Somaliland House of Elders today in rare session has overwhelmingly approved a one year and 10 months extension of the election timeline.
please click link the video to watch
El-Sisi: Ethiopia’s Friend in Need, Indeed!
A friend in need is a friend in deed, indeed!
Last week, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi stunned the world by rescuing more than two dozen abducted Ethiopians marked for beheadings in Libya by the ruthless self-styled terrorist group known as “Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant” (ISIL) (also known as “Islamic State of Iraq and (Syria) al-Sham (ISIS)”).
Ahram Online, Al-Ahram’s English-language website, announced, “The Egyptian army freed the Ethiopian workers who arrived at Cairo airport on Thursday morning, after they were kidnapped in Libya. The Egyptian president, who personally received the 27 Ethiopians, all Christian, when they arrived at the airport, did not explain how the army had rescued them.”
In mid-April 2015, that terrorist group released videos of beheadings of some 30 Ethiopians. In my April 26 commentary, I expressed my deepest grief for the victims and their families. I also expressed my outrage at the so-called government in Ethiopia for sitting on its duff, twiddling its thumbs, scratching its heads and doing nothing. I worried about the fate of the remaining Ethiopians in Libya.
I had plenty of reasons to be worried.
Following the first wave of beheadings, many Ethiopians in Libya, including those kidnapped by terrorists and rescued by President el-Sisi, were left to twist in the desert wind by the ruling Thugtatorship of the Tigrean Peoples Liberation Front (T-TPLF). The surviving Ethiopian refugees were given official instructions to contact the diplomatic representatives of the T-TPLF in Egypt. When the frightened refugees called to get assistance at the T-TPLF embassy in Egypt, they were “mocked” and given the run around. That is what several Ethiopians trapped in Libya told the Voice of America, Amharic Service. “They pick up the phone and mock us. They don’t talk to us. They pick up the phone and let our telephone calling card run out of time.”
It was against this background of official depravity and wickedness by the T-TPLF that I saw the Youtube video of the rescued Ethiopians as they arrived at Cairo International Airport on an Al Masria, a private Egyptian airline service, jetliner.
I do not have the words to express my feelings of joy and jubilation to see the young Ethiopians rescued from the jaws of the terrorist butchers. As the plane approached the gate, the captain proudly held out an Egyptian flag from the window in the cockpit. The message was unmistakable: Egypt did it!
It was an iconic moment for the Egyptian people, government and armed forces. It was a glorious moment for all Egyptians. It was a proud moment for President el-Sisi.
It was a historic moment of shame for the thugs that palm themselves off as a “government” in Ethiopia!
It was a bittersweet time of sadness and joy for all Ethiopians. They are joyful their brothers are rescued from certain death. They are heartbroken their “government” could not do a damn thing to help them.
When el-Sisi heard of the beheading of the Ethiopians, he came out and told the world Egypt was “pained by the gruesome beheading of innocent Ethiopians in Libya.”
President el-Sisi, by acting courageously and swiftly to rescue the kidnapped Ethiopians in Libya, cemented the millennia old friendship and sisterhood between two of the world’s oldest civilizations.
I must confess I was envious. I was grateful, but envious that el-Sisi, as an Egyptian leader, could do so much for persecuted Ethiopians while the shiftless TPLF thugs stood on the sidelines looking all powerless and helpless.
As I watched the video of the arrival of the Al Masria flight carrying the Ethiopians in Cairo, for a moment, I took flight in my imagination.
Al Jazeera¹s 101 East uncovers Afghanistan¹s floundering billion dollar drug war
• Latest studies estimate there are 2.9 million drug users in Afghanistan, the highest per capita in the world
• Exclusive access to a U.S.-funded clandestine drug court
• Interview with high-profile drug smuggler
In an eye-opening investigation that spanned several months, Al Jazeera’s documentary programme 101 East exposes the murky world of Afghanistan’s drug networks and reveals government shortcomings that have made the country ground zero in the global war against drugs. In Afghanistan, it’s a failing war.
Despite the U.S. pumping $7.6 billion into the country’s counter-narcotics fight, the results have been dismal. Since the 2001 invasion, opium cultivation in the country has doubled, with drug production hitting record levels for several years running.
