March 5, 2018 | Morning Headlines
Federal Parliament To Re-open March 10
04 March – Source: Goobjoog News -195 Words
President Mohamed Farmaajo will preside over the opening of the third session of the Federal Parliament on March 10, Goobjoog News has learnt. A source privy to a parliamentary meeting Sunday told Goobjoog News the President will open a joint sitting of the both the Upper and Lower Houses at a neutral venue not indicated yet. The Lower House went on recess December 16 while the Upper House extended sittings to close business January 3.
The lawmakers are coming back to what is likely to be a charged session following a number of developments during the recess. Key among them will be revisiting the Berbera Port deal which Somaliland announced last week that granted Ethiopia a 19% shareholding. The Federal Government has since dismissed the agreement as unconstitutional.
The security question will also likely dominate debate in both Houses particularly with regards to the implementation of the National Security Architecture in light of the phased exit of AMISOM and increased Al-Shabaab attacks in the city. Lawmakers may also be seeking to press the government on the raid of Senator Abdi Qebydiid’s home in January by security forces and on former presidential candidate Abdirahman Abdishakur in late December.
Key Headlines
- Federal Parliament To Re-open March 10 (Goobjoog News)
- Somali Lawmakers To Submit Motion Against Berbera Port Deal (Hiiraan Online)
- 74 Somali Prisoners Released From Indian Jails Arrive In Mogadishu (Radio Dalsan)
- PM Khaire To Address World Bank Fragility Forum Monday (Goobjoog News)
- Kenyan Police Seek To Recover Cache Of Arms After Al-Shabaab Attack (Xinhua Online)
- Turkey’s Foray Into Somalia Is A Huge Success But There Are Risks (The Conversation UK)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali Lawmakers To Submit Motion Against Berbera Port Deal
04 March – Source: Hiiraan Online – 216 Words
Somali lawmakers are carrying out plans to submit a motion against the Berbera Port deal, a Lawmaker confirmed. Mohamud Abukate, a member of Somalia’s Lower House spoke to the media calling the tripartite deal to manage Berbera Port illegal. Abukate said the complaint against the agreement between Somaliland, Ethiopia and DP World was underway as dozens have already supported the move. “This motion is totally different from the previous ones, this controversial deal indicates the violations against the legislative arm of the government,” said Abukate.
The move comes two days after Somaliland signed a deal with Ethiopia and DP World in the United Arab Emirates. Somaliland has refuted the Somali government’s dismissal of Berbera deal saying it has the right to sign an agreement with any partner. “Even though Somaliland was not recognized as a state, yet Somaliland has a constitution that 97% of its people voted for, therefore the constitution grants the right to ink an agreement with any entity,” Somaliland Information minister, Abdirahman Abdullahi Farah said.
The agreement between Somaliland and DP World whose first phase was signed in 2016 allows the Dubai based company to manage the Berbera Port for 30 years. Somaliland which once was part of Somalia has declared itself to be an independent country although the international community is yet to recognize it’s sovereignty.
74 Somali Prisoners Released From Indian Jails Arrive In Mogadishu
04 March – Source: Radio Dalsan – 112 Words
An aeroplane carrying at least 74 Somalis convicted of piracy and jailed in India landed at Aden Adde International Airport in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Sunday. The prisoners were received by Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohamed Guled and relatives. This is the second batch of prisoners to be released by India as part of an agreement between the two governments.
In January, 43 Somali nationals were released after completing their sentences in Indian jails. The prisoners had been in jail for seven years after they were arrested on the high seas by foreign naval forces in the height of piracy off the Somalia coast and the Gulf of Aden in 2011.
PM Khaire To Address World Bank Fragility Forum Monday
04 March – Source: Goobjoog News – 212 Words
Prime Minister Hassan Khaire will on Monday address the World Bank’s annual Fragility Forum in the US sharing on Somalia’s experience on managing risks for peace and stability. Khaire who left the country Sunday will also be joined by Women and Human Rights Minister Deqa Yusuf who will address the forum on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Fragile, Conflict/Violent Settings.
