Reprinting of Polarizing Despots: Baseless Claims On “Saylac” By a Clan Who Predominately Resides in Djibouti Has No Merit or Historical context

Introduction: The historical and brotherly relationship between  Somaliland and Djibouti went rock bottom since 1977, when Djibouti-former French Somaliland became a semi-independent state. Somaliland was the traditional sanctuary for the people of Djibouti, where they feel safe from the ravages of the brutal French colonial authorities. While on the other hand, Djibouti authorities have imposed undeclared sanctions on the people of Somaliland in their hour of need.

Both the Djibouti governments of Hassan Guled and Geelle closed the border between the two countries nearly a dozen times since 1991. In almost all cases, that illegal and arbitrary closure of the border may have been largely motivated by clan hatred, insecurity, unwarranted fear or shear incompetence of understanding the consequences. The movement of goods and people between Somaliland and Djibouti  was a matter of life and death at the time.

Djiboutians used to be admitted to the country’s boarding schools for free. At the height of Djibouti’s struggle for independence, the people of Somaliland and Somalia for that matter were fully with them. Djiboutian refugees have been welcomed with open arms. But since the independence of 1977, everything went upside down.

When Siyad Barre’s dictatorship was ravaging Somaliland and other parts of the  Somalia, Hassan Guled the former Djibouti president blatantly sided with Siyad Barre. As a result of that wrong policy, Somaliland refugees suffered serious violation of their human rights.They were subjected to all kinds of mistreatment including deportation, police brutality, arbitrary imprisonment and physical assault.

The Djibouti government refused to recognize refugees fleeing Siyad Barre’s brutal military machine. These people who left behind all their possessions, have to hide among relatives in Djibouti and never were given a refugee status. On the other hand, the so-called Issa refugees from Ethiopia have been given automatic refugee status.

That was a flagrant violation of the universal declaration of human rights signed in Geneva in “1949″. As a signatory of the afore-said protocol, Djibouti has breached that important document and its tenets. In contrast during the peak of Djibouti’s independence struggle of the 1970s, Djiboutian refugees were all welcomed with open arms, and used to be given free meals and free hotels almost anywhere in Somaliland and Somalia.

The above-mentioned principles will be only respected If Single-clan dominated African Banana Republics were real states headed by real national leaders, but not artificial clan enclaves masquerading as real states and led by Clan chieftains.  Unfortunately the latter may true here.

I wonder how come former refugees welcomed, comforted and supported treat their former hospitable hosts with such a harsh treatment, deportation, exclusion and hatred. What exactly went wrong? many of us are still wrestling with the reasons that triggered such asymmetrical behaviors.

Both the former president Hassan Guled and his Successor, and the current one Mr. Geelle were behind such distasteful policies, which seriously strained the historical brotherly relationship between the people of Djibouti and Somaliland. These hostile and unreasonable policies against anything Somali are well and alive as I speak.

Djibouti’s so-called presidential election of 2005

Seeing the president for  life of this tiny state campaigning for his re-election was ludicrous. You may wonder why he was frantically campaigning when there was no opponent running against him. But you may come to your senses and remember you are in Africa. It was actually fun to watch Mr. Geelle crisscrossing Djibouti, kissing babies, greeting and waving to people.

That whimsical act just looks like a scene from a fictional movie acting by a fictional character.This Machiavellian, manipulative maharajah (king or prince) keeps on coming with different colors and faces. Grasping his real intentions, aspirations and conspiracies is almost next to impossible. This wolf in sheep’s clothes has so far deceived almost everybody. But at the end of the day, the words opportunistic, selfish, myopic, despotic, clannish, callous and inept will be all over his finger prints.

He systematically used all the government machinery including the media, government officials, transportation and what have you to put him on top. Following his winning of the trade mark; traditional 99% of the vote in the presidential election, he has metamorphosed into fully grown despot along the lines of Africa’s notorious big men, regarding the rigging of elections. People such as Milton Obotte, clownish Bukassa, Mughabe, Hosni Mubarak, and Mobutu the inept butcher who engineered the assassination of a beloved African nationalist leader Patrice Lumumba will come to mind.

During the time of Djibouti’s unique presidential elections, the US state department issued the following and I quote ” Mr. Geelle deprived from his people the ability to change their government”.  Djibouti’s one man presidential election of 2005, have completed the metamorphosis of Mr. Geelle  from a semi-despot into a full fledged one with all his attributes, from the extermination of the freedom of expression of his citizens, creating a well-funded, omnipresent secret service agency, monitoring and watching the activities of their citizens round the clock, and spending a big chunk of the countries meager budget on his personal security detail.

I would also like to draw your attention into Geelle’s blemished resume. Since the country’s achievement of the nominal independence in 1977, he  was a notorious secret services director in the Hassan Guled government. The full-fledged dictator thinks the French mercenaries stationed in his min-state will suppress those opposing his dictatorial regime.

The performance of French forces in Ivory Coast proved otherwise. They failed to stop the onslaught of the opposition groups who occupied the northern part of the country. We must also have to cautiously take note, of Geelle’s burning  propensity to violent attacks against his political enemies.

This eternal presence of French foreign forces certainly make him feel bold, invincible, unaccountable, intransigent and keeps on committing serious civil and human rights violations. The presence of said forces is an open ended proposition. Therefore, I have the liberty to infer that France is in full complicity with Geelle regarding his improprieties and violence against his people.

The withdrawal of those mercenaries from Djibouti appears to be in no one’s agenda anywhere. Talking about the foreign forces in Djibouti seems to become a taboo which nobody can talk about.

The most opportune time to talk about the future of these foreign forces in the country has just availed itself now, regarding the compromised moral code of such forces, and the high incidence of infectious diseases in Djibouti.

Moreover, Djibouti government has no jurisdiction over French foreign legions If they commit crimes in the country.

This open ended French presence made the clan that dominated Djibouti political scene since 1977 more arrogant, less transparent and less accountable. This false premise that the French forces will always come to their rescue If they got into trouble, made Djibouti’s tribal government less and less diverse, more dictatorial and less accommodating. Ironically Djibouti’s colonial government and parliament were much more diverse, than the post independent Djibouti government and parliament.

For all practical purposes, the relatively large Gadaboursi and Isaak communities were disenfranchised, and their votes doesn’t count. Therefore, It is rather ridiculous to hear those hailed from Djibouti complaining about holding the Somaliland September 29Th, parliamentary elections in Saylac. I wonder how come they are so blind about the distasteful actions, hostilities, discrimination and barbaric behavior towards the Gadaboursi, Isaak and Afar communities in Djibouti. They are well aware that,  Djiboutian Somalilanders were not even got the opportunity to vote in a fair and transparent elections.

Their utter indifference to the blight of Djiboutian Somalilanders, will take away the credibility from whatever they may say or claim. Many Saylites and others will always harbor the belief that, those Issa elements complaining about injustice are trouble makers working for the government of Djibouti to destabilize Somaliland.

Many Somalilanders already knew what is really behind the tenacity of this fraudsters, which among other things is to acquire as many  arbitrary seats and quotas as possible.

Enentually Their main ojective is to destabilize Somaliland. The actions of these twisted minds has been observed in Arta, Embagatti and other forums which didn’t even concern Somaliland. You will never see these fictitious pretenders to Sayla in the real forums where the development, education or health care regarding Saylac or Somaliland were discussed.

What they need to do right now is to tell their despotic regime in Djibouti to respect the civil and human rights of all her citizens. They ought to tell him to stop his endless sabotages and conspiracies against the people of Somaliland. Actions like that may help repair your checkered record a bit with the people of Somaliland.

The people of this God forsaken land-Djibouti also enjoyed more freedom under the notorious French colonial authorities. On the other hand, the Djibouti parliament is not based on population size but on a false and baseless mambo Jumbo premise, which has been secretly agreed upon in “1977″ in Paris between Hassan Guled’s party and the French.

“1977″ political deal looks much like “1943″ French drafted constitution of Lebanon. That constitution gave the presidency and other top powers to the christian community. That lopsided constitution was largely one of the major factors that triggered the “1975″ Lebanese civil war.

