The Somaliland Embassy in Addis Ababa congratulates the people of Ethiopia on its national day which marks the 24th anniversary of the liberation from the military regime of Mengistu Haile Mariam.
On behalf of President Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud Siilaanyo and the people of the Somaliland, we congratulate the people of Ethiopia as they celebrate this joyous day.
We wish all Ethiopians a peaceful and prosperous year ahead.
By Markus Virgil Hoehne | 2015 Between Somaliland and Puntland analyses the political evolution of the Republic of Somaliland (created in 1991), and the federalist Puntland State of Somalia (established in 1998). Based on extensive ethnographic research, it describes the efforts by those living in between the two polities to create their own autonomously governed states. Markus Hoehne provides an account of the political history of the region, the actors, the grievances and the aspirations that lie behind their competing political visions. It is here, he argues, that “the future political order of the Somali states will take shape”.
Markus Hoehne is a lecturer in social anthropology at the University of Leipzig. Between Somaliland and Puntland is based on work he conducted while at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology in Halle/Saale, Germany. His other publications include Somalia zwischen Krieg und Frieden: Strategien der friedlichen Koniliktaustragung auf intemationaler und lokaler Ebene (2002) and a volume co-edited with Dereje Feyissa, Borders and Borderlands as Resources in the Horn of Africa (2010).
By Goth Mohamed Goth
May-28-2015-The chairman of the ruling party KULMIYE Hon Muse Bihi Abdi in a press statement released from his office said, “The three political parties and the current government decision to announce a new date for the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary election a fortnight ago was in accordance with the rules and laws of the land and that the three political parties had present their case before the house of elders (Guurti) and he hoped that they shall endorse the political parties agreement in the coming days.
The Press Statement read as follows:-
Of lately, we have seen misleading reports carried by a section of the media meant to undermine and debase the recent agreement on the new upcoming elections reached by the government and the official three political organizations.
As it’s clearly stated in the recent agreement reached by the government and the official three political organizations, we the concerned parties, in all due respect acknowledge the decision previously taken by the house of elders to extend the current term of office for the current government and the current parliament by 21 months to be legal and in accordance with the constitution.
Therefore as you’re all aware of some of, when the house of elders announced their decision to extend the mandate of the current government, some of the political parties were dissatisfied and they even protested in the loudest manner.
The two opposition parties even went as far by accusing the current government, the Head of State and KULMIYE of plotting for an extension of the election timeline.
After the opposition political parties expressed the discontentment with Guurti’s decision, President Silanyo decided to extend the olive branch to the opposition as conciliatory gesture these by appointing the Vice President as a meditator who would listen to their grievances and through understanding find a solution to the matter.
Although the head of state has no powers to extend the current government mandate, the President has the powers bestowed to him by the constitution to intervene in political matters for the sake of national salvation.
Having stated the above, the ruling party “KULMIYE” and the two opposition political parties on the May 25, 2015 began conciliatory talks to find a solution to the current political impasse.
During the meeting the opposition political parties expressed their dissatisfaction with the new 21 electoral timeline set by Guurti and at the same time they (opposition) suggested that the upcoming elections can be held within a shorter time frame.
We (KULMIYE)for one , during the talks tried to reason with our brothers ,that there was nothing wrong with the electoral time line set by Guurti’s considering the time left for preparations.
Finally after long and heated deliberations that ensued, all parties came to a settlement to hold the Presidential and Parliamentary elections in mid-December 2016.
But again one is left to ponder is the settlement reached by the three political parties and the current legal and in accordance with the law?
Therefore, we decided to seek and consulted legal experts, we came to the conclusion and after considering since the Guurti’s decision to extend the electoral timeline by 21 months was legal and bidding and since no political party was challenging neither contesting the Guurti’s decision then the constitution allows the holding of elections within half that period.
Therefore, the ruling party (KULMIYE) after reaching and signing the agreement, we the requested the two opposition political parties for their full cooperation for the next two days in order to jointly in a legally present and state our decision before the Guurti but unfortunately WADDANI had the misconception that we were stalling the process hence the premature announcement.
