11 August, 2007
The International Federation of Journalist has demanded urgent international action to confront the targeting and killing of journalists in Somalia following a brutal double attack in which one media chief was shot dead and another killed only hours later in a car bombing while returning from the funeral of the first victim.
Ali Iman Sharmarke, Managing Director of HornAfrik Radio, died when his car was blown up as he and colleagues in a convoy of media mourners were returning from the burial of Mahad Ahmed Elmi, Director of Radio Capital Voice, who was shot dead earlier today in Mogadishu. These deaths are the latest in a series of attacks that has claimed six media lives in Somalia this year says the IFJ.
London, UK, August 8, 2007 – Amnesty International (AI) has petitioned the government of Somaliland over the arrest of three officials of an emergent opposition party. The human rights body called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of the opposition figures. They were arrested in the capital Hargeysa on 28 July.
The officials are Mohamed Abdi Gabose, a neurologist and former minister in the Somaliland and Somalia Governments; Mohamed Hashi Elmi, a civil engineer and former Mayor of Hargeysa; and Jamal Aideed, a telecommunications businessperson.
Addis Ababa, August 8, 2007 – The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) in eastern Ethiopia has warned foreign oil companies to desist from exploration in Ogaden region otherwise drastic actions would be taken against them.
The killing of 65 Ethiopians and 9 Chinese oil workers by ONLF fighters in Ogaden three months ago had scared the Chinese government from oil exploration activities in the area.
Addis Ababa, 9 August 2007 - Foreign investment from all corners of the world as well as joint ventures with local companies is flourishing in Ethiopia’s petroleum and mining sectors, said a cabinet minister Thursday.
To date, some 66 mineral operational licenses have been issued by the Ministry of Mines and Energy and two of the licenses are prospecting, while the remaining 38 and 26 were exploration and mining licenses, respectively, said Alemayehu Tegenu, minister of mines and energy.
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Johannesburg, August 07, 2007 – The creation of a pan-African women's bank could help reduce poverty in Africa by empowering women, the organizers of a women's conference to be held in Johannesburg later this year said on Tuesday.
"You cannot fight poverty if you are not ready to save money. Our goal is the creation of a pan-African bank for women before 2010," said Eno Ben-Udensi, director of Nigeria's "Glorious Women" organization that initiated the project.
Press Statement
We can not understand how a judge with his right mind could possibly rule to remand a week and deny bail on 28/07/2007, and after the seven day remand is over on 04/08/2007 extend the remand to another week without any good cause; and the government did not bring the detainees before the court in order to receive the extension of remand.
By Prof. Al. Mariam:
The idea of (shimagles) elders getting involved in conflict and dispute resolution impresses me as wholesome and desirable. Even in advanced societies, the trend today is increasingly away from hard-nosed litigation to mediation, arbitration and other forms of non-adversarial dispute resolution. Before we opt to take the “shimagle” road, we must know what it is and where it could possibly take us.
A Report Prepared by the Ogaden Human Right Committee (OHRC)
August 8th, 2007
The international community should take note that the human rights violations presented in detail in this report and the previous reports are flagrant violations of rights and freedoms guaranteed by International Human Rights Treaties, acceded to or ratified by the current Ethiopian Government.
Nairobi, 8 August 2007 - Somalia is considering creating a state petroleum firm with a 49% stake for Indonesia’s PT Medco Energi Internasional Tbk and Kuwait Energy Company, according to documents obtained by Reuters.
The government documents, titled “Somalia Petroleum Policy”, indicate that the two firms would acquire their stake in Somalia Petroleum Corp on August 31.
That, however, would be dependent on the passing of a national oil law awaiting parliamentary debate, analysts say.
United Nations Development Programme
GAROWE/NAIROBI, 10 August 2007 (UNDP Somalia) — The Minister of Justice for Puntland, Hon. Abdirizak Yassin Abdule, launched the state’s first Five-Year Development Plan (2007-2011), at a ceremony held to mark the occasion at the Presidential Palace in Garowe on Thursday. In addition to the five-year plan, the Annual Plan (2007), and Puntland in Progress (2007) were also launched simultaneously.
CAIRO, August 12, 2007 - A law to strengthen penalties against female circumcision will be put to parliament when it reconvenes in autumn, a health ministry spokesman said Sunday, after a teenage girl died during an illegal operation to mutilate her genitalia.
Spokesman Abdel Rahmane Shahine said that a group of doctors and parliamentarians were working on the text that will be presented to parliament when it meets again in November.
