February 25, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Joint statement by the UN, AU, EU, IGAD, UK and US Envoys to Somalia
24 Feb – Source: Hiiraan Online – 176 Words
The United Nations, African Union, European Union, Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), United Kingdom and the United States of America have welcomed efforts by local elders and business people in Somalia’s central regions to mediate a peaceful solution to the recent conflict in Guri’el. They expressed concern about the humanitarian impact and loss of life stemming from the conflict and called upon all parties to refrain from violence. They said: “We look forward to the conclusion of the valuable Dhuusamareb reconciliation conference, and look forward to the swift launch of the state formation conference in Adaado. The significant human suffering that has resulted from the conflict is unacceptable; we urge all parties to the conflict to refrain from violence and make concerted efforts to de-escalate tensions. Differences must be resolved through peaceful means and dialogue. We attach great importance to the swift conclusion of an inclusive and fully representative process leading to the establishment of an interim administration in the central regions.”
Key Headlines
- Joint statement by the UN AU EU IGAD UK and US Envoys to Somalia (Hiiraan Online)
- South West State To Address Insecurity (Radio Goobjoog)
- Somali Intelligence To Strengthen Mogadishu Hotels Security (Radio Dalsan)
- Somaliland Decides To Halt Talks With Federal Government (Radio Goobjoog)
- Police Break-Up Protests Over Missing Boy’s ‘Hoax’ Murder (Xikmo News)
- Global Somalia Diaspora Celebration Angers Somali Community In Minneapolis (Radio RBC)
- Somalia Custodial Corps Celebrate 45th Anniversary In Mogadishu (Radio Goobjoog)
- Obama Nominates First U.S. Envoy To Somalia Since 1991 (Daily Nation)
- Blast Rocks Somali Capital; 2 Feared Dead (World Bulletin)
- Firing Squads Blast Walls And Dangerous Diplomacy In Somalia (AFP/Yahoo News)
- Somali Troop Training Hampered By Lack Of Housing And Equipment Says EUTM Chief (IHS Janes)
- Mayor Murray Joins Calls To Address The Somali Remittance Crisis (The Stranger)
- Power Lunch: Local Somalis Gather At MOA In Stand Against Terror (CBS Local)
- Helping Local Somalis Deal With Autism (UT San Diego)
SOMALI MEDIA
South West State To Address Insecurity
25 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 95 Words
The Interim South West State Administration has vowed to address insecurity caused by armed men dressed in army fatigues. Ahmed Hassan Fiqi, the Agricultural Minister of the Interim South West Administration, who visited farm lands in Lower Shabelle told Goobjoog that he received complaints from residents about armed groups mugging people on the roads. The minister said his administration is determined to dismantle those groups and bring them to justice.The armed groups, who mount roadblocks, impose illegal tax on motorists and sometimes rob travelers, have been a recurrent problem for a long time.
Somali Intelligence To Strengthen Mogadishu Hotels Security
24 Feb – Source: Radio Dalsan – 104 Words
The Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) will monitor the security of Mogadishu hotels in order to ensure safety and strengthen security. A NISA official, who declined to reveal his identity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, told Radio Dalsan that NISA officials havealready met with hotel owners. He said there is an ongoing process to register all the hotels and key dining areas. He added that private security guards at the business centers will also be registered by the agency. NISA’s move comes just after Al Shabaab claimed a double attack that killed 25 people, including members of parliament, in Mogadishu’s popular Central Hotel last week.
Somaliland Decides To Halt Talks With Federal Government
25 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 107 Words
The administration of Somaliland, the semi autonomous, secessionist state in the north of Somalia, has decided to halt talks with Somali Federal Government. This comes after the Somaliland administration met with opposition parties and agreed to halt talks until elections are held in Somaliland. This is according to Somaliland Foreign Minister Mohamed Bihi Yonis who addressed the media after the meeting. Opposition parties also suggested that there should not be talks unless independence is not included on the agenda of the talks.The talks are hosted by the Turkish government and have passed several phases. The Somali Federal Government is yet to comment on this new development.
