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SMS Uprising: Mobile Activism in Africa

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As a blogger using the web as an agent of social change, I find the growth of mobile phone use in Africa offers an opportunity to look at the innovative ways this emerging technology is being used by grassroots groups and small and micro NGOs across the continent. I was very pleased to be invited to edit this book by Fahamu as it provided a chance to explore this potential, looking at not only the positives but also the negatives in order to expose the underlying reality. SMS Uprising is significant for many reasons not least because it has been edited by an African woman activist. Often initiatives in Africa are studied by people who are quite distant from the continent or are academics who are remote from the grassroots of the subject under discussion. The book is also unique in giving an insight into how activists and social change advocates are addressing Africa’s many challenges from within, and how they are using mobile telephone technology to facilitate these changes. The examples are shared in such a way that they can be easily replicated – ‘pick this idea up and use it in your campaign!’ The intention is that the information contained within the book will lead to greater reflection about the real potential and limitations of mobile technology. The protests following the Iranian elections, the Mumbai bombings and the G20 summit in London, in which mobile phones played a central role in organising, mobilising, communicating and disseminating information across the world in real time, show the actual and potential power of citizens’ journalism in times of crisis. One single message sent by SMS to Twitter can spread throughout the world in minutes.

For a social justice activist, such research is important not only to understanding the overall technology landscape but also in providing a chance to contribute to a movement that acknowledges and tackles potential problems while interrogating its strengths. There is no doubt that mobile and internet technology is democratising social change in communities across Africa. We must, however, also recognise that technology has the capacity to concentrate power and therefore could be used to reinforce existing power relations.

The introduction of mobile phones in Africa transforms people’s ability to communicate. Unlike in the West, where there was already an existing network of communication through landlines, mobile phones in Africa provide communication where previously there was none. In 2007, it was estimated that there were 300 million mobile phone users – about 30 per cent[1] of the continent’s population.[2] Whilst mobile phone usage continues to grow exponentially[3] and in some countries has reached critical mass, a more discerning reading of the figures is necessary to obtain a picture of the reality. This kind of examination helps to explain why and how mobile phones have been used for social change in some instances and countries, and not in others. For example, the figures do not reveal the number of handsets per person nor, conversely, how many people are sharing one handset. People at upper-income levels particularly, tend to have two phones on different networks and, in some cases, even three or four.

There are also some huge discrepancies between regions and countries as well as within countries – such as between rural and urban populations. The report titled ‘Mobile telephony access and usage in Africa’ shows this clearly. For example, the 2008 subscriber rates for South Africa (87.08 per cent) are around three times that of Nigeria (27.28 per cent) and Kenya (30.48 per cent). Ethiopia is only 1.45 per cent and Rwanda 6.53 per cent.[4] What does seem to affect the diffusion of mobile phone use, as Nathan Eagle points out in Chapter 1, ‘Economics and power within the African telecommunication industry’, is whether or not the telecommunications industry is deregulated. So, for instance, in Uganda where there is much competition, prices are low, while Ethiopia, which remains highly regulated with no competition, has high calling costs.

Technology in itself does not lead to social change. For change to take place technology needs to be appropriate and rooted in local knowledge. People decide why and how a particular technology will be used and, depending on the political and socio-economic environment in which they live, adapt it accordingly. As we shall see from the case studies in this book, there are considerable local innovations and non-instrumental uses of the phone – using phones in ways not intended, that step outside their technological aspects and which attempt to bypass traditional power structures. Firoze Manji describes this process as ordinary people taking control of their destiny rather than technology driving the change:

‘Social change is actually driven not by technologies but by ordinary people being able to exert an authority over their own experience and, through common actions, developing the courage to determine their own destiny.'[5]

It is important in the context of this book to point out that the projects and innovations discussed within it do not follow a traditional development model, where technology tends to be shaped by the economic forces that created it. Instead, the social change model is driven by the forces of people’s local needs and is therefore more able to respond quickly and appropriately to specific events and political changes. This means that people at a grassroots level can think about what works for them and how can they use technology to foster social change and collective action.

What makes the mobile phone such a dynamic tool for supporting social change is its sheer range of actual and potential functionality, making it an extremely versatile technology. Erik Hersman, who authors the leading blog on high-tech mobile and web technology change in Africa (White African and the Africa Network: An Idea by Erik Hersman), coined the phrase, ‘If it works in Africa it will work anywhere’, referring to Africa’s many innovative ideas, projects and people.[6] Activists and campaign groups have also chosen to use mobile phones – SMS and video – for mobilising, advocacy, campaigning, social networking, citizens’ journalism and crowdsourcing.[7] Campaigns can be short or long term and planned in advance, but quite often they are spontaneously reacting to an event. For example:

– The International Center for Accelerated Development (ICAD) in Nigeria used mobile phones to bring people together for a rally during the Global AIDS Week of Action campaign, which began in April 2008. ICAD Nigeria also used SMS to mobilise supporters in the Plateau State elections in 2008[8] (see Chapter 4 of this book).
– In 2007 WOUGNET in Uganda used SMS as part of the 16 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women campaign. 170 messages were sent out in 13 countries across four continents[9] (see Chapter 8).
– In Egypt, activists have used both SMS and the video cameras on their mobile phones to mobilise and expose police torture. One particularly harrowing video showed a 13-year-old boy, Mohammed Mamdouh Abdel Aziz, being tortured by the police. Using video and testimonies, activists have been able to document torture in Egypt thereby giving their claims real credibility.[10]

However SMS or the phone in general is not always the most effective or appropriate technology as Bukeni Waruzi’s paper (see Chapter 11) on using mobiles in the DRC shows – in a crisis writing an SMS takes time. It is far quicker to make a voice call. In another example, the UmNyango project (see Chapter 6) found that women preferred to report domestic violence face to face rather using a phone.

