same time, reintegration programmes contain a range of activities; such as football matches and general information about the nature of the peace process and future opportunity were daily addressed through radio broadcasts and lectures. According to Chris Alden, “the donor countries granted the Mozambique government more than $500 million dollars, approximately one million a day to transform every armed party into a political party”. Simply, because they were very keen to set a firm foundation towards the goals of greater peace, democracy and development. Not only Mozambique, but also several other war torn countries, like Sierra Leone and Liberia have benefited from the World’s active engagement to end their long-running conflict. Evidently, such a course of action was crucial to maintaining the process in Mozambique, whereas the donor countries are now treating the Somali government as if it does not deserve to be given the allocation of aid resources. For instance, since the new government went back to its soil four months ago these countries have imposed on it so many impossible conditions. Such as, initiating substantive negotiation with the opponents without having any support mechanism to secure sources of avenue. Similarly, they have demanded the restoration of law and order throughout the country otherwise no assistance will be granted to the government. The fundamental questions this article is raising are. (a) Can such a weak government instigate the reconciliation process and bring back durable peace, while at the same time the donor countries continue to decline its appeals? And (b) why were they pouring massive resources, including money and materials into the two year marathon peace talks in Kenya if they are not ready to invest in the government once it has been established. Thus, it is very important to demonstrate that their unsustainable demands along with their ‘wait and see manner’ are indicating that the donor countries are not willing to provide direct or indirect budgetary support to the Somali government in order to stand on its feet. It is pitiable, however, and very sad for these countries to show the Somali people such indifferences and their indecisive conduct to provide any support, which this new institution urgently needs.

All in all, the Somali government gave out clear proposals and coherent alternatives to re-establish a secure environment to commence direct dialogue with its people. Nonetheless, without external resources it cannot continue in most cases to promote national reconciliation and political dialogue. Subsequently, it will be unlikely to have the capacity to restore law and order and reach in the foreseeable future unless the world keeps a close eye on it. In other words, having administrative expenditure is the key instrument to bring peace, stability and territorial integrity throughout the country as President Yusuf stated in the UN general assembly on September 17, 2005.

Finally, the donor countries have no intention in living up to their pledges they made during the reconciliation process. Hence, the rest of their speech begins to wobble and in fact there are reasons to doubt what they say as long as there is no point in bemoaning the failure to achieve what is impossible. So that, I do not think that it would be foolish to assume or ask the Somali people whether these countries are eroding or enhancing the building of the new Somali nation state.

Ismail Jumale Alasow.

Politics and Development Studies

SOAS University of London

E-mail: IsmailJum@aol.com

Email 142496@soas.ac.uk

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Reflecting on Our Roles as Fathers and Husbands

2005-11-03T10:05:00.000+03:00

Ramadan is that time of year when we engage in a month-long process of introspection, repentance, and self-renewal. It is not only a time when we are to increase our commitment to performing various acts of worship such as fasting and prayer, but it should also be a time for re-evaluating all aspects of our lives. As Muslim men, this process should include room for assessing our performance as both husbands and fathers.

For most people around the world, these are indeed strange and trying times. For Muslims, not much else needs to be said along these lines. Perhaps it is only knowing that this world is the realm of testing and that in one way or another in our lifetimes we will all be tested, that allows us to get up every day and face the outside world. For many family men, however, rigor and severity are not a reality only on the outside, but inside the home as well. For such individuals and their families, the abode of peace that the home is supposed to be is anything but. Many such families are living quiet lives of sadness, desperation, and rancor due to family relationships that are simply not working.

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in a very well-known hadith was recorded as saying that marriage was equal to half of the deen [of Islam]. This profound statement by our master has spurred volumes of scholarly commentary over the centuries and from a layman’s perspective, the hadith is monumental in its meaning and importance for those who have embraced the way of marriage and family. Only through deep reflection on our lives as husbands and fathers can we begin to understand the essence of the Messenger’s (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) words and why marriage is awarded the weight of half of our lives as Muslims.

The life partnership and commitment that marriage entail should be approached as a spiritual undertaking that can be an important facilitator of individual spiritual development. Just as we are essentially spiritual beings in a human existence, marriage is a journey that—if approached as such—can be a rich source of learning and personal development for both spouses. As Muslim men, much of what we are taught about family life pertains to our roles and responsibilities as husbands, i.e., the X’s and O’s of marriage and family life. However, too often the spirit of marriage is ignored or missed. Too often, in the course of trying to “manage” our families, we completely overlook the nuances that make marriage and family so important a human experience. Often we overlook the patience, sacrifice, compromise, love, understanding, humility, strength, and so many other inputs that are needed to be a good husband and father. These are the fruits of the dedication and hard work that go into family life that help us to develop into better and more universal human beings.

Though certainly there is no magic formula for achieving a “successful” marriage and family life, selflessness, love, and service are a few key principles from the teachings of our tradition that, when applied, can have remarkable transformational qualities on our roles as husbands and fathers and subsequently, our families in general.

Giving Without Expectation of Reward

One of the most important themes in the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is the notion of meeting the needs and fulfilling the rights of others without any expectation of reciprocity. It is well known that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) actively participated in household duties such as sewing, cooking, serving his guests, and cleaning. The modern world often teaches us to expect reward for our work, time, and efforts. Even as Muslims, it often seems as though we take these same expectations into our home lives. It is common to hear about Muslim husbands and fathers demanding to be treated like kings in their homes with their wives and children expected to act like servants rather than loved ones. This phenomenon, despite going against the spirit of love and service that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) brought to the world, has many negative effects on families. For one, the “distant father” syndrome prevents children from fulfilling their divine role as a source of love and inspiration to their parents.

As is commonly understood from the famous hadith that all children are born in a state of Islam, our scholars have told us that the greater meaning of this hadith is that children come into this world pure, and it is only what they learn from their parents and societies (i.e., the world) that turns them from this pure state. This purity of heart means that they are essentially beacons of mercy and love, a reminder of the endless blessings of the All-Merciful. However, the “distant father,” the one who would be king in his own home and God-knows-what outside of it, himself a product of rejection, is not open to this divine blessing sent in the form of his children. The child, in turn, learns rejection early on and internalizes it, eventually manifesting his frustration in a multitude of ways including acting out, rebelliousness, mental illness, oppression, or simply the inability to open up to others—the feeling of separation that typically goes hand in hand with illnesses such as depression and severe anxiety.

