18 January 2017 – Daily Monitoring Report
Somalia To Wrap Up Lower House Elections In The Capital
18 January – Source: Garowe Online – 193 Words
The final ballots to elect the remaining MPs from Somaliland community in the country’s Lower House chamber is taking place in Mogadishu on Wednesday. According to the electoral commission, three seats will be voted today in Mogadishu, to complete the 46 seats in the Lower House chamber allocated for the clans in northern Somalia. Wednesday’selection of the last three seats for Somaliland community will mark the end of the voting process for the Lower House polls Somalia’s regional clans.
On Tuesday, the remaining two MPs for Banadiri clans were elected in Mogadishu, completing the seven Lower House seats allocated for the Banadiri community. The MPs of both houses in the new Federal Parliament are set to elect a president in a secret ballot that will be in late January or early February as officials estimate.
The presidential election has been delayed several times amid low progress of the parliamentary voting which was overshadowed by allegations of fraud and intimidation. The international community have expressed concern over the repeated presidential election delays, and called on Somali leaders to ensure transparency and credibility of the electoral process.
Key Headlines
- Somalia To Wrap Up Lower House Elections In The Capital (Garowe Online)
- US Extends Temporary Protected Status For Somalis (Hiiraan Online)
- MPs Allegedly Preparing Motion Against Southwest President Sharif Hassan (Jowhar.com)
- Elder Warns Of Conflict Escalation In Galmudug (Shabelle News)
- Finland Continues Current Policy For Asylum Seekers (Xinhua)
- Somalia: New Report Details Troubling Violations Against Children (Reliefweb)
- As Elections Approach In Somalia Bishop Sees Signs Of Hope (Catholic News Service)
NATIONAL MEDIA
US Extends Temporary Protected Status For Somalis
18 January – Source: Hiiraan Online – 229 Words
With just five days remaining in their mandate, The Department of Homeland Security has extended the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali immigrants living in the United States for an additional 18 months, according to a statement released yesterday. The current status was set to expire on March 17. Under the extension, Somali nationals, and “eligible individuals without nationality who last habitually resided in Somalia,” are eligible to re-register and maintain their status through September 17, 2018.
TPS is granted to residents or citizens of a country that one cannot return safely due to conditions. Currently, 13 nations are eligible for TPS and they are, El Salvador, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar welcomed the decision by DHS to extend protection status to Somalis.
“Minnesota is home to the largest population of Somali immigrants in the United States – they are our friends, our co-workers, and our neighbors,” Klobuchar said. “Returning to Somalia at this time could put many Somalis and their families in grave danger. This extension of Temporary Protected Status will help ensure that they can stay safe and out of harm’s way.” Somalia was first designated for TPS in 2001 by George W. Bush as a result of armed conflict within the country and was extended by President Obama in 2012.
MPs Allegedly Preparing Motion Against Southwest President Sharif Hassan
18 January – Source: Jowhar.com – 117 Words
MPs from South West State are allegedly in the process of preparing a motion against the regional leader Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden. More than 80 MPs are said to be involved in the plan to file a motion of no confidence against Sharif Hassan, whom they accused of poor leadership. MP Osman Mohamed Atto accused the president of doing little for the people of South West who are facing difficult times of drought and conflict, during the past two years he has been in office. The disgruntled MPs want the president to step aside. Their move comes just days after members of Galmudug regional assembly passed a vote of no confidence against Galmudug President Abdikarim Hussein Guled.
Elder Warns Of Conflict Escalation In Galmudug
18 January – Source: Shabelle News – 118 Words
Mohamed Hassan Haad, an elder in Somalia has warned about the continuation of the political deadlock in Galmudug as thousands of people are at risk of biting droughts in the region. The elder has described the recent motion against president Guled as “unfortunate” and called for an end to the current standoff between the president and regional MPs.
Elder Mohamed Hassan Haad who gave an interview to Radio Shabelle has urged Galmudug leaders to resolve their differences through negotiations instead of using firearms. “I warn against the continuation of the political crises in Galmudug which could plunge the region into a bloody conflict. The leaders should refrain from using violence to settle political differences,” he added. The conflict in Galmudug comes as Somalia is currently facing a humanitarian crisis coupled with a political transition period.
INTERNATIONAL
Finland Continues Current Policy For Asylum Seekers
18 January – Source: Xinhua – 206 Words
Finland on Tuesday published a new review of security situation in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia, and said it would not change the current policy of processing asylum applications. According to the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri), the biggest change occurs in the Iraqi city of Mosul, where the Iraqi army and its allies have launched a joint offensive to recapture the city from the Islamic State since autumn 2016. Migri said no negative decisions were made and no asylum seekers were returned to Mosul.
