August 23, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
Somaliland Cracks Down On Illegal Tree Cutting As Charcoal Traders Say They Have No Alternative Work
23 August – Source: Radio Ergo – 450 Words
Sixteen people found making charcoal to sell have been charged with illegally cutting trees, as the Somaliland authorities step up a campaign to protect the environment by stopping deforestation. The chief of police in Saraar region, Hussein Abdi Ateye, said the men were arrested on 11 August whilst preparing charcoal. They were brought before Ainabo court. He said that prior notice had been issued that charcoal making was now illegal and must stop. The coordinator of Somaliland’s environment ministry, Farhan Saleyman Gaas, said officials were targeting areas with high intensity of tree cutting and charcoal production. The ministry is working closely with the police.
Already 42 charcoal burning sites in Sanaag and Togdheer have been closed down. The ministry is raising awareness in streets and in schools about the risks of deforestation and the harm done by rampant charcoal burning. The ministry coordinator told Radio Ergo that the crackdown has been stepped up since the end of the drought. The campaign, which originally began in January 2016, was suspended when the ministry found out that so many pastoralists were relying on charcoal to survive after the long drought destroyed their livestock. Farhan Saleyman Gaas noted that the government had not introduced any alternative income generating opportunities to replace charcoal trading.
Guled Abdilahi Osman, 24, has been trading in charcoal in Sanaag for just over a year. His stocks of charcoal were among those destroyed this month. He told Radio Ergo he is now unemployed and has no other means of income, as his family lost all their camels in the drought. Guled managed to escape arrest when he saw the police vehicles approaching his business site. He had been supporting his five siblings and parents from the sale of charcoal, selling one sack for $3 (30,000 Somaliland shilling). Most buyers were in Puntland. Guled said he knew the sale of charcoal was illegal but he needed to support his family, who lost their livelihood and often go for days without food. According to Guled, he owes $190 to the people who supplied him with the wood. He said he will be ready to stop burning charcoal if he can get another source of income, but otherwise he will carry on selling it.
Somaliland MPs have passed a law to protect the wildlife, forests and grazing lands, which makes cutting down trees a criminal offence subject to a fine of $300 and three months in jail. The bill was approved in May 2017 by the former president of Somaliland Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo. Since then, 25 people have been charged under the new law. The last three were charged at Marodi-Jeh court in Hargeisa on 14 August, according to ministry officials.
Key Headlines
- Somaliland Cracks Down On Illegal Tree Cutting As Charcoal Traders Say They Have No Alternative Work (Radio Ergo)
- Somali President Attends Tearful Burial In Mogadishu (Caasimada Online)
- Two Former Ministers Of Ethio-Somali Region Detained In Somaliland (Halbeeg News)
- Haki Africa Calls For Speedy Completion Of Border Wall To Tame Terrorism (The Star)
- Mothers Suffer As Hospitals In Boni Closed After Shabaab Attacks (Daily Nations)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali President Attends Tearful Burial In Mogadishu
23 August – Source: Caasimada Online – 152 Words
Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, attended a funeral of a soldier, who died in military operation against Al-Shabaab. President Mohamed, for the first time in 2 years, joined the burial of a soldier, who was identified as Abdullahi Mohamed Ibrahim from Mogadishu city.
Mr. Ibrahim and other soldiers reportedly lost their lives in Al-Shabaab military operation in which the Somali National Army (SNA) forces recaptured Marka town, some 91 kilometers southwest of Mogadishu. President Mohamed offered his condolence to the family of the victims and wished him to rest in peace. “Mr. Ibrahim and his friends were killed, while defending their people and Somalia from the enemy”, President Mohamed said.
President Mohamed expressed his solidarity with the the family and the country’s army forces. AU forces and government troops drove Al-Shabaab militants out of the coastal town of Marka earlier this week, but militants have kept up terrorist attacks from rural bases.
Two Former Ministers Of Ethio-Somali Region Detained In Somaliland
23 August – Source: Halbeeg News – 296 Words
The Immigration authorities of the breakaway Somaliland have arrested two former ministers of Ethiopia’s regional state, in Hargeisa. Two who were identified as the Minister for Education and Justice, Mr. Ibrahim Adam Mahad and Mr. Abdimajid Ahmed Jama respectively, fled from Jigjiga town after the region’s former leader Abdi Mohamud, was forced to resign following Ethiopian federal military intervention.
The ministers were said to have sneaked into Hargeisa city, the capital of Somaliland where they have been staying for the last few weeks. The head of Somaliland Immigration Department, Tayyip Osman told Halbeeg News, that the two were detained at Egal Airport for staying in Somaliland illegally. Mr. Osman said that the two had no valid travel documents during their stay in Somaliland state.
According to local media in the region, the ministers were planning to travel to the Somali capital, Mogadishu. “Immigration police at Egal Airport nabbed the two former ministers, while boarding a plane to Mogadishu.” Somaliland Standard, the local media stated that “Police have questioned the reasons for travelling to Mogadishu and have stated that they were going to Mogadishu for trade purposes.”
The move comes barely hours after Ethiopian-Somali People’s Democratic Party (ESPDP)’s executive committee elected Mustafa Muhumed Omer to be the acting president. Mr. Omer, 45 will lead the Somali region until the next party congress elections in 2020. He had served as a Humanitarian Liaison Officer for the United Nations in Mogadishu, Zimbabwe, the United Arab Emirates and Kenya. Prior to that, he held different positions in the Ethio-Somali region until he was forced to flee by the ousted leader.