Varying examples must be seen in the context of local infrastructures which impact on usage but at the same time lead to technological and non-technological innovations to overcome constraints. In fact, mobile phones have led to a huge growth in the informal sector with entrepreneurs who support usage such as selling airtime, selling chargers, charging, recycling and repairing phones – nothing is left to waste.[11]

This book aims to provide an examination of the many inventive ways that activism and social change are taking place across Africa and how mobile phones have been co-opted as the primary tool to aid this process. My own research in compiling this book’s chapters leads me to consider a number of questions regarding the context of technology in Africa. For example, who is a user and who is an owner? To what extent are these projects and innovations breaking down traditional and capitalistic hierarchies? How have activists been able to use the technology to really affect change? Is access to a mobile phone and using it for social change more than just a drop in the ocean? Where people use technology to advance movement for change and to empower communities in putting forward information about human rights abuses, electoral abuses, empowering women, etc, are these changes actually sustainable? Given that women are largely responsible for development, particularly in rural areas, and how under-resourced women are, what kind of a resource does a mobile phone give them? From observing and talking to women in Nigeria, it is clear that the purchase of airtime was given a high priority but was also used with much caution. The main complaints were always the cost of airtime and poor reception. This led to people wanting to own more than one handset from different networks – another additional cost. On the other hand, as Christiana Charles-Iyoha points out in Chapter 9, the high level of poverty amongst women undermines women’s role in development and socio-economic transformation as they are excluded from owning a phone and their status often limits even the sharing of a phone within the family.

Another constraint that particularly impacts on women, due to their overwhelming poverty, is the poor electricity supply, which means that to be effective there is a need for two phones. Nonetheless, at least one report found that there was no difference in how men and women used mobile phones and in fact in some situations phones decreased the isolation of women and increased job creation for those selling airtime and other related products.[12]

It would be unethical to write about mobile phones in general, and particularly in an African context, without mentioning the mining of coltan, which is an essential element in the production of the phones. In a report in the UK daily newspaper the Independent, Johann Hari makes a direct link between the increase in deaths and the mining of coltan in the Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), naming Anglo-America, Standard Chartered Bank, De Beers and more than 100 others involved.13 We should therefore be mindful when we read of the huge growth in mobile phone usage on the continent of the major cost in lives and human rights abuses associated with the mining of coltan.

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The projects in this book are reliant on external funding and, in many cases, support from multinational service providers seeking profit. By funding mobile phone-based projects, these companies believe that users will want to add value for themselves by using the phone as a general means of communicating, thereby offsetting costs of the funding. But if pricing of airtime and handsets is too high, this may not happen or only in a limited way. Finally, we should approach the technology carefully, as there are pitfalls. For example, by ignoring traditional forms of communication and indigenous forms of organising, people, especially women, can end up being disempowered.

The contributors to this book have been chosen because they offer a comprehensive range of experiences drawn from across the continent. Every attempt has been made to include a variety of voices – activists, organisations, academics and technologists – which provides a range of perspectives in addressing the issues raised above.

Part I provides the political, economic and technological context. Contributors examine the political economy of the telecommunications industry and discuss the possibilities and constraints on future developments and how mobile phones are used. Nathan Eagle (see Chapter 1) offers an overview of the economics and politics of the African telecommunications industry. Not surprisingly, and despite the rapid decline in airtime costs, the mobile phone market in Africa reaps huge profits. China’s position in the market is considerable and in the case of Ethiopia they have taken over the whole telecoms equipment industry. One result has been high airtime costs as well as attacks on personal freedoms in the country. Eagle also discusses the privacy implications of monitoring the data produced by millions of mobile phones:

‘Beyond documentation of voice and text-message communication and location estimates based on cellular towers, occasionally mobile operators have additional data about their subscribers, including demographic information, socio-economic status…’

With mobile phones being used to transfer medical data including HIV/AIDS statistics and personal drug regimes, as well as human rights activists using phones for mobilisation and communicaxv Intr oducti on tion, the implications for data privacy, especially in repressive regimes, is worrying.

Christian Kreutz in Chapter 2 analyses future trends for mobile activism and social change in Africa and identifies four potential growth areas. However, he notes that there remain many technological and infrastructural challenges. These include the plethora of low cost phones with few features, which makes internet integration very much a thing of the future. Although airtime and hardware costs have reduced over the past five years, they still remain high enough to present obstacles to the majority of Africans. Kreutz introduces a range of mobile applications and discusses the realities of implementation given the many obstacles. He concludes that technology should only be used if it is appropriate and is the best option, rather than for its own sake.

Ken Banks is the founder of FrontlineSMS, which he describes as ‘a piece of free software which turns a laptop (or desktop) computer, a mobile phone and a cable into a two-way group messaging centre’.

The focus of Banks’s Chapter 3 ‘Social mobile: empowering the many or the few?’ is the need to develop mobile applications for grassroots NGOs and thereby avoid creating yet another North/South divide. This means using a development model focused on creating tools that are available to everyone. Mobile technology solutions should be simple, appropriate and affordable, rather than top–down and capital intensive. This approach creates huge technical, economic and cultural challenges to developers, but is not impossible if one chooses to work with local communities and focus on empowering them.

A book on mobile phones and activism would not be complete without a detailed example of at least one technology tool and a description of the processes behind its ideas and development. Part I concludes with Chapter 4 by Tanya Notley and Becky Faith from the Tactical Technology Collective. Tactical Tech was formed in 2003 with the aim of bringing together the ‘innovative activities’ of human rights advocates in marginalised communities and the open source software movement. Despite being ‘philosophically aligned’ there was little interaction between the two, and the challenge for Tactical Tech was to develop appropriate, open source technology through collaboration with frontline human rights advocates. The chapter discusses the development of one particular toolkit, the Mobiles in-a-box, which is a collection of tools, tactics and guides on how mobile phone technology can be used for campaigns and advocacy. The processes described are a useful model for organisations wishing to embark on a participatory development approach towards social change and activism, with or without the application of technology.

Part II, ‘Mobile democracy: SMS case studies’, consists of practical examples of social change and mobile activism across the continent. The examples vary considerably, from SMS campaigns for a specific purpose to a more generalised use of SMS for advocacy or election monitoring, as an information tool to empower civil society, as a means of social intervention or to monitor and document crises.

In 2004 Fahamu (‘an African activist organisation working for human rights and social justice’) launched a campaign to promote the ratification of the Protocol of the Rights of Women in Africa. In 2005, they then launched another campaign in support of the Global Call to Action against Poverty. The use of SMS in both these campaigns was a strategic choice for Fahamu, who recognised the huge growth in mobile phones (52–67 million at the time of both campaigns) and the potential SMS had for mobilising social justice campaigns.

Redante Asuncion-Reed (Chapter 5) looks at, analyses and assesses both Fahamu campaigns. How we measure and define success is an important issue in any campaign and there is a tendency to focus too strictly on numerical data. Asuncion-Reed makes the point that both campaigns were measured by their consequences and were driven by achieving goals rather than by the number of people who responded through the technology. He then attempts to answer the question as to whether the campaigns achieved their stated goals of mobilising ‘public pressure’ for the ratification of the Protocol on African Women’s Rights and to bring attention to the issue of global poverty.

