February 13, 2014 | Daily Monitoring Report.

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Exclusive: U.N. monitors warn of ‘systematic’ Somali arms diversion

13 Feb – Source: Reuters – 871 words

A confidential U.N. monitors’ report warns of “systematic abuses” by Somalia’s government, which the monitors say has allowed the diversion of weapons Somali authorities purchased after the U.N. Security Council eased an arms embargo on Mogadishu last year.

Some of the arms believed to have been diverted in the conflict-torn Horn of Africa nation were earmarked for a leader of the al Qaeda-linked Islamist militant group al Shabaab, the monitors said in their report, which was obtained by Reuters.

In their 14-page report to the Security Council’s sanctions committee, the U.N. Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group recommends either restoring the full arms embargo or at least tightening notification and reporting requirements related to arms deliveries.

Key Headlines

Car explosion at the entrance of Mogadishu airport (Radio Kulmiye/Radio Risaala/Hiiraan Online/Reuters/AFP)
Former Somali PM other politicians support formation of three-region Southwestern state (Radio Shabelle/Horncable TV)
Somalia: Women Shouldn’t Live in Fear of Rape (Human Rights Watch)
Two radio directors arrested in Mogadishu (RBC/Radio Dalsan)
Mortar fire rains down on Mogadishu (CNN)
Al Shabaab militants ‘should be killed on sight’ (Africa Review)
Exclusive: U.N. monitors warn of ‘systematic’ Somali arms diversion (Reuters)
Dadaab repatriation exercise: More than 100000 Somalis have gone back to Somalia (NTV Kenya)

SOMALI MEDIA

Car explosion at the entrance of Mogadishu airport

13 Feb- Source: Radio Kulmiye/Radio Risaala/Hiiraan Online/Reuters/AFP – 75 words

A large car bomb exploded close to the gate of Mogadishu’s international airport on Thursday, causing casualties, a Somali police official told local media. Small tea shops outside the airport were on fire and the flesh of a corpse could be seen on the ground near the burning car. The gunshot fire followed the explosion. “A car was parked near the airport gate. It detonated. There are casualties,” said police official Mohammed Abdi Rahman. A convoy of cars seem to be the target of a car bomb attack at the entrance of Mogadishu airport.

Former Somali PM, other politicians support formation of three-region Southwestern state

13 Feb – Source: Radio Shabelle/Horncable TV – 234 words

A meeting in support of the creation of a new Southwestern State compromising of the Bay, Bakool and Lower Shabelle regions was held in Mogadishu. It involved lawmakers, politicians and other civil society groups. Former prime minister of the Transitional Government, Ali Mohamed Gedi , was one of the leaders who participated in the meeting. He supported the formation of the three-region state, saying that the government will make it easier for the state and will retain overall authority of the country.

MP Sheikh Aadan Madeer who was one of the lawmakers in attendance there, pointed out that the three regions of Bay, Bakool and Lower Shabelle, are “twins” and also communities from those areas are in support of formation of the new State. Politician Abdirahman Baadiyow who previously ran for Presidency of Somalia, stated he is in support to formulate an administration of the three regions, adding that he will present his candidacy for election of the President of South Western State.

Nevertheless, these past few days in Mogadishu and other cities from different regions are holding summits to demonstrate their support and approval for the formation of the new state consisting of Bay, Bakool & Lower Shabelle regions.

Two radio directors arrested in Mogadishu

13 Feb – Source: RBC/Radio Dalsan – 258 words

The National Union of Somali Journalists [NUSOJ] protests the arrest of two radio directors in the overnight of 11th February 2014 by the National Security Agency NSA, the latest in a string of cornice against the media in Somalia.

Members from the National Security Agency NSA detained Mohamed Barre Haji, the owner and the director of Danan Radio and Ibrahim Mohamed (Ibrahim Yare), the director of Haatuf Radio in Mogadishu on Tuesdaynight. Both radios are independent and privately owned based in Mogadishu. It is not yet clear the reason behind their arrest. Both journalists were kept in a SNA’s special detention in Mogadishu since Tuesdayevening.

Somali government and the officials of the NSA did not comment publicly on this arrest. “They were missing since last night. It came to our knowledge today and we do not know why they were arrested” Journalists from Danan Radio who spoke on condition of anonymity told NUSOJ.

