My few words reflect the writing of Mrs. Elizabeth Ohene about President Obama’s schedule visit to Ghana. Somaliland held high the achievement reached by our fellow African country, that we share a lot since our beloved country [Somaliland] came into being on 26th June, 1960 and recognized by 34 countries including Ghana and five permanent members of the United Nations. Mr. Nkrumah and Mr. Egal shared a common destiny at the time, and dreamed to fulfil the betterment of Africa and its populations.
Mrs. Elizabeth Ohene’s comments by saying her country Ghana is the only democracy in African, while forgetting the “Best Kept Secret in Africa” which is my country. She has every right to praise her country, but if a well know politician ignores the other countries achievement, it gives you the impression of naivety of that individual.
Somaliland and the democracy they built from grass root while Somalia is shooting itself in foot for the last 19 plus years, is something that African Statesman like current Ghanaian President to encourage people like Obama to look seriously the country that exists [Somaliland]. Somaliland is truly admirable due to it’s thriving democracy which is allien to most of Africa countries.
President John Atta has to engage the Africa Best Kept Secret, and support internationally like his predecessor Mr. Kafoor.
I hope you will publish my short comments in your esteemed news paper.
Sincerely
Omar Hussein Dualeh,
Doha-Qatar
Omer Hussein Dualeh,
Doha – Qatar
Tel. 00974-5841743
Views expressed in the opinion articles are solely those of the authors and does not necessarily represent those of the editorial.
Accra, Jul 9 2009 — In our series of weekly viewpoints from African journalists, Elizabeth Ohene, a former government minister in Ghana and former BBC journalist, looks forward to US President Barack Obama’s visit to her country:
We in Ghana are going to have our “Obama Moment” later this week.
Forget that talk about Ghana being the second country in Africa President Obama is visiting. We know better.
Ghana is a truly admirable example of a place where governance is getting stronger, a thriving democracy
That Egypt stopover does not count as a trip to Africa. He did not go there with his wife; he is coming here with Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha.
And he will be going to Cape Coast, which has been given a well-deserved makeover.
He did not sleep in Cairo and it was obvious he was using the city only as a backdrop to make a speech to the Arab world.
True, he is making a big speech here in our parliament aimed at Africa, but this is different.
He is coming to Ghana because, to borrow the words of his spokesperson: “Ghana is a truly admirable example of a place where governance is getting stronger, a thriving democracy.”
Their words, not mine.
Jealous pride
We are the envy of the whole continent and as for our cousins the Nigerians, this is the ultimate humiliation.
I suspect the president will be begging people this week to demonstrate against his government
They will never be able to live this one down.
Then there is Kenya and I ought to tread gently for there might be some raw emotions here, since there are blood claims.
So we sympathise with our Kenyan brothers and sisters, but as the White House sees it, Kenya, like Nigeria simply doesn’t make the good governance grade.
The trip to Ghana is intentional. It is worth quoting The White House on Ghana again:
“An extraordinarily close election, decided ultimately by about 40,000 votes, the country remained peaceful, power was transferred peacefully, and they continue to pursue a development agenda and bolster the rule of law.”
The Americans probably are aware many in Africa have wondered aloud that a sitting government could not find 40,000 votes to stay in power.
With such enthusiastic endorsement, it is not surprising that the government here is over the moon and is milking the Obama magic for all it is worth.
The promotions by the Ministry of Information and the Office of the President seek to portray the new Ghana government as being on the same wavelength as the new United States government, both led incidentally by law professors.
Big party
It is a bit tricky trying to liken the charismatic and erudite 47-year-old wordsmith world leader Mr Obama to the halting 64-year-old John Atta Mills, taunted as “dull” by his mentor, ex-President Jerry Rawlings.
The Clintons were given a huge welcome 11 years ago
We have consequently run into some very odd incidents.
This past week, there was the strange case of the president asking, or maybe, ordering the police to allow a street demonstration by a group that wanted to protest against a litany of things.