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Mogadishu, 12 August 2007 - The defeated Islamic Courts Union accused the transitional government and the Ethiopian troops in the country of being responsible for the killings of Horn Afrik media managers and other violations against the free press.
Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, the exiled leader of ICU who now lives in Asmara, Eritrea blamed what he called ‘the occupation forces of Ethiopia and its puppet Somali government’ for the assassinations on the media officials in Mogadishu.
Many fear old hostilities could flare into Africa's next major war
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA BORDER, 11 August 2007 - Badme doesn't look like the most dangerous town in Africa.
Marooned at the end of 20 miles of dirt road, the tiny frontier outpost consists of a knot of rock huts, some jaywalking goats and one communal pingpong table. Not the sort of place, one would imagine, that once inspired 70,000 men to die in battle. Or still destabilizes a chunk of territory inhabited by 90 million people. Or gives U.S. policymakers in Africa the jitters.
Tostan encourages women to speak out against female genital cutting, a taboo subject in W Africa |
Tostan, a Senegal-based aid group that started a grass-roots campaign to abolish female circumcision in West Africa, has been awarded the $1.5 million Hilton humanitarian prize.
The Hilton Prize, whose past winners include the Doctors Without Borders and the International Rescue Committee, is the world's largest humanitarian award.
Nearly 3,000 noncombatants have died since December, when a guerrilla war against the government began
MOGADISHU, August 11, 2007- Mohamed Hussein heard the grenade explode and he froze. Hussein, 39, knew what was coming next because he has been through it before: gunfire arriving from every direction as soldiers frantically tried to kill the person who had thrown the weapon.
Mogadishu, 10 August 2007 - Armed opponents of Somalia's transitional government attacked the police in the capital, Mogadishu, on 9 August, carrying out raids on five stations overnight before being repulsed, police said.
Two police officers were wounded in the fighting during which five suspected insurgents were killed, according to a senior police officer who asked not to be named.
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President Dahir Rayale Kahin |
Hargeysa, 11 August 2007 (SL Times) - The recent five ‘National Election Commission’ (NEC) board nominees who were endorsed by parliament in May were on Tuesday instructed by President Dahir Rayale Kahin to begin the commission’s work in preparing the country for the up and coming December 2007 local-government elections and the April 2008 presidential election.
The president said in his memo, addressed to the five candidates who were recently endorsed by parliament as appointees for the NEC board of executives that “with due consideration, I have taken on the decision to install ‘in office’ the two remaining Upper House of Elder’s candidate nominees for the NEC executive board and, whilst awaiting to be endorsed by parliament, will, along with you, take charge of the running and mandate of the office of the National Election Commission of Somaliland.
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Ahmed Adan Dhere, journalist reporter for Haatuf daily paper |
Hargeysa, 11 August 2007 (SL Times) - The New Hargeysa police department arrested on Monday morning Ahmed Adan Dhere, the `Haatuf' daily newspaper Sahil region correspondent, while he was covering a local land dispute in the Sheekh Yusuf neighbourhood of Ga'an Libah district of Hargeysa.
The reporter was arrested and taken along with 13 other people to the `New Hargeysa' police station in Ga'an Libah district at 10:30 am Monday morning and was bailed by the Haatuf Media Network (HMN) management from police custody at 7 p.m.
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The chairman of the independent radio, Horn Afrik, in Mogadishu was killed after his vehicle hit a roadside bomb which was remotely detonated |
Mogadishu, 11 August.2007 - The chairman of the independent radio, Horn Afrik, in Mogadishu was killed after his vehicle hit a roadside bomb which was remotely detonated.
Some of Horn Afrik staff told Shabelle that he was attending the procession of the funeral of Mahad Ahmed Elmi, another Horn Afrik administrator who was gunned down by unknown gunmen early Saturday morning.
Mogadishu, 11 August.2007 - Unknown gunmen killed one of the managers of the independent radio station, Horn Afrik, based in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, on Saturday.
Mahad Ahmed Elmi was shot dead by two men armed with pistols. He was the director of Capital Voice, Horn Afrik's second FM station.
The general director of the station, Ali Iman Sharmarke, told Shabelle that Mr. Elmi was gunned down around 7: 40 a.m. local when he was on his way to his work
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Mogadishu, 11 August - As the reconciliation conference sponsored by the Ethiopian-backed government is dragging on in Mogadishu, with the participation of some one thousand tribal elders from various parts of Somalia, the security situation in the 10 million-country at the crucial Horn of Africa is worsening by the day.