As Muslim men, we are supposed to be servants of Allah. A servant is one who does not expect anything from anyone, for a servant knows that he is in no position to do so. A servant understands and accepts the fact that he is totally reliant and bonded to his master, and as such, is in no position to play king. A willing servant is also one who is always looking to give, to do, to provide, and to love. This is the way of Allah Himself, Who gives and provides for all His creation without fail, even those that turn away from Him. Thus, if to give without expectation of reward is the way of the King, what then for a lowly servant and recipient of the King’s endless bounty and mercy? The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was known to spend his nights in prayer to the extent that his feet would swell. When asked why he went to such lengths to please his Lord after knowing that he would be pardoned for all his sins, his answer was simply “Shall I not be a grateful slave?” This story exemplifies so many of the Prophet’s beautiful traits and his perfect servantship. It also highlights the concept of selfless giving—of giving out of love and gratitude without any desire for anything in return. If we as Muslim husbands and fathers truly love our families, does it not make sense that we should be selfless givers to them? Should we not be servants of Allah by serving those who are closest to us and thereby fulfilling our amanah (trust) by showing mercy, kindness, and love to them? Who are we to claim servantship and then expect others to serve and wait on us as if we were the King Himself? It’s something worth pondering over this Ramadan.

Living Is Modeling Is Teaching

The Muslim family should be based on the goal, practice, and teaching of surrendering the heart and subsequently all of one’s affairs in life to Allah. In practice, this translates into more than just blind obedience to rules. This begins with a real and living desire to be conscious of Allah and the way of His Messenger at all times.

Many parenting experts say that one of the most important aspects of being a good parent is self-awareness. Not only must we be aware of ourselves in the sight of Allah, but we must know and realize that our children see and learn from everything that we do. Often, I am blown away by the level of detail to which my own daughter mimics my actions and comments. Particularly when children are young, it is important to be conscious of ourselves because the most powerful teaching lessons are our everyday actions. Everything a young child experiences is an input into his or her development. Children are like sponges that soak up the entire world as it unfolds around them. As such, the gift of remembrance in this context is that by remembering Allah, we become aware of ourselves and our conduct. This, in turn, will be observed or picked up by our children as well as by our spouses and other family members. Remembrance settles the heart and brings peace of mind. The “vibe” this creates then spreads around the home and family allowing positive transformation to occur.

As the father is the leader of the home in Islam, it is his responsibility to set the social and emotional tone for the home and family. Leadership in Islam goes far beyond financial responsibility. If the leader is emotionally distant, perpetually angry, or closed off, chances are this will resonate throughout the rest of the family. Thus, the role of the father and husband as a “tone-setter” is a key element in the leadership of the household. I notice in my own home that when I am engaged in prayer or reading, my daughter will take interest and want to join me in her own way. Rather than get upset at her for interrupting me, I will usually try to include her in what I am doing in a way that is playful and educational. This allows her to take an interest in it as well, increasing the bond and emotional connection between us.

On the other hand, if we push our children away and become annoyed when they want to share in our activities, they will learn this as a form of rejection. Looking at this from the perspective of Islamic practice, if our children observe us to be angry with them every time they interrupt our prayer, dhikr or other religious practices, they will equate that reaction—and the religious practice—with rejection and hurt. We know from the Prophet’s blessed life (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that he was well known for kissing, hugging, and playing with his grandchildren, Hassan and Hussein (may Allah be pleased with them). The Prophet would also accommodate them even during his salah (prayer), when they would climb on his back and play with his garments. The lesson he taught us was to accommodate our children, particularly during religious practices, so they will be endeared to them and not associate rejection or anything unpleasant with them. I cannot help but think that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was setting an example for us of how to teach children to love Islam the same way he did.

“Fatimah Is a Piece of Me” — Seeing Our Children as a Reflection of Ourselves

When we read about the Prophet’s love and care for his daughter Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her), about whom he said “Fatimah is a piece of me, whosoever tortures her has tortured me, and whoever pleases her has pleased me,” it is easy to understand the special place that children are meant to have in the lives of parents. In blessing us with children, the All-Merciful has given us each a human mirror. These little mirrors, in their role as learners, reflect back to us what they see, hear, and understand from us. As such, to be in tune with our children and their many ways of communicating, we are more able to understand ourselves and what we are “projecting” onto the world around us. Any parent who takes a minute to observe their child knows this to be true. From the perspective of living Islam, however, we should also understand this to be an opportunity from Allah to examine ourselves. In so doing, our children, in another one of their roles as a mercy to parents, become allies for our own self-growth and purification. We help them as parents and they help us to better understand ourselves. The key to profiting on their gift is to be conscious of our every word and every action when we are around them. Of course this is a tall order for most us; however, when we understand the importance of every moment we share with our children, we can begin to appreciate them in a whole new way.

This Ramadan, all of us as Muslim fathers and husbands should take time to reflect on our lives with our families. We should use the blessing of Ramadan to look at ourselves with sincere and honest eyes, and take stock. Aside from meeting our material and financial responsibilities, are we really fulfilling the amanah that Allah has given us in the form of our families? Are we teaching and modeling mercy, love, and forgiveness, or do we just see our families as our personal slaves? When we begin to open our hearts and look at things with a different set of eyes, we may not like what we see. Nevertheless, Ramadan is the perfect time to begin this all-important and difficult work of struggling with ourselves to clear our hearts of all but Allah. As the saying goes, there is no better time than the present.

How do we resolve Somalia's problem?

2005-11-03T09:53:00.000+03:00

I ask the above question not in pursuit of blaming anyone person, tribe, or organization in particular but to suggest a solution to our Somali dilemma. And though I contribute much of our problem to colonial era, lack of education, self-interest driven individuals and organizations, I think there is a solution and a simple one: A two party democratic system.

I suggest the TFG, especially the Honorable Speaker of Parliament, to take the necessary leadership to put into process the instantiation of a two party system where the people’s focus will be on the parties rather than individuals on the bases of tribe.

To understand the wisdom in the party system, look around the developed world, including Russia. The difference within those countries is not in the size of their natural wealth but the civil-structures that have been put in place and how early in the country’s birth those structures were put into place. For instance, the United States has a two party system that was put in place early enough and which conforms to the will of the people while the Russian are now coming to realize the need put such a system in place. Russia, with its vast natural resources, is the least economically developed of the G8 countries and with a quality of life that is far below most of the developing countries, simply because it has yet to put into place a free and democratic two party system.

