Saturday, October 26, 2024
Facebook Instagram Twitter
Home Blog Page 808

Somalia:“Buffer zone” or suppression and massacre zone

By
Staff
-
0

It’s obvious that the independence of Somalia in 1960 created instability and chaos in Horn of Africa and whole East African region, because of the rough and arrogant policies adopted by the Somali leaders.
Having problems at home including clan worshipping, high rate of illiteracy, racial discrimination and backwardness, the first Somali government instead chose to pursue a dream known as “greater Somalia”, in which it had claimed territories in the neighbouring countries, Kenya and Somalia.
The dirty policies and the crazy dream plunged the country into brutal civil war and endless political turmoil.
Somali leadership in 1960
Soon after the independence clan-based power struggle erupted among the so-called Somali leaders on how to share country’s political posts. The dispute ended with some clans awarding themselves high portfolios without considering education background, experience or skills, but just because they belonged to certain clans. This formula gave an opportunity to several illiterate Somalis who served as Italian houseboys to became ministers or high ranking officials in the government.
Apartheid policy and discrimination
In line with the “greater Somalia” policy the government of Somalia had in 1960 adopted a secret policy of persecuting people of Bantu origins in Somalia. But the ultimate target was the Swahili speaking Bantus in Jubba regions, who were seen as a threat by the government, just because they speak the language of the “enemy” and have blood relationship with Kenya and other African countries. Somalis refer everyone with kinky hair and big nose as slave or “addoon” in Somali language. Almost every Somali still use this word “addoon” to refer Kenyans, Tanzanians, Burundians, Ugandans, Ethiopians and others.
The government has never allowed the international community to visit the areas inhabited by Wagosha people. A former Tanzania minister, Hasan Dyamwale was among the foreign officials who got into trouble by asking the condition of the Bantu people in southern Somalia. Dyamwale was in the Tanzanian delegation that visited Somalia in 1970ties to attend African youths games in Mogadishu and he received harsh response from Somali officials, when he asked a permission to visit the Swahili speakers’ areas in southern Somalia.
The government also ensured that the history of Goshaland is falsified with the intention of removing any sign of Swahili history in Somalia.
Resettlement of refugees
By nature Somalis are not law-abiding people, one of the major factor that caused the country to remain unstable and in chaos. Despite the Organization of African Unity treaty of recognizing the borders left by the colonial powers in the continent, Somalia ignored and refused to sign the deal. The government carried a mass campaign of calling Somalis in Kenya and Ethiopia to come to Somalia and resettle, since they are under what the Somali government called as slave powers, referring Ethiopia and Kenya.
Government funds were used to bring these people to Somalia and settle them in different Somali regions, such as Hargeysa, Hiiraan, Jubba regions and others, while the genuine Somali citizens were suffering. These refugees were also allowed to join Somali politics and served as ministers and military commanders as well. Notable figures in this group are:
Adan Abdulahi Nur (Gabyow) , who defected from Kenyan forces and joined Somali Armed Forces. He became Somalia’s defence minister in 1980ties and later formed clan rebellion against Mohamed Siad Barre.
Mohamed Omar Jes, from Ethiopia who served as minister in 1970ties till he died in 1987.
Col Ahmad Omar Jes, from Ethiopia, military commander who later on joined rebel groups that ousted Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Jes was among the most notorious warlords in southern Somalia, and is currently serving as a parliamentarian in Somalia’s TFG.
Mohamed Omar Osman, from Ethiopia who served as Somalia’s Navy Forces Commander. After the collapse of Somali state he went to Ethiopia to form Ogaden National Liberation Front, that is currently fighting against Addis Ababa administration and causing instability in the whole region.
Others include, General Adan Abdi Duale (former police chief) several ministers and parliamentarians in current Somali Transitional Government, and Mohamed Abdi Gandi, who claims to be the head of self proclaimed regional administration of Jubba regions in southern Somalia. He has never set a foot in Jubba regions, but intends to go there for the first time with the title of a president.
Massacre in Jubba Regions
While the international community and media highlighted the humanitarian disaster of Bay region, the worst disaster ever witnessed in the Horn of African region was ignored. That disaster hit Jubba regions in southern Somalia and it was against the Wagosha people.
Apart from the previous governments systematic discrimination, harassment and other types of mistreatment against Wagosha people (Bantu and Swahili speakers) in Jubba regions, the Darod clan warlords, who took control of Jubba regions announced along term plan of massacre against the Wagosha people. Brutal and blood-thirsty leaders, like General Mohamed Said Morgan, Adan Abdullahi Nur (Gabyow), Mohamed Abshir Muse, Bashir Bililiqo, Ahmad Omar Jes, Omar Haji Mohamed and several NGO officials who belong to Darod clan orchestrated and implemented the massacre of thousands of Bantu people in Jubba regions. Among the tactics used were to starve people to death, poisoning their crops, using weapons, forcing them to jump into Jubba river and many other brutal actions.
Some of genocide survivors in Jubba region say they saw Kenyan army members of Somali origin taking part in the mass killing and burning villages in Jamaame, Jilib and other areas in Jubba regions. According to the survivors, the Kenyan army were speaking Swahili and English languages, with their vehicles bearing Kenyan plate numbers.