Violence against women takes place across the world. However, in South Africa it has been aggravated by apartheid, which created a culture of aggression and brutality. The situation is further exacerbated by local patriarchies which discriminate against women in the areas of widowhood, land rights and inheritance laws. Despite constitutional protections in the post-apartheid South Africa, violence against women continues.

‘As most studies show, violence against women is a multi-linked variable connecting to, inter alia, patriarchal ‘configuration’ of our society, poverty, illiteracy and general economic exclusion of women, especially African women. Poverty and economic exclusion results in unequal gender relations between men and women which in most cases translate into vulnerability in various ways.'[14]

The UmNyango project (see Chapter 6) sought to address the twin issues of domestic violence and land exclusions. This was done by taking an integrated approach towards providing rural women in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) with timely and relevant information on human rights as well as access to a simple but effective reporting mechanism. UmNyango project manager, Anil Naidoo, examines the potential and limitations of SMS as a tool to empower rural women in KZN. Naidoo’s contribution highlights the point that although technology might be more efficient and present more timely information, it is not necessarily the most appropriate in all situations. This is particularly pertinent to women living under patriarchal systems where they are treated as ‘perpetual minors’. In the case of the women in the UmNyango project, they preferred face-to-face communication when discussing or reporting domestic violence. Other points raised in this chapter are the prohibitive costs attached to mobile phone use and the associated sustainability of funded projects.

The continued political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe has meant that the average Zimbabwean has very limited access to information – especially independent news media. Amanda Atwood explores the ways Kubatana has used mobile activism in a variety of campaigns, including during the 2008 Zimbabwean elections (Chapter 7). Kubatana has been at the forefront of developing innovative social and technological solutions to information scarcity and advocacy in repressive political environments. For example, Kubatana’s mobile activism is informed by the exchange of ideas and by fostering two-way communication with Zimbabweans from all walks of life. Another exciting innovation she mentions is the development of the Freedom Fone. One of its features is the capability to go beyond the 160 character limit of SMS. The phone also enables communities to create their own content based on demand as it marries radio-style programming with both mobiles and landline phones. The Freedom Fone is significant not only because of this feature, but also as it is a technology developed in Africa in a country that has been in crisis for the past nine years and where most resources are extremely limited. Another important element of the Freedom Fone is that the idea and development have been led by Kubatana’s technical director, Brenda Burrell.

WOUGNET (Women of Uganda Network) was started in 2000 and is one of the oldest NGOs working with women and ICT in Africa. WOUGNET’s approach to gender and technology is driven by gender inequalities in both urban and rural women’s status as well as in access to ICT, including mobile phones. The network participated in global and African SMS campaigns to raise awareness of violence against women in 2007 and 2008 (http://tinyurl.com/8kaubh), to provide timely agricultural information and to support online discussions on women’s rights and development. Berna Ngolobe, in Chapter 8, offers a gender dimension to the use of ICT including SMS as a way of improving capacity and generally empowering women. She raises issues of patriarchy which lead to women experiencing real disadvantage in education and economic security. Both of these factors impact on women’s access to mobile phones and therefore to participating in SMS-supported advocacy and campaign projects. Nonetheless, Uganda, which is also one of the countries involved in the Village Phone Initiative (http://tinyurl.com/qqd7ks), has taken a liberalised approach to telecommunications which has also led to increased access for women. This has resulted in a plethora of mobile service providers and one of the lowest call prices on the continent, thereby reducing some of the gender barriers that exist elsewhere in Africa.

In ‘Mobile telephony: closing the gap’ (Chapter 9), Christiana Charles-Iyoha, whilst recognising the pervasiveness of mobile phones and the innovative opportunities they have created, avoids the temptation to assert that we are moving towards a ‘digitopia’ particularly where women are concerned. Her chapter addresses gender imbalances, noting that women are largely excluded from accessing mobile phone technology and therefore from engaging actively in the development and social change process. She suggests a number of ways in which these inequalities can be addressed. By examining the factors that create obstacles she presents a number of practical ways of addressing imbalances.

Within 24 hours of the outbreak of the 2008/2009 post election violence in Kenya, Kenyan blogs were posting hour-by-hour reports. On 31 December, there was a complete shutdown of the mainstream media. Erik Hersman of ‘White African’ said:

‘The only way to get any up-to-date news for the past 24–48 hours has been through the blogosphere (like Kenyan Pundit, Thinkers Room, Mentalacrobatics), Skype and Kenyan-populated forums (like Mashada). The traditional media has been shut out and shut down for all intents and purposes.'[15]

Within days, the online community and blog aggregator, Mashada, had set up an SMS and voice hotline calling for people to send in local news and opinions on what was happening. This was followed by Ory Okolloh (Kenyan Pundit) who suggested using Google Earth to create a mashup16 of where the violence was taking place and called upon ‘any techies’ out there willing to help create a map of it. This was 3 January and by 9 January a group of Kenyan bloggers had put together a mashup and created Ushahidi, a site for people to send SMS or email reports of acts of violence directly. What the Ushahidi project shows is that if you build a strong community then it is easier to come together in a time of crisis and take action.

Why was the Kenyan blogosphere able to rally in such a positive and productive way in such a short time? What can we learn from their actions that will help others deal with local crisis? These are some of the questions, Juliana Rotich and Joshua Goldstein address in ‘Digitally networked technology’ (Chapter 10).

Bukeni Waruzi’s chapter provides an overview of the use of mobile phones for monitoring and reporting abuses of children’s rights. The Kalundu Child Soldier project used members of local communities including some former child soldiers to monitor and report acts of violence such as from rape, torture and forced marriage. The project is based in the Kivu region of eastern Congo, which is the centre of the violence in the country as militias, multinationals and governments all vie for control of the rich mineral resources such as coltan. It is ironic that the main mineral required to manufacture the mobile phones being used to report human rights abuses is the very mineral which is causing the conflict in the first place.

The contributors in this book come from a variety of occupational backgrounds, a fact that is reflected in the different writing styles and approaches to the usefulness of mobile technology as a tool for social change and advocacy in Africa. While they are all aware of the need to overcome infrastructural, economic and cultural obstacles, they also have a strong desire for social change and have the vision to see what could be possible and how best to achieve this. We are facing increasing amplification of social differentiation – the rich continue to get richer and the poor, poorer. In the face of this inequality mobile phone activism in Africa, as examined in this book, emerges as a powerful force for achieving social justice.