And of the G8 countries, the United States is obviously the most advanced in all categories of progress because it has, at its inception, realized 1) the power of a union and 2) the power of a multi-party democratic system where the people are the authority and the government is elected by the people -- both at the local level and the federal level -- and with the two forms of governments enjoying separations of powers as mandated by the federal courts and constitution – separations of powers being absolutely necessary to ensure no one government, whether Federal, State or Local infringes in on the rights of any of the other two. In this form of governing, the United States realized, a two-party system is the best rather than a countless number of parties that lead to unstable governments as is most often the case with some of the G8 countries such as Italy, which has encountered well over 20 government administrations since World War II. In addition to the above, the US constitution has been amended so that no administration serves more than two-terms of four years each. What this leads to is the administration working excessively in its first term, all in an effort to get re-elected the following term. If and when this re-election effort is achieved, the administration works around the clock to insure its party wins the next term, thus, passing the torch of approval of confidence in the party, by the voting public, to the stars of its party.

Now, the challenge for you, Mr. President, Mr. Prime Minister and Mr. Speaker, is to ensure the TFG sets the nation on course to the right path; we have been put on such a path before with Presidents Adan Cade and Cabdirashid C. Sharmarke only to have been victimized by the Somali National Military Force under the leadership of Siad Barre.

I am convinced, however, we may be on the right path because, though the “division” within the TFG has been overplayed by the International Community (IC), I think it is in fact not harmful but healthy for the people and nation since neither of you will tolerate the other unjustly. In fact, I think the “difference” of views should be cemented into the two party system even while the current governing body of the Gedi Adminstration has members of both parties for this term and until the country is on its feet again. However, during this Transitional period, the State and Local government candidates SHOULD campaign on party platforms rather than being appointed by the Gedi Transitional Administration –- we need to safeguard separations of powers between the State and Federal governments. Peaceful and democratic competition at the local levels will bring the public into the government, thus, effectively reducing the influence of tribal loyalty and the ‘pre-war’ rhetoric coming from all sides.

Mr. Speaker, as you have witnessed during your journey to the Diaspora, most of the Somalis who have been and are your most loyal supporters are not based on tribal affiliations with you but rather on principal alliance with you. This, I think, should be more than enough evidence to convince you, Mr. Speaker, to convene the TFG Parliamentarians and mandate the instantiation of the two party democratic system. As soon as this is done and the public is permitted to vote, thus enabling them to elect their State and Local governments, the public will have active role in the government since all State and Local government political leaders will have to be worn by election rather than being appointed by the current TFG Administration of PM Gedi. The ONLY non-executive positions the TFG Administration should appoint, I think, is regional military commanders who will help set the environment for elections to be held at the regional levels.

This process of electing Local and State officials will, I think, help ease the tension that surrounds the various members of the TFG and the members of the current Gedi Administration.

Furthermore, I am certain the International Community – made up of African, Middle Eastern, Western and Asian countries – will welcome this idea to have the Somali public elect their Local and State governments as is evident in the cases of Puntland and Somaliland. The only remaining regions where this Local and State elections will need to be held are the Banadir, Bay, Bakool, Shabelle and Jubba Valleys. And to carryout these local elections, the current members of the TFG parliament from the various regions to elect should have significant hand in establishing the grounds for election. For example, I think ONLY residents with physical homes in those regions should be allowed to elect Local and State leaders. In addition, since men are prone to instigate corruption, I think the Somali Women Organizations should be given the sole responsibility to carryout those regional elections.

I believe, the election processes in the State and Local levels will accomplish the following: 1—significantly increase the public participation in the TFG and future stability of the country since the election process, in and of itself, will be an educational experience for the mentally enslaved members of the larger society; 2—comfort those of different views from the Gedi Administration in that local officials will not necessarily be loyalists to Gedi but to the public and the Federal State since election demands accountability and fair-play; 3—lead us to avoid repeating the past mistakes of the Barre regime which used to appoint local leaders who were not for the interest of the people but of the regime, and which lead to the abhorable acts of the late 70’s and 80’s where the regime used excessive force against the Somali public; and 4—it will lead to the Banadir, Bay, Bakool, Shabelle and Jubba Valleys catching up to the administrational levels of Puntland and Somaliland, thus completing the formation of the State governments in the Federal Republic.

For those who may prefer to accuse me of being bias towards or against any group over another in the TFG, please note, I am solely committed to giving my honest and unbiased advice in the memory of my sister – Ayaan Carte, 11years old – who was a victim of the mayhem in the civil war. I thank His Excellence, the President, for his contribution to the establishment of the Puntland governing structure and his commitment now, well over 70years of age, to do the same for the rest of Somalia.

Finally, I will suggest that the constitution be ratified(amended) so that A) immediately after the TFG mandate ends, the positions of the Federal Ministries of Defense, Finance, and Commerce are elect-able positions – elected by the people along with the Presidential elections and report to both the parliament and the executive branch of the government. What this will do is help us forever prevent the likes of the sad acts of the late regime of Siyad Barre on the Somali people. We must make those three ministerial positions elect-able rather than appointed by the head of the executive branch -- even when the leader is elected -- to deter threats and corruption in the hands of such ministries.

For instance, what if the Defense Minister decides to conduct a de coup with the support of his military commanding officers? Or what if the Finance Minster gets along well with the boss, and “cooks” the accounting books while money is stashed away somewhere on a foreign soil? Or what if the commerce minister deals dirty deals with foreign institutions while the boss looks away for the purposes of preferential treatment of tribe? Therefore, unless we make those three positions elect-able rather than appointed, we will always be victims of power, greed, and corruption. In addition, the benefits to electing to those positions are 1—the public will feel included in selecting who is in charge of their arm forces, financial and economical institutions; and 2—the records of those seeking election will be examined with all the expandable energy available in political campaigns.

Mr. Speaker, please note, you are an elected official and besides comforting words, you have not significantly taken major steps to stabilize the Federal Government or pass constructive legislations while on Somali soil. We demand that you urgently a) plant the seeds to safeguard the country and people from blind Federal Ministries, b) set up the two party system, c) carryout the election process for all the local governments in non-Puntland and non-Somaliland territories, and d) clearly spell-out the difference between the State, Local and Federal governments and jurisdictions.

Lastly, Mr. Speaker, the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, and/or any member of the TFG in Jowhar does not decapitate the TFG. Remember, Mr. Speaker, the fall of the TNG under the leadership of Mr. President Abdiqasim and Prime Minister Galeyr started as soon as they moved into Muqadisho. Had they remained in Baidoa as was agreed, they could have been able to live to a mature and a productive government.

