Infantile happiness—The tale of Riyale’s visit to London.

[Liqaye]

Infantile happiness—The tale of Riyale’s visit to London.

 

by Shirwa Jama, Law Faculty, University of Cambridge, England.

 

 

 

The festive smiles descended those who were demonstrating on the 17th of March; most seemed as though they expected this to be the D Day; the day they will make their mark on the world stage. The “state visit” as some dubbed it was indeed reduced something of a second rate musician paying visit to his meager fans in the House of Commons. If such a visit was nearly to be anything “semi-official” (as many supporters would like us to believe) then it would indeed be inapt for the ministers concerned not to show up for symbolic photo shoots with Mr Riyaale; perhaps Mr Benn and Mr Straw were occupied with more noteworthy matters—I was told the Honourable Gentleman Mr Benn: the Secretary State of overseas development (or some such) was off to Wilshire hunting; whereas Mr Straw attended his Oxonian son’s birthday at that exclusive restaurant the Ivy. Surely the delights of seeing an “exotic” Head of State would have spared them from such trivial enjoyment of hunting and good food. With assurance they would indeed spare time to see him if they regarded Mr Riyaale any such but truth of the matter is that such regard has never been thought of my fellow countryman Mr Riyale who was indeed traveling with Somali passport—the ironic politicking of our fellow Hargeisa politicians is staggering to say the least- where some of his colleagues were in hold of foreign passports ranging from Danish to American; some would undoubtedly say this is an international government.

 

Triviality aside, to add an insult to injury our fellow Somaliland (SL) supports would like us to belief that the inconsequential backbench MPs whose diaries had been empty for donkeys of years are men who would deliver them to glory. What a pity. The gentlemen of Banbury and Hardgate, Clydebank Mr Tony Baldry and Tony Worthington respectively. The first having dubious personality of which one can safely say is ominous than that of his party colleague the disgraced Lord Archer (well admired writer and socialite net worker; he should have stuck with what he knows best). The other not so shady but indeed gloom had beset him since he was demoted from his last post Minster of Ireland—where he did a very poor job. When I last spoke to him weeks ago, he struck me like an old lion tired of peaceful life and hungry for an adventure. He pretends to be some sort of blue blood having acquired thick husky accent that reminds you of Boris Johnson MP of Henley and editor of Telegraph but not as clever or as pure blooded as him. I was awestruck when he answered a question I have asked him. His response was one that oozed with self-assurance that artful man can detect it to be a false attire that men naked of self-confidence would wear. He assumed his most posh accent like I would run sheepishly; “Sir, I care the plight of Somaliland people because I happen to believe in liberty and political self-determination”. Of course as you can guess my question was ;What prompted him to go to Hargeisa only; why did he not visit Sool and Sanaag which of course the Hargeisa administration claims to be part of Somaliland.

 

After reading The Political Animal written by that self-assured man Mr Paxman of the BBC; I was equipped to deal with this self-haughtiness. My retort of course was one that lasted nearly half an hour; I shan’t bore you my dear reader to the exact sentences we exchanged. But my meagre trained mind was predisposed to unearth why these two men would indeed be much interested in “Somaliland”. The first man is known to be a clever merchant. He has his claws in many troubled countries in Africa. The chap is just trying to get on the game as it were. Where the other less insidious chap is perhaps influenced by Trollope’s writings and those adventures which men like Richard Burton speak of (of course largely most of his writings on Somalis is at bare minimum a heresy). He is getting on, age is creeping in and the sunny environment he had seen in the Horn would spare him the pain of living dreary England (only if We Somalis valued our land as this chap has done; during our conversation, he spoke highly about the climate, the people and how terrible it is to loose all these to lawlessness); of course any man with their right mind would exchange cold with warm weather.

