November 21, 2014 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Security forces conduct operation to clean up roadblocks in Lower Shabelle region
21 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu – 224 words
Somali government forces have conducted heavy operation to clean up illegal roadblocks set up by armed militias in the Lower Shabelle region following constant complaints by the farmers and transport owners in the past weeks. Gunmen purporting to be government forces have set up their own roadblocks to collect revenue from civilian transporters accessing the main road between Mogadishu, the country’s capital and the other parts of the Lower Shabelle region resulting high prices on the grocery markets in Mogadishu.
The association of transport owners and drivers have been continuously protesting against the roadblocks where the armed militias demand huge amount of money forcing many transport owners to go on strike. Lower Shabelle officials and the officials of Somali National Army [SNA] on Tuesday announced the fresh operation in which two dozens of armed men were arrested.
The security forces successfully cleared the road between Afgooye town, which is a farmland town and KM-60. Colonel Ahmed Osman Cagey, the commander of SNA in the region said the operation was meant to create safe access for the locals and to make the lives of the civilians very simple. He said the security forces were ordered to deal harshly with the armed people found in roadblocks. “Those setting up roadblocks and denying the safe access of the people are just like Al Shabab.” Colonel Cagey added.
Key Headlines
- Security forces conduct operation to clean up roadblocks in Lower Shabelle region (Radio Mogadishu/Radio RBC)
- Four women raped in Hiiran no arrests made (Radio Goobjoog)
- Parliament to hold another session on motion of no confidence next week – sources (Radio RBC)
- Five dead as residents battle al-Shabaab militants (Horseed Media)
- Puntland to intensify anti-terrorism operations (Garowe Online)|
- Civil society groups express deepening concern over political rifts (Radio Danan)
- Regional programme skills 1500 women (Daily Monitor)
- Donors praise Somalia’s progress at Copenhagen conference (Sabahi Online)
- Four sheikhs laud police for seizing arms (Star)
- Wajir electricity plant attacked 2 injured in shootings (Sabahi Onlin)
- International ministers ‘press for progress’ in Somalia (Anadolu Agency)
- Somaliland migrants dying for a life in Europe (Euronews.com)
- Somali leader sees Islamist rebels out of towns by year-end (Reuters)
SOMALI MEDIA
Parliament to hold another session on motion of no confidence next week – sources
21 Nov – Source: Radio Kulmiye/RBC – 118 words
Members of the Federal Parliament are planning to hold another session next week to discuss the standing motion of no confidence against the Prime Minister and his cabinet, sources told RBC Radio.
The meeting is scheduled on Sunday or Monday where the MPs are preparing themselves to attend to discuss the motion which will only be possible if the parliament chair delivers the copy of the motion to the parliamentarians.
There has been two violent sittings in the parliament during the past three weeks after rival lawmakers disrupted the session to prevent the motion to be tabled. On Thursday, the Speaker of the Parliament Mohamed Osman Jawari said he was concerned about the violent motion in the parliament.
Security forces conduct operation to clean up roadblocks in Lower Shabelle region
21 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu/Radio RBC – 224 words
Somali government forces have conducted heavy operation to clean up illegal roadblocks set up by armed militias in the Lower Shabelle region following constant complaints by the farmers and transport owners in the past weeks. Gunmen purporting to be government forces have set up their own roadblocks to collect revenue from civilian transporters accessing the main road between Mogadishu, the country’s capital and the other parts of the Lower Shabelle region resulting high prices on the grocery markets in Mogadishu.
The association of transport owners and drivers have been continuously protesting against the roadblocks where the armed militias demand huge amount of money forcing many transport owners to go on strike. Lower Shabelle officials and the officials of Somali National Army [SNA] on Tuesday announced the fresh operation in which two dozens of armed men were arrested.
The security forces successfully cleared the road between Afgooye town, which is a farmland town and KM-60. Colonel Ahmed Osman Cagey, the commander of SNA in the region said the operation was meant to create safe access for the locals and to make the lifes of the civilians very simple. He said the security forces were ordered to deal harshly with the armed people found in roadblocks. “Those setting up roadblocks and denying the safe access of the people are just like Al Shabab.” Colonel Cagey added.
