June 16, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report
Somali Islamists Kill At Least Three Soldiers In Roadside Blast
16 June – Source: Reuters – 97 Words
Somali Islamist militants detonated a roadside bomb on Tuesday southwest of the capital Mogadishu when a military vehicle was passing and killed at least three soldiers, a military officer and the rebel group said. “A roadside bomb hit one of our military pick-ups. So far we know three soldiers died,” Captain Farah Nur told Reuters, adding the death toll could rise. He said the blast took place near a village about 17 km (10 miles) from Mogadishu. A spokesman for the Islamist al Shabaab group claimed responsibility.
Key Headlines
- Somali Islamists Kill At Least Three Soldiers In Roadside Blast (Reuters)
- Heavy Presence Of Armed Forces In Baidoa As Regional State Seeks To Thwart Terror Attacks( Wacaal Media)
- Hope for Somali Children On The International Day Of The African Child (Goobjoog News)
- Baidoa Youth Put Skills Training Into Practice (Radio Ergo)
- Somali President Meets Tanzanian President (Goobjoog News)
- Intellectuals From Gedo Region Brush Aside Jubbaland Draft Constitution (Wacaal Media)
- Kenya Security Forces On High Alert For Al-Shabaab Militants (SpyGhana/Xinhua)
- ‘Don’t Cry For Me I’ll Be In Paradise’: Body Of Briton Who Died Fighting For Al-Shabaab Islamists Will Stay In Kenya ( Daily Mail)
- Faces Of The Somali Remittance Crisis ( The Stranger)
- Somaliland Surprise Stars Of African Nations Cup UK (WSC.com)
- Hedge Fund Managers Pitch In To Give Young Somalis An Education ( Institutional Investor)
- Should Somali Government Print Money? (RBC Radio)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Heavy Presence Of Armed Forces In Baidoa As Regional State Seeks To Thwart Terror Attacks
16 June – Source: Wacaal Media – 116 Words
Residents of Baidoa town woke up to heavy presence of armed forces in the town’s streets today. The forces comprised of Ethiopian military personnel and Somali Federal Government forces. South Somalia’s minister for security has confirmed that the troops were deployed to beef up security in the area. He added that there were intelligence reports indicating planned Al-Shabaab attack in the area in the holy month of Ramadhan but their swift action will seek to avert any impending attacks. Sources told Wacaal Media that several people were arrested in the security operations and were currently being held at the local police station.
Hope For Somali Children On The International Day Of The African Child
16 June – Source: Goobjoog News – 578 Words
Somalia joins the rest of the continent to mark the Day of the African Child with renewed commitment from the government to improve the welfare of children, with support from development partners. Somali children were among those most affected by the two decade-long war and suffered, various hardships including malnutrition, lack of access to medical care, lack of education and a high infant and child mortality rate, among other challenges that left their future seem bleak and uncertain. The Somali child is however emerging from this gloom through deliberate action by the Federal Government of Somalia with support from various partners, key among them, the United Nations.
The government manifested its commitment towards improving the welfare of children by ratifying the Convention of the Rights of the Child in January 2015, thus committing to protect the rights of children and ensuring that there are appropriate policies and legislation in place to enhance their wellbeing. According to a 2014 report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 76,000 children enrolled into school in the 2013-14 academic year. In partnership with the government, UNICEF launched the Go-to-School initiative in September 2013, which aimed to send 1 million children and youth to school. 6 out of every 10 Somali children however remain out of school, with more effort from the government and partners going toward addressing this situation.
In terms of health, some progress has been made for children, with access to vaccinations enabling the prevention of deadly diseases. In 2014, Somalia registered only 5 cases of Polio, down from 194 in 2013. There was a mass vaccination drive by UNICEF, following a measles outbreak that affected 10,000 children. UNICEF also registered over 300,000 outpatient consultations for child medical care. Children, however, continue to face malnutrition, with at least 44,000 of them severely malnourished at any one time despite ongoing efforts to extend much-needed humanitarian assistance. Mohamed Omar Nur, the Director-General for the Ministry of Women and Human Rights says that the future is bright for Somali children because the government and its development partners have put measures in place to help improve education, healthcare and general welfare for children. “The Ministry has done a lot for children with the support of UN agencies and the African Union. As we mark the Day of the African Child, it is with pleasure that we note that Somalia signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child which was approved by parliament and assented to by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.