Al Jazeera’s senior presenter Steve Chao travels deep into Taliban territory to meet a high-profile smuggler who reveals his operation and boasts that the Afghan government will never curb the drug trade. “They’ll never stop us,” says the smuggler. “We’ve tasted the profits, so we’ll never let go.”
Al Jazeera also gains exclusive access to Afghanistan’s clandestine drug court. Billions of dollars from the US and Britain have gone into funding this court, which is aimed at prosecuting high-level drug traffickers.
In one scene, three men are led from their cells to court, where they face trial for attempting to smuggle 37kg of heroin – a haul worth millions.
The court’s judges and prosecutors are handpicked and often trained by foreigners to ensure they are free from influence and intimidation. But interviews with
seasoned court officials reveal that many live in fear of those they prosecute.
Eight-year veteran prosecutor Najla Temori says, “We face extreme danger every day in our jobs. Twice, thugs working for drug lords showed up at my house. I’ve since had to move homes to get away from them.”
101 East also travels into Afghanistan’s lawless south to speak to a poppy farmer who says the government has not provided poor people like himself with alternatives, and that cultivating the plant is the only way he can make a profit and feed his family. He admits to having paid off the authorities who are tasked with eradicating the crops. “Poppy guarantees cash in your hands,” says the farmer. “We make 10 times more with the drug than other crops.”
In this revealing investigation, Al Jazeera pieces together the evidence to prove what many have suspected – that it’s not just smugglers, drug lords and the Taliban profiting from the drug trade, but government officials as well. Those featured in this documentary present a damning assessment of Afghanistan’s ability and willingness to stem the tide of drugs.
The full documentary, Afghanistan’s Billion Dollar Drug War, is available to watch and embed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmidGuRsQmY .
Last month, 101 East won four Gold Medals and one Bronze at the New York Festivals International TV and Film Awards.
For more information and content from 101 East, follow @AJ101East on Twitter.
Regards
Kevin Kriedemann & Joy Sapieka
Publicists: Africa
AL JAZEERA MEDIA NETWORK
+27 83 556 2346 (Kevin)
+27 73 212 5492 (Joy)
ICP Asks UN’s Lazzarini of Somalia, Yemen, Counter-Terrorism, Somaliland, Puntland
By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, May 9 — When the UN’s outgoing humanitarian coordinator for Somalia Philippe Lazzarini held a press conference on May 8, Inner City Press asked him about the impact of money transfer and remittance being cut off, about the future of the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya — and about Puntland and Somaliland, where people fleeing Yemen are landing. Video here.
Lazzarini said that remittances have been cut from the UK, US, Australia and more recently Kenya; the latter country might reinstate some of the money transfer companies, he said. Returns to Somalia from Dadaab should be voluntary.
In response to Inner City Press’ question about the involvement of some parts of the UN, and of the International Organization for Migration in screening refugees including for “counter-terrorism,” Lazzarini said that the government of Somalia is concerned about returnees who might have joined certain groups while in Yemen. Can you say, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula? There is more transparency needed, however, particularly from IOM.
Lazzarini has previously answered Inner City Press about Somaliland’s airspace. On May 8 when Inner City Press asked about the UN’s dealings with Somaliland and Puntland, he said it is a big topic, but concretely the deadly attack on UNICEF in Puntland means one can no longer say Puntland more safe than, say, Mogadishu. But what about Somaliland? We will have more on this.
Lazzarini is headed next to Lebanon; we’ll continue to cover his and the UN’s work there, and wish him luck.
Source:Inner City Press
Somaliland:State Congratulations Cameron on UK Election Triumph
It reiterates her commitments to SL- Ethiopia bilateral accords
By M.A. Egge
The government has sent a congratulatory message to the British premier on the occasion of his re-election following that country’s historical election results.
It at the same time reiterated its commitments to pacts and accords reached with Ethiopia.
This was said by the FM Hon. Mohammed Bihi Yonis who spoke to us through telephone while at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he met the Ethiopian treasury chiefs.
“We congratulate the Premier Cameron for his Conservationist party’s triumph in their just ended elections”, said Hon. Bihi.
