May 5, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Kerry Visits Somalia; 1st Such Trip For A Secretary Of State
05 May – Source: Associated Press- 762 Words
Secretary of State John Kerry made an unannounced trip to Somalia Tuesday in a show of solidarity with a government trying to defeat al-Qaida-allied militants and end decades of war in the African country. He is first top U.S. diplomat ever to visit Somalia.
Kerry arrived at Mogadishu’s airport around noon local time and immediately entered a series of planned meetings that include Somalia’s president, prime minister and regional leaders, and civil society groups.The trip was made under tight security conditions. Somalia’s government only found out a day ago that Kerry would join the State Department’s top Africa official, Linda Greenfield-Thomas, on the voyage. And the fact that he was only dipping his toe in Somalia, and not venturing past the airport, highlighted just how dangerous and instable the country remains.Top of the agenda is the fight against al-Shabab. African forces and U.S. drone strikes have crippled the organization’s leadership in recent years and left the extremists without much of the territory they once controlled or the cash flows needed to reverse their losses.
Key Headlines
- One Killed And Two Others Injured in Somalia Grenade Attack (Somali Current)
- Second Puntland Official Resigns In Two Days (Garowe Online)
- Somalia Media Raise Concern Over Government’s New Directive (Somali Current)
- Both Somalia’s Government And Al-Shabaab Ban Each Other’s Name From Media (Somali Update)
- Former Senior Official Of Ahlu-Sunna Waljamaa Gunned Down In Mogadishu (Goobjog News)
- Kerry Visits Somalia; 1st Such Trip For A Secretary Of State (Associated Press)
- Kerry Says Kenya Has Role In Resolving Somalia South Sudan Conflicts (Reuters)
- RA Projects Designs Boarding School For Somalia (BD Online)
- KDF Cannot Exit Somalia Just Yet – Kerry (Capital FM)
- Somalia Islamists Storm Puntland Police Station Kill Three – Police (Reuters)
- Cord Lobbies For Somalia Pull Out (Daily Nation)
- Journalism In Somalia : Choosing Between Two Evils (Wardheer News)
- Somalia’s First Female Prosecutors Change The Face Of Justice (UNSOM)
CORRECTION:
The morning report posted a story titled “Ahmed Madobe Arrives In Mogadishu In An Visit” in which the current prime minister was misnamed. The sentence said US Secretary of State John Kerry was set to hold talks with President Hassan Sheikh and Prime Minister Abdiweli Ali Sharmarke. It should have read, Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke.
NATIONAL MEDIA
One Killed And Two Others Injured in Somalia Grenade Attack
05- May – Source: Somali Current – 113 Words
Reliable sources have confirmed that one civilian was killed and two others injured in the port town of Bosaasoon Monday evening after gunmen hurled grenade at a police checkpoint. So far no one has claimed the responsibility for the attack. In the recent months, Al Shabaab have been staging well-planned attacks insSemi-autonomous Puntland region, killing several and injuring dozens. Earlier today Al Shabaab fighters briefly seized an army base in Yalho Village approximately 50km from Bosaaso, reportedly killing one and injuring three others.
Second Puntland Official Resigns In Two Days
04- May- Source: Garowe Online – 127 Words
The mayor of Ayn, the regional capital of Buuhoodle, Yusuf Mohamed Hassan ‘Abgaal’ resigned on Mondaymorning, making him the second Puntland official to step down in two days, Garowe Online reports. Abgaal told media at a press briefing that he resigned from the post after the current Puntland administration failed to deliver on its promises. “Development projects are nonexistent in Ayn, and [the] Interior Ministry has failed to set up a municipal council for Buuhoodle,” said the outgoing Buuhoodle Mayor. On Sunday, Deputy Galkayo Mayor Yacqub Mohamed Abdullahi submitted his resignation letter, pointing to incompetence and failure to rise to pledges on the part of the Puntland administration. The two resignations might present unprecedented test for the Puntland President who is currently on a visit to neighboring Kenya. Puntland army troops and judicial officials have staged a series of strikes for long overdue pays.
Somali Media Raise Concern Over Government’s New Directive
05 May – Source: Somali Current – 126 Words
The federal government directed all Somalia Mediato stop using the word Al-Shabaab and instead ordered them to refer the group as ‘UGUS’ and acronym for ‘the group that massacres the Somali people’. “The name Al Shabaab means youth and that is good name. We will not allow that good name to be tainted”, said Somalia Chief of Intelligence, Abdurrahman Turyare. Media groups voiced their concern of the new directive, arguing the new orders put their lives on danger and called the government to withdraw its orders. “We are independent journalists and cannot work like state media. If the government doesn’t go back on this decision many journalists will stop working,” said Hassan Ali Gessey, the Chairman of Somalia Media House Association.