National Union of Somali Journalists [NUSOJ] protests the arbitrary arrest against these radio directors and condemns all sorts of violations against the press, while it calls their unconditional release. “It is unfortunate to learn the arrest of our colleagues and call for their prompt release,” Mohamed Ibrahim NUSOJ Secretary General said, “It is unacceptable to detain the journalists illegally and without court orders”.

In a separate incident, NUSOJ recalls the Somaliland authorities the ban against Universal TV and allow this independent television to resume its operations in respect to the freedom of expression and media freedoms.

Somaliland: Hirsi lashes out at distractors, says allegations on fund is malicious

13 Feb – Source: Somaliland Informer – 199 words

Somaliland Minister of the Presidency Hon. Hirsi Ali Hassan has lashed out to the claims of rampant misappropriation of the public roads fund meant for the Erigavo one (or others) hence dismissed them as provocations of petty politicking being peddled by distractors with ill motives meant to plant seeds of discord.

The minister gave the sentiments at the roadside along the Hargeisa – Berbera highway during an inspection tour while accompanied by the UK-EU advisory consultant and top SRA and roads department officials.

Hon. Hirsi who was visibly contented yet slightly irked said that he was satisfied with the extent of works going on as regards the swiftness and technicality concerned, a fact that was positively echoed by the EU official.

He revealed that in a week’s time the committee charged with the Erigavo road task would avail details that will exonerate them from the malicious allegations. He at the same time announced that the roadworks would continually be extended to Sheikh, Burao and eventually up to Las Anod.

“So far what has been achieved is quite tremendous despite the same malicious claims hitherto held that we could not see the projects through”, fumed the minister at his distracters.

Doctors treat mental patients kept ‘chained to trees’ for years

12 Feb – Source: Radio Ergo – 240 words

Doctors from Somalia’s first mental health hospital visiting the central regions to offer treatment say the numbers of people suffering from mental health problems are overwhelming.

A doctor and two nurses from the hospital were in the central town of Adado in Galgadud region to provide free medical services to the patients of mental problems, but the numbers of patients who have shown up overwhelmed them because it was too high then their expectation.

“More than 20 patients have shown up in less than 24 hours after we announced the free medical services,” said the head of Habeb Public Mental Health Hospital In Mogadishu, Abdirahman Ali Awale. He told Radio Ergo’s local reporter that they have treated more than 70 people with mental health problems over three consecutive days in the town.

“The patients have travelled from across the region, but mostly came from Herale, Bahdo, Godinlabe, Bandiradley and within Adado,” he added. “Some of the patients have been kept chained to trees at their home for more than 23 years,” said the doctor. “Some have become disabled as a result of being chained,” he noted.

In one case, Awale said they were brought a whole family of five people – the parents and three children – who have mental health problems and had all been chained at their home for years. In another case, three sisters all suffering mental illness were brought to the doctors from Herale, about 80km of southwest of Adado.

Daallo Airline’s Jumbo Class Airplane makes maiden landing at Egal International Airport

12 Feb – Source: Somaliland Press/Horncable TV – 234 words

The first Jumbo class airplane operated by Daallo Airlines Airbus 321 carrying more than 250 passengers on board has for the first time ever made a maiden touchdown at the newly renovated runway at the Egal international airport carrying.

The pilot of the Airbus 321 and the flight engineer said, “Although this is our first time to land in Hargeisa we were astonished to see the new and modern runaway which is suitable for landing and also makes it easier and safer for planes in accordance with international standards set by ICAO.

The managing director of Daallo Airline Mr. Mohamed Sheik speaking to the media moments after the maiden landing of the Airbus 321 which is operated by Daallo Airlines is part of the company’s modernization and expansion scheme which includes the introduction of new routes such as direct flights to Paris and London which has been made possible by the acquisition of the new planes by the company.