Once the premature announcement of the agreement made it was misinterpreted by some as being a purge against the Guurti decision, but this wasn’t the case at all because during the whole process we were in consultation with the Guurti regarding how we would solve the matter and also by seeking their guidance on the appropriate way to proceed.
Last night, we the heads of the three official political organizations presented and stated our case before the house of elders in accordance with norms; we hope you shall accept our request by blessing and the endorsement of the agreement.
I would like once again to use this opportunity to apologize for not informing you (Guurti) before the announcement of the agreement was made.
Lastly, I am glad to state that the three officials political have overcome their difference in a civilized and decent manner and we hope the house of elders shall endorse our agreement hence rendering the agreement as legal and binding.
Chairman of Unity and Development Party
Mr. Muse Bihi Abdi
By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, May 28 — Amid Saudi Arabia’s campaign of airstrikes on Yemen, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for the country Johannes Van Der Klaauw on April 23 said “the evacuation of third-country nationals from Sana’a has been temporarily suspended.”
This last was a reference to the International Organization for Migration, which days earlier said “operations continue to be hampered by unacceptable demands in regard to the identity of passengers to be evacuated by IOM.”
Inner City Press asked IOM to say WHO was demanding the ID information. IOM spokesperson Joel Millman replied, “We are not sharing that detail.”
On April 22, Saudi Ambassador to the US Jubeir said his country has been checking everything and everyone going into Sana’a – and everything and everyone going out.
So why wouldn’t IOM say who was hampering it? What is the “counter-terrorism” work behind all this, including by the UN?
On May 28, Inner City Press asked Jean-Paul Laborde, the UN’s Executive Director of the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate, about the intersection of counter-terrorism and humanitarian law and imperatives. Video here.
Laborde said in these cases, people should be allowed to flee then be screened wherever they arrived. Clearly, this was not Saudi Arabia’s approach. But will Laborde criticize them or seek better practices? When Inner City Press asked the genial Mr. Laborde about Turkey, he praised them effusively.
Recently Somaliland complained it could take no more of those fleeing from Yemen, because the UN was providing no assistance (this was reported to us by follow Free Coalition for Access member Mohamoud Ali Walaaleye.) Inner City Press on May 28 asked Laborde about this.
Laborde said, “We will try to do our best,” then added that in “countries like Somaliland,” you have to resolve the crisis before getting into the technicalities. Inner City Press tweeted this to the UN’s envoy Nicholas Kay; we’ll see.
Source: Inner City Press
The Member of European Parliament Ana Gomes tweeted a long laughter responding to the Ethiopian ruling party claiming 100% election victory in the 2015 national election. “I laugh of the ludicrous results engineered in the farcical ‘elections,'” added the MEP Ms. Gomes.
According to Ethiopia’s controversial election board, the EPRDF ruling party has won 100 percent of the votes nationwide this week, including in Addis Ababa and the mid-western Oromia region. These two opposition stronghold regions are where MEDREK and Blue Party supposedly had won in a landslide according to an independent unofficial exit poll. During pre-election campaigns in April, million man marches in support of Medrek and Blue parties were held in dozens of urban centers through out Oromia.
However, even the leaders of opposition parties did not win a parliament seat so far, according to the disputed election board. “It was not an election, it was an organized armed robbery,” said Dr Merera Gudina, leader of the Oromo wing of Medrek party.
AU observers concluded the election was calm. But in a rarity, the AU observers; who are infamous for backing incumbent African regimes, complained about ballot boxes not being empty before voting began. In polling stations where there was no ballot box stuffing, ruling party members were also found inside the private booth, personally telling voters which way to vote, according to a New York Times report. “At first I was going to mark next to the five fingers,” said Workitu Daba, a 40-year-old farmer, referring to the symbol associated with Medrek. “There was someone in the booth with me and they said, ‘No, mark here!’ So I changed it,” she said.
Some opposition media also reported unconfirmed number of killings and the arrest of several opposition observers on Tuesday.
