January 29, 2015 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

Two warring clans clinch peace deal in Afgooye

28 Jan – Source: Garowe Online – 174 Words

Traditional leaders representing two warring clans have signed 9-point agreement in the town of Afgoye, 25km west of Mogadishu on Wednesday, Garowe Online reports. Southwest State’s Minister for Reconciliation Abdulkadir Nur Arale has read out the points of the agreement to the media with President Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, Islamic scholars and politicians from the two clans present. Arale said that anybody who breaches the peace deal would face the justice in line with the customary laws and the constitution. “The two sides agreed that Somalia army and police be deployed in the areas where the clan clashes took place,” he said, adding that clan militias in Lower Shabelle region of southern Somalia will be trained and mobilized. Speaking at a ceremony marking the agreement, the President of Southwest State administration Adan requested the two clans to implement the deal, and expressed his delight with the end of hostilities. Dozens died in fierce confrontations between uniformed militiamen

Key Headlines

The administration and elders of Buulo Burde vow to fight Al-shabab (Radio Goobjoog)
Ali Ameriko meets with South African high commissioner to Kenya (Radio Bar-Kulan)
EUCAP Nestor to deploy in Puntland (Horseed Media)
Two warring clans clinch peace deal in Afgooye (Garowe Online)
Galmudug State commends central State formation conference in Adado (Radio Goobjoog)
Interior CS Nkaissery pledges to end insecurity in counties on Kenya-Somali border (Daily Nation)
Thousands of foreigners seek refuge in Mayfair (Mail & Guardian)
Minnesotan charged with trying to aid ISIS released to halfway house (MPR News)

SOMALI MEDIA

The administration and elders of Buulo Burde vow to fight Al-shabab

28 Jan – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 161 Words

The administration and the council of elders of Buulo-burde took meeting focusing on wide range issues including the circumstances in the district and how to combat Al-Shabab fighters who blocked the main roads leading to the town. Libaan Abdi Burusoow vice-chairperson of district financial committee chairing the gathering told Goobjjog FM that the main issues they focussed on was how weed out Al-Shabaab from the main roads and the worsening livelihood of people in the district. “The two main agendas of the meeting are, how to chase away Al-Shabab fighters from the the main roads they blocked and the situation of the people who have been isolated from other parts of the country, ” the vice chairperson said. Al-shabaab imposed tight sanctions by blocking the main trade routes leading to Buulo-burde and other major cities in Hiran region after allied forces pushed them out of their main strongholds in the region.

Ali Ameriko meets with South African high commissioner to Kenya

28 Jan – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 110 Words

Somali ambassador to Kenya Mohamed Ali Ameriko on Wednesday met with South African High Commissioner to Kenya Koleka Anita Mqulwana and discussed several issues including plight of Somali nationals in South Africa and the bilateral relationship between the two countries. Ambassador Koleka Anita thanked Somalia for the support it offered the African Congress during its fight against the apartheid government, adding that her country was not happy with the xenophobic attacks against members of the Somali community in her country. She promised she would raise the issue with her government in order to do more to protect foreigners including Somalis.

EUCAP Nestor to deploy in Puntland

28 Jan – Source: Horseed Media – 300 Words

The European Union’s Maritime Capacity Building Mission in the Horn of Africa and Western Indian Ocean (EUCAP Nestor) is set to open a base in the Somalia’s semi-autonomous region of Puntland. The move comes following talks between Puntland President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and EU head of Civilian Operations Commander for all Civilian Common Security Defence Policy Missions Mr. Kenneth Dean in the state’s capital, Garowe on Wednesday. EUCAP Nestor is a civilian EU mission, under the auspices of the Common Security and Defence Policy, which assists host countries in the Horn of Africa and Western Indian Ocean region in strengthening their capacity to ensure maritime security and in particular to fight piracy.

According to a press statement, both sides discussed ways of strengthening relations between Puntland and European Union in areas of security, education, health and other fields. Mr Kenneth Dean confirmed that the mission will set up a base in Garowe and will enhance the cooperation between two sides. The major aim will be to train Puntland forces to fight against piracy and terrorism, according to officials. EUCAP Nestor permanent deployment in Somalia marks a shift of the mission activities in the Country. Strengthening the existing legal and law enforcement frameworks related to anti-piracy and developing maritime security capacity instruments would benefit from a permanent presence on Somali soil. Although piracy has diminished in the Horn of Africa coast as a result of the EU as well as International and local engagement, “pirates are still out there. They remain ashore ready to act at any opportunity. Our objective is to strengthen the action on the ground in order to help Somali authorities to identify them and dismantle their structures,” the Head of EUCAP Nestor mission Etienne de Poncins said.