From southern Somalia to Mogadishu, armed rebel groups are launching sporadic attacks against the Ethiopian-backed forces of the interim government and agains Ethiopian army posts. While a popular radio station that had been reporting about the plight of the hundreds of thousand of internally displaced and the estimated one hundred thousand dead since the invasion.
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Dear Mr. President,
As a long term admirer of Somaliland’s record as a beacon of democracy, human rights and the rule of law in a region where these qualities are in short supply, I was alarmed to read of the arrests of Dr Mohamed Abdi Gabose, Engineer Mohamed Hashi and Mr. Jamal Aideed on July 28. These three gentlemen were architects of Somaliland’s freedom, and are surely entitled to exercise their constitutional rights to freedom of expression and of association, and the right to take part in the government of their country, which are found in Articles 19-21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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Mogadishu, 7 August 2007 - A Councilor of the Ethiopian embassy in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, threatened the independent Shabelle Radio based in Mogadishu.
After contacting Shabelle by the phone on Tuesday, Jamaludiin, the Ethiopian councilor in Mogadishu, began lashing out at the media staff, accusing them of exaggerating the events in the capital. Angrily speaking, "You are always reporting attacks on the Ethiopian troops and their bases. You are saying Ethiopian troops were killed.
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Somalia’s interior minister Mohamed Mohamud Guled |
Mogadishu, August 9, 2007 - Somalia’s interior minister Mohamed Mohamud Guled known as ‘Gama-dhere’ on Thursday blamed the security forces for the current escalation of violence saying the insufficient training by the soldiers has caused the length of the crisis.
Analysis
There is a vigorous argument taking place in Hargeysa about the announcement of a new political association (QARAN) headed by veteran Somaliland politicians like Dr. Mohamed Abdi Gabose (former Interior Minister) and Mohamed Hashi Elmi (former Minister of Industry and Commerce) and Jamal Aideed. The big question mark is centered on the legality of establishing any new political association intending to become a political party when the Somaliland constitution allows the existence of only three national parties.
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Nairobi, August 10, 2007 – A leading, U.S.-based analyst on Somalia says the semi-autonomous region of Puntland is in a serious political and economic crisis, which he believes could undermine Somalia's efforts to achieve national reconciliation and to create more instability in the volatile Horn of Africa. VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu in our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi spoke to the analyst, Professor Michael Weinstein, and has this story.
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NAIROBI, August 8, 2007 – Somalia's parliament is to debate a new national hydrocarbon law this week, a government envoy said on Wednesday, amid controversy and questions over the status of past and future contracts with foreign explorers.
"The hydrocarbon law is going to be debated today or tomorrow in the parliament in Baidoa," Somalia's ambassador to Kenya, Mohamed Ali Nur, told a news conference.
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MOGADISHU, August 10, 2007 – At least four Somalis were killed Friday as heavy fighting broke out in the capital Mogadishu between insurgents and the Ethiopian-backed government forces, police and witnesses said.
An AFP reporter in Mogadishu described the clashes as among the most intense since April, when the interim government wrested final control of the city from an Islamist militia that briefly held large parts of the country.
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Somali PM Ali Mohamed Gedi, left, listens to his special advisor Daniel Bourzat before giving a press conference on the final day of AU summit in Accra (File Photo) |
Nairobi, August 08, 2007 – Officials with Somalia's transitional government are promising not to begin searching for oil until after parliament adopts a new petroleum law and their shattered country achieves peace. But as Nick Wadhams reports from Nairobi, new evidence suggests they are looking to carve up oil rights. Last month, the Financial Times reported that President Abdillahi Yusuf had awarded Prime Minister Gedi and his staff are promising not to sign any deals until a natural resources law is enacted. Parliament is scheduled to consider the bill this week.
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Nairobi, 7August 2007 – Somali migrants of all EU nationalities are now able to apply for the Diaspora Partnership Programme. The programme supports organizations in Somaliland and Puntland (Somalia) by means of temporary return of qualified Somalis from the Diaspora.
According to a press statement by CARE, there are possibilities for professionals with multiple years of work experience as well as for trainees who are in the final phase of their studies or are graduated recently.
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All three of the bodies pulled from the river Thursday have been identified. They are Peter Hausmann, 47, of Rosemount, Minn. and Sadiya Sahal, 23, of St. Paul and her 22-month-old daughter, Hana.