According to Dr. Gudina, most of his Medrek party’s election observers were kicked out of thousands of polling stations where AU officials were not present. Out of the 45,000 polling stations in Ethiopia, the small AU mission monitored less than 200 stations.
The US State Department also expressed concern on the Ethiopian election, describing “continued restrictions on civil society, media” and on “opposition party observers.”
A Western Diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the West is getting impatient with Addis Ababa and many embassy officials expected that the ruling party might allow the opposition to win some seats. “We are shocked. Even without factoring in the huge support the opposition enjoys, just the fact that Ethiopia is an extremely diverse country of 90 million people alone makes 100 percent election victory very unrealistic.”
But Teshome Borago, a US based Ethiopian political analyst, said the election problems are always the same because there are no independent federal institutions in Ethiopia. “Some Ethiopians are actually blaming opposition leaders because they are giving people false hope and doing the same thing over & over again expecting different result,” he said.
The European parliament member Ms. Ana Gomes summed up on Ethiopia, writing on twitter, “Fake elections, fake results.”
By Goth Mohamed Goth
A well-attended ceremony was today held at the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Air Transport for the opening of the Egal Airport new runway extension.
President Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud Silanyo speaking during the occasion the said, “I glad to here today to witness this historic moment which is part of the ongoing pursuit of the government to establish and implementing much needed development projects and I also want to reiterate the commitment of this government to continue towards improving the livelihoods of Somaliland citizens”,.
“I express my gratitude to all people who have worked tirelessly in the upgrade work at the Egal International airport, most of the minister of civil aviation and air transport and also all the staff at the Ministry,” stated President Silanyo.
President Silanyo thanked the government of Kuwait in their generosity for donating the funds for construction work Egal international airport and Berbera airport.
President Silanyo also congratulated the government and people of Ethiopia as they mark the (Ginbot) national day.
“The prioritization of both Hargeisa and Berbera airports is a great plus for the nation, this is a major step forward in better connecting Somaliland to the rest of the African continent and the world”, said Minister of Aviation.
The Minister Civil Aviation and Air Transport speaking during the ceremony said, “The construction work of additional 1.25 km (1250 M) extension was completed together with to the previously renovated 2,466M runaway which was completed almost two years ago the work on the new runway extension began nearly one year ago, now the new runway is 3.7KM (3.700M).
“I am glad to say the Egal airport new runway length is 3.700M long ,the second longest in eastern Africa ”, he said.
Hon Mahmoud Abdi Hashi added , “The new part of the extended runway has being reinforced it with concrete materials hence making the runway strong so it can now support large heavy jets or any other aircraft that will operate in the future to Egal International airport. The Somaliland Civil Aviation and Air Transport has followed and adhered to the standards and the recommended practice of International Civil Aviation organization.
“When the work on the new runway was completed, we proceeded to the next stage which was the expansion of the existing length of the apron at the Egal international airport which is 1410M now being extended 100 x 50 meters in order to accommodate several aircraft’s. For the safety and security of the passengers the Airport terminals and the Airport property the apron area will be expanded so the aircrafts can park away from the terminal plus adding an additional taxiway so that aircraft can maneuver easily around the apron without damage to terminal property or the aircraft and also installation of lighting system for night landings so that the airport can handle aircraft’s day and night”, he stated.
Hon Mahmoud Hashi Abdi speaking during the function said, “When the current government came to power the Egal airport was classed as class2 runaway by ICAO but now its class 7 runaway and when its finally completed it will be Class 10 runaway.
Among the new newly acquired vehicles were two state of the art Firefighting vehicles both which were imported from the UK through funds made available by the Ministry of Finance which have far reaching capabilities.
The two firefighting trucks have a high reach extendable turret with a skin-penetrating nozzle that acts as a mechanical arm for firefighter and the other one which falls under Category 9 Rescue is a special capabilities of fire-fighting the response, hazard mitigation, evacuation and possible rescue of passengers and crew of an aircraft involved in an aerodrome (or potentially off aerodrome) ground emergency.