Present at the time Somaliland Minister of Aviation and Air Transport Hon Mahmoud Hashi said we are gathered here today to witness the historic maiden flight by Airbus 321 JUMBO CLASS Airplane carrying more than 250passengers, he added that the newly renovated Egal International Airport has the capabilities to handle any type or class of Aircraft and that such flights have been made possible by the recent renovation done on the runway at the airport.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Al Shabaab militants ‘should be killed on sight’

13 Feb – Source: Africa Review – 287 Words

The Mayor of the war-ravaged Somalia capital Mogadishu on Tuesday just fell short of putting a price tag on the heads of al Shabaab militants. Mr Mohamud Ahmed Nur told a public gathering in the Howlwadag District suburb that the police and the general public should kill the radical Islamists on sight.

Reacting to a twin explosion that rocked the city leaving a government officer dead, the Mayor said: “I am surprised why Mogadishu is facing such great opposition to its stability and progress.” “Since these elements are determined to kill everyone at will, the security forces should eliminate them on spot and mobs should stone them to death,” he said.

The Mayor, who is known for his unusual outspokenness, rhetorically asked the crowd: “Can you tell me where seized al Shabaab terrorists are kept?,” adding that the security forces should kill all detained militants.

Dadaab repatriation exercise: More than 100,000 Somalis have gone back to Somalia

12 Feb – Source: NTV Kenya – 02:50mins

The Kenyan government is pushing for the repatriation of somali refugees with talks underway to effect the process. There are currently an estimated 350,000 refugees residing in Dadaab refugee camps. Their living conditions may be way below average but the refugees would rather stay in the camps than go back to their homes. Our reporter Namukabo Werungah finds out why.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Mortar fire rains down on Mogadishu

13 Feb – Source: CNN – 234 words

At least eight mortar rounds rained down on the Somali capital of Mogadishu late Wednesday, security officials and witnesses said. The mortar attacks, the second barrage to rattle the capital in the past week, were scattered across several parts of Mogadishu, including the presidential palace and the national theater, the officials and witnesses said.

Reports of casualties and damage were not immediately available, security officials said. Mohamud Sheikh, a witness near the national theater, said that at least one mortar landed near presidential palace. “It was really scary. It’s reminiscent of the 2010 chaos,” he said.

A barrage of mortar fire from Islamic extremists pummeled parts of the Somali capital for two nights last week, near the presidential palace and other government buildings. Some civilian homes were struck.

Somalia: Women Shouldn’t Live in Fear of Rape

13 Feb – Source: HRW – 1158 Words

Somalia’s new cabinet should urgently adopt meaningful reforms to confront rampant sexual violence, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Over the past year, women and girls endured high levels of rape and sexual abuse, including by government soldiers, in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.

“Many women and girls in Mogadishu live in constant fear of rape,” said Liesl Gerntholtz, women’s rights director at Human Rights Watch. “The Somali government’s public commitments have not materialized into better protection for women and support for victims.”

The 72-page report, “‘Here, Rape is Normal’: A Five-Point Plan to Curtail Sexual Violence in Somalia,” provides a roadmap for the government and its international donors to establish a comprehensive strategy to reduce rape, provide survivors with immediate and urgent assistance, and develop a long-term approach to end these abuses.

The report focuses on improving prevention, increasing access to emergency health services, ensuring justice, legal and policy reform, and promoting women’s equality.

Exclusive: U.N. monitors warn of ‘systematic’ Somali arms diversion

13 Feb – Source: Reuters – 871 words

Women and politics in Somaliland

12 Feb – Source: RFI – 04:55mins

In Somali “wadahadal” means “coming together to talk”. But women are often excluded from this important stage of the political process. In the self-proclaimed autonomous state of Somaliland women face few restrictions but politics is still out of reach, says Suad Abdi, country manager of the NGO Progressio.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“By having don’t ask, don’t tell policy; by providing nationwide insurance and rating program regardless of if this is provided by the government or private institutions; educating the youth, and providing comprehensive security—tribe would be left only to play its historical role: being just an ancestral linkage.”

Solving the Tribe Problem in Somalia

13 Feb – Source: Somali Current – 987 Words

Since the creation of Adam and Eve, humans have used their lineage (tribe) as form of a currency to get service and bargain with others. But in general, as the world’s interconnectedness, knowledge, wealth and creation of new nation-states spread, strong tribal affiliations which were used to show one’s worth in society, has largely lost its position in developed world. Unfortunately, it still exists in developing countries, particularly in Somalia.