Mobile phones as tools for social change and advocacy are at a relatively early stage of development, but that are growing at an exponential rate, and it is quite possible that within two years the whole landscape will have changed. There are, of course, many other innovative projects and ideas which could have been included if space permitted. There is also the need for more research to fill the vacuum of information that exists such as from North Africa, Egypt and other non-English speaking countries. I am quite confident that there will be an academic exploration of some of the experiences discussed in the book. SMS Uprising is offered as the beginning, and showcases positive examples of what is possible and what can inspire people to use technology to support their actions.

Compiling this book has been a learning experience for me both as an editor and in terms of understanding how mobile telephony is being used in Africa. It has also been a privilege to work with Fahamu, who have been supportive and patient throughout.

By: Sokari Ekine

Source: Pambazuka Press

The International Community Is Al-Shabaab’s Best Ally In Somaliland

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HARGEISA, 1 March 2010 (Somalilandpress) – Since the international community often proclaims its opposition to terrorism in general, and al-Shabaab in particular, some readers may find the title of this editorial surprising, even counterintuitive. But we think the facts bear out our thesis. What are these facts? Well, it is true that the international community ritually makes statements against al-Shabaab and terrorism but their actual policies hurt Somaliland and help al-Shabaab.

How so? For one thing, the international community’s stance of not recognizing Somaliland has led to Somaliland’s diplomatic isolation and put Somaliland in a position where it has to fend for itself against terrorist activities without the benefit of the material and moral support that internationally recognized states receive to defend themselves from terrorism. Rather than helping Somaliland which is facing a serious terrorist threat, the international community has poured aid on Somaliland’s next door neighbor, Djibouti, which is using that aid to subvert and strangle Somaliland (the latest example of Djibouti’s anti-Somaliland activities is the article in the Saudi Arabian newspaper al-Riyadh, which has Djibouti’s fingerprints all over it, and which criticized the Saudi ministry of agriculture for importing livestock from Somaliland).

Second, the international community’s refusal to provide development aid to Somaliland has prevented Somaliland from accessing international grants and loans to re-build infrastructures such as roads and bridges. The international neglect validates the terrorist message that the international community in general, and Western countries in particular, want Muslims to live in miserable and intolerable conditions.

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Third, not only has the international community refused to extend development aid to Somaliland but even the efforts of Somalilanders to help themselves are being blocked by the international community. A salient example is the fact that Somaliland’s entrepreneurs are prevented from establishing a banking system in Somaliland because of the country’s unrecognized status which has led many businesses to locate their headquarters in other countries.

The international community has had two decades to correct its diplomatic, political, and economic abuse of Somaliland. Unfortunately, no such correction took place. Even the issue of piracy is being used by the international community to further isolate Somaliland and put it under Djibouti’s mercy. No wonder so many Somalilanders are fed up with the international community’s duplicity and double standards. This burgeoning and justified rage at the international community is making al-Shabaab’s message resonate with Somalilanders. The international community’s wrong-headed policies have already contributed to al-Shabaab’s control of most of the south. Similarly, the international community’s abusive policies toward Somaliland are increasing the appeal of al-Shabaab’s message in Somaliland. That’s what we meant when we said the international community is al-Shabaab’s best ally in Somaliland.


Source: The Somaliland Times

Wetang’ula Wants Maalim’s Conduct Investigated

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Nairobi, 1 March 2010 (Somalilandpress) – For the first time in the country’s history, Parliament will investigate a Deputy Speaker for his activities while on official duty abroad.

Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetang’ula has written to Parliament’s Defence and Foreign Relations Committee to investigate Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim’s activities on a tour of Somaliland in December last year.

The cause is key speeches he is alleged to have made that reportedly promoted separatism in Somalia and fostered ethnic disharmony between Somaliland and Puntland.

Committee chairman Adan Keynan admitted at the weekend that the minister wrote a letter seeking investigation, but declined to provide details citing Parliament’s Standing Orders.

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“It is true we have received the complaint and we are going to work on it,” said Mr Keynan, who added Maalim “will be summoned soon”.

According to sources, Wetang’ula wants the Lagdera MP probed for speeches he made at various functions when he visited Somaliland between December 22 and December 29, which allegedly caused tension in the two regions of Somaliland.

But the TFG’s Ambassador to Kenya Muhamed Ali Nur denied any knowledge of a protest by his Government, although he was aware of Maalim’s visit. He also denied knowledge of any controversy stirred by Maalim. The Deputy Speaker could not be reached for comment.


Source: Standard

Video: Somaliland National Library fundraising appeal

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LONDON — Somaliland Society of United Kingdom has launched a fundraising appeal for the construction of Somaliland’s National Library.

Ahmed Dahir Elmi, Chairman of Somaliland Society of UK, Dr Saed Ahmed Hassan, Chancellor of Golis University, Professor Hussein A. Bulhan, Chancellor of of University of Hargeisa and Faisal Ali Warabe, Chairman of UCID party address the conference held in north London.

The project is also supported by prominent Somaliland figures such as Rageh Omar, the well known television news presenter and writer and thousands of others.

We urge everyone to make a donation to the Somaliland Society UK Appeal Fund by one of the alternatives below:

Important contacts

Tel: +44 – 7985760181

Direct deposits:- Barclay Bank SC: 202748 Account: 20383724

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If you are in Somaliland, what does the National Library mean to you?

Video: Saafi films

Somalilandpress | 28 February 2010

Israel accused of dooming Ethiopian baby boom

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TEL AVIV (Somalilandpress) — A feminist movement has accused the Israeli government of adopting a racist policy towards the country’s Ethiopian Jews.

Activists believe black women are deliberately being given a controversial contraceptive drug to bring about a drop in the population – a claim the government denies.

Thousands of Ethiopians have immigrated to Israel since the 1980s, but their Jewish heritage has been questioned, while their social status continues to suffer.

For nearly four years, Racheli Mangoli has been running a youth center in one of Israel’s poorer communities. Forty-five Ethiopian families live here, but throughout that entire time, only one Ethiopian baby has been born in this neighborhood, and that has alarmed Racheli.

She says: “I smelt something not good. I know about the discrimination here – when I am going with the children, I feel this even when I am going to the supermarket. One women said to me ‘I don¹t know how you can stand next to people like this. When they give me money – I am going and washing my hands.’”

After some investigation, Racheli discovered that many Ethiopian women, keen to avoid getting pregnant while setting up life in a new country, had been placed on a controversial contraceptive, Depo-Provera, a drug few Israeli women have heard of, let alone use.