The police had gone to court and got an injunction to prevent the demonstration on the grounds, among others, that the police were so busy with the planned Obama visit they would not have the manpower to handle a demonstration.
Nobody here imagines that President Atta Mills intervened so dramatically to ask that a court order be put aside and the group be allowed to protest because he is dying for people to protest against him.
But imagine this: Here is Mr Obama, daily criticising the Iranian government for not allowing its citizens to demonstrate; and here is Ghana, the “admirable example of a thriving democracy” refusing to allow peaceful demonstrations… Obviously that would not do.
Fluffing lines
I suspect therefore that not only will the president be begging people this week to demonstrate against his government; there will be a lull in the frantic denunciations of the former government.
No former officials will be stopped at the airport and prevented from leaving the country and no former minister’s car will be seized by state security officers on the streets of Accra.
My bet is there will be no such drama any more until Mr Obama has been and gone.
I have been trying to dream up the most outrageous thing I could get away with in this thriving democracy during Obama week.
But the truth is all Ghanaians are really chuffed about the visit and if only the Americans would let us, we would put on such a welcome show, the world would be astounded.
After all, this is the country in 1998 that gave Bill Clinton the largest crowd in his life, but then that was in the pre-9/11 world and these days they do not allow American presidents to be exposed to such crowds.
All the same, we guarantee to make the trip memorable for the Obamas.
At the moment, if we have any anxieties it has to be a collective fear that our president will falter in pronouncing President Obama’s name.
He seems to fluff his lines on the big occasions, and there is a wicked rumour making the rounds that President Atta Mills has been practising the name of his host, “Bama Obarack, Marack Omaba, President Omarack”…
We are all willing him on to get it right on the day.
Durban, Jul 9, 2009 — Some 70,000 construction workers in South Africa have gone on strike, halting work on stadiums being built for the 2010 World Cup.
Unions are threatening to wreck the tournament if their demands for a 13% wage increase are not met.
Organizers say they are confident the grounds will still be ready unless the strike continues for months.
On Monday judges rejected a request from the employers to outlaw the strike, which unions say is indefinite.
The BBC’s Mpho Lakaje in Soweto says scores of workers are outside Soccer City stadium wearing blue overalls and brandishing sticks.
“We are struggling for our country,” they chanted after downing their tools at midday.
The government must help us, otherwise we are going to delay 2010
“The government must help us, otherwise we are going to delay 2010. We will strike until 2011,” AFP news agency quoted NUM spokesman Lesiba Seshoka as saying.
Protesters outside Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium were forced to disperse because their application to protest was turned down, the South African Press Association reported.
Before they left, the NUM’s Bhekani Ngcobo told workers the union would make sure that no temporary labourers were employed.
Six entirely new stadiums are being built for the World Cup, while four are being modernised.
Danny Jordaan, head of the World Cup organising committee, said he respected the right of the workers to strike but felt the dispute would be resolved without affecting the construction schedule.
“The construction workers have been the lifeblood of the 2010 Fifa World Cup project,” he said in a statement.
“Their hard work has ensured that we are on track to meet our deadlines and that our stadiums will be among the best in the world next year.”
Correspondents say if the strike continues projects such as the high-speed rail link between the airport and Johannesburg will be of greater concern than the stadiums.
The rail-link is scheduled to be operational just two weeks before the tournament starts.
The next World Cup will be the first to be hosted by an African country.
Hargeisa, 9 July 2009 – Somalilandpress reporter, Mr. Abdiqani Baynah along with another journalist from Qarannews Hasan Keefkeef have been beaten and briefly detained by the police in Hargeisa this evening. The two journalists were detained while preparing a program about the street children in Somaliland’s capital city Hargeisa.
The police assaulted the two reports while they were interviewing the homeless children next to the Hargeisa’s police headquarter. Police officers confiscated the reporter’s equipment and start beating them with the back of gun butts.
“They took us to the police station, we showed them our press cards but they did not care. They checked all the photos in the cameras and listened to the audio recorder” Said Abdiqani. “I feel pain all over my body because of the beating, I still don’t know why the police officers assaulted us” he concluded.