Two warring clans clinch peace deal in Afgooye

28 Jan – Source: Garowe Online – 174 Words

Galmudug State commends central State formation conference in Adado

28 Jan – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 145 Words

The administration of Galmudug described the central State formation conference scheduled to hold in Adado town as being a golden opportunity for the administration and people of Galmudug State. The deputy speaker of Galmudug parliament Mohamed Abdi Ali speaking to Goobjoog FM stated that the conference would be precious opportunity for people of Gulmudug region people and he urged them to take advantage of the opportunity. The speaker urged people to collaborate with the administration in the preparation and running of the conference as it is for the benefit Galmudug State and all other people living in central regions. The central state formation conference is expected to kick off soon in Adado town and the technical committees, delegations from central regions of Somalia, elders and intellectuals are coming to take part in the conference.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Interior CS Nkaissery pledges to end insecurity in counties on Kenya-Somali border

28 Jan – Source: Daily Nation – 298 Words

Interior CS Joseph Nkaissery has announced measures aimed at improving security in counties that border Somalia. The measures include mopping up of illegal arms and increasing the number of police stations in Wajir, Mandera and Garissa counties. The Kenya Defence Forces will also be deployed to man the regions bordering Somalia. Mr Nkaissery and his Principal Secretary Monica Juma met senators, governors and MPs from Wajir, Garissa, Mandera and Tana River counties in Nairobi over insecurity in their areas.

“We want to bring peace and security in the north-eastern region and the resolutions we have made are the first step. Our next step will be the implementation by my ministry,” Mr Nkaissery told a news briefing after a five-hour meeting with the leaders. Other proposals include reinforcing patrols on international boundaries and thorough checks on all foreigners entering Kenya. “We also want to check on movement of goods at the borders (and) curb corruption to also ensure that we facilitate tax collections,” said Ms Juma, who read the resolutions. Clanism was singled out as one of the causes of insecurity in the region.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Thousands of foreigners seek refuge in Mayfair

28 Jan – Source: Mail & Guardian – 994 Words

The recent spate of looting, mostly in Gauteng townships, has again brought attention to the stasis that asylum seekers find themselves in. In a weekend visit to Mayfair to “calm tempers down”, Gauteng Premier David Makhura said that foreign shopkeepers should have trading licences and pay taxes “so we can protect you”. He also uttered a stern warning against the use of illegal firearms, telling them “we know where you buy your illegal firearms”. As the looting spread to the East Rand and thousands of people fled to Mayfair, Somali, Bengali and Ethiopian shopkeepers told of the difficulties they had in legitimising their businesses and defending them legally. After the premier’s departure, a lanky greying Somali businessperson, Abi Nuur Mohamed, said of Makhura’s visit that it was as if he “threw a bomb and ran” away.

Mohamed explained that many Somali business owners wanted to abide by the law but, for many, their status as asylum seekers made it difficult for them to obtain trading licences and qualify to legally own firearms. “If you have documents, like an ID and a passport, or even refugee status, then it’s easy to get a trading licence. Like myself, I have a British passport; it’s easy.” On the question of obtaining legal firearms, Mohamed says people often contravened the law to protect their lives.

“We’re not soft. We will defend ourselves,” said the fez-wearing Mohamed, index-finger wagging for emphasis. “If we get killed – and there has been plenty of that – it’s nothing, but if we kill someone in defence, it’s a big thing. The premier is right to say we mustn’t take the law into our own hands, but our lives are in our hands.” For Mohomed Diiriye, it has been 12 years, and counting, without permanent residence status.

Minnesotan charged with trying to aid ISIS released to halfway house

28 Jan – Source: MPR News – 329 Words

An 18-year-old man who authorities say tried to travel to Syria to join the radical group Islamic State will be released to a halfway house pending trial. Chief U.S. District Judge Michael Davis said it’s possible Abdullahi Yusuf of Inver Grove Heights may also participate in a civics program aimed at re-integrating him into U.S culture. The proposal for Yusuf is an “experiment” that could rehabilitate radicalized individuals who pose a low risk of harming the community, said Mary McKinley, executive director of the Minneapolis nonprofit Heartland Democracy, which runs the program.

