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Rare Haven Of Stability In
Somalia Faces A Test |
A rally for the Kulmiye Party was
held in Burao, Somaliland, on June 17. One of the
most democratic countries in the Horn of Africa is
not really a country at all; it is this region of
Somalia. More
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By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN
BURAO, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 — The rallies usually start
early in the morning, before the sunshine hurts.
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Press Release -
Progressio
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – The
international mission to observe Somaliland’s long-delayed
presidential elections on 26 June 2010, led by UK based
development agency Progressio, the Development Planning Unit
at University College London and Somaliland Focus (UK) notes
that good progress is being made towards holding the
scheduled vote this Saturday.
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SIRAG would like to congratulate the Voters of Somaliland
for campaigning peacefully for this Historical Election for
Change taking place today on 26th of June in
Somaliland.
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Enthusiastic campaigners on the streets of Hargeysa |
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – As voters in
Somaliland prepared to finally cast their ballots in a
tight, oft-delayed presidential election on 26 June, there
was one outcome for which almost everybody in the territory,
regardless of political or clan affiliation, was rooting.
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Opposition party supporters on the campaign trail in
Hargeysa ahead of the presidential election on 26
June |
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 - Above all else, voters
in Somaliland ant the outside world to
recognize their independence.
But the electorate has other demands of its next government.
Here is a selection:
Said Ahmed
Hassan,
president of Gollis University in Hargeysa
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June 25, 2010: Al Shabaab leaders are warning people in
Somaliland to not vote in upcoming elections. Al Shabaab
believes that democracy is un-Islamic and evil, and that
good Moslems should have nothing to do with it.
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By: Philipp
Hedemann
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – The Republic of
Somaliland, goes to the polls Saturday to elect its
president.
A region of some 3.5 million people, Somaliland declared
independence from Somalia in May 1991, after the collapse of
the Siyad Barre regime.
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Somaliland; Ministers
Resign Ahead of Polls |
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 - Two ministers have
resigned their positions before the beginning of the
presidential elections in Somaliland.
The Ministers for Presidency, Hassan Ahmed Duale, and
Industrialization, Ahmed Ali Warsame, are the two ministers
who resigned from their positions accusing President Dahir
Riyale Kahin of failing to honor campaign promises.
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Somaliland Poised For
Much-Delayed Presidential Election |
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Alisha Ryu
Nairobi, Kenya, June 26, 2010 – After repeated delays, the
breakaway republic of Somaliland will hold its second
presidential election in eight years on Saturday.
International observers and analysts are expressing cautious
optimism that the poll could set a positive example for the
troubled region.
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Somaliland Prepares For
Presidential Polls |
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Three candidates seek to consolidate democracy, boost
economic growth and gain international diplomatic
recognition for Somaliland
William Eagle
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – Over one million
eligible voters go to the polls on Saturday in Somaliland.
It’s the second presidential election since the area
unilaterally declared its independence nearly 20 years ago.
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Somali Rebel Leader Urges
Fight Against Democracy |
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By Hussein Ali Noor
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – Islamist al Shabaab
leader Ahmed Abdi Godane has urged Somalis to reject "the
Devil's principles" of democracy, just several days ahead of
elections in the breakaway Somaliland region.
"The reality is that democracy is something Allah made
unlawful, and someone else cannot make it lawful," the
reclusive leader, also known as Sheik Mukhtar Abdirahman,
said.
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Reporters Without Borders
Unveils First “Anti-Censorship Shelter” |
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Paris, France, June 26, 2010 – Reporters Without Borders
today launched the world’s first “Anti-Censorship Shelter”
in Paris for use by foreign journalists, bloggers and
dissidents who are refugees or just passing through as a
place where they can learn how to circumvent Internet
censorship, protect their electronic communications and
maintain their anonymity online.
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Engine Donated To Fight
Fires In Africa |
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By Julia McWatt
Cardiff, Wales, June 26, 2010 – A FIRE engine is swapping
the streets of Cardiff to become an African city’s first
major piece of firefighting equipment.
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Djibouti Rebels Threatening
Stability In Strategic Country |
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Alisha Ryu
Nairobi, Kenya, June 26, 2010 – Analysts are expressing fear
that increasing rebel activity in Djibouti in recent months
could threaten the stability of one of the most
strategically important nations in the Horn of Africa. The
internal upheaval is some of the worst since Djibouti gained
independence from France 33 years ago.
