March 23, 2012 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

TFG, Ethiopian troops seize control of Hudur town

22 Mar – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 179 words

Somali and Ethiopian troops have taken a strategic stronghold of Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab militant group in south-western Somalia on Thursday morning, officials say. The allied forces took control of Hudur town, the regional capital city of Bakol region, without facing any resistance from al Shabaab rebel fighters who have been holding the town for three years, according to Somali legislature Ahmed Sheikh Mohamed Lahos who is accompanying the allied forces.

Key Headlines

Somali National Communications Act 2012 adopted by the TFG Cabinet (Source: TFG)
National Security Committee Communiqué (Source: TFG)
President Sharif calls for unity for purposes to achieve peace in Somalia (Source: Radio Bar-kulan Radio Mogadishu)
Despite recent insecurity President Sharif takes a midnight stroll (Source: Garowe Online)
Support AMISOM to end kidnaps (Source: the Star)

PRESS RELEASE

Somali National Communications Act 2012, adopted by the TFG Cabinet

22 Mar – Source: TFG – 492 words

The National Communications Act 2012 was adopted today unanimously by the Somali TFGs Council of Ministers. This is an important step for the TFG, the ICT industry, the developing broadcasting industry and the people of Somalia, in the country and the Diaspora.

The process of drafting the Communications Act was organized by the Ministry of Information, Posts and Telecommunications (MIPT), with the assistance, in the drafting, by an international expert on telecommunications law, to ensure compliance with international standards and was also assisted by Somali regional communications experts.

It was then followed by an inclusive consultation process in the regions and in Mogadishu, where a specially convened consultation workshop brought together the key stakeholders including the ICT industry, media, academia, NGOs and civil society.

This law is not just an important legislation for Somalia, but the way in which it has been achieved is through a transparent and inclusive approach that could be seen as a model for future legislations and a model for the functioning of the new regulator. The next step will be drafting a broadcasting law, in accordance with international standards and with the input of international NGOs and experts on this subject, to elaborate on the framework in the Communications Act and set out in further detail how the broadcasting sector will be
regulated.
This will take place in consultation meetings with the media planned in the next few weeks. The Minister of Information, Posts and Telecommunications in a statement made after the law was adopted said, “This is a great day for the ICT sector. The Communications Act which has been adopted will create a National Communications Commission that will regulate both telecom and broadcasting.

Telecommunications is the largest business in our country and requires to be regulated to protect both the
investor and the customer. Broadcasting, meanwhile, provides a vital source of news, information, and entertainment to the Somali people and is essential to the development of a functioning society and the
political process.”

“A clear legal framework for these two important industries will bring many benefits for Somalia. First, the legal certainty will promote investment and infrastructure expansion, which will mean more and better service for Somali consumers. In addition, the industry will benefit from having an independent regulator who can protect their interests and those of the consumers.
The Government of Somalia will benefit from the revenues that will be raised through the regulation
function, managing the valuable public resources of spectrum usage.” The Minister added. The Information Minister ended his statement by saying, “This is also a significant step toward openness and free competition, as it creates an independent regulator which establishes the rule of law and brings into existence a new public institution.
While the TFG, with assistance from AMISOM, has managed to extend its authority to a wider swath of Somalia, this success in legislation by the MIPT, providing an essential government service, is an important step forward that demonstrates the functioning administrative capacity of the TFG.”

National Security Committee Communiqué

22 Mar – Source: TFG – 148 words

The National Security Committee in a meeting last night, chaired by the President of the Republic, H.E.
Sharif Sheik Ahmed, deliberated on the security situation of the country in general and Mogadishu in particular.
The matter of the lately recurring infiltrations by the Al-Qaeda sponsored Al Shabaab terrorists with explosive devices was discussed. The national security forces were commended and congratulated on their
alertness in foiling most of the devices planted in Mogadishu by the terrorists in the past few weeks; while at the same time they were encouraged to increased efforts of detection and arrest of the terrorists.
The Committee reached the following decisions to enhance the effectiveness of the government message:

1- There should be only one spokesperson for the armed services and the security forces on all security matters.
2- That the Ministry of Information, MIPT, is solely responsible to speak on behalf of the government and the TFG.

SOMALI MEDIA

President Sharif calls for unity for purposes to achieve peace in Somalia

22 Mar- Source: Radio Bar-kulan, Radio Mogadishu – 109 words

Somalia’s president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has called on his fellow compatriots to unite for a common goal- overcoming the current problems in the country. The president said only unity among the public can lead the country out of the current stalemate, urging people to safeguard the country’s security and nationhood.

A meeting by the cabinet ministers chaired by the PM

22 Mar- Source: Radio Mogadishu – 218 words

Prime Minister Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali discussed a number of issues including security, regional issues, the progress on the draft constitution and national communication policies among others at a meeting of the cabinet ministers.
The minister of security briefed the ministers about the latest security updates saying that the security of Mogadishu and other liberated areas is going on as planned.

Somalia government troops exchange fire in Mogadishu

22 Mar – Source: Radio Risaala – 95 words

Government troops today exchanged gunfire in Wadajir district in Banadir province.

