January 24, 2017 | Daily Monitoring Report
Joint House Seating To Select Presidential Election Committee Today
24 December – Source : Goobjoog News – 359 Words
A joint session of the Federal Parliament will today elect a presidential election committee as the country closes in on electing a new president about five months after the incumbent Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s term lapsed. The Lower House which currently has 273 members out of 275 is allocated ten seats to the committee while the Senate which is one member short of the constitutionally mandated 54 will send five members to the committee according to a memo released last week by Parliament. Somaliland is yet to elect two members for the Lower House and one for the Senate.
Senate Speaker Abdi Hashi Abdullahi has told Goobjoog News both houses will meet today in Mogadishu to elect the committee which will be responsible for organizing and coordinating the presidential election process whose date is yet to be announced. “I can confirm to you the Lower and Upper House members will meet today to choose the presidential election committee. We met yesterday (Monday) with our Lower House counterparts to plan for today’s meeting,” said Abdullahi.
The Speaker did not however comment on whether they agreed to any amends regarding the committee numbers but noted, ‘you’ll know today.” The committee will be composed of two divisions; one in charge of logistics and finances while the other will deal with the registration of candidates. Each presidential candidate will be required to deposit $30,000 fee to be enrolled for the race. About 20 candidates will be contesting for the presidency.
The International Community urged Parliament Sunday to expedite the process of electing a new president noting the country was facing numerous challenges which called for national attention. “International partners call for the swift formation of the Joint Ad Hoc Committee on the election of the Federal President to facilitate the holding of a presidential vote by both houses of parliament as soon as possible,” the IC said in a joint statement.
Key Headlines
- Joint House Seating To Select Presidential Election Committee Today (Goobjoog News)
- Somaliland Is An Integral Part Of Somalia Ex Puntland President Says (Hiiraan Online)
- Maritime Security Conference Opens In Hargeisa (The National-Somaliland)
- Roadside Bomb Kills At Least Four Soldiers In Somalia Town: Officials (Reuters)
- Mind-Body Wellness Program Helps Trauma Survivors In Somalia (VOA)
- Somali Bandy Team Take The Ice At The Bandy World Championship (Hiiraan Online)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somaliland Is An Integral Part Of Somalia, Former Puntland President Says
24 January – Source: Hiiraan Online – 212 Words
Former Puntland President Abdurahman Sheikh Mohamed Farole who is running for Somalia’s presidency has said that Somaliland administration would be potentially regarded as regional Somali state, discarding state’s buoyancy for an international recognition. The Somali senator has said that Upper House’s leadership election in Mogadishu signals an immense political progress which he said that Somalia could be united again following a two decade old conflicts that had devastated the horn of Africa country. “Discarding the short sighted political views surrounding on the election, the house’s main priority would be synchronizing the people of Somalia and removing country’s political nostalgia” Farole has told reporters in Mogadishu.
Somaliland is viewed by the international community as a territory within Somalia a nation that is struggling to emerge from civil war and now trying to uphold its recognition quest. “The first MP who was elected to head the Upper House hails from Somaliland and it’s an explicit how their quest is not attainable” he said. His pessimism over Somaliland’s pursuit into independence has sparked an outrage in social media, with many shared their sentiments online. The former British protectorate has been battling for an international recognition since it seceded from the rest of Somalia in 1991; however no country has so far recognized it as an independent state.
Maritime Security Conference Opens In Hargeisa
24 January – Source: The National-Somaliland – 267 Words
An important conference discussing maritime security and counter piracy strategy is being held in Hargeisa. The three day conference is bringing together several government officials and representatives from the international community to discuss the importance of maritime security in the Horn of Africa and ways to further strengthen Somaliland’s counter piracy strategy.
Mahboub Maalim, IGAD executive secretary, spoke briefly to reporters stationed at the conference, stating that maritime security is important for the region as a whole. Somaliland’s CPC Executive Director, Mohamed Osman Ahmed, who will be leading the coordination meeting, also spoke to the press, briefly outlining the agenda of the conference.“We will be sitting here for the next three days, and we will be discussing pressing maritime issues and ways to strengthen our national counter piracy strategy” said Ahmed.
Ahmed has done a commendable job leading anti piracy efforts in Somaliland since taking office as the inaugural holder in 2012.Ahmed has coordinated diverse counter piracy activities since 2012 and has represented Somaliland at several international counter piracy summits. Somaliland’s Attorney General, Hassan Ahmed Hassan, also spoke to reporters, briefly stating that “they will also be discussing the activities of the Somaliland Coast Guard and strategies to prevent maritime crime”.
Somaliland has gone virtually untouched by piracy over the years, but the threat of piracy still lingers in neighbouring Somalia. Despite a sharp decrease in piracy attacks, Somalia’s government has publicly warn that ‘piracy is still at threat of revival’ in late 2015. And as recent as three months ago, antipiracy experts have warned that ‘there is still a potential threat that piracy could come back’
INTERNATIONAL
Roadside Bomb Kills At Least Four Soldiers In Somalia Town: Officials
24 January – Source: Reuters – 142 Words
At least four soldiers were killed and five wounded on Tuesday when a roadside bomb Al-Shabaab said they planted exploded outside a military camp in a town near Mogadishu, officials said. The blast in Afgoye, about 30 km (18 miles) southwest of the capital, took place a day after the Al-Shabaab group carried out an attack in the same town that was repulsed by government troops, Major Osman Abdulle, a police officer, told Reuters. “Last night, we repulsed the militants who attacked us. They must have planted the bomb,” he said.