 

Anyhow, what has come of those celebratory smiles I first opened in my lines? I tell you my reader. They faded into the thin air never to be re-lived if the smilees can gain experience from this bitter incident. The organisers has so artlessly, unselfconsciously sold the demonstration that I even nearly believed them. I think they may even believed it themselves. The cavalier convention ended with Riyaale being given a shoddy platform to plead his inauspicious plea which of course fall into the satiated men who will just retell the stories in their luxuriant dinner parties—I wish those Somalis would know the life style of the middle-classes; this whole thing is a jolly well spend time to them; something they shall come up with to impress their friends when they sip Earl Grey tea in places like Savoy, Dorchester or other such coffee houses they congregate in.

 

What would have become of this lot-Somaliland (clan entity). It is like those infamously contemptible Somali “models” who conjure up fantastic tales to bemuse those foreigner; but worst still these lot don’t confine their fantasy on their old masters; but the fantasy had become unceasing they themselves become faithful to it—like those women who created the concept of love to beguile men; only later to become victims of it. It is sadly for them their arguments are absorbingly amusing for the objective reader. Anyone who have read about the report of the Commons would agree to it; where those two plead on behalf of their potential clients in front of their colleagues; they say these men had fought with us in wars against the Europeans. This is classic haughtiness and the utter superiority of the upper echelons of this society; they are far removed from reality to utter such politically archaic remarks. They heed none to political connotations so far as they feel happy about its delivery. “It is the delivery that matters not message” said their greatest of all. My Allah have been embarrassed to hear such arguments. Even worse the SL supporters give credence to this as some sort of gleaming historical significance; it ties them with the old masters said one while back while we enjoying-ly speculated about the arrival of Mr Riyale in London. This man who have significance erudition is so blinded he can not see how inane this whole thing is.

 

Wrapping up, the trip most SL supporters expected them to deliver that ships of honey are docked empty where the rust eats away in that threadbare place they all sipping what had left of fizzing drinks.

 

 

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[AYOUB]

^^^

 

Welcome to the web site of Shirwa Jama, this is a comprehensive resource of all his writings both topical , literary and philosophical.

 

[Liqaye]

^^^^^lool^^^ I like the fellow he has got panache and knows how to promote himslef .

 

And you brother are just to quick on the uptake, it was only the other day I got to know who shirwa is.

 

[AYOUB]

Originally posted by LIQAYE:

I like the fellow he has got panache and knows how to promote himslef .

 

We are not worthy!

[General Duke]

My dear old friend Shirwac Jama well done, the man has become a topic of his own.

 

So much for Somaliland and "its getting closer" recognition oh well.

[General Duke]

Minister Edna Aden: Somaliland Women Are Being Brutalized By Your Government, Will You Speak Up On Their Behalf?

Khadra Ibrahim — London, England — 03 June, 2004

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Minister Edna Aden: Somaliland Women Are Being Brutalized by your Government, will you speak up on their behalf?

 

As if recent arrests and maltreatment of the protestors were not shocking enough, we learn that among those young people, who were unlawfully detained, beaten and then sentenced in a kangaroo court, were two pregnant young women. I will certainly be justified to lament Somaliland's current disastrous state of affairs. However, I will not venture into explaining how we got to this disastrous state of affairs. Instead I like to register my outrage and extreme sadness over the brutality and beating of two young Somali women. We learn through the paper that these young women were brutalized to the point of miscarrying.

 

To make matters worse, when these young women were brought to hospital, they were chained to their hospital beds, as thought they were killers of the first order. After a reported shock and outrage from the citizens of Somaliland, the injured women were transported back to jail without even being properly treated. This is an outrage. These women could suffer lasting effects; they might never have children because their body was brutalized so badly in a sensitive time which caused miscarriage and bleeding. These young women might very well be dealing with infections that could be the beginning of long lasting health problems. Never mind the psychological and emotional toll the experience might bring.