When probed by our reporter as to whether the in-coming coalition-less new British government would have some impact as far as SL-UK relations and affairs are concerned, the foreign minister veered away.
“We can’t venture into that now apart from congratulating them”, he quipped.
He said that the smooth electioneering process of the UK went impeccably well and that SL had something to learn from it.
Meanwhile, the FM met with Ethiopian Finance and Economic Development Minister Ahmed Sufiyan and helg lengthy discussions.
In the courtesy call he paid Hon. Sufiyan, he was accompanied by SL ambassador to Ethiopia Mr. Ayanle Salad Derie while his host was flanked with the country’s state finance minister Ahmed Shide.
Hon. Sufiyan reiterated the fact that his government was committed to make maximum and extensive use of the Berbera corridor.
While booth ministers widely discussed bilateral relations of both countries, they largely dwelt on the development of Berbera as a port.
On his part, Hon. Bihi re-assured Ethiopia of this country’s adherence to its commitments and honouring all accords reached with her neighbor.
Ehtiopia and SL has had several pacts on the energy, commercial, transport and security sectors and bilateral relations.
Somaliland:Sigh of relief for residents as Arra-baidey Bridge is inaugurated at last
By M.A. Egge
A long awaited and utterly important bridge that connects Marodijeh and Togdeer regions through a vital and heavily dependable ruote has been inaugurated at last.
At a function that saw the Ag. Mayor Cllr. Abdiaziz Mohammed Hashi cutting the ribbon that symbolized the inauguration of the bridge, the town chief told the city residents that the facility was a testimony to the fact that tax money went back to the community.
The bridge that cost 76 thousand USD has been a joint venture of the municipality of Hargeisa in conjunction with the Joint Program for Local Governance (JPLG).
“This testifies that tax money goes back to the society”, and added, “the more taxes are paid by the populace the more the services to the public is dispensed”, said the acting Mayor.
He said that he was happy that a vital bridge of such magnitude which is a lifeline for local dairy farmers and a major track-line to Burao has been able to be realized.
The Mayor was accompanied by more than a half dozen city councilors, the regional JPLG accountant and the construction company (AWCCO) officials who implemented the building of the 30m long, 7 meters wide and 3m deep bridge.
The JPLG representative Mr. Said Aden Hussein who played the part of master of ceremony at the function first invited a local elder who is a member of the committee in the task Mr. Abdi Omar Farah to speak.
The elder, councilors Abdiqani Yusuf Maalim Gahayr, Mohammed Warsame Aalin, Hanad and Eng. Asha A. Warsame of Awcco had words resonating and echoing similarly hence all comprehensively underscored the importance of the bridge as far as connecting to Togdheer was concerned.
The officials hailed AWCCO by heaping praises upon it saying that all the tasks that the constructors undertook in the past for the council had been quite commendable.
The area was usually completely impassable both during rainy and non-rainy seasons.
Despite the fact that it has been completed slightly later behind the earmarked schedule, the area residents have at last happily heaved their sighs of relief.
Somaliland:Freelance Journalist Mr. Jama Jiir Released from Jail
By Mo Guled
The government of Somaliland has released free-lance Journalist Mr. Jama Jiir has been in detention since late 2013, after Somaliland authorities ordered his arrest for reporting unfavorably on the government.
The journalist is a prominent writer who had often written about the situation in Somaliland especially matters relating to corruption, nepotism, justice and mishandling of public funds by the ruling party.
Somaliland authorities could not bear the damages to the reputation of the government in publications by the journalist and therefore, ordered his arrest and imprisonment after being charged with making false accusations and defamation.
The journalist got ill while in jail because of injuries sustained after alleged torture by the prison authorities.
Somaliland:Correction on the Publications of the Official version of the Voter Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law – State Counsel
By Goth Mohamed Goth
Somaliland Chief State Counsel (Garyaqaanka Guud) Mr. Idle Ibrahim Saleban has revealed the need for corrections on the wrongly printed official publications of law of the country issue # 12 concerning elections laws.
The correction which is now underway touches on a Corrigendum of the Voter Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law.
The corrections follow the text of the Law published at the HoR Website on 31 March 2015 whilst the January gazetted version followed to the version of the Law previously published at the HoR Website in January 2015.