Historically, tribe has provided largely to the pastoral communities a strong army to defend their herd; it provided agrarian communities a consortium to provide insurance and security, and it provided everyone else a reference name-tag that all could tap whenever there was a need of something.

Nevertheless, during Siad Barre’s government tribe was largely a taboo subject that even the government buried; however, when the opposition groups that destabilized Siad Barre’s government fragmented in 1992 along tribal lines, tribal association took its position in the mainstream society and lost its usage stigma. And it remains today to be one of the most daunting problems facing Somalia.

“The federal government has to recognise the existing problems with the constitution and take steps to fix them. Not doing so now will lead to continued problems with federal state creation, which may ultimately lead to a return of hostilities between rival states that have overlapping territories.”

On federalism and constitutionality in Somalia: difficulties of ‘post-transitional’ institution building remain

12 Feb – Source: African Arguments – 2153 Words

Somalia is at a turning point in its modern history, particularly in the capital and large swathes of the south. The period following the collapse of Mohamed Siad Barre’s regime in 1991 is often referred to as ‘two decades’ of anarchy, occasionally with the qualifier ‘especially in the south.’ It is perhaps more useful, however, to consider Somalia’s recent past in terms of three ‘decades’.

Rather than drawing a line at 1991, the first ‘decade’ to consider is a period of intense violence from the mid-1980s — as insurgent movements picked up intensity along with the government’s reprisals — to the mid-1990s, by when the explosion of clan-linked violence had dwindled considerably.

In the northwest and northeast, the mid-to-late 1990s marked a turning point, with political entities emerging — Somaliland and Puntland — that have continued since then to consolidate and deepen their political institutions. Even in southern and central Somalia, the period from the mid-1990s until about 2004/05 — our second ‘decade’ — saw fairly stable control established by various militia groups in different parts of the country. Not uncontested, not without violence, but certainly of a lower order than the violent convulsions of the preceding decade.

“The Muslim leaders will strive to honour their obligation. Our youth should exercise patience. The Government must do its bit. These youth are our own, part of our national fabric as Kenyans. As a nation, we all have an obligation to engage them and help them realise their ambitions as lawful citizens of this country.”

These are our sons; we must engage and help them realise better goals

12 Feb – Source: Standard Media – 630 Words

According to our security forces, more than 100 “Jihadist” youths allied to Al Shabaab gathered in Masjid Musa Mombasa, complete with guns and other weapons, in broad daylight, to up their “terrorist” plans; and in the ensuing shootout, eight youths and a policeman are killed. True, our youth may have been radicalised and openly defy the Muslim leaders.

But the police version of what happened at the mosque is spiced up, and their lethal action unprofessional and purposeful. To most Muslims, the deaths could have been avoided and the mosque not desecrated had the police acted on the advise of Muslim leaders prior to the raid.

The radicalisation of the Muslim youth is growing fast across the country and it is not all premised on religious indoctrination of “extremist” scholars only. The massive condemnation of the incident on social sites among Muslim youth is an indication of the gravity of this matter.

Majority of these youth do not support terrorism, nor do they sympathise with terrorist groups. They allege that it is the policies of the State that are driving them over the edge. They are not driven by the Somalia agenda and have little to gain from being members of al Shabaab that aims to liberate Somalia.

Top tweets

@UNSomalia #WorldRadioDay today. See how all female run#radio Aman in #Mogadishu makes a difference for #Somaliawomen http://vimeo.com/86523131 @UNESCO.

@ntvkenya Dadaab repatriation exercise: More than 100,000 Somalis have gone mack to Somalia. http://ow.ly/tz25i http://ow.ly/i/4zZ6q.

@MareejoXaamud Somalia’s people parliament undergoing renovation .- #Mogadisu pic.twitter.com/KbYcvG4i6n.

@mukhtaryare Somalia President and First Lady in Istanbul. via@engyarisow pic.twitter.com/ebQfizAhBS.

@UNSomalia @UNSomalia starts training #Somalia National Army in #humanrights. Read more: http://bit.ly/1eQ3T4j @UNrightswire.

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Image of the day

Image of the day #AMISOM Head Amb. Mahamat Saleh Annadif in a meeting with Gender and Human Rights Minister Khadijo Mohamed Diriye. Photo: @amisomsomalia.