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Henry Bellingham welcomes Somaliland's elections |
Henry Bellingham,
British Minister for
Africa, said:
'I welcome the important
Presidential elections
held in Somaliland on
Saturday 26 June. The
process has so far been
peaceful, and an example
of the restraint that
has contributed to
Somaliland's stability
in recent years. I
acknowledge the
professional work done
by the National
Electoral Commission,
and commend the parties
for the peaceful
campaigning that
preceded election day. I
urge all political
parties to continue to
respect the process and
wait for the National
Electoral Commission to
announce the results.
The UK looks forward to
continuing to work
closely with Somaliland,
whichever party wins.'
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Somaliland Elections: Peaceful Expression Of Popular Will |
For immediate release
Hargeysa, Somaliland,
June 28, 2010 –
Progressio, the
Development Planning
Unit of University
College London (UCL) and
Somaliland Focus (UK)
congratulate the people
of Somaliland and the
National Electoral
Commission on a peaceful
expression of the
popular will at the
conclusion of their
mission to observe
Somaliland’s
presidential election on
26 June 2010.
The three organizations
were invited in January
2009 by Somaliland’s
National Electoral
Commission (NEC) to act
as coordinators of the
international
observation mission for
the election in the
internationally-unrecognized
republic. In the event,
59 international
observers visited
polling stations in all
six Somaliland regions,
working alongside a
group of 19 observers
from the US-based
International Republican
Institute.
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Somaliland Holds Credible
Presidential Election |
Ambassador Williamson
visits with Sacid, who
voted in Hargeysa.
Hargeysa, Somaliland,
June 27, 2010 – IRI
found that Somaliland’s
election was peaceful,
without major incident
and generally met
international standards.
Hundreds of thousands of
Somalilanders turned out
to vote in their fourth
election, and although
wanting international
recognition, did not
wait to continue to
build their nascent
democracy. The
international community
should credit such
democratic progress and
the example it sets for
others.
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Arrests Made As
Somaliland Elects President - Summary |
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – Police in the
self-proclaimed independent republic of Somaliland arrested 16
people on suspicion of terrorist activity Saturday, as voters
cast their ballots in a mostly-peaceful presidential election.
Security forces detained the suspected members of the Somalian
Islamist movement Al-Shabaab in two different hotels in the
capital Hargeysa, well-informed sources who spoke on condition
of anonymity told the German Press Agency dpa.
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Somaliland Votes
Under Tight Security |
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Women wait
to cast their at a polling station in Hargeysa |
By Ali Musa Abdi
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 — Somaliland closed its
borders on Saturday as voters chose their president amid
fears Islamists from neighboring Somalia could try to
disrupt the polls.
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Voting Starts In Somaliland |
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – Voting
started as scheduled on June 26th with Somalilanders of all
stripes, men and women, young and old, heading for the polling
booths. There are over a million registered voters and close to
seventy election observers from around the world. Election day
was a holiday and traffic was shut down except for previously
authorized vehicles such as those used by election monitors, in
order to discourage voting irregularities.
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Mogadishu, Somalia, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – The head of the
Mogadishu-based al-Qaida affiliated al-Shabaab organization,
Ahmed Godane who also goes by the fake name Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr,
denounced elections and democracy as a tool designed by Jews and
Christians which is inappropriate for Muslims.
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – After three
weeks of crisscrossing the country by airplanes, cars, and on
foot, in search of votes, Somaliland’s three political parties
ended their campaigning Wednesday June 23rd.
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Salan Arabey’s Poetry Published |
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26,
2010 (SL Times) – An article by Yasin Jama Nuh (Suldaan) drew
attention to an event that took place in London’s Oxford House.
The event was the publication of a book on the Somali poet Salan
Muhammad Hirsi (Salan Arabey) that was written by Yusuf Osman
Abdille (Sha'ir).
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ONLF Breaks Up
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Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – A faction
within the Ogaden National Liberation Movement (ONLF) said it
had signed a ceasefire agreement with the Ethiopian government.
The leader of this faction, Mr Salahuddin Abdirahman Ma'aow
announced that they signed the ceasefire agreement with Ethiopia
after a meeting in Germany.
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Puntland Security Bombed |
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Bosaso, Somalia, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – Eight members of
Puntland’s security forces were wounded Wednesday when a bomb
was thrown at their vehicle in Bosaso.
Puntland authorities said they had captured the culprit and he
is now in their custody.
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Peaceful Somaliland Votes For
President |
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Hargeysa, Somaliland, June 26, 2010 (SL Times) – Electoral
posters line the streets of Somaliland as the republic
prepares to hold its second presidential election on
Saturday, an exercise in governance not seen for decades in
the country's anarchic south.