Police Break-Up Protests Over Missing Boy’s ‘Hoax’ Murder
24 Feb – Source: Xikmo News – 140 Words
Police in Lasanood used batons, and fired in the air to disperse protesters who blocked a main highway and threw rocks at them. Residents in Lasanood, a town in Somaliland, said on Monday that the protest started after rumors spread that a missing young boy was murdered; men, women and children took to the streets, calling on the soldiers to find the boy. Overwhelmed by the surging protesters, soldiers reportedly beat some protestors. Calm later returned to the town after police found the missing boy in Gumeys, a small village 75km north of Lasanood. The circumstances behind the boy’s disappearance remain unclear. Relatives said he was trying to escape soldiers before he trekked to the far-lying town. Following police interrogations, the boy was later taken to the local hospital for treatment.
Global Somalia Diaspora Celebration Angers Somali Community In Minneapolis
24 Feb – Source: Radio RBC – 571 Words
The Somali community living in Minneapolis has expressed strong discontent after community organization Global Somali Diaspora held a night-long festive party in Minneapolis. Members of the community criticized the move stating that the people of Somalia have faced ‘tragedy’ and are mourning the victims of the recent deadly Mogadishu bombings that left close to thirty innocent citizens dead, scores injured and hundred of others at risk. Minneapolis, a city tallied as one of the most Somali dominant cities in the United States, hosts a Somali community who are known to adhere to the norms and the cultures of the Somali people. The community had arranged an event earlier last week meant to welcome Prime Minister Sharmarke’s new cabinet, but it was cancelled after the attack on Mogadishu’s Central Hotel on Friday, which claimed the lives of some senior government officials and wounded members of the new cabinet, including Deputy Prime Minister Omar Arte. The community felt ashamed to hold a cheerful party amidst the country’s tragedy and decided to mourn for the victims instead.
Not long after, Global Somali Diaspora, opening an office in Minneapolis, invited the Somali community to a party at which prominent Somali artists Ahmed Ali Egal and Ahmed Naaji Sa’ad were invited to sing and dance. Somali community leaders in Minneapolis have urged Global Somali Diaspora to cancel or postpone the party or change it to a ‘mourning event’ to show solidarity with the people of Somalia and the government. Global Somali Diaspora decided to proceed and held a night-long festive party driving some members of the community to shock and anger. The party was said to be the opening for the Somali Global Diaspora forum office in Minneapolis.
Members of the community expressed anger, and condemned a number of individuals whom they say were led by a Sadik Warfa. “What I can tell you is that Sadik Warfa and his colleagues have added a new norms and cultures to the community, they should have changed the party to a “Mourning event” rather than a playful party,” said one of the Somali Community leaders in Minneapolis who spoke to Raxanreeb Online. Following the GSD celebration, some Somalis took to social media to criticize the Somali Global Diaspora. “GSD could have turned the event to “Mourning One” if they could not cancel it, as witnessed in the past,” read a statement spotted on Facebook. This is the first event that has elicited such a reaction from the Somali community in Minneapolis.
Somalia Custodial Corps Celebrate 45th Anniversary In Mogadishu
24 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 114 Words
A colorful ceremony to commemorate 45th anniversary of Somali Custodian Corps (SCC) was held in Mogadishu on Tuesday. The SCC spokesman, Moalim Hassan Omar Afrah, speaking to Goobjoog News said that the prison corps who had been working through difficulties since the government of late Mohamed Siyyad Barre who was toppled early 1990s have taken steps forward and made remarkable achievements. Mr. Hassan stated that the SCC controls over 95 jails including detention centres and central prisons across the country.The ceremony was attended by the president of the Somali Federal Government, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, commanders,and government officials who all commended the work of SCC in guarding, rehabilitating, and counseling the criminals.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Obama Nominates First U.S. Envoy To Somalia Since 1991
25 Feb – Source: Daily Nation – 325 Words
U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday nominated America’s first ambassador to Somalia since 1991, when ties soured as rival warlords took over the African nation. Katherine Dhanani, a long-time diplomat with deep experience of African affairs, will have to be confirmed by the Senate for the role in Somalia, where extremists have targeted government officials in a bloody campaign. The State Department welcomed the move as “historic” and said it “signals the deepening relationship” between the two countries after they launched a new era of diplomatic relations in 2013. If confirmed, Dhanani will lead the US mission to Somalia, which is currently based at the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. “As security conditions permit, we look forward to increasing our diplomatic presence in Somalia and eventually reopening the US embassy in Mogadishu.”