The two journalists were released after they spent two hours in police custody without any charges against them. This is not the first time the police assaulted reporter Mr. Abdiqani. Early this year he was also beaten by the police in Maansoor hotel when he was trying to cover the general assembly of the ruling party which was taking place in the hotel.
Record of Assaults on the press freedom.
13th of March, Nur Ahmed Gagab also from Somaliland Space Channel was beaten up by Presidential guards — he was attacked, kicked, and beaten with gun butts, and knocked to the ground, and left unconsciously. He was treated in a hospital.
On the 28th of March, Mr. Ahmed Saleyban Dhuhul from Horyal radio station – was beaten up and arrested outside the parliament.
15th of May, Mr. Hadis Mohamed Hadis was arrested in Crown Hotel in Hargeisa and then released after few hours. The government said he was taking a photo of governmental offices and run away when the guards wanted to talk to him.
18th of May, Mustafa Mohamed Abdi, a journalist with HadhwanaagNews, also based in Somaliland’s capital Hargeisa was taken into custody without charges — released after few hours.
18th of May, Muna Asa’yr Jama was abused by the Presidential spokesman.
8th of July, Abdiqani Baynax and Qarannews reporter assaulted by police and detained for two hours without charges.
Addis Ababa, Jul 8, 2009 — Somalia’s prime minister signaled his regime is expanding the 4, 300 strong African Union troops by several thousand as more are expected to arrive in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.
Abdirashid Ali did not say where the troops will come from, but sources close to the Prime Minister’s office have indicated they might be from Nigeria, Djibouti, Rwanda, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Ghana.
There are currently 4, 300 African Union military troops from Uganda and Burundi in Mogadishu, however their mandate is limited only to peacekeeping.
The announcement comes one week after heavy fightings killed some 105 people and injured 382 — the conflict also left more than 204,000 people displaced.
Meanwhile, Somali President Sharif is in Addis Ababa for talks with Ethiopian leaders and AU ambassadors from the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. Before his arrival to the Ethiopian capital, Sheikh Sharif visited Uganda, Sudan, Kenya and Djibouti to request the full strength of 8,000 troops.
The troops are expected to arrive in Somalia soon to help with the war against Al Shabaab rebels who said to be just 2 kilometers from the Presidential Villa.
To help Ayaan, or see more details about her please visit: HELP AYAAN
Hargeisa, 8 July 2009 — I would like to speak to you about the case of Ayaan Osman, a child who was shot in the face when she was two years old during the Somali Civil War that Somaliland had with Somalia in 1988.
At the time of her injury, Ayaan was taken to a refugee camp where fortunately she was given the medical care that saved her life. Today, Ayaan is a young woman who has taught herself to read and write, not only in Somali but also in English. Unfortunately, Ayaan has a gap in her face. Ayaan has a hole on the side of her face, with a tooth sticking out here and a hole from where food and liquid, as she drinks, pours out from. Ayaan is from Burao and has come to our hospital in Hargeisa to seek help.
I was very touched by her case. We get many patients whom we can save. And we also have some patients that we cannot, and we move on. but the case of Ayaan has left a lot of pain in me because I often wonder where I would be if had been the one who had sustained those injuries that Ayaan did when she was two years old. I feel very touched when I see her eat and drink and have to deal with the liquid that is pouring out. I don’t know how she does it.
She has lived for 20 years with that condition. And because God has given me a voice and has given me the ability to reach out to the world, that is why I am appealing to the world out there for the medical assistance and the facial reconstruction that Ayaan needs in order to lead a normal life like everybody else does.
I appeal for plastic surgery. I appeal for facial reconstruction for Ayaan and I thank you all for your attention.
Sincerely
– Edna Adan Ismail
To help Ayaan, or see more details about her please visit: HELP AYAAN
HARGEISA, July 8 2009 — Authorities in Somalia’s self-declared republic of Somaliland are worried about a bad harvest and potential livelihood crisis for poor agro-pastoralists.
