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Two Somaliland Journalists Arrested, Horn Cable TV Banned

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Hargeisa, 21 July 2009 (Somalilandpress) – Somaliland, two journalists working for Radio Horyaal were arrested on 13 July, for allegedly inciting clan violence, and local independent Horn Cable TV (HCTV) has been banned. The International Press Institute (IPI) is concerned that this signals a media crackdown in the autonomous region of Somalia, in the run-up to presidential elections in September.

On 13 July, Radio Horyaal’s director and news editor, Mohamed Osman Mire and Ahmed Suleyman Dhuhul, were arrested at the radio station in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland. The journalists have been refused bail, and are currently being held at the Criminal Investigations Department (CID). They are expected to appear in court on 21 July.

The arresting officers reportedly did not have a warrant, and the men have not been charged with any crime – which makes their detention illegal under the Somaliland press law, according to Media Rights Somaliland (MeRiS) director Mukhtar Hassan.

Two days after the arrests, independent broadcaster HCTV was banned in a judgement by Sheik Hussein Warfa Sigad, reversing a decision taken the day before by the Harseiga Regional Court. IPI sources in Hargeisa report that, as of last night, HCTV continued to broadcast despite the ban.

On 14 July, Somaliland’s attorney-general asked that HCTV be shut down for “inciting violence” and “spreading false information.” The request was denied in the first instance and approved on appeal.

Suspicions abound that the arrests and ban are politically motivated. Mukhtar Hassan told IPI: “Many people, including opposition parties, are saying this is a sign that the government would like to suppress independent media before the September elections.”

“The arrests of Radio Horyaal’s director and news editor and the ban on Horn Cable TV are a blatant attempt by the Somaliland authorities to consolidate control of their public image in the weeks prior to the election,” said IPI Director David Dadge.

“The government of Somaliland must immediately release Mohamed Osman Mire and Ahmed Suleyman Dhuhul and lift the ban on HCTV. When the media reports news it is fulfilling its public interest duty, even if the news is embarrassing for the president and the government.”

The arrest of Radio Horyaal’s journalists and the ban on HCTV came after the broadcasters covered incidents relating to clan violence on the border between the Gabiley and Awdal provinces in west Somaliland.

On 10 July, 25 elders from Gabiley were invited by President Dahir Rayale Kahin to the presidential palace to discuss an ongoing dispute between clans in Gabiley and Awdal – where the president’s home is. The elders were reportedly unhappy that a June ruling made by the Guurti (upper house), giving their clan certain land rights, had not yet been implemented by the President.
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The session reportedly ended in dispute, and inter-clan violence broke out again the next day.

Police arrested Mire and Dhuhul because Radio Horyaal’s coverage of the meeting allegedly misrepresented events and incited the violence, the police chief commander told Somaliland Journalists Association (SOLJA) representatives on 14 July. But SOLJA’s Ahmed Mohamed Omar told IPI that Radio Horyaal had reported only that there “was no positive conclusion” to the meeting.

The attorney general, in turn, accused HCTV of having incited further bloodshed through its 11 July programming, which showed footage of that day’s violence between clan members.

Meanwhile, President Rayale’s office last Wednesday circulated a statement urging caution when reporting on the clan conflict. The statement accused some media of inciting violence and said that the sources behind media reporting on the conflict may be investigated.

Somaliland is a breakaway territory of Somalia, on the coast of the Gulf of Aden. It declared independence after the overthrow of Somali dictator Siad Barre in 1991 but its independence is recognized by neither Somalia nor the international community.

Somalia remains a notoriously dangerous place for journalists. According to IPI’s Death Watch, 18 journalists have been killed in the country since 2005. Several have been kidnapped or imprisoned. Among the journalists still being held are Canadian freelance reporter Amanda Lindhout and Australian freelance photojournalist Nigel Brennan, who were taken hostage in August 2008.

On 15 July, security guards in Puntland, a semi-autonomous region within Somalia, reportedly beat up Aweys Sheikh Nur, a reporter with Netherlands-based Horseed Media. According to sources, the guards attacked Nur with the butts of their AK-47 rifles after he took pictures inside a courtroom in the port city of Bosaso.

On 14 July, two French security agents reportedly posing as journalists were kidnapped from their Mogadishu hotel. Although IPI condemns the kidnapping, it is concerned at the reports that the men were pretending to be journalists.

