September 8, 2015 | Morning Headlines
Somali Government Offers Amnesty To Al-Shabaab Spokesman
07 September – Source: Goobjoog News – 240 Words
Federal Government of Somalia has said it is ready to welcome Al-Shabaab fighters who defect and renounce violence as military operations alone cannot bring peace and stability. Minister for Information Mohamed Abdi Hayir Mareye reiterated government’s amnesty plan for those willing to surrender to the government. Speaking at ceremony held for Somali culture and tradition campaign in Mogadishu he said “If Al-Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali surrenders to the Somali Federal Government, provided that he renounces violence, commits to participation in the peace process and the reconstruction of the country, we are going to accord him amnesty.” Mareye added that the Somali National Army supported by African Union peacekeeping troops are making significant gains in the frontline against armed group Al-Shabaab and congratulated SNA and AMISOM for success in many parts of the country.
“The recent offensive against the terrorist group, Al-Shabaab, aims to retake all remaining areas under their control so that the people in these areas will be able to enjoy peace and stability.” He also called upon Somali people to support the government saying “let Somalis support one another and let’s try to counsel those young men, I urge you to side with the Government and work hand in hand with the soldiers.” Some months back Somalia’s government placed a bounty on the heads of top 11 leaders of the militant Islamist Al-Shabaab group. In list is the group’s Spokesman Ali Mohamed Raage with $ 100,000 offered for any information leading to his capture.
Key Headlines
- Somali Government Offers Amnesty To Al-Shabaab Spokesman (Goobjoog News)
- Puntland Accuses Somalia Government Of Blocking Transfer Of Pirates ‘Convicted In Iran’(Garowe Online)
- Residents In Mogadishu Stage Demonstration Against Al-Shabaab Attacks (Radio Dalsan)
- Somalia President Offers Condolence For Loss of 45 UAE Troops (Garowe Online)
- How South Africans Are Learning From Somali Businesses (News United/Ground Up)
- Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary Of Defence Launches Trial Training For The Triangular Partnership Project(UNSOM)
- From Dadaab Refugee Camp To Washington University (Somali Current)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Puntland Accuses Somalia Government Of Blocking Transfer Of Pirates ‘Convicted In Iran’
07 September – Source: Garowe Online – 152 Words
Puntland Counter-Piracy Director Abdirizak Mohamed Dirir (Du’aysane) has accused Somalia’s Federal Government of blocking piracy-transfer efforts, Garowe Online reports. In an interview with Puntland-based independent station, Radio Garowe, Dirir said Mogadishu-based Federal Government prevented the transfer of additional 32 inmates convicted of high seas crimes in Iran. He said, he has long worked on a plan that would have seen Somali pirates transferred over to Danish-funded prison facility in the state capital of Garowe. Somali authorities have not responded to a plea by Iran which seeks that the pirates be extradited to complete their prison sentences in Somalia. Puntland previously received close to a hundred convicted pirates from the African Island, Seychelles. The piracy transfer plan is said to be waiting for parliamentary approval. The northeastern state which was once a hotbed is boasting that it will be capable of securing key maritime routes if NATO counter-piracy operations off Somalia coast end.
Residents In Mogadishu Stage Demonstration Against Al-Shabaab Attacks
07 September – Source: Radio Dalsan – 84 Words
The residents of some of the districts in Banadir region have on Sunday staged a demonstration against Al-Shabaab’s attack on AU base at Janale location in Lower Shabelle region. The demonstrators had banners written with writings against Al-Shabaab, and passed through several districts in Mogadishu while footing and chanting words against Al-Shabaab, and eventually concluded. The demonstration was organized by CCD which is an organization which mainly deals with Community Dialogues issues.
Somalia President Offers Condolence For Loss of 45 UAE Troops
07 September – Source: Garowe Online – 174 Words
Federal Government of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has offered Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of UAE armed forces Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan his condolences for the death of 45 Emirati soldiers in Yemen, Garowe Online reports. “We belong to Allah and to him we shall return, May Allah have a mercy on the souls of slain and brave soldiers. They lost their lives while defending an issue built upon truth and justice, and their death will not put Arab League’s support for Yemen stabilization in jeopardy,” said Mohamud.
The president also wished comfort and patience to the bereaved families of Emirati servicemen reportedly killed in an explosion at arms depot in lawless Yemen. United Arab Emirates is part of Saudi-led Arab coalition pounding Houthi rebels in Yemen. The tiny, but the wealthy Gulf State played a central role in a series of gains made by Hadi loyalists by putting boots on the ground. The UAE announced three days of national mourning for the 45 soldiers martyred in Yemen.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
How South Africans Are Learning From Somali Businesses
07 September – Source: News United/Ground Up – 1,025 Words
A 2014 report from the Migrating for Work Research Consortium (MiWORC), an organisation that examines migration and its impact on the South African labour market found “People born outside the country were far less likely than those born in South Africa to be employees, and far more likely to be own account workers (self-employed without employers) or employers.”