The darkest chapter in US-Somali ties came in 1993 when Americans were anguished by scenes of the bodies of US soldiers being dragged through the streets of Mogadishu by a mob after Somali militants shot down two Black Hawk helicopters. Eighteen Americans died and 80 were wounded. The Somali government that finally took power in August 2012 was the first to be given global recognition since the hardline regime fell in 1991, and billions of dollars in foreign aid have since poured in to help rebuild the Horn of Africa country. The U.S. recognized the new government in January 2013. But security remains a major concern in the impoverished country. Obama’s announcement comes only days after al-Qaida-linked Shebab insurgents killed at least 25 people in an attack on a popular hotel in the capital Mogadishu where government ministers and officials were holding Friday prayers. Psaki said the nomination “allows us to mark the progress of the Somali people toward emerging from decades of conflict.” “Somalia has considerable work ahead to complete its transition to a peaceful, democratic, and prosperous nation,” she added in a statement.
Blast Rocks Somali Capital; 2 Feared Dead
24 Feb – Source: World Bulletin – 148 Words
Two were feared dead in a car bombing in Mogadishu on Tuesday. “The information I have is that the explosion that took place at Kilometer 4 killed two people. We are investigating it,” Ali Abdi Abdulleh, deputy commissioner of Hodan district, told The Anadolu Agency. According to eyewitnesses the explosion occurred when a private car exploded as it was passing on a street linking the presidential palace to Mogadishu airport. There has been no claim of responsibility for the blast. Somalia has remained in the grip of on-again, off-again violence since the outbreak of civil war in 1991. Last year, a fractious Somalia appeared to inch closer to stability after government troops and African Union forces – deployed in the country since 2007 – drove Al-Shabaab from most of its strongholds.The militant group, however, has continued to stage attacks against government forces and African peacekeepers.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Firing Squads, Blast Walls And Dangerous Diplomacy In Somalia
25 Feb – Source: AFP/Yahoo News – 889 Words
A navy flak jacket over his sky-blue shirt, Neil Wigan peered through the bulletproof glass window at six uneven wooden poles in front of a sand dune. “There are more of them now,” the British ambassador to Somalia said, driving past the execution posts that convicts are tied to before being shot by firing squad. “It isn’t a particularly reassuring sign of progress.” Violence is routine in Somalia, whether perpetrated by suicide bombers, jihadists, assassins, soldiers or the judiciary. Chronic insecurity makes the country a study in diplomacy at its most difficult. Wigan, 44, is Britain’s first resident ambassador to the Horn of Africa country since it collapsed in a hail of gun and rocket fire in 1991. A new embassy opened in April 2013 “inside the wire” of Mogadishu airport’s relatively secure compound.
Diplomacy succeeds or fails on the strength of relationships, so on a recent Wednesday morning Wigan drove into Mogadishu in his convoy of B6-level armoured SUVs accompanied by ex-British military bodyguards wearing earpieces and carrying M4 carbines and pistols. “There’s a real threat from Shebab,” said Wigan, referring to the Al-Qaeda-aligned militants who launch regular attacks on the Somali government and its foreign backers. “We’re constantly deciding whether a particular meeting is worth the risk.” “Security is as good as we can make it while still doing our jobs,” he said. Somalia has yet another new government, appointed in early February, and Wigan was eager to get to know them. That day he visited Deputy Prime Minister Mohamed Omar Arte who will work with foreign donors on a multi-billion euro plan known as the New Deal Compact.
