December 7, 2012 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Somali cabinet meets in Mogadishu
07 Dec – Source: Radio Mustaqbal/Jowhar Online/Bar-kulan – 127 words
Somali cabinet held their normal meeting in Mogadishu and discussed several current issues. Thursday’s meeting which was chaired by the Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdoon ‘ Saaid’ discussed about the export of livestock from the Mogadishu Seaport.
Minister of Natural Resources Abdirizak Mohamed Omar who addressed the media after the meeting said that the cabinet agreed to re-start the exportation of the livestock in the Mogadishu’s sea-port.
The minister also said that the cabinet formed a technical committee of five ministers and businessmen that will oversee the process and its stages. The cabinet also warned the Somali businessmen which imports the military facilities and equipment.
Key Headlines
- Somali cabinet meets in Mogadishu (Radio Mustaqbal/Jowhar Online/Bar-kulan)
- Illegal weapons banned in Dhusamareb (Bar-kulan)
- AMISOM denies report of Somali women poisoned in Halane (Radio Dalsan)
- Co-Operative Bank Eyes Somalia Market (Star)
- Millions of Charcoal Sacks Clutter Somali Town (VOA News)
- Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of sponsoring Somalia’s al Shabaab fighters (Radio Risaala)
- Somalia and Turkey sign defence agreement (Africa Review)
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali cabinet meets in Mogadishu
07 Dec- Source: Radio Mustaqbal/Jowhar Online/Bar-kulan – 127 words
Somali cabinet held their normal meeting in Mogadishu and discussed several current issues. Thursday’s meeting which was chaired by the Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdoon ‘ Saaid’ discussed about the export of livestock from the Mogadishu Seaport.
Minister of Natural Resources Abdirizak Mohamed Omar who addressed the media after the meeting said that the cabinet agreed to re-start the exportation of the livestock in the Mogadishu’s sea-port.
The minister also said that the cabinet formed a technical committee of five ministers and businessmen that will oversee the process and its stages. The cabinet also warned the Somali businessmen which imports the military facilities and equipment.
Illegal weapons banned in Dhusamareb
07 Dec – Source: Bar-kulan – 121 words
Ahlu Sunna administration in central Somalia has banned illegal firearms in central Somali town of Dhusamareb, Galgadud region. In an exclusive interview with Bar-kulan, area security boss Farham Moalim Ali said they will not allow “the sound of illegal gunfire” in the town and threatened to take decisive measures against people found breaching the order.
He also said soldiers and individuals found carrying unauthorized firearms will be dealt with and have their guns confiscated forever. Ali added that they will register all weapons in the hands of private guards including those of aid agencies operating in the region. He said such a move is aimed at strengthening security in the area and promised to materialize the ban as soon as possible.
Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of sponsoring Somalia’s al Shabaab fighters
06 Dec – Source: Radio Risaala – 103 words
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Haile Mariam Deseglen has reiterated that Eritrea is sponsoring militant groups to destabilize the Horn of Africa. While addressing the press in Addis Ababa, the Premier claimed that Eritrea continues to support Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked group al Shabaab, resulting to the continuation of war in the region.
PM Desalegne blamed much of Somalia’s instability on its arch-rival Eritrea for what he termed as blind support for militancy in the region. Asmara has being accused of financing and arming al Shabaab by various countries and international organizations before and it’s yet to be seen how the international community responds to these latest allegations.
AMISOM denies report of Somali Women poisoned in Halane
06 Dec – Source: Radio Dalsan – 136 words
The Spokesman of AMISOM forces has strongly rejected report saying troops had poisoned Somali women who were trading inside the AMISOM’s Base of Halane and indicated that the women were suffering from mental related problems.
Col.Ali Aden Humud, the spokesman of AMISOM forces said that the women were trading in AMISOM’s Base of Halane peacefully and were never troubled by anybody, adding that media reports were false.
“The women were suffering due to mental related problems and we have nothing to do with what was broadcasted and we are not here to trouble Somalis but to help them” said Colonel Humud.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Co-Operative Bank Eyes Somalia Market
07 Dec – Source: Star – 168 words
Co-operative Bank is set to open its first branch in South Sudan by February and is further looking at the possibility of investing in Somalia, managing director Gideon Muriuki said yesterday. Muriuki said they had finalised on the joint venture agreement with the Government of South Sudan which will hold 49 per cent shareholding of the subsidiary.
“The Co-operative Bank of South Sudan is now a reality. We expect to open the first branch early next year,” Muriuki said. The government will later sell the stake to Co-operatives societies in South Sudan, once they are established.