In the same token the 1977 secret agreement between Hassan Guled and the French has sparked the rise of the FRAUD ( the Front  for the Restoration of Democracy). The FRAUD waged an aggressive guerrilla war with the government of Djibouti. The war with FRAUD was ended in the early 1990s.

A cease fire was signed and some pench marks for the government of Djibouti to follow were agreed upon. But according to a recent FRAUD press release, the Djibouti government has breached the agreed upon cease fire agreements. They warned to wage another armed campaign against the regime, had they not head their lawful demands.

The “FRAUD” waged a devastating guerrilla war that spanned for several years against the Djibouti government.

During his tenure as Hassan Guled’s chief security and intelligence chief,  many people have mysteriously disappeared and torturing of political opponents, and the non Issa groups was the norm not the exception.

Another big blimp on his resume is the brutal assassination of Mr. Borrel a French human rights attorney, on an assignment for investigating human rights abuses sent shock waves through France and Djibouti.

Mr. Borrel basically came to Djibouti to investigate Geelle’s reign of terror whereby people were falsely accused, tortured and dragged of their homes at the dark of the night, and a number of those people have been mysteriously died in prison. The names of some of those unfortunate victims are available.

That was nothing but a systematic ethnic cleansing efforts aimed to eject as much non Issas as they can from Djibouti. This triggered thousands of non Issa family to flee the country from 1989 to the present.

It is incumbunt upon all the states  these non Issas (Gadaboursi and Isaaks) are taking refuge, to recognize these people as refugees.  Many of these people have sought refugee status in Europe, Canada and the US.

The magnitude of the brutality that culminated with the assassination of Mr. Borrel was  beyond comprehension. He was a French civil and human rights attorney.  Mr. Borrel who collected a wealth of information during his stay in Djibouti was seen as a huge threat to the status quo, and apparently an order from the highest echelons of power was given out for his physical elimination. Mr. Borrel’s wife and others directly implicated Mr. Geelle who was the chief security chief of the country at the time.

Even in a world where the physical removal of opponents is the norm not the exception, the malignancy, the ferocity, and callousness of that cold blooded execution style killing was too extreme.

While the Djibouti president was on a victory tour in France, a French judge ruled Mr. Geelle who was at the time the chief Djibouti security officer at the time of the killing, to appear in a court hearing, regarding Mr. Borrel’s brutal assassination. But as expected the subpoena was ignored and he continued on his tour.

We have seen what the for life despicable African leaders has the potentiality to do when they are cornered by their detractors. Memories of Rwanda, and the butchery in Bosnia, Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cambodia, and many other places is still vivid in our minds.

A note to the international community

The international community has a major role to play here, had they have to avert other countries from becoming other Somalias, Rwandas, Darfurs, Congoes and Ivory Coasts. They need to reassess the automatic membership of all states  to the UN and other international organizations. Membership should should be a privilege and not a right. Membership in the international organizations and recognition of states should be conditional on performance, good governance, respect of human and civil rights, democracy and the rule of law. The twentieth century paradigm with respect to independent states should have to change.

It is imperative among the UN, the world bank, IMF, the international donors to think twice of prolonging the lives of brutal, genocidal dictators. Unfortunately many who rebelled against those dictators also failed miserably, to move their countries out the morass and mayhem brought about by the myopic life long despots. We have seen Liberia, Sierra Leone,Somalia, Ethiopia and other places fall into disintegration, destruction, self-immolation and catastrophe.

All these cataclysmic events didn’t happen by accident. They have been happened because of an unchecked, and an unlimited power accumulated in the hands of one man. We have seen the potentiality for genocide, mass murder and destruction these selfish despots are capable of doing when they are threatened. We understood how these modern monsters care less of a nation, people, country and even the clan.

They still keep on tirelessly engaged in their earth-moving rhetoric of division, sowing the seeds of hatred between communities, excessively using the clan card. The huge polarization of communites is not by accident but by design. The despotic, vision-less, inept, and mediocre leadership in Somalia triggered the irreversible disintegration of a once a proud nation.

Besides the Issas and the Afars, the state of Djibouti bordering Somaliland is ironically populated by two major groups in Somaliland, the Gadaboursi and the Isaak communities.

The French installed the Issas there in a deal that took place in a closed door in Paris in 1977. In that infamous deal the FLCS ( the Front for the Liberation of the Somali Coast), who have waged an armed struggle against the French colonial forces in the then French Somaliland, led by Dr. Omar Osman Rabbe and others was shut out from the so-called independent negotiations. According to that deal population census will not matter much. Which means the Issas by hook or crook should always hold the presidency, and a number of other political posts at all times.

The Gadaboursi and the Isaak communites have through the years suffered unlawful imprisonment, constant harassment, shutout from employment and purged from high government posts. Several ethnic cleansing campaigns have been waged to reduce the population of these communities. That was a top government policy. There was one time in the mid-1990s when several hundred teachers from the Gadaboursi and Isaak communities all of a sudden left Djibouti and sought political asylum in Europe.

Both Geelle government and Hassan Guled’s government have pursued harsh, inhuman and dictatorial polices that has seriously strained the historical relationship, between between the brotherly communities of Somaliland and Djibouti. Despite the phased ethnic cleansing of the Gadaboursi and the Isaaks from Djibouti, the latter can still pose a serious threat to Geelle’s government had free elections are conducted in Djibouti. The mentality of the Issa regime in Djibouti was to keep the numbers of the Gadaboursi and the Isaaks down by all means.

The country has very little known resources. The main assets of the country are the airport and the seaport. Nowadays Mr. Geelle leased both of the afore-said assets to an Abu-Dubai Arab company who run, manage and control these facilities but with a very hefty fees.

Those two facilities were the major employer of the country. Following the takeover of the airport and the seaport by an Abu Dubai company, many people have lost their jobs. Rising port fees and taxes costed Djibouti to loose a significant Ethiopian transit business.

The Ethiopian business used to enjoy a grace period of about 45 days, whereby storage fees were not charged on their goods.That privilege was reduced to 30 days before the Arab company took over. Then the foreign port management company further reduced that grace period into 15 days just recently.

That triggered a huge protest from the Ethiopian business leaders.  Anyhow at the end of the day, the Ethiopian businesses unhappiness will translate into a lost business, and that means less revenues and more unemployment. According to the latest unofficial reports, unemployment figures in Djibouti run over 60%..

When was the claim on “Saylac” started

This baseless claim on Saylac started at the beginning of the disintegration of the former Somalia at the early 1990’s. Djibouti rulers counting on the French foreign legions in their land will defend them from any spillover to Djibouti, became heavily involved in an aggressive policy of destabilization of Somaliland for the last 15 years.

Since 1991, the clannish government of Djibouti sends trained terrorists and sometimes regular Djibouti forces to cross the border into Awdal region of Somaliland. On several occasions, They have temporarily occupied some areas of Awdal. But every time they have been routed by an amalgamation of area natives and the Somaliland forces.

Nowadays the Issa regime in Djibouti changed tactics and came with a new long range policy of annexing some parts of Awdal. With the blessing of president Rayaale and the UNHCR, the Djibouti authorities start repatriating thousands of people from Ethiopia to Awdal. That shortsighted and lackluster policy caused a serious controversy in Awdal.

This has caused so much tension, and the indigenous people have repeatedly complained to the Somaliland government, to stop bringing this people from Ethiopia. They don’t mind letting Awdalite of all stripes into the state of Awdal , but totally against bringing the natives of another country. This is the new policy when the policy of force and annexation has been miserably failed. This policy will also fail.

Following the French engineered defeat of the pro-independent party led by the late Mohamud Harbi in 1958. Awdalite leaders at the time, decided  to give the two Saylac parliamentary seats to their Issa brethren without any election. Therefore, since the military coup of 1969 in the now defunct “Somalia”, two Issa parliamentarians from Sayla  were coming into the parliament of the then Republic of Somalia.