“While the two hostages should be released immediately, it is unfortunate that they chose to pose as journalists. In a country where the lives of journalists are routinely at risk, actions such as this undermine the credibility of the profession and expose reporters to unnecessary risk,” said IPI Director David Dadge.

Somaliland: Elections “Tola-ayey Style”

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Hargeisa, 21 July 2009 (Somalilandpress) – Somaliland succeeded to hold together by the observance of tribal balance. Huwan entity was a melting pot representing the Somali nation as a whole and was a symbol of inspiration and national empowerment. While other Somali territories’ caved-in to imperialistic bullying and misdirection, Somaliland stayed stead fast on the Somali traditional course.

The SNL- USP coalition that spearheaded the independence reflects the true tribal balance that can work for Somaliland statehood and brotherhood. Egal-Riyaale ticket represents the continuation of this balance. That is why, despite all odds Somaliland is still going strong.

The upcoming presidential election is characterized by kilkenny cat fighting stigma, namely:

1. Negatively pugnacious tactics of public opinion mobilization as if fighting an alien monster or Dracula.

2. “TOLA-AYEY” threats and warnings galore.

3. Bad mouthing and accusations are below the belt.

4. Muscle flexing ultimatums snipe left and right. Such super tribe posturing could be counter productive.

5. The hot chair fever is a common ailment at all fronts and is a “must win” venture. Ousting the incumbent under tribal duress would end up in retaliatory eventuality.

6. While the upcoming election is Presidential and Presidential only, the bottomless mudslinging spree makes no exceptions and encompasses the totality of state leadership.

7. When ethics and decorum are stripped from election campaigns and their outcome, anarchy is let loose to take charge.

8. It is easy to talk and act irresponsibly, but going overboard could lead to disastrous consequences. The fashionable TOLA-AYEY syndrome, could turn ugly at the end of the day.

9. The “hot chair” fits one person and one person only, but Somaliland can cater for all, irrespective of who is who. National integrity and stability is sacred.

10. “TOLA-AYEY” went too far in disturbing the public odium. It might, by design or default disrupt the peace, stability, and social tranquility: the trump card qualities that Somaliland cannot lose.

For the record, two of the franchised political parties clubbed together, to deny the Dhulbahante, with all its tribal and humanitarian weight, the traditional quota of the Speaker of the House. Consequently, the Dhulbahante today is an auxiliary of “Ucid” . Ironically, while “Ucid” is a denomination with no tangible parameters, yet it is constitutionally public politician number one, public attorney number one, and public speaker number one. Superseding, in the process, the tribes and the traditional leaders, the national elite and, indeed all those who matter in public opinion making of Somaliland. Because of these diminishing factors, with no rhyme or rhythm, the bulk of Dhulbahante and Warsangeli tribes rebelled. Others might follow suit if victimized, in the same manner, by the laughable legal loopholes in the non-inclusive constitution. The constitution was a temporary filling, originally envisaged as an emergency prerogative of the Founding Father, President Mohamed I Egal upon his election by unanimous tribal consensus in Borama, to reconstruct Somaliland, of his dream, along state like structural institutions.

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The absurd audacity of tribal affiliations masqueraded as political parties to endeavor disfranchising the tribal pillars of Somaliland like the Dhulbahante, who cleansed Somaliland from colonization and Christianity roots in their Darwishade(crusade) against the British, is myopic maangaabnimo( will-o’-wisp)!! It was their gallantry and unwavering tenacity in keeping the impetus of the war for two decades that earned the metaphor “Somalis are the Irish men of Africa.”

Chronological brief

The British were in Somaliland for seventy years, broken down as follows:

• Towards the end of the 19th century, the British signed protection treaties with all Somaliland tribes except with Dhulbahante. The corner stone of these treaties was that the British cannot and would not transfer Somali territory to any foreign power, and that they would protect the territorial integrity and brotherhood of the Somali people.

• At the beginning of the 20th century, the Dhulbahante were fighting the British in darwishade (crusade) wars for twenty one years. Result: the Christian missionaries abandoned their presence in Dhaymoole settlement in the Guban area of the Berbera District. Furthermore, Somaliland was recognized as a protectorate rather then a colony like Aden.

• From 1920-1945 a limbo period in which the British were recovering from world war 1 damages and focusing on the 2nd world war. Ina Igare a Kenyan Somali from H.Y belonging was the interim proxy for the British Empire.