Under the theme, the 2018 Fragility Forum will bring together policy makers and practitioners from humanitarian, development, peace and security communities to share practical solutions and explore innovative ways to improve development approaches to foster peace and stability, the World Bank said in its website. According to the agenda of the three days Forum, PM Khaire will be among the panelists presenting on the topic Managing Risks for Peace and Stability alongside World Bank Chief Executive Officer, Kristalina Georgiev among others.
The PM will also be expected to meet representatives from the World Bank and other financial institutions as the country pushes for debt relief through the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative. Countries seeking debt relief must, under HIPC meet stringent fiscal and public sector reform benchmarks. The IMF said late last month it was impressed by Somalia’s track record towards debt relief citing improved fiscal and currency reform.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kenyan Police Seek To Recover Cache Of Arms After Al-Shabaab Attack
04 March – Source: Xinhua Online – 388 Words
Kenyan police have stepped up the search for the Somali extremists who attacked two camps in northeast Mandera county and stole a huge cache of arms after the two raids in which five police officers were killed. A police report released on Sunday said the terrorists blamed for sporadic attacks along Somalia border also looted the armory during the attacks, escaping with 16 G3 rifles, 26 AK47 rifles, 5 FN rifles, one F3 rifle, one M60 machine gun, one commando mortar 60mm and one base plate mortar 60mm.
The police report which was released two days after the raid by the Al-Shabaab militants says unknown number of ammunitions were also looted in the incident that left 12 police officers injured. The police said on Friday they have launched a major manhunt for Al-Shabaab group leader that attacked two police camps in Mandera County.
Police spokesman Charles Owino said Jamaa Nuh Abdille, who fled to Somalia with others after the Friday dawn attack in Fino, was behind the killing of five police officers. “We have since identified the leader of the group that carried out the attack as Jamaa Nuh Abdille who fled with others after the attack to Somalia and we are hot on their trail,” Owino said. According to the police report, the terrorists also destroyed a communication mast in the area affecting communication in general. Preliminary findings show the terrorists used Improvised Explosive Devices and other forms of explosives in the attack.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“For some parties inside and outside Somalia, Turkey is now viewed as indispensable to Somalia. The keys to Turkey’s reported success in Somalia – where so many other established powers have failed before – may revolve around four critical factors.”
Turkey’s Foray Into Somalia Is A Huge Success, But There Are Risks
04 March – Source: The Conversation – 917 Words
Turkey’s engagement with Somalia is striking for its brevity and ostensible success. Turkey has been involved in Somalia since just 2011, yet Ankara can point to a string of reported accomplishments and an arguably outsized presence in an often violent country regularly described as a failed state. Turkey’s presence in Somalia certainly embodies one of the most interesting regional geopolitical developments in the past decade. It also represents one of the most misunderstood and confusing. Why did Turkey choose Somalia? And, after its initial humanitarian intervention in 2011, what internal and external forces have shaped and expanded that involvement? Furthermore, what explains Turkey’s reported triumphs?
Some have pointed to a shared history and a common Sunni Muslim heritage. This is questionable, at best, and alone cannot explain Turkey’s engagement with Somalia – let alone the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. Others have noted Turkey’s economic clout and its status as a mid-sized country interested in trade rather than extracting resources. Genuine humanitarian concerns have also, at least initially, driven Turkey’s engagement as well as the prospect of economic gain. Scholar Federico Donelli notes its approach to Somalia “has made Turkey a regional actor different from the traditional western powers, as well as from the emerging non-western ones.”
Turkey’s approach in Somalia has been largely welcomed inside and outside the African nation. However, a cautionary note is required. Allegations of corruption and bribery have surfaced. Turkey’s recent opening of a military training base in Mogadishu to train the Somali National Army has also raised eyebrows across the wider Horn of Africa region. Ankara has an understandable and deep seated desire for international recognition as an emerging power and G20 member state. Its status in Somalia is part humanitarian and part financial, but is at its heart about influence and prestige.
Turkish money and aid – delivered directly to key stakeholders in the Somali Federal Government – ingratiate Turkey with local power brokers and provided Ankara with access and power in Mogadishu. What soon followed is Turkish control and management of Somalia’s most lucrative assets, the airport and seaport. Parallel to these were unilateral rebuilding efforts, offers of scholarships, renovations of hospitals, and the hosting of international conferences about Somalia. These have largely contributed positively to Somalia’s development and yielded the international acclaim and diplomatic clout craved by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his coterie.