On the other hand, regarding Somaliland parliamentary elections, several Issa  individuals called to stop holding election in Saylac. That means allotting all seats to the Issas without any election. The indigenous Gadaboursi leaders in the area rejected that none sense and told them, If you have the numbers you are claiming, go and vote and win the allotted Saylac seats.

With all the things their government has done to the Gadaboursi, Isaaks and the Afar they seem still to be  dreaming of a long lost privilege. In September 29Th election in Saylac, the Issas won a parliamentary seat. The people of Somaliland will never forget the unnecessary mistreatment they suffered in Djibouti.

These groups would have being kept quiet and not remind the people of Somaliland, what their fascist clannish regime have done to the Djibouti Somalianders, and still  doing to these communties. Historically these false pretenders were never in charge of Saylac, never had Real Estate and not had a large population in the city of Saylac-ancient Awdal.

These people have been helped, financed and encouraged by the Djibouti government. Moreover, They never did any act or effort to improve the lives of Saylites. There is a group called Awdal Development Agency who have built schools in all the rural districts of Awdal. I never heard of these impostors to the crown of Saylac ever helping these noble efforts.

Some of these eternal wanners are working for the government of Djibouti to destabilize Somaliland. That is why they are stirring up trouble. But let me tell this people, they will never succeed with a borrowed power, which is nowadays increasingly dimishining. people living in this neck of the woods will for ever defend their rights, land and dignity. Impostors working for foreign entities will never succeed.

History of the unopposed seats of Saylac

The already severely marginalized Awdalites in the former Somalia, have the wherewithal to give almost half of their so meager parliamentary allotments to their Issa neighbors. But in 1977, when Djibouti achieved its nominal independence, the French installed Issa leadership totally marginalized both the ethnic Gadaboursi and Isaaks.

The sectarian narrow government didn’t stop there, they purged the above-named communities from the top government posts. These communities have been exposed to endless government harassment, imprisonment and other forms violence of violence without probable cause.

Nowadays the government of Djibouti is constantly conspiring against Somaliland and its people. This government already succeeded to put a wedge between the brotherly people of Somaliland and Djibouti. This tiny enclave, which the people of Somaliland helped, marched and agitated for them have not answered in kind.

Djibouti government which itself is practically illegitimate is bad mouthing, disparaging and agitating for the political and economical destruction of the people of Somaliland. Since 1991, the government of Djibouti has closed the border between the two countries more than dozen times.

According to the international law that is an act of war and illegal. So-called member states of the UN can not close the border without serious security concerns and an imminent threat. Non of the above were existent at the time. This was an attempt to put pressure on the people of Somaliland to cede land to Djibouti. That will never happen. If you look on what this government did for its people for the last thirty years. Almost nothing has been done regarding infra-structures, job creation, civil and human rights, education and health care.

Reprinted by SayliciPress.net - staff writer

SOMALILAND: ILLEGALLY ARRESTS AND RENDERS BISHARO WA’DI SHAQLANE TO ETHIOPIAN SECURITY FORCES 

On February 10^th 2010, family members and relatives of Ms. Bisharo Wa’di Shaqlane informed Ogaden Human Rights Committee about her arrest by members of Somaliland Police and Ethiopian Security Forces. Since then her fate and whereabouts are unknown to her family.

Ms. Bisharo is a prominent feminist who was detained several times under different pretexts by the Ethiopian government.  The Ogaden Human Rights Committee has extensively documented her ordeal from 1996 to 2007 and all details about her past detention dates can be found in OHRC’s reports. See www.ogadenrights.org. During her detention periods she has undergone physical and psychological torture and she bears physical and psychological scars of the torture. Each time after long months of incommunicado detention without charges or trial she was released on bail, and was restricted to her detention location. In 2007, she escaped from her torturers and fled to Hargeisa seeking safety for her children and herself, where she registered herself as a refugee.

Contrary to the letter and spirit of all human rights instruments which provide protection against refoulement, such as; The UN Convention against Torture, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and  International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Somaliland administration handed over an innocent asylum seeker to the Ethiopian government, which systematically tortures detainees, including prisoners of conscience to extract confessions or information under duress.

In Somaliland, for the last 14 years, many Somalis from the Ogaden were detained, tortured, their private properties confiscated and then forcibly handed over to the Ethiopian government against their will, in exchange for political favours. Most of them were traders, residents, asylum seeker and visitors, who were not involved in any illegal activities and have no political affiliations whatsoever. 

Many of those who were forcibly returned to Ethiopia have since disappeared in the notorious military detention camps throughout Ethiopia and were never seen again by their loved ones while others were tortured to death.

To the best of the Ogaden Human Rights Committee’s knowledge, Ms. Bisharo was not involved in any illegal activity. She was only an ardent feminist who spoke out against rape of women, domestic violence and genital mutilation.

The Ogaden Human Rights Committee calls for her to be either charged with recognizable criminal offence and be given fair trial or immediately and unconditionally released. The OHRC also fears for her safety and well-being, particularly in view of constant reports about confessions made under duress. This fear is heightened by the baseless assertions of Mr. Abdi Mohamoud Omar, the head of the Somali Regional State Security and Justice Bureau, who falsely claimed, during an interview with VOA Somali Section that Ms. Bisharo was detained while she was in the area between Dhagaxbuur and Xarshin. Mr. Omar also verbally attacked and accused her of masterminding of a mine (hand grenade) attack which took place in Jigjiga, on May 28^th 2007.

The Ogaden Human Rights Committee condemns all acts of killing, torture, arbitrary arrests, dispossession and forcible repatriation of refugees from the Ogaden from the neighbouring Somali administrations.

The Ogaden Human Rights Committee requests the international community, human rights and humanitarian organisations’ immediate intervention on behalf of Ms. Bisharo’s family to secure her immediate and unconditional release.

The OHRC calls upon the Ethiopian government to respect Ms. Bisharo’s basic human rights, including informing her family and relatives about her whereabouts, and granting unrestricted and regular access to them and to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross. 

Ogaden Human Rights Committee 
www.ogadenrights.org 
E-mail: ohrc@ogadenrights.org

The event organized by the Somaliland activist in North West will be attended by high level delegates from Somaliland including Somaliland Deputy Parliamentary Chairman  Mr Abdias’s Samale as well as leaders from Somaliland Opposition Party and MP’s from Somaliland Parliament.  One of the Organizers for the event, Mr Abdi Yusuf Jama said they are appealing to the kidnappers to do the decent thing and release the British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler unconditionally.

The couple, from Kent, were captured by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean on October 23 while they were sailing from the Seychelles towards Tanzania.

Reports of the pirates’ demands vary but a figure of $7 million (£4.5 million) is the highest ransom quoted for the release of the couple, who are aged 60 and 56.

The British government has refused to pay a ransom or be involved in any negotiations that include a third party giving money to the pirates.

Earlier this week a video emerged in which the Chandlers said they were being badly treated and were in urgent need of help.

SomalilandGlobe.com

For further information contact:   Jo Barrett t: +44 (0)7940 703911

For immediate release

 As part of the UK-based team coordinating election observers for the much-delayed presidential elections in the internationally unrecognised Republic of Somaliland, Progressio today welcomes recent progress made to resolve the Somaliland voter registration process – a key sticking point – and calls on all parties to push ahead and set a date for the poll.

Progressio, the Development Planning Unit at University College London (UCL) and Somaliland Focus UK say in a joint statement: “Since September 2009 we have seen a marked improvement in the situation, when all three of Somaliland’s political parties signed a six-point agreement by which the government guaranteed that a further extension of office would not be sought and that the disputed and delayed process of agreeing a voter register would be recommenced. The agreement was subsequently approved by Somaliland’s upper house, the Guurti (House of Elders).”

The statement continues: “This development was quickly followed by improvements in the relationship and renewed understanding between the country’s National Electoral Commission (NEC) and the donors who are providing funding and technology for the voter registration process and the election itself. We are heartened by this progress, and look forward to completion of necessary processes (namely, agreement on a voter register) to allow an actual date to be announced. Indeed, as election observers, it is impossible for us to proceed with making plans for our mission until a date is set.”