The newly acquired firefighting vehicle has far reaching Firefighting capabilities that offer the latest advancements in fire safety technology by the well trained keeping in compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) defines the requirements for aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Service .
On the other hand Ministry of Civil Aviation and Air Transport has introduced training its staff on upgrading firefighting capabilities.
“We also make sure the crews undergo extensive training and are equipped with the latest technology gear, which you can now see is in place at Egal international airport and although the facility has not had a disastrous event during the last twenty or so years doesn’t stop us from striving for greater safety preparedness in case the worst case situation arrives”, Aviation Minister said.
The Minister of Civil Aviation and Air Transport speaking at the ceremony said, “We have being constant purchasing of materials for the last four years so as to make sure our crew have what they need to do their job effectively and now we are ranked as one of the most modern airports in the region, this is indicative of how hard the current administration led by HE President Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud Silanyo is committed to initiating development in each and every sector in the country.
“One of the important thing in airport environment is an Airport Rescue & Fire Fighting, this is the first response in case an emergency at airport or in the vicinity of the airport & When the alarm sounds and aircraft rescue fire fighters (ARFF) are called to duty, they must use the skills they have learned through experience and training to save lives and to protect property”, Aviation Minister said.
The Aviation Minister on the new facilities said, “We have in the past six months worked hard to guarantee and ensure security is at its highest levels in our airports, so we started by deploying two state of the art X-Ray machines to scan passenger luggage’s, Explosive Trace Detection (ETD) and CCTV equipment all around the airport with the aim of enhancing our security capabilities.
“We have managed to deploy two more X-Ray machines to scan passenger luggage’s at the arrival terminal and which will help in the tax collection through identification of cargo disguised as personal belongings, in fact I would like to inform you that this piece of equipment can and is able to detect dangerous cargo which demonstrates this equipment to be very reliable,” he said.
The Aviation Minister also went on to say, “During the last four years , we have been able to refurbish, renovate and build extra facilities necessary for the main terminal and same includes enlarged modernizing arrival and departure terminal lounges to cope with the increasing number of passengers using the Egal International Airport, as you can see we have install modern rotating glass doors, the refurbishing of all furniture we added an extra storey for the departure terminal to ease the congestion of passengers and can now accommodate extra 750 persons from the previous number of just 50 persons before President Silanyo came to power and which means 1000 people can be through the departure terminal in less than 1 hour at any given time.
“We have separately built a new structure which will house the machine used to scan and process incoming luggage and another similar structure to be used for checking departing passenger’s luggage as well as new full furnished business center which will cater for all the needs of the passenger and two water foundation meant to thrill passenger’s during their stay and we have added new resting areas to be used by people waiting for their relatives to arrive at the airport.
Hon Mahmoud Hashi Abdi speaking during the ceremony said, “When the current government came to power the Egal airport was classed as class 2 runaway by ICAO but few months ago its class 7 runaway and now its Class 10 runaway.
1- The deployment of a Human body scan machine, ATD and 2 X-Ray machines to check luggage at the main entrance to the airport
2- Expansion and renovations on the departure terminal
3- Construction of one top level departure terminal which can accommodate a least 500 extra people
4- A new building to house x-ray machines meant to scan the luggage of new arrivals
5- Rehabilitation of the quarters used to search people before departures
6- New building to be used by passengers on Transit.
7- Two new buildings to be used as water reservoirs.
8- The installation of new Sky-light roofing for all terminals.
9- Renovation of VIP Area
10- Newly constructed Lavatories to be used by visitors escorting or waiting for the relatives outside the airport
11- New boards and signs meant to aid people with directions inside the airport.
12- Two Backup electrical generators machines installed.
13- The introduction of new identification cards for all airport staff
14- The broadcasting of flights schedules for all incoming and outgoing flights through a loud speaker announcements.
15- The installation of water tanks and piping system meant to water the Airport gardens.
