High-risk Sex Workers Fly Under The HIV Radar Hodan spends most of her afternoons sitting outside her tiny house in Hargeisa, capital of the self-declared republic of Somaliland, blowing fruity smoke from a hookah pipe, her face covered in a green paste to help her skin look its best. She does not trawl the streets looking for customers; most of her clients make appointments to visit her at home. In this conservative Muslim country, commercial sex work is practiced out of sight. Hodan says not even her neighbors know how she makes a living and if they ever found out, she is sure they would evict her immediately. “I sleep with between one and three men every day; they usually pay me with khat [a mild stimulant widely chewed in the Horn of Africa] and money, maybe about US$3.50 for every man,” she told IRIN/PlusNews. The money she earns is enough to pay rent and feed and clothe her 10-year-old daughter, but what Hodan wants more than anything is to be able to make enough to learn new skills that would enable her to stop selling sex. A shameful profession “I would do anything, anything else,” she said. “When I was younger I looked after my aunt’s household, but when a man in the family made me pregnant, I was sent away, so I have no family to look after me.” Hodan has never been to school and can neither read nor write. Although she still hopes she can switch occupations, she knows it is highly unlikely that it will happen without a helping hand. Somaliland has several NGOs that assist the disadvantaged members of society, but so far no organization has tackled the issue of sex workers, largely because of fear of repercussions from the wider community. “It [sex work] is very shameful in our culture so no one is prepared to work with them,” said Yahye Mohamoud Ahmed, chairperson of the Somaliland National Youth Organization, a local NGO that has several projects benefiting unemployed youth, but none directly targeting sex workers. “It would be good if we could find a way to help them, but it is hard.” Because they are outside mainstream society, sex workers tend not to visit regular health centers and despite the risk their occupation poses, there are no HIV messages specifically targeting them. Research in 2007, by the International Organization for Migration, to better understand the HIV-risk behavior in Somalia’s most at-risk populations, showed that transactional sex workers were vulnerable to HIV, especially as condom use was very low. On the fringe “Clients can be violent, and there is no way for the women to report to the police; they have no support networks - not family, friends or the government - to stand up for their rights,” said a local NGO worker who preferred anonymity. Hodan knows about HIV and has even been tested, but her use of condoms is sporadic, despite being diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection in the past. “I really fear HIV and try to use condoms always, but if the client doesn’t want to use a condom I will have sex with him anyway - I need the money,” she said, adding that the men usually brought their own condoms. Somaliland’s HIV prevalence is estimated at 1.4 percent, but experts say the epidemic is likely to be concentrated in high-risk populations such as sex workers, seafarers and truck drivers. According to the NGO worker, most sex workers will not risk walking into a pharmacy to buy condoms, or even go to a health center where they are available free of charge. “They rely on their clients for condoms, or on middlemen who often overcharge them for the condoms. Providing free condoms to sex workers also risks a backlash from the community.” Reaching sex workers with HIV services would require creative solutions. “They do not have normal access to health services such as VCT [voluntary testing and counselling] and clinics; they fear visiting VCT centres because they may be recognized and talked about, but creating special clinics and centers for them could be even more stigmatizing,” she said. Baby steps towards a plan for sex workers Nevertheless, the NGO worker said, “We are making some progress - there was a time when the government rejected the very idea that commercial sex workers existed in Somaliland, but now they accept that they are here.” Mohamed Hussein Osman, executive secretary of the Somaliland National AIDS Commission, said: “We know that they exist, but it is hard to reach them because culturally and religiously it is a very sensitive issue. They are at risk, and are also spreading HIV, so we need to come up with a plan to reach them.” It was also difficult to gain the trust of sex workers, but not impossible. “They want to be found, they want to be heard, and they want to be helped. Most of these girls and women do it because there is nothing else for them to do - they would quit instantly if they had any other alternative,” the NGO worker said. “There will always be consequences, there will always be risks and challenges, but we have to be ready for that,” she added. “We have to start somewhere.” Source: IRIN/Plusnews

