April 30, 2012 | Morning Headlines.
Ministry of constitution: Traditional elders’ meeting to take place in May
29 Apr- Source: Radio Mogadishu- 147 words
The ministry of constitution, federal affairs and reconciliation of thee Somali government has declared that most traditional elders, who are supposed to approve the constitution, will be all brought together in Mogadishu.
State minister of the constitution, federal affairs and reconciliation, Hassan Mohamed Jim’ale “Hassan Dhere” told Radio Mogadishu that everything was going on as planned.
The state minister said that meetings for elders would start in early May.
Key Headlines
- Government forces clash with al Shabaab in Mogadishu (Source: Jowhar Online)
- Traditional elders meet in Mogadishu (Source: Somaliweyn)
- TFG denies abuse against prisoners at central jail in Mogadishu ( (Source: Radio Shabelle)
- African Union to deploy police in Mogadishu (Source: Africa Review )
- ”Turkey has no ulterior motives in Somalia”( Source: Garowe Online/VOA Somali Service)
- Oil can be a boon for Somalia ( Source: Gulf News)
SOMALI MEDIA
Government forces clash with al Shabaab in Mogadishu
29 Apr – Source: Jowhar Online/Bar-kulan – 139 words
Mogadishu was hit by some of the fiercest fighting in the city in weeks in what is seen as a major setback for the government, local residents said. The clashes began shortly after al Shabaab militants attacked bases at Hosh and Aslubta villages located on the outskirts of Mogadishu and which are manned by government forces, backed by African Union (AU) troops.
Ministry of constitution: Traditional elders’ meeting to take place in May
29 Apr- Source: Radio Mogadishu- 147 words
The ministry of constitution, federal affairs and reconciliation of thee Somali government has declared that most traditional elders, who are supposed to approve the constitution, will be all brought together in Mogadishu.
State minister of the constitution, federal affairs and reconciliation, Hassan Mohamed Jim’ale “Hassan Dhere” told Radio Mogadishu that everything was going on as planned.
The state minister said that meetings for elders would start in early May.
50 arrested in Jowhar for having “clean beards”
29 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 92 words
Al Shabaab militants in Jowhar town have reportedly arrested fifty men for shaving their beards, an act the group says it violates Islamic teachings. Among those arrested are said to be local herders who came to Jowhar’s livestock market to sell their animals. Locals voiced concern about the operation, calling on officials of the group to stop using soldiers to harass civilians in pretence of upholding Islamic values in the region.
Puntland government sends condolences, investigates killing of PMPF trainer
28 Apr – Source: Garowe Online – 146 words
A trainer working with the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF) was killed on 27 April 2012 during an anti-piracy mission in Iskushuban District, Bari Region of Puntland State of Somalia. Lodewyk Pietersen, 55, was a South African national and was married with a family. The Government of Puntland State sends its sincere condolences to the victim’s family and friends.
15 suspected militants arrested in Bakol region
29 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 94 words
Fifteen people have been arrested in Hudur town after TFG forces conducted a security operation in the town. The area’s district commissioner Mohamed Moalim Ahmed said that the operation came after they received credible information that some youths were planning to commit crime in the area. He said the arrested youths are suspected to have links with the outlawed al Shabaab militants and are now undergoing intensive interrogations.
South African security trainer killed in Somalia
29 Apr – Source: Jowhar Online/Radio Mogadishu – 227 words
A South African security trainer was killed by his bodyguard in Somalia’s semi-autonomous region of Puntland, officials said Saturday.
Puntland’s government said in a statement Saturday that it had launched an investigation into Friday’s killing. The statement identified the man as Lodewyk Pietersen, and said he worked for Saracen International, a security firm that trains anti-piracy forces in Puntland. The statement said the South African was 55 and married with children.
Galmudug forces detain suspected pirates
28 Apr – Source: Shabelle – 135 words
Security forces under Somalia’s semi-autonomous Galmudug administration have on Saturday detained a number of pirate suspects after massive operations, officials said. Lt. Colonel Abdihassan better known as (Qorey) saidthat more than 10 suspected pirates with two small luxury cars carrying alcohol were arrested in an overnight operation conducted by Galmudug forces at villages in Galka’yo, Mudug region.
Qeybdid declares his interest in Galmudug’s top seat
28 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 150 words
The former TFG minister for Minerals and Water, Abdi Hassan Awale Qeybdid on Saturday declared his interest in the semi-autonomous Galmudug’s top seat. Qeybdid, who is also a former Somali government police commander, declared his interest in the region’s presidency after meeting civil society representatives in southern Galkayo town. Qeybdid promised to do a lot for the region if he were elected, including fostering relations with the neighbouring Puntland administration in order strengthen security in the region.
Traditional elders meet in Mogadishu
27 Apr – Source: Somaliweyn – 183 words
A one-day meeting attended by fifty traditional elders was held at Indian Ocean university conference hall on 26th April 2012. The meeting was facilitated by Somali Peace Line. Elders and other civil society groups like women and youth groups watched a short drama about the politicians’ interests and clan elders’ unawareness.
TFG denies abuse against prisoners at central jail in Mogadishu
29 Apr – Source: Radio Shabelle – 153 words
The Somali government has strongly denied reports about mistreatment and discrimination against prisoners held at the central prison in Mogadishu, an official said on Sunday. Abdi Mohammed Ismail, a senior TFG security officer said that the Somali government treats well all its prisoners at the central penitentiary in Mogadishu as well as their relatives were allowed to visit their loved ones at the prison any time possible.