Somali Troop Training Hampered By Lack Of Housing And Equipment, Says EUTM Chief
24 Feb – Source: IHS Janes – 470 Words
Without basic housing and equipment for Somalia’s soldiers, the EU’s military training mission in that country will fail to achieve its long-term objectives, says the mission’s out-going commander. Some trainees are not even equipped with proper uniforms, he added.
“I’ve been satisfied with the results [of the mission] so far but they are not enough,” Brigadier General Massimo Mingiardi, commander of EU Training Mission Somalia (EUTM-Somalia) told reporters in Brussels on 20 February. “It would be very naïve to say we could have solved the problems of Somalia in the last year – not after 22 years of civil war. We are on a good track but the West needs [to make] a long-term commitment. Otherwise, we’ll commit the same mistakes made in other parts of Africa or the Middle East.” Appointed a year ago as the mission’s fourth commander, Brig Gen Mingiardi steps down on 8 March, to be succeeded by another Italian general.
EUTM-Somalia was launched in April 2010 and its current mandate of 21 months runs until December 2016. Its core training team and support staff of 150 members is drawn from 11 EU countries (Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, the UK) and Serbia. Brig Gen Mingiardi said one of the mission’s perennial problems has been to train soldiers who are inadequately equipped. “To provide training without the basic equipment doesn’t work. We have to do more,” he said. “For example, during the last course we administered to 100 soldiers; not one of them received a uniform. They attended the course in civilian clothes – and flip-flops! If we want to see any improvement, the only path before us is to provide them the equipment they need for training as well. We’re also trying to help the Somalis rebuild their MoD [Ministry of Defence], but without more money I don’t think we can achieve the desired results. One of my first priorities would be to re-build barracks, which would enable the soldiers to better control the armoury.”
Mayor Murray Joins Calls To Address The Somali Remittance Crisis
24 Feb – Source: The Stranger – 236 Words
Three Slog posts and two weeks after the 30,000 Somali Americans in the greater Seattle area found out they would no longer be able to send desperately needed funds to their families, I received a copy of this letter from Mayor Ed Murray to Secretary of State John Kerry asking for assistance in finding a solution. In the letter, Mayor Murray expresses support for the efforts of Representative Adam Smith of the 9th Congressional District, who more than two weeks ago sent his own letter to Kerry asking for a meeting to address the issue. Murray’s letter came to me the same day that Oxfam International sent me a new report detailing many of the catastrophic effects that an end to remittances may bring, especially for women and their children, as an estimated 50 percent of women in Somalia depend on these remittances for survival. There is no date on Murray’s letter, which I received this past Friday, and we have not yet heard back from the mayor’s office as to when it was actually sent to Secretary Kerry. But the letter’s reference to the “last two weeks” leads one to believe that it was sent out within the last few days. I hope that this is the beginning of many efforts by the mayor to keep pressure on the federal government to find a solution to this issue that affects so many of his constituents.
Power Lunch: Local Somalis Gather At MOA In Stand Against Terror
24 Feb – Source: CBS Local – 236 Words
A group of Somali Americans in Minnesota is speaking out to condemn the recent terror threats by al-Shabaab.On Tuesday, they went to the Mall of America for lunch, filling table after table at the food court. The mall has recently tightened security after an al-Shabaab video surfaced over the weekend, threatening attacks in Western malls. The FBI says the terror group has recruited young Somali-Americans from the Twin Cities. On his lunch break from IBM, Jabril Afyare, the president of Somali Citizens Elite, sat and ate as part of Tuesday’sdemonstration. “They cannot drive a wedge between the Somali-Americans and the brothers and sisters in our country,” he said. “This is our country.”
