November 6, 2015 | Morning Headlines
Somali Troops Free Iranian Sailors From Pirates Captivity
05 November – Source: Hiiraan Online – 217 Words
Security forces with a regional administration in central Somalia on Wednesday freed four Iranian sailors kidnapped by pirates last year, officials said Thursday. Troops from Galmudug administration have reportedly raided a house occupied by pirates near Adado town after tip off by residents, freeing the hostages who were chained inside a villa house. No causalities have so far been reported as soldiers later moved the freed Iranian sailors to safety to prepare them to fly to Tehran in the next few days. No comment could be reached from the Iranian foreign ministry on the operation which freed five of ten Iranian sailors abducted in Somalia last year.
Five more Iranians remain in pirates’ custody as two pirate factions who hijacked the fishing vessel on which the Iranians were onboard have separated their hostages after arguments. Iran is among dozens of countries that send ships to Somalia’s coasts to plunder the country’s rich fishing grounds. A recent report by the United Nations Somalia and Eritrea monitoring group warned that piracy that caused havoc to international shipping off Somalia’s coast over the past decade may return if illegal foreign fishing, worth an annual $306 million is not stopped. Growing local resentment risks a revival of the piracy epidemic that roiled the region from about 2001 to 2012, the group said.
Key Headlines
- Somali Troops Free Iranian Sailors From Pirates Captivity (Hiiraan Online)
- Death Toll Rises In Belet Hawo Al-Shabaab Attack (Wacaal Media)
- Puntland DC Says Ready To Locally Fight Illegal Fishing Protests Called (Garowe Online)
- Floods Wreck Havoc in Mahaday Lower Shabelle Residents Appeal For Help (Goobjoog News)
- UN-Backed Gender Violence Hotline Aims To Help Displaced Somalis (Xinhua)
- Somalia To Deport Illegal Migrants From Kenya (BBC)
- Somalia Lemon Farmers Strive To Secure Middle East Market (CCTV)
- UN Monitoring Group Forewarns Manipulations Of 2016 Election (Somali Current)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Death Toll Rises In Belet Hawo Al-Shabaab Attack
05 November – Source: Wacaal Media – 70 Words
The death toll from Al-Shabaab’s early morning in Belet Hawo has risen to 6 including 3 police officers. This comes after 4 people succumbed to their injuries. 12 others are currently nursing gunshot wounds. The armed militants used a vehicle they hijacked from Tulo Barwako a week ago belonging to a khat businessman in the area. Additional reports indicate that the attackers later died after their vehicle rolled several times outside the town as they fled.
Puntland DC Says Ready To Locally Fight Illegal Fishing, Protests Called
05 November – Source: Garowe Online – 105 Words
Bandar Bayla District Commissioner has pledged that local fishermen are ready to fight against damaging illegal fishing vessels. “Puntland Marine Forces aren’t here, we will mobilize ourselves, volunteering to confront illegal trawlers,” he warned. The district commissioner also blamed the regional government for failing to protect marine resources from foreign depletion. However, illegal fishing has been met with outcry, with Puntland Counter-piracy Directorate calling for mass protests in the wake of the alarming pillage of catches in territorial waters. The call comes as Puntland is gearing up for a conference on the issue set to be attended by mayors, district commissioners and civil society.
Floods Wreck Havoc In Mahady, Lower Shabelle, Residents Appeal For Help
05 November – Source: Goobjoog News – 102 Words
Residents of Mahady in Lower Shabelle are appealing for help from the Federal Government and International agencies as the River Shabelle bursts its banks following torrential rains which have been pounding the area for a number of days.The district administration and elders have also warned of devastating impact if there is no immediate response as the effects of El Nino phenomenon continue to be felt in some parts of the country.The agricultural areas in the southern regions of Somalia are mostly affected as they border the River Shabelle which also provides a lifeline for farmers especially during the dry season.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
UN-Backed Gender Violence Hotline Aims To Help Displaced Somalis
05 November – Source: Xinhua – 292 Words
UN-backed toll free hotline has been launched in Somalia for victims of gender violence among internally displaced persons (IDPs).Dubbed Ceebla in Somali, the hotline 5555 is supported by UN agencies, including the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM).It offers victims the required information about emergency medical services and how to lodge a complaint with police through the helpline.