During this massacre the Kenyan forces were under General Mohamud Mohamed, a Kenyan of Somali origin who belongs to Ogaden clan, a sub clan of Darod clan.
Wagosha people in Jubbaland
Since the end of 18th century, there has been a contest for resources and economic control in southern Somalia’s Jubba Regions. The race for resources in these Regions is between various groups with competing economic interests in the area and it is has been increasingly difficult for the original inhabitants to deter these groups from grabbing their land.
History books indicate that the earliest explorers found Wagosha people and Bajuni clans residing along the coastal and the riverine lines of Jubba Regions. As a pure Bantu land with their ancient kingdoms like Shungwaya and Nasib Bundo.
The Wagosha clans that are found in Jubba regions include: Giriama, Sambaa, Digo, Duruma, Wazigua, Rabai, Yao, Nyasa, Makua, Pokomo, Kambe, Chonyi, Jibana, Kauma, Ngindo Ribe and others and all were under the famous and major empire of Shungwaya in Jubbaland, with its headquarters in Kisima-Cha-Juu city, currently known as Kismaayo.
At the turn of 17th century members of these clans faced threat from Arab traders and nomad herders. This forced part of Wagosha people to migrate to Kaya or villages along the ridge behind the Southern Kenya coast.
The last King of Wagosha people was Mfalme Nasib Bundo who was arrested by the Italiand and died in jail in 1918.
Roughly translation of Gosha word is bush and that is why the people in this area are called Wagosha. The Wagosha people who settled in Kenyan coastal towns are known as Nyika, which also means, bush, but later on they chose the name Mijikenda.
The first nomad migrants of Jubba regions are believed to be nomadic communities from western Somalia regions in search of pasture and settled there around 1880 (research by Turton 1970, Dalleo and Little 1992) and settled in Afmadow.
In 1836 hundreds of Bantu families fled from persecution in other parts of Somalia, specially in Lower Shabeelle, Bay and Bakool regions and joined the Wagosha to become members of the large part of Wagosha people or Bantu clan in Jubba regions.
After Somalia attained independence 1960, clans from other parts of the country who were getting support from the government of the day flocked into these areas (look at Bestman’s research in 1994).
people).
Regional administration
According to Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government, the country should adopt regional states or administration, with the consent of the people living in the concerned area. But given the official apartheid system in Somalia, Wagosha people are doubting how this will be implemented.
In Jubba regions there are thousands of Ogaden refugees from Ethiopia, who do not want to go back to their country, despite stability and calmness in their region.
As per the law these are refugees, who have no any rights to involve in the country’s political system, while they remain a security threat to the region, specially to Kenya and Ethiopia.
Current threats against Wagosha
Currently there are indications that as the various militias continue to infiltrate the districts in Jubba regions, while influx of refugees of Ogaden clan from Ethiopia continue, the political leaders of Somali nomad clans are attempting to legitimate the takeovers by claiming that rural Bantu peoples are not really Somalis. Thus the threat to the Wagosha is not only physical, it also touches on their identities as Somalis.
As clan play a big role in day to day Somali politics, the neighbouring country, Kenya with the advise of few Ogadeni senior officials in Kenyan government is backing an administration that will be formed in Jubbaland.
Kenya has the right to take any suitable measure to ensure its security, but it has to be vigilant with the hidden agenda of its Somali ethnic politicians.
According to reliable international and Somali sources, Kenyan defence minister,Mohamed Yusuf Haji, with other Ogadeni officials in Kenyan government are backing the move just because, Mohamed Abdi Gandi, who proclaimed to be the leader of Jubba regions belongs to their clan.
Mohamed Abdi Gandi is among the Ogadeni refugees from Ethiopia who are living in Somalia and involved in the country’s politics.
Hidden clan agenda
With the security concern of Kenyan government, some elements took the advantage and called for illegal meeting in Kenya to form so called regional administration for Jubba regions.
Almost 95% of the representatives at this meeting did not hail from Jubba regions. Due to harsh conditions of Somali refugees in Nairobi, it was easy to lure some of them to be taken to Limuru to attend the meeting as Jubbaland residents.
The impostors were locked in Limuru for few days before announcing election of an Ethiopian citizen Mohamed Abdi Gandi, as the leader of Jubbaland.
Why Kenyan government does not want to talk to the genuine representatives of these regions and listen to their views, instead of allowing such shoddy meetings that will not bear any fruit.
“Buffer Zone”
The idea of forming a regional administration in Jubbaland and buffer zone still looks good, but few questions are to be answered by Kenyan authorities.
Its not a secret that most of the high ranking officials in Al-Shabab in Jubba regions are from Garisa in North Eastern Province of Kenya. For example the lucrative Kismaayo seaport is under a well known Garisa born figure.
All these Al-Shabab members from North Eastern Province have their families and children in the region. Their children are being served with the Kenyan taxpayers money, while their fathers are “headache” to the national security. Why the Kenyan politicians of Somali origin do not want to address this issue, and are pushing for a state in Somalia ruled by their clan.
Isn’t this a clear evidence that Kenyan government is being pushed in more trouble by few clan politicians, a move that will create more violence in Jubba regions, insecurity in Kenya and the whole region.

