General Duke Posted September 2, 2004 New Somali parliament convenes - Thursday, September 02, 2004 at 17:00 NAIROBI, Kenya (Reuters) -- Somalia's new parliament held its inaugural meeting on Thursday, but quickly adjourned to give its members more time to organize the business of returning government to the only nation without one. In the laborious, piecemeal manner that has characterized Somalia's 20-month peace process, the parliament, sitting in the capital of neighboring Kenya, called a one-day recess after naming its eldest member as temporary chairman. The decision to give 83-year-old Hirsi Bulhan Farah the chair was a formality, stipulated by the charter guiding the rebuilding of the Horn of Africa nation under the watch of African and international mediators. It is Somalia's 14th attempt at establishing a national government since 1991, when warlords toppled dictator Mohammed Siad Barre and carved the country into clan-based fiefdoms. Lack of security at home has forced parliament to meet in Nairobi. Underscoring the simmering tensions in the nascent assembly, a shoving match broke out on the assembly floor over the number of women in the parliament. The scuffle ended after two women spoke out and others urged parliamentarians to calm down. Farah called a brief recess that was soon extended until Friday, after many members found they were without some critical legislative tools. "I had hoped they would set a date for elections today, but they require more time because some members have forgotten their charters and rules of procedure," said Bethuel Kiplagat, a top Kenyan mediator in the peace talks. The crucial job for the parliament is to name a permanent speaker, and then the president who will establish a new Somali administration in the capital of Mogadishu with an eye to holding elections in five years. First, the parliament must set up a committee to create an electoral commission to oversee the votes, a decision likely to cause friction. All but two or three of the 275 members of the assembly were present on Thursday, although several still had not taken their oaths of office. Five did so on Thursday, leaving a dozen to go. International mediators, in an effort to pressure bickering clans who had repeatedly delayed the peace talks, had already sworn in 258 parliamentarians in two earlier meetings. Since the breakdown of central government, conflict and famine have killed hundreds of thousands of people and the country has become a byword for anarchy. The United States, which floundered there on a peacekeeping mission a decade ago, considers the lawless state as a safe haven for Islamic militants. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
General Duke Posted September 2, 2004 SOMALIA: New parliament elects temporary chairman [ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations] © IRIN NAIROBI, 2 Sep 2004 (IRIN) - Somalia's newly constituted transitional parliament held its first meeting in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Thursday during which members elected Hersi Bulhan Farah, 83, to serve as temporary chairman pending the election of a speaker. "It is a new dawn for the Somali people," Marian Muhammad Mursal, one of the members attending Thursday's session, told IRIN. "As a woman, however, I am disappointed that 34 seats allocated to women have not all been filled. I am appealing to our male colleagues to complete the women's quota," she added. Five new members were sworn in during the first sitting, meaning that only 12 MPs in the 275-seat parliament are yet to take their oath of office. Some 25 women MPs are among those selected by the various clans so far. "Today is a historic day for all of us and will mark a new beginning for Somalia," another MP, Awad Ahmed Ashara, told IRIN. Ashara said international support was needed "to enable us fulfil our objectives and bring about total reconciliation and stability in our country." The MPs were chosen by elders and political leaders from their respective clans who had been attending the reconciliation conference in Nairobi sponsored by the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). The creation of the transitional federal parliament paved the way for the formation of an all-inclusive government in Somalia, the Horn of Africa country which has remained without an effective government since 1991, when the regime of Muhammad Siyad Barre was toppled. Each of Somalia's four major clans was allocated 61 seats in the parliament, while an alliance of minority clans was awarded 31. A speaker and two deputy speakers to be elected from among the MPs will preside over the election of the president, who will in turn appoint a prime minister to form a government. [ENDS] http://www.dayniile.com/Septenbar/2Septenbar9.htm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AYOUB Posted September 2, 2004 In the laborious, piecemeal manner that has characterized Somalia's 20-month peace process, the parliament, sitting in the capital of neighboring Kenya, called a one-day recess after naming its eldest member as temporary chairman. Wow! Don't know about you but I'm impressed by the beast-men. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AYOUB Posted September 3, 2004 ^^ I meant the hoodlums you like to call the 'warlords' so keep your hair on, will ya? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Xarago Posted September 3, 2004 Lool strange he gets agitated by the words 'beast' but accepts 'warlord'. Cajiib. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
