Ainashe.net

Happy New Year to you all from Amina, Khadija and me.

For the record, I am not a big fan of this too commercialized and soulless “New Year” event! I prefer the Somali (Al Hijra) traditional New Year celebrations.

Click here for more family pictures!

The Reuters’ News Agency reports:

Leaders of Yemen, Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia urged the U.N. Security Council on Thursday to lift an arms embargo on Somalia to help a transitional government establish its authority over feuding warlords. Somalia has a one-year-old transitional government that has been struggling to assert power over the squabbling warlords and clan leaders who carved the east African country into fiefdoms after the 1991 overthrow of military ruler Mohammed Siad Barre.

A planned peacekeeping force to support the fledgling government and the Somali peace process has been on hold in part because a 1992 U.N. arms embargo prevents peacekeepers from bringing their heavy weapons into Somalia, mediators have said. “The leaders called for lifting an arms embargo by the Security Council on peacekeeping troops when they deploy in Somalia to achieve peace and security,” said a statement issued at the end of a two-day regional summit in Yemen’s southern city of Aden.

As I wrote many times, the UN arms embargo served its purpose and it is counter-productive to continue it as it prolongs the agony of our people. I also believe that the embargo is illegal under international law. The reason is that Somalia has now a legitimate and democratically elected government that has the right, indeed, the obligation to provide security to its citizens.

However, only time will tell whether it is the will of the people of the entire Horne of Africa and Arab peninsula that prevails or whether it is, at the of the day, greedy Gareth Evans and his “International Crisis Manufacturing Groups” (ICG) that triumphs.

Click here to view the full dispatch on Reuters website.

Click here to send a PROTEST letter to Gareth Evans.

The Kuwaiti News Agency (Kuna) reports:

Arab ministers responsible for environment affairs called on the international community on Tuesday to force Israel place its nuclear facilities for international monitoring, as well as declaring nuclear wastes dumping sites.This came at the conclusion of the ministers’ meeting, in which the top officials discussed a report by the Arab Atomic Energy Agency (AAEA) over the Israeli nuclear activities and the threats of their radioactive impacts on the occupied Arab territories and the neighboring countries. The ministers asked the AAEA to prepare an example of a nuclear accident in order to draw a nuclear emergency plan.

They warned against the deterioration of environment in Palestine, Iraq, Darfur and Somalia, and the influence of tsunami on Yemen, Somalia, the red sea and bay of Aden.

The ministers approved the 2006 Arab environment emblem: “deserts and developments”.

Well, this is certainly a good start. However, what Somalia needs is a concrete plan of action that addresses the environmental hazards created by the dangerous nuclear waste dumped unlawfully in Somali coast by the Western multinational companies. The United Nations in cooperation with the Arab League must also initiate an independent enquiry to determine the identity of those who committed such a deadly crime against the Somali people and the world at large.

Click here to view KUNA website.

Sayid Maxamed Cabdille Xasan; without a doubt the greatest Somali Nationalist in Somalia’s recent political history made the following Gabay (poem). This gabay is considered by many as one of his finest. Following is a short introduction of “Gaalo Leged”:

In 1904, after negotiations with the Italians and the British, Sayid maxamed Cabdille Xasan was given his own city-state and sea-port in Ayl, situated on the Indian Ocean coast between the two sultanates of Boqor Cisman Maxamuud and Sultan Yüsuf Cali Keenadiid, in what the Italians claimed as their territory. However, as Ayl and environs were too poor in resources and too limited for the ambitions of the Dervish movement, the Dervish leaders gradually came to the decision to take up the armed struggle once again. It was at this point that the Sayyid composed the following poem, known to the Dervishes as Gaala-leged (literally, ‘Knocking the Unbelievers to the Floor’, or‘Defeating the Infidels’), while other Somalis knew it as Gudban (literally indicating ‘movement across’)—in this context better translated as ‘General Political Assessment’, referring to the way in which the Sayyid took stock of his movement and surveyed the status quo.

Gaalo Leged reads:

(…) Galiilyoodayeey caro miyey gubatay laabtaydu

Gogoshii la ii dhigay miyaan geydh la qaban waayay
Gabbal dhiciyo waaberi miyaan socod ku gaarraaday
Giddi maalin oo idil miyaan gaafka sare meeray

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Following is the “best scenario” picture the UN Agencies provides about their performance in the Tsunami devastated areas of the Somali Coast. However, the fact is that very little is being done for the Somali Tsunami victims. Both the TFG and international aid agencies are letting the Somali victims down very badly. Indeed, as we reported earlier money donated to the Tsunami is yet to reach its intended recipients. Out of almost one billion dollars the US Red Cross received after its appeal, it only spent about 29%. This is a disgrace! Someone has to stand up for the Somali Tsunami victims who loss their livelihood!