Drs Fatuma Lamungu Nur
PHD holder in International politics

Somalia: Somali government officials misread IGAD’s recommendation over the Jubaland conflict.

By
Staff
-
0

Since Somali government opposed the result of the process in which Jubaland people elected the president and vice-president on May 15, 2013, Somali people interested peaceful solution of the impasse were waiting the recommendation by the IGAD technical committees who met both the government representatives in Mogadishu and Jubaland official and the opposition group in Kismayo.

Immediately after IGAD committees presented their finding and recommendation in Adis Ababa meeting, Somali Federal Government spokesman, Eng. Abdirahman Omar Osman reported in press conference his own interpretation of the recommendation by IGAD committees.

Instead of presenting the facts on the recommendation statement, he restated the Somali Government’s position that the election of the president of Jubaland was not constitutional, inclusive and government officials did not participate and take its leadership role of forming regional administration as indicated in the provisional constitution.

As result, he added that IGAD foreign ministers agreed that IGAD would support Somali government to facilitate another reconciliation meeting in Mogadishu in which all Jubaland stakeholders were urged to participate in, implying that reconciliation process in which Jubaland people approved their constitution, elected their president and now in process of electing member of the parliament is void.

Immediately after, press conference held by both minister of the foreign affair, Fowsiya Yusuf Haji in Adis Ababa and the Prime Minister Abdi Farah in Mogadishu repeated the same statement above that IGAD would support Somali government to take leadership role in formation of the regional administration based on provisional constitution. Prime minister added that the process in which they are calling on all Jubaland stakeholders to participate in Mogadishu conference will be constitutional, inclusive and government led the process.

However, the actual statement presented by EGAD technical committees in Adis Ababa meeting is much different from what is stated by the government officials and is based on the fact found by committees on the reality on the ground.

Before presented its final recommendation, IGAD fact finding committees met government officials in Mogadishu before meeting both Jubaland officials

and opposition group in Kismayo.  IGAD committees found out the government and opposition group in Kismayo reportedly sponsored by the government took same position in opposing the outcome of the reconciliation meeting in Kismayo  that among others, the process was neither constitutional, nor inclusive,  led by the government official while Jubaland officials insisted it was constitutional, inclusive and government did not participated even though they were invited and instead decided to finance individual self-sponsoring to be president elect.

After Committees listened both side and considered positions taken by both Mogadishu officials and opposition in Kismayo on one side and Jubaland administration on the other side, they concluded the following recommendation in each of the three underlining principles – Constitutionality, inclusiveness and government led process

First, in term constitutionality of the process in which Jubaland 500 elders elected president, committees found both groups’ claims were based on different interpretations of the constitution since the provisional constitution did not define properly how to go by forming regional states.

Committees did not find faulty in either claims by Government officials reasoning on why the process was not constitutional nor did they find incorrect in the reasoning by the Jubaland official of the constitutionality of their process since there were a lope holes in the provisional federal constitution of Somalia. As result, committees urged both the government officials and parliament to clarify those articles relating to formation of the regional administration and the government’s role.

Second in term of inclusiveness in the process, the committee found that the major clans in Jubaland state participated in the process but some minority group were missing from the scene and urged the government to take a leadership role in reconciliation process to insure the process is inclusive.

However, Jubaland officials insisted the process was inclusive and is open to be included anyone willing to participate peacefully and will insure the minority group will be included to be members of both parliament and ministerial positions being elected in coming weeks.

Finally, in term of government taking leadership role in the process, IGAD committees found that the government did not participate in the process of forming regional administration even though they were invited several time and Jubaland official is still offering government to participate in the process and to take its role.

As result, IGAD committees recommended that since Jubaland officials acknowledged the need of the government’s leadership role in the process, IGAD official is calling on all Jubaland stakeholders to participate reconciliation meeting being planned to be held in Mogadishu by Somali federal government to find final solution through dialogue.