 

Therefore, it is shocking that Minister Edna Aden, is silent about this brutality. Edna after all is well aware of the health hazards and lasting affects of torture and beating on pregnant women. As a midwife and an experienced nurse, Edna knows that pregnant women need rest, nourishment and care not beating and brutal treatment. So why then our beloved minister is silent about this, why isn't she demanding the release or at least the treatment of these young women? Why isn't she resigning over this outrage?

 

Minister Edna, we expect that you will share our outrage over the brutal treatment of young women. This goes against everything that people of Somaliland's liberation movement has fought hard to establish. After long liberation, which we sustained countless losses, we expected that young Somali women will never again be used to terrorise, intimidate and punish their society to submission. This is against everything a free and democratic Somaliland should stand for. What took place is criminal. International law confirms this; it recognises this sort of treatment as violence, a weapon of war and a form of persecution and torture, especially when perpetrated by soldiers or police in the course of carrying out an interrogation or arrest of women, regardless of where such interrogation or arrest takes place.

 

Minister Edna, we expected more from you. We expected that you of all people will be up in arms and will demand at least that these young women are offered medical treatment. We expected that you will be scandalised that a government you are part of is inflicting torture on young pregnant women. Clearly, we were mistaken and you are part of this corrupt political system and your slogans were just that slogans.

 

Will you rise and proof that our initial believe in you were not misplaced. Will you restore our faith in you and proof to us that you truly care about the well-being and the development of Somaliland women. Minister Edna will you speak up against this inhumane treatment of women?

 

I am hopeful that you will not forget your moral responsibility to these helpless young women?

 

Khadra Ibrahim

London, England

khadra_ibrahim75@hotmail.com

[General Duke]

Challenging Another Dictatorship In Somaliland

Ibrahim Hassan Gagale — ( ) — 02 June, 2004

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Challenging Another Dictatorship in Somaliland

 

On May 18, 2004, marking the 13th Anniversary of Somaliland Independence from Somalia, the mothers fell again to their knees crying and wailing of the illegal arrests of their innocent children who were scooped on the streets of Hargeisa by the police while expressing their grievances in peaceful demonstration. Equally Shocking, they were transferred immediately to Mandera prison cells at midnight by the kangaroo court of the outlaw and extra-constitutional security committee of Riyale`s Clique without due process in the court of law- A typical Siyad`s dark justice. There are reliable reports that two pregnant girls in the 154 students detained by the police miscarried in the prison cells due to mistreatment.

 

The indiscriminate firing upon the students by the police in the heart of the capital, Hargeisa, maybe conspiratorial attempt by the Ruling Clique to show the world that Somaliland is as violent as Somalia in order to undermine its sovereignty and long-awaited recognition. This act could be just the tip of an iceberg of Somaliland`s transition into another dictatorship where law and democracy are buried and one man`s rule prevails.

 

These sad sounds and sirens of wails were commonly heard in Somaliland during Siyad`s brutal campaign against Somaliland people in the 1980s. When dictatorship delivers to another dictatorship with no light at end of the tunnel after 44 years of independence, then it is justifiable if the Somaliland masses believe that life itself or existence is only fear, injustice, and atrocities, and that poverty, diseases, and ignorance are undefeatable parts of their own creation. True meaning of peace, justice, progress, and prosperity are only mental images to Somaliland nation. Before the current regime, this small nation, in the Horn of Africa, lived a thirty long-year-history (1960-1990) of unratified, disastrous union with Somalia and witnessed only South-led derelict, corrupt civilian governments (1960-1969) followed by Siyad`s savage dictatorship (1969-1990) that committed all kinds of attrocities in Somaliland to eliminate an entire nation and replace

it with refugees from Western Somali Province in Ethiopia and others just for tribal ambitions.