16- New terminal seats and offices
17- Free access to internet facilities to be used by passengers while waiting to board their flights
18- Deployment of hand held VGF Radio communication system to be used by airport staff
19- New gardens meant to beautify the airport landscape
20- Concrete and security reinforcements at all terminal areas
Swiss police just arrested 7 FIFA executives, giving hope to billions of people around the world who love football and hate corruption. But unless we move fast Sepp Blatter will get away with it, and begin his fifth term as FIFA president!
Under Blatter, FIFA scandals extend from bribery, ripping off FIFA host countries, and burying the ethics investigation he commissioned into vote rigging to award World Cups to Russia and Qatar! But this isn’t just about football — his FIFA has fostered corruption, abuse of workers’ rights, and the flattening of communities to erect stadiums in host countries.
Yesterday’s dawn raids is the best moment we’ve ever had to kick out Blatter and reclaim our game. But it won’t happen without a massive outcry. Let’s create the world’s fastest-growing petition today, hit a million and then call on FIFA execs to kick him out when they vote in 24 hours. Sign and share this widely:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/
Football is by far the world’s most popular sport, and the scandalous way it is run has saddened armies of fans who want to see a clean contest on the field. A Transparency International poll out this week shows that four in five football fans don’t want Blatter to stand, and two thirds have lost confidence in FIFA to run the game.
The Swiss government arrested the FIFA bigwigs on suspicion of taking over $100 million in bribes and kickbacks in return for football media and marketing rights. The arrests follow a three year investigation by US prosecutors, who say that conspiracies to corrupt took place on US soil and using American banks. US officials are also investigating Sepp Blatter.
Let’s move fast to build a massive call to oust Blatter and get FIFA to push back its election until it has candidates who can drag the institution into the twenty-first century, free of corruption. Sign now and tell everyone:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/
With hope,
Alex, Rowena, Alice, Rewan, Andrea, Ricken and the Avaaz team
More Information:
Fifa corruption charges: is this the beginning of the end for the house that Sepp Blatter built? (Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/
FIFA officials, including 2 VPs, arrested on corruption charges (CNN)
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/
4 in 5 football fans say Blatter should not stand for FIFA President: Poll of 35,000 in 30 Countries (Transparency International)
https://www.transparency.org/
Fifa corruption probe: Officials arrested in Zurich (BBC News)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/
Despite serving his entire prison sentence for conspiring to commit terrorism in Somaliland, Ahmed Ibrahim, a 31 year old man from Hargeisa, is still being held behind bars by the Somaliland authorities.
Ahmed who is better known for his nickname “Darmaan” was working as a logistics officer for the Hargeisa-based Somali language Saxafi newspaper when he was arrested in February 2013 to face terrorism charges along with 5 others who were accused of acting as accomplices to the offense.
After spending about a year in detention, Darmaan was sentenced by the Hargeisa Regional Court judge Faisal Ismail Dhago Dhago to a 5-year term which was later reduced to 3 years by the Court of Appeals.
Interestingly the 5 other suspects in the case were security agents working for the Somaliland Intelligence Organization (SIO). They were accused of either abetting or failing to report Darmaan’s plans to commit terrorism in the country. None of the security agents were found guilty, and none over the 10 witnesses marshaled by the prosecution during the trail had testified against Darmaan.
Meanwhile all the 5 security agents returned back to their jobs with the SIO.
Darmaan was due for release on May 17, 2015. But he is still being held in custody and his mother Mako and elder brother Abdifatah have been unable to know from the security authorities why they are keeping him in Hargeisa Central Prison despite the expiry of his custodial sentence.
Public prosecutor Hassan Ali, Police Commissioner Abdilahi Fadal, SIO Director Jam Botan and officials of the custodial corpses have all tended to avoid telling what is exactly stopping Darmaan from being freed.
“I met all the heads of these departments but not a single of them would tell you the precise reason for Darmaan’s lengthened imprisonment,” said Abdifatah.
Darmaan’s lawyer Mohamed Suleiman who has been frustrated by the evasive nature of the government’s behavior towards the issue had described his client’s continued incarceration without charges despite the expiry of his prison sentence as an insult to justice.
“This action or inaction not only flies in the face of the basic principles of justice but also alienates the victim’s family and community,” lawyer Suleiman asserted.