Both Somalia’s Government And Al-Shabaab Ban Each Other’s Name From Media
05 May – Source: Somali Update – 284 Words
It seems the risks that Somali journalists are facing is increasing instead of diminishing after both Somalia’s Federal Government and the militant group Al-Shabaab banned each other’s name from use by the media. On Sunday, while journalists across the world were celebrating to mark the International World Press Freedom Day, Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security chief Gen. Abdurahman Mohamed Tuuryare declared that NISA banned the media’s use of the name “Al-Shabaab”. Instead he directed the media to use the name “UGUS”, a Somali language acronym which in literally means “the group that massacres Somali people”.
Gen Tuuryare warned the media of ignoring his directives as he vowed that there will be consequences if any media outlet in the country does not follow this order. A day after the directive, the militant group Al-Shabaab issued a statement which was posted on several websites affiliated to the group. They ordered the media to change the name of the Federal Government of Somalia to “the group that shelters colonialism”. The contradictory directives endanger the lives of Somali journalists who have already suffered from a series of assassinations in the country. Last week, a radio journalist and his wife were shot and killed in Baidoa town, in southern Somalia, demonstrating that journalists in Somalia are still facing a dire security situation. Al-Shabaab controls many rural areas in the country, and has been waging constant hit and run attacks and bomb explosions, while the government has failed to provide adequate protection for journalists.
Former Senior Official Of Ahlu-Sunna Waljamaa Gunned Down In Mogadishu
04 May – Source: Goobjoog News – 108 Words
A former senior official of paramilitary group, Ahlu-Sunna Waljamaa, Mohamed Shidane Diriye was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Bakara Market on Sunday evening. Eyewitnesses confirmed that the victim, who returned from South Africa few months ago, was killed in front of his shop in the market. Reliable sources say that Diriye was a high ranking official of Ahlu-Sunna Waljamaa in early 2008, and once served as the head of security forces in Dusamareeb town. The assailants escaped from the scene of the attack before the police reached the area. No group has claimed the responsibility of the killing, but it is thought to be Al-Shabab which views Ahlu-Sunna Waljama as an enemy.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kerry Says Kenya Has Role In Resolving Somalia, South Sudan Conflicts
05 May – Source: Reuters – 446 Words
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Kenya on Monday it had an important role in helping resolve conflicts in South Sudan and Somalia and pledged $45 million in new aid to help it deal with 600,000 refugees.Speaking after meetings with Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition politicians in Nairobi, he said recent attacks by Somali al Shabaab Islamist militants in Kenya were part of the cost of playing that role.”We believe it is absolutely critical for Africa to be front and center in the solutions to challenges in Africa,” Kerry told a news conference. “Kenya will be safer if Somalia is more stable, Kenya will be safer if South Sudan can resolve its problems,” he added. Kenya first sent its troops into neighboring Somalia in 2011 after several attacks on its territory that it blamed on al Shabaab. It later joined the AMISOM peacekeeping force and currently has 3,664 troops in Somalia.
RA Projects Designs Boarding School For Somalia
05 May – Source: BD Online – 344 Words
RA Projects has designed a new boarding school for Sheikh, a small highland town in northern Somalia. It will aim to to prepare Somalis for top universities around the world and will contain international-standard teaching facilities including classrooms, labs, and accommodation for students. RA Projects was appointed to design the new school in keeping with the nation’s modernist tradition. It is funded by a former Apple executive based in the UAE, himself part of the Somali diaspora. Work could start on site early next year. Sheikh was once renowned as the home of a colonial-era school known as the Eton of Somaliland. Sheikh School, which was equipped with impressive facilities and whose alumni include the current president of Somaliland, is still operating but suffered badly during the civil war.
The town is officially part of war-ravaged Somalia but it is also in the northwestern region of Somaliland which declared independence in 1991 and has been operating successfully ever since as a quasi-state with its own government. “It would be very difficult to pull off such a project in south central Somalia because of the politics and local conditions,” said Rashid Ali, founder of RA Projects which was shortlisted for BD’s Young Architect of the Year Award in 2011. “But Somaliland is stable and the government is keen to facilitate projects like this so the land comes free. “It’s a really great project,” added Ali, a Londoner born in Somaliland’s capital, Hargeisa, who was behind a photographic exhibition of Mogadishu held at west London’s Mosaic Rooms last year. “We’re working with a great client who wants a fantastic piece of architecture that builds on the country’s modernist architectural legacy.”