Four women raped in Hiiran, no arrests made
21 Nov – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 179 words
According to reports we are getting from Hiran province, four women were raped by armed men who dragged them from the car they were traveling with. This happened 90km west of Baladweyn, the main town of the province.
The district commissioner Mohamed Osman and the Baladweyn Police Station commander Ali Dhuh who commented on the incident said that they sent officers to the concerned area, but could not find any trace of the perpetrators. The officials also told reporters that no rape case has been reported to the police station, and that no women came forward to report any sexual offence. “So that we cannot confirm or deny once there no women who came forward to report any case” said the station commander.
Our reporters who met the some of the victims reported that the women were unwilling to speak to the press, but privately told them that indeed the rape has happened. This is the second time such incident is reported from the same area, a month ago; there were three women who got raped by a gang.
Somalia: Five dead as residents battle al-Shabaab militants
21 Nov – Source: Horseed Media – 178 words
At least five people have died in a fierce battle between local residents and militants from the extremist group al-Shabaab in Central Somalia on Thursday, witnesses confirm. Fighters from the Islamist group attacked the town to demand funds but residents declined and took up arms against the militants, said one of the witnesses who refused to be named.
Gunfire could be heard in several places of the town from early morning, another resident said. Hospital officials were not immediately available to give details of any further casualties. “Three al-Shabaab fighters died during the battle and one of the residents,’’ he added. Business places in the village remained closed while armed residents and al-Shabaab took their dispute to the streets. Similar clashes are increasingly reported in recent weeks as al-Shabaab struggles to retain public support and assert its control over the territories it occupies. Al-Shabaab, which is linked to al-Qaeda, has come under pressure from the AMISOM troops and Somali national army, losing all their major strongholds in Southern Somalia. The group now only controls remote areas.
Puntland to intensify anti-terrorism operations
20 Nov – Source: Radio Garowe – 209 words
Somalia’s North Eastern State of Puntland has declared that it would hone anti-terrorist operations following intelligence briefings on Thursday, Garowe Online reports. Speaking at a press conference in the state capital of Garowe, Puntland Intelligence Agency (PIA) Chief Abdi Hassan Hussein (Abdi Yare) revealed that intelligence briefings disclosed possible terror attacks by Al Qaeda Al Shabaab group in Somalia’s stable Puntland. “We have so far gathered intelligence reports unveiling that Al Shabaab is planning to carry out attacks in Puntland,” said Abdi Yare, adding that the threat ahead is imminent.
Puntland Intelligence Boss further noted that destructive networks are in full force campaign to foment violence, and destabilize the region. He called on ordinary residents not to provide safe haven to terrorists and keep vigil on suspects. The call for tight security by Puntland security agencies has emerged after masked gunmen shot and killed a local journalist in Galkayo which straddles the border between the stable state and south-central regions plagued by chronic insecurity.
8-member panel of UN investigators accused Puntland leadership of weak anti-terrorism policy and piracy links in early October. Al Shabaab militants are believed to have migrated northwards towards the rugged terrain of Galgala as a result of intense military campaign in central and southern Somalia.
Civil society groups express deepening concern over political rifts
20 Nov – Source: Radio Danan – 82 words
Somalia’s civil society groups have expressed serious concern over the prevailing political turmoil in the country with the government of embattled Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed locked in a showdown with the president. Mohamud Hassan, the deputy chair for Sahan party told reporters on Thursday that MP should work towards a solution for ending the current political crisis in the country .He urged Somalia’s political cabinet to perform their duties in accordance with the country’s constitution to save the country from another turmoil after more than two decades of war.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Regional programme skills 1,500 women
21 Nov- Source: Daily Monitor – 288 words
More than 1,500 women and girls living at three Uganda border posts have since 2012 received vocational and entrepreneurial training by a regional non-government organisation, Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI). The training seeks to create jobs and improve their livelihoods.
According to Ms Elizabeth Ampaire, the programme coordinator, Women and Girls Empowerment Project at EASSI, said the women have been undergoing trainings mainly in candle making, liquid and bar soap making, Jewelry making, peanut paste, farming, bakery and tailoring.
Such areas of training do not require academic papers before one is enrolled and involve less capital investments yet skills attained if applied, are vital for self-employment especially for a vulnerable group-women. The programme is also in other eight African countries of Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania. EASSI was born in 1996 after the Beijing Conference.