Details of the corrections:
08/05/2015: The Somaliland Official Gazette 02 May 2015 (Issue 4) published a Corrigendum of the Voter Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law which was previously published in Issue 12 of the Gazette dated 03 January 2015 (see below). For an English language of summary of the corrections see below.
In summary:
- The Final correct version of the Law is therefore the 31 March 2015 HoR website version (large pdf file – see below).
- A consolidated copy of the Gazetted January version AND the Gazetted May Corrigendum which we have prepared is available here: Consolidated Gazetted & Corrected Voter Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law (in Somali pdf 19 pages ). This is essentially a reproduction of the 31 March HoR website version.
Press Release (08/05/2015) (in Somali) by the Chief State Counsel (Garyaqaanka Guud) about the Corrigendum in the Somaliland Official Gazette, Issue 4 of 2 May 2015, relating to Voter Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law.
15/04/2015: UPDATE: A new text of the Voters Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law has been published at the House of Representatives (HoR) website on 31 March 2015, which replaced the earlier final text that was previously available at HoR website. The text on the whole the same is the same as the one as before, but it is different in a few places from both the previously HoR published final text (which appeared at the HoR in early January 2015) and also the official text of the Law published in the Somaliland Official Gazette on 03/1/2015 (Issue 12 of 2014) (see below for these earlier versions). There are, as yet, no official explanations so far as to how all this came about, but apparently a FINAL official corrected text will be appearing in the next Somaliland Official Gazette to be published early next month (May) as a corrigendum (correction). (See above, now – 08/05/2015)
In the meantime, a copy of the Law which now appears at the HoR website is available at Somalilandlaw .com: Wax ka bedelaka & Kaabista Xeerka Diiwangelinta Codbixiyaaha (Xeer Lr. 37/2007). (This It is a very large pdf file – and is the final correct copy of the Law – 08/05/215 – see above for a smaller copy as gazetted). (To be published at Somalilandlaw .com).
Our comparison of the new HoR text of the Law and the previously published texts of the final Law show that some of the differences are typographical corrections, but a few others are substantive changes to the previously texts.
- Article 2 Definitions:
“The Register” and “The General Register” which were both relating to the voters’ registers and did not mention citizens’ identity registers as they referred only to voters had both added to them a phrase to the effect that they will both also hold “the particulars of the citizens”. The previous wording followed the definitions of the 2007 Voter Registration Law, and in any case Article 4(1) and 4(2) of the Law deal with the citizenship register and the voter register separately.
Comment: If there was a need for a further clarification of the two Registers, it might have been better to simply refer to each register separately.
The definition of the “Regional or District Register” which again previously only related to the voter registers at these levels had added to it the registers “of the identity card or voters’ card” at the region or district.
- Article 7 – The title “Custody of Registration” has been amended to include the additional phrase “and the production of the final lists”.
- Article 25(2) – Correction of the word “Ministry” to read “Identity”.
Comment: This and item 7 below were both necessary textual corrections.
- Article 26(2) – The previous reference to the period of “two months” before the election polling date for the publication of the voter register list (which was in both the final Gazetted version of the Law and in the previously HoR published January version of the final law, as well as the Bill originally published in the HoR website bills section) now reads in this new 31 March HoR published final Law version “six months”.
Comment: Even the 2007 Voter Registration Law referred to the start of the implementation of the voter registration period as being no later than six months prior to the polling date (Article 12(1)) and that the registration officers shall reach the registration stations five months before the polling date (Article 27(1)), with the registration being undertaken during a period of not less than one month and not more than three months (Article 12(2)). So a change from two months to six months for the final stage of the production of the voter register would mean the whole process has to be started months and months in advance of this deadline and, in our view, mandates an unnecessary long period to lapse between the production of the registers and the polling date. This requires, in our view an amendment as soon as possible, together with any other amendments/additions the National Electoral Commission proposes so as to enable the holding of the election as soon after the voters’ lists are finalised and any corrections are made promptly thereafter.
