May 4, 2012 | Morning Headlines.
Kenyan army targets al Shabaab training bases in southern Somalia
03 May – Source: Mareeg Online – 88 words
Kenyan forces have reportedly bombarded several al Shabaab military training bases in a town in Somalia’s southern region of Lower Jubba region, according to the local residents. Reports confirm that Kenyan military opened mortar fire on rebel bases at Qoqani town, an insurgent stronghold in Lower Jubba region, causing an unconfirmed casualty on the militants.
Key Headlines
- A Joint Communiqué between the Ministry of Information and the National Union of Somali Journalists to mark Day of World Press Freedom in Mogadishu (Source: TFG)
- AU Special Representative congratulates Somali journalists for their contribution towards the peace process
- Kenyan army targets on al Shabaab training bases in southern Somalia (Source: Mareeg Online)
- Reporters without borders slams increasing attacks on journalists (Source: Kuwait News Agency)
- UN leader outraged at mounting media deaths ( Source: AFP)
- Bin Laden documents describe Somali group contacts ( Source: AP)
PRESS RELEASE
A Joint Communiqué between the Ministry of Information and the National Union of Somali Journalists to mark Day of World Press Freedom in Mogadishu (Source: TFG)
03 May – Source: TFG – 313 words
In this important gathering that celebrates for the World Press Freedom on May 3, 2012, We, the representatives from the local media houses and international, including the National Union of Somali Journalists and the Ministry of Information, Posts and Telecommunications, agreed on a number of principles that are essential to the press freedom and its security to operate safely in these environments.
The Joint:
1. Recognizes the important contributions of media to our society, and reaffirmed our commitment to promote openness and support the press freedom to advance the social aspirations and human rights.
2. Stresses that the media has an important role to play in strengthening the peace and promoting respect for the rule of law, especially in this critical period throughout the post-transition. The joint encourages responsible journalism and ethical reporting practices.
3. Underlines the importance of the safety of journalists and demanded government to ensure that journalists are given protections, especially when dealing with imminent threats from particular groups.
4. Recognizes the difficult circumstances in which the journalists work in Somalia and the dangers involved in reporting truth. With that, we strongly condemn the killing of journalists, especially that of Farhan James Abdulle, a Radio Daljir Reporter, who was murdered last night in Galkayo. The joint urges investigations to be conducted immediately and ensure that justice prevails.
5. Emphasizes the need to strengthen and support the Press Freedom and to ensure that the government eliminates all sources of violence against the Press.
6. Underscores the need to defend the common interests of society in living peace and protecting the rights of journalists, including providing adequate and decent wages.
7. Expresses strong determinations to confront the challenges faced by the Press by enhancing the relationship between the government and the media houses.
8. Adjourned the conference with a set of goals that should be followed up jointly to ensure the effective implementation of those principles.
AU Special Representative congratulates Somali journalists for their contribution towards the peace process
03 May – Source: AMISOM – 254 words
On the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day today, the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Boubacar Gaoussou Diarra has congratulated Somali journalists for their continued contribution towards the peace process despite the harsh environment in which they operate.
Ambassador Diarra noted that through various media outlets, journalists in Somalia continue to provide important information pertaining to peace, freedom of expression and individual rights which he said is necessary to ensuring that the population is kept fully aware and educated on the entire process. He said the current peace process in Somalia can only bear fruits if it has the support of ordinary people hence the important role of journalists is highly appreciated.
The AU Special Representative observed with concern however that the lives of journalists is constantly in danger because of activities of some terrorists who are bent on disrupting the current momentum for peace that Somalia with the support of AMISOM is slowly achieving. “It is encouraging to know the high level of dedication and enthusiasm being displayed by journalists in Somalia despite the dangerous environment in which they operate. Though Somalia remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists, they continue to perform their duty of informing the nation with courage and I salute them for that.” He said.
Ambassador Diarra reaffirmed AMISOM’s continued commitment to working with Somali journalists in order to ensure the return of peace and stability to the country after two decades of fighting.
SOMALI MEDIA
Ahlu Sunna in Gedo up in arms with charcoal burners
03 May – Source: Bar-kulan – 171 words
Ahlu Sunna administration in the border town of Beled-hawo on Thursday announced that people found felling trees to transform them into charcoal will be fined 60 dollars. Speaking at a public gathering in Beled-hawo town, the area’s district commissioner Mohamoud Ahmed Odweyne said his administration will not tolerate individuals felling tree haphazardly.
Kenyan army targets al Shabaab training bases in southern Somalia
03 May – Source: Mareeg Online – 88 words
Kenyan forces have reportedly bombarded several al Shabaab military training bases in a town in Somalia’s southern region of Lower Jubba region, according to the local residents. Reports confirm that Kenyan military opened mortar fire on rebel bases at Qoqani town, an insurgent stronghold in Lower Jubba region, causing an unconfirmed casualty on the militants.