Somali opposition leader quits Eritrea for Sudan MOGADISHU, March 31 (Reuters) - Somalia's hardline Islamist opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys has quit self-imposed exile in Eritrea for neighbouring Sudan and may return to Mogadishu soon, Somali media said on Tuesday. Aweys, 62, is on a U.S. list of terrorism suspects. He is a former chairman of the Islamic Courts Union that ruled Somalia's capital in 2006 until being ousted by Ethiopian troops. He worked alongside his country's moderate Islamist president, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, in the Islamic Courts and they later founded the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia. Earlier this year, Ahmed was elected president by lawmakers at U.N.-hosted talks in Djibouti. Radio stations in Mogadishu said Aweys was in Khartoum and held talks on Tuesday with two senior Sudanese officials. They said he was expected to fly to the Somali capital later to offer his support to Ahmed's new administration. The endorsement of Aweys would be a boost for Ahmed, who faces the daunting task of trying to establish a new national security force and persuade heavily-armed Islamist guerrillas to back his government in the interests of peace. But it could prove difficult for the United Nations and Western countries, which were once wary of Islamists being in power but now see Ahmed as the best hope for bringing peace to the failed Horn of Africa state after 18 years of violence. A close ally of Aweys in Mogadishu, who asked not to be named, told Reuters Aweys was expected to arrive in the city within two weeks. The ally said Awey's plans were not yet clear, but he denied he had met any Sudanese officials. One senior Somali source in Sudan confirmed Aweys was in the country, and said it was possible Ahmed might travel to Khartoum to meet him there. He gave no other details. In a Reuters interview by telephone from Asmara earlier this month, Aweys denounced Ahmed as just another Ethiopian stooge and said he was a traitor to the Islamic faith. [iD:nL4915892] Aweys is on the U.S. list of foreign terrorists, as is the hardline Islamist insurgent group al Shabaab, which controls much of southern and central Somalia. Ahmed has been pushing to have Aweys removed from the list. Washington accuses Somalia's hardline Islamists of having ties to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda and fears the chaotic country could be used by foreign groups to destabilise the region.

Mahadsanid sxb ............ dalkaanu u shaqaynaynaa oo aanu dad wax u tara u soo saaraynaaye Ilaahay ha nagu guuleeyo ...

The World Food Program (WFP) imported 375 metric tons of Sorghum to Ethiopia through the Port of Berbera last Thursday, March 26, 2009. The WFP made a cross-border delivery of food commodities to Ethiopia from Berbera Port in Somaliland. WFP, the world’s largest humanitarian agency, used the port as an alternative entry port into Ethiopia to bring in its relief and emergency food stock. The food aid is destined for the needy Somali region in the eastern part of Ethiopia for those obviously affected by famine. “We are happy that the WFP sorghum has reached the region,” Mitiku Kasa, state minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, told Fortune. WFP confirmed that a convoy of 16 trucks and lorries had arrived in the eastern town of Jijiga from Berbera Port. The trucks were loaded with some 375 metric tons of sorghum for WFP beneficiaries in the Somali region. Men, women and children who are still enduring the impact of last year’s severe drought and of high global food and fuel prices will benefit from this aid. Out of the general 4.9 million people in need of food aid throughout the country, 1.5 million are found in this region. “We will be able to help food insecure communities in the Somali region in an even more timely and efficient manner now that food supplies can arrive from across the border in Somaliland.” Mohamed Diab (PhD) WFP country director in Ethiopia said in a press release sent to Fortune on Thursday, March 26, 2009. The initial delivery of food commodities is part of a total consignment of 2,000 metric tons of sorghum that is expected to arrive in the country through the Berbera Port in the next few weeks. WFP had sought for an alternative port to bring food stocks into Ethiopia since the recent heavy congestion at Djibouti Port. The new access from Berbera Port will complement the ‘hubs and spokes’ logistical system that WFP and the government implemented last October, and which operates in seven of the nine zones in the Somali region. WFP confirmed that the ‘hubs and spokes’ delivery mode created three new storage points in the Somali region from which food is transported down multiple spokes to almost two hundred final distribution points. The restructuring has also involved the establishment of a secondary transport system using local transport companies. Source: Addis Fortune

Hargeisa, March 31 2009 (somalilandpress) - In a press conference today, the main opposition party, KULMIYE said they will not recognize any government after the 6th of April when the term extension of the government comes to an end. The press conference which was held at the party’s head quarters in Hargeisa was attended by the Somaliland media. All the party officials were present during the press conference. KULMIYE mentioned the following points in their press conference: * The Guurti’s decision was unconstitutional and they don’t have the mandate to set the date of the elctions. * There are no emergency situation in the country which makes the elections postponed. * The former Parliament decision which called for a consultation among all the parties if the elections are to be postponed was not respected. * The official term of the government ended on 15th of May 2008 and it has been extended for one more year in order the elections to take place which the government has failed to do so. The spokesman for the party then announced that after series of meetings and consultations with the party’s members, KULMIYE Party reached the following seven-point consensus: * The party will not recognize any government after the end of the current governments term on the 6th of April 2009. * The party is ready to participate in a fair and free elections. * The party calls the media outlets which is controlled by the government to be neutral between all the parties for the campaign. * National resources should not be used by the government and it should be free from any party during the elections. * Security forces should not be used against the people and other parties. The should be neutral among all the parties. * The judicial system of the country should also be neutral. * The party welcomes any consultation among the parties and welcome any government based on consultations.

