DUBAI, UAE Oct 7 - Somali businesspeople in the United Arab Emirates have refused to transport containers filled with papers designed to be used to print false currency, confidential sources told Garowe Online.

Six containers are docked at UAE ports and the owners have offered $US27,000 to transport the containers to Bossaso, a port town in Somalia's semiautonomous Puntland region.

Sources said Somali traders in Dubai who hail from Puntland met and agreed not to use their ships to transport the papers to Bossaso.

The traders also agreed to punish any businessman who violates this agreement. So far, no one has violated the tenets of the agreement.

The owners of the false papers are currently paying $US272 a day per each container.

There are illegal printing presses in Puntland where the owners hope to print the counterfeit cash without tough government action.

Puntland has become the hub for false currency in Somalia that has destabilized the region's poor economy.

In July, civilians in the Puntland capital Garowe staged a protest in front of the home of President Mohamud "Adde" Muse demanding he take action against the profiteers of the false Shillings.

Prices for local goods skyrocketed as a result of false Shillings that flooded Puntland markets and eventually effected markets as far south as Mogadishu.

Locals complain they are unable to pay for food and other necessary goods due to high exchange rates.

Meanwhile, Puntland President Muse left Dubai and is currently in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa where he is expected to hold talks with Ethiopian officials.

Sources said Muse and Dahir Riyale, president of the breakaway Somaliland region, were invited to Addis Ababa by Ethiopian officials who aim to diffuse military tensions in northern Somalia.

Somaliland and Puntland troops battled for control of a disputed town along their frontier earlier this month, leading to at least 15 deaths.

Sources in the Somaliland capital Hargeisa said Riyale postponed his trip to Addis Ababa.

Ethiopia maintains cordial relations with both Somaliland and Puntland.

Source: Garowe Online

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