January 26, 2017 | Daily Monitoring Report
Presidential Candidates’ Registration Kicks Off In Mogadishu Today
26 January – Source: Jowhar.com – 126 Words
Registration of Somalia’s presidential aspirants has begun in Mogadishu on Thursday. The presidential election committee announced the exercise will continue until 29 January at Villa Hargeisa. Somalia’s former president Sheikh Sharif Ahmed became the first presidential candidate to register. He later visited the site of yesterday’s deadly terrorist attack and Medina Hospital where most of injured people are being treated.
Abdirahman Duale Beyle, the chairperson of the electoral committee assured Somalis that the elections will take place on the slated date of February 8 and there will not be any further adjournments. Only presidential candidates who pass the registration process will contest for the country’s top seat. Meanwhile, all candidates are expected to take part in a planned presidential debate recently passed by the parliament.
Key Headlines
- Presidential Candidates’ Registration Kicks Off In Mogadishu Today (jowhar.com)
- Seven Somali Journalists Wounded in Mogadishu Suicide Attack (dhacdo.com)
- Prominent Somali Elder Injured In Bosaso Attack (Shabelle News)
- Somaliland Sets A New Date For Its Presidential Elections (VOA Somali)
- How Trump’s Immigration Plans Could Affect Somali-Americans (MPR)
- Somali Rape Law Gets First Test (VOA)
- 1000 Somali Shillings: How Mosques Hold Somalia Together (The Seattle Globalist)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Seven Somali Journalists Wounded In Mogadishu Suicide Attack
26 January – Source: Dhacdo.com – 143 Words
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) is dismayed by the suicide attack that targeted Dayah Hotel in Mogadishu which caused the death and injuries of many innocent people. Seven journalists were among the people injured in the attack which NUSOJ condemns. Many journalists rushed to the scene to cover the incident, unfortunately they were caught in the midst of the second blast that went off.
Members from NUSOJ executive committee visited some of the wounded journalists admitted to a nearby hospital.The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) condemned the attack in the strongest terms possible and called the attack barbaric. “We condemn the attack, which wounded our colleagues in the line of duty, in the strongest terms possible. The union sends its sympathies to all who suffered losses during the attack,” Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimuu, NUSOJ Secretary General said.
Prominent Somali Elder Injured In Bosaso Attack
26 January – Source: Shabelle News – 129 Words
Unidentified gunmen suspected to be Al-Shabaab assassins have shot and wounded a prominent elder in the northeastern port city of Bosaso on Wednesday night. A witness said two pistol-wielding men have attacked the elder who was identified as Muse Hajji Farah outside a mosque in the seaside city and shot him wounded.
According to the witness who spoke on condition of anonymity, the killers fled from the scene shortly before Puntland security forces arrived. Several people were detained in connection with the elder’s attack and taken to custody. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, but police said they believed Al-Shabaab was responsible for the attempted murder against the traditional elder.
Somaliland Sets A New Date For Its Presidential Elections
25 January – Source: VOA Somali – 73 Words
The Somaliland presidential elections will take place in October 2017. Speaking jointly to the media, Somaliland president including political parties leaders and the national electoral commission also agreed that the parliamentary and municipal elections are to be held simultaneously in October 2018. The announcement followed a long disputed talks between the concerned parties. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi Irro, the Chairman of Waddani, an opposition political party welcomed the decision, saying it would please the people Somaliland.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
How Trump’s Immigration Plans Could Affect Somali-Americans
26 January – Source: MPR – Audio: 18:22 Minutes
Jane Graupman, executive director of the International Institute of Minnesota, discussed what this would mean for Minnesota’s Somali community. She was joined by Star Tribune blogger Jamal Abdulahi who has written extensively about Minnesota’s Somali community.
Somali Rape Law Gets First Test
25 January – Source : VOA – 622 Words
A gang rape video recorded in central Somalia could serve as a powerful test case for Puntland state’s new sexual violence statute, and potentially for the rule of law in general in Somalia. A group of men arrested and accused of gang raping and stabbing a pair of young girls in Somalia’s Puntland state in December could face the death penalty or life imprisonment if they are found guilty. That is, if the state takes the case. “This case is the first case that calls for enforcement of the Sexual Offense Act,” said lawyer Salim Said. “This is a test for Puntland government’s accountability in front of international law, in front of national laws, and also in front of their people.”
