January 19, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report.

Main Story

Jubaland to set up first parliament on Tuesday

18 Jan – Source: Garowe Online – 155 Words

The Jubaland administration is gearing up for the formation of its first parliament on Tuesday, Garowe Online reports. Speaking at a press conference in the port city of Kismayo on Sunday, Jubaland Vice President Gen. Abdullahi Sheikh Ismael (Fartag) said that following the parliamentary selection process by local clan elders, the state will set up the chamber of representatives on Tuesday. Gen. Fartag noted that IGAD and Federal Government officials will attend the inaugural ceremony. Meanwhile, on visits to neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia, he said that the two troop contributing countries will assist Jubaland in dislodging Al Shabaab militants from the areas acquiesced to their rule. Jubaland President Sheikh Ahmed Mohamed Islam (Madobe) previously declared that Jubaland MPs will be cherry-picked from Lower Jubba, Middle Juba and Gedo by their respective elders. As a result of IGAD-brokered bilateral talks in Addis Ababa, the federal state gained its recognition from the Somalia Federal Government in August 2013.

Key Headlines

Jubaland to set up first parliament on Tuesday (Garowe Online)
Three wheeler explosion kills two in Mogadishu (Dalsan Radio)
Government and AMISOM disarm residents in Jalalaqsi Hiiran (Radio Goobjoog)
Two children burn to death in Beled Hawo (Radio Bar-Kulan)
Security has improved in Mogadishu’s Hodan District (Radio Danan)
Al Shabaab blockade spurs acute food shortage in Wajid (Garowe Online)
Anti-Charlie Hedbo protests in Somalia and Pakistan (Garowe Online/Daily Mail)
Omani-Somali talks held (Bahrain News Agency)
Africa Cup of Nations – Somalia (AMISOM News)
Somalis torn between hunger in Dadaab and uncertainty at home (The Guardian)
Somali National Olympic Committee President hails unity following tough year (Inside The Games)

SOMALI MEDIA

Jubaland to set up first parliament on Tuesday

18 Jan – Source: Garowe Online – 155 Words

Three wheeler explosion kills two in Mogadishu

19 Jan – Source: Dalsan Radio – 58 Words

A bajaj, or three-wheeled autorickshaw , exploded in Mogadishu and killed two people. Eyewitnesses have confirmed to Dalsan that the explosion occurred near the Ex-Control Road in the capital. This blast comes days after a car bomb targeting security officials killed four people in Mogadishu. Police said they are investigating the incident.

Government and AMISOM disarm residents in Jalalaqsi, Hiiran

19 Jan – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 72 Words

Government forces and African peacekeepers AMISOM disarmed residents in Jalalaqsi district in Hiiraan region following an operation in the district. Mayor of Jalalaqsi, Omar Osman Maow, told Goobjoog News that those disarmed were causing havoc, and disturbing peace in the town. “We apprehended 7 suspects in the operation,” he said, adding that the seven were allegedly involved in Al-Shabaab activities.

Two children burn to death in Beled Hawo

19 Jan – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 89 Words

Two children have died after their house, made up of thatch and grass, caught fire.The two were seven years and five months old respectively. The mother of children who went to fetch water returned only to witness the devastation. She told Bar-Kulan that the main cause of the fire in unclear, but there was a fire in the house when she left.The community chairman in the area has urged the locals to come to the aid of the bereaved mother.

Security has improved in Mogadishu’s Hodan District

18 Jan – Source: Radio Danan – 116 Words

The Hodan district administration has said security in the area is good– speaking to Radio Danan, District Commissioner, Hon. Abdulkadir Ali Kulane, said there is an ongoing census in the district after which every neighbourhood in the district will be guarded by police on patrol. The DC also appealed to residents in the area near the mall in Taleex to work with the police in a bid to improve security in their neighbourhood.“The counting of the houses has been commenced, and we need the people who live near the old mall [in]Taleex neighbourhood to work with the police. Also, we have advised the same to the IDPs,” he said.