Donors praise Somalia’s progress at Copenhagen conference
20 Nov – Source: Sabahi Online – 288 words
International donors gathered at the two-day High Level Partnership Forum on Somalia in Copenhagen issued a communiqué Thursday (November 20th) praising Somalia’s political and security progress and outlining priorities for future efforts.
The communiqué called on the Somali government to establish an Inter-regional Consultative Forum, to complete the constitutional review process in a timely manner, and to establish the National Independent Electoral Commission and the Boundaries and Federation Commission.
The cabinet approved legislation on the two commissions this week, which will go to parliament for approval. The communiqué also praised progress in fighting al-Shabaab, combating piracy, and upholding the rule of law, though it also reflected stakeholders’ concerns over the political feud between the president and Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed.
Four sheikhs laud police for seizing arms
20 Nov – Source: Star – 302 words
A section of Muslim leaders has supported the raid by police on two mosques in Mombasa. They termed the action human and okay, saying criminals cannot be allowed to hide in places of worship. “We are shocked that all that paraphernalia paraded by police for the world to see was found at Masjid Musa and Masjid Sakina. We commend our security officers for the dawn operation,” said a senior sheikh.
Acting on a tip-off from the public, police raided the mosques on Sunday night and recovered grenades, pistols, pangas and Jihad DVDs. A secondary school student who allegedly tried to hurl a grenade at the police was shot dead and 250 youths arrested.
Wajir electricity plant attacked, 2 injured in shootings
20 Nov – Source: Sabahi Online – 252 words
Two people were shot and injured in Wajir town in separate incidents Wednesday night (November 19th), while assailants threw a grenade at a local electricity plant, Tarbaj County Deputy Commissioner David Rotich told Sabahi.
Unknown gunmen shot and injured one person at Muqti Market at about 7:05 pm, Rotich said. Five minutes later, about 500 metres away, another man was shot near Wajir’s Old Mosque. Then at about 7:15 pm, unknown assailants hurled a grenade at the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) Wajir plant, he said.
“It appears the assailants were targeting to blow up the fuel tank at the KPLC plant in order to plunge the town into darkness,” Rotich said. “Fortunately the explosion did not cause much damage” and no one was injured.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
International ministers ‘press for progress’ in Somalia
20 Nov – Source: Anadolu Agency – 158 words
Fifty-six international delegations comprised of more than 300 people have gathered in Copenhagen to review progress on the New Deal Somali Compact aimed at building reconciliation in the beleaguered North African state.
The High Level Partnership Forum Copenhagen (HLPF Copenhagen) meeting in the Danish capital aims to maintain the momentum in the political transition process in Somalia, with a view to fostering dialogue and reconciliation in the country, officials said on Thursday.
Co-chaired by His Eminence Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the President of the Federal Government of Somalia, and the United Nations and hosted by the Danish government, conference delegates reviewed progress made since the Brussels Conference in September 2013, where the New Deal Somali Compact was endorsed.
Danish Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard said in a statement: “We wish to state clearly that the international society is ready to help Somalia, but also that we demand certain standards from the Somali government.
Somaliland migrants dying for a life in Europe
20 Nov – Source:Euronews.com – 594 words
Every year, thousands of migrants risk their lives attempting to cross the Mediterranean from Africa into Europe. In Somaliland, although the region has escaped much of the conflict and chaos that plagues neighbouring Somalia, many young people are desperate to leave and find a new life elsewhere. The main reason that drives them is a lack of jobs with youth unemployment at around 80 percent.
52-year-old Warabee works at a livestock market in the capital, Hargeisa. His son Jiijile drowned in 2013 as he attempted the risky crossing from Libya to Italy. “My son wanted to improve his life and build a future. Many people earn a lot of money in Europe and many of his friends were already there,” he explained.
The family sold plots of land to pay smugglers to get Jiijile to Italy. Warabee says his 21-year-old son was hopeful and excited about the journey and not deterred by the horror stories of abductions, exploitation and shipwrecks that filter back. Months after his son left, Warabee received a phone call from Libya telling him his son had drowned. He says he can’t bear to talk about it.