He said that the terror group is seeking to gain publicity by sowing mistrust between Minnesotans and local Somalis, as well as inside the Somali community itself. “I’ve been here 30 years, and I couldn’t just sit here idle and watch this,” Afyare said. “This has to stop, and it’s time we talk the talk and walk the walk.” Tuesday’s group says they stand against al-Shabaab and stand up for their hometown mall. “The majority, 99-100 percent of the Somali-Americans, are really peace-loving, civilized and part of this great country,” Afyare said. The group was doing what the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security is asking: They are showing al-Shabaab that they are Americans by working with law enforcement and with places like the Mall of America. Yet, some local Somalis have said that over the past few days, especially in shopping malls, that they feel they’ve been stared at and watched. They’re hoping Tuesday’s lunch will help show that al-Shabaab is not a representation of them.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“Including the “Volunteer of the Year,” Liban Ali. “Liban,” Ibrahim said, “is kind of our local expert.” His expertise was acquired with time and some pain. It wasn’t until 2007, when his oldest daughter was diagnosed, that Ali had heard of autism. “We don’t even have a word for it in Somali,” Ibrahim said.”
Helping Local Somalis Deal With Autism
24 Feb – Source: UT San Diego – 540 Words
Fleeing civil war in his native Somalia, Liban Ali arrived in San Diego in 2001. He found peace, employment, a better life — and a disturbing mystery. “Soon after our daughter was born, we found that something was wrong with her,” said Ali, 43, a cabdriver who lives in San Diego’s El Cerrito neighborhood. “It was scary.” Autism has no known cause or cure and is associated with a range of symptoms, from repetitive behavior to difficulty communicating and understanding social cues. This lifelong condition, usually diagnosed in early childhood, affects about one in 88 Americans. Among Somali immigrants, the prevalence seems much higher. In 2013, the Somalis of Minneapolis — the largest East African population in the U.S. — were studied by the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health and Autism Speaks, a nonprofit. In this group, autism was diagnosed at a rate of one in 32 children, more than double the national average.
Why? “That’s the million-dollar question,” said Michael Rosanoff, Autism Speaks’ director of public health research. “There’s something going on in the prevalence of autism within that community.” No study has examined San Diego’s 10,000 Somalis, the nation’s second largest population. Community leaders insist autism is widespread here, too. “There was a huge need for an autism program,” said Najla Ibrahim, director of health and wellness for Somali Family Service of San Diego. “Families were fearful of being stigmatized, shunned by the community.” While Ali shared those fears, he overcame them — and helped many others do the same. As head of the San Diego Somali Autism Awareness Initiative, Ali will be saluted Wednesday night at the third annual OceanLeaf Awards Ceremony, honored for helping families cope with this condition. “We understand the situation, the struggle, what they are feeling,” Ali said. “Because I was there.”
Top tweets
@Aynte RIP Prof. Said Samatar, a towering #Somali academic at @RutgersU, dies after an impressive career. He was the father of #Somalia studies
@GermanyinKenya #Germany sponsors football in #Somaliawith equipment from Sprockhövel. Sport is a force for mutual respect @SomaliPM
@sarahkiman i@mnesty says the conflicts in Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo have dragged on for too long. #SABCNews
@ragehomaar Welcome Katherine S. Dhanani newly nominated US Ambassador to #Somalia
@axmedelmi02 #Somalia finally raising from the ashes of it’s past , on the other hand suicide attacks are still big challenge…
@Zoe_Flood: Predecessor to new US Ambassador to #Somaliawas US Special Rep James P. McAnulty, in post since August 2013; US mission remains in Nairobi.
@UNSomalia: International partners welcome mediation efforts in #Somalia‘s central regions, call for end to violence in Guricel:http://bit.ly/1DOuavP
@somaligov: #Somalia H.E. Mohamed Abdillahi Hassan is the New Somali Minister of Youth and Sports.
@SomaliEmbassyUS: #Somalia Please Visit The Forum for Unity and Democracy’s Party Facebook. Let us make#SomaliVision2016 reality. https://www.facebook.com/
Image of the day
On 24 February, at a meeting at Villa Somalia, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, introduced the new Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (DSRSG) for Somalia, Raisedon Zenenga of Zimbabwe, to the President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. The President warmly welcomed DSRSG Zenenga. During the meeting, the trio discussed the recently formulated Cabinet, the implementation of Vision 2016 and progress in the country’s state formation process. SRSG Kay also expressed his condolences to those who lost loved ones during the recent attack on Mogadishu’s Central Hotel, and wished the injured a speedy recovery. Photo: UNSOM