Abdikader Jibril Tukale, director-general of Somaliland’s Ministry of Agriculture, told IRIN: “We are very worried about low crop production, which can cause livelihood crises for poor agro-pastoralists in the main farmlands of Hargeisa, Togdher, Gabiley, Awdal, Salal and Sahil, caused by the failure of Gu’ [spring] rains and the desert locust outbreak.”
Tukale said at least 100T of seeds were distributed to agro-pastoralists in the western and mid-western regions of Somaliland, particularly Awdal, Salal, Gabiley, and Hargeisa.
“We provided seeds to at least 5,000 households in these regions, giving 20kg per household, selecting the poorest people to support them to [restore] their livelihoods,” he added.
However, most farmers failed to cultivate their land due to insufficient rainfall.
Omar Aw Aden Riirash, a farmer in Satile region, said: “I cultivated my 10ha farms in Satile and Idhanka Jufada twice this year but seeds germinated in only two qodis [44 sqm] in Satile; all others were lost seeds and I need to plant afresh during the next rainy season.
“I am now an old man; when I was young, I witnessed my father cultivating the same quantity of land and producing about 100 sacks of crops per harvest, but in recent years, the situation has changed, our highest crop production is only 30 sacks during the good years; we just harvest enough for our subsistence during other years.”
He said the causes of the lower output included poor rainfall, soil degradation and farmers’ financial inability to cultivate more land.
Other farmers attribute the poor crop production to the quality of seeds.
“We seeded our farms using the imported sorghum and maize seeds; in the first two to three years, we harvested much more than before; unfortunately, later, the production decreased,” Hassan Haji Mohamed, a farmer who lives near Abarso, 21km northwest of Hargeisa, said.
Abdikader Jibril Tukale, director-general of the Ministry of Agriculture
However, the ministry maintains it distributed good quality seeds.
“We do not distribute imported seeds; we buy locally and supply poor farmers,” Tukale said. “We now expect to distribute new seeds and even help farmers to plough their farms during the next rainy season; this will be done with the support of international organizations that are working with us to help farmers.”
However, several farmers complained of seed shortages.
“In this area, this is the first time we are receiving these seeds, as far as I know; we have heard that some people who had received these seeds had better harvests than in previous years,” Omar Aw Aden, a farmer in Satile, said.
Riirash said: “We planted the seeds more than two times but produced nothing, now we are encountering a lack of seeds.”
A fisherman in Lughaya, Somaliland, looks out from the cold storage facility on the Gulf of Aden
Zeila, Jul 7, 2009 — Five Somaliland nationals have reportedly been detained by Yemeni forces on Monday in a serious standoff between Yemen and the Republic of Somaliland.
A source in Somaliland’s capital said that Yemeni forces took the five men into custody in the wake of strained relationships between the two states. The arrests come after Somaliland coastguards seized six Yemeni nationals along with two fishing boats; the Six Yemeni men were detained in the Somaliland coastal town of Zeila on 4th of July.
The Yemenis are accused of smuggling Ethiopians searching for work in the Gulf States from Somaliland to Yemen. The smugglers often dump their passengers far from shore and force them to swim the rest of the way to avoid coast patrols. The Gulf of Aden between Yemen and the Horn of Africa is notorious for smuggling and piracy but Somaliland has been safe until now. In recent weeks, pirates and smugglers are shifting their operations to new areas where there are less patrols by NATO and American warships.
It is believed that one of the five men taken into custody by Yemeni forces is the son of Somaliland’s Commander of Coastguard in Zeila; “he went to Aden to export livestock” the source stated. Yemen is demanding that Somaliland releases it’s citizens in exchange for the five Somaliland natives.
There was no official statement from either Yemen or Somaliland officials.
The body of a Muslim woman, killed in a German courtroom by a man convicted of insulting her religion, has been taken back to her native Egypt for burial.
Marwa Sherbini, 31, was stabbed 18 times by Axel W, who is now under arrest in Dresden for suspected murder.