Mother Sadiya Sahal and daughter Hana were identified on Thursday by a Star Tribune source as having perished in the I-5W bridge collapse on 8/1/07. |
St. Paul - Minnesota, MN, August 10, 2007 – A 47-year-old man who apparently tried to rescue people nearby after his van plunged into the Mississippi River when the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed was among three victims pulled from the wreckage Thursday.
Peter Hausmann, a father of four from Rosemount, survived the collapse and escaped from his van into the murky, turbulent waters, according to a source involved with the investigation. In the resulting chaos, he apparently swam toward victims in another vehicle in an attempt to render assistance, the source said.
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The Boston Globe Editorial, August 7, 2007
THE UNITED STATES is expanding its military presence in the Horn of Africa in an attempt to counteract terrorist groups in the region. But military activity is not the way to achieve that goal. Instead, the United States needs to put more effort into solving the outstanding political dispute there: the border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
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“ Moldova is Europe's worst country according to the 2007 Failed State Index from Washington DC.
"Don't blame us," is the message from Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev: "It is all Transnistria's fault" |
WASHINGTON, August 10, 2007 – For the second year running, Moldova raced towards the bottom off the heap in the world's "Failed State Index". The index, compiled in Washington DC, is a select list of places with serious governance problems.
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Somaliland Map
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Condolence
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Horn Afrik Founder Mr Ali Imam Sharmarke |
Horn Afrik journalist presenter Mr Mahad Ahmed Elmi |
Somaliland Times & Haatuf Media Network Staff convey their sincerest condolences to the family, friends, and staff of Horn Afrik media organisation for the sad loss and death of Mr Ali Imam Sharmarke and Mr Mahad Ahmed Elmi, who were cowardly murdered in Mogadishu on 11 August 2007. |
'May Allah (SWT) grace their souls' with His Eternal Peace and Mercy.....Ameen |
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The recent detention of QARAN party leaders, the standoff between President Rayale Kahin and parliament regarding the two remaining members of the election commission, the breakdown in talks between parliament and the upper house (Guurti) all convey a picture of Somaliland as a country in the grip of a serious crisis. The sense of apprehension is heightened when one takes into account that the country is entering an election mode with all the attendant rise in political rhetoric, psychological manipulation and jockeying for power.
Tired of one bad news after another and worried about the future of their country, the spirits of many Somalilanders were uplifted by the good news from Amoud University, where, for the first time in history, five medical doctors graduated from a university in Somaliland.
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In November 2005, the Centre for Human Rights began investigating the possibility of a third destination for the LLM field trip. The reasons for increasing the number of field trip destinations to include Somaliland include the following:
Somaliland is a state in the making; it would be ideal for students on the programme to have a first hand experience of this.
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By Abdullah Farah, Ottawa, Canada
The destruction by fire of the Factory producing mattresses was unfortunate fate that awaits all Factories, houses, buildings, Hospitals, hotels, restaurants, automobiles and all establishments in Somaliland without having anything to protect them. May Allah forbid. I was advocate of this imminent danger and in fact wrote letters to all concerned Ministries.
I regret and feel sympathy for the owners of Khayer Factory whose Factory was destroyed by fire and may Allah reward them. It is shameful on our Government for not taking initiative and protection of facilities like this factory. Having fire trucks is the civil responsibilities of the Government and it is the first priority for all infrastructures.
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August 02, 2007
Awdal diaspora community in North America is demanding the immediate release of the leaders of Qaran political movements, Dr Gaboose, Mohamed Haashi and Jamaal Caydiid. The current administration has the duty to protect the rights of the people of Somaliland. The people of Somaliland have the rights to organize, and participate any political movements of their choice. This is the 21st century and Riyalism Dictatorship Has No Place in Somaliland.
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Rayale And Reptiles: What Have They Got In Common
By Yassin M. Ismail, Kent, UK
Snakes, crocodiles and most reptiles are known and feared for their reputation of killing instinct and reactionary behavior. Most reptiles are said to be cold blooded, stealth and often strike when least expected. They do so in self-defense.
Unlike amphibians and mammals, particularly predators, reptiles do not choose their prey and often remain hidden most of their time awaiting for their prey to arrive within striking distance.
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Today The Justice Of The Nation Of Somaliland Will Prevail
By Fatima Ali, Somaliland Women Diaspora.
We would like to remind the daughters and sons of Somaliland that Somaliland is here to stay and would not be hijacked by a tyrant leadership. Never it happened in the history of Somaliland for the noble daughters and sons of Somaliland to be imprisoned let alone sending them to the notorious prison of Mandheera where the ghost of Siyad Barre still haunts its dark history.