KDF Cannot Exit Somalia Just Yet – Kerry
04 May – Source: Capital FM News – 566 Words
Kenya has been urged to concentrate its efforts in stabilising Somalia before it can pull its troops out of the war torn country. Visiting US Secretary of State John Kerry said Kenya cannot withdraw its military from Somalia just yet, pointing out that the role the forces are playing is critical in ensuring stability in the Horn of Africa nation. “We need the exit strategy, but it needs to be a success and we need a clearer sense of how the success will come,” Kerry said. He stressed that the exit strategy needed to be carefully thought out to ensure it did not create more problems for Kenya. “Somalia is making progress; Al Shabaab is being beaten back and is being pushed back and the political system is coming alive again,” said Kerry.
“Kenya will be safe if Somalia is more stable, Kenya will safer if South Sudan can resolve its problems; Kenya will be safer if there aren’t more refugees pouring around the border because those communities cannot pull themselves together,” he added. He added that the United States was willing to work with Kenya to ensure peace was restored in the neighbouring countries saying they would increase funding to the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) to ensure they had all the necessary assets to accomplish their mission. He said cooperation between the United States and Kenya had seen them spend over $645 million in the fight against terror adding that this year alone, they had donated $100 million. “We are deeply engaged in trying to help Kenya. We are working in border security, intelligence sharing, law enforcement and capacity building. We provide equipment to key sections in the military,” he added.
“This is not just a challenge to Kenya, it is a challenge for the whole world… we have to do better in this regard.” He intimated that in the next few weeks Kenya will host a counter violent extremism summit bringing together experts from all over the world to come up with strategies of depleting the pool of future terrorists. He however maintained that even as the fight against terror takes shape, Kenya should be careful not to infringe on human rights in the process in apparent reference to statements by government officials proposing the closure of the Dadaab refugee camp. Kerry expressed hope that the camp will remain open until the situation in Somalia is contained further sympathising with Kenya over the challenges brought about by the growing number of refugees who are now threatening the country’s security.
Somalia Islamists Storm Puntland Police Station, Kill Three – Police
05 May – Source: Reuters – 239 Words
Somalia’s al Shabaab militants stormed a police station in the country’s semi-autonomous region of Puntland and killed three policemen late on Monday, police said. Several militants from the Islamist group were also killed during the brief siege of the police station in Yalho village, near the port town of Bosasso, police said. “Al Shabaab attacked us with rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns last night. They briefly captured the station and killed three of my colleagues,” Major Ismail Aden, a local police officer, told Reuters on Tuesday. “We later came with reinforcement and recaptured the station, and we killed several of the militants,” he said. Al Shabaab’s military spokesman confirmed the group’s involvement in the attack, and said it had killed five police.
Al Shabaab, which has links to al Qaeda, has frequently carried out attacks in Somalia and neighbouring countries as it seeks to impose its strict interpretation of Islamic law and overthrow the Somali government, which is backed by Western donors and African peacekeepers.The group, which once controlled Mogadishu and large chunks of territory in other regions, was driven out of the capital in 2011 and has been losing ground since then. But it has continued to launch attacks, including several across the border in Kenya. “We captured the police station and… we killed five policemen,” the group’s military spokesman, Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, told Reuters on Monday.
Cord Lobbies For Somalia Pull Out
04 May – Source: Daily Nation – 225 Words
The modalities of withdrawing Kenyan troops from Somalia was among the issues US Secretary of State John Kerry discussed with opposition leaders. Mr Kerry held talks with leaders led by Raila Odinga at Serena HotelMonday afternoon moments after he visited President Kenyatta at State House. Mr Odinga and his co-principals in the Cord opposition coalition Kalonzo Musyoka and Bungoma Senator Moses Wentang’ula have been calling for the withdrawal of the Kenya Defence Forces from Somalia following the continued attacks by the Al Shabaab militants.
The latest was the killing of 147 people at Garissa University early last month. But President Kenyatta has remained firm, saying KDF are in Somalia to stay. “We have discussed about the possible exit strategy for our troops in Somalia and Mr Kerry has told us what President Obama did to pull out American troops from Iraq and Afghanistan,” Mr Musyoka told journalists soon after the talks. Mr Kerry also discussed regional stability, with particular focus on Burundi and South Sudan, with opposition leaders. And they touched on national security, war on corruption and the need to reform the IEBC ahead of the 2017 elections. Asked about his expectation of the meetings, Mr Kerry said he wanted to listen and learn from Kenyan leaders and also discuss President Obama’s visit.