Two civilians were killed and several others sustained injuries from these clashes as was confirmed to Risaala Media by residents who witnessed the incident.

Contradicting reports are circulating as to the cause of these clashes.

Despite recent insecurity President Sharif takes a midnight stroll

22 Mar – Source: Garowe Online – 101 words

President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed accompanied by his bodyguards took a midnight walk in Mogadishu, in an attempt to assess security near the presidential palace.

At 1am President Sharif accompanied by his Minister of Interior and Security Abdisamad Ma’alin Mohamed and military officials visited major junctions in Mogadishu like KM4 and Tarbunku where he spoke briefly with troops stationed at the junctions.

TFG, Ethiopian troops seize control of Hudur town

22 Mar – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 179 words

Four injured in a farm dispute in Jalalaqsi district, Hiiraan region

22 Mar – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 103 words

Four people were seriously injured in a farm dispute involving two families in Iji village of Jalalaqsi district, Hiran region, reports say. Crude weapons including machetes, batons and spears were reportedly used during the Wednesday scuffle between the local farmers. The scuffle erupted after two families picked a quarrel over the ownership of a farm in the area, with each family claiming ownership of the farm.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Support AMISOM to end kidnaps

22 Mar – Source: the Star – 236 words

The Briton kidnapped in September last year has been freed in Somalia. Judith Tebbutt’s family paid a ransom and she was flown to Nairobi yesterday. There are still an estimated 230 people being held in Somalia – mostly sailors captured by pirates. Kidnapping is a symptom of a lawless society. Criminals rule the land.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Somali, Ethiopian troops seize town, fighters flee

22 Mar – Source: AP – 236 words

Ethiopian and Somali troops seized a town in Somalia controlled by al-Shabab militants who fled after battles with troops, residents said Thursday.

Hundreds of residents and rebel fighters fled Hudur, 420 kilometers (260 miles) southwest of Mogadishu, as troops moved into town.

“The Ethiopian troops have arrived in the town now, and al Shabaab left last night,” Mohamed Mudey, a resident in Hudur, said by phone.

Piracy fighters use floating armories

22 Mar – Source: AP – 900 words

Private security firms are storing their guns aboard floating armories in international waters so ships that want armed anti-piracy guards for East Africa’s pirate-infested waters can cut costs and circumvent laws limiting the import and export of weapons, industry officials say.

Companies and legal experts say the operation of the armories is a “legal gray area” because few, if any, governments have laws governing the practice.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“Sadly, the London communiqué makes no attempt to address the creation of physical infrastructure in Somalia, which would enable the flourishing, clan-based Somali civil society to provide a foundation for the political reconstitution the country needs. The conference, in effect, focused more on the threats piracy poses to foreign commercial interests than on Somalia itself. Which is a pity, since a lasting solution to the problems at sea can only be found on land.”

How to ignore Somalia

22 Mar – Source: The Hindu – 421 Words

The London conference on Somalia held last month with participation by 55 countries and international organisations concluded with a communiqué which gives as much attention to Somalia-based piracy as it does to stability and recovery of the country. The emphasis on the former is understandable given that 62 seafarers have been killed in the last four years, that nearly 200 attacks on merchant ships have been logged in the first 10 months of 2011, and that ransoms now stand at $4 million per ship. But unless the fight against piracy is part of a comprehensive plan to help Somalia reacquire a functioning government, it will never fully succeed. The world’s shipping powers collectively spend $2 billion a year on anti-piracy operations spread across an area the size of mainland Europe.

Many countries have also approved the use of armed guards on board their ships. On the political side, U.N. Security Council Resolution 2036, passed on February 22, widens the mandate of the African Union Mission in Somalia and increases the size of its troop contingent. The London communiqué, for its part, notes that the current Transitional Federal Government (TFG) mandate ends in August, and proposes that a caretaker authority govern Somalia until a new constitution is endorsed by a referendum and a new executive and parliament are elected.

“March 6, 2012 everybody was in remarkable praise of Turkish Airlines: The first long-distance international commercial airliner in two decades to fly to Somalia’s war-torn capital landed on its maiden flight at Mogadishu airport. The Turkish Airlines flight, with a high-level delegation from Ankara led by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag, was welcomed cordially upon landing in the anarchic seaside capital of Somalia.”

“Several airlines operating in Somalia, including Kenya-based African Express, fly into Somalia from neighboring nations, notwithstanding Turkish Airlines’ proposed twice-weekly flights which will be the first commercial flights from outside the region.”

Turkey Comes Back to Somalia

22 Mar – Source: Turkish Weekly – 518 Words

Turkey originally maintained an embassy in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, until the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991. It subsequently closed the embassy down due to security reasons.

Rather interestingly, on May 21, 2010 Turkey hosted a U.N. sponsored, three-day conference on Somalia to address conflict, piracy and the deepening humanitarian crisis in the war-torn nation. The conference was one of the major in its bid for a greater influence on the African continent. Turkey directs its interests in Africa while maintaining close ties with the U.S., as well as maintaining the bid to join the European Union. To all the well wishers, this is seen as part of a new vigorous and energetic Turkish foreign policy.