“We can’t incarcerate all those people,” McKinley said. “The numbers are just too great. What we are trying to do ultimately is actually engage people in their communities before those ideas become attractive.” As part of his release, Yusuf will have to wear a GPS ankle bracelet and refrain from going online or using a cell phone. Out of the three Minnesotans who have been publicly charged in the investigation into possible radicalization of Americans for terror groups in Syria, Yusuf is the only one who had not left the country…McKinley is proposing that Yusuf be part of a larger peer group of Somali-American youth who are straddling two cultures. She said discussions with Somali-American elders in his community have been fruitful.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“Somalia is one of the poorest countries in the world and currently over one million people still need food assistance each day…We hope more and more of Somalia friends will come to its assistance in 2015.”

Interview: Kay urges Somalia to put in place all-inclusive cabinet

27 Jan – Source: Shanghai Daily – 478 Words

The UN senior envoy for Somalia on Tuesday urged Somalia’s President and Prime Minister to put in place an all-inclusive cabinet that will return the Horn of Africa nation to normalcy. UN Envoy to Somalia Nicholas Kay told Xinhua in Nairobi that it is very unfortunate that the Horn of Africa nation’s leaders have not yet been able to agree on a list of cabinet ministers that will be acceptable to Parliament. “The international community’s desire is for the process to be concluded quickly, as any delay is not desirable,” Kay said.

He said the key political challenge is on all political factions to agree on a new constitution as well as the methodology of the preparations for elections. Earlier this month, Somali parliament rejected a list of cabinet nominees by the Prime Minister. Kay said that the Somalia requires a cabinet that can provide a stable government until elections are held next year. “Somalis have decided that they are fed up after 23 years of conflict and want to build a new state where power and resources are shared between central and regional governments,” he said. “So the next few months will be crucial if Somalia is to achieve the targets that have been set by its citizens.”

“The credibility problems that plagued the FGS include the bruising dismissal of two Prime Ministers in less than two years, the appointment of tainted former PM, the illegitimacy of the talks between the FGS and Somaliland, the continuous friction between Puntland and the FGS, the presence of Kenyan forces in Jubbaland regions while maritime dispute between Kenya and Somalia is filed at the International Court of Justice.”

Ambassador Nicholas Kay digresses from the pivotal reality in Somalia

28 Jan – Source: Al-Shahid.net – 1, 418 Words

Whether they are labeled pessimists or realists/nationalists, many Somali intellectuals and politicians of different extractions are expressing profound doubts about the meaning and future of Somali unity and territorial integrity due to the relentless foreign driven fragmentation of Somalia along clan enclaves and improperly organized talks between Somaliland and Somalia. The exclusion of Somaliland from the UN Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) signals division. The consensus is that the current political trend constitutes serious obstacle to the realization of internal political cohesion, reliable peace and security rooted in a culture of rule of law, and national free and fair political election in 2016 in Somalia.

However, on 21 January 2015, Ambassador Nicholas Kay, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General (SRSG), head of UNSOM published in Aljazeera English Website, an opinion piece titled “Somalia’s Year of Delivery,” in which he claims that Somalia (which Somalia?) graduated from failed state to fragile state set on the path to stability and prosperity. Thus, he calls the international community to deliver the financial pledges made in connection with the Somali Compact endorsed in Brussels in 2013.

Besides the word play, to bolster his line of argument, Ambassador Kay cites statistical figures beyond the knowledge, appreciation, and verification of Somali institutions. He quotes as evidence the 1,450 UN employees working throughout “Somalia”, millions of lives saved (the media reports the missing of $ 162 million for humanitarian aid for Somalia in 2012), short term employment for 400,000 Somalis, 300 individuals employed from Diaspora, the resettlement of 500 refugees returned from Kenya, 2.8 million vaccines administered to immunize children against polio and measles, 40,000 children attending school, 24 million livestock vaccinated and provided veterinary care, 17,000 National Army and Police registered for biometrical payment system, and the establishment of Interim Southwest Administration in Baidoa. Also, he mentions the services the UN Support Office for AMISOM (UNSOA) provides to the Peace Enforcement Operation in Somalia.