This is apparent in Johannesburg’s “Little Mogadishu” where the city’s Somali entrepreneurs thrive in streets full of busy shops selling everything from underwear to internet services at very low prices. Furaa has teamed with other Somali businesspeople in South Africa to start programs that pass on entrepreneurial skills to unemployed South African youth, especially in the informal sector.
“My plan has always been to get successful entrepreneurs, starting within the Somali community, to mentor and train local youth. I hope this will contribute towards creating sustained employment and entrepreneurial spin-offs. It also promotes integration between our community and our host society,” Furaa said. Furaa is particularly interested in the informal sector because this is where most of the country’s Somali business owners got their start.
The first trickle of Somalis came to South Africa as refugees in the mid-nineties. Most made their start by hawking clothing, shoes and non-perishable groceries until the early 2000s when they formed business networks to share the cost of establishing “cash-and-carries”, wholesale warehouses selling a variety of products at lower mark-ups with profit coming from the fast turnover of stock. This is the key to what sets Somali businesses apart from local competitors.
Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary Of Defence Launches Trial Training For The Triangular Partnership Project
07 September – Source: UNSOM – 533 Words
7th September 2015, Nairobi: A six week trial training for the Triangular Partnership Project commenced in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on Monday, under the tutelage of the United Nations Department of Field Support (UN-DFS) and the Japanese government. The Triangular Partnership Project is expected to build the engineering capacity of African Troop Contributing Countries through training, mentoring and provision of operational equipment, prior to their deployment to peacekeeping missions. A total of 10 trainees from Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania, are being trained on how to operate and maintain heavy engineering equipment and broaden their engineering skills.
“When a peacekeeping mission starts up, one of the greatest needs is horizontal engineering to set up the mission. So while peacekeeping fundamentally remains a political endeavour to support peaceful settlements, not very much can be achieved without the peacekeeping missions actually being present. And that means you need secure livable camps, you need passable roads, you need functional airstrips and helipads. In United Nations Peacekeeping, such major horizontal construction tasks are carried out by the military engineering unit that the TCCs provide,” explained Harinder ‘Harry’ Sood, the Project Manager of the Triangular Partnership Project at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
After the trial training, long-term training will start in a static training facility in one of the East African countries. Consultations on the location of the facility are still ongoing. Sood emphasized the significance of the project in supporting peacekeeping missions. He said, “United Nations Peacekeeping today operates in a context vastly different from when it was first conceived. Today, we have missions that operate in almost non-permissive environments; missions, which are in remote areas, in some of the poorest parts of the world in conflict prone areas; in areas where there is little peace to keep; and in places where the threats are often transnational.
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“After completing my coursework, he continued, I see myself playing a leadership role in strengthening the fragile health care system in Somalia. I may also work with refugee and immigrant populations in Seattle (United States) to improve their health outcomes and bridge gaps that may exist between the community and service providers.”
From Dadaab Refugee Camp To Washington University
07 September – Source: Somali Current – 377 Words
His story is among the rarest that usually come from that part of the world. In Dadaab, just like any other refugee centre in the world, is not awash with stories of success; it’s mostly defined by narratives of despair and the struggle to make it in life. But one man from Dadaab, the world biggest refugee camp in the world, is changing all that after he was admitted to the prestigious Washington University in the United States. Farah Mohamed is pursuing health related courses at the university. He said he spent his early life as a refugee in the squalid settlements of Dadaab. “I finished secondary school in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. I then worked with World Vision International and implemented various programs in the Middle Jubba Region of Somalia,” he said.
While volunteering to work with hundreds of the humanitarian orgernisations that operate in the camps, Farah said he came face to face with the hard reality people on the ground are faced with, particularly in the health sector. “In the years I worked with World Vision, I encountered women and children affected by poor health, malnutrition, birth complications and other preventable diseases.”
“I am not a doctor, but I have experienced global health challenges firsthand in my work and in my life,” he noted. Dadaab is located in the northern part of Kenya, and is home to over half-a-million mostly Somalis and other handful Southern Sudanese, Ethiopians and Eritreans. Farah, in his application letter to the University and published on the college website, noted that he would use the knowledge and the skills acquired at the university to change the lives of the Somalis back home. “This program has enhanced my passion for doing global health work and has provided me with key leadership skills so I can further develop as a global citizen able to look at issues in a systematic way through a social justice lens, “he said.
After completing my coursework, he continued, I see myself playing a leadership role in strengthening the fragile health care system in Somalia. “I may also work with refugee and immigrant populations in Seattle (United States) to improve their health outcomes and bridge gaps that may exist between the community and service providers.”