It concludes: “Despite lack of international recognition of its claim to official statehood, Somaliland – “Africa’s best-kept secret” – has been characterised by many as a beacon of democratisation in Africa in contrast to the chaos in neighbouring Somalia. However, the delaying of the presidential poll is causing severe damage to Somaliland’s reputation. We therefore urge all stakeholders to do their utmost to maintain the positive momentum to ensure the poll is carried out, with as little delay as possible. This must include genuine commitment from all players and a realistic approach to the time needed to ensure a smooth and proper political process.”

The UK-based team, along with FOPAG (Forum for Peace and Governance) in Somaliland, was invited to lead the election observation mission by the Somaliland National Electoral Commission in January 2009. The team has been tasked with coordinating international election observers from four continents and preparing a report on the conduct of the campaign and poll following the vote. Support for the mission is being provided by the UK government.

Somaliland Focus (UK) Chair, Michael Walls, said: “While Somaliland’s progress since 1991 has been remarkable, the next election marks a significant new step in establishing a legitimate system of national government. We applaud recent successes and look forward keenly to agreement on a voter register and the announcement of a viable election date with genuine cross-party support in the near future. Without those steps, the genuine achievements of the past 19 years will be dealt a profound blow”.

To read the full text of the statement, see: http://bit.ly/b6u92C

Notes to Editors

1.  For further information or to arrange an interview with a member of the coordination team, contact Progressio’s Media Officer, Jo Barrett, on +44 (0)7940 703911 or email jo@progressio.org.uk  

2.  Somaliland’s Presidential elections have been repeatedly delayed. The poll has previously been scheduled for March/April 2008, December 2008, March 2009 and September 2009.

3.  Somaliland is situated in Somalia’s northwest. It declared unilateral independence from the failed Somali state in 1991 and has since been a haven of relative peace whilst violence and instability has characterised Somalia, its capital Mogadishu and more recently the Gulf of Aden.

4.  Progressio’s involvement in the mission follows its leadership of the international monitoring team for Somaliland’s inaugural parliamentary elections in 2005, judged by observers as “basically free and fair”.

5.  Progressio has been working with local communities in Somaliland since 1995 by placing skilled workers with local organisations specialising in advocating for the rights of women, youth and people with disabilities as well as supporting basic health service provision and people living with HIV and AIDS. Progressio also actively supports progress towards democratisation and stabilising the country.

6.  The Development Planning Unit (DPU) is an international centre specialising in academic teaching, practical training, research and consultancy in the field of urban and regional development, planning, and management. DPU is part of University College London (UCL).

7.  Somaliland Focus (UK) was established in London in 2005 with the aim of helping to raise awareness amongst decision-makers in the UK and elsewhere about the territory of Somaliland and to support Somaliland’s progress towards state-building and social and economic development.

ENDS

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It was the hope of all those concerned about the decline of standards that the BBC management at Bush House would eventually heed their concerns and complaints and do something to restore the credibility of the Service. Sadly, Yussuf Garaad’s bosses at the BBC had instead chosen to turn a deaf ear to all that.

In the meantime, the editor, never one to miss an opportunity when he sees one, has, not surprisingly, interpreted the BBC’s permissive stand on the running of the Somali Service as giving him a blank cheque to run the Service according to his whims and wishes. One has to give the devil his due and that goes also for Yussuf Garaad too. He is not only very clever and shrewd in a devilish manner so to speak, but he is also an opportunist par excellence. He knows what he wants and he would do what it takes to get it no matter how. For him, the end justifies the means and his vision, like many people of that type, does not go beyond his personal and clan interests. I had worked for the BBC Somali Service longer than any one else among its staff – apart from Abdullahi Haji and had come to know its professional standards over the years as well as all its past and present managers and Somali staff, including Yussuf Garaad. It is true that the Service has expandedfrom two transmissions a day as it used to be in the past to four transmissions a day as it is now. But in broadcasting, it is not the duration of the programmes that matters most as the quality, objectivity and impartiality of the programmes. It is not the quantity that matters but its quality. Never had I known a time such as now when the BBC Somali Service has come to be used in a way contrary to the much-vaunted BBC standards of objectivity and impartiality.

Sadly, the brazen bias of the BBC Somali Service under Yussuf Garaad has reached a level that shames a Service that was once the icon of Somali broadcasting services at home and abroad. For those whose memory is short, Yussuf Garaad joined the BBC Somali Service in the early 1990s. As a highflier, he soon became at a time when much of Southern Somalia was in the hands of warlords. Mr. Yussuf Garaad is not only a supreme opportunist, he is also a shrewd strategist. To achieve his aims of running the Somali Service as his own shop, he had to ensure for himself a re-structured BBC Somali Service that conforms to his designs. His first well-calculated and well-executed move was to win the unquestioning support of his boss, a lady who was then head of the African Service. That close link with his boss enabled him to proceed to his second goal, namely to have a staff who were mostly of his choosing and compliant to him. In this regard, he fired almost a dozen staff and replaced them with his appointees almost all from his clan.

Only a handful staff with permanent contracts that he could not remove remained in the Service. Once he had
achieved his twin strategic objectives, everything else was plain sailing for him. The BBC Somali Service has since become synonymous with Yussuf Garaad and the whiz-kid has become the king-maker in Somali politics with almost all aspiring politicians chasing his coveted favours. In the struggle for power that followed the collapse of the Siyad Barre government, the BBC Somali Service, at his behest, had brazenly thrown its support behind those warlords who were from his own Hawiye sub-clan, warlords such as General Aideed and Osman Aato, over Ali Mahdi who hails from another sub-clan of the Hawiye. This is in spite of the fact that most people in Southern Somalia and certainly much of the international community saw Ali Mahdi as the rightful president having been chosen in Djibouti by a gathering of notable Somalis broadly representative of Somalia’s clans and regions. Yussuf Garaad’s addictive appetite to manipulate the Service for his own ends was thereon established. Like a chameleon, he would change his
political alignments in response to the shifting political landscape in Mogadishu and Southern Somalia
in which he would sponsor those who happen to be his closest in terms of clan
among those contesting for power.

When fellow clansman, Abdulkasim Salaad Hassan, was running for presidency at the Somali Conference in Arta,
Djibouti,Yussuf Garaad provided the BBC Somali Service as a platform to support him. That support continued after Abdulkasim’s election and in particular in his struggle with the notorious Mogadishu warlords who had little trouble to prevail over him, rendering him president only in name but not in power.

When President Abdulkasim’s term ended and was replaced by Abdullai Yussuf, hailing fom a diffent clan, Yussuf Garaad had once again transferred his support to the warlords of Mogadishu who once again succeeded to fend off the new government and forced it to remain in exile outside the capital. When the warlords, acting as mercenaries for the CIA, launched their misguided war against the Islamsts, Yussuf Garaad once again mobilized the BBC Somali Service but this time on the side of the Islamists. This was not because he cares in the least about their claimed Islamism or nationalism- his Islamic credentials and Somali nationalism are null as all those who know him closely will vouch for it. It was simply because the Islamist movement was overwhelmingly spearheaded by his own immediate sub-clan with Sheikh Aways as its spiritual mentor and leader.

Once the warlords were defeated and chased out of their strongholds in Southern Somalia, the struggle for power shifted to one between the Islamists and the TFG based in Baidhawa. The BBC, under Yussuf Grand, had went out of its way to support the Islamists by giving them unrestricted access to the BBC.. Rarely is the government given a fair hearing. The Friday discussion on important national issues gives the clearest example of the bias of the BBC Somali Service. To ensure his total control of this programme, Yussuf  Garaad has appropriated the chairmanship of the
discussions as his personal preserve even when there are other equally capable staff, if not more so, such as Abdullahi Haji and Abdulsalam Hareri just to name two. Most of the listeners’ phone-in contributions are vetted beforehand
through the emails they had earlier sent. As such, most of the respondents selected for the programme are clearly those whose views converge with that of Yussuf Garaad , except for few who manage to slip through the net. When it comes to the struggle for power between the Islamists and the government, it is only to be expected that the public would hold different opinions about the two parties. There will be those who would be ardently pro the Islamists and point out to what they consider as their impressive positive achievements in ridding Somalia of the warlords and in establishing peace and order thus far in the areas under their control. On the other side of the political spectrum, there are those others who see the Islamists as nothing more than clannists under the guise of Islamic camouflage. Similarly, there will be those who would consider the TFG as the only legal and internationally recognized government which should merit all our undivided support and loyalties. On the other hand, there are those who see its leaders as puppets totally beholden to Ethiopia with little concern for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia.
People are entitled to hold different views.