One woman was first put on it four years ago, and underwent repeated injections every three months. She says it has left her with such terrible pains in her hands and back that she can no longer work. She insists she was never told about its side effects or offered an alternative. Like many Ethiopians in Israel, she’s afraid she will be deported if she questions the authorities.
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Dr Factor is reluctant to give the contraceptive to his patients. He says it is known to delay fertility for months after women come off it. In some cases it can cause permanent infertility.

“At least 10 per cent develop substantial side-effects – side-effects like irregular bleeding, the period may disappear, they may have heavy periods. And it is impossible to reverse these side-effects, and until it has worked itself out of the system you can’t reverse these. So it’s possible although the contraception works for 3 months at a time, the side-effects may last for two years – three years – four years – five years,” he says.

In 2004, the American Food and Drug Administration warned against the dangers of the drug, but the World Health Organization refused to restrict its use.

Hedva Eyal has tried unsuccessfully to draw attention to the fact that Ethiopian Israelis are given the drug without being warned of the risks. She claims it is her government’s policy and is nothing short of racism.

She told RT: “They don’t want poor or black children and Depo-Provera gave them the opportunity to have control. If she [a patient] keeps taking an injection every three months, she is not going to have children – you know it is a 100 per cent secure from children I think.”

Hedva says the policy is working – the number of black babies in Israel is decreasing, but there are no official statistics to back up her claim. For community workers and Ethiopian women here, statistics are unnecessary – they feel their reality speaks for itself.

The Health Ministry admits it issues the drug, but says it was never its policy only to administer it to Ethiopian women and reduce the number of black babies in the country.

In their defense, Jewish agencies involved in immigration say they offered several types of contraceptives to the Ethiopian women, and that all of them participated voluntarily in family planning.

Dr. Yee-fat Bitton from the Israeli Anti-Discrimination Legal Center “Tmura”, says it’s not a matter point of view, but of the statistics.

“The statistics are, that 60 percent of the women receiving this contraceptive, this controversial one, are Ethiopian Jews,” Bitton told RT. “And you have to understand that Ethiopians in Israel… […] consist of up to only 1 per cent of the population, so the gap here is just impossible to reconcile in any logical manner that would somehow resist the claims of racism.”

Professor Zvi Bentwich, an immunologist and human rights activist from Tel-Aviv, doesn’t think there is any ground to suspect a certain negative official policy towards Ethiopian Jews.

“I’m not against looking and inquiring into the claim. If there is a claim, one should investigate,” Bentwich told RT. “But when asked about official attitudes, official policy, official medical policy, I am very reluctant that that is indeed a policy of racism on that part.”

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Watch the full interview with Yee-fat Bitton and Zvi Bentvich

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Source: RT, 26 February, 2010, 15:35

SOMALIA: Appeasing bureaucrats, gangs first—helping drought-stricken Somalis second

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Whether it is anarchic Somalia or other corrupted African nations, before the World Food Program (WFP) feeds drought-devastated locals: catering to the needs of the government officials as well as the local gangs first tantamount to resolving the most critical aspect of the crisis. The governments’ bureaucracies kill far more people than droughts obliterate victims from the face of the earth. The local gangs, on the other hand, loot whatever aid snatched away from the hands of callous, gluttonous, selfish officials.

Take Somalia particularly the Puntland region as an example. At the beginning of February, 2010, a large convoy of trucks loaded with food aid for the drought-stricken people of central Somalia departed from the republic of Somaliland’s port of Berbera. A chain of trucks over 130 departed from Berbera, traveling through the breath-taking views of Sheikh’s snaked mountain road to the plains of Togdheer and Sool provinces, all in Somaliland, without a hitch. Even the local police forces didn’t bother stopping the trucks to search illegal contraband because the security forces knew that the lives of thousands of Somalis were at risk of starvation.

But when the convoy reached the provincial capital of Sool region, Las Annod, something unexpected happened. Puntland refused to allow the trucks to proceed through its territory. For two weeks, while carrying heavy loads over 130 trucks remained in Las Annod. See the video clip below about the plight of the drivers:

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Understandably, the drivers complained because of the heavy loads on their trucks and the hot weather, the tires could rapture any minute. But Puntland officials turned a deaf ear to the outcry of the truckers as well as the needy people of central Somalia’s suffering.

Paradoxically, this is the same Puntland that echoes Somali nationalism and unity across the barren land of central Somalia, where heaps of livestock carcasses remain visible from a distance, and malnourished children depend on food aid which Puntland held hostage. But what compelled Puntland to act in such a cruel manner?

Puntland was not happy with how the food distribution was handled and the fact the aid went through Berbera port instead of Bosaso, Puntland’s commercial hub.

For the WFP officials, however, by going through Berbera achieves three things: first, the chances of pirates attacking the aid ships while in Somaliland waters is slim because Somaliland coastguards are known to round up pirates when they trespass into Somaliland’s waters; second, through Berbera, WFP officials face less bureaucracy.  After all the WFP has an agreement with Somaliland to ship food destined for the needy people of Ethiopia through Berbera, so why not send aid for Somalia through the same port as well. Third, the WFP officials know as long as the convoy is traveling through Somaliland territory security won’t be an issue, no need to hire gunmen to protect the food aid.
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But why Puntland officials waited until the last minute, when the trucks reached Las Annod, to raise objections doesn’t surprise anyone. The reason is too obvious: once the trucks reached Las Annod, the Puntland authority were in a better position to coerce the WFP to accept whatever they demanded. In other words, the corrupted Puntland officials knew they had the WFP over a barrel.

After an intense negotiation, and of course, receiving bribes, Puntland officials agreed to let the food reach its destination. How kind! They also assured the safety of the food, the trucks, and the drivers. But what the Puntland officials didn’t tell the WFP and the Somaliland was: the trucks will be protected while loaded with aid but not when they are empty and heading back to Somaliland.

Doubtless, in Puntland, some officials, local gangs, human traffickers, and pirates work as a team. That is, as soon as the trucks unloaded the food, local gangs started helping themselves. They began kidnapping the drivers and their trucks. See: http://somalilandpress.com/11960/somali-pirates-seize-somaliland-aid-trucks/

The kidnappers, members of Puntland’s infamous pirate community, demanded the release of a number pirates whom Somaliland arrested and convicted recently. All these pirates were caught red-handed with weapons in Somaliland’s territorial waters.

But for the kidnapped drivers, who may not even aware the convicted pirates much less have any thing to do with their arrest, must got used to being terrorized and kidnapped by none other than those who they deliver desperately needed aid to, by now.