Al Shabaab, which has been waging an insurgency across Somalia, claimed responsibility for the bombing. The group is fighting to topple the Western-backed government in Mogadishu. “We planted the bomb last night. At least seven soldiers died,” Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, the group’s military operations spokesman, told Reuters.
Mind-body Wellness Helps Trauma Survivors In Somalia
24 January – Source: VOA – 571 Words
In Somalia, an exercise program for survivors of sexual violence is helping participants overcome trauma. It’s a trendy program in an unlikely place. In classes across the Somali capital of Mogadishu, youths practice breathing, meditation and stretching. Dressed in matching blue track suits, the color of the Somali flag, they hold difficult poses. Breaking into sweat, they reach to the ceiling, stretch their arms to their toes, and balance carefully on one foot, as an instructor calls out directions. But it’s not just for fun. This mind-body wellness program, as it’s called here, is for survivors of sexual violence and other trauma to help them in their counseling.
Organizers asked VOA not to reveal names of participants or instructors for security reasons. One participant, who survived sexual assault, says the physical activity and mental concentration has helped her regain a sense of normalcy. Initially, she had anxiety, she says, but is better now. And at one point, she says, she couldn’t eat, but can do so now. She says the program has helped her cope, and when a memory of what happened to her returns, she does the exercises to help her forget. Somalia has seen decades of war and lawlessness, so besides survivors of sexual violence, there are former child soldiers and other youths suffering from trauma or at risk of recruitment into armed groups. For survivors of physical attacks, the mind-body wellness complements traditional counseling techniques which usually only focus on psychology.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“The coaches believe that the Somali national team skill level is on par with the best 14-year-old clubs in Sweden, despite the fact that they picked up a stick and skates less than four years ago.”
Somali Bandy Team Take The Ice At The Bandy World Championship
24 January – Source: Hiiraan Online – 380 Words
What began as an integration experiment four years ago in a small Swedish town 200km north of Stockholm has grown into what many in Sweden are calling a refugee success story on ice and Borlänge’s answer to Cool Runnings. The Somali National Bandy team will participate in the World Championship in Sweden, it’s their second time at the tournament. Three years ago, when the team played in its inaugural tournament in Russia they won the hearts of Swede’s nationwide despite not winning a single game.
Reporters, filmmakers and musicians gushed about the young Somali teenagers – most of them in their 20’s – who had never been on ice yet managed to learn to skate and represent not only their country but their host country as well. Bandy is a sport that can be best described as a less violent version of ice hockey and played with a ball instead of a puck. The sport is relatively unknown internationally but in the Nordic countries and Russia it is popular and enjoys strong viewership.
The players have been training relentlessly for the past year in preparation for the tournament and have made immense improvements in their skating, passing, strength training and strategy of the game. They’re coached by Per Fosshaug, a Swedish legend in Bandy and Alexander Tarasenko. The coaches believe that the Somali national team skill level is on par with the best 14-year-old clubs in Sweden, despite the fact that they picked up a stick and skates less than four years ago.
Most the young men on the roster say that the game has helped them understand Swedish culture better and has given them more confidence. An issue that refugee’s struggle with when migrating to a new and often strange country. This comes at a tumultuous time in national politics. Sweden, once hailed as a humanitarian superpower has struggled to grapple with the influx of refugees and asylum seekers in recent years and has seen a rise of far-right neo-Nazi politics such as the Nordic Resistance Movement which has strong roots in Borlange.
TOP TWEETS
@Daudoo: BREAKING: Massive explosion rocks #Afgoye town at least 5 government soldier killed – Witnesses #Somalia
@mwdualeh: @RefugeesChief The prevailing drought in Somalia may create IDP camps. We can prevent that collectively. Redoubling UNHCR role is essential.
@engyarisow: 3 people died and 4 injured following an explosion in Afgoye District, Lower Shabelle region of #Somalia. SONNA
@HassanIstiila: #BREAKING #SNA & @amisomsomalia backed by #American troops captured Badhadhe district in Lower juba region from #Alshabaab, officials says.
@mbashiir16: #BREAKING: Fierce fighting between #Somaliagovt forces & #AlShabaab fighting ongoing around Xudur district#Bakool region-Witness
@ferigom69 : Maritime security conference opens in Hargeisa – The National | @scoopit http://sco.lt/8HFz29 #Somaliland#Somalia #marsec #piracy
@justusronaldBO : #Somalia #Security: Police deployed to beef up security on hotels targeted by terrorists in #Mogadishu:http://ln.is/
Follow the conversation →
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Somali Minister for Livestock Saciid Xuseen Ciid participate in a meeting organized by IGAD in Addis Ababa to counter the worsening drought situation in IGAD Member States
Photo: Radio Muqdisho