But the BBC Somali Service should have been an impartial forum where different shades of opinion are given
a fair hearing. It is not supposed to take sides as is the case now and has been in the past. Some people may argue that it should support the “good” side against the “bad” one. But who is “good” and who is “bad” is in the eye of the
beholder. Each side in the power struggle sees itself as the one having legitimacy whether national or international. Even if one does not like the TFG and what it stands for, it is still entitled to a fair deal from the Somali Service in line with the well-known BBC standards, namely impartiality and objectivity, as the guiding principles of all programmes.
The Friday programme of the BBC Somali Service is not the only attack aimed at discrediting and weakening the TFG. There are also the daily dispatches from the field by stringers in hog to Yussuf Garaad, often reporting on
anti-government demonstrations that are obviously staged for the BBC microphone; or when high -profile personalities are solicited for interviews that everyone expects them to shower praise on the Islamic Courts Union. You only have to recall those interviews with Prof Abdi Ismail Samatarl, Prof. Ali Khalif Galaid, and the omnipotent Somali politician from Kenya -just to name a few. It all adds up to raise the stocks of the Islamists in the public eye and
conversely deepen the demise of the TFG. All this should not be taken as if I am a supporter of the TFG. Nothing could be far from the truth. All I am calling for is a fair levelled playing field at Bush house.

Another key plank of Yussuf Garaad strategy is to sew clan hatred and warfare as a way of destabilizing the TFG and bringing about its downfall in the hope of replacing President Abdullahi Yussuf with one of his own clansmen– Abdulqasim or perhaps Aways. More than any other place or region in Somalia, Baidhawa, the government’s tenuous and shaky base, provides Yussuf Garaad the ideal breeding ground for hatching his sinister plots against Abdullahi Yussuf and Gedi. Any unfortunate incident in Baidhawa that in some way involves the government and the host communities is immediately blown up as a potent clash between Digil/ Mirifle on one side and the Darood on the other side. Such an occasion arose the other day when a number of local security personnel at
Baidhawa airport were killed allegedly by government forces.

To his credit, the Prime Minister, Gedi, had acted promptly and responsibly by immediately setting up an enquiry committee to look into the circumstances and facts surrounding the incident and in the meantime calling for calm and
prudence. One would have expected the BBC Somali Service, under a different head, to heed this advice and refrain from sensationalising the incident.Instead, Yussuf Garaad had allowed some members of the local community,
understandably too emotional over the incident, to make highly inflammatory statements in which one of them, the deputy mayor, accused the incident on the Darood while another one, a minister in the government (Haabsade), upped the ante by calling for the removal of the government from Baidhawa. It is not as if these statements were broadcast live in which the BBC could claim they had no technical control to stop them. These statements were made
via the phone and hence must have been recorded in which case they could have been either dropped altogether or else edited and made suitable for broadcasting. This was therefore not an unfortunate, innocent, oversight but
rather a deliberate decision sanctioned by Yussuf Garaad, knowing fully well that he was inciting clan hatred and warfare -something that Somalia had thankfully come through after long bitter experience. It is not also an
isolated case but forms part of a wider pattern. If such clan wars were to happen in the region, it would be of no concern to him as long as it serves his agenda and so long as he is safe in his comfortable studios in Bush House in London.

Another region where Yussuf Garaad is stoking up clan warfare, apart from Baidhawa, is between the regional administrations of Puntland and Somaliland over the ownership of Sool, Sanaag and Cayn. It is only over two years ago they fought over these areas and their armies are now facing one another at Adhicadeeye, not far from Laascaanood. Rather than letting the matter to rest, Yussuf Garaad keeps on raking up the dispute by
regularly inviting prominent Somaliland personalities and letting them accuse Puntland, and in particular the Majeerteen, of having occupied their “rightful” regions and keeping its people under duress, forcibly adjoining them to Puntland against their will. As most Somalis know, this is just sheer bullshit -if you pardon the expression. Never has Yussuf Garaad deemed it proper to sound out the views of the representatives of these regions and invite them to respond to these preposterous claims. Instead, he eggs on the Somalilanders to make threatening noises against Puntland, with President Riyale and opposition leader, Faysal Ali Waraabe, a neo-fascist hothead, recently outbidding one another as to which one of them can make Somaliland reach its colonial borders.. Faysal Ali Waraabe claims that he can do it in three months given the chance. He means Riyale’s job. Unless the Somalilanders are as crazy as him,
hopefully he will never get the chance.. Given the unfettered leeway Yussuf Garaad has come to enjoy, he has turned
the Somali Service as his own personal fiefdom, unaccountable to no one, where he pursues his personal or clan agenda rather than faithfully follow the BBC’s broadcasting values. What puzzles me, and no doubt many other Somalis, is why the editor has been allowed all this leeway even when it is clearly against Britain’s interest, never mind that of the Somali listeners? That is a secret that neither Yussuf Garaad nor the BBC have shared with any one I know.
Lest anyone should accuse me of personal vendetta against the editor, let me remind readers of the letter of complaint sent to the BBC over a year ago signed by close to 20 former BBC Somali Service announcers (including myself,)
all coming from every region and clan of Somalia and who had worked for the Service from its beginning to the year 2000. Since that collective complaint was made, things have gone for the worse – a reason which prompted me to write this article. For those of us for whom the BBC Somali Service represents the best part of our life, to be silent in its current state of affairs is to be culpable by default. The least we can all do is to speak up – loud and clear.
At least, the BBC can not construe our current silence and passivity as indicative of our content with the way things are with the BBC Somali Service.

Mohamoud Hassan

(SomalilandGlobe.com London, England) (Opinion) A recent article, written of course in Somali and appeared in Harowo.com by the above-mentioned author, has pre-empted a planned conference intended to bring some members of the Awdal Diaspora communities together in Minneapolis to deliberate and eventually map out their future destiny. The author has done every effort to pre-judge and even downplay the outcome of the said conference without having the slightest clue of what the contents (agenda) of the conference will be. Without mentioning names, he tried to rubbish the organizers of the conference before they even put things together. He has further gone to suggest that the organizers of the said conference have evil intentions i.e. to undermine the current leadership of Somaliland who currently facing an election in the summer. The positive thing about our community in Awdal and Salal is that there is a diversity of opinion as far as local politics are concerned, and this is the point the author should keep in mind when campaigning for his party, UDUD. One should not expect the support of Awdal and Salal community to be handed on a plate to the current leadership who has nothing to show for the period they were in office, eight long years.  

It is a common knowledge for Awdal diaspora communities all over the world as well as those who live back home that our folks in North America are at the forefront of every endeavor intended to improve the lives of their unfortunate communities back home. There is no better example than the latest state of the art hospital funded and built in Borama by Amoud Foundation, a selfless Awdal Diaspora group based in Texas, USA. Another typical example of projects implemented by Awdal’s Diaspora community based in North America is what is locally known as Iqra projects, a number of primary and junior schools scattered all over Northern and Eastern Awdal as well as Salal which facilitated the provision of free education for thousands of youngsters who would have otherwise ended in the major cities of towns as street beggars. These projects were made possible by the selfless efforts of Iqra group, another Awdal affiliated group based mainly in North America. Amoud University, the beacon of Somaliland, which attracted its students from all over Somalia, let alone Somaliland, was financed largely by Awdal’s Diaspora community, particularly those based in the Arabian Gulf, mainly UAE and Saudi Arabia. Another Diaspora community organization based in Toronto, ARDA, has many surprises for Awdal and Salal in the immediate future.  