Some members (not all of them) of the Ogaden National Liberation Front ONLF are notorious for burning trucks which belong to Somaliland citizens as to revenge for the ONLF comrades possibly held in Somaliland. So far over 75 civilian, not government, owned trucks—worth $30, 000 to $50,000 each—have been burned by the ONLF.

Employing the same tactics as the ONLF’s, Puntland pirates are now holding hostage five Somaliland trucks and their drivers.

However, what the ONLF and Puntland pirates ignored is: just as we cannot hold the population in the Gedo region of Somalia against former Somali ruler Gen. Siad Barre’s actions, so too Somaliland civilians should not suffer because of Somaliland President Dahir Riyale Kahin’s decision to crackdown ONLF and pirates in Somaliland territory. (Gen. Barre hails from the Gedo province of Somalia.)

In other words, the brave Somaliland truck drivers—determined to deliver much needed aid to the needy people of central of Somalia and the Ogden region should not suffer because Somaliland government’s actions.

Puntland’s piracy—a double-edged sword

If Puntland successfully rescues the drivers, this would open up a can of worms. The International community would demand to free hundreds of seamen and dozens of ships held hostage in Puntland territory. This won’t happen because much of Puntland’s economy depends on ransom money collected from ships. Also, Puntland doesn’t get its hand dirty unless pirates hijack ships destined to its territory.

In fact, Somaliland officials are already warning citizens not to take justice into their hands. http://somalilandpress.com/11983/somaliland-police-wary-of-revenge-attacks-on-puntland-truckers/ Also read about the root cause of piracy in Somalia: http://www.maanhadal.com/articles/Epicenter_o_%20Sea_Piracy.html

On the flip side, if Puntland doesn’t resolve the hostage crisis quickly: the infuriated family members of the victims my soon take the law into their hands. For instance, hundreds of trucks from Puntland travel through Somaliland peacefully every month. Now, the likelihood of some innocent driver from Puntland region becoming a victim of an ugly avenge carried out by the Somaliland truck drivers’ family members is very high.

More serious problem is Somaliland may launch a full-scale war against pirate bases to free Somaliland hostages. By doing so, would also open another unexpected door. The International community would ask Somaliland to undertake similar operations against pirate bases as to free ships and their crews. Somaliland won’t hesitate to neutralize pirates as longs as logistics are provided. Somaliland has over 16, 000-18,000 fully trained military personnel and will not hesitate to eradicate piracy in the region with the support of regional and international community.

To sum up, more than ever before, Somaliland truck drivers need to establish a strong union which will negotiate with Somaliland, Puntland, Ethiopia, and WFP in the near future as to safeguard the safety of the drivers and their trucks.

As for Puntland, failure to free Somaliland hostages will result: more damage to Puntland’s eroding reputation as the kingdom of piracy and human trafficking, dozens of Puntland trucks kidnapped—and worst of all Somaliland may launch a military assault against the pirate bases in Puntland.

To top it up, burning Somaliland civilian owned trucks and their goods by ONLF as well as kidnapping trucks and their drivers by Puntland pirates is a counter-productive strategy to accomplish anything; it just infuriates people.

Free Somaliland truck drivers now. Feed the needy people of Somalia first; bureaucrats, next.

Dalmar Kaahin
Dalmar_k@yahoo.com

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Views expressed in the opinion articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the editorial.

Somaliland: Police wary of revenge attacks on Puntland truckers

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BURAO (Somalilandpress) — At least five trucks belonging to businessmen hailing from the semi-autonomous region of Puntland were taken into custody in Burao on Saturday under new security arrangements, officials say.

Togdher regional Police Commissioner, Col. Abdulrahman Ahmed Liban, said police in the region have taken a number of trucks belonging to Puntland because of possible revenge attacks after Puntland pirates seized seven WFP aid trucks belonging to Somaliland truckers.

“It’s possible relatives of the trucks seized in Puntland might seek revenge for that reason and security purposes we have taken Puntland truck  and their drivers into custody. Its part of the security of this region,” he said.

He did not say when they will be allowed to resume their business or if they will be escorted back to Puntland but the Commissioner has warned Somalilanders against seeking their own justice. He added that everyone must respect the law and understand the truckers are civilians just trying to feed their families.

Seven trucks and their drivers contracted by World Food Programme from Somaliland were taken hostage by Puntland pirates on their way back to the Somaliland port of Berbera after delivering food aid to the central Somali town of Galkayo.

More than 160 Somaliland trucks were contracted by WFP to carry the much needed food to the displaced Somalis in the central regions of Somalia.

In the past, WFP used the port of Berbera to deliver aid to landlocked Ethiopia but because of the Islamists groups in Somalia and the pirates in Puntland, WFP decided to use Somaliland’s port. Somaliland has successfully kept the Puntland pirates at bay arresting more than 40 in the process thus far. Now, the Puntland pirates want all 40 released in exchange for the seven truckers.
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According to sources close to the pirates, the trucks are been kept in small town near the pirate lair of Garaad called Kulud.

Puntland authority has also protested against WFP for their usage of Berbera port insisting they should use their port at Bosaso. Puntland refused them entry and many trucks crossed into Galkayo over the Ethiopian border – however Puntland eventually allowed the trucks entry after they were stranded in Las Anod for five days.

WFP’s move to use Berbera may have also angered Somalia’s Islamists hard-line movement of Shebab Al-Mujahideen, who have issued a statement today banning WFP operating in Somalia.

According to Middle East Online, a senior member of the group has stated: “We have already given (WFP) chances to operate in Somalia but after failing to comply with the conditions we put forward, we totally banned WFP operations in Somalia.”

In a related development, reports coming out off the town of Burtinle in the Nugal region of Puntland suggest further four trucks from WFP convey have been kidnapped by separate Puntland militia. No one exactly knows their motives.

Also it is reported that militia groups have looted and fired bullets at truck conveys traveling between the two Puntland towns of Galkayo and Garowe on their way back to Berbera. No reports of casualties so far.

A trucker from the town of Las Anod said, they were stopped shortly after leaving the town of Galkayo, they were stopped at gun point and asked for their clan. “After they learned I’m from Las Anod and Dhulbahante tribe, they took some cash from me and let me go but they detained other drivers from other clans in Somaliland” he said.

Another driver told Geeska Afrika that at least 35 trucks were still stranded in Galkayo too afraid to leave. “We are afraid of traveling back to Puntland, they are armed militia on the road and we have no arms because we use to peaceful Somaliland where civilians do not carry guns” he told Geeska.