- Article 28 – This Article as previously published and gazetted read: “The National Electoral Commission shall, after consulting the national parties, announce the time the voter registration is commencing, and it shall so inform the President”. This was actually change to the corresponding Article 12(6) of the 2007 Voter Registration Law and the latest HoR version of this Amending Law returns to a wording essentially the same as that in the 2007 Law by stating that “the President shall announce the date of the commencement of the voter registration by issuing it in a Presidential Decree within fifteen days of receiving the proposal of the National Electoral Commission”.
Comment: Indeed the President issued such a Decree recently on 12 April 2015, announcing that acting on the recommendation he has received from the National Electoral Commission on 9 April 2015, the voter registration shall begin in all the regions of the country from 21 July 2015. This was the practice, as well under the 2007 Voter Registration Law.
- Article 42 – This Article, which is identical to Article 38 of the 2007 Voter Registration Law, currently reads in the final Gazetted Law as follows: “International and local observers or inspectors who are checking the proper conduct of the voter registration activities shall be approved by the National Electoral Commission which shall consult the Ministry of Internal Affairs about security matters”. The same Article 42 in the HoE version of the Law now reads as follows: “The details of the) International and local observers or inspectors who are checking the proper conduct of the voter registration activities shall be forwarded to the Ministry of Internal Affairs by the National Electoral Commission so that it (the Ministry) can reach decisions about their entry permits to the country.”
Comment: The function of verification of the credentials and suitability of the observers or inspectors belongs to the National Electoral Commission and the function of issuing entry clearances lies with the Immigration Branch and Somaliland Legations abroad. The purpose of this change is therefore not clear at all.
- Article 44(3) – There was a missing phrase “which cannot be converted into a fine” in connection with the prison term punishment set out in this paragraph which has now been correctly inserted.
Somaliland:Parliament Approves Somaliland Civil Aviation Authority bill and the Quality Control bill
By Goth Mohamed Goth
The house of parliament has in a motion chaired by the first deputy speaker Hon Mohamed Farah have vote in favor of the Somaliland Civil Aviation Authority bill and the quality control bill.
During the motion 55MPs out of the 82 MPs were present, 48 MPS voted in favor of the Somaliland Civil Aviation Authority bill, 2 MPS vote against while 4MPS abstained, the deputy speaker didn’t vote.
On the other hand legislators in a similar vote 42 MPs voted in favor of the quality control bill, 8 MPs against while 4 MPs abstained, the deputy speaker didn’t cast his vote.
The passing of the Somaliland Civil Aviation Authority bill is vital for establishing an autonomous authority with the objective of making aviation safe, regular, standard and efficient and also to equipping Somaliland airports with the necessary communications and navigational facilities in line with international standards.
The approval quality control bill shall pave way for Quality control inspectors or engineers to monitor quality standards for almost every manufactured item during each stage of the manufacturing process and also to, test and check if consumer goods produced locally and those imported to the country are in compliance with national and international norms before being released into the local markets.
Somaliland:Take Part: The Surprising City Where Rape Victims Are Finding Justice
In Somalia, rape and sexual violence are alarmingly commonplace. Insufficient law enforcement and fear of being punished for reporting their attacker keep women from speaking up. Between January and November of 2013, there were 1,700 rapes in the country’s capital, Mogadishu, according to the United Nations. There were just 2 rape convictions in that same year.
But one method being used in another Somali city, Hargeisa, holds promise. Founded in 2008, The Baahi-Koob Cente is a “one-stop center where victims can report their crime to police while also receiving medical care, legal counsel, and psychological support,” TakePart’s Jacob Kushner writes. This approach is working in Hargeisa, according to Antonia Mulvey, founder of the NGO Legal Action Worldwide, and now she wants to bring its benefits to Mogadishu.
Though there was resistance at first, as well as a struggle to collect resources and funds, the center in Hargeisa has now made it possible for women to report their rapes, seek treatment, and bring justice to their attackers. Just a few years after its launch, 200 cases of sexual violence were being reported to the center each year. By 2013, the center had taken on 326 cases, 171 were prosecuted and 54 of those cases resulted in convictions. In 2014, the center had 399 cases, 191 of which were prosecuted, yielding 47 total convictions.
Similar one-stop centers are also operating in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kushner writes, with similarly promising results.
Source:Huffington post