Now, why is that you are in such a rush to force the TFG to choke with Muqadisho at its throat? If anyone’s response is that the TNG was worried the Ethiopia government would have attacked, I doubt that is a valid reason or an act that would have been carried out by the Ethiopian government in a direct-to-direct conflict. Now, no one, especially Ethiopia, is interested in attacking the TFG in Jowhar or Muqadisho, and therefore there is no reason to rush the TFG members in Jowhar to move to Muqadisho. Besides, Jowhar is part of the Federal State, and therefore, since the Federal government is the sole authority over the Federal Republic, there should be no issue over the presence of the TFG in Jowhar, temporarily. However, if you are determined to use the Muqadisho issue as a smoke screen to any lack of ability to get the Federal Parliament to be an active and effective body of the TFG inside Muqadisho, then, I think time may not be on your side. Besides, if Muqadisho has not conformed to your request since you are the real legislative power of the Federal Republic, what makes you think it will conform to the wishes of the President who has many political foes inside Muqadisho, some of them religious fanatics rather than religious scholars? Have you ever wondered why there exist so many armed factions in Muqadisho, some of them current members of the TFG? Reason: Because not a single one of them could manage to rule over all the others. Now, until discoveries such as the ones I suggest in this document are made, and implemented, what makes you think the TFG can peacefully operate out of Muqadisho?

With some ministries speaking out of “imminent attacks on Jowhar if the President lands there”, as was done by Mr. Qanyare Afrah while the PR was visiting Puntland, and the most resent act of Balcad where Mr. Qanyare spoke against the government, insisting he is ready to use force and wants to use force as a means to resolving differences of views, what makes you think, the armed factions in Muqadisho are people of reasonable minds? And what assurances can you give the President that people like Qanyare won’t attack him if he relocates to Muqadisho now?

While you insist ‘no force should be used against the armed populations of Muqadisho’, and you can’t insure the safety of the un-armed Executive branch of the TFG, you insist every one must come to Muqadisho. How? Or even sounder, what is your contribution to the effort to bring the Executive branch of the TFG to Muqadisho where it wouldn’t be forced to use force to disarm the armed factions? And what is it that you couldn’t do in Muqadisho that the Executive Branch could do in Muqadisho? Use force against the armed factions?

Arte Moalin III

E-mail: carte@core.com

The opinions contained in this article are solely those of the writer, and in no way, form or shape represent the editorial opinions of "the Center for Peace and Democracy in Somalia (CPD)"

Conspirators and Co-conspirators of the Indigenous People

2005-10-31T16:24:00.000+03:00

Most Somalis started noticing a lot about the ongoing plans or acts of authorizing or giving land rights to foreign petroleum and mining companies. Somalis also started noticing a growing interest of the foreign petroleum and mining companies in many parts of Somalia.

As the Puntaland officials did for their people, the purpose of my paper is to defend the environmental and human rights of the Digil & Mirifle communities. Because the prime minister and his co-conspirators consider that the mineral resources within its territory to be automatically governmentally owned, the idea of special rights and reparations for local communities are alien to it. Digil & Mirifle lands especially Digil, Bantu, Banaderi, Barawe, and Bajuni lands have been important to many other Somali tribes and warlords for two reasons: firstly, it has been termed the breadbasket of Rivers State, a major food producing area, and secondly, since the Italian colony it has been the source of more than billions of bananas, vital to Somali economy.

As it was recently reported by many thoughtful Somali statesmen, that there were a number of meetings in Nairobi hotels between the prime minister and interesting third parties that want to obtain land rights in Somalia. It was reported some of these third parties presented a map of Somalia with a big highlights of the areas of interest for possible mining operations.

These highlighted areas include mostly Puntaland and Digil lands of southern Somalia. Couple weeks after this alleged meeting took place, the prime minister’s inner-clan members and with the help of the co-conspirators (Indho Cadde) attacked and massacred the people of Heejo Mahaad and Kunyo Barrow, this conspiracy is now given the code name of (Baro-kicis).

The architectures of these conspiracies simply planed to attack the indigenous people of the above-mentioned areas and make them run and become refugees in other areas, so that the mining permission is given without the interference of the landowners. This was proofed by the silence of the so-called Somali government as well as the great interest that the prime minister has shown for Somali petroleum and mining deals. Well, this paper briefly discusses the ongoing conspiracies and the secret plans of the unlawful act against the indigenous people of the Digil & Mirifle, Banadiris, Bantus, Bajunis, and Barawanis.

It is clear that most of the Somali tribes are equally united on taking the lands of the indigenous people that belong the lands between the rivers of Juba and Shabelle, and the prime minister has same or similar view with these united tribes. Many more Somali tribes are made to believe that their sole existence depends on this unprotected wealth of agricultural lands of southern Somalia. Evidences that support this theory have been collected and many more are gathered in every minute of the hour.

If one pays attention into the activities of the prime minister, it will take no more than a minute to notice the conspiracies are planned to be committed against the people of Somalia. It is not obvious of who authorized the conspiracies? Why do many these opposing sides (including some of the Digil & Mirifle parliamentarians) participate in, authorize, or accept the conspiracies?

But it is obvious that these conspirators and co-conspirators share same vision and interest for power, control, domination, wealth, and their desire for the fertile and agricultural lands of Digil & Mirifle. Although they have different agendas and interest; the conspirator’s number one agenda is to gain power and control of Somalia, and they know that the power rests to the controller of the agricultural lands of the southern Somalia.

The prime minister is striving to gain power and control for his tribe, while the other conspirators want establish illegal and forced Islamic rule or government, so that they could win the hearts of the rich Arab Islamic fundamentalists by using their well known and planned techniques of engaging illegal or drug businesses, same as Talibans and other fundamentalists do.

The UN recently confirmed and reported that Indho Cadde has drug manufacturing plantations in southern Somali especially Digil lands. On the other side, the prime minister wants to gain mining deals so that he could become like Charles Taylor and many others who use diamonds to invest their struggle of becoming strongest warlord and dominant leader or accomplish domination power for his tribe.

I want to give a chance to my fallow Somalis to farther examine the underlying uniting factor or the shared vision of the conspirators (Mr. Prime Minister) and co-conspirators (Sheikh Awes, Indho Cadde, Qanyare, Sharif Hasan and etc). But for now, I want to remind those so-called tribal leaders and warlords that they are world’s greatest mass murders and the only barbaric leaders of the world today, that they carry enormous weight in decisions that they make to send their militias and tribal members into harms ways of taking up other people’s lands in the processes of gaining power, control, and domination over other tribes; the world is watching and history is recording your evil intentions.