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Hargeysa,
Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – IRI has a delegation of election
monitors in Somaliland to monitor the June 26 presidential
election. Representatives from the Czech Republic, Kenya,
Nigeria, Norway, Sierra Leone, Serbia, Spain and the United
States traveled to Somaliland to monitor voting and ballot
counting throughout the country.
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Asha M.
Qalib |
Hargeysa, Somaliland, June
26, 2010 (SL Times) – Hundreds of Somalilanders living
abroad have arrived here since the launching of the
presidential elections campaigning early this month.
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Obama Claims Victory In Financial
Overhaul Deal |
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In this April
28, 2010, file photo Senate Banking Committee Chairman
Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., with Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid of Nev., right, speaks about financial
reform on Capitol Hill in Washington.
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WASHINGTON, June 26, 2010 — House and Senate negotiators reached
a dawn agreement Friday on legislation that redefines federal
oversight of the financial industry and, following the signing
of the health care act in March, adds another milestone to mark
the Obama presidency.
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Deadly Israeli Air Raid On Gaza
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Israel is
under pressure to end the blockade of Gaza so residents
are not reliant on smuggling [AFP] |
Gaza, Palestine, June 26, 2010 – Officials in Gaza have
retrieved the bodies of two Palestinians killed in Israeli air
raids on the Gaza Strip, the Associated Press news agency has
reported.
An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed the overnight strikes
targeting what they said were two smuggling tunnels on the Rafah
border near Egypt, and an alleged weapons storage facility on
the northern Gaza border.
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Report says
country has five times as many claims as the United States
Geneva, June 26, 2010 – During 2009, at least 922 500 individual applications
for asylum or refugee status were submitted to governments or UNHCR offices in
159 countries or territories.
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By M. H. Abby (Email:
abbimo@hotmail.com)
A failed state
Today “Somalia” is synonymous to a Failed State. But what is a
failed state? Boutros Ghali, the former UN Secretary General, in
his last report of 1996 on “Somalia” said:
The Charter of the United
Nations provides for the admission to the international
community of a country which gains the attributes of a Sovereign
State, for instance, through independence or decolonization. It
does not, however, provide for any mechanisms through which the
international community can respond when a Sovereign State loses
one of the attributes of statehood, such as its Government.
Further reflection by the international community is required on
this issue.
The situation in Somalia
will continue to deteriorate until the political will exist
among the parties to reach a peaceful solution to their dispute
or until the international community gives itself new
instruments to address the phenomenon of a failed state (B.
Ghali 1996).
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Shopkeepers in the bustling markets of Harar are not
shy to admit that they buy their goods from
smugglers who import consumer goods from
Somaliland. |
By Heather Murdock
Harar, Ethiopia, June 26, 2010 – Only 200 miles from the
border of Somalia is the Ethiopian city of Harar, an ancient
center of commerce linking Africa to the Arab world.
Nowadays, the old merchant route is still tread regularly.
Smugglers carry everything from cell phones to satellite
dishes into Ethiopia daily, unhindered by taxes and law,
dominating local markets.
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President
sleeps in a seminar held at Witwaterstrand
University in Johannesburg 2005 Photo Courtesy
Saeed Furaa |
Elections Are Characterized By Promises, Manifestos And
Commitment To Public Duty From Politicians And Political
Parties.
I am wondering what this term in the forth coming electoral
history of the Somaliland scheduled on 26th June 2010. In
our previous elections promises for change have been made
but we have seen very little done.
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Osman Mirghani
An official from the Somali opposition Hizbul Islam [Islamic
Party] held a press conference a few days ago specifically
to announce new orders issued by the party granting 30 days
for Somali men to grow beards and trim their moustaches
otherwise they will face harsh punishments by the armed
party. Sheikh Hashi Mohammed Farah, Hizbul Islam’s governor
of the Somali capital, said in the press conference, “We
will not allow the growing of beards and moustaches
together, and we will not allow the shaving of both; they
[men] must grow the beard and trim the moustache.”
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The
Horses Of Las Anod |
When President Dahir Rayale Kahin recently traveled by an
airplane to Erigavo with an UDUB delegation, he probably did not
know that he was starting a new tradition. For a few days later,
Ahmed Sillanyo and a Kulmiye delegation chartered a plane to fly
from Buro back to Hargeysa; and right after that, Faysal Ali
Warabe and other leaders of UCID capped their campaign with a
whirlwind tour of five regions.