Good idea .........

hahahaha ............... dee waa runtii waabuu u naxay oo uu is yidhi armaad dakhartay ,,

waar sug ..

Thanks a lot sxb ...........

While Puntland ay Daaxuuro/Libaaxyo isku cayrsanayaan

Originally posted by xiinfaniin: ^^War miyyaa igu dhimman awoowe. Warkii dhammeeyey, the only that you seem not to understand is when xiin talks about SL, he is talking about Somalia. That you like to be different is noted but in actuality is unreal . Oo dee horta reer Bugland ma anaa wax keleba ka fili go'aan ahayne ,,,, Norf xalay buu email ii soo diray uu leeyahay boos ii soo qabo ,, wax baaa loo sheegay oo sidii hore maaha ,,, lol

diapers xaa la dhahaana ?? ,, ha na barina waxaas ma naqaanee ,, Thanks to you all ......

Ha is martiyayn baan ku idhi ,, warka soo daa

There have always been current issues ... it is all politics nothing more. You're free to talk about Somaliland, Djibouti, Ethiopia or even the US dee. Feel free sxb ,, feel free , ha is martiyaynin ,,

Midlife crisis affecting SOL forum ,,,,,

When the caravan ran out of gas, when there is nothing to talk about in that part of the world, when there is nothing to report from your "own" tuulo, when all your options failed and the road is closed in your face and you are dead bored then ,,,, then .... then ... TALK ABOUT SOMALILAND

Sheh, of course women can join the guurti. Sadly, there is only one female member right now ..

Kayd Somali Art and Culture is very excited to launch “Diiwaanka Qosolka”- Collection of Somali Wisdom Jokes. This is the first time the book will be launched and we are glad that the author, Jamal Ali, will be with us to share and present some of the 150 wonderful and hilarious short stories and poems which he has collected. Jamal Ali Hussein has collected a total of seven thousand ‘wisdom jokes’ and this is the first publication of its sort. This book will give you an insight into the richness of Somali ‘wisdom jokes’, which have their roots in the traditional, nomadic Somali life style as well as addressing conteporary issues of immigration, exile and urbanization. The book will provide a greater understanding of Somali traditions, codes and life style. The author, who is an International Banker with Citibank/Citigroup, and the CEO of the Bank’s operations in Ivory Coast and West Africa, has proven with this collection of Somali ‘wisdom jokes’ that laughter may be the best answer to the credit crunch! In addition to our main guest, there will be other books available for sale and there will be other poets and writers presenting some of their works, including Mohamed Baashe H. Hassan, Mawliid Aadan Aideed , Faysal Aw-Abdi, Abdirahman Ibrahim (Abees) and more. Book launch: “Diiwaanka Qosolka” - collection of Somali wisdom jokes By Jamal Ali Hussein in London and Bristol Language of the event: Somali London: Saturday, 11 April, 14pm at Arts Lecture Theatre, Queen Mary, university London E1 4NSO Bristol: Sunday, 12 April, 15PM at St Pauls Community Sports Academy, New Foundland Street, Bristol, BS2 9NH More information: Ayan Mahamud: 0790371-2949 Mohamed Baashe: 07852239595 Faysal Aw-Cabdi: 07931892659

Hargeisa, March 30 2009 (Somalilandpress) - (MeRiS) has been launched in Hargeisa, the capital city of Somaliland. MeRiS aims to protect the rights of writers and journalists,train professionals working with the media, upgrade the skills of its members, enrich their knowledge and develop their competence and capacity; Organize cultural and literary events and promote media, academic and cultural freedom. MeRiS upholds and recalls Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media, and regardless of frontiers”. MeRiS was founded in 2009 by a group of independent journalists, environmentalists, newspapers, websites and others interested in sustaining freedom of expression, peace, good governance, democracy and development, as an independent, non-governmental, not-for-profit organization for the purpose of, among other things, advancing, promoting and protecting media freedom and freedom of expression and journalistic excellence in Somaliland. MeRiS monitors media performance and conducts training and research. Membership is open to all qualified journalists. The head office of the organization is in Hargeisa, but branch offices will be opened at both Regional and district levels throughout Somaliland. Media Rights Somaliland MeRiS media.rights@yahoo.c om Hargeisa, Somaliland

It is raining here today ................. whohooo

It is against SOL's rules sxb ...... you can link to the story without posting it directly here ...

looool@val ..... Yeah i know A .. THANK YOU VERY MUCH ALL FOR YOUR WITH AND AAMIIN TO YOUR DU'AS ..............