I would humbly ask them, is this better way to watch your sons die, while the other sons are learning? Must countless millions of innocent lives be lost and the aim or the real result of this war never addressed or discussed?

The giant tribes, warriors, empires and mass murders existed yesterday; do not exist today, one must ask why? Because, Allah made and set rules, sent massagers to inform mankind about the rules, and has angels that enforce these divine rules. As the previous generations, warriors, and powerful tribes violated the divine rules of God, there was their fall. The weapons of war (teknicas and barons) have never kept transgressors like (Indho Cadde, Muse Sudi etc) from falling.

Look at Zulu tribes, pharaoh, Babylon, and Romans, back then they were the great warriors of the time, they took lands and violated God’s rule, thus they couldn’t escape that history with their power and weapons because there are no weapons and power greater than the power of Allah, and the law of justice that follows every action.

Finally, this paper serves as a warning to the foreign companies that are interested in investing mineral and petroleum deals in Somalia, especially southern part of Somali between the rivers of Juba and Shabelle. Foreign companies and other parties should not explore minerals and oil in the above-mentioned regions of Somali without consulting or compensating the indigenous people/landowners in any way. The Bantus, Banaderi, Barawanis, and Bajuni people are minority tribes, and thus have little political power, since the Somali constitution does not protect minority interests.

They have no mineral rights to their lands, since all mineral rights are forcefully and illegally owned by the state. They are expected to be passive victims when oil spills, blowouts, and invasive pipe laying cause environmental damage. Foreign companies who are interesting in mineral deals in Somalia should not hide behind the dictatorial thugs, and turn a blind eye to the damages and the serious human rights abuses that are caused by these warlords and their militias against the peace-loving people of the land.

“I submit that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.”--Martin Luther King Jr.

Written by: Sakhawadin Mustafa

North Dakota State University

E-mail: jubaland25@yahoo.com

Five Minutes of Prayers for the Oppressed People of Somalia

2005-10-31T16:19:00.000+03:00

This is an appeal for all peace loving Somalis; for those who care about the wellbeing of humanity; for those who hate injustice and for those who understand that freedom and justice are the two major pre-requisite for the development of any society. Now that we are approaching the last days of Ramadan, I am asking all of you to perform five minutes of prayers to remember the oppressed ones in our society; those labeled by the oppressors as LOOMA OOYO.

As we speak, there is a Somali from the Jareer community who is denied his paycheck after many days of hardworking. As we speak, there is a Banaadiri man whose tools and instruments used for making films are confiscated by an errant decision from a clan-based so-called Islamic court. As we speak, there is a Somali-woman from a minority clan who is raped in the presence of her husband and children. As we speak, there are Reer-Manyo, Bravanese and Baajuni fishermen in Mogadishu, lower Shabelle and Kismayu who are forced to work in fishing boats belonging to an oppressor.

As we speak there are Somalis in Afgoi, Golweyne, Janale, etc. forced to work in a farm with a minimum or no wage. As we speak there are hundreds of thousands Somalis in Benadir, lower Shabelle and Jubba forced to pay illegal taxes for any trivial item they bring for sale. As we speak there are many who are killed for no reason and many orphans left behind with no future.

Imagine you are five years old, and both your parents are killed in front of you, because a group of aggressive people want to takeover the piece of land your parents lived for generations and generations. Imagine, you are seven years old orphan girl sold as a slave to another family who don’t care about you and you have no one around to protect you. These are all facts that happened and still happening in the Southern Somalia.

For those of us in Diaspora who have the freedom to speak out and express ourselves with no fear to be retaliated, please join me to be the voice of those voiceless in our community. It is a religious and moral responsibility to speak out against injustice and evildoers. Let us show our compassionate and speak out against the oppression of Somali people in Benadirland, Somaliland, Puntland, Hiiraanland, Lower Shabelle and Jubba, Gedo, Bay and Bakool and elsewhere in Somalia.

I am asking five minutes of your time to think about the chilling events that we hear daily from a friend or read in the Somali media. I am asking five minutes of prayers in all Somali mosques in North America, Europe and Somalia to remember those of us who are exposed daily to cruel punishments and for those who died and killed for no reason. Let us remember them, let us tell them that our minds and hearts are with them. Let us assure them that we UNITED for JUSTICE can make big changes in their lives. Let us remember and express again our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of our hero Abdulkadir Yahye who was brutally killed by the enemy of peace in Somalia just a couple of months ago.

Let us pray for Mr. Sheikh Yusuf Indha Cadde, the newly crowned warlord and the so-called governor of Lower Shabelle who is now performing UMRA in Saudi Arabia to abandon his illegal administration; an administration that is leading to an economical genocide and an environmental catastrophe in Lower Shabelle.

Mr. Indha Cadde whose illegal administration is literally sucking the blood of poor Somalis is now performing religious duty some thousands of kilometers away from home. Let us just hope and pray for him to desert his ill-doings. It will be a major concern if he believes that his illegal administration is performing good deeds to the natives of Merka and lower Shabelle because that will alter any hope for a better change for the lives of the people in that region in the near future. Let us also pray for his servicemen and wish them to abandon serving his illegal activities.

Let us pray for BBC servicemen and clan based web-pages to abandon divulging clan propaganda and inciting emotional members of their clan for a war.

Most of us spend our time everyday to discuss who is right and who is wrong among the two opposing groups of the TFG in Somalia, but never spent a minute to think about the suffering of a great majority of our community members in Somalia.

Many of you might not like to be reminded about these facts because merely your objections are clan-based and incoherent. Time has come to wake up and call for justice in all the corners of Somalia. We should not be fooled by the criminal warlords; they represent nobody, but themselves. We ought to be realistic that peace will only be achieved if we stop supporting criminal elements in our society. The success of any government will depend on seriously addressing problems such as regional autonomy/federalism, the return of illegally acquired land and property and addressing human rights issues.

Somalis need to learn more to accept the diversity of cultural differences, which exist in a pluralistic society and endorse a society in which individuals of all cultures are accepted. This encourages a positive acceptance of tribal difference, cultures, and religious and recognizes such diversity as healthy.

The oppressed people of Somalia have indeed suffered for 15-years. They have been dispossessed and expelled; living under vicious rules for the past 15 years, without human rights, without civil rights, with even their own land and property taken from them, and with clan militiaman shooting at them at will. This has to stop once for all. Enough is enough. Let us unite to fight against injustice and be a voice for the voiceless in our community.