You have to struggle to remember a single meaningful project funded and implemented by the current leadership of Awdal i.e. Dahir Rayaale and his company. There are, of course, some home-based groups or individuals who tried all they could to help their people, but they are often undermined by the same leadership Mohamed Hassan Matan is trying to portray as the saviors of our community back in Awdal and Salal. The current leadership of Awdal who are also at the helm of Somaliland could not say a word, let alone express their condolence for those butchered and their body mutilated on the Gabiley – Borama road, while they are happy to send their condolence to every single death in Somaliland. Almost all the development projects in Awdal and Salal are both funded and implemented by the Diaspora community, particularly those in North America, or by the local and international NGOs.

We all know that our Awdal leadership is well off financially than they have ever been, despite their community being poorer than they ever have been. Everyone who has the interest of his/her community at heart should be positive about anything that can make meaningful and positive contributions to the development of his/her community. It has always been the case that the saviors of failed or impoverished countries throughout the world come from afar i.e. foreign countries. Countries like Somalia (Somaliland) should be no different. Any contribution that may come from the planned conference in Minneapolis should be viewed as positive.   

A community as impoverished as ours should welcome any projects that could improve their lives wherever those live-saving projects may come from. And the fact of the matter is that they all come from Awdal Diaspora in Europe and North America, with the latter always taking the lion’s share; none whatsoever from current leadership in Awdal.

The days of smooth talking (afmiishaarnimo) while emptying the pockets of our poor community have long gone with the last recognized government of Somalia, or so I thought. For those hailed from Awdal and Salal who have nothing to offer to their community, the best thing to do is to keep their loud mouths shut, and let the hardworking members of their community do the talking i.e. do the job. From experience point of view, I know many people who did little in terms of improving the lives of their poverty-stricken community and yet their names are well known for the all the wrong reasons. People like Mohamed Hassan Matan are all talks but no trousers. 
 

Mohamed F Yabarag 

myabarag@yahoo.co.uk

Mr. Farah who is famously referred to as Jug-soo-dhacay (He-Who-Landed-With-a-Thud), have made the crude remarks while on a visit to Erigavo, the regional capital of Sanag. He lambasted the Congressman by calling the state- controlled Radio Hargeisa to say that “the man [Silanyo] who shook hands with Somaliland’s enemy should not be welcomed”on his return from the United States.

Earlier, a junior Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Adan Ismail, made a similar remarks about the Congressman by describing him as “enemy of Somaliland”, which drew angry reactions from senior figures of the opposition parties. The Vice Minister also said Silanyo should not be allowed to return back to Somaliland unless he is granted amnesty by the government [president] because of his meeting with Donald Payne.

On Sunday, thousands of KULMIYE supporters turn out in show of force to welcome their hero, Ahmed Silanyo, with open hands. It was a clear testimony that the public were “astounded” and “disgusted” by the remarks made by senior government officials about Silanyo and the Congressman.

“I am greatly pleased the warm reception I have received from the thousands of people who have gathered here today. I have been working hard to promote

Somaliland’s quest for recognition as an independent and sovereign state,” said Silanyo

“Donald Payne is the only US Congressman who came to Somaliland. He is not an enemy of Somaliland. On the contrary he is a friend of Somaliland,” added Silanyo

The KULMIYE leader, Ahmed Silanyo, went to the United States in early January for a short visit where he met with Donald Payne, Congressman from New Jersey who is also Chairman Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health.

Rayale’s government had rejected to participate in a meeting on Somalia arranged by the Congressman last year. The Somaliland foreign minister, Abdillahi Duale, initially accepted the invitation but later rejected to be part of the panel with the president of Puntland and the TFG. The Somaliland government requested for a separate panel.

The Subcommitte found that arrangement unacceptable and defeats the purpose of the hearing.

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, got its independence from Britain on 26 June 1961 and entered an unratified union with Italian administered Somalia in July 1960. Somaliland had remained this unratified union with Somalia for more than 30 years.

On 18 May 2009, the self declared republic of Somaliland marked 18 years since it proclaimed independence from Somalia. Although its sovereignty is still unrecognised by any country, the fact that it is a viable, functioning constitutional democracy distinguishes it from Somalia.

Somaliland Globe

Somaliland Globe (Washington, 14 Jan, 2010) Mr. Ahmed Silanyo’s visit to Washington has prompted a renewed interest in and a focus on Somaliland by the United States. Speaking in a conference organized by the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED), Mr. Silanyo provided an in-depth assessment on Somaliland, gleaning to the conference attendees a wide variety of aspects of Somaliland’s historical, political, security and economic realities.

KULMIYE’s presidential candidate appealed to the international community to lend a hand to the democratization effort that is ongoing in Somaliland, and warned against the negative consequences of denying the Somaliland people of free elections for the regional security.

The Chairman of KULMIYE party, accompanied by his Foreign Secretary, Dr. Mohamed A Omar, stressed the need for the United States and the donor communities to provide an increased development aid to Somaliland to mitigate potential radicalization of the youth in the absence any educational and or economic opportunities. He also emphasized on the need to combat the threat of terrorism and piracy in the Horn of Africa by establishing a joint front with the international community and asked the US to partner with Somaliland in dealing with this serous threat.

Interest in Somaliland has hereto forth been dormant in the US policy circles due to the lack of any meaningful advocacy by the current Somaliland government.  Mr. Silanyo’s visit to the US capital seemed to have heralded a new US interest in engaging with Somaliland for the mutual interest of the two nations.

The conference was attended by officials from the US State Department, US AID, NED, former US Ambassador to Ethiopia, David Shinn, Former US Assistant Secretary of State, Hon. Princeton Lyman, friends of Somaliland, scholars that follow the affairs of the Horn of Africa and others.

Somaliland Globe

Washington DC

January 07, 2010

Somaliland opposition leader H.E Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo arrived in Washington-Dulles International Airport on this morning and will begin a short official visit to US. The delegation which includes Chairman Ahmed Silanyo, His wife Amina Mohamed, and Dr. Mohamed Abdillahi Omar, Foreign Secretary for Kulmiye Mr A will be meeting with US government officials, Washington Think-thank organizations that support democracy in the Horn of Africa and are friends of Somaliland, and Somaliland Communities.

SomalilandGlobe.com

Top Two Themes

(1). Mr. Rayaale  resign now to save whatever is left of your tarnished name!
(2). Mr. Rayaale reverse the sale of the historical islands of “Saadin and Ceebat” now!

Quotes

“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity” ~ Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” Dr. Martin Luther King

Somalilanders New Year Resolution: A Rayaaleless 2010 where the rule of law prevails over a greedy government, selling public property and clan radicals creating unnecessary land disputes and conflict

Introduction

I would like to start my piece with an old civil rights chant  “Fired up and ready to go” a chant even the then Senator Obama used during his quest for the presidency of the United States in 2008. This means the people of Somaliland are fired up and ready to go. They are ready to vote out Rayaale and his corrupt regime. He would like to drag his feet from holding elections as he did many times before, but not this time. The time is in the past and the clock is ticking on his mafia-like regime. The curtain is closing on his inept administration. They are a sun set administration and are forced to face the coming dawn.

Awdal people and all Somalilanders inside and outside must put  this reckless, and illegal territorial sales man’s (Rayaale) feet to the fire. Let the bad sales man feel the heat, let him not sleep and enjoy his loath. He got away selling so much public land, property, and allowed massive illegal fishing of our waters, but not this time. The ostensible sale of the historical and priceless Islands of “Saadin and Ceebat” is nothing new it is the climax, the peak and the culmination of an all out sales spree that started many years ago. Let us get rid of this high robber, let us remove together this robin hood, and Al Capone  from power by any means necessary. Let us stop this extortion racket, and sale of public land  in its tracks. Together Any more day under the rule of  this greedy tyrant r means, another day of illegal sale of public property and land. One more day of Rayaale’s illegal rule means misrule, corruption and the embezzlement of public money and public property and land. One more day in this current reign is tantamount to the illegal aggrandizement of public funds. This man have imposed a total economical blockade on the people of Awdal/Sale/Gabiley in particular, and all Somalilanders in general. He has imposed sanctioned against their livelihood. That is why they would like to see this tyrant with the bottomless bowl to be removed by any means necessary. 
    