 

The slow recuperation of the Somaliland people from the devastations and ravages inflicted by Somalia and the subsequent traumatic and depressive life in Refugee Camps in Ethiopia is shattered by the new threats of the native, corrupt, egomaniac government run by Riyale and his clique. Signs of new

dictatorship are again creeping across Somaliland that may kill all hopes for stable, democratic, prosperous, and recognized Somaliland. Somaliland people blamed Somalia for their past calamities but today they should blame themselves for the growing uncertainties of Somaliland`s future because they failed to choose the right leader at the right time. They chose Siyad`s loyalists over their founding heroes with tested integrity, patriotism, and nationalism and that is why Somalilanders are suffering today from the consequences of their bad choice. There is no question that every Somaliland citizen has the right to be elected president but it is the people`s descretionary duty not to elect controversial figures that could embark the nation on disastrous route that endangers the lives and properties of Somaliland citizens and threatens their hard-won sovereignty.

 

The era of deception and misleadership is over and Somaliland people, due to past experiences, can easily distinguish a good government led by democratic institution that governs with uniform progress, respecting freedom of speech and press, promoting welfare of its citizens, and respecting the rule of law from a dictatorship run by a clique that reigns with terror and fear, chocking all sorts of progress and violating basic human rights through terroristic police control. Dictatorship is a system of government in which one person or small group of

people have absolute control in a country with unlimited power that can not be restricted by constitution or by laws.

 

Dictators come to power either through military takeovers like Siyad Barre or through dictatorship-turned-presidency by rigging presidential elections like Dahir Riyale Kaahin. When Somaliland people reclaimed their independence in 1991, they, at the same time, unanimously chose to govern the country with democratic system to avoid future dictatorships, to reach quick progress, and to hasten Somaliland diplomatic recognition by the world.

 

Since Riyale`s government came to power in the mid of 2002, everything is deteriorating and falling apart in the countrty - The economy, defense, security, social services,infrasrtuctures, national unity and territorial intergrity etc. The behavior of Riyale`s Clique does not only amount to dictatorship but it could be a combination of foreign-imposed dictatorship and treasonous conspiracy well crafted by a secret group with political objective of returning Somaliland to Somalia. This group consists of: President Riyale of Somaliland, Ismail Omer Ghelle of Djabouti, and IGAD officials in cooperation with warlords of Somalia. In light of what is happening in Somaliland today, this covert group is plotting to take the country through three destructive conspiratorial phases. The first phase is to replace democratic system of Somaliland with Riyale`s dictatorship to make sure that he stays in power through rigged presidential elections until the above objective becomes reality.

 

The second phase is intended to destroy the essence of Somaliland Constitutional Statehood with tribal influence under Riyale`s absolute power and promote widespread corruption to weaken Somaliland politically, socially, economically, and militarily for future merger with Somalia. The third and final phase has three simultaneous steps to bring down Somaliland independence. The first step is to facilitate for Puntland Administration to invade and occupy Sool and Sanaag Regions of Somaliland to disintegrate Somaliland Republic; the second is to secretly involve Somaliland in the peace talks of Somalia through the channells of Djibouti`s Ghelle to reunify with Somalia, and the third step is to ultimately create tensions and confrontations among Somalilanders, by financing and arming clans against each other, in order to plunge the country into violence, anarchy, and despair making it a failed state similar to Somalia in order to breakdown Somalilanders morally and make them accept unconditionally the outcome of the third phase which is to share another union with Somalia. In the process of these three phases, there is a campaign of concerted efforts by the Clique intended to hypocrtically blame opponents and opposition party leaders for creating instability in Somaliland, for fighting Riyale over the presidency, and for underminding international recognition so that the reactionaries can look patriotic in the eyes of the people in order to divert the public attention from their political, conspiratorial sabotage against Somaliland sovereignty. The country, Somaliland Republic, is passing now through the last or final phase to put Somaliland sovereignty to death and force its people to join another unwelcome, humiliating merger with Somalia unless it is salvaged by its people soon.