World Press Freedom Day 2012 marked in Hargeisa
03 May – Source: Somaliland Press – 140 words
The World Press Freedom Day was jointly established in 1991 by UNESCO and the United Nations Department of Public Information, in the framework of a conference held in Windhoek, Namibia and Hargeisa. The conference, which gave us the Windhoek Declaration, emphasized the idea that press freedom should be understood as necessitating pluralism and independence for the mass media at large.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Reporters without borders slams increasing attacks on journalists
03 May – Source: Kuwait News Agency – 66 words
Coinciding with “World press Freedom Day” Reports Without Borders slammed on Thursday “the furious pace of physical attacks on news providers” which resulted in the deaths of 21 journalists and six Bloggers so far in 2012.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
UN leader outraged at mounting media deaths
03 May – Source: AFP – 617 words
UN leader Ban Ki-moon on Thursday led international outrage at the growing number of journalists killed in the line of duty amid widespread calls for greater protection for reporters.
Ban told a World Press Freedom Day event at the UN headquarters that journalists now face “dire threats” and highlighted that more than 60 were killed in 2011.
Bin Laden documents describe Somali group contacts
03 May – Source: AP – 608 words
Osama bin Laden didn’t want to publicly recognize the Somali militant group al Shabaab as a part of al Qaida because it would bring extra attention from “enemies,” but months after his death, al Qaida and al Shabaab announced a formal merger.
In a letter to al Shabaab leader Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, Bin Laden’s advised against such an announcement. It’s unclear if the Somali militant actually received the letter.
Belgian, Tunisian in Kenya court for militant link
03 May – Source: AP/Seattle Times – 98 words
A judge in Kenya has heard a Belgian and a Tunisian plead guilty to charges of being in the country illegally after the pair were arrested near the border with Somalia. Judge Stephen Riech later Thursday is expected to sentence Belgian Hassan Kafi and Tunisian Mohammed Debarli.
Anti-terror police arrested the two near the Kenyan coastal town of Lamu on Wednesday. The two have denied claims that they were traveling from Somalia to Kenya.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“We must end the tumult against the draft constitution, and defuse the unnecessary public outcry. Pass the draft constitution—we can amend it in four years time. But we cannot let current opportunities to end the transition slip away”.
End the Transition, Pass the Draft Constitution
03 May – Source: Wardheer News – 1145 words
Hamadhán is my native town, I must allow it that honour, but it is the vilest of cities. In ugliness its children are like its old men, and, in reason, its old men are like its children. Those are the famous lines of Hafiz, Abú’l-Fal al-Hamadhání, surnamed Badí ‘al-Zamán (the Wonder of the Age) satirizing his native place, the city of Hamadhán.
As if al-Hamadhání’s pointed verses were not enough to make the point of people of Hamadhán’s churlishness, his instructor, Ibn Fáris, eloquently summarized the uninspiring character of Hamadhán and its people in a rhetorical question. ‘Why should I not ‘, asked he, ‘offer a sincere prayer for that city where I had the good fortune of forgetting all I ever learned?’ And forgetting all we ever learned is what we Somalis are doing today. Since our central government fell, our cities and country pillaged, and despite the vivid embarrassment and humiliation our people face on a daily basis, we are still practicing petty politics as we always did. We never fail to squander every opportunity that knocks our doors. We cannot see forest, as it were, for the trees. As Somalia enters a new season of hope, the petty politicians and the shortsighted clannish leaders are once again dominating the airwaves to confuse the issues and mislead the Somali people. This time, the target of their collective attack is the new draft constitution. It is even sadder, I must say, that some religious leaders are jumping the gun, issuing incomplete verdicts and resorting to empty Islamic rhetoric.
Today’s opposition against the effort to transition the country from the current transitional status is sadly in line with how we Somalis always reacted to any major effort that was undertaken to address the Somali tragedy. Whether that effort was initiated by the Somalis themselves as the case was with Mogadishu’s Islamic Courts, or externally organized as was the case in the 1992 International effort led by the US, the Arta conference of 2000 and the political process that produced current TFI political framework, our reaction and the ultimate outcome were the same.
Today we complain about the AMISOM presence, decrying the apparent UN and neighboring countries’ influence on our internal affairs. Yet we forget it is we that enabled, and in some cases compelled, others to intervene. We forget that it is we that destroyed our cities, raped our women, displaced our innocent people, and forced them to leave their homeland. We forget that the largest refugee camp in the world exclusively houses Somali people—majority being women and children.