Somalilanders new year resolution is to see a Rayaaleless 2010. They are hoping with an utmost enthusiasm to see a year whereby the illegal Real Estate and land sales man, to fade into the wilderness and be dethroned through the ballot box. The people of Awdal/Salel/Gabiley will like to see the person, person’s or however bought Saadin and Ceebat to take his money or their money back, because that transaction is null, and void, and will never be allowed to go off the ground. The people of the above regions are warning these people  never to dream of coming to“Saadin and Ceebat,” let alone illegitimately owning or taking their land. They are also would like to inform them they are not welcome there. Last but not the least, they have the pleasure to inform them, their land is not for sale, be it legally or illegally. These historical islands can not be sold by anybody including Rayaale. Rayaale or anybody else or dictator or whoever, do not have neither the mandate nor the authority to sell their land. They would like to inform who ever dares to encroach on their land, must be ready for a harsh and a devastating response. They would never accept their land to be sold and put in the auction block in a surreptitious, under the table, and off the shelf manner. One must remember thousands have died for this land, and thousands more are ready to die for it again. Hundreds of heroes are buried beneath the sacred soil of these two islands. Among them is the beloved  “Saadin”, the king of Zeila.  One of the islands currently in question still bears his name.

Some of you may heard the following excerpts of the legendary “Zeili” folklore of “Heleelii-Waambee:  Saadin Najaynaaa Ila yaa rabaw Reer Zeilac Baan Nahee Tafaraj Calaynaa.”

These words were chants that were sang by ancient Zeilites, following the repulsion and defeating of a fierce invasion from Abyssinia, by the king of Zeila, “Saadiin” and his people. Saadin himself who was at the time the commander of the kingdom of Zeila’s forces has been killed in the battle, and currently buried in the island of “Saadin.” King Saadin’s memorial tomb is the island.

Translation

 What the people were saying was “we are the people of Zeila who were saved by our king “Saadin. Allah we are the people of Zeila, save us and give us a way out.”  In the same token the people of modern Zeila are ready to liberate “Saadi and Ceebat” again from any other tyrant, who tries to easily grape a land thousands died for before. The culture of defending their land and love of liberty and Independence is ingrained in their genes.     

2009 was a turbulent year. It was a year of tremendous ups and downs. The last lion of the Kennedy’s dynasty, Senator Edward Kennedy died marking the end of an era. It was a year a man from no where Baraka Obama has electrified America, took everybody by surprise, his torrential cyclones has swept the political world and overwhelmed both seasoned and career politicians. That same man took over the white through an unprecedented and historical biltzkrieg . It was a year of huge economical meltdown. The economical tsunami was a result of trend caused by greedy banks and predatory Real Estates companies. The economical earth quake caused so many banks to went out of business. The huge plunderers and master manipulators were rewarded with billions of public money, and with diminishing returns. The old tiger never changes his stripes, despite the billions of public money they still keep on paying themselves hefty and outrageous bonuses. Definitely it was a year wall street has reaped the bad seeds they have sown long time ago. Ironically they were showered with public money while main street suffered and still suffering double-digit unemployment. The huge squanderers enjoyed the public money, and still refusing to change their life style while main street is still hurting. They also are not lending any public money to small businesses, and ordinary citizens.         
 
Main 13 Stories in Brief 

1. Mr., Rayaale again to save whatever is left of your tarnished name, your best option for you to do at this time is to resign

2. The then Senator Obama has succeeded  waging the most brilliant campaign in U.S. presidential history. Campaigning has proven to be much more easier than governing.

3. Iranian problem with other countries is increasing and the current leadership, headed by Ahmadabad is 19th century leadership, which is not ready to deliver great leadership in order to cope with the western powers (Imperial powers)

4. The Huthi-Yemeni-Saudi war is raging and there is no end in sight

5. What does the new Puntland flag means

6. Deployment of 30,000 soldiers to Afghanistan is not the answer. Afghanistan is a tribal society that never had a strong central government

7. The banks and mortgage giants who were behind the economic mess and also bailed out by the government are not bailing out ordinary American citizens

8. The killing of more than 150 peaceful demonstrators by a Guinean dictator amounts to a blatant genocide, and the so-called AU and the obsolete United Nations looked the other way.

9. Why on earth narrow die-hard clan supporters toss vicious invectives against Abdurrahman Zaylici, who is part of an new blood, new generation of leaders replacing the old guard.

10. Short history of Somaliland songs. Dr.Martin Luther King once said history will never forget about W.E.B.Dubois. In the same history will never have to forget about Abdi Deeqsi Warfa (Abdi Sicimo and Khadija Ciye Dharaar (Khadijo Balwo), as the preeminent inventors, the creators, and the original founders of the Balwo.

11. Somaliland education could be called the best kept secret. There is nothing new here this land has been always at the fore front of education in this region for the last millennium. According to some reports Somaliland education has went through an unprecedented growth for the last decade.

12. The jubilance of the two neighboring dictators, Ethiopia and Djibouti following the sanctions against Eritrea  is premature and childish. They need to resolve the problems of their own countries.

13. The high level delegation from Kenya was a great opportunity for Somaliland. They have visited many Somaliland cities. They have witnessed so much development in Somaliland. Their visit will surley strengthen the relationship between Somlailand and kenya.   

Stories in Depth

1. There Is no doubt at all that Mr. Rayaale has done a lot for the nation in the first few Years of his long tenure. He has built a disciplined security and defense forces. Along with the citizens he kept and consolidated the peace in the country. Lately Rayaale has made so much mistakes, he became engaged in series of corruption and extortion schemes, embezzlement, influence pedaling, intimidation of the legal opposition, and frantic rush to sell public lands and property. He starts selling public lands, tossing new fake regions and districts without planning. He used the newly created artificial regions to influence certain clans, or subclans. These unplanned, undemarcated, not well-surveyed regions and districts are future dispute prone, and conflict generating items.These are the future flash points between communities and clans. Something I did not understand is whether he is doing these illegal and unfair activities, out of political ineptitude or just mere ignorance of the repercussions, and consequences the wrongly allotted regions and districts will cause. Clearly he lacks the vision and foresight to perceive the gravity of the situation. He did a lot of these things in order to harvest some votes and influence, irrespective of the negative, and damaging consequences that will surely emanate from his illegal activities. The culmination of Rayaale’s illegal activities such as the habit of selling public property, lands and the recent sale of the historical islands of “Saaadin  and Ceebat”, without public consent is unacceptable, and is another huge ammunition for the majority of Somalilanders who like to see him retire soon. In short all Somalilanders would like to see him dethroned through the ballot box. Some legal experts believe he may potentially face legal challenges even when he leaves office.   

2. President obama was inaugurated in January 20 as the 44th president of the United States. In the year 2008, the Obama campaign has excited America and the world at large. The expectation from this president are tremendous. The pressure on him is enormous. There are so many groups who are looking up to him to effect a real change in their lives, but these days reality is setting in as so many people are realizing how much he can do.

3. Iran is in a huge struggle with the west, with itself and as well as with other countries in the Middle East. The nuclear issue is becoming much more difficult, and threats exchanged between Iran and the west are becoming more frequent and intense. Moreover, recently an election was rigged in Iran in which the current radical president Mohamed AhmedNajad has been declared the victor. That has caused massive anti-government demonstrations in which many people have lost their lives. That problem is still unresolved and the tension is still high. Currently some kind of a massive anti-Ahmed Najad movement is emerging in Iran.

4. The Huthi-Yemeni-Saudi war is intensifying,. The Saudi dictatorship and other foreign countries are also getting involved in the war.These interventions are further enlarging and escalating the conflict. The United states needs to stay away from propping up the two unpopular dictatorships in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Yemen is a collapsed state and its situation is increasingly becoming hopeless. I advice the Obama administration to stay away from getting dragged in the raging Yemen civil war. The Saudis also have been indiscriminately bombing civilians for more than a month. They have bad pilots who can potentially bomb civilians and cause huge civilian causalities. .