OPINION/ANALYSIS/CULTURE
“There is no denying that the Al-Shabaab terror group is a clear and present danger to Somalia, its people and the neighbouring countries. Therefore, it is important for the Somali Federal Government (SFG) to provide a comprehensive military, political, economic and social plan that will eradicate the radical group and save the Somali populace.The question that begs for an answer is: Will calling the Al-Shabaab a name coined by the SFG in the press solve the country’s security meltdown”
Journalism In Somalia : Choosing Between Two Evils
05 May – Source: Wardheer News – 566 Words
May 3rd is the World Press Freedom Day as designated by the United Nations. It is a day in which both governments and their nationals are reminded of the inalienable right of the freedom of press and freedom of expression which are enshrined under Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. For the last few years, Somalia has been celebrating May 3rd. But there is a new dimension to this important day. Instead of addressing the issue of protecting the press and journalists, the Somali government has issued a decree that puts more burden on the press. The Somali chief of intelligence and security, General Abdirahman Mohamoud Tuuryare, announced on May 3rd that, effective immediately, mass media must call Al-Shabaab (which means Youth) a new name, UGUS (Ururka Gumaadka Ummadda Soomaaliyeed) which stands for the Union of Annihilating the Somali Nation).
There is no denying that the Al-Shabaab terror group is a clear and present danger to Somalia, its people and the neighbouring countries. Therefore, it is important for the Somali Federal Government (SFG) to provide a comprehensive military, political, economic and social plan that will eradicate the radical group and save the Somali populace.The question that begs for an answer is: Will calling the Al-Shabaab a name coined by the SFG in the press solve the country’s security meltdown? It is unfortunate that the Somali government, which is engaged in an all-out propaganda war against Al-Shabaab, wants to enlist Somalia’s independent press as an ally. It is neither the function of the press nor its responsibility to be a mouthpiece or a tool for the government in its war against the terror organization. The job of the press is to report to the Somali public what is happening in the country without taking any side.
“Mitch Dufresne, the Officer-in-Charge of ROLSIG and Director Joint Justice and Corrections Section UNSOM, noted that it is a good sign that Somalia is recognizing the value of women as professionals in public life and utilizing all its available human resources to revamp its state agencies. Ms Dufresne said that having women in decision-making positions will enhance the delivery of justice in the country. “Gender balance can contribute in a positive way with women in decision-making positions to influence delivery of justice to the population,” she explained.”
Somalia’s First Female Prosecutors Change The Face Of Justice
04 May – Source: UNSOM – 540 Words
In a historic move aimed at enhancing the delivery of justice, Somalia has recently appointed six female prosecutors. They are the first women to be appointed prosecutors since the collapse of the central government in 1991. The new prosecutors were trained in Somalia over a period of 7 months by the Office of the Attorney-General, as part of the general effort at improving access to justice. According to Ms Amal, one of the new appointees, the inclusion of women in the legal profession will help to address challenges faced by all Somalis, women in particular. Ms Amal, who has studied Sharia law at Mogadishu University, believes that their biggest challenge will be to fight corruption and favouritism, which she said are major obstacles to accessing justice in Somalia.
“The reason why I studied law and worked hard to be among the first female prosecutors in my country was mainly to ensure justice for all, because we have caused so much injustice to each other as Somalis. It is about time we ended this impunity, corruption, nepotism and favouritism, if we are to prosper as a nation, because there can never be peace without justice and that is why we are determined to be the defenders of justice and to lead by example,” she said. Mr Abbi Ali, a senior official from the Ministry of Justice, said that the new prosecutors are expected to boost confidence in the justice system among women. “These 6 ladies were the first female prosecutors in Somalia’s history. We are really excited about it, and we are confident they will serve their people with dedication because they are really enthusiastic about bringing a change because they were born, raised and educated in the country and have witnessed a lot, so they are really focused on seeing that justice is served to all in accordance with the law,” said Mr Ali.
TOP TWEETS
@Atulinda_Allan: US Sec of State John Kerry in #Somalia: making him the 1st US Secretary of State to visit the country.
@SomaliEmbassyUS: US Pledges Unity in Fight against terrorism @JohnKerry @StateDept #Kenya. secretary state visit #Somalia first time http://youtu.be/iS75vw3yPLI
@robynkrielCNN: Three prime ministers in three years…Plus few laws passed in parliament… Hence the need 4 pressure by@StateDept &others #somalia
@ThabitMhd: Apart from closing down main roads, things seem fairly operative in the city which is a sign of improvement and progress #Somalia
@Hamza_Africa: Why is everyone saying Kerry in surprise visit to #Somalia? Most Somalis in Somalia and abroad knew he was going to #Mogadishu!
@Zoe_Flood: Gen. Julius Karangi, who led inconclusive incursion into #Somalia, retires as Chief of #Kenya Defence Forces: http://www.nation.co.ke/news/
IMAGE OF THE DAY
John Kerry lands in Mogadishu. Photo: Twitter – Nation FM