Best regards,
Dr. Ali Said Faqi

Email: Alifaqi@yahoo.com

Somali warlords threaten to shoot down planes

2005-10-31T16:16:00.000+03:00

Warlords in control of the lawless Somali capital threatened on Friday to shoot down planes that obey a new directive from the war-shattered nation's transitional government not to use airports they run.

Mogadishu warlord Musa Sudi Yalahow, who serves as trade minister in the splintered administration, said the bar on flights into the airstrips was an illegal attempt by embattled President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed to undermine his foes."This is aimed at undermining Mogadishu," he said.

"Any plane which diverts its flight because of this announcement will be punished. Our anti-aircraft weapons will not be silent and any plane that undermines it will be downed.""This is not to attack anybody, but is aimed at protecting the value of the Somali capital and to protect the interests of the people," said Yalahow, who added he spoke on behalf of other Mogadishu-based warlords opposed to Yusuf.

He did not explain how they would shoot down aircraft that avoided the territory they controlled.The threat came after Yusuf's faction of the government -- which is based in Jowhar, about 90km north of the capital, for security reasons -- announced it would no longer allow flights into two warlord-controlled airports.The ban affects Mogadishu's Daynile airport on the outskirts of the capital and the El-Ahmed airport in Merka about 100km south and takes effect on November 1, officials said.The transport ministry, under control of Yusuf's allies, said it had taken the move as part of efforts to boost the penniless government's near-non-existent tax base, as revenue from the airstrips in question currently goes to warlords.

"The ministry of transport has ordered flights not to land at the Daynile and El-Ahmed airports," it said in a statement released in Jowhar and sent to authorities in neighbouring countries."Instead, flights will be diverted to other airstrips at which the government is able to collect tax," it said.An official in Jowhar said the notice had been sent to civil aviation authorities in Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Yemen and United Arab Emirates from where most flights into Daynile and El-Ahmed depart.The official said the five other nations had agreed to enforce the ban as part of a broader package of measures aimed at strengthening the fledgling government.

Somalia has been without a functioning central administration since the 1991 ousting of strongman Mohamed Siad Barre.Yusuf's government is the latest in more than a dozen attempts to restore stability to the nation, but a dispute over the seat of the administration has left it virtually powerless.

Source: Mail & Guardian Online

InterWorld Radio News Bulletin

2005-10-31T16:10:00.000+03:00

India has launched a hunt for the attackers who killed at least 60 people in a series of bomb blasts in the Capital Delhi on Saturday. The three blasts came within minutes of each other on Saturday night, when many people were out shopping ahead of Diwali and Eid. A little-known group called Inqilabi, thought to have links with Muslim militants operating in Kashmir, has said it carried out the attacks. The claims are yet to be verified. India is home to a huge variety of militant groups, some with very localised campaigns of violence.

Three girls have been beheaded and another badly injured on their way to school in central Indonesia on Saturday. The teenagers were walking to their Christian school near the town of Poso, in Sulawesi province, when their unidentified assailants struck. The girl who survived the attack is reported to be in a stable condition. The area has a long history of violence between Muslims and Christians. Central Sulawesi and Poso in particular was the scene of bitter fighting between Muslims and Christians in 2001 and 2002.

A Roman Catholic priest accused of four counts of genocide in Rwanda is due to start his defence at the war crimes tribunal in Tanzania. Father Athanase Seromba denies telling some 2,000 ethnic Tutsis to seek shelter in a church and then ordering its destruction. Father Seromba’s trial began in September 2004. He was the first Catholic priest to go on trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in the 1994 killings.

Human Rights Watch has accused Côte d'Ivoire of recruiting former child soldiers and other fighters from war-ruined Liberia. 19 ex-combatants including three children from Liberia's 1989-2003 civil war, told the international rights group how they had been offered hundreds of dollars and clothing by recruiters, to cross into the neighbouring country to bolster their army. Ivory Coast has been in turmoil since rebels seized the north in 2002. Widespread fighting ended in early 2004 when a peace deal was struck, but few of the pact's tenets have been put into place and the country remains divided. The Ivorian government has denied Human Right Watch's allegations.

Warlords in control of the lawless Somali capital have threatened to shoot down planes they believe to have been redirected away from their airstrips. The Prime Minister of the nation's transitional government, Ali Mohammed Ghedi, ordered the closure of airtrips controlled by the warlords, in an attempt to bring law and order to Somalia. Somali warlord Musa Sudi Yalahow said the ban was an illegal attempt by the Prime Minister to undermine his enemies. The airstrips have been an important source of revenue for warlords since the central government collapsed in 1991. Some 10 plane loads of the mild narcotic leaf, khat, arrive in Mogadishu every day.

Mozambique has become the latest African country to announce a ban on poultry imports from European countries that have reported cases of the bird flu virus. The ban comes amid fears that the H5N1 virus could spread to Africa from Europe as birds migrate. The move follows similar measures taken by Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia to prevent the spread of the virus from affected countries. Recent cases of the deadly strain of avian flu have emerged in birds in Croatia, Romania, Turkey and Russia. No human cases have been reported in Europe.

---------------- END OF BULLETIN ------------------

George W Bush: home alone

2005-10-28T16:06:00.000+03:00

The Bush administration’s degradation of American politics can be measured in the judgment of former senior Republican colleagues, writes Sidney Blumenthal.

There is no one left to rescue the Republican Party from George W Bush. He is home alone. The Republican establishment wise men whose words were once quiet commands are shouting unheeded warnings. The Republican leaders of Congress are distracted and obsessed with their own crises of corruption.

Suspended House of Representative majority leader Tom DeLay is under indictment for criminal campaign practices while Senate majority leader Bill Frist is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission for insider stock trading in his family-owned Hospital Corporation of America.

The only revolt brewing in the Senate is on the right against President Bush's nomination of his White House legal counsel, Harriet Miers, to the Supreme Court; some Republican senators fear

her potential for secret liberal heresy despite the president's protestations of her conservative purity.

On 7 August 1974, three Republican leaders of Congress made a fateful journey down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House. Senator Barry Goldwater, tribune of the conservative movement; Senator Hugh Scott, the stalwart minority leader from Pennsylvania; and Representative John Rhodes, the minority leader in the House, informed President Richard Nixon that as a result of the Watergate scandals he must resign the presidency in the interest of the country and the Republican Party. Two days later, Nixon quit.