5. Puntland’s new flag was a new development which will have some impact, on an already  messy Horn of Africa. Different groups, people and nations will interpret this development in different ways. To the some natives of Somalia, the “ former Italian Somaliland” who are seriously looking to see a government for all the former “Italian Somaliland” this a huge blow to them. Despite Puntland’s claim that they are still part of Somalia, their statements are not enough to calm the concern of the above listed people. Realistically in Africa, every body can be suspicious when one has a new flag, a national anthem and changed their name from the regional government to the Puntland government of Somalia. I know they lost heart with the formation of the illusive governments of Somalia. To Somalilanders this is a concrete vindication and also a blow to those singing the empty gospel of the unity of Somalia. They see such people as hypocrites who are on the one hand in the process of taking care of their separate tribal interests, while on the other hand singing the empty words of Somali unity. Many Somalilanders believe the leading torch bearers for the hollow Somali unity were primarily puntland supporters. Therefore, Somalilanders believe even those who were part of the former Italian Somaliland are trying to go it alone.
 
6. Deployment of more troops to Afghanistan is wrong and will not help the situation. Afghanistan was never a really unified country. Afghanistan never has a strong central government. The country is still going through a thirty years of civil war.
7. The banks and mortgage giants, who got millions of Tax payer money are not changing the high interest rate mortgages they tricked some customers (people of color) to sign. At the same time, they are not lending  money to small minority businesses also.
8. The killing of more than 150 people by the new Guinean dictator camera and the AU, UN silence of this genocide is deafening. The so-called AU and the United Nations looked the other way. Day after day the United nations is becoming an  obsolete organization.
Are such criminal fragile states deserved to be recognized by the so-called world body? The answer is no. A review of the automatic recognition of decolonized states is increasingly becoming necessary. The world body should have attached recognition to responsibility, transparency and accountability. The world is paying dearly to its massive automatic recognition of the decolonized states. So far the only condition for United Nation’s dejure recognition of states was decolonization. 

9.  What is behind the virulent anger against Abdurrahman Zaylici espoused by the Rayaale supporters? Didn’t they know all the people of Awdal and all Somalillanders supported Mr. Rayaale  before. Why so much anger and slander is directed against Abdurrahman Saylici who won a genuine primary in a legal and transparent manner. If they cry corruption, he was not a party insider, the other candidates were party insiders. Why Abdularahman Saylici who is not a vice-president yet has been cruelly targeted? Isn’t that  tribally motivated. Those virulent attacks against this young vice-presidential candidate has to stop. This is a selective clan motivated viciousness which has to be condemned and despised. I  can see no reason for this madness. The saying goes, If It walks like a duck, and quakes like a duck, it is duck. This means Rayaale supporters do not want to see anybody else in a position of power, but not this time. There are so many other issues of injustice, abusive of power, tribal segregation, and corruption Rayaale has perpetrated through out Somaliland. The latest sale of the islands of Saadin and Ceebat is a good example. The latest illegal sale has mobilized galvanized massive grass roots movement in Awdal and through out Somaliland.

10. A short memorial for the original and unsung founders of the Baalwo, Abdi deeqsi Warfaa and Khadija Ciye Dharaar, Khadija Balwo. The Balwo as we know it today has been founded in “Giriyaad” a forbidding desert west of Borama and east of Zeila by two Awdal natives Abdi Deeqsi Warfa and Khadija Ciye Dharaar. The time was 1942.  During those days Abdi Deeqsi Warfaa Abdi Sinimo was a truck driver, who used to operate between Borama and Djibouti. One day his truck has broken down in the burning desert called Giriyaad. While waiting for his help he stayed there for months. That was the period Abdi Cinimo and Khadija Balwo founded the modern Balwo. The first word that came of his mouth was “ Balway Balway waxa I Baleeyay Babuur.“  “Uga Baxay biyaha Kululuu libaax bulbulana Basray Iidhi yoo, Jawhara iyo lool Ley Taan U Jiidh Go ayay Jaah Nuur Keeday Ala Janay Awadaa Majiibsada oo” This is not exactly the first Balwo songs, but it actually one of the first hit creations that was released soon after the Balwo was found in Borama. The rest is history, in 1944, Abdi Sinimo founded the first Balwo band in Borama.The Balwo band used to attract many visitors from Hargeisa and many other places.        

11.  The educational strides the people of Somaliland has taken are unprecedented. The pioneering, entrepreneurship, enterprising and creative genes of the people of this land can be reflected in many aspects of life in this country, and especially in the educational sector. One of the legacies of this education loving communities, can in part be traced back to the unquenchable thirsty for knowledge and education, the people of Somaliland has in their genes. The growth of all levels of education in this country, in a period of a decade, without the help of the dysfunctional international mafia organizations is unprecedented, unbelievable and historical. For a period of about ten years the country grew from zero universities to almost eight universities and counting,  and the qualities of some these universities is better than many other universities in Africa and the Middle East. Education in the elementary, middle and high schools were all grown more than ten fold. In rough estimates the literacy rate of the country grew from 35% to more than 60%. The goal in the drawing board of the education secretariat, is to raise the literacy rate to 80% by the year 2015. There are also many vocational institutes and technical academies who train students on different hands on skills such as computer technology, plumping, wielding, carpentry, construction, brick laying and others.  

12. False happiness and continued provocation, cat fights, personal clashes, conspiring against each other will not resolve their problems.That is the business as usual for unfortunate Horn of Africa’s entrenched dictators. I am not a fan of the other stubborn dictator Afwergi, but was taken aback by the bursting into jubilance and festivities exhibited by Zinawi and Gelle, when the Security Council(the selective and exclusive council) imposed sanctions against Eritrea. The later action has fired the above named big ego dictators. Aggressive lobbing to impose sanctions against each other will not work. This  jubilance is premature. This is a reflection of their ineptness and how they are out of touch with reality. Vindictive actions like this against each other will not resove the monumental problems facing the Horn of Africa. It is mind boggling to see these unholy duo so jubilant with a selective and toothless sanctions. The UN should have imposed sanctions against Zinewi by killing hundreds of peaceful demonstrators in Addis Abba, who just protested against rigged elections. These dictators  harbor wrong mentality, and wrong thinking. They always have the habit of  seeking solutions from outside and not within. That is an insane policy which is testament to so many failed and failing states in Africa, compared to other regions of the world. If there was fairness and real justice in the UN, the 5o years old Palestinian problem would have been revolved long time ago, the fifty million Kurdish would have been given an independent homeland. Chechnya not mountain negro would have been allowed for their self-determination. Somaliland and not Kosovo would have been given a dejure recognition long time ago.  

13. The delegation from Kenya was a fact finding mission led by a high ranking official of a Somali decent Mr. Farah Maallin. He visited many Somaliland cities and just can’t believe what he has seen. He praised Somaliland concrete progress in so many sectors without outside help. It is ridiculous to hear some tribally motivated groups, and the government of the state of Puntland to denounce such a peaceful fact-finding mission. They have again proven their tribal mentality. You can’s be both tribal and nationalist at the same time. Surely that is nothing but a pure contradiction, hypocrisy and hogwash.
Predictions

I. Rayaale will be removed from Somaliland’s leadership and finally Somalilanders will enjoy a Rayaaleless life
II. The sale of public property and land will finally come to an end
Suggestions

I. Great efforts must be exerted to stop Somalilander’s radicals who are in a frantic efforts to stir land disputes. Some of these radicals are creating intractable land disputes while at same time, also laying false claims on peoples’ land. Genuine land disputed must be resolved through peaceful means. This is Somaliland’s Achilles heels that may build or break us. Huge attention must be given to this area. This is an area that may potentially polarize Somaliland communities good relationship, If not stopped  that may eventually develop into multiple conflicts.
II. Joint efforts must be excreted on the growing terrorism and chaos in our border with Somalia  
 

“Freedom means you are unobstructed in living your life as you choose. Anything less is a form of slavery.” Wayne Dyer

 
Suleiman Ige is a senior science instructor and a freelance writer