Thursday, December 23, 2010

Our Time Is Now

The new Somali prime minister explains why 2011 is a window of opportunity that his country cannot afford to miss.

Things are changing in Somalia. If we seize it, this moment could be a turning point in our country's conflict.
New leadership in Mogadishu and a sharper focus from the international community is re-energizing the effort to bring peace and stability to Somalia. I took office in October at the request of Somali President Sheik Sharif Ahmed, and the Somali parliament recently endorsed my plan to install a lean new cabinet of 18 ministers. Former President of Ghana Jerry Rawlings now serves as the African Union (AU) high representative for Somalia, bringing a widely respected African leader to the forefront of the AU efforts in our country. The African Union also recently expressed a firm intent to expand AMISOM's troop strength to 20,000 peacekeepers. In the short term, the U.N. Security Council is set, we trust, to authorize an immediate rise to 12,000. The Somali government, the African Union, and the international community more broadly are all committed to seeing our mission through together.
Meanwhile, the consequences for our military struggle have been clear. Earlier this year, our government controlled about a third of the capital, Mogadishu, to the insurgents' equal share. In recent months, however, our troops, in partnership with AU peacekeepers, have established control over territory that is home to more than 80 percent of the capital's population. Our forces have gone from fending off attacks against the presidential compound to actively taking ground from insurgents deep in their former strongholds, sending Islamist rebel-group al-Shabab and their foreign leaders into retreat and disarray.
Taken as a whole, these developments present an opportunity for us to break the cycle of chaos and violence that has gripped Somalia and the region for too many years. But this opportunity will not last for long. We as a government must act now to consolidate the gains of recent months. We must deliver the security and stability that the country craves. Above all, we must demonstrate to ordinary Somalis that we can make their lives better. Somalia has seen many false starts and missed opportunities, but this government is determined to succeed where others have failed. We simply cannot allow ourselves to fail, because the alternative is too dark to imagine.
Thousands of Somalis have fled from a reign of terror in the areas where al Shabab today holds sway.  Perhaps no single incident reflects the horrors of al Shabab rule more than the recent murder of two teenage girls by militant henchmen, who executed the girls in the street after accusing them of spying. But al Shabab terrorizes Somalis every day. Mothers are forced on pain of death to give up their children to al Shabab recruiters.  Any child resisting conscription risks the same fate as 17-year-old Ismael Khalif, whose hand and foot were cross amputated because he wanted to go to school rather than join the terrorist army. 
Countless such atrocities have driven Somali public opinion to a tipping point. Our people are eager now to be rid of al-Shabab. In a recent poll, nearly three-quarters of Somalis questioned said they saw the Islamist group as a force of bad, rather than a force for good. Somalis are desperate for peace and a stable government, and we cannot let them down. Clearly the burden to deliver rests with us in the Somali government. We will not shy away from this responsibility.
But we cannot do it alone.
We all know what is at stake if we fail. Al Shabab confirmed its alliance with al Qaeda earlier this year. If al Shabab grows stronger, so will the influence of the international terror network, across the Horn of Africa and beyond. And al Shabab is already increasing its reach, as was shown in July  when the group bombed World Cup spectators in Kampala, Uganda  .
The world cannot afford to allow Somalia to become a haven -- or an inspiration -- for global terrorism. We are immensely grateful for the support we already receive from the African Union, the United Nations, the European Union, the United States, and other donors. It has enabled us to get to where we are now. Still, we need more international support if we hope to cement our gains against al Qaeda and its armed supporters in our country. At the same time, we understand that the international community needs a credible partner if it is to increase the already considerable support given to Somalia. Our new administration aims to prove that we are indeed worth the investment. 
Our own plan for Somalia includes a few key points. Firstly, we will provide renewed leadership and professional focus in the executive branch. We will  develop a constitutional framework built on respect for traditional Somali culture, religious values, and way of life. We will encourage this through both political leadership and grassroots activism. We recognize that our government is only a transitional one, intended to govern until peace can be established and the people of Somalia can decide for themselves how they want to be governed. We also know just how much the Somali people want that role in deciding their future. We therefore plan to propose a new democratic constitution that will pave the way for free and fair elections. To do so, we will undertake wide public consultation and hope to pass the new constitution through parliament before our current government mandate expires next year.
Second, we must strive to foster the security environment in which a democratic transition can take place. We will re-double our efforts to build a professional, trustworthy, and representative security force that will be accountable to the people whom they are meant to protect.  This is an area where we need the particular help and expertise of the international community. We are already fortunate to have substantial support from donors, eager to see Somalia develop its own security forces. For example, 1,000 Somali soldiers completed military training in December as part of an ongoing program funded by the European Union in Uganda. They will soon join the fight in Mogadishu with EU-paid salaries. Still, the challenge we face is so enormous that more aid must be forthcoming if we hope to succeed. We need more resources to recruit, equip, train, and pay sufficient soldiers and policemen to take over the responsibilities currently held by AU peacekeepers. Restoring peace throughout Somalia is unlikely before August next year, but we will achieve it in Mogadishu. Security and stability in the nation's capital will be a major step forward and a demonstration of what can be achieved by a determined government supported by an equally determined international community. 
Finally, we will work to revive the economy and provide jobs. Increasing economic opportunities through investment, training, health care, and education will be a key priority for my administration. Somalis are the same as people the world over. They want food on their table, a roof over their head, and a future for their children. Somalis are natural traders and entrepreneurs, and we must provide them the space for normal and legitimate commercial activity. We need them to create the businesses that will provide employment and the revenues that will drive the economy forward.
None of this will be easy. It will require the combined effort and energy of the whole Somali people in partnership with the international community. But it can be done. Success comes from hope, trust, and leadership. In Somalia, these have been illusive commodities for a long time. But there are now tangible reasons to be hopeful about the future. A definite momentum is moving things forward in Somalia. And we must not squander the opportunity. Peace and stability is possible in Somalia. It can be done, and the time is now.
Mohammed Abdullahi Mohammed is prime minister of Somalia. FP

Our Time Is Now - By Mohammed Abdullahi Mohammed | Foreign Policy

 

Resurrecting the Land of Milk and Honey


Somali National News Agency


somali Information Minister
daily news bulletin.


Bulletin-ka Wakaalada  SONNA Khamiis 23 Dec 2010.pdf
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Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

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