• 1945-1952 the Dhulbahante were an autonomous entity under Court Akil administration. The British presence was confined to a District Comissioner who executed the decisions of the Court Akil, composed of all Dhulbahante leadership.

• In early 40’s Haji Omer Amay, a Dhulbahante tribal leader of high standing, was assassinated in Burao by H.Y tribe elements. Burao was at the time a district for Dolb, H.Y, H.T, Essa Musa.

• The British offered the Dolb tribe the Ber village, twenty eight miles southward, to be their district in lieu of Burao. Incidentally, Garad Jama Garad Ali was crowned in Ber village which was Dolb grazing territory at the time.

By tribal intrigue the British were convinced to seat the Dolb. District in Nugal area. That is how the Dolb were pushed back 160 miles southward to Las-Anod.

• In 1950 Sir Gerald Reece was appointed as the Governor of Somaliland. He introduced the local authority status, leading to eventual independence. This option legalized the inclusion of the Dolb into the protection bandwagon.

• In 1955 the Hawd Reserved Area were transferred to Ethiopia. National uprising ensued, and in the process the National United Front (N.U.F) was instituted to fight for the cause.

• The N.U.F fought on the platform that “part of the Commonwealth was transferred to a foreign power”. This was seen as a betrayal of the Somali cause, since the term of Commonwealth could give legitimacy to the British action.

Most Somali Landers withdrew support from the N.U.F, under Michael Mariano, and in fluxed into the Somali National League (S.N.L) under the leadership of M.I.Egal, a wealthy business man from the great tribe of Habr Awal.

• In 1959, the British expressed preparedness to concede independence and closer association with Somalia, if Somaliland so desired.

• In early 1960 the SNL and the United Somali Party(U.S.P) formed the coalition that lead the independence and unconditional union with the south forming the Somali Republic.

This coalition was based on equal footing. The ministerial portfolio was divided in equal equation. That is how Somaliland came into being as an independent nation of equal destiny through thick and thin. Equality breads brotherhood and statehood.

In this defining moment Somaliland must be real.

We came a long way and can’t risk taking time by its tail and upsetting the balance. The traditional practice of tribal balance works. No questions asked!!

Mohamed Khawi
President
Somaliland natives Association
Somalilandnativesassn@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

Somalia deports Chinese cyclist

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Garowe, 20 Jul 2009 (Somalilandpress) — A Chinese cyclist has been forced to put the brakes on a 12-year world tour, after officials in Somalia deported him for not having the right documents.

Lee Yue Zhong, who says he has visited 114 countries since setting off on his tour in 1997, arrived in the semi-autonomous Puntland region last week.

But he had no visa and Somali police arrested him before deporting him to neighbouring Djibouti.

The cyclist said he was disappointed with the decision.

He said he had travelled from Somaliland to the Puntland capital Garowe, where he was arrested.
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“It took me two weeks from Hargeisa to here and it was part of my long trip to tour continents worldwide, but they really disappointed me,” the AFP news agency quoted him as saying.

Local police commissioner Abdirahman Haji Abshir said Mr Zhong, who is in his mid-fifties, could not continue through Somalia “for security reasons”.

Somalia has been without an effective central government since 1991 and has been riven by fighting between Islamist insurgents and government troops.

Somaliland has declared itself independent while Puntland has semi-autonomous status. Both areas run their own own affairs.

Source: BBC News

Kenya trains Somali government forces

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Mogadishu, Jul 20 2009 (Somalilandpress) — Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula has said his country is arranging camps where Transitional Federal Government of Somalia [TFG] forces will be trained.

This was during a meeting with Western officials who are visiting the country, Kenya.

Moses Wetangula said his country is ready to provide training to the TFG forces, particularly the police and the military so that they can take charge of security of their country and government.

The minister also said his government will support all initiatives meant to strengthen the Djibouti agreement which was the basis for the formation of the current government in Somalia.

“The Somali forces will be trained in our country by officers from Burundi, Botswana, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Uganda and other African countries,” said Kenya’s foreign affairs minister.
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The statement by the Kenyan government official comes at a time when the African Union has said they have come up with a plan in which 16,000 Somali soldiers will be offered training, which is expected to last for a period of six months.

According to [African Union (AU) representative to Somalia] Nicholas Bwakira, the training of Somali government forces is expected to cost $230m US dollars and will be paid for by donor countries who are interested in seeing the attainment of peace and stability in Somalia.

In the past Somalia’s opposition groups have warned Kenya over sending troops into Somalia.