Health:
• In the immediate aftermath of the tsunami, the World Health Organization (WHO) provided emergency kits to affected populations to cover the immediate health needs of 10,000 individuals. (Source: UN Indian Ocean Flash Appeal, Midterm Review, April 6, 2005.)

Shelter:
• The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) provided 1,050 family relief kits and distributed various emergency items to affected communities, including 50 tents, 2,000 blankets, 1,800 mosquito nets, and 420 fishing nets. (Source: OCHA Situation Report No. 35, April 8, 2005.)

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Following is some statistics about the Tsunami devastation in Somalia. I believe the Tsunami devastation is under reported. Hence, the numbers below are not reliable and must be used as indicative numbers only.

Human Toll:
• Number of fatalities and people missing: 289. (Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs [OCHA] Tsunami Inter-agency Assessment Mission October, 2005.)

• Number of IDPs: 5,000. (Source: OCHA, January 2005.)

Impact on Vulnerable Populations:
• In total, approximately 44,000 people were affected by the tsunami. Of this, 40 percent faced a livelihood crisis and 5 percent were classified as undergoing a humanitarian emergency. (Source: OCHA Tsunami Inter-agency Assessment Mission, March 30, 2005.)

Damages and Losses:
• Somalia was the most severely impacted country in Africa. Damages were concentrated in the Hafun, Bender Beyla, Dharin Raqas, and Kulub areas.

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The Arab News online reports:

Saleh Al-Hussayn, chairman of the King Abdul Aziz Center for National Dialogue (Saudi Arabia), and Yousuf Al-Haji, chairman of the International Islamic Charity Organization (Kuwait), were declared the joint winners of the King Faisal International Prize for Service to Islam.This was announced by Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and Minister of Defense and Aviation, at a press conference held at the Prince Sultan Grand Hall of Al-Faisaliah Hotel here last night.

Al-Hussayn was quoted as saying:

In dealing with non-Muslims, Islam requires at the very least both justice and sympathy. And when it comes to Muslims’ relations with fellow Muslims, the relation must be based on loyalty to Islam and governed by a bond of brotherhood.

He went on by saying:

The United States only banned racial discrimination in the 20th century whereas Islam applied the principle of equality over 1400 years ago.

Click here to view the full report on Arab News Online.

Nick Haan, the chief technical adviser for the Food Security and Analysis Unit (FSAU) for Somalia, was quoted as saying:

The rainy season came to an end, it was clear that the situation is going to evolve into a humanitarian emergency that could deteriorate as early as next month.

Mr. Haan continued by saying:

Poor rainy season, localized resource-based conflict, market disruption and internal tensions had all combined to create the current situation……Malnutrition levels as high as 20 percent in some areas of the south have reduced the resilience of the population to shocks.

Click here for the full dispatch on the Reuters AlertNet.

Here is a list of humanitarian financial assistance committed and pledge for Somalia; 2006. The data is as of December 22nd. 2005. The list is prepared by OCHA.

Sadly, there is very little money thus far.

Here is map showing all USAID/OFDA funded activities in Somalia (September 2005). The file is a PDF format and requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. The Acrobat Reader can be downloaded here free of charge.

Here is a detailed map showing all UN Office locations in Somalia for 2005. The file is a PDF format and requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. The Acrobat Reader can be downloaded here free of charge.

The Relief Web published following story yesterday (December 21.05):

Recent data confirm previous early warnings of an imminent humanitarian emergency throughout southern Somalia. The deteriorating food security situation is rapidly leading to a widespread humanitarian emergency in southern Somalia.

The Food Security Analysis Unit for Somalia (FSAU) implemented by FAO and funded by the European Commission and USAID, together with FEWSNet, forecast that failed rains throughout Southern Somalia will lead to the lowest secondary Deyr harvest in over ten years. Rangelands are in very poor condition, with livestock dying and pastoralists struggling to find water and fodder. With the next rainy season not expected to provide relief until June 2006, a preliminary estimate of up to 2 million people are likely to be in either a Humanitarian Emergency and/or Acute Food and Livelihood Crisis for at least the next six months. This is double the number of people projected in August to be in need of assistance.