On 25 November 1986, Attorney-General Edwin Meese announced at a White House press conference that tens of millions of dollars from illegal sales of weapons to Iran had been siphoned to Contra guerrillas in Nicaragua by a far-flung conspiracy centred in the National Security Council. National Security Advisor John Poindexter immediately resigned and NSC military aide Oliver North was fired.

Within the next month, President Reagan's popularity rating had collapsed from 67% to 46%; it did not recover until a year and a half later, in May 1988, when he negotiated an arms-control treaty with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and travelled to Moscow to declare the cold war over. After the revelation of the Iran-Contra scandal, Reagan purged his administration of rightwingers, and neo-conservatives in particular. The Republican establishment in all its aspects took control.

Former Senator Howard Baker, who had been the Republican leader at the Watergate hearings, became White House chief of staff; Colin Powell was named national security advisor; neocon protector and Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger was forced out and replaced by pragmatic bureaucratic player Frank Carlucci; and Secretary of State George Shultz was given charge of foreign policy in order to negotiate terms with Gorbachev.

The storm enveloping President Bush is a consequence of his adoption of the vicious smear tactics of the Nixon political operation, learned there by Karl Rove, who was called as a witness to testify about them before the Watergate inquiry, and of Bush's elevation to power of the neo-conservatives removed by Reagan and excluded from office by Bush's father. Bush is haunted by the history he insisted on defying.

The elements of the Republican establishment that Bush brought into his first administration as a sort of symbolic tribute were gone by his second. By their nature, these people are discreet, measured and private. It is not their impulse to voice disagreement in public. Their sweeping and emotional jeremiads against what Bush has wrought are extraordinary not only in their substance but in having been made at all. Those expressing their disquiet about Bush are more than simply losers in bureaucratic struggles for primacy of place. Once representative of the heart and soul of the Grand Old Party, they are historical castaways. They stand for another Republican party that has been supplanted by Bush's version.

Another Republican party

Paul O’Neill the former CEO of Alcoa, was shocked at the degradation of policymaking he witnessed as Bush's first secretary of the treasury. He had anticipated that the councils of government under Bush would be no different from those he had experienced as an economic aide under Nixon.

Nixon had rigorously insisted on objective analysis, hearing all sides and considering all options. In cabinet meetings Bush, O'Neill wrote in his memoir, The Price of Loyalty, was like "a blind man in a roomful of deaf people." The White House struck back at O'Neill by falsely charging him with leaking classified materials and subjecting him to an investigation, which had the desired effect of silencing him. In retrospect, the accusation of leaking classified information can only appear ironic.
Christine Todd Whitman, former Republican governor of New Jersey, was stunned by her denigration and the suppression of science when she was Bush's first director of the Environmental Protection Agency. After her resignation, she compared Bush unfavourably to Reagan, who, she said, "didn't reach out in a way that indicated that there was no room for others." Whitman's book, It's My Party, Too, was a meek plea for attention from the "social fundamentalists" she claimed had seized control of the family firm. She would not name names, as though she might have another go at riding the tiger that had already devoured her.

John Danforth, for eighteen years a US senator from Missouri, served briefly before resigning as Bush's ambassador to the United Nations. He did not stipulate the reasons for his departure, but he did publish an op-ed piece in the New York Times on 30 March 2005 decrying how "Republicans have transformed our party into the political arm of conservative Christians."

The GOP, he wrote, has become "a party that has gone so far in adopting a sectarian agenda that it has become the political extension of a religious movement." Danforth, an old friend of George H.W Bush's, lamented the loss of the party's heritage: "Our current fixation on a religious agenda has turned us in the wrong direction. It is time for Republicans to rediscover our roots." Danforth was replaced at the UN not with a believer in old-fashioned bipartisan internationalism but with John Bolton.

Lawrence Wilkerson, the former head of the Marine War College who had served as chief-of-staff to former Secretary of State Colin Powell, revealed the inner struggles of the Bush administration in a speech before the New America Foundation on 19 October.

In it, Wilkerson said that a "Cheney-Rumsfeld cabal" ran US foreign policy for a president "not versed in international relations and not too much interested." Wilkerson defined the Bush doctrine as "cowboyism." Condoleezza Rice as national security advisor was "extremely weak" and more interested in "her intimacy with the president" than in acting as an honest broker. Cleaning up after Bush's tarnishing of America's image in the world was an impossible task. "It's hard to sell shit," said Wilkerson.

Powell, Wilkerson's principal, has remained publicly quiet since his September outburst, in which he said that his speech before the United Nations arguing the case for the existence of weapons of mass destruction and an invasion of Iraq, which subsequently was revealed to be filled with disinformation, was a "blot" on his record and continues to be "painful now."

Behind the scenes, however, Powell has been active in countering the Bush torture policy, which he opposed from the beginning. Powell sent personal letters and made telephone calls to Republican senators urging them to support the amendment to the military appropriations bill that would end the torture policy. As a result of Powell's lobbying, ninety senators voted for it. It was a stinging rebuke to Bush, who has threatened to veto the entire military appropriations package if the amendment is attached.

Brent Scowcroft, perhaps more than anyone else, personifies the realist, bipartisan Republican tradition of internationalism. He is also the former national security advisor to the elder Bush and among his closest friends. President Bush dismissed him early this year from the foreign intelligence advisory board, having ignored his advice through the first term.

Scowcroft's candid views appear in an article in the current issue of the New Yorker, in which he details his rejection by Bush at length. "I don't want to go there," Scowcroft replied when asked about the difference between the father and son. He said dismissively of the Iraq policies of a leading neo-conservative, former Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz: "He's got a utopia out there." On Cheney, Scowcroft sounded perplexed: "The real anomaly in the administration is Cheney. I consider Cheney a good friend – I’ve known him for thirty years. But Dick Cheney I don't know anymore."

But Scowcroft the foreign-policy mandarin may not have been exposed to the partisan Cheney when he served as secretary of defense in the administration of Bush Sr. He may have missed Cheney's tenure as a representative in the House leadership, where he compiled a far-right voting record and, as House minority whip during the 1980s, was the hidden hand behind the rise of the Newt Gingrich and his band of radicals.

When he was slated to be Bush's running mate, it was widely assumed that Cheney would act as a stabilising and moderating presence. Only those who understood his congressional career knew of his affinities with the radical right, his vengeful instincts and his mean-spiritedness. His emergence at the centre of the "cabal" now under investigation by special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald should not surprise those who have penetrated his avuncular image to see the hard man beneath. Cheney was not the substitute father figure but the false father.