Kenya Commercial Bank and Equity Bank are already the South Sudan. Co-operative bank yesterday signed a $60 million loan (Sh 5.1 billion) loan agreement with International Finance Corporation. The money will be used for lending to Small and Medium Enterprises in agribusiness and import/export trade sectors. “This will be targeting borrowers whose income is in dollars. It will thus be offering a hedge against foreign currency fluctuation losses,” Muriuki added.
Feature: Stabilising Somalia: new chapter begins
06 Dec – Source: the Observer – 1249 words
A ‘make – or – break ’ point for the country’s new leaders When a Turkish Airlines flight touched down at Aden Adde International airport near the Somali capital of Mogadishu on March 16, it seemed like a sign of good things to come. It was the first time in more than 20 years that a passenger plane from Europe had flown into the volatile city.
Once labelled “the most dangerous city in the world,” Mogadishu is now bustling with activity. Augustine Mahiga, the UN special representative to Somalia, recalls his first visit in 2010. The city was a ghost town, he told reporters in Nairobi.
“There wasn’t a single building that didn’t have bullet holes, and most had been destroyed.” While he was meeting with a Somali leader, for two or three hours “it was just the sounds of guns, guns of different calibres, small guns, big guns and big booms.…”
Mogadishu has been free from the iron grip of the al Shabaab rebel group since August 2011, when it was flushed out by forces of the Somali Transitional Federal Government with the help of troops from the 9,000-strong African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
Somalia and Turkey sign defence agreement
06 Dec – Source: Africa Review – 170 words
Turkey has pledged to train and offer logistical support to Somalia’s armed forces, officials said. The pledge followed the signing of an agreement between the two states’ defence forces in Ankara, Turkey.
The deal, signed by the Defence ministers, followed a meeting between Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud and his Turkish counterpart Abdallah Gul.
Turkey also pledged to advocate the setting up of an international fund to be used to establish the security forces in Somalia. President Gul said: “Turkey wants to show the entire international community how to help another nation with humanitarian purposes and without any expectations. We are fulfilling this in the best way.”
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Millions of Charcoal Sacks Clutter Somali Town
07 Dec – Source: VOA News – 141 words
In the Somali port of Kismayo, local residents and business community leaders are calling on the United Nations Security Council to lift a ban on charcoal export so they can clear out several million sacks lying on the road between the new Kismayo International airport and the city center.
The U.N. monitoring group on Somalia and Eritrea said the al Qaeda linked group al Shabaab earned up to $25 million from the charcoal trade last year when they controlled Kismayo.
According to the investigators, the militant group levied taxes at every stage of the charcoal from production to export. Due to that, in February this year the U.N. enacted the ban in a bid to weaken al-Shabab financially. Hassan Awlibah, the Chairman of Kismayo’s Business Community, said Somalis have been working in the charcoal trade even before al Shabaab came to power.
Somali Pirate Attacks Plummet in 2012
06 Dec – Source: VOA News – 110 words
Attacks by Somali pirates have fallen dramatically in 2012, a development chalked up to multi-national naval efforts, increased security measures by ships, and developments on land in Somalia.
In the Regional Marine Rescue Coordination Centre, overlooking the port in Mombasa, Kenya, officers watch monitors displaying the location of all the ships along the Horn of Africa. Vessels continuously broadcast signals to the center, but if hijacked by pirates, the signal is cut and they disappear from the screen.
These days, fewer and fewer ships are disappearing. Last year, the European Union Naval Force Somalia, or EU NAVFOR, recorded 176 pirate attacks. In 2012, this number fell to 34 attempted hijackings.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“It has businessmen investing and will continue to do so if Somaliland continues on this road to success it is currently moving on. No doubt Somaliland is the shining star in East Africa at the moment, but once they gain recognition from the rest of the world, it will be the shining star of Africa.”
Somaliland and its strides to progress and a better future
06 Dec – Source: SomalilandPress – 600 Words
It’s merely remembered but Somaliland, as what was once known as just a region, went through massacre, unbearable pain and undocumented genocide. Siad Barre and his forces oppressed and assaulted the people of Somaliland (then known as Northern Somalia) and there was nothing they could do about this because they were just people in a region of a country that he ruled. He refused basic human rights to the people of Northern Somalia and began to run violent attacks on them once they had something wrong to say about his regime, the typical act of a Dictator.