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The Pan-Arab Al Jazeera TV Networks reports:

The International Monetary Fund has agreed to cancel $3.3 billion owed by 19 of the world’s poorest countries, after reports that it was back-tracking on the debt-relief plan sparked an outcry. The IMF, which had previously said it wanted one last “spot check” of the nations’ economic policies, said its board had now approved them for relief under a global debt cancellation plan unveiled by the G8 powers.

Along with Cambodia and Tajikistan, the 19 countries set to benefit are Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guyana, Honduras, Madagascar, Mali, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

The Foreign Minister and Finance Minister of the Transitional Somali Federal Government have lots of explaining to do here! Needless to say, the debt issue is not and should not be on top of the priority list for the TFG at the moment, but it should not be forgotten either. We need a forward-looking strategic economic plan for the country.

Click here to view article on Al Jazeera.

There are lots of historic legal documents available for review at the Somali Law Council. Please note that the site is still undercontruction. Hence, some of the links may not work.

Click here to view the full list.

Following is a picture of Mogadishu from the Italian colonial period (1937). The picture is a part of a collection put together by the University of Swansea in Wales, UK.

 

“Somalia - Mogadiscio, la città” 

Copy Right: Istituto Agronomico per l’Oltremare and The Univ. Of Swansea, Wales, UK.

Click here to view the full collection. You may also like to click here for more pictures of the Somali Capital (1940s).

Geof Huth wrote this poem about the Somali Capital; Mogadishu, a city raped by the destructive warlords! Please note this is a copy righted material.

The calm palms of Somalia bend inland
along the coast. They bend away
from the wind when the wind blows; they
bend away from the wind when the wind is absent. They are a constant
reminder of storm. Under the coconuts
and sun, in our yard, behind the rock walls, and in the bushes
along the walls, runs a herd

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Somalia is the quintessential example of a country which has little strategic value and no natural resources and therefore little interest for humanitarian aid.

Deberati Guha-Sapir
Director,
Centre for Research on Disasters
School of Public Health, University of Louvain
Brussels, Belgium.

I thought humanitarian aid is supposed to be… humantarian! Well, it seems that I was wrong. As the saying goes, in this world, there is no “free” lunch, humanitarian or otherwise.

Matthew Borghese of “All Headline News” writes:

Droughts in the East African country of Somalia have killed an unknown number of humans and livestock. As malnutrition and low food supplies in the region take their toll on the Somali people, international agencies are asking for world help. The Somali Red Crescent Society in Gedo says that aid is only reaching “some” of the numerous villages effected across Somalia. According to a BBC interview with village chief, Ali Adam Warabeh, of the Fah-fah-dhun village, “at least two children, boys aged five and seven, have died of starvation,” and “more two-thirds” of people in the village have left.

The sad saga of people betrayed continues unabated! I think it is just about time that President Abdullahi Yusuf to get rid of the rather ignorant warlords in his government and bring in people who could do serious work for the Somali people. The warlords do not seem to have the skills and necessary knowledge to find solution to Somalia’s problems nor the political will to lay down their arms, dismantle their tribal militias, and work as ministers for the TFG as they should. Members of the Somali Transitional Federal Parliament must start looking for Sharif Xasan’s replacement!

Click here to view the full dispatch on All Headline News website.

The Los Angeles Times reports:

In the first nine months after the Indian Ocean tsunami, a group of private charities including the American Red Cross and Mercy Corps spent less than half of the $1.8 billion they received from American donors, a new report has found… One of the largest recipients, the American Red Cross, took in $567 million and had one of the lower spending rates, using $167 million, or about 29%.

This is really a disgrace! The victims of the Tsunami are suffering while the much needed relief funds are in the Banks. Shame on you!

The Transition Somali Federal Government should ask for funds on behalf of the Somali victims. I wonder what the Somali Foreign Minister is up to these days!

Click here to view the full article on the LA Times. (Requires free registration for access)

The United Nations Food and Agricultural Agency (FAO) issued a Humanitarian Emergency alert for Somalia earlier this morning. It said:

Somalia is experiencing a dangerous confluence of factors that almost certainly will lead to rapidly plummeting humanitarian conditions throughout southern regions (…) With the next rainy season not expected to provide relief until June 2006, a preliminary estimate of up to 2 million people are likely to be in either a ‘Humanitarian Emergency’ and/or ‘Acute Food and Livelihood Crisis’ for at least the next six months.

FAO officials went on by saying:

On-going conflicts in the lawless east African state will exacerbate the problem and poor rains hitting neighbouring areas of Ethiopia and Kenya “will greatly restrict migratory options.