A first for Somalia: Said drafted the new law, which Puntland enacted in December. It is the first law in all of Somalia to criminalize sexual assault. The new act draws on modern Western jurisprudence and is compliant with Islamic Sharia law. In Puntland, the alleged perpetrators recorded the assault of one of the girls and posted it online, sparking national and international outrage. Somalia’s Minister of Gender Sahra Samantar: “Impunity is one of our biggest issues in Somalia,” said Somalia’s Minister of Gender Sahra Samantar. “A lot of similar rape happens in Somalia … but it’s not publicly spoken. The fact that they now post it on social media, that gives at least the whole world to see indeed what happens in Somalia.”
Change is the goal: Most rapes go unreported and unpunished in Somalia, but there is hope this case will usher in change. According to Said, the new law in Puntland allows prosecutors to bring multiple charges against the suspects for gang rape, gang rape of an underage girl, and for posting a video of the assault online. The charges could lead to up to 30 years in prison. But since the suspects allegedly used a weapon during the assault, the case could fall under a section of Sharia law known as hirabah, with even harsher consequences.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“Somalis are world renowned for their generosity and the pious in Somalia are often the most generous; even if they have only one package of dates to their name, they’ll offer half of it to you without hesitation. Those that consistently worship at the mosque are known to be the most pious and well respected in the community. ”
1,000 Somali Shillings: How Mosques Hold Somalia Together
25 January – Source : The Seattle Globalist – 2222 Words
Back when I lived in Seattle, I really only had a working understanding of what it meant to be Muslim. I’ve prayed in Seattle mosques before usually Masjid Al-Noor in White Center or Masjid Abu Bakr in Tukwila but like many young Somali Americans, I was just going through the motions rather than actively strengthening my faith. As I grew further away from my childhood upbringing in Somalia and assimilated to the West, I also lost hold of my visceral, spiritual connection to Islam. I was in awe of the older Somali folks in my life and their unbreakable sense of spirituality, their endless patience, resolve and determination. They seemed to draw an intangible strength from their faith in God that they used to overcome any obstacles that presented themselves along their path. It was a strength that I was unable to imitate.
When I decided to move back to Somalia a few years ago, I was worried that my lack of a spiritual connection would make me an outsider in my own country of birth. The sanctuary of the mosque in the West An integral part of this deep reservoir of faith that Somalis in the diaspora regularly call upon can be found in the neighborhood mosque. Mosques are a gathering place for Muslims to come and worship side by side up to five times a day, regardless of race or socioeconomic status. As soon as you leave the sanctuary of the mosque, you’re thrown back out into the brutal divisions enforced upon us by Western capitalistic society at large.
But while you’re inside of the mosque, you’re brought down to the same level of humbleness and piety as your fellow worshiper in Islam. You stand shoulder to shoulder with a common goal in mind: to get closer to God through the power of communal meditation. All your worldly troubles and woes fall to the wayside as you slip into a deep trance, as you seek balance within yourself and focus on the surreal tranquility that can only be found in a house of worship. Although the mosque can be filled to capacity during prayer, it’s often quiet enough to hear a pin drop. In non-Muslim countries, mosques play an especially pivotal role in creating a safe space for people of color who live in communities that are often hostile towards anyone with too dark of a skin tone or unfamiliar religious beliefs. Within the walls of the mosque, they are free from the stinging lashes of both prejudice and persecution for who they are and how they choose to live.
TOP TWEETS
@AhmadAlhaadi: Former President of Somalia Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed becomes first candidate to register himself.#Somalia
@AbdihakimAinte: Repairing & reconstruction is already underway after today’s devastating terror attack. Spirit alive. Hope alive. Deviance alive. #Somalia https://pbs.
@Daudoo: #AlShabaab court in Yaq-Barawe village in#Somalia‘s Bay region publicly executes 3 men for being “spies” for #US & #Somalia Govt – Witness.
@HarunMaruf: #Somalia will try again to (s)elect a president on Wednesday, February 8. The two Houses of Parliament will choose from up to 20 candidates.
@Cantoobo: Female MPs now make up 24 per cent of Somali Parliament with 67 seats, an increase of 47% since 2012.#Doorashada2016 by @wakiilorg
@mpfsomalia : .@WorldBank is encouraged by @JubalandState’s revenue performance. This will enable increased services to people!
@milligazeteEN : Turkey strongly condemns deadly terror attack in Somalia http://en.milligazete.
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IMAGE OF THE DAY
Somalia National Army Officers successfully completed training provided to the force.
Photo: @SalahOsman0