It was reported that Jubaland officials accepted all the recommendation by the IGAD committees including participating conference in which Somali Federal Government is being planned to be held in Mogadishu to come up solution in which Government would take its leadership role.

IGAD government members and international communities are aware that after over 20 years in conflict in Somalia, the only solution forward to attaining lasting solution in Somalia is through dialogue among Somali stakeholders led by the government official based on the provisional constitution.

It hard to understand that why now President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud  and Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon, after obtaining recognition and financial aid by the international community, seem to want solve any issue though their own interpretation of the provisional constitution of Somalia where even few days ago, President called on Somaliland that it is a time to come to Mogadishu and unite rest of Somalia seemingly forgetting the on-going negotiation between Somalia and Somaliland in order to reach final solution.

It is known by all that Somali people will no longer accept any governor sent from Mogadishu to run their affairs and Somali people expect the government to implement provisional constitution and encourage any two or more regions trying to form regional administration. IGAD and Aminson

troops committed to support Somali government to implement national stabilization plan through serious dialogue among all stakeholders.

Since Jubaland officials accepted all the recommendation by the EGAD committees, Somali government officials should likewise accept all the recommendation as indicated in the statement presented in the Adis Ababa meeting instead of misleading the public by presenting their own interpretation of the statement.

As IGAD committees recommended that Government and parliament should work on provisional constitution to clarify certain articles relating the formation of the regional administration, government officials should take leadership role in any process of forming regional administration and they should insure that any process should be inclusive of all stakeholders in the region, among others.

 

Signed by

Mohamed A. Hussein

Mohabdhus@aol.com

 

Somalia:Statement from Jubbaland State of Somalia

By
Staff
-
0

Press Statement

Despite the IGAD Summit communique of the 22nd Extra-ordinary session on the situation in Somalia, Mogadishu is still provoking the Jubbaland Administration to catalyze insecurity, hostility and animosity among the clans, which will eventually result in the Jubbaland community give up in shielding Al-Shabaab from Jubbaland regions. This gives the impression that Mogadishu is willingly departing out its focus from Al-Shabab and other community healing process. It’s unfortunate that all the energy and resources of Mogadishu given by the international donors for the last 6 months are focused on contesting Jubbaland community achievements.

It’s regrettable that Mogadishu is not observing the agreement reached in Addis Ababa, which its party to. Jubaland State Administration appeals IGAD and other peace loving International Community enforce Mogadishu to refrain from further inflaming the delicate situation until the political process is completed.

The people of Jubbaland through their traditional and political leaders, decided to establish their Regional Federal State in accordance with the Provisional Federal constitution of Somalia. The decision to establish Jubbaland State was reached after years long all inclusive, transparent and democratic process, which was supported by IGAD.

Therefore, under the circumstances, Jubaland State will ensure to safeguard its own security and the delicate process achieved through IGAD grand stabilization process and local community participation. We also urge speedy implementation of IGADs communique issued yesterday.

The new Jubbaland Administration welcomes the IGAD’s proposal for peace and reconciliation dialogue among the Jubbaland State and Mogadishu facilitated by IGAD. However, such dialogue should take place in a neutral venue accepted to all the parties concern.
The Jubbaland Administration urges the Mogadishu, IGAD, AU and the International Community to devote all efforts and energies to the war against Al-Shabaab terrorism in Somalia, instead of wasting time and resources on non-existence conflict in Jubbaland.

Hoos ka akhriso Nuqulka PDF

Jubaland press release

—————————–END—————————–

 

Somalia:Mogadisho folks, stop misconstruing

By
Staff
-
0

By: Prof. Abdi A. Jama.

What about if it is you who suggested separation first?.What would happen?!!!!!  Yes……yes….It is us who are determined to get back our sovereign independent state. Not being recognized has nothing to do with you as Mogadisho people as such. It would be the same for you, were you put in our shoes. Had you have the initiative of seceding yourself from Hargeisa, you would not have been able to do so according to international law, unless we agree. However, it happened that Hargeisa  wishes to leave this time,  and has not been recognized so far. So, there is nothing special Mogadisho has for Hargeisa.

 

Having said that, we should not feel ashamed to ask you for leave. Similarly,  you should not feel  being in a better position or somewhat superior by being asked for that. Simply because, the situation could have been the opposite or reversed. For instance, when Moscow– the head-quarter of former Soviet union –wanted to separate itself from the rest of USSR. It had not done so unilaterally, because it could not had done so from international law perspective. Moscow  had actually reached an agreement with each and every republic of former soviet union. Other-wise, it would not had been possible for Moscow to leave or abandon the rest of the country.