Somali leader sees Islamist rebels out of towns by year-end
20 Nov – Source: Reuters – 390 words
Somalia’s president said on Thursday a military campaign would push Islamist al Shabaab fighters out of all towns and major territories by the end of the year, though the militants would still be able to mount guerrilla attacks. African Union and Somali forces have already retaken many strategic towns and ports in recent months, cutting off al Shabaab’s route to the sea and revenue streams, while U.S. air strikes killed the group’s leader in September.
But the al Qaeda-linked group, which has also launched assaults in neighboring Kenya and vowed to fight on under a new leader, still controls tracts of land in southern regions and continues to launch bomb and gun attacks in the capital. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud told Reuters the offensive would drive the militants away from towns and other territory into the “remote, rural hinterland” by December. “We are planning that by the first quarter of next year there will not be a territory, space, controlled by al Shabaab,” he said in an interview during a donors’ conference in Denmark.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“Fighting Al-Shabaab should no longer take centre stage in Somalia’s state-building effort at least not in its current military form.”
Leveraging state-suilding in Somalia: learning from Somaliland’s non-roadmap
20 Nov – Source: African arguments.org – 1164 words
Hope and optimism accompanied the installation of the new Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in September 2012, but today, the administration appears to be drifting towards failure once again. Al-Shabaab remains far from defeated, social fragmentation within Somalia is on the rise, and while corruption continues unabated, political infighting paralyzes the country. Despite initial progress, considerable international support, and the endorsement of a “New Deal Compact” for Somalia at an EU-Somalia conference held in Brussels in September 2013, the joint efforts of the government and its international partners have been unable to translate burgeoning progress into a more sustainable trajectory away from perpetual conflict and fragility.
Although its record is hardly spotless, the self-declared Republic of Somaliland – which declared its independence from Somalia in May 1991, but has not yet gained recognition as a sovereign state by the international community – has fared noticeably better in establishing basic levels of peace and stability. While it is inadvisable to simply transpose alleged lessons learned from Somaliland to Somalia, the former’s experience provides useful insights for the latter’s state-building endeavour. Somali policymakers and their international partners might benefit from taking a closer look at Somaliland’s trajectory, which followed a somewhat unconventional path.
“Somaliland has witnessed the emergence of such a dictator – President Silanyo – who exhibits all the aforesaid comportments and characteristics without exception. He strives to cling to power by any means necessary rendering him a democratically-elected-turned-
President Silanyo: Somaliland’s next dictator in the making
21 Nov – Source: Wardheernews.com – 1164 words
Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana Certain democratically elected leaders transform gradually into dictators. History has repeatedly attested the blueprints for turning a democratic system into dictatorship. Such blueprints have been employed recurrently in different shapes and forms, some of which are gorier than others. Notwithstanding their brutalities, dictators have distinct characteristics.
Generally, they rule with an iron fist: they suspend the constitution, invoke a petrifying internal foes, cultivate a gangster caste, create surveillance system, harass citizens, employ arbitrary incarceration, terrorize prominent figures, oppress the media, chastise dissent, et cetera. Psychologically, they are exceptionally egocentric, narcissistic, pathological liars, coldhearted, cunning/crafty, vain and possess an unlimited craving for power. Dictators associate themselves with a close-knit bunch of respective family/clan members.
Top tweets
@unicefsomalia #CRC@25; Good news for children in Somaliland. Pilot birth registration launched. Somalia has had a nonfunctional birth reg system for ages
@amisomsomalia RT @DFATDCanada: A strong #Somalia is a Somalia where women and girls can realize their full potential.#HLPF @TedOpitz @amisomsomalia
@Tuuryare10 #Somalia: Al Shabaab will be defeated at the end of this year says #Somali President. Can Al Shabab be driven out all #Somalia in this year?
@AndreasNeedhamPowerful report on death on the mediterranean sea via euronews.com/2014/11/20/
@DennisOkari In Africa, Kenya is ranked the 3rd most hard-hit by terrorism after Nigeria (Boko Haram) & Somalia (Al Shabaab)#WarOnTerror
@radiogarowe #Somalia: Puntland to intensify anti-terrorism operations http://bit.ly/1F58cR8
Image of the day
Children playing football after school in Beletweyne, Somalia.
Photo: UNSOM