It has been agreed that the number of African Union Mission in Somalia [AMISOM] troops will be increased during a meeting that was recently concluded in Nairobi. It was also agreed that they will be allowed to take part in the fighting that is ongoing in Mogadishu in order to assist in defending the government led by [President] Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmad.

By Abdinasir Mohamed
Email: abdinasir4@gmail.com
Mogadishu-Somalia

Source: Somalilandpress

Autistic teen pulls off tycoon hoax

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A teenage boy has fooled British airline and airport executives into believing he was a tycoon who owned a fleet of jets.

The 17-year-old boy, from Yorkshire, claimed he was in his 20s and used the pseudonym Adam Tait to set up a one-and-a-half hour meeting with the director of Jersey airport.
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He was also in contact with other air industry executives about a plan to launch a cut-price Channel Islands-based airline flying around Europe.

Sometimes the boy also posed as David Rich or Anita Dash — Tait’s fictional colleagues — through phone calls and emails, The Times reports.

Tait, whose real name has not been released, has a brilliant memory but suffers behavioural issues due to a form of autism.

“He has been passionate about aeroplanes for about two years and his whole bedroom is plastered with them,” his father was quoted as saying.

“Before that he came within two days of bringing the US cast of High School Musical to a 300-seat theatre in Shropshire by cutting and pasting mastheads from one company to another, masquerading as this or that.

“It would have happened, except when booking the hotel some queries were thrown up. I don’t know why he did it. He is not nasty or vindictive or malicious.”

Tait’s airline hoax was uncovered after six months of fraudulent correspondence.

He set up an elaborate web of lies including publishing fake websites, articles in airline industry magazines and establishing virtual offices.

But he was intercepted by police last Monday while trying to inspect a 93-seat jet at Southend airport that he claimed he was interested in leasing.

They were acting on a tip-off from Airliner World magazine, which had became suspicious after running a story on Tait’s imaginary company.

No police action has been taken against the teenager.

Source: 9news (Australia)

Q+A – Who is behind Somalia's kidnappings?

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Nairobi, Jul 20 2009 (Somalilandpress) – A string of abductions of foreigners in Somalia have thrown the international spotlight on kidnapping in the anarchic Horn of Africa nation.

Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke told Reuters on Sunday that the government had not ruled out any option to rescue two French hostages, and that rebel groups were changing tactics with recent kidnappings.

Two French security men were seized last week in Mogadishu then three foreign aid workers at the weekend in a cross-border raid on a Kenyan town.

Kidnapping of locals is also a common tactic.

Here are some questions and answers about abductions:

WHY DID IT START?

  • Kidnappings became widespread following the overthrow of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 and the surge in local warlords controlling fiefdoms in the Somali capital Mogadishu and beyond. Before 1991, abductions were usually of a political nature, carried out by the state to disrupt opposition and to punish dissidents. Siad Barre’s administration used torture and assassination to help keep a grip on power.
  • The influx of small arms into Somalia following Siad Barre’s downfall has significantly contributed to the rise of kidnappings. An Indian-made AK-47 costs around $140 and is widely and easily available with little to no state control over who can buy a gun. Carjackings, armed-robberies and burglary have also emerged as a result of insecurity in Somalia, especially in Mogadishu.
  • Mogadishu is usually the favourite place for kidnappers to operate from. Often, abductors take hostages from remote areas and bring them to the sea-side capital. Mogadishu is the headquarters of many criminal gangs, freelance militias and insurgent groups. All foreign visitors and many Somalis must buy protection from one of the local armed groups.

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WHO’S BEHIND THE SEIZURES?

  • Freelance militias were largely responsible for kidnappings before Ethiopia’s invasion in late 2006 to squash a sharia courts movement that took control over the capital and much of the south, analysts say. These militias are also heavily involved in other criminal activities and sell their services — armed personnel and vehicles — to the highest bidder.
  • Rebels including al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab and Hizbul Islam are sometimes linked to the kidnapping business, analysts say. Al Shabaab and Hizbul Islam leaders were together in the Islamic Courts group that controlled much of Somalia in 2006, bringing a level of stability and safety not seen for years.
  • Somali pirates are arguably the nation’s best-known hostage-takers. Buccaneers make millions of dollars annually by seizing commercial and other ships sailing in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden. Piracy has ballooned off the Somali coast in recent years where the sea gangs continue to defy foreign navies patrolling the vast shipping lanes linking Asia and Europe.
  • Clan militias originally arose out of a desperate need for protection following the chaos and civil war that erupted when Siad Barre was ousted. Somalia is a clan-based society, and minority groups usually face the brunt of clan kidnappings.