 

So, it is something normal to do such business with each other, provided that you don’t misconstrue and think that you have some power over us. I know you—Mogadisho people– are very prone to fall in this fallacy. Simply because, I  ,very well,  understand psychology of Mogadisho people and  how they see life. As a student who lived in Mogadisho for five  years, a Mogadisho guy, even in his narrative of every day events, he tells you that someone has been sucked, beaten or got rid of.  They see life as fight in  jungle, every one is trying hard to win unkindly over the rest. This is my judgment or perception of them. I could be wrong. However,  To be fair, we cannot always generalize . To my knowledge, many good mogadisho people are alaways out there.

 

People with such attitude, can easily misunderstand Somaliland case, not only denying history of the two countries and the union, but also they may assume that such a situation is strength for them and weakness for Somali-land. And this may lead them to reserve what they believe to be a privilege for them, so , we—Somalilanders– would be deprived of rational partner with whom we could do business with. And that is why I wrote this article, at least, for those of them who are educated and free from shackles of Mogadisho culture.

 

All in all, Hargeisa has nothing special for Mogadisho, and Mogadsiho has nothing special for Hargeisa. It is a normal deal. Yesterday,  union. Today, separation.  Either Mogadisho or Hargeisa could have launched such initiative and the other should respond rationally and responsibly as a reliable partner. If not, the road would be rough apparently for both of us. If , so far, not convinced, ask history how things would end up in such situations.

Source:profabdiali.blogspot.com

Pen-name:Abdo

 

 

 

 

Somalia:Kenyan intelligence opts media propaganda to promote warlord Madobe in Kismayo

By
Staff
-
0

After being founded almost fifty years ago, Kenyan forces have never seen a regular battleground.This has made them to become the only force in the region that enjoyed receiving hefty salaries, training, equipment and promotions without delivering or carrying out any duty.

In April 2008, the global human rights body  Human Rights Watch wrote this report about Kenyan army “The rebel Sabaot Land Defence Force and the Kenyan military are responsible for horrific abuses, including killings, torture and rape of civilians, in a little-known armed conflict in the Mt. Elgon area of western Kenya”.

In another report, issued in 2013 , Human Rights Watch in detailed documentation of human rights abuses says ” Rather than conducting investigations to identify and apprehend the perpetrators of grenade attacks in the country, both the police and army responded with violent reprisals against Kenyan citizens and Somali refugees”.

The report continues by saying “There were numerous cases where Kenyan security forces responded to the attacks by abusing civilians. Documented abuses included rape and attempted sexual assault; beatings; arbitrary detention; extortion; the looting and destruction of property; and various forms of physical mistreatment, including forcing victims to sit in water, to roll on the ground in baking temperatures, or to carry heavy loads while standing on one spot or while walking around for extended periods. Despite government promises to investigate, there have been no investigations and no security official has faced disciplinary action in relation to the abuses”. Read the link http://www.hrw.org/world-report/2013/country-chapters/kenya?page=2

Despite all these bad manners,Kenyan forces were given a chance to join in the global war against Somali extremists in Southern Somalia. Many Somalis have a dream of having lasting peace and elimination of Al Shabab terror group,which is responsible of atrocities and different sorts of crimes against civilians.

But, when the Kenyan forces took the port city of Kismayo, they switched into involvement of local politics by supporting one clan against the others. In February 2013 Kenyan army sided with Ogaden militants against the Marehan fighters in Kismayo. Later on Kenyan army has facilitated a one clan show by Ahmed Madobe, a former Al Shabab member, who declared himself as president of Jubbaland.

Ahmed Madobe,a refugee from Ethiopia,was opposed by all local clans on the ground, while he is working hard to shed the blood of innocent Somalis,who are tired of the endless wars.

Acknowledging the fact that Madobe is not the choice Jubbaland’s people,the Kenyan intelligence has taken the role to promote him through media.

According to intelligence and media sources in Kenya,there are daily opinion pieces written in the Kenyan media, which appear with fake names to deceive the public.

Some of the weird articles by Kenyan intelligence on daily newspapers are as follow:

http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/-/440808/1858968/-/jiq5nqz/-/index.html

http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000083944&story_title=kenya-government-walks-a-tightrope-in-somalia-as-kismayo-gets-new-leader&pageNo=1

http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000083945&story_title=mogadishu-fights-law-on-federal-states

Many believe that this is the work of clan minded Kenyan intelligence junior officer Nuradin Yusuf Haji, the son of the former state minister for defence in Kenya.

The so called opinion pieces of Nuradin and his team reminds us of 2011 meeting between Kenyan intelligence and Kenyan local media, in which all media had been ordered to do propaganda news for Kenyan forces, as soon as they launch their military incursion in southern Somalia.

In 1986, an innocent referee approved Diego Armando Maradona’s handball goal that helped Argentina defeat England in football World Cup.  May be Kenyan intelligence has that event in mind and they want to approve the wrong goal of Ahmed Madobe by using the media, something that cannot be possible in this 21st century.