There has not been any significant changes in the overall situation in Afghanistan and Somalia since spring 2016, said Migri. Migri said the Administrative Court of Helsinki ruled that asylum seekers could not be returned to some provinces of Afghanistan, and it asked the court to reassess the cases. Concerning southern and central areas of Somalia, the court asked Migri to closely monitor the situation and review possibility for asylum seekers to return.
Somalia: New Report Details Troubling Violations Against Children
18 January – Source: Reliefweb – 718 Words
In a new report on the impact of armed conflict on children in Somalia, the UN Secretary-General describes how grave violations against boys and girls were committed with impunity over the course of several years. This was due in part to the breakdown in law and order and the absence of state authority in large parts of the country.
“The volatile security situation continues to present considerable challenges, and I am deeply troubled by the scale and nature of the violations endured by the Somali children. Despite this difficult context, there have been significant political developments in Somalia in the past few years and positive measures taken by the Federal Government for the protection of boys and girls.” declared Leila Zerrougui, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.
The report, covering the period from April 2010 to July 2016, is the fourth by the Secretary General on children and armed conflict in Somalia. The majority of violations presented in the report took place in 2012, when the Somali National Army (SNA) and AMISOM conducted major joint operations against Al-Shabaab. As the military campaign against Al-Shabaab intensified again in 2015, the number of violations also increased, spiking during the first six months of 2016.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“I say we need to bring about the rebirth of state institutions. This must be our main work as the international community because the state was destroyed and, clearly without a state, there will always be a need for the military and for emergency response.”
As Elections Approach In Somalia, Bishop Sees Signs Of Hope
18 January – Source: Catholic News Service – 899 Words
As presidential elections approach in Somalia, the bishop who serves as apostolic administrator sees signs of hope, but he says changes are needed. Since 1991, the presence of the Catholic Church in Somalia, already small, has largely disappeared across the country as parts of Somalia came under the control of a more fundamentalist Islamic authority while other large sections of the country were taken over by Al-Shabaab, an Islamist militant group.
Bishop Giorgio Bertin, the apostolic administrator of Mogadishu and president of Caritas Somalia, has worked largely below the radar from outside of the country, first in Nairobi and later from Djibouti, where the diocesan offices were eventually relocated. Despite the years of turmoil and upheaval, he has always remained hopeful. He said one symbol of that hope is the recent rebuilding and re-consecration of the parish church in Hargeisa, Somalia’s second-largest city. The project was supported by the U.S. bishops’ Catholic Relief Services.
What is and is not surprising, depending on how one looks at it, is that the church serves between 10-15 faithful. “There might be one or two more,” Bertin said, “but they might be afraid to come to the church.” “The threat of Islamic extremism is of course always there, but the situation is now relatively safe,” he said in early January. Bertin said the 10-15 people who form the small church community are foreigners, working regularly in the semi-autonomous region of Somaliland for the United Nations or other development and humanitarian agencies that have offices in Hargeisa.
“Why have a church for just 15 people?” Bertin asked. “First, the priest is there for those people. But second, and more importantly, he serves the others too. And for those people, they see and experience the church in its essence: in its presence and in its service, including through the work of its Caritas organizations.”
Through this presence, including through Caritas, Bertin said the aim is to re-awaken those values that are God-given and that all humanity has, irrespective of faith: the value of work, respect toward people of different faiths, and unconditional love toward others and the poorest of the poor. “We can bring food, we can bring medicine, we can bring blankets – these are basic necessities and of course, because people might need them,” Bertin said. “But we also have to bring those values that one day will mean it’s no longer necessary to bring food aid or medicine, because people will have learned how to live, share and work together.”
TOP TWEETS
@ACAPSproject : #Somalia Tensions in #Galmudug after attempted impeachment of state president 2 killed & media coverage restricted http://bit.ly/1T8Lgdk
@amisomsomalia : #AMISOM Police has rolled out a campaign to increase awareness on Sexual and Gender Based Violence in#Somalia’s regional states.
@AfricaUpClose : The ongoing political transition in #Somaliacreates vulnerability, but also opportunity
@lasoco : Bishop in Somalia sees signs of hope as presidential election approaches – The Catholic Register http://j.mp/2izX92Q #Somalia
@imanmali : The only way we can truly fight clan ideology is if we teach the public the negative side effects. #Somalia#endclanpolitics
@Vatescorp : #Somalia: SNA, AMISOM forces drive#alShabaab out of Barire district
IMAGE OF THE DAY
AMISOM Police has rolled out a campaign to increase awareness on Sexual and Gender Based Violence in Somalia’s regional states.
Photo: AMISOM