UNSOM Human Rights Officer Abdinasir Moallin, speaking during the training on the use of the hotline, said the training aimed to sensitize IDPs on the services available.”This training for IDPs from camps in Mogadishu on gender-based violence is meant to raise awareness and enhance their understanding,” Moallin said in a statement issued on Thursday.”We are also sharing with them information on services available for victims of gender-based violence, which includes domestic violence and rape,” he added.
Sexual and gender-based violence is pervasive in Somalia with internally displaced women and girls being the most affected.Local people say rape continues to be perpetrated by unknown armed men and “men wearing military uniform”. Cases of sexual and gender-based violence in Somalia also include domestic violence, harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation, and early and forced marriage. The majority of the survivors are women aged 18 and above.
Somalia To Deport Illegal Migrants From Kenya
05 November – Source: BBC News – 331 Words
A Somali court has ordered the deportation of 27 Kenyans found to be in the country illegally.This is the first time in 25 years that Somalia is to expel foreigners for overstaying their visas.The men have also been fined $10 (£6.50) for each day they were in the country illegally.The BBC’s Mohammud Ali says job opportunities for foreigners have opened up as peace has gradually returned to Somalia.
Judge Hashi Elmi Noor said that the case was a warning to others who are found to be in the country illegally.It is not clear how long the deportees had stayed in Somalia.Our correspondent says that a growing number of foreigners are taking up jobs in the construction and hotel industries, while others are getting teaching jobs in colleges and schools. According to a recent Somali law, work permits are now mandatory for all foreigners and employers are urged to give first priority to Somali nationals.The government is trying to create job opportunities for young people but the damage to the education system caused by the civil war has left many without crucial skills.Years of anarchy in Somalia followed the downfall of President Mohammed Siad Barre in 1991 and more than a million Somalis fled the country as a result, with nearly half a million ending up in Kenya.
Somalia Lemon Farmers Strive To Secure Middle East Market
05 November – Source: CCTV – Video: 2:21 Minutes
Better security in parts of Somalia has allowed farmers to get back to work, peacefully. Lemon farmers in the country are now keen to take advantage of demand for the produce in the Middle East, as Abdulaziz Billow, reports
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“But, any hopeful expectation for a legitimate election in 2016 is defeated by the publications of series negative reports against the federal government and regional administrations.”
UN Monitoring Group Forewarns Manipulations Of 2016 Election
03 November – Source: Somali Current – 1,382 Words
Elections in regular intervals for accountability and opportunity of change of poorly performing political leaders are one of the fundamental pillars of democratic governance. But, the legitimacy of 2016 election in Somalia is hugely compromised in advance by the serious charges of corruption and abuse of power repeatedly leveled against the leaders of the federal government. Therefore, the 2016 election could provoke political and security turmoil.
The 2012 selection process of the members of the Federal Parliament has been characterized corrupt because the powerholders and the international community controlled the design and implementation of the process through ad hoc structures (technical committees) and financial resources for buy-in. Traditional leaders took cue from the deal-making, behavior, and messages of their duplicitous handlers.
Again, the 2016 election goes through the same 2012 manipulation process because with the agreement of the international community, the current powerholders at national and regional levels secured unchecked political influence and resources to manipulate the rules of the game. As a solution, it is necessary that qualified and independent actors familiar with local conditions assume the responsibility of designing the electoral framework, while each constituency should be allowed to take full control of the implementation phase without external interferences.
From the outset, top leaders of the federal government took control of the inclusion or exclusion of members in the Somali National Consultative Leadership Forum (SNCLF) formed under the initiative of the international community to find an alternative to the cancelled 2016 “one person one vote election.” Members of parliament, cabinet, and judiciary from Isaq community issued a protest petition in which they complain their exclusion from SNCLF and demand 33% quota as northern community (Somaliland).The SNCLF brings together ill-assorted actors as a national decision making body on an alternative electoral model. It supplants the constitutional federal institutions.