WHAT ARE THE MOTIVES?

  • Rebels and the government are involved in political kidnappings although since President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed took over the presidency from former warlord Abdullahi Yusuf, government-linked abductions have decreased, analysts say. Ahmed has also released hostages taken under the former regime.
  • Foreign captives fetch a higher price than Somali hostages. Kidnappings are a key source of revenue for some groups in the Horn of Africa nation. Ransoms for outsiders, especially Westerners, usually run over $1 million, but Somali captives are usually freed for $1-$3,000 but sometimes for over $10,000.
  • Access to land, water and livestock are key motives for clan militias. Drought is a chronic problem in Somalia where many are pastoral, and scarce resources in some areas are not only a source of conflict, but a reason for kidnappings.
  • Fierce business competition and disputes over dividends are also a cause for abductions in Somalia where enterprises have their own guards armed with heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Businesses battle literally and figuratively for market share.

By Jack Kimball and Abdiaziz Hassan

Source: Reuters

Somaliland: A Trip To The Unknown Part Five

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Emily will be writing to Somalilandpress about her experience in Somaliland and will be offering tips to anyone who may want to visit the unrecognized republic along the way – discover Somaliland from a Non-Somali perspective. This is her fifth article – adopting their way.

First article: Click Here
Second article: Click here
Third Article: Click here
Fourth article: Click Here

Hargeisa, Jul 19 2009 (Somalilandpress) — I finally feel like I’m living the good life here in Hargeisa. It took a little while, but I’ve gotten used to calling people walaal [brother] and learned not to smile when negotiating a price since it foils my bargaining skills. I’ve adapted to changing my shower schedule to the afternoons when the power is off and I have all the time in the world, from the mornings when the water’s colder and I’m in a rush. From Borame to Berbera I have had the pleasure of swimming in the Gulf of Aden (wearing a dirac of course) and eating freshly plucked peppers which I didn’t know were spicy until my eyes welled with tears. Being here I have begun to feel more like an anthropologist than anything else. My favorite thing to do is hang out with whoever I can, and try to understand life here from their perspective.

The drive from Berbera to Hargeisa, a car stuck in the river.
The drive from Berbera to Hargeisa, a car stuck in the river.

I’ve also recently started taking Somali classes every day which I enjoy very much. Before coming here I had learned some Somali in the U.S. but at the time I didn’t realize how vastly different the dialects are in the south of Somalia versus in Somaliland and other regions. Most of my Somali friends back home are from the south, or as they call it here, “Xamar”. As a result, I speak using words from xamar, so people here that do understand me (and many do) like to tease me for it, and then a great many people just plain don’t understand some words which I worked hard to learn and have rendered themselves quite useless. Needless to say I now have a much better sense of the different dialects and also different clothes from different regions, so I’ve smartened up a bit.

A few weeks ago I stayed in the famous coastal town of Berbera, home to a huge port and as black and brown sand beaches whose shores host more camels than people. In Berbera I learned about the painful love story of Elmi and Hodan, and visited the bakery where Elmi used to work (“Father of Love Bakery”). Berbera felt peaceful, intensely hot and generally abandoned, so that the town was a sort of carcass of old buildings, rusted cars, and lackadaisical inhabitants.

Berbera's blue water
Berbera's blue water

I’ve had the chance to spend more time at the University of Hargeisa recently, and have included a picture here incase you’re curious. The students I’ve met are very eager and capable scholars and new programs are constantly developing. There is, however, a shortage of books in the library and for classes. Luckily online libraries help, but the classes are all held in English, the books need to be imported, and with no proper mail system here and the huge expense of DHL and Cargo for sending items, the lack of books is palpable. Nonetheless I have been very impressed with the caliber of the programs and curricula, and both the students and faculty are doing excellent and meaningful work. This weekend there is actually a literary festival here in Hargeisa which will feature poetry, theatre, and a book expo.
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If you want to learn more about Somali poetry and songs and the like, http://shunuuf.tripod.com/ has a huge collection of writings in both Somali and English.

All the best and thanks for reading!