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A Reality Check On Rayale’s Somaliland
By: A. Duale Sii'arag
The darkness drops again; but now I know
Those twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour comes round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
The Second Coming. By W. B. Yeats
Greetings from Maan-hadal salon, one of the many happy watering holes in Hargeysa where everything under the sun is discussed and varied topics are skimmed through everyday with no explicit or implicit objectives. Loose, smooth debate and long chats are the inherent features of Maan-hadal.
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By Ahmed Ali Ibrahim Sabeyse
Dr. Mohamed Omar’s essay, Somaliland’s forthcoming presidential election is predicted begins with the following assertion:
With a view to the upcoming presidential election, Somaliland’s contemporary political narrative points to a potential winner. If the current national context is anything to go by, Kulmiye should get ready for office, and Mr. Ahmed Siilaanyo can start rewriting his long overdue inaugural speech.
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By L. Amin
By now, I’m sure you have had the chance to see or pick up a copy of the July 2007, Vanity Fair Issue; which displays 20 star packed covers on the magazine stands from Barack Obama to Jay Z, George Clooney, Iman, and even President Bush. The magazine photos were done by renowned celebrity photographer: Annie Liebovitz.
In the issue which singer and activist Bono is featured as guest-editor he states the one thing that stars have in common is:
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By Malik Jeylani
The Government of Somaliland in an effort to crush down opposition leaders specially the Opposition leader of Qaran Political Association have accused and charged the Chairman of Qaran Political Association Dr. Mohamed Abdi Gabose and his deputies Mr. Mohamed Hashi Elmi and Mr. Jamal Aideed who are prominent and well respected politician in Somaliland for unfounded and politically motivated charges for forming a Political Association that will lead into a Political Party.
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Bomb assassination in Somalia. Co-founder of independent radio station dies hours after reporter is gunned down
Journalist Ali Imam Sharmarke was killed in Somalia yesterday in a roadside attack.
AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES |
12 August 2007
Eight years after he left Ottawa in the hope of making a difference in his native Somalia, prominent journalist Ali Iman Sharmarke was assassinated yesterday in what colleagues said was an attempt to silence the country's independent media.
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Ming Dynasty explorer may have discovered America |
Ming Dynasty explorer Zheng He (courtesy of pureinsight.org) |
Some say it was Columbus and others are sure it was Leif Eriksson who first discovered the New World. Historian and author Galvin Menzies says the honor goes to a Chinese admiral during the Ming Dynasty. His arguments are pretty compelling.
His book 1421: The Year China Discovered America contends that the naval officer Zheng He, sailing under imperial decree of Emperor Zhu Di, led excursions to southeast Asia, Africa, and Europe.
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Toronto, August 6, 2007 – Canada's recent tightening of money laundering rules aims to shine a light on the murky world of money transfer businesses, but it could have the unintended consequence of driving the industry underground, experts say.
The federal government introduced regulations in June requiring financial institutions to more closely scrutinize customers. Money service businesses will also now have to register with the government.
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August 08, 2007
Ethiopia will respond in its usual manner to a warning issued Aug. 8 by the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) to oil companies operating in Ethiopia's Ogaden region -- namely, with a heavy hand and deadly force. The ONLF will melt away rather than confront expected counterinsurgency operations head-on, while villagers whom the government believes back ONLF fighters will bear the brunt of the coming offensive.
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By Ivan Simic
In our World, there are lots of countries, nations, languages, religions, cultures, costumes but also lots of disagreements. History has it that there was never peace and respect among nations since the formation of the first State. From the beginning of the first conflict till date, wars have been fought for the same cause: political differences, trade, religion, liberation, dynasty, seizure of territory, the annihilation of a rival State, the destruction of the enemy's ability to prosecute military action, revolution or genocide.
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By Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis
August 8, 2007
It is with utmost indignation that I have just gone through the analytic presentation of a most valuable Human Right Violations Report. Dozens of pages describing the most appalling of acts perpetrated in 2007: the entire document is focused on Ogaden, as it became the Focus of Evil Meles Zenawi, the most inhuman of the 21st century dictators.
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Somaliland has been seeking recognition ever since it declared its independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 without success. This is despite Somaliland’s meeting of all the requirements of nationhood under AU and international rules and conventions.
But any objective observer would have realized that recognition of new African states was simply not on the agenda at regional or global level.
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