Husband Elwi Okaz is also in a critical condition in hospital, after being injured as he tried to save his wife.
Ms Sherbini had sued her killer after he called her a “terrorist” because of her headscarf.
The case has attracted much attention in Egypt and the Muslim world.
German prosecutors have said the 28-year-old attacker, identified only as Axel W, was driven by a deep hatred of foreigners and Muslims.
‘Martyr’
Medics were unable to save Ms Sherbini who was three months pregnant with her second child. Her three-year-old son was with the family in court when she was killed.
Axel W and Ms Sherbini and family were in court for his appeal against a fine of 750 euros ($1,050) for insulting her in 2008, apparently because she was wearing the Muslim headscarf or Hijab.
Newspapers in Egypt have expressed outrage at the case, asking how it was allowed to happen and dubbing Ms Sherbini “the martyr of the Hijab”.
Senior Egyptian officials and German diplomatic staff attended the funeral in Alexandria along with hundreds of mourners.
Media reports say Mr Okaz was injured both by the attacker and when a policeman opened fire in the courtroom.
Hargeisa, 6 July 2009 – I am a citizen of the country called “Somaliland” and I wish to communicate with you directly. My open letter to you, your highness, is a plea I wish to make and request your Government to engage my country. I have confidence in you and I know you are a unique to the Arab World. You are steadfast politician and someone who has charisma and far sighted.
My country needs your help at the International arena and at the same time from yourself as Emir of Qatar.
We [Somaliland] have achieved something alien to the African Continent. We have built our country from the grass root, after Siad Barre bombarded and leveled to the ground. We made piece with ourselves by negotiating even with those who were not with us, when we were fighting with the regime of Siad Barre.
Somaliland is proud of having produced a unique and workable democracy in Africa. It is unique because of its combination and modernity, in that, we have a House of Elders and a House of Representatives. It’s workable and unique, because, we put it to test, it gave us three free elections Municipal, Presidential & Legislative and the fourth “Presidential election is due 27th September, 2009.
What is more interesting about our democracy is that we have legislative elections that produced an opposition majority in parliament, and a minority that governs. It’s what the French call “la co-habitation”. Its remarkable achievement in the Horn of Africa, given that, the eventuality of such a process led to bloodshed at the time we did all these, in Ethiopia 2005, our next door neighbor, when Mr. Meles Zinawi smelled that he was going to loose the parliament to the opposition.
Somaliland has spent nearly two decades, trying to convince the international community, that it deserves recognition. Somaliland has overcome every internal and external political hurdle. We have confined ourselves and stayed within our colonial boundaries [recognized by 35 countries when we first got our independence from Britain in 1960]. Somaliland’s budget is minuscule [meager], yet my government manages to maintain peace, stability and progress. We have a Flag, Constitution, Currency, National Anthem, and Forces that are disciplined in every aspect, yet our brothers in Arab world are ignoring our achievements.
We have been subjected to wait Somalia, where there is no hope of stability in decades to come [I know you have tried to help them, but it takes a long way to achieve stability there]. Somaliland would like to live in peace with its neighbors in the region, including Somalia, but I hope that the international community does not expect us to throw everything away and re-enter the mayhem in Somalia.
Finally, I, would like to ask you as a citizen of Somaliland to engage my government, and break the artificial barrier between my people and of yours and the Arab world at large. I know you can do that without any reservations if you wish so. There are others who would like to keep us at bay, due to their hidden agenda, and need to keep us, the way they see & want Horn of Africa to burn. This is their interest it seems. Our people will cherish your wisdom, if you do engage us.
We [Somalilanders] have been and continue to be one of the first communities who came to Qatar in late 1940s and early 1950. Our people were the first you knew [I mean Qatari people], and we are a good part of the people who participated the development of Qatar. We contributed to raise the name of Qatar in different ways, yet we are not visible as we should have been!
I look forward to see and hear a positive gesture towards my country your Highness.
Ghana is a truly admirable example of a place where governance is getting stronger, a thriving democracy 