Emily
Source: www.SomalilandPress.com

Somaliland and the "TFG mercenaries"

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20 Jul 2009 (Somalilandpress) Unfortunately, in all societies you will find political mercenaries and Somaliland is not immune from this affliction. The recent arrest of a fleeing “MP from Somalia ‘s TFG parliament” in Berbera is but one case. But, before I digress let me clarify a couple of points.

First of all, in this case, the term MP is being severely abused. This particular “MP” was neither elected nor did he perform any service to any constituents.

Secondly, the use of “parliament” in this case is another fallacy. This “parliament” is another concoction, formulated overseas. It was not directly elected nor is it democratic, nor has it ever drafted, debated or passed any laws.

Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly the so-called “Transitional Federal Government” has no jurisdiction over Somaliland , never has and never will.

So, let us return to these mercenaries who are out for their own personal agenda, whether it is for money, ideology, or power. No, not power, because these mercenaries from Somaliland are never given any power, they either become mouthpieces or tokens.

There are many of these mercenaries, there were some in 1991 and there still others in 2009, but they all have one thing in common, sooner or later, they have a strong desire to come back home to Somaliland. I wonder why?

It is a curios thing; off they go to Somalia , either lured by the dollar or some ideology based on the myth of “Greater Somalia”. To be fair, the latter ones have certain beliefs and in some way deserve a modicum of respect, but, they are a minority. The majority are basically for hire. Going back to the curios aspect, almost all of them have either fled Somalia and some were unfortunately murdered there. Better to be beggar in your homeland, than a corpse in a strange land.

Off they go to Somalia , either in Baidoa or Mogadishu , seeking dollars and expecting to made minister, MP’s etc, except what they fail to understand, is that there isn’t and there won’t be for a long time something resembling law and order and a political structure in Somalia .

Even more importantly, they don’t represent the people of Somaliland . They don’t speak for the people of Somaliland , they can’t consult the people of Somaliland , and since they were not elected by the people of Somaliland , they can’t enact any laws. In a so-called “parliament” of over 550 hollow “parliamentarians”, the ones said to be “representing” Somaliland are particularly superfluous.

To these mercenaries, whether they are “dollar seekers” or “ideologues”, here is some free advice; the mirage of “Greater Somalia” has dissipated. These days’ sovereign nations solve issues through dialogue and diplomacy. The union between Somaliland and Somalia has ended. It is time to accept the realities on the ground, Somaliland has reverted to its borders of June 26, 1960 , and it is time for Somalia to get its house in order.

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There are Somalis in Djibouti , Kenya , and Ethiopia and all over the globe. There are cultural, social, economic links between all Somalis, and that will always be the case between Somaliland and Somalia , but a political union, never again. It is a sincere belief that the people of Somaliland have held for the last eighteen years and will continue to do so.

From refugee in Australia to a leader in war-torn Somalia

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ISSA Farah is a government minister who carries a pistol in his belt.

Melbourne, 20 Jul 2009 (Somalilandpress) — After 25 years as a refugee in Melbourne, where he earned a university degree from La Trobe and worked in community radio, in January he returned to his homeland — the often violent anarchy that is Somalia.

Politics in this strife-torn country has a heavy cost. Mr Farah left behind his white Australian wife and two young daughters for fear of kidnapping. He is constantly shadowed by bodyguards. His final protection is the gun tucked into his trousers.

So why go? “Simple, because I’m a Somali.”

Mr Farah is now minister for oil and minerals in the state of Puntland, a northern Somali region commonly known as the Horn of Africa. He has joined a government in a country that has been ungovernable for almost two decades and an administration not yet formally recognised by the outside world.
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Much of Somalia has been torn by fighting between local warlords, Islamist fanatics believed to be linked to al-Qaeda, occasional US air strikes and troops from neighbouring Ethiopia.

But Mr Farah is convinced there is hope.

“The international community works with us,” he said at the weekend, during his first trip back to Melbourne to see daughters, Bishaaro, 5, and Bilan, 3, and wife Anna-Marie Treeweeke.

Puntland is generally calm, he said, not plagued by the war that since 1991 has afflicted the rest of the county. The president, Abdirahman Mohamud Farole, recently met US and British officials to discuss combating Somali piracy, which has become a major hazard to international shipping. Regional governments in Kenya and Djibouti are engaged.

Mr Farah describes Puntland as an embryonic democracy, one needing help — including from Australia.

“We are working very hard,” he said. “We want the Australian Government to engage Somalia and to engage Puntland for the simple reason we are Somali-Australians … (and) because the problems we face are global issues, in terms of piracy, radicalism and religious fanatics.”