According to the WFP, an estimated 1.55 million Somalis are internally displaced and 285,000 Somali children are malnourished. Over all WFP delivers over 90 percent of it’s aid for Somalia by sea often escorted by naval NATO and US ships.

“The situation in South and Central Somalia is aggravated by civil strife, insecurity and consecutive seasons of poor rains. Somalia has some of the world’s worst health indicators. Life expectancy at birth is 46.2 years. A quarter of children die before they reach five,” WFP said a statement on their website.

No official comments from WFP, Somaliland or Puntland authority.

The coast off Somalia is among the world’s most dangerous shipping lanes and the state has not had effective government since 1991.

Video: More than 70 trucks stranded in Las Anod after Puntland protests about the food import via Berbera port, more trucks on their way, while others already crossed via Ethiopia.

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Somalilandpress, 28th February 2010

The Search for Appropriate Policies for Somalia

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HARGEISA, 27 February 2010 (Somalilandpress) – In a series of articles published in Aljazeera.net, the Somali-born academic and lecturer, Dr. Afyare Elmi, has put forward policy prescriptions for the international community to help Somalia become a country with a functioning state. His discussion on the emergence of Somalia’s Islamist militant organizations is interesting although he has not included Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a in the list.

“ During President Bill Clinton’s era, Operation Restore Hope was turned into the nightmare known today as Black Hawk Down” Afyare writes. Former US president Bill Clinton inherited Operation Restore Hope from George Bush (senior) but in July 1992 he had spoken in Little Rock, Arkansas and had called for humanitarian intervention in Somalia. Operation Restore Hope saved many Somalis from man-made famine and is now regarded as one of the most memorable humanitarian interventions the international community undertook to address an upheaval.

A central theme running through Afyare’s analyses is that Somali moderates can, with help from the international community, change Somalia for the better. In all the three articles Afyare sounds like unionist but his conception of a united Somalia is undermined by his failure to mention Somaliland and Puntland, the first has political parties, judiciary, and is keen on being recognized as ‘Republic of Somaliland’ whereas the latter is an autonomous, pro-(re)union administration.
Somalia’s experiment with different forms of centralism (1960-1990) paved the way for state collapse. This does not mean federalism will fare better given Somalia’s recent turbulent history of clan warfare. He attributes Islamists’ rise in Somalia to the political failure of Somali secularists:

“One can safely argue that, for now, Somalia does not have credible secularist groups that can compete with Islamists. When the country collapsed in 1991 many Islamists who lived in the Middle East went back and established schools and service centres.”

In fact, Somalia has never had credible ‘secularist groups’ but only has had opportunist politicians. The ill-timed US support for warlords who set up the Alliance for Counter-terrorism in 2006 is another factor that propelled Somali Islamists onto the political scene in Southern Somalia. Somaliland and Puntland have been successful in setting up local institutions after state collapse because they combined the expertise of politicians and traditional leaders. In Southern Somalia, people supported the Union of Islamic Courts in 2006 because warlord- based groups have called the shots in many parts of Southern Somalia where armed clans failed to consider the rights of unarmed clans in inter-reverine areas or set up local, consensus-based administrations.

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Dr. Afyare sees the Islamists as an ally who can contribute to efforts to reconstitute the Somali state and argues “the overwhelming majority of Somalia’s Islamis movements have a Somali agenda—they want a peaceful and prosperous homeland. Thus in order to build a functioning state, they should be considered an ally.” There are only two major Islamist organisations in Somalia today: Hizbul Islam and Al Shabab, and a new group, Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a sponsored by Ethiopia has honed the fray but it is not a group that can be described as an Islamist organisation. What yardstick has someone got to use to describe an Islamist group’s views as majoratarian? “Conditions that favoured the radicals have been reversed and the opportunity for defeating extremism has presented itself again,” Dr Afyare writes. In the Somali political context extremism is a word used to label someone or group whose activities or operations threaten the interests of a clan. In 2006 the current Transitional Federal Government’s Minister of State for Defence, and former secretary of Defence for both the Union of Islamic Courts and the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, Yusuf Mohamud Siyad (aka Indha’adde) who boasted that he was one of late General Aideed’s supporters who dragged dead American soldiers in streets of Mogadishu, and who threatened that Union of Islamic Courts would attack Addis Ababa in 2006, now calls Al Shabab mooryaan, ( hooligans), not extremists. “Somalia since 2006 is possibly the clearest example for the failure of US (and Ethiopian) counter-terrorism policy, which actually has produced what it was supposed to counter,” argued Markus Hoehne.

“If the situation is to be reversed, Somalia’s state has to be reconstructed. The long term solution to the Somalia challenge is to rebuild a strong central state,” Afyare writes. Efforts to reconstitute the Somali state will bear fruit if the approach is bottom up, rather than top-down. How will a central state based on the 4.5 power-sharing formula protect the rights of minority clans perceived to be minority because they have not had armed militias? Afyare proposes “an electoral system based on national closed list proportional representation to reform the current Somali Transitional Parliament [as]… appropriate [measure] in this context. This model is suitable because most Somali voters are illiterate and it facilitates the unity of the country.” Somalia’s experiment with parliamentary democracy ( 1960-1969) does not seem to have been taken into account by Afyare whose need for a sense of history is all the more pressing when he commends human rights groups for calling “for the removal Mohamed Darwish and Abdi Qeybdid from the government for committing human rights atrocities. Although Darwish has now been removed, Qeybdid is still in the cabinet and many more questionable individuals are also playing roles in the government.” Darwish was the head of TFG’s Security Service; Qeybdid was the Commander of Somali Police Force (now Minister of Water and Minerals).

Amnesty International pointed out in one of its reports on Somalia that insurgents associated with the Alliance for the Reliberation for Somalia of which president Sheikh Sharif Ahmed was chairman, murdered TFG members and civil servants. President Sharif reiterated that this page of Somali history was closed, and reconciliation was the way forward. Challenges the TFG faces are different from those faced by the TFG under the former president Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed. Militant Islamist organisations—Al Shabab and Hizbul Islam— don’t have the image problem that plagued warlords locally. They administer corporal and questionable capital punishments but those measures weigh less on the minds of people in areas controlled by Islamist organisations particularly inter-riverine areas for they believe Islamists’ rule is more benign than the warlords’ reign of terror. Dr Afyare’s policy prescriptions fail to take into account the complex political realities in Somalia and how problems are interconnected at district and regional levels in the Horn of Africa’s war-torn country.