The people of Jubbaland are peace lovers, and they are determined to take part in the war against Al Shabab,but what they will never swallow is to bring a refugee as their leader.

We call upon the world to stop Kenya in interfering Somali politics,and remain as peacekeepers like any peacekeeping troops in Somalia.

Somalia has today a regular and functioning government, and the best advise is to work with the Mogadishu government in order to have a peaceful Horn of Africa region.

Hamadi Chivalla Mohamed

Nairobi, Kenya

 

Somalia:Somali government appoints new army commander for Jubba regions

By
Staff
-
0

The new army commander for Jubba regions,Col Salah Makoma Mohamed is visiting the port city of Kismayo, after taking up his new position. Col Makoma, a veteran military officer trained in the former Soviet Union, told the media that no government troops are currently operating in Kismayo. “All what we have here are clan militants,and there is an urgent need to deploy government forces”, said Col Makoma.

It was previously assumed that there were government troops serving in Kismayo, but it has now turned to be the opposite.
Col Makoma said he held unfruitful meeting with Ahmed Madobe,the leader of Ras Kiamboni group. During the meeting Madobe insisted that all forces operating in Kismayo at the moment belong to his group and not to the Somali government.
However, Col Makoma has confirmed that there is a number of government troops operating in other parts of Jubba region.

Col Makoma was the last army commander for Jubba regions during the regime of Siyad Barre, and his appointment is expected to boost the Somali government’s bid to liberate areas still controlled by Al Shabab in southern Somalia.

He hails from Jubbaland,and is married with children.

Wagoshaland

Somalia:Syria strife sends Somali refugees on the run

By
Staff
-
0

San Diego, United States – It has been a strenuous 9,000-kilometre journey across the Atlantic to the US for Amal Kahim Jama and her Somali family. Fleeing civil war in Syria, they were recently forced to leave everything behind and rebuild their lives – yet again.

Buildings she used to walk by in the heart of the Syrian capital, Damascus, have been reduced to rubble: a vestige of what once was a vibrant metropolis. It is an all too familiar image for Jama and the thousands of Somalis who fled to Syria in the 1990s to escape their own civil war. Jama and her five children left the capital Mogadishu in 2005.

As threats to their safety increase, the wait to be transferred to another host country for the second time is raising fear and uncertainty among the Somali community in Syria.

“We were welcomed in Syria. It was a great place for the Somali people,” Jama said, recalling a time of peace and stability. “The kids were enrolled in school and there were no problems. Life was normal.”

That recollection stands in sharp contrast to the violence that has engulfed Syria over the past two-plus years. Her homeland, meanwhile, has been plagued by fighting for the past 20 years, though a relative calm has recently prevailed.

Since the ousting of former dictator Siad Barre in 1991, Somalia has been viewed by the international community as a failed state. The armed conflict has put civilians in the middle of the clash between rival warlords, the interim government, and al-Shabaab fighters with ties to al-Qaeda.

Jama said she and her family were relocated to Syria, where visas were not required for citizens from Arab League nations. However, one drawback was that the Syrian government did not grant work permits to the refugees.

In recent reports, the  UNHCR  documented 3,000 registered Somalis living in Syria – a decline from the previous  5,000 registered  before the onset of the armed conflict.

“The Somali community in Syria consists mostly of women and children. Although some are fortunate enough to receive remittances from their families living abroad, the rest of us rely on aid from the UN,” explained Jama, who now lives in San Diego, California.

Their limited sources of income were all they had to buy food and pay rent, but the Somali refugees did have access to higher education.

Another Somali who fled the Syrian conflict, 26-year-old Zahra Mohamed, lived in Syria since she was five-years old. She fled to Damascus with her grandmother, mother and four younger siblings in 1992. Mohamed left Damascus for the first time in 2012 as the violence escalated.

She said leaving behind friends she cared deeply about brought great sadness, even as she settled into her new life in sunny San Diego.

“I can’t be happy without feeling guilty. Just thinking about them [friends and neighbours] takes away my happiness … I pray for my neighbour of 20 years every day,” said Mohamed.

She said she never thought the conditions, similar to those that forced her family to flee Somalia, would also drive them out of Syria – the country she calls home.

Mohamed didn’t graduate university, leaving the country before completing her final semester. But what is most troubling for her is the thought of what is happening to the “good people of Syria”, she said.

Bob Montgomery is the executive director of the International Rescue Committee in San Diego, which relocated Mohamed and her family and helped them settle into life in the United States.

“There certainly is a traumatic impact on people who have suffered and been through such an experience,” Montgomery told Al Jazeera. “There are still people there that are pending to come to the United States. A lot of them have to lay low until it is time for them to leave.”

Escalating violence

According to the UNHCR , “the incidence and severity of security and protection incidents affecting refugees rose perceptibly in mid-2012, with reported killings, kidnappings, domestic violence, threats, and harassment”.