Source: The Age, July 19, 2009 (Australia)

Kulmiye Party Splinters

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Hargeisa, Jul 19 2009 (Somalilandpress) — As the calendar for the Somaliland presidential election approached, and as Kulmiye party which lost the last round yearned to go on the top this time, then serious, irreconcilable disagreement emerged, which caused the party to literally break down into pieces.

The event that caused the splinter was disagreement about the process of seating the committee that would nominate the party presidential candidate. Most senior party officials wanted the committee to consist of party activists. The founder and chairman of the party Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo wanted none of that. He handpicked individuals loyal to him as committee members excluding anybody he suspected would oppose his nomination.

Among those who were excluded was Dr. Ahmed Isse, who had declared his desire to be nominated as the party’s candidate. Mr. Silanyo put individuals from the Diaspora loyal to him in charge of running the convention and moved the venue away from Hargeisa to Burao, his home town, where he anticipated minimal opposition and much support. This so rankled rank and file party officials that many decided to abandon the party all together. Among those who left are:

  1. Engineer Ali Gurey, the second person to join the party
  2. Dr. Ahmed Isse, former professor at John Hopkins University and external secretary of the party.
  3. Abdirahman Aw Ali, first vice president of Somaliland and running mate of Mr. Silanyo during the last presidential election.
  4. Mohamed Hagi Mohamoud, Chairman of the Economy and Budget Subcommittee of the Lower House.
  5. Osman Hindi, Chairman of Kulmiye Party Office in Hargeisa.
  6. Ibrahim Degaweyne, Executive Committee member and key SNM leader.
  7. Issa Oragte, a key SNM leader; and many, many more.

The men listed above have all high recognition names and are role models to their respective constituencies. The party lost influential leaders and their constituencies.

Thus Kulmiye party ended up being a one legged stool. The very dismal response to the call for mass demonstrations at the end of last April by party chairman Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo validates this proposition. No discernible demonstrations took place in Erigavo, Borama and Berbera.

According to one independent journalist about 20 people showed up for the demonstration in Gabille. As for the heavily populated capital city, Hargeisa, it has been said that the number of people who showed up for the demonstration at the party headquarters approximated the size of a crowd that would normally shows up for a wedding occasion. Only in east Burao did a sizable number attend the rally. It is fair to say that the one leg the Kulmiye’s stool has rests on east Burao.
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Outside this narrow sectional base, there are few holdouts, who are still hanging in there with the party in the hope of landing at high political jobs. The few from Awdal had a painful reality check when the entire Awdal delegation in the Upper House voted, without exception, in April 28, 2008, to extend the term of office of the president and vice-president for another six months.

There is no grass roots support for Kulmiye from Awdal because of the history of the opposition party’s anti-Awdal positions and because of the belief by many that the party was responsible for instigating the recent violence and bloodshed between the brotherly peoples near Eil Bardaale, which is a culmination of the party’s continuous and incessant talk of so-called jurisdictional dispute, with the unconscionable expectation that the party would harvest political dividends from the violent clash of brotherly people who live in the area.

The Awdal delegation at the Upper House reflected the strong sentiments of their people when they rejected Kulmiye’s position regarding the extension of the term of office for the incumbent.

The last five years have given us an ample opportunity to observe the performance of President Dahir Rayale Kahin and the activities and decisions of Chairman Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo. We have learned that leadership qualities are not something that is acquired but is a trait an individual is born with.
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We have witnessed that President Dahir Rayale Kahin is blessed with lots of this trait. The party he leads is a big tent filled with members from the eastern, central and western regions of the country. He presides over a country that is peaceful and democratic. He shepherded the unrecognized state into international respectability and put her on the cusp of recognition.

Today, Somaliland high level delegations visiting overseas are accorded by host countries with the same kind of protocol given to that of others. In contrast, Chairman Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo has failed to maintain peace and hold his party together raising questions about his abilities to hold together a whole country peacefully, democratically and win for her recognition when he has already failed the much lesser challenge relating to his party!

Will the voters of Somaliland rehire a reliable and tested leader with a responsible track record or will they take the high risk of hiring some one who is very divisive, dictatorial, erratic and loyal only to a section of society and who has failed to keep his party together?

This is what the voters in Somaliland have to keep in mind when they go to the polls in September 2009.

May God bless Somaliland.

Views expressed in this article are solely that of the author and does not necessarily represent those of the editorial.

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