The ministry is currently working on the policy of the management of children and the African child humanitarian law. If we do not put in place laws and policies to safeguard children’s rights, then they will suffer and that is why the ministry has put a lot of efforts to make sure the laws to protect and safeguard Somali children are in place,” Mr. Nur said. Mr. Nur also noted that despite the big leap in child protection and support, children in Somalia continue to face challenges, mostly in livelihood, due to high poverty levels that hinder many parents from providing the essentials for their children. The consensus from the government and partners however is that the future of the Somali child is one filled with hope, built upon the positive steps and progress noted each new day.
Baidoa Youth Put Skills Training Into Practice
16 June – Source: Radio Ergo – 299 Words
Sainab Bashir Mohamed, a young mother, is earning a living from the small shop she opened in Baidoa shortly after graduating from a one-year tailoring training course. Sainab was a trainee on the Youth Education Pack (YEP), supported by Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), which opened vocational training centres in Baidoa, Mogadishu, Dollow and Kismayo. “I had struggled a lot to provide for my children. I had done all sorts of odd jobs and earned very little. But now things are different – this was a life-changing opportunity for me,” Sainab said. She earns an average of 300,000 Somali shillings a day from her tailoring business.
The YEP programme targets IDPs and returnee youths, who have had limited access to education, training and employment opportunities. Since the YEP center opened in Baidoa in 2013, more than 500 young people, among them 250 women, have graduated from vocational training courses in tailoring, carpentry, electrical skills and beautician work. Adan Maalim Abdirahman, a YEP trainer, told Radio Ergo that the majority of the graduates were successfully utilising their skills to earn their living. He said graduates were provided with start-up kits to help them open their own businesses.
Sahra Abdirahman Ibrahim is training in beautician work and does henna painting after classes. She told Radio Ergo she makes one to two dollars a day. Her income doubles on Thursdays and Fridays, when she works longer hours. Abdinasir Hassan, 18, has not yet completed the electrician course but is already earning around three dollars a day. “I’m very happy to have learnt this new skill that has changed my life for the better. It has helped me live better,” he said. The YEP centre in Baidoa is run by local NGO, Gargar Relief Development Organization.
Somali President Meets Tanzanian President
15 June – Source: Goobjoog News – 158 Words
Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in Johannesburg, South Africa to attend 25th AU Summit, has taken meeting with his counterpart Tanzanian president Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete on Monday. The two leaders focussed on a wide range issues including how to strengthen the bilateral relations of the countries, the situation in the Middle East, the role of the Arab League, fighting against terrorism and other issues. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud briefed his counterpart about the situation of Somalia and how Somali bouncing back on its feet. Jakaya, for his part said that his government will keep on supporting Somali government from security and the rebuilding process of the nation. The fight against terrorism also figured high on the meeting agenda, with the president of Tanzania emphasizing that a collective effort is needed to confront terror and extremist gangs, in which a comprehensive strategy needs to be adopted to stand against all forms of violence and extremism.
Intellectuals From Gedo Region Brush Aside Jubbaland Draft Constitution
15 June- Source:Wacaal Media – 171 Words
A section of intellectuals from Gedo region have distanced themselves from the draft constitution of Jubbaland after a team from the constitutional commission visited the region. Speaking to the local media to raise their voice against the draft constitution, the intellectuals said they have taken issue with several clauses in the draft constitution and as result declined to give their input. The constitutional team visited Doolow and Luuq in Gedo region where they engaged the public in a debate to seek their opinion. The move by the intellectuals threw into disarray plans by the commission to cover as many areas in the region. However, the commission will now seek to hold one –on – one discussion with the aggrieved intellectuals to ensure no one was left out of the process. The intellectuals claim to have been presented with an already prepared constitution rather than the commission compiling the public’s input before coming up with the draft. Other areas covered by the commission so far include Afmadoow, Dhoobley, Doolow, Luuq and Kismayu.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kenya Security Forces On High Alert For Al-Shabaab Militants
16 June – Source: SpyGhana/Xinhua – 328 Words
Kenya’s police chief has revealed that the country’s security forces are on high alert following a firefight with Al-Shabaab militants outside military camp on Sunday and intelligence about attempted attacks in the country’s coastal and northeastern regions. Inspector General of Police, Joseph Boinett, said terrorists might be targeting learning institutions and government buildings mainly in Nairobi, Mombasa and northern Kenya, but assured that “police will foil any such attempts.” “Consequently, security agencies have in response, enhance alertness across the country and carrying out security operations to ensure evil plans by these desperate criminals do not succeed,” Boinett said in a statement on Monday.