Al Shabaab blockade spurs acute food shortage in Wajid

19 Jan – Source: Garowe Online – 132 Words

A blockade by Al Shabaab militants in Waajid town, Bakool region, has spurred acute food shortages and severe malnutrition, Garowe Online reports. Speaking on VOA Somali Service on Monday, Wajid Mayor Hassan Adan Ali warned of a looming humanitarian disaster as a result of 10-month blockade. Ali added that the worst-affected are adults and children under the age of 10. In March 2014, the Somali government airlifted food commodities to Wajid using an AMISOM aircraft. The blockade has left hundreds of households more destitute by the worsening humanitarian situation. Al-Shabaab has sanctioned several towns in central and southern Somalia.

Anti-Charlie Hedbo protests in Somalia and Pakistan

17 Jan – Source: Garowe Online/Daily Mail – 674 Words

Protests against Charlie Hebdo’s front cover have seen thousands more take to the streets – with students in Somalia declaring ‘Je Suis Muslim – and I love my Prophet’. Students marched through Mogadishu on Saturdaymorning, three days after the commemorative edition of the satirical magazine went on sale. The magazine features a cartoon of the Prophet Mohamed shedding a tear underneath the words ‘All is forgiven’, after 12 of Charlie Hebdo’s staff were killed in a massacre earlier this month. But the use of the Prophets image has angered many Muslims around the world, with protests taking place from Somalia to Niger, and Pakistan to Jordan. In Somalia, students had aped the catchphrase of Western marches ‘Je Suis Charlie’ – meant to show solidarity with the magazine – to ‘Je Suis Muslim, et j’aime mon Prophete’. Translated, the sign means ‘I am Muslim, and I love my Prophet’. The distinctive white writing was set against a black background with a white border, just like the Je Suis Charlie placards.

Meanwhile, lawyers in Pakistan burnt an effegy of French President Francois Hollande in protest at the image, which they see as an attack on their religion. The lawyers, dressed in smart suits, were out in force on Saturday morning, as Pakistani activists from Tanzeem-e-Islami lined the streets with signs declaring ‘We condemn anti-Islam acts’. These protests a day after Pakistani authorities had to use tear gas, batons and water cannons to disperse angry crowds. The crowds were said to be trying to force their way into the French consulate. The lawyers, dressed in smart suits, were out in force on Saturday morning, as Pakistani activists from Tanzeem-e-Islami lined the streets with signs declaring ‘We condemn anti-Islam acts’. These protests a day after Pakistani authorities had to use tear gas, batons and water cannons to disperse angry crowds. The crowds were said to be trying to force their way into the French consulate.

In Niger – a day after five people were killed in Niger in protests over the cartoons – protesters in Niamey attacked a police station and burned at least two police cars near the main mosque after authorities banned a meeting called by local Muslim lead There had also been protests in Senegal, Mali, Mauritania and Algeria after Friday prayers, as well as in Jordan, where clashes broke out between security forces and about 2,000 protesters organised by the Muslim Brotherhood. But French President Francois Hollande dismissed the protests, saying anti-Charlie Hebdo protesters in other countries do not understand France’s attachment to freedom of speech.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Omani-Somali talks held

19 Jan – Source: Bahrain News Agency – 63 Words

Omani Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusif bin Alawi, today received the Somali Minister of Foreign Affairs and Investment, Abdirahman Duale Beyle, who is currently on a visit to the Sultanate of Oman. The two sides discussed bilateral relations and ways of bolstering joint cooperation, and reviewed the political situation in Somalia. The meeting also focused on regional and international developments, and efforts to achieve peace.

Africa Cup of Nations – Somalia

17 Jan – Source: AMISOM News – 253 Words

Africa’s biggest soccer tournament, the Africa Cup of Nations kicks off Saturday evening in the port city of Bata in mineral rich Equatorial Guinea. The curtain raiser of the competition is the match between Congo Brazzaville and the host country, followed by another match between Burkina Faso and Gabon. But Somalia through its national team the ‘Ocean Stars’, like Africa’s soccer giants Nigeria, did not make the cut during the qualifiers in 2014. That though has not killed the enthusiasm of many soccer fans across Somalia. The tournament will be keenly followed on television by millions across Somalia thanks to the prevailing peace.