While trying to find out who was exactly responsible for Darmaan’s confinement, his relatives came across at least one security official who gave them a hint that there were instructions from a foreign security interest to have his detention extended indefinitely.
After Abdifatah confronted Police Commissioner Fadal with this information the latter neither denied nor confirmed the speculated involvement of foreign intelligence agents in Darmaan’s extended detention.
“Although he alluded at one point to the British security personnel who work with Somaliland intelligence as the people behind my brother’s confinement, he was however mostly ambiguous in his responses,” Abdifatah pointed out.
Darmaan’s relatives believe that the terrorism charges brought against him were fabricated by the security apparatus. Darmaan’s elder brother Mohamed Laba-Guma was implicated in a failed terror plot in 2005.
After spending about three years in jail he was pardoned along with 3 other prisoners also serving terrorism sentences by former president Dahir Riyale Kahin. There was no official explanation for the clemency granted to the 3 convicts, but it was later revealed that one of them by the name of Ahmed-Keyse had actually worked as a spy for the American intelligence. President Riyale was said to have come under intense U.S pressure to have Ahmed Keyse released.
After he was set free, Ahmed Keyse travelled to Mogadishu only to be caught and executed by Al Shabab. Darmaan’s brother Laba-Guma also travelled to Mogadishu where he was killed while fighting for Al Shabab in 2009.
Darmaan’s relatives cite his late brother’s background as the most likely motive why the terrorism charges were brought up against him in the first place.
“He has been an easy target for false implications and when the case collapsed due to lack of evidence, the security apparatus and the prosecution had simply negotiated with the court to issue a verdict incriminating Darmaan” Abdifatah said.
But according to Darmaan’s mother Mako there has been a tribal element involved in the case as well.
“There is no doubt about the innocence of the other 5 suspects who were found not guilty. But the only reason that they were immediately released after the ruling had been that 4 of them belonged to the clan of SIO’s Director while the remaining fifth happened to be from the clan of Police Commissioner Fadal” Mako said.
Somaliland’s spy agency is trained by the British intelligence. The UK government also funds and trains through a private company Somaliland’s Rapid Response Unit (RRU). This special police force was formed about 5 years ago, originally as counter-terror unit. But in recent years the RRU has increasingly been used by Somaliland president Silanyo to crack-down on public protests and to close down independent media outlets that deem to be critical of the government.
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Somaliland expects to choose a partner to develop and manage its Berbera port by the end of the year, with construction expected to start early next year, the breakaway territory’s foreign minister said on Wednesday.
Mohamed Behi Yonis said the state, which broke away from Somalia in 1991 but is not internationally recognised, was in talks with France’s Bollore, the Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Company and Dubai’s DP World.
“Those are the three major port management companies that are interested in developing the port. We have been discussing with all of them,” he told Reuters on the sidelines of an African Development Bank meeting in Ivory Coast.
“We have not made up our minds. We’re looking at all options,” he added.
Yonis said the port was expected to become a major transit hub for goods entering and leaving the Horn of Africa and particularly Somaliland’s landlocked but economically thriving neighbour Ethiopia.
Ethiopia lost its direct access to the sea in 1993 when Eritrea gained independence following a three-decade civil war. It is currently heavily dependent on the port of Djibouti.
“They don’t want all their eggs in one basket,” Yonis said, adding that Somaliland had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ethiopian government to ease access to the port.
“That entails the development of the Berbera corridor, a road from the border with Ethiopia to Berbera. We are also thinking of having a railway,” he said.
Somaliland has enjoyed relative stability compared with the rest of Somalia, which has been racked by decades of civil war. The territory has held a series of peaceful elections.
However several years of talks hosted by Turkey that Somaliland had hoped would lead to a peaceful separation from Somalia have made little progress.
Yonis said he hoped to see negotiations resume in the coming months.
“When we first started talks we had the Norwegians, the UK, we had the European Union. So we’re asking those states to come in again and see how they can mediate.”
(Reporting by Joe Bavier; editing by Andrew Roche)
Source:Reuters
