What could have been done and what could be done, a question the politicians have to discuss and find answers.
It is very sad to hear two more Somali youth are killed in Calgary. Whether this is a new trend we will wait and see. I hope and pray that it is not a new trend and the killing field has not moved from Edmonton to Calgary. I do know what to attribute this to. One thing I know for sure the Edmonton Police Service are doing an excellent job, thanks to ex-mayor Stephen Mandel and Don Iveson the current mayor. They tackled the problem head on and with the co-operation of the Somali community in Edmonton and Edmonton Police Services have studied and spent a lot of resources to understand the root causes of the problem and in the process devised and implemented the necessary programs which are now working in Edmonton. Why Calgary did not set up similar programs I do not know, maybe they did, and this a fluke incident. If they thought that will not happen in their city and the issue is confined to Edmonton, I categorically say they are wrong and they better look at it again. Unfortunately this problem is not local to one place, the problem propagates from one city to another, for example Toronto to Edmonton to Calgary to god knows where else. Without co-operation between provinces, the problem will always follow people’s movement. I hope the mayor of Calgary and the Police Service will talk to their counter parts in Edmonton and learn as much as they can.
Perhaps since Edmonton is the capital of Alberta they are more sensitive to the problem in order not to tarnish their image and did not want to be called murder capital of Canada. I know the majority of the people who were killed have moved from Ontario following the Canadian dream unfortunately they ended up six foot under the ground and left mothers, wives, sons and daughters grieving and their dreams are shattered.
The number of Somali youth who lost their lives in Alberta has exceeded fifty not including the last two.If such a number of dogs or cats or horses were killed in the same period, I am hundred percent sure the province and the public at large would have voiced their concern and the provincial government would have done something. I am not sarcastic or vicious but honestly that is my gut feeling. I remember very well when about thirty native women were killed not too long in Alberta the public was so out raged the provincial government set up a task force to look into it. The same thing should have been done in the case of Somali youth. I am not only blaming the governing party alone, the opposition parties or whatever is left of them have not addressed this issue in the question period.
My friends and other people I know always ask me whenever there is a Somali youth killing report in the media, what is going on in the Somali community, why are they killing each other. I try to explain to the best I can and honestly I tell them I do not have the answers to these questions and I assure them ninety percent of the Somali community are decent, honest hard working people. We always hear in the media that the incidents are drug related and these are gangs who are fighting over turf or territory. I do not know and I not want to guess. All I know for sure is no body has to die for bad behavior after all we do not hang our criminals in Canada any more no matter how heinous their crimes are. There are a lot members of our society who under take worse things. No life is expendable especially at a young age when their whole future is a head of them. What they need is direction, rehabilitation and counseling.
I would like to remind the politicians that Somalis do vote. They may not have a voice in then current political circles, but in the last municipal election there were two candidates from the Somali community running for council in Edmonton. They did not win seats and I do not how many votes they got together.
There are a lot more Somalis who are not yet voting age, but it will not be long before they will vote.
Mohamoud.I.Jama
Edmonton Alberta
Canada
E-mail: mohamoud.h.jama@gmail.com