Jama recalled when the violence directly affected a prominent member of the Somali community named Abukar. “He was with his young son and daughter when a nail bomb exploded,” she said. The shrapnel from the bomb killed Abukar and seriously wounded his two children.

The rebellion to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime has forced more than one million Syrians to seek refuge elsewhere. But the lack of travel documents has prevented Somalis from entering neighbouring countries in order to escape the violence.

And returning home is still a difficult option. Despite the formation of a new government in 2012, the UNHCR has stated : “Somalia may not yet be fully conducive for returns.”

As remaining Somali families wait to be relocated, others have become internally displaced as a result of the civil war. Somalis living in remote parts of Syria were forced to congregate in the Masaken Barzeh neighbourhood on the outskirts of Damascus, where the vast majority of Somali refugees are now concentrated.

According to UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards, a minibus carrying a Somali refugee family of 11 were caught in crossfire on the way to the village of Hurnah, while attempting to flee the conflict in the southern town of Menin. A nine-year-old boy was rescued by a group of Syrian men and taken to the Somali community in Hurnah. He is believed to be the only surviving member of his family.

In August, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent relocated 70 Somali refugees from Hurnah to live with Somali host families in Masaken Barzeh.

However, the burden has become too much as the number of internally displaced Somali refugees increases. There were even reported cases  by the UNHCR of Somali families being evicted by landlords for hosting displaced refugees.

Exodus to Turkey

Because of the drawn-out response from the UNHCR and the sharp rise of violence in Syria, any attempts to enter Turkey – legal or illegal – is a risk Somalis are willing to take instead of idly waiting.

With just the clothes on their backs, countless Somalis left behind what took them more than two decades to establish, and embarked on the arduous journey to the Turkish border to seek asylum.

Jama is also concerned for the wellbeing of her Somali neighbour who still remains in Syria. She said the neighbour’s 21-year-old son died after the Syrian government allegedly detained him and two other Somali men.

The 21-year-old diabetic was denied the medication he regularly took to control his disease. He died in the arms of his friend while in captivity, Jama’s neighbour told her.

“His mother wasn’t allowed to give him a proper burial,” Jama said.

In the weeks before she left Syria, daily life was becoming an eerie reminder of the conditions that forced her to leave Mogadishu.

“Food must be purchased during the day. It doesn’t matter if you’re Syrian or Somali, the streets are empty by 6pm,” said Jama. “The fighting erupts in the late hours of the night and is at its worst on the weekend.”

Fortunately for Jama and her family, the UNHCR was able to relocate them to the United States, but she said it is imperative to help Somalis stranded in Syria.

In December, the UN-Arab League envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, warned the international community against the threat of Syria becoming the “new Somalia,” if the civil war failed to subside.

“We can’t forget about them, we need to help them,” said Jama. “They have nowhere to go.”

Follow Mona Kosar Abdi on Twitter: @MonaAbdiSD

Source: Al Jezeera

 

Two claim to be Jubaland’s ‘president’

By
Staff
-
0

MOGADISHU (AFP) — A warlord in southern Somalia’s Jubaland has declared himself “president” of the region, clan leaders said Thursday, shortly after the election of another militia commander to the post.

With tensions already high, the move raised the risk of clashes between rival factions in the southern port city of Kismayo, a former stronghold of the Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab, where Kenyan troops in an African Union force are now based.

The city was quiet Thursday, but residents have reported clan militia reinforcing their positions across Kismayo.

On Wednesday, former Islamist warlord Ahmed Madobe was elected Jubaland’s “president” by a conference of some 500 elders and local leaders.

Neither the title nor the region itself is recognised by the weak central government in Mogadishu.

His supporters — including the powerful Ras Kamboni militia — fired heavy machine guns into the sky to celebrate his appointment, residents said.

“They were firing guns late into the night…the situation is calm now but the city is tense, there are fears of clashes between militia,” Kismayo resident Hassan Mohamud told AFP.

Madobe is a key ally of Kenya, and his appointment risks opening a rift between Nairobi and Mogadishu.

But shortly afterwards, former Somali defence minister and warlord Barre Hirale, who comes from a rival clan, declared himself also president after a separate conference.

“I was nominated president of Jubaland by the elders…I call on the people to support my presidency to assist me in bringing peace,” Hirale told reporters.

“The conference where I was nominated was organised and belonged to the people… while the other conference was organised and pushed by Kenya,” he added, calling on people “to lay down their arms and help rebuild the region.”

Hirale, a veteran militia commander from the Marehan clan, has in recent years been backed by Ethiopia to battle Shebab insurgents.

Both elections are understood to be opposed by the central government in the capital Mogadishu, which is keen to stamp its authority on the lawless and war-ravaged nation, not to see further regional splits.