 

1.Evidences of Riyale`s Dictatorial Rule

 

Dictatorships all over the world have the same characteristics and Riyale`s rule qualifies for them as the following descriptions show:

 

1. Rigging of presidential elections of April 14, 2003 by wielding the powers of the presidency and the chairmanships of the parliament, Supreme Court, and Election Commission. It is embarassing how the most important four powers of Somaliland Republic, with which the Republic can be brought down easily,

were seized by these four individuals who were loyal to Siyad`s Regime: Dahir Riyale Kahin, President of Somaliland Rep; Ahmed Mohamed Aden (Qaybe), President of the House of Parliament, Saeed Farah Ahmed, recent President of the Supreme Court, and Ahmed Ali Adami, the Chairman of the National Election Commission . The blanket amnesty offered by the Congress of Somaliland Council of Elders, held in Burao in 1991, was commendable, but that did not mean to elect leaders or appoint cabinet ministers and other important government officials without public scrutiny and careful descretion. The coming parliamentary elections maybe manipulated dishonestly with public money by the Ruling Clique in order to avoid Riyale`s impeachment for ouster by the new parliament.

 

2. Abandonment of the Constitution, replacing it with Riyale`s personal directives, and disrespecting the system of checks and balances of powers of the Somaliland Republic by influencing the parliament to reconfirm cabinet appointments rejected by this body previously (Most of Current parliament members are corrupt and unpatriotic for being sold out by Riyale, they betray their nation and remain indifferent).

 

3. Prevalence of widespread corrruption of public funds mismanaged by government officials without transparency, accountability and reliable financial auditing system in governmental entities. Opposition leaders and other public figures have recently accused Riyale`s government of allegedly stealing $16M from the people. The top members of the Clique might have deposited this money in Europe. These crippling corruptions have devastated the nattional economy, defense, internal security, infrastructure, basic social services such as health, education etc.

 

4. Basing government appointments and promotions on loyalty to Riyale`s Regime, preferring ignorant, inexperienced individuals to educated, experienced people, forming inflated-government cabinet that is very burdonsome to the country`s economy, and expelling ministers that challenge Riyale`s dictatorship or committed to Somaliland cause - Mr.Mohamed Hashi Elmi, Minister of Commerce and Industry, was fired recently when he challenged thedictatorship.

 

5. Supressing and repressing peaceful demonstrations, firing upon them when come out to streets to express their grievances, inflicting casualties, and carrying out campaigns of unlawful arrestes and detentions of Somaliland citizens. These deliberate violations and abuses of human rights drew outcries and condemnations from human rights organizations.

 

6. Constant censorship of media, threats and detentions against jornalists.

 

7. Plundering land in major cities of the country with public funds by government officials, turning them into landlords, displacing the poor, volnurable,and the helpless.

 

8. Destroying the good of the individual claiming falsely to protect the good of the whole.

 

9. Imposing unlawful state of emergency and unnecessary curfews to suppress the public andquell the dissent.

 

10. Making the presdiency of the country inaccessible by surrounding it with heavy weapons and guards that prevent political leaders and traditional elders, and the public as well, from seeing the president for national issues- A typical Siyad`s presidency.

 

11. Riyale`s consulting with the top members of his Clique on national issues such as Ahmed Mohamed Aden (Qaybe), President of House of Parliament, Hussein Ali Duale (Awil), Minister of Finance, Ismail Aden Osman, Minister of Interior, Abdullahi Mohamed Duale, Minister of Information, and Mohamed Ege, Commander of National Police Force, and distancing himself from the vice president Mr. Ahmed Yussuf Yasin.

 

12. Meddling in the functions of local governments and preventing them from holding their routine local meetings without the approval of the Intertior minister, Ismail Aden Osman.