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1969 Military Coup In Somalia
Part XXXI |
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By Dr. Mohamed-Rashid Sh. Hassan
This is the thirty first article of a series of articles that
Dr. Mohamed-Rashid analyses the military coup and its legacy
The Archaeology of Social and Moral Order
This moral order can be further conceptualized, if we
consider culture as the archaeology of moral and social
order. Culture is not something that is affixed inside
people's heads, but rather is embraced in public symbols
through which people convey their perspectives, values and
traditions. Cultural significances and symbols are also
transmitted from one generation to another.
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President Riyale Of Somaliland
Came To Power By Accident Not By Design |
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By Geleh Ali Gulaid
Somalilanders will elect a true & loyal servant of their
nation, a humble servant who has come to her aid at times of
war and peace and that leader is Ahmed M Mohamud Silanyo.
There has never been a more defining moment in Somaliland’s
history than now and its need for a true leader with
national vision (hiraal qaranimo) like Ahmed M Muhumud to
take the helm of this proud nation.
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It Is The Time To Remember The
Unfulfilled Promises |
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By Mukhtar
Mohamed Abby
In the wake of a
democratic hiatus of 32 years, on 14 April 2003, and the third time in as many
years that Somaliland had been given the opportunity to express their
preferences at the ballot box. These bold steps towards the democratization set
Somaliland apart from the rest of Somalia Republic – which has become by word a
collapsed State since the downfall of Major General Mohamed Siyad Barre’s
tyrannical regime in 1991.
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Open Letter To All
Somalilanders |
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Ahmed A. Duale
My fellow citizens, a historic moment is approaching, on
Saturday 26 of June 2010 we will go to the polls to decide
our destiny. We thank the almighty for the freedom he gave
us, and we are all grateful for the peace and stability he
bestowed on us.
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Somaliland: KULMIYE—Formidable
Opposition Party Or Troublous Rebel Group? |
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By Dalmar Kaahin
The Somaliland opposition party KULMIYE dropping the former Somali National
Movement (SNM) rebels from its ranks and surrounding itself with educated elite
not only mobilizes fervent party supporters in Somaliland but also persuades
Somaliland Diasporas to change their political allegiances. More important,
never before has the ruling party UDUB’s failure to create jobs combined with
its vicious smear campaign against KULMIYE resulted a formidable obstacle facing
the governing coterie to secure a victory in the upcoming presidential
elections.
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Rayale Unfitness For A Re-Appointment |
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For Salaam All, To
Somalilanders worldwide
The great clash
looms. After months of heated build-up, we will soon know the outcome of a
contest between two starkly contrasting styles.
On one side, we
have Udub with Mr Rayale at his helm and anyone will be asking themselves this:
How, can we
possibly be contemplating giving this guy another five years? Well it is anyone
guesses.
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An Open Letter To The
International Community: Somaliland Forum Press Release |
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PRESS RELEASE – for immediate release SLF/06-2010/MEDIA-2-EN
26 June 2010
OPEN LETTER TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
REPUBLIC OF SOMALILAND PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
The Republic of Somaliland has endured and overcome great
obstacles since reclaiming its independence from the failed
Union with Somalia in 1991. That failed Union has cost
Somaliland profoundly. Somaliland was a separate British
Protectorate with clearly delineated boundaries in June1960.
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Oil Exploration In East
Africa: Activity In The Northern Rift Valley |
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By ManSiarad
While attention on East Africa is, quite naturally, focused
at the moment on Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda and the
eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, there are
frequently little and generally overlooked announcements
about exploration and production activity further north, in
Somalia, Ethiopia and the northern Kenyan parts of the Rift
Valley.
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Somaliland: Help For
Drought-Displaced Pastoralists |
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Hargeysa,
Somaliland, June 26, 2010 – With more and more drought-affected pastoralists in
Somaliland seeking alternative livelihoods in urban areas, aid organizations and
the government are instituting measures to not only check the rural-urban
migration but also support those remaining in rural areas.
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A Time To Appease |
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Paul Kennedy
“APPEASEMENT!” WHAT a powerful term it has become, growing evermore in strength
as the decades advance. It is much stronger a form of opprobrium than even the
loaded “L” word, since Liberals are (so their opponents charge) people with
misguided political preferences; but talk of someone being an Appeaser brings us
to a much darker meaning, that which involves cowardice, abandoning one’s
friends and allies, failing to recognize evil in the world—a fool, then—or
recognizing evil but then trying to buy it off—a knave. Nothing so alarms a
president or prime minister in the Western world than to be accused of pursuing
policies of appeasement. Better to be accused of stealing from a nunnery, or
beating one’s family.
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