January 1, 2016 | Morning Headlines
Gunmen Abduct Health Workers In Central Somalia
31 December – Source: Hiiraan Online – 247 Words
Unidentified gunmen abducted two health workers in central Somalia on the eve of the New Year in the latest of a series of attacks targeting health and aid workers in the country, officials said. The incident took place near Dhusamareb town, the provincial capital of Galgadud region, as gunmen stopped their vehicle outside the town and took them to an unspecified location.
The abduction of the two workers, Abdikafi Japan, a medical officer at the town’s main hospital and his driver, Yahya Muhyadin, highlights challenges facing health workers operating in Somalia where dozens of local and foreign workers have been abducted in the past few years. Abdi Hassan Biyaqute, the commissioner of Elbur, a town close to Dhusamareb confirmed the abduction to the Voice of America Somali service, blaming the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab group for the responsibility of the abduction.
Mr. Biyaqute said that the duo went to the outskirts of the town to pick up a resident’s wife who was in labour pains to the hospital only to find gunmen waiting for their arrival there. The development comes one week after unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three local aid workers with a local NGO HIRDA in Bardhere, the provincial capital of Gedo region during a supervision trip on the outskirts of the town. Somalia is one of the world’s most dangerous countries that aid workers operate. Dozens of aid workers have been killed and others were kidnapped since the collapse of the country’s central government in 1991.
Key Headlines
- Gunmen Abduct Health Workers In Central Somalia (Hiiraan Online)
- Puntland Vice President Officially Opens Key Planning Workshop (Wacaal Media)
- Jubaland President Gets Deadline Extension On Lineup (Garowe Online)
- Puntland Government Launches State Radio In Burtinle (Villa Puntland)
- Somali Workers Fired At Colorado Packing Plant In Prayer Dispute (Reuters)
- Boni forest Security Operation Extended To Other Areas (Capital FM)
- 420 Score Dazzles Girl 14 In Garissa (The Star)
- Somalia: The Media Resources & Ethnic Conflict (International Policy Digest)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Puntland Vice President Officially Opens Key Planning Workshop
31 December – Source: Wacaal Media – 123 Words
Vice President of Puntland Eng. Abdihakim Abdullahi Haji Omar Amey officially opened a planning harmonization workshop in the capital Garowe on Thursday. The one day event seeks to harmonize planning at all levels of government so as to avoid implementation of similar projects in the same area by different government and non governmental agencies. Assistant Minister for Planning and International Relations of Puntland Said Farah Mohamud, who also attended the function, said the workshop will come up with modalities that will help to steer development projects involving district and regional administrations in Puntland. the Vice President termed the move, one whose time has come adding that it was imperative to operate from the same avenue in implementing the country’s development agenda.
Jubaland President Gets Deadline Extension On Lineup
31 December – Source: Garowe Online – 107 Words
Lawmakers in Somalia’s Jubaland Parliament have again extended the deadline for setting up a Cabinet by three months. Jubaland President Sheikh Mohamed Islam (Madobe) has extended this period for the third time due to political pressure. MP Bashir Mohamed said that Jubaland Parliament voted in favor of President’s request for more weeks to enable him finalise the much delayed Cabinet set up. A new Jubaland cabinet is expected to be announced between January and April as per the new extension. Madobe has been pushing ahead with wider reconciliation programmes since August 2015 when he won by landslide in election held under the state’s first draft constitution.
Puntland Government Launches State Radio In Burtinle
31 December – Source: Villa Puntland – 88 Words
The government of Puntland has launched a state – owned FM station in Burtinle district of Nugaal region to serve residents of the town and its surroundings. Speaking after officially opening the station, Puntland Minister for Information Mohamud Hassan So’ade said the state owned station will foster peace, development and stability in Burtinle through provision of necessary information and resources to the local people. The colorful ceremony was also attended by several MPs from the Puntland assembly as well as members of the public.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somali Workers Fired At Colorado Packing Plant In Prayer Dispute
01 January – Source: Reuters – 407 Words
Nearly 200 workers, mostly Somali immigrants, have been fired from a meat-packing plant in Colorado after staging a walkout to protest what they said were insufficient prayer accommodations, the company and Islamic advocacy groups said on Thursday.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said the workers were treated in a “discriminatory manner” by managers at the Cargill Meat Solutions [CARGIL.UL] facility in Fort Morgan, about 75 miles northeast of Denver.
Jaylani Hussein, a spokesman for CAIR, said in a YouTube video posted by the group that the workers objected to new restrictions on their ability to worship on the job, “which they had been granted for a long period of time.”: “All of these employees are good employees (and) don’t have any other issues,” Hussein said, adding that the dispute stemmed from a “misunderstanding on policy changes” by Cargill regarding workplace prayer.
Mike Martin, a spokesman for Minneapolis-based Cargill, disputed assertions the company had changed its policy, noting that since 2009 the Fort Morgan plant has set aside an on-site “reflection area” for people of all faiths: “Cargill makes every reasonable attempt to provide religious accommodations to all employees based on our ability to do so without disruption to our beef-processing business,” he said. He said the degree of flexibility the company can extend for prayers depends on a variety of factors, including daily work-flow considerations.