The militants plan to increase attacks during the holy month of Ramadan, he said, but assured that Muslims will get adequate security. “I want to assure all Muslim brothers and sisters they will be able to observe their religious obligations unhindered,” said Obonyo, adding that the public should report any suspicious activities. On Sunday, Al-Shabaab fighters raided a military camp in Buare, Lamu County, with 11 militants and two soldiers killed in the fighting, said Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) spokesman, David Obonyo. Another four suspected Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in operations after the attack, the spokesman later announced. The raid took place as residents prepared to mark the first anniversary of the Mpeketoni attack that claimed over 60 lives in Lamu last June. Police said that close to 200 insurgents had plotted to carry out an attack in Mpeketoni, Witu and Hindi this week during the commemoration of the massacre.
‘Don’t Cry For Me, I’ll Be In Paradise’: Body Of Briton Who Died Fighting For Al-Shabaab Islamists Will Stay In Kenya
16 June – Source: Daily Mail – 1, 130 Words
The mother of a British Muslim who died in Kenya fighting for terror group Al Shabaab has said his body will not be repatriated because he ‘never wanted to come back’. Thomas Evans, 25, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, is believed to be one of 11 militants who died after attacking a military base in northern Kenya over the weekend. Now his mother, Sally Evans, has revealed that when she last spoke to him in December 2014 he told her not to mourn his death as he would be ‘in paradise’. Kenyan military officials said Evans is believed to be among suspected extremists killed in an attack on an army camp in Lamu County. Evans told his mother: ‘If I don’t come back, please don’t cry for me. I’ll be doing what I want to do. I’ll be happy. I’ll be in paradise.’
Mrs Evans, 57, said she went ‘numb’ when she saw a picture of his body on Twitter after his brother found it online. She told The Times: ‘Tom never wanted to come back to the UK again. So do I fulfil his wishes? ‘As his mother, I guess that’s the last thing I can do for him, because he didn’t want to come back. I’d be bringing him back for my selfish purposes. ‘I’m relieved that he is no longer in a position where he can hurt people. I thank God he wasn’t a suicide bomber, he didn’t take a lots of other people with him. I am thankful for that.’ Evans first attempted to move to Kenya at the age of 21 but was turned back at the airport by police. However, he later went on to travel to Egypt before making the journey to Somalia. Al Shabaab, which is banned in the UK, is a Somalia-based group with links to al Qaeda which has waged a violent campaign against the Somali transitional federal government for several years. A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: ‘We are aware of reports of the death of a British national in Kenya. We are not able to confirm them at this time.’ Up to 50 Britons are thought to have joined the organisation. Mrs Evans added that her ‘whole world has fallen apart’ since hearing the news. She previously said she would rather see her son jailed in the UK than die on a foreign battlefield after he fled his home to join the Islamist group in Somalia 2011.
Speaking to the BBC yesterday, Mrs Evans said her son had met ‘some people with some very twisted, warped ideas of Islam’ in the local area initially, and was later influenced by material he read online. She added: ‘I’m very angry that they were prepared to put my son on the line but they are still here. They are not brave enough to go out there themselves.’ Al-Shabaab confirmed the latest attack in Lamu County and said ‘many Kenyan soldiers were killed’ but did not mention the deaths of any of its own insurgents. A spokesman for Kenya’s Defence Forces confirmed one of the dead militants could be Evans, who converted to Islam in 2010 aged 19, because all the information and previous images ‘point at him’. Evans’ younger brother Michael told BBC News: ‘The first thing I did, I looked on Twitter, and the first thing I found was a picture of his body. There was no doubt it was him from that picture.’ Sally Evans also repeated her claim that the British authorities had not done enough to stop her son from travelling to Egypt. She said: ‘I don’t understand why they didn’t stop him. And if they had suspicions, why didn’t they involve me? We could have worked together to save him and I wouldn’t be in this situation now.’