Written by:
Liban Ahmad
Libahm@gmail.com

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Views expressed in the opinion articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the editorial

Ransom Paid To Somali Pirates for Indonesian Ship

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MOGADISHU — Somali pirates said they were air-dropped a ransom of 3.7 million dollars (2.7 million euros) Friday to release an Indonesian chemical tanker and its 24 crew members.

“The pirates already agreed to free the ship after receiving ransom money of 3.7 million US dollars, I think they will get off the ship some time this evening or tomorrow,” Abdi Yare, a pirate leader in the port of Harardhere, told AFP.

Hasan Abdulle, another pirate in Harardhere, also said the ransom had been paid for the Singapore-flagged MT Pramoni.

“Most of the pirates are already back on shore now because they received their ransom today, the ship is technically free,” he said.

A spokesman for the European Union anti-piracy naval mission confirmed that a ransom was paid early Friday.
“A ransom drop has been made,” said EU NAVFOR spokesman John Harbour, adding that it normally took up to 24 hours for pirates to release the ship and crew “after the money has been counted”.

Somali pirates seized the vessel and its 24 crew members in the Gulf of Aden on January 1.

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The ship was captured while en route to India, the first attack by Somali pirates this year.

Among the crew of the 20,000 deadweight-tonne Pramoni heading toward Kandla are 17 Indonesians, five Chinese nationals, a Nigerian and a Vietnamese.

Somali pirates, targeting one of the world’s busiest maritime trade routes, raked in an estimated 60 million dollars in ransoms last year.
Besides the MT Pramoni, they still hold at least nine vessels and more than 150 seafarers.

An armed Somali pirate keeps vigil along the coastline at Hobyo town (Photo By AFP)

Sources: AFP

Somaliland’s Most Prominent Woman: Edna Aden Ismail

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HARGEISA, 27 February 2010 (Somalilandpress) – The Republic of Somaliland, a former British Protectorate, which has gained its independence from the British on June 26, 1960, after short union with the South, it reclaimed i’ts independence in 1991, after an armed struggle against the totalitarian regime of Mohamed Siad Bare. Somaliland has since continued to impress the international community with such relentless efforts to secure the only stability that exists, today, in what was formerly known as Somalia. Although, Somaliland has, yet, to gain recognition as a sovereign state from any of the United Nations member states, many of these states has credited the people of Somaliland for their hard work and commitment. The stability and the gradual developments in many spheres in Somaliland’s affairs are often described, by the international community, exemplary compared to that of Somalia and many other states in the Horn of Africa, today.

Any commendable achievement made by Somaliland has been, solely, achieved by the people of Somaliland. Somaliland women have, incontestably and immensely, contributed to these achievements. They say, every great man behind a great woman. Thank God, this small nation of, allegedly, less than three millions of populace, has so far produced many great women. Those great women deserve decoration for their contribution, and the likes of Edna should be honoured with a Noble Prize for her allegiance to humanitarian work.

Edna Adan Ismail is in the lead of those noble Somaliland women, who have made a viable difference in the slow, but improving political, social, economical, and cultural situations of Somaliland. Edna is a great role model to many young and aspiring Somaliland women, and I can only hope I have done her justice in the following paragraphs, where I am attempting to shed a light on what puts this lady ahead of the crowd.

Edna has shared platform with many world leaders and other important international figures such as former United States presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Bill Clinton. Former United Nation’s Secretary General Kofi Annan, and Hollywood mega stars Demi Moore, Goldie Hawn and many more. Edna, like her high-profile peers, can afford to have a Hollywood starlet lifestyle in any country of her choice. She can afford to live in New York suburbs, drive Bentley Continental, dine in posh and expensive eateries with her highly academic peers, and private shop in Paris’s Faubourg Saint-Honoré district. But no, she did not choose that lifestyle. Instead, she chose to live in Hargeisa, Somalland’s capital city, drive nothing fancier than what other Hargeisa’s working class are driving. And on top of that, she, personally, deliveries babies at Edna Maternity Hospital. The hospital she founded and maintains herself with her own pension money, in Hargeisa. In an interview she gave at the BBC Radio 4, she told the presenter that her reason of founding Edna Maternity Hospital in Hargeisa and running it, is nothing more than just living up to an occupational commitment, i.e. she is a trained midwife, who has gained her skills at various hospitals in London, and therefore, this is, in her own words, “what she does for living”.

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Edna Adan Ismail must be the most accomplished woman in the Horn of Africa, and one of the few in the whole of African continent. She has many firsts in many things. She is the first Somaliland woman to receive a scholarship to United Kingdom, where she was trained as a midwife in 1950s. She is the first Somaliland and Somalia’s First Lady as she was the wife of former Somalia’s President in 1960s, Mohammed Haji Ibrahim Egal. The first Somaliland woman to held a driving license, and as she told the BBC Radio 4 presenter the first Somali person to speak out of the Female Genital Mutilation (GFM) in 1975. Edna was the first woman Foreign Minister of the Republic of Somaliland from the periods of 2003 to 2006 and the only woman minister, then. She worked with the United Nations and has become the Regional Director of the World Health Organisation. She retired in early 1990s.

Edna Adan Ismail is reported to have receiving many tributes, so far, in her still ongoing humanitarian work. Edna was added to the list of the Medical Mission Hall of Fame in early 2007 by the University of Toledo, Ohio. This was in recognition of her lifelong Humanitarian work, and it gained her another first in her career life. Edna was the first African to have been awarded with such an honour. Furthermore, Edna received Honorary Doctoral Degree and Honorary Fellow from Clark University of Massachusetts in the United States and Cardiff University in the United Kingdom, respectively.

When speaking of this brilliant woman, people often tend to associate her with the late Somaliland president, Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal, as she was his first wife, or UDUP, the current ruling party in Somaliland, with whom she served as a Foreign Minister. However, many people, often, fail to appreciate that this noble woman has a lifelong achievements in humanitarian work. She is, first and foremost, qualified medical personnel and thus vowed to serve her country, regardless. Edna Maternity Hospital trains legions of young men and women in health-care, every year. Many of those qualified men and women work in various health centres in the country, while others may choose to continue for further studies and trainings elsewhere. When Edna is not in Hargeisa, where she would not miss a delivery of a new baby, she travels around the world pleading with the international community to support Somaliland and, particularly, assist with the development of a better and sustainable health-care system in the country.

This prominent woman has earned her place in history and is a true inspirational to all of us. Her humble self and noble efforts to help her people are amiable qualities that put her on top of the list that I have, personally, set to honour Somaliland’s most prominent women.

Written By:
Salma A. Sheik

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