There was no immediate reaction to developments from Mogadishu.

“If fighting breaks out in Kismayo, it will be the Somali government that will take responsibility for the bloodshed, because they are creating instability between brotherly clans,” Madobe told reporters.

Residents in Kismayo said they now had two leaders.

“Today we have two presidents, and one of them is aided by Kenya’s army…the city is quiet but people are not moving in the streets as they are worried,” Kismayo resident Ahmed Ali said Thursday.

“Clan militia supporting either side are reinforcing their positions across the town,” he told AFP by telephone.

Jubaland lies in the far south of Somalia and borders both Kenya and Ethiopia, and control is split between multiple forces including clan militia, the Shebab, Kenyan and Ethiopian soldiers.

Jubaland joins other semi-autonomous regions of the fractured Horn of Africa nation, including Puntland in the northeast — which wants autonomy within a federation of states — and Somaliland in the northwest, which fiercely defends its self-declared independence.

Invading Kenyan troops — now part of the AU force mandated to support the government in Mogadishu — captured Kismayo alongside Madobe’s troops in October 2012.

Madobe, from Somalia’s Ogadeni clan, was once governor of Kismayo and a key member of the Islamic Courts Union — whose armed wing was the Shebab — that was toppled by Ethiopia’s 2006 US-backed invasion of Somalia.

During the invasion he was wounded in a bombing raid in southern Somalia, and was captured and taken to Ethiopia, spending at least two years in jail.

After his release, in late 2011 he switched allegiance to battle his former Islamist comrades by fighting alongside Kenyan troops.

Source: AFP

Somalia:KDF war ally wins Jubaland top seat

By
Staff
-
0

Sheikh Ahmed Mohamed Islam, who was the leader of the Ras Kamboni Brigade— a paramilitary group in Kismayu— has been elected President of the new Jubaland State of Somalia.

A General Fartag from Gedi region was elected Vice President.

Sheikh Islam, popularly known as Sheikh Ahmed Madobe, was elected by a majority of community delegates at the Jubaland Constitutional Conference in Kismayu, a statement from Office of the President of Puntland said Wednesday.

“Puntland congratulates the people of Jubaland State and the new President-elect on organising a community-led consultative conference, adopting a new State Charter, and electing a new President today,” the statement said.

Puntland said the formation of Jubaland State was fully in accordance with the Provisional Federal Constitution (PFC) of Somalia.

“Puntland calls upon the Somali Federal Government, Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, and the wider international community to recognise and cooperate with Jubaland State,” the statement added.

The Jubaland Initiative started in 2010 with an aim of establishing an autonomous region modelled along the lines of other autonomous regions such as Puntland and Somaliland.

At that point, Kenya was said to have shown support for the initiative in order to create a buffer zone between itself and Al-Shaabab insurgency in southern Somalia, a claim that it denies.

Ethiopia was on the other hand opposed to the plan as it would undermine its military offensive against the Ogaden rebels who are seeking independence.

Source: The Nation. KE

Somalia:European Union Training Mission to train Somali forces in Somalia

By
Staff
-
0

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

 

Mogadishu – The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, today welcomed the deployment of the European Union Training Mission (EUTM) to Somalia, calling it a “paradigm shift in relations” between the EU and Somalia.

 

For the last three years the EUTM has trained over 3,000 Somali troops at a base in Uganda, and today the full training operation opened in Mogadishu, where the Third Mandate will continue to support the training and mentoring of Somali security forces. By the end of 2013 all EUTM training will be conducted in Somalia.

 

The President said: “Our partnership with the European Union is of immense value and has proved that recruitment from across the clans, disciplined training and effective deployment of good soldiers is totally achievable.

 

“Thanks in large part to the EU, we are beginning to see the development of a Somali National Army (SNA) that is diverse in origin as well as structure, and a force that is accountable, inclusive, proportionate and sustainable, and with a respect for the chain of command, the rule of law and human rights.

 

The President also underlined the critical shortage of arms and equipment that restricts Somalia’s security capacity.

 

“Security is the priority concern to everyone and indeed an essential prerequisite for further progress in all spheres of government and development. But our forces today lack critical capability, and suffer a critical shortage of equipment and supplies that restrict our capacity to protect ourselves.

 

“Therefore I emphasize the need for adequate and sustained training and resourcing for our armed forces and I am very grateful to the EU in leading this support.

 

“I wholeheartedly welcome the European Training Mission (EUTM) to Mogadishu and our Minister of Defence, the Force Commander and other military officials will work hand-in-hand with you to further develop structures, policy and processes that will produce a self-sustaining Somali force for the future.”

 

Source: Office of the Federal Republic of Somalia

1...807808809...942Page 808 of 942
Facebook Instagram Twitter
© Somaliland Current 2020, All Rights Reserved | Designed by SomSite