Faces Of The Somali Remittance Crisis
15 June – Source: The Stranger – 1, 065 Words
It’s been three months since the start of the Somali remittance crisis, when Merchants Bank of California—the financial institution that facilitated 60 to 80 percent of remittance transfers from the United States to Somalia—closed all accounts with Somali money transfer operations [MTOs] and effectively crippled the wiring of an annual $200 million from US-based Somalis to their relatives and loved ones in the Horn of Africa, many of whom rely on those funds for basic living needs. So far, little has changed.
Local politicians have thrown in their two cents. The city council passed a resolution expressing support for the local Somali community on this issue, and Mayor Ed Murray met with Secretary of State John Kerry when he was in town to discuss the crisis. Governor Jay Inslee sent a letter to Kerry as well. Meanwhile, some members of the Seattle Somali community say small amounts of money can still be transferred through other banks, though only to urban centers like Mogadishu, leaving rural areas isolated. In addition, Eid al-Fitr festivities following the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan will start toward the end of July. It’s a time during which many Muslim Somalis living overseas traditionally send money to family back home—a tradition that will be severely hampered without remittances.
But Merchants Bank of California has thus far shown no indications of willingness to continue facilitating Somali remittances. The move stems from the bank’s alleged concern that it could violate federal anti terrorism finance regulations intended to prevent the wiring of funds to extremist militant groups like Al-Shabab. (Somali MTOs are also viewed as “high risk” by banks due to money-laundering concerns.) Critics of the bank’s crackdown argue that cutting off funds to impoverished Somalis will only drive people towards militant groups out of desperation. Oxfam International estimates that over 40 percent of Somalis rely on overseas remittances for survival. King County is home to the third largest Somali population in the country, and thousands here and overseas are affected by the crisis. We checked in with several members of the local Somali community to see how the ongoing crisis is affecting them.
Somaliland Surprise Stars Of African Nations Cup UK
15 June – Source: WSC.com – 587 Words
Perched on a grassy verge overlooking Pitch 6 at the Memorial Grounds in East London, a Somaliland TV employee hunched over a laptop, desperately trying to get the live feed to restart. A cameraman and TV reporter trained their eyes on a touchline hugged (and routinely crossed) by 200 raucous fans. A group of women chanted and danced, their hijabs draped over by national flags. Just under 4,000 miles away in Hargeisa, capital of the self-declared independent state of Somaliland, a huge audience awaited updates from their country’s first foray into the African Nations Cup UK, a diaspora community tournament that became an unexpected outlet this summer for a country in search of recognition.
Twenty-four years since breaking away from the failed state of Somalia to its south, Somalilanders embrace their identity wherever they can – including on scruffy park pitches. “People back home have loved it,” said Abdi Adan. “To see Somaliland playing against other nations is a huge thing. It means equal status.” When 19-year-old Abdi Samed turned neatly in the box to give Somaliland the lead over Senegal in the quarter-final on June 6, it looked like their remarkable debut run, which included a win over Nigeria in the group phase, was about to continue.
A young team made up of college-age students picked from the across the UK had somehow managed, with the help of their band of supporters, to compete against representative sides of vastly greater experience. Senegal, whose side included Seydou Ba, formerly of Union Sportive Ouakam in Dakar, eventually overwhelmed the young Somalilanders, turning the game round to win 2-1. It was not without controversy. Their winner flew through a hole in the corner of net, leading to vociferous protests and a pitch invasion ended by two bemused police officers.