Mr. Omer will be replacing Mr. Ahmed Abdi Mohamed “Ilkacase” who has been leading the region for the past two weeks. Ilkacase had replaced the once-powerful president Abdi Mohamoud Omar who was forced to step down after the intervention of the federal army.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Haki Africa Calls For Speedy Completion Of Border Wall To Tame Terrorism
23 August – Source: The Star – 230 Words
Rights agency Haki Africa wants the national government to speed up completion of the Lamu-Somalia border wall. It said this will reduce incidences of terrorists entering Lamu,Garissa and Tana River counties. The national government announced plans to put up the 700-km wall in earl 2015. There has been an increase in the number of illegal immigrants crossing over from Somalia and entering Kenya through Kiunga, Ras Kamboni and Ishakani in Lamu East. Speaking in Lamu yesterday,Haki Africa executive director Hussein Khalid accused the government of laxity in completion of the wall.
He said the wall will reduce radicalisation. “When that wall is done, there will be no way someone will cross in or out without being seen by security. These attacks being witnessed in Lamu,Tana River and Garissa will be a thing of the past,” Kahlid said.
“We shall also have dealt with radicalisation since the terrorists will have no way of coming in to recruit. They will also not be able to cross back to Somalia with the recruits.” Khalid said the wall could become a failed project. He said the fact terror attacks are still happening is enough proof there is still a problem at the border points. “If people are still dying inside Kenya at the hands of al Shabaab, that tells a lot on whether or not we are doing enough,” he said.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“In August 2015, a group of over 100 suspected Al-Shabaab militants invaded the Mangai Dispensary and took drugs, torched and vandalised it completely. But locals say the existing insecurity situation has led to marginalisation of the region in terms of crucial amenities especially healthcare.”
Mothers Suffer As Hospitals In Boni Closed After Shabaab Attacks
22 August – Source: Daily Nation – 794 Words
The closure of most dispensaries and health centres in areas earmarked for the ongoing multi-agency security Operation Linda Boni has subjected expectant mothers and children to immense suffering. The operation, whose objective is to flush out Al-Shabaab militants believed to be hiding inside the expansive Boni Forest, was launched by the national government in 2015. It covers three counties of Lamu, Tana River and Garissa.
A survey by the Nation this week established that expectant women and children, especially those living in villages close to the Somalia border, cannot access the much needed medical services. Those interviewed in Kiunga, Ishakani, Mkokoni, Madina and Basuba in Lamu East as well as Kotile at the border of Garissa and Tana River counties, complained about the poor state of dispensaries in their areas, most of which have remained closed for the past four years due to insecurity caused by Al-Shabaab.
Locals say that the few dispensaries which are open in the region have no drugs and that the infrastructure is also poor and cannot adequately cater for their health needs. Reports indicate that a number of pregnant women have died after failing to get medical care in the border villages.
Mrs Ferdaus Sharif, a social worker in the region, says the number of pregnant women dying due to avoidable complications is alarming and that something needs to be done before the trend turns into a real disaster. Mrs Sharif says the few dispensaries which are serving the locals are located many kilometres away and that the pregnant women have to trek for hours to access medical care.
“I am from Kiunga Village. It is unfortunate that a whole division has only one dispensary which is also poorly equipped. You can imagine the immense population coming from all over to seek medical care. The workers are also few. “Most of the time you visit the dispensary you end up being referred to either Faza or Lamu Town which is hundreds of kilometres away. Transport is a problem since you have to hire a boat which is very expensive. “We are now concerned about the number of pregnant women dying even before reaching hospital. The situation is not good,” said Mrs Sharif.
There have been appeals to the county government to set up a sub-county hospital in the region so as to reduce the stress locals go through to get medical care. Mrs Hawa Shebwana, a mother and resident of the border village of Ishakani, said many mothers are forced to risk carrying their pregnancies to term without attending a single ante-natal clinic since the facilities are located far away and cannot be reached by many who are unable to cover the long distances.
TOP TWEETS
@GEEL_Somali: Climate-smart solutions like greenhouses & drip-irrigation provide controlled environments where crops can thrive year-round, even in dry areas. This means that farmers can choose the type of crops to grow & improve the quality and quantity of production #SomaliMade
@i_dossier: Al-Shabab displays fighters during Tuesday’s Eid celebrations in central and southern regions. The uniform wore by some of them, including Waali of Jubba regions Abu Abdalla, is strikingly identical to the newest uniform used by the 14th Oct battalion of Govt forces. Coincidence?
@Eye_on_Somalia: President Farmaajo calls on SNA to intensify the fight against Al-Shabaab http://dlvr.it/QgpmdM
@Mogadishu_News: Somalia is to launch urgent action as#AlShabaab fighters wearing country’s military uniforms. Who is giving the uniforms to the group?
@UNSomalia: Empowering #SomaliYouth is key to helping ensure #Somalia’s reconstruction
and stability. Through local ventures, like Ahmed Abukar’s soap-making initiative, young entrepreneurs can reap economic benefits and help their country.
@Showqi2013: @Somaliland detained 2 Ministers of famer Ethio-Somali Regional State admin, the two are Ibrahim Adam Mahad Education M. & Jama Abdi of Justice M. claimed they are Livestock Traders but arrested as they Traveling from Egal Airport 2Abroad.
@addisstandard @HarunMaruf @musebiihi .
@DalsanFM: BREAKING: 2 brothers identified as Hussein Farah & Saney Farah shot dead by unknown gunmen near Ex Control area Dharkenley district. One of the slain brothers is an SNA soldier. They had been out for Eid celebrations at the time of their killings.
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Finance Minister Dr. Abdirahman Duale Beileh met with officials from international community to discuss on processes & policies for making Mogadishu Port more efficient & effective.
Photo: @DrBeileh