 

2. Conspiratorial Nature of Riyale`s Government

 

Riyale`s government is not only dictatorship but conspiratorial too intended to bring down Somaliland Republic, and the followings are the evidence:

 

1. Desecrating the sacred history of SNM struggle (1982-1991), attempting to prevent people from celebrating it, and trying to remove it from Somaliland history knowing that it is the most important part of the country`s history. After Somaliland reclaimed its independence in 1991, the new governments were expected to found and promote a Historical Society of The Armed Struggle of SNM to make it a living history for ever for having in hand the three major components of collecting and making history, which are: a) The primary source (People: accounts of SNM veterans such as leaders, officers, and fighters, with real stories of the armed struggle.

 

b) Documents (About SNM foundation, strategic mission,leadership and military wing, accounts of battles and final liberation etc. c) Artifacts (weapons,equiments of communications, uniform, shoes,transport, and cookingwares used in the armed struggle of SNM etc).Equally important was to found the Historical Society of Somaliland History.

 

2. Dishonoring SNM veterans and blocking them fromparticipating in the government while filling ranks of the government with proSomalia elements whose mission is to undermine Somaliland sovereignty for federalism with Somalia.

 

3. Concentrating the power of the Somaliland government in the west of the country, investing inthe Western Regions and neglecting the Eastern Regions so Riyale can create an impression that the government belongs to the West of the country in order to devise tensions and confrontatons between the two sides intended to bring down Somaliland sovereignty with violence. Somaliland people, both in the west and east, are aware that Riyale`s Regime have done nothing for their welfare but killed their hopes for progressive, stable, democratic Somaliland with conspiratorial schemes to destroy Somaliland Republic. Somaliland people is indivisible with same destiny and united to oust Riyale`s government to salvage Somaliland Republic.

 

4. Letting Puntland`s armed militia invade and occupy Las-Anod, the capital of Sool Region since December 2003 and ignoring its ongoing gradual advancement toward Sanaag Region thus underming national unity and territorial integrity of Somaliland Republic to disintegrate Somaliland for Somalia`s union revival.

 

5. Shutting down virtually Berbera Seaport, the life line of Somaliland, forcing the Western Regions of the country to use Djibouti Seaport to boost its economy, and the Eastern Regions to use Bosaso Seaport to boost Puntland`s economy too. President Ismail Omer Ghelle of Djibouti is behind the virtual closure of Berbera Sea Port and is running Somaliland`s internal affairs secretly through Riyale. Ghelle`s advocacy for unity is not from the heart but he just hopes that if Somaliland returns to the Union with Somalia there is good chance that Mogadishu will shut down Berbera Seaport for ever for Djibouti`s economic development.

 

6. Scapegoating and blaming opposition leaders and Eastern Regions of the country for the insecurity in the country to cover up the involvement of Riyale`s Clique in the political sabotage against Somaliland sovereignty. The silent delay of prosecution against the killers of the five international aid workers murdered in Somaliland recently created growing suspicion in the public that Riyale`s government itself might be involved in their deaths to undermineSomaliland diplomatic recognition and its reputationfor stability and peace in the Horn of Afica.

 

7. Somaliland currency is working only in the WesternRegions of the country and its absence in the Eastern Regions created a perception and picture of two different countries.

 

Considering the above mentioned dictatorial and treasonous characteristics sabotaging Somaliland sovereignty, democratic system, and peace, it is time to oust Riyale`s Regime. No dictator can maintain power through brute force. If he rejects calls of resignation or the current parliament fails to impeach him for quick ouster, which they may not do, then it is the patriotic duty of Somaliland people (Opposition leaders, masses, armed forces officers, intellectuals, traditional elders etc) to challenge the rising Dictatorship of Riyale and bring it down to its knees through popular uprising and civil disobedience for their own survival, and replace it with transitional president, in national Congress, who is honest, patriotic, natiolistic, and committed to Somaliland sovereignty, and then hold national presidential elections within 1-2 years with limited term for

presidents to avoid future dictatorships.

 

LONG LIVE SOMALILAND REPUBLIC.

 

Written by: Ibrahim Hassan Gagale.

Email: Ibrahim_hg@yahoo.com

June 1, 2004.