Bush's highhanded treatment of the few Republican moderates of his first term all but eviscerated what was left of the establishment that once controlled the party. The story of the old party's fall from grace and Bush's part in it is a well-known Bildungsroman, a family saga that begins with the father.

A family affair

The son of Prescott Bush, a patrician moderate Republican senator from Connecticut and a Wall Street investment banker, George HW Bush travelled to Texas to make his fortune in the wildcat oil industry. He was hardly a roaring success, but he took up his father's line of work, getting elected to the House from suburban Houston.

It was then that he opened the negotiations of his Faustian bargain. His father had been the head of the United Negro College Fund; he and his wife were prominent members of the local chapter of Planned Parenthood. But George Bush Sr, seeking political advantage in Texas, declared his opposition to the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Bush spent the next decade advancing himself as a consummate Republican loyalist in positions ranging from chairman of the Republican National Committee under Nixon to Gerald Ford's CIA director and United Nations ambassador. After losing the Republican presidential nomination to Ronald Reagan in 1980, he swallowed his criticism of Reagan's supply-side nostrums as "voodoo economics" when he became his running mate.

The Faustian negotiations deepened. In 1988, he ran for president as Reagan's anointed successor. Faltering on his own, with unenthusiastic backing from Reagan's evangelical supporters, he ran a series of nativist and racially charged attacks on his Democratic opponent. Bush won that election with the rightwing Republican base voting for him but still doubtful of his authenticity. As president his compromises on taxation and realism in foreign policy led to their open disillusionment.

His son George lost his first campaign for the House from Texas, tainted by association with his father, who was tarnished by the right as a member of the Trilateral Commission international conspiracy. From then on, Bush was never outmanoeuvred on his right flank. His political field-marshal, Karl Rove, managed the rightwing for his benefit. The Faustian bargain of the father became business as usual for the son.

Now the old establishment is faded. Its remnants largely consist of his father's superannuated retinue. Not even the old Texas establishment in the person of James A Baker III, Bush's father's field marshal and the former secretary of state (among his many official posts), who managed the Florida contest that gave the presidency to the son, is welcome in this White House.

The Republican Party after Bush, minus its traditional establishment, threatens to become the party of its irreducible base, the party of the old Confederacy and the sparsely populated Rocky Mountain states. But this base, however loyal and obsequious to Bush, regardless of any crisis, does not offer statesmen to step in to handle his shaken White House.

A sharp reversal of policy and turnover in personnel are the only actions that may enable Bush to salvage the shipwreck of his presidency, as they did for Reagan. But bringing in the elders, even if they could be summoned, would be psychologically devastating to Bush, a humiliating admission that his long history of recklessness and failure – from the Texas Air National Guard to Harken Energy, with rescue only through the intervention of his father and his father's friends – has reached

its culmination.

Human Rights Watch honors human rights defenders

2005-10-27T07:38:00.000+03:00

Efforts of Iran, Sudan and Uganda Activists Recognized

(New York, October 27, 2005) — Human Rights Watch’s highest honor in 2005, the Human Rights Defender Award, will go to three courageous human rights activists from around the globe whose efforts illustrate major human rights challenges in the world today.

The three honorees for this year illustrate the limits of freedom of _expression in the Middle East, the massive “ethnic cleansing” and injustice in Darfur, Sudan, and the plight of HIV/AIDS affected women in Africa. Human Rights Watch’s global rights defender awardees for 2005 are:

* Omid Memarian, a journalist and web-blogger from Iran,
* Salih Mahmoud Osman, a lawyer and human rights activist from Darfur, and
* Beatrice Were, an advocate for the rights of women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Uganda.

“Our 2005 honorees exemplify the highest ideals of the human rights cause—courage, objectivity, and an unflinching commitment to justice,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “They work relentlessly, often in dangerous environments, to bring abuses to light and to fight to preserve human rights in their regions.”

Human Rights Watch staff work closely with the Human Rights Defenders as part of our human rights investigations in more than 70 countries around the world. The 2005 Human Rights Watch Annual Dinners where the defenders will be honored will take place in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Chicago and Toronto. “All three of this year’s honorees send a powerful message to governments that serious human right violations must end,” said Roth. “They are an inspiration to all of us.”

Background on the 2005 Human Rights Watch Honorees: Beatrice Were, Uganda Beatrice Were is a leading Ugandan advocate for the rights of women and children affected by HIV/AIDS. One of the first Ugandan women to openly declare her HIV status, Ms. Were founded a grass-roots support organization, the National Community of Women Living with AIDS.

After she lost her husband to HIV/AIDS in 1991, Ms. Were gained first-hand knowledge of the problems of a widow living with AIDS. Having almost lost her property and children to her husband’s family, she became an activist to prevent other women suffering from this fate. Ms. Were also established the Memory Book project to help mothers with AIDS prepare their children for orphan-hood by recording family memories and talking openly about their HIV status. Ms. Were is a strong critic of U.S.-funded “abstinence-until-marriage” programs which censor factual and sexually explicit HIV/AIDS information for young people.

More information can be found at http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/10/25/uganda11920.htm Omid Memarian, Iran Omid Memarian belongs to a new generation of human rights activists who creatively challenge political repression through the internet. He is a journalist, a web-blogger, and a civil society activist who has pushed the limits of freedom of _expression in Iran by using the internet, and who has been persecuted for his efforts. Mr. Memarian worked as a journalist in Iran for reformist newspapers until the Iranian government shut down these papers. He was arrested because of his defense of human rights in October 2004 and put in solitary confinement where he was tortured repeatedly and forced to make false confessions.

Following protests from the international community, including Human Rights Watch, Mr. Memarian was released in December 2004. Mr. Memarian has worked with Human Rights Watch online to expose arbitrary detentions, torture and mistreatment of prisoners in Iran.

More information can be found at http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/10/26/iran11923.htm Salih Mahmoud Osman, Sudan Salih Mahmoud Osman is a Darfur-based lawyer who works with the Sudan Organization Against Torture (SOAT) to contest torture and arbitrary detention. For twenty years he has defended and given free legal aid to Sudanese of all ethnicities and political stances, including those who have been persecuted by the government.

Mr. Osman was arrested and detained without charge or trial for seven months in 2004 by Sudanese security forces. He was released after going on a hunger strike. Mr. Osman continues to defend civil and political rights in Darfur and Khartoum, Sudan. In investigating ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity in Darfur, Human Rights Watch worked closely with Mr. Osman, who took on this work at great personal risk to himself and his family.

More information can be found at http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/10/25/sudan11919.htm

Human Rights Watch Press release