Martin said about 200 workers walked off the job last week and were warned that failing to show up for work on three consecutive days without calling in could jeopardize their employment. Plant managers met with the workers, members of the Somali community and Teamsters union leaders who represent nearly 2,000 hourly workers at the plant but were unable to resolve the issue, he said. After 190 workers failed to show up without notice for three days straight, “termination procedures were initiated” and those workers were dismissed, Martin said.
Boni forest Security Operation Extended To Other Areas
31 December – Source: Capital FM – 380 Words
Boni forest security operation against Al Shabaab has been extended to four other areas in the region. They include Bondhei, Pandanguo, Witu and Pangani areas that are in the larger Garissa and Tana River counties. Head of the security operation James Ole Serian says locals have been given seven days to vacate the area as security forces prepare to move in.
The security operation known as ‘Operation Linda (Protect) Boni’ was launched in September, with security forces mainly targeting Al Shabaab terrorists who used it as a hide-out to launch attacks in the neighbouring areas.
“The pressure on Boni enclave has grown in the aftermath of the defeat of Al Shabaab in most parts of Southern Somalia. In an attempt to hold some ground they have turned southwards under the cover of the belt crossing our borders into Lamu and used this to move into Malindi, Mombasa, Garissa and the rest of the country.,’ Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery said, while launching the security operation that brings together the military and police.
The vast Boni forest area, along the Kenya Somalia border extends into Somalia to become Lacta Belt. “Al Shabaab operatives have been infiltrating into this habitation with the aim of using its cover as an operational base,” Nkaissery said, adding “This situation is compounded by the forested and bushy environment which gives terrorists cover against both mobile and aerial surveillance.”
420 Score Dazzles Girl, 14, In Garissa
31 December – Source: The Star – 205 Words
Top performers in Garissa county in this year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exam have cited discipline, dedication and hard work as their secret of exceptional performance. Speaking to journalists yesterday, Amal Maalim, who scored 420 marks out of 500, said she expected to perform well but scoring more than 400 and topping her class came as a surprise.
She was accompanied by her elated parents, teachers and former schoolmates at Mnara Junior Academy. Maalim was carried shoulder-high as the group broke into song and dance.
“I got good results because of working smart and remaining disciplined. I have always expected to perform exceptionally well in the exam, but this is more than I expected. I am proud of my results and I really appreciate my teachers and parents for making sure I achieve my target,” said the 14-year-old.
Most public schools in northeastern have been without teachers since November last year when more than 2,000 non-local teachers left the region, citing insecurity. This came after Al Shabaab militants killed 28 people, most of them teachers, on a bus headed to Nairobi from Mandera. Private schools were not affected by the teachers’ shortage. Since the attack, some schools have been manned by administrators alone.
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“Currently, no one has firm control of the fledgling Somali media. There are few newspapers, radio broadcasts and television shows aired in Somalia due to the deep infrastructural damage major facilities incurred during the two-decade long civil war. Financing media ventures is another issue in the impoverished nation. Foreign donors are very hesitant to inject any money into projects in the country, due to the danger and corruption. They would be wary of accidentally funding the Islamic insurgency, which funnels a lot of money that enters the country. Thus, there is no dominant narrative in Somalia. “
Somalia: The Media, Resources & Ethnic Conflict
31 December – Source: International Policy Digest – 1,352 Words
Fighting amongst neighboring peoples has been endemic throughout the history of humanity. From biblical clashes in Assyria to the civil war raging in Syria today, there is always turmoil brewing between two or more rival ethnic groups. They can take the form of prolonged struggles or they can seemingly crop up out of nowhere. However, no social breakdown happens for no reason. The two-decade long conflict in Somalia can be explained by instrumentalism.
Instrumentalism is a theory that posits that politicians and the media play a paramount role in the formation of ethnic identity and rivalry. Rulers inculcate ethnic values into its citizens starting from birth. Children are educated with curriculums that are tailor-made to complement the government’s view of history. Television programs, radio shows, web sites, music, plays and books are commissioned by politicians or, in industrialized nations, by business interests to support their agendas.
The People’s Republic of China is a textbook example. They censor anything in their history books or websites that is damaging to the legitimacy of the regime, like anything having to do with the Tiananmen Square Massacre. If resources (water, food, grazing land, minerals, metals, oil, etc.) are becoming scarce in an area, the local leader might incite ethnic violence towards a neighboring group in an attempt to redistribute scarcities to his people. An ambitious leader could likewise invoke ethnic hatred in order to expand his territory. Such a power play amongst the monarchs in Europe resulted in World War I.
Rulers often mask their true intentions by using existential rhetoric. They argue that the rival ethnic group must be exterminated in order for the favored ethnic group to enjoy lasting prosperity. From the near-elimination of Native Americans by the US Army to the Hutu Power movement in Rwanda and Burundi, leaders have successfully utilized fear-mongering tactics to mobilize their people against enemies.
Somalia is a textbook case of instrumentalism at work. Somalia’s clan leaders foster ethnic feuds against each other so that they can fight for scant resources in their incredibly impoverished land. There is little fresh water and arable land in Somalia. As a result, most of its population has to rely upon agro-pastoralism for sustenance. Somalia’s ubiquitous goat herders must constantly search for grazing land to support their herds. This frequently leads to conflicts with herders from rival clans. Thus, there is perpetual animosity between neighboring groups, who must ensure that they have the land to support their main source of nutrition.