Hedge Fund Managers Pitch In to Give Young Somalis An Education
15 June – Source: Institutional Investor – 1, 279 Words
In January 2008, as the worst global financial crisis in almost 80 years took hold, investors pulled $18.7 billion from emerging-markets equities. Nearly all of the countries represented in the MSCI Emerging Markets index were down. But for one U.S.-based financier, the crash spelled an opportunity for a new kind of investment in the developing world. In late 2008 Jonathan Starr set out to found the Abaarso School. Based in the autonomous state of Somaliland, in northwestern Somalia, this coed boarding school now enrolls some of the country’s brightest and most motivated students. Its goal: to create ethical, effective leaders who will build a progressive society in a chronically war-torn state.
Before venturing 7,000 miles from home, Starr had served as portfolio manager at Cambridge, Massachusetts–based Flagg Street Capital. This deep-value hedge fund firm, which he founded in 2004, peaked at $170 million in assets. “[In 2008] we had bets against mortgage paper that made tremendous returns, but we also had equity ownership in what we thought were the best mortgage issuers,” Starr recalls. The businesses behind those equity positions got wiped out along with all the other companies in the industry and took Flagg Street’s short-side gains with them, he adds. A major redemption later in the year prompted Starr to put the whole fund into an orderly wind-down. “I am an obsessive person, and I had long thought I should take some time to obsess about something else,” he says.
Abaarso School became that new passion. Starr was inspired by his mother, Susan, a lifelong educator, and his uncle, who took him to the latter’s native Somaliland in 2007. “I wanted to have a positive impact and do something really amazing,” he says. “This seemed possible to pull off.” The Abaarso School, named for the village where it’s located, has piqued the interest of several major financial players, but securing funding was a struggle at first. As the crisis rocked Wall Street, few investors were willing to bet on an educational venture founded by someone with no background in the field, in a place they believed to be swarming with profiteers and terrorists. Starr used $500,000 of his own savings to launch the small school. It wasn’t until classes began in 2009 and he started seeing results that investors trickled in.
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“Inflation is one of economic problems with which Somalis are grappling. In the first quarter of 2015 inflation in Puntland reached “an average of 112.52%”. In the north, Somaliland administration intervened to address the depreciation of Somaliland Shilling against the dollar, and instructed companies with electronic money transfer services such as eDahab to add “Somaliland Shilling to its mobile wallet features.”
Should Somali Government Print Money ?
14 June – Source: RBC Radio – 419 Words
Five years ago when the former Transitional Federal Government signed an agreement with Sudanese government to print Somali shilling in Khartoum, the Governor of the Somali Central Bank, Bashir Isse described the policy as an ill-advised “move [ that ] will increase the inflation rate to incredible figures. The country will be another Zimbabwe. On one hand, the leaders cannot claim they are protecting people, and become part of a plot to kill them.” This week Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud commented on the economic situation in the country and described electronic money transfer services using US Dollars as being one of the causes of the economic problem. “ The Somali Shilling will be reintroduced soon ” President Hassan said History of money printing after state collapse in Somalia shows it prolonged anarchy in Southern Somalia and pushed Puntland to the brink of collapse in 2008. Even if printing of Somali Shilling is the appropriate monetary policy at this time, how the Federal Government manages the future money supply will determine the outcome of the policy President Hassan is advocating.
TOP TWEETS
@HarunMaruf #Somalia: Despite objections from private edu, 1st centralised high school exams in 24 yrs begun 4 over 5,000 students
@Aynte Abdi Aynte retweeted Harun Maruf Kudos to my colleague Khadra Bashiir the Education Minister for this huge step. #hope #Somalia
@UNSomalia Today is #AfricanChildDay. Fed govt #Somaliahas ratified Convention on the Rights of the Child for a brighter future
@UNSomalia #AfricanChildDay. Every child’s future starts with a dream. We’re glad to be contributing to the future of #Somalia
@UNDP #ThrowbackTuesday: 2yrs after this video, the people of #Somalia continue to build peace for a new #Somalia:http://ow.ly/Ofp2d
@HodanTV Somalis Representing! Great historical pic- 1st Somali City Councillor in USA @AbdiYWarsame w/@BarackObama #Somalia
@IOM_news Wardo & her daughters fled #Yemen back to#Somalia, escaping one conflict zone for another http://ow.ly/OjPe2
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Today we celebrate the African child; the future of Africa, the reason Africa will continue to rise. Happy International Day of the African Child!