The sport was hitherto outlawed under Al Shaabab reign until the African Union troops and the Somali National Army secured vast regions in the country, flushing out extremists and re-igniting among other things Somalis appetite for football. Other than regaining its flavor across the horn of Africa country, football is keeping thousands of youths away from crime. The game has transformed the lives of young people in a country where majority of them are targeted by the Al Shabaab and forced into terrorist activities. Some of these youths are members and fanatical supporters of the top ten soccer clubs in the country namely; Horseed, Heegan, Elman, Benadir, LLP Jeengo, Safana, Dekadaha, Gadidka, Sahafi and Somali Fruits football clubs. Many of them are hopeful that in 2016, Somalia will achieve many firsts, hold its first democratic elections and qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Somalis torn between hunger in Dadaab and uncertainty at home

19 Jan – Source: The Guardian – 845 Words

Faced with a decrease in funding, the world’s largest refugee camp, at Dabaab in Kenya, is piloting a scheme offering voluntary repatriation to Somalis. On 8 December, a blue and purple bus made a highly significant and somewhat controversial journey, 350 miles across the tatty scrubland that forms the border between Kenya and Somalia. Inside the vehicle, bumping across the plain, were 91 people travelling from their old home, the Dadaab refugee camp in northern Kenya, to an even older one: the port city of Kismayo in southern Somalia, from where they had fled war and famine nearly four years ago.

The bus was the first in a pilot project run by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, facilitating what is called “spontaneous, voluntary returns” of refugees to Somalia. Four more buses have since departed for Somalia, returning home a total of 602 people. A sixth was postponed due to security concerns. The controversial aspect is that Somalia is still at war, food shortages are widespread, and access for humanitarians is difficult along roads blocked by fighting and checkpoints established by the insurgent group al-Shabaab.The same month as the returns began, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Somalia, Philippe Lazzarini, appealed for nearly $900m in 2015, warning: “For the first time since the 2011 famine, the number of people in need of life-saving assistance has increased. Over a million Somalis are unable to meet their basic food requirements. A further 2.1 million people are on the verge of acute food insecurity, bringing the total number of people in need of humanitarian assistance to 3.2 million.”

Kenya has waged a long campaign to encourage the refugees to return, even invading Somalia in 2011 in part to create a safe area where the refugees could be settled. In November 2013, two months after the Westgate shopping mall attack by al-Shabaab, that pressure culminated in the signing of a tripartite agreement on voluntary return between Kenya, Somalia and the UN, even though conditions in Somalia are still bad.

Somali National Olympic Committee President hails unity following tough year

18 Jan – Source: Inside The Games – 315 Words

Somali National Olympic Committee (NOCSOM) President Abdullahi Ahmed Tarabi has praised the togetherness of the organisation in what has been a tough year for the country at their General Assembly in Mogadishu. The nation has been ravaged by an ongoing civil war but Tarabi hailed the unity of all those involved with the Committee, while also reminding them of how it can improve the level of sports participation for Somali children and youth.

“We are extremely happy and pleased for your collaboration and the resilience that you have shown during the past year,” he said, addressing the various members of the Parliament, the country’s sports federations and associations, regional representatives, media and other invited guests in attendance. “We are facing tremendous challenges together to develop and widen sport activities in a country that is recovering from a prolonged civil war. “[We] would like you to double your efforts of working closely and effectively together which I believe is the only way that we can achieve our goals of lifting this nation again.”

During the Assembly, changes to the symbol of the National Olympic Committee were shown, the first time the logo has been modified since the body’s inception 50 years ago. The topic was hotly anticipated among those in attendance, which also included the deputy Mayor of Mogadishu. NOCSOM secretary general Duran Farah began the Assembly with a presentation detailing the organisation’s accomplishments from the past two years at both national and international level. Presentations summarising activities for the most effective federations were divulged to the Assembly, and these were then followed by discussions on how they can more effectively promote the Olympic Movement within their respective regions. The NOCSOM also gave the team of the year award to Somali Army’s team ‘Horseed’,, which was presented by the body’s honorary President Abdulkadir Ibrahim Ga’al “Abkow”.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“Indeed, the situation in Somalia is dire, which all the more should prompt U.S. inquiries into the disposition of its aid.”