”Turkey has no ulterior motives in Somalia”
28 Apr – Source: Garowe Online/VOA Somali Service – 230 words
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Selcuk Unal said that Turkey does not have any ulterior motives in assisting Somalia. Turkey, which has assisted Somalia with close to 400 million USD in aid over the past year, has maintained that it does not have any hidden purposes in assisting the war-torn country. Spokesman Selcuk who spoke to VOA Somalia said that Turkey’s assistance to Somalia is a long-term strategy to help the nation move out of conflict.
Four killed in a grenade attack near Tarabuka Square in Mogadishu
29 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 78 words
Four people were killed and nine others seriously injured in a grenade attack at a packed video showroom near Tarbunka square in Mogadishu on Saturday night. Most of the victims were said to be teenagers from nearby IDP camps who came to the place for entertainment. The injured people were taken to Banadir hospital in Mogadishu. The attacker hurled two hand grenades into a packed video showroom were teenagers were watching films, according to eyewitnesses.
REGIONAL MEDIA
African Union to deploy police in Mogadishu
28 Apr – Source: Africa Review – 134 words
African Union (AU) is planning to deploy police officers in Mogadishu, the bloc’s Deputy Special Representative to Somalia has said. Mr. Wafula Wamunyinyi said Thursday the AU was going to deploy personnel to police stations in Mogadishu.
Mr Wamunyinyi added that the police officers from Nigeria and Sierra Leone were going to assist their Somali counterparts in boosting security in the country’s capital. “The AU police will help the Somali police in all 16 districts of the Somali capital,” he said.
Oil can be a boon for Somalia
30 Apr – Source: Gulf News -1,197 words
The African nation has a real chance to set in stone the foundations of a better country for its people.
Ever since the fall of the Somalia’s pro-US president, Mohammad Siad Barre, in 1991, the country has been in a state of chaos and disorder. In the absence of a central authority, tribal conflicts, warlordism, and a resurgent militancy in the form of Al Shabab have come to dominate and define the political reality of Somalia.
Displaced Somalis face tough living in camps
28 Apr – Source: Al Arabia News – 183 words
The world’s largest concentration of internally displaced persons (IDP) Is in the Somali capital of Mogadishu. Somalis seek safety in inundated camps on a daily basis, as women, children, and the elderly are increasingly affected by the domestic unrest in the country.
People have been forced to flee to the volatile capital due to ongoing clashes between the African Union Mission soldiers and the al Shabaab militant group.
Sierra Leone to deploy troops in Somalia despite al Shabaab threats
27 Apr – Source: Africa Review – 254 words
The Sierra Leone Government has vowed to go ahead with its Somalia deployment plan despite threats from al Shabaab.
The government said its decision to send peacekeeping forces was not just because of its membership of the UN and the African Union, but also in fulfilment of its responsibility to contribute to international peace and security as other countries had done for Sierra Leone during its years of civil turmoil.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Nairobi church blast injures 10 during service, says official
29 Apr – Source: AP – 136 words
A grenade thrown into a church during Sunday service in Kenya’s capital has wounded 10 people, an official says. Deputy police spokesman Charles Owino said that the grenade exploded at Gods House of Miracle Church in Nairobi.
The blast is the latest in a string of small arms, bomb and grenade attacks that have killed scores of people since Kenya sent troops across the border into neighboring Somalia in October.
Official: Grenade attack wounds 5 in Somalia’s capital, 2 seriously hurt
29 Apr – Source: AP/Washington Post/WGME – 103 words
A police officer in Somalia’s capital says suspected insurgents lobbed a hand grenade into a cinema and wounded five people. Mohamed Aden said Sunday the attack happened as young men were watching a movie in Mogadishu on Saturday night.Aden said two of the grenade victims were seriously wounded.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“Today, once-magnificent buildings that used to house government offices, museums, cinemas and hotels have become shells hosting internally displaced people”.
The human face of troubled Mogadishu
27 Apr – Source: the East African – 400 words
“Once you have tasted the water of Mogadishu, you will always go back,” the Somali novelist Nuruddin Farah told me during his recent visit to Nairobi en route to Somalia’s war-torn capital.
Mogadishu has often been described as the most dangerous city in the world — “the world capital of things-gone-completely-to-
But I knew what Farah meant. Since I visited Mogadishu last year, I have yearned to go back.
The city never quite leaves you; I suppose because it is impossible for those who have lived there, or even visited briefly, to reconcile the horror and devastation of its recent history with its glorious past.
When former residents speak of Mogadishu, one can hear a longing in their voices for a city that once held so much promise.
In a recent essay, Farah described the city of his youth as being “the prettiest and most colourful” in the world, “a living metropolis with cosmopolitan values.”
“The Somali public is of the view that getting a new constitution will solve many standing issues but currently the constitution delivery task has proved more complicated than it was expected, with lawmakers and Muslim clerics opposing its adoption”.
Somalia to have new Constitution
29 Apr- Source: soomaaliyeeytoosoo.blogspot/
Among the major aspects that are to be addressed in the Roadmap signed by Somali leaders last September in Mogadishu are, creation of a national security and stabilization plan, obtaining a new constitution, political outreach and reconciliation and good governance. All this are to be implemented before the end of the transition period in August 2012.
An independent committee was tasked with drafting the constitution and has been meeting in Kenya’s capital Nairobi. The team is set to meet local elders from all the regions of Somalia in the capital Mogadishu in May for the adoption of the draft document.
The process of drafting the new constitution, which is conducted by both the United Nations and the constitution committee, has raised eyebrows among politicians and religious groups in Somalia.