The people of Northern Somalia (Somaliland) had enough of (the regime of) Siad Barre, so they powered the rebel group, Somali National Movement, which was originally formed by Ahmed Mohamed Gulaid and led by Abdirahman Ali Tuur, both Somalilanders. Abdirahman Ali Tuur led Somaliland to the freedom and independence they now have, but very few can recognise and identify this man if you ask them. Instead people believe it was Ibrahim Egal who actually led Somaliland to freedom, but they know very little.
The people of Somaliland are indebted and appreciative to the men who led their country to freedom and the success it currently endures. If you go to the capital, Hargeisa, you would see pictures of the past leaders, Abdirahman Ali Tuur & Ibrahim Egal all around the city; this is the compassion and loves the fellow Somalilanders have for their freedom fighters. Without the positive attitude and fiery mind-set of the Somalilanders, the country wouldn’t be where it is today.
“From Somalis to Congolese to West African gangs in South London, it is clear that we have issues in the diaspora with a minority of our young men finding themselves absorbed in to gang life. If we are to avoid murders like that of my childhood friend Smiley, then we must find ways to help these young men deal with their traumas and find alternate routes through education and employment.”
How childhood trauma of Somali refugees has shaped gang culture on Britain’s streets
05 Dec – Source: African Arguments – 1042 Words
I recently gave a talk for Radio 4’s Four Thought series, exploring the links between childhood war trauma suffered by young Somali men and the way some are drawn to violent gang culture. Like other young Somali men I arrived in Britain in the 1990s as a child refugee fresh from the anarchy and mayhem of civil war in Somalia. Prior to settling in Britain many of us endured profound traumatic events.
Once in Britain, we were thrown into existing zones of poverty in the inner cities, confused, alienated and unable to make sense of our new homes. We had little in the way of education, and were plunged into unfamiliar British life without a map.
With little to no support, boys who arrived here aged 10, 12, and 14, found themselves as young men struggling to fit in to the fabric of mainstream British life. Because of the conflict many of us had never known stability.
Somali families found themselves cut off in a socially and culturally invisible community moving like soundless shadows on street corners. As children we not only ended up stuck in deprived areas, but we also ended up at some of Britain’s worst performing schools.
“I wanted to show my daughters that there is more to life than what they see around them. I wanted to share with them a part of me that was important when I was younger. I also missed playing so this was a chance to do it again…This project really benefited me and my family’s life,” she said. “The money received was sufficient for us at that time. At least I was able to pay to improve my business and provide for my family. Any support is always welcome.”
E-cash, basketball and dreams in Mogadishu
06 Dec – Source: Oxfam Blog – 761 Words
“I used to be the captain of the Somalia women’s national basketball team in 1991, just as the country was beginning to fall apart. While this was taking place, the team and I were in Ethiopia participating in the regional championships. We could not return so we were instead taken to Nairobi.”
These were the words of Mulki, a former national team player in Somalia. Since that time, life has never been easy, but she has always been able to provide for her family. Today the 42 year old is a mother of 10 and runs a small shop in Mogadishu, where she sells fruits, vegetables and other assorted items. Mulki is the sole provider for her family.
Mogadishu has been at the center of a 22-year-old war that has ravaged the country and left its people in a state of despair. However, this was not always the case. Somalia was once a prosperous country, the most developed in East Africa.
“I started playing basketball in 1982,” Mulki recalls. “I was inspired to play after watching other people play the sport and seeing how exciting it was. I am very tall so it was not a problem to pick up the game. I was an exceptional athlete, eventually rising up the ranks to the national team and becoming its captain. Things were different then. It was not a problem for women to play sports. In fact, we were encouraged to.”
Top tweets
@NidalAlameh @NRC_Norway three years commitment to assist #Somalia people meet their acute needs next yearhttp://bit.ly/Uij9qf @Refugees @NORCAPweb.
@Aynte Prof. Ahmed Samatar back to teaching after failed presidential bid in #Somalia http://dlvr.it/2bZrb8 (shouldn’t he lead change as an MP?)
@theHiveConflict @issat_dcaf ‘s video interview with former Minister of Defence, Hussein Arab Isse on SSR challenges in #Somalia http://cot.ag/TNiyhY.
@MahamudBille #Somali federal president trying the controls of aircraft in a simulator. Soon #Somalia will have its own airline. pic.twitter.com/uUJ8rmjx.
@Dahirkulane Strengthening Resilience in #Somalia:http://youtu.be/AnFAX52ZacY via @youtube.
Image of the day
Somali Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdoon (left) meets with AMISOM Force Commander, Lt. General Andrew Gutti meet at his office in Villa Somalia, on December 6, 2012. Photo: Somaliweyn.