U.N. Watch: Somalia aid sieve

18 Jan – Source: The Tribune Review – 216 Words

In yet another controversy over the provision of humanitarian aid, United Nations auditors are questioning the disposition of millions of dollars doled out to nongovernment organizations (NGOs) reportedly doing humanitarian work in Somalia.The U.N.’s Office of Internal Oversight Services found the coordinating agency’s overall performance for managing the Common Humanitarian Fund for Somalia was “unsatisfactory,” meaning that “critical and/or pervasive important deficiencies exist,” reports Fox News. Why should this concern the United States? Because as with most U.N. funding, the U.S. is the largest contributor, giving $207.6 million or nearly 38 percent of the total sum donated to the coordinated appeal last year, Fox says.

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs insists it maintained meticulous records along with a system of reporting on “achievements against planned activities and outcomes.” Nevertheless, OCHA refused to provide Fox with a list of U.N. agencies and NGOs involved with the humanitarian fund over the course of the U.N. audit, citing security concerns. Never mind that a list of projects and, in some cases, the names of implementing partners appear on the agency’s website, Fox found. Indeed, the situation in Somalia is dire, which all the more should prompt U.S. inquiries into the disposition of its aid.

“From the political perspective one thing that caught my eye was that the Rwandan parliament building still had the bullet scars from an attack that took place during the 1994 civil war. Although the building has been refurbished and modernized with an extension, we are told that, the scars still remain as a reminder to the people of Rwanda so that they do not go back.”

Towards a unified Diaspora voice for Somalia: Lessons from Rwanda

17 Jan – Source: Hiraan Online- 921 Words

Driving through Kigali, one would never think that one of the most gruesome genocides of the twenty first century occurred just under 21 years ago in this country. Over a period of 100 days, the slaughter of about 800,000 to a million people were mercilessly administered not because of their skin tone but, simply, of the shape of their noses, their height and other physical features. Rwanda’s population consists of two major ethnic groups: the majority Hutu’s, the minority Tutsi’s and the real minority, fraction-like Twa. The Tutsis possessed an influential amount of political power; they were, nevertheless, the victims of the 1994 Rwanda Genocide along with the more moderate Hutu’s who did not want to participate in the killings. This brutal genocide was based on an ethnic division, with the Hutu’s taking up not only arms but also machetes to slice and slaughter the Tutsis.
Before my first trip to Kigali in late 2013, I read about it extensively and as a human I always knew it was horrific. The reality had, however, not hit me until I visited the Gisozi Genocide Memorial. The centre is divided into four sections, the first section is the mass graves outside the museum building where the remains of the slaughtered were laid to rest, the second section documents ore-genocide events, the third section focuses on the 100-day brutal genocide and the final section focused on the post-genocide reconciliation process. The partition of the museum into sections puts into perspective the build-up of the genocide, the actual event and how Rwanda as a nation has overcome of the genocide. The reconciliation process begins with a traditional court called Gacaca courts, a typical Somali Xeer system, where the perpetrators speak the truth and then ask the victims for forgiveness. However, if the victim does not accept the apology in the first round, the perpetrator will have to be persistent until forgiveness is granted.

Top tweets

@Aynte: Best PR video of #Somalia intelligence and security agency (NISA) https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=750167878402954 …

@MoHassan_pp As a nation, we must stop waiting for signals from foreigners whether we progressing or not. Signal must come from us. #Somalia #Mogadishu

@AmbAmerico: Students studying at one of the high schools in#Mogadishu, #Somalia. We are going forward. Thank you@SomaliaRise

@Tuuryare_Africa: #AlShabab executed a soldier, named as Ahmed Ali Gedi in southern #Somalia. He was working for Mogadishu’s central jail, its statement reads

@HarunMaruf: #Somalia: US trained commando units Danab “lightning” conduct exercise on Jazeera beach south of#Mogadishu. pic.twitter.com/wmnFMqnmoc

@garsoornews #DEVELOPING: Ali Adow, #Afgoye admin secretary, along with 2 security guards killed in car bomb at#HawoAbdi, outside #Mogadishu. #Somalia

@Mogadishan: #SOMALIA [Photo] Early 1900: Bur Hacaba Sunset, Camels, Lake South of #Mogadishu

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Image of the day

A player with Heegan FC rests during a training session at Lido Beach in the Abdiaziz district of the capital Mogadishu on December 18, 2014. Sports in Somalia is recovering attracting foreign players as a result of the relative peace and progress witnessed in the country. Photo: AMISOM / Ilyas Ahmed