Click here to view the full warning on the Reuters AlertNet.

You may also click here to learning more about the looming food crisis in Somalia.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa release its annual “Economic Report on Africa” for 2005. The report paints bleak economic outlook for Africa. The reports begins with the following statement:

With the highest incidence of poverty in the world, Africa urgently needs to create more employment and thus tackle the scourge of hunger, malnutrition and the overall low living standards the continent continues to witness. Indeed, unemployment is one of the greatest challenges to Africa’s development, with an estimated 10.9 per cent and 10.4 per cent of job seekers unemployed in 2003 in Sub-Saharan and North Africa, respectively. These are respectively the second and third highest unemployment rates in the world, with the Middle East region experiencing the highest rate.

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Oxfam Unwrapped allows people in the rich nations to send Christmas Gift to the poor in the developing world. You could, for instance, send a camel, a Donkey or a tree as a gift to poor farmers in Africa.

I think this is great idea…. I will have my Donkey!

For the record, I am NOT a big fan of Christmas at all. Indeed, in my student days at the University of Oslo, my friends and I used to seek refugee in the “Julefri” restaurants in Oslo. And at the time, there were not many such establishments in the city. Here in the United States, Bill O’Reilly and his Ultra-Religious-Conservatives want to force everyone to say, “Merry Christmas” to everyone else! I will not accept that! I guess I will stick with my “happy Holidays” greetings!

No disrespect to the religious folks, but we must remember that Christmas is actually a pagan tradition. Christians adopted it when they realized that they could not persuade Christians not to practice this pagan tradition!

Happy Holidays!

If any other country in the world had the same incidence of malnutrition as here (Somalia) there would be an outcry!

Maxwell Gaylard
U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia.

FAO’s Food Security Analysis Unit for Somalia issued an alert food crisis warning and says:

Failed Deyr rains, the second consecutive season of below normal rains, are leading to a rapid and alarming deterioration in food security throughout southern Somalia. Pastoralists in Gedo and the northern parts of Juba already face a critical food security situation and are at high risk of Acute Food and Livelihood Crisis Humanitarian Emergency in Gedo and Juba, the effect of a deteriorating food security is already evident in above acceptable international levels. Other regions in the south face the same problems of poor pasture, limited water and poor crop harvests due to two seasons of below normal rainfall and their food security situation will continue to deteriorate in the coming months with the onset of the long Jilaal season (Jan.-March).

While the destructive Mogadishu warlords fight for more power, the Somali people die for starvation and hunger!

Click here to view the full alert by FSAU of Somalia. Click here to view integrated regional analysis for the entire country

Wrinting for today’s Guardian, Aftab Alam Khan, head of ActionAid’s trade justice campaign says:

The declaration, issued by the WTO yesterday evening, reflects the interests of a few rich countries like the EU and the US rather than those of more than 100 developing countries, home to four-fifths of humanity. The EU and US ended up making only paltry offers to reduce their agricultural subsidies, the thorniest issue on the negotiating table. The EU managed to deceive poor countries by concentrating everyone’s minds on an end date of 2013 for its €1bn worth of export subsidies, when the real issue is the €55bn that it gives in other forms of domestic support.

I agree with Mr. Khan that the WTO declation was, at best, a FARCE!

Click here to view the full article on the Guardian.

The Council of the European Union release its Presidency Conclusions. Following is what is says about Africa:

The European Council adopts the EU strategy “The EU and Africa: Towards a Strategic Partnership” as called for at its June 2005 meeting (doc. 15702/1/05 REV 1). Building on the Cairo Summit, it stresses the importance of enhanced EU-Africa political dialogue, including holding a second EU/Africa Summit in Lisbon as soon as possible, and agrees to review regularly, starting in 2006, progress on the implementation of the Strategy, taking into account the conclusions adopted by the Council on 21 November 2005.

Click here to view the full document. You may like to click here to view the statement the Council made about Somalia on Nov. 29.2005.

Here is full index of all somalia related documents. PS: If the link does not work for you, just do a simple search.

Speech of H.E. Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu
OIC Secretary-General before the Third Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference

Makkah Al Mukarramah

Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia
5-6 Dhul Qa’adah 1426 H
(7-8 December 2005)

Bismillah Arrahman Arrahim

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatu allah wa barakatuh

In this sacred city, the land of revelation, the Qibla of all Muslim, this Third Extraordinary Islamic Summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference is being held upon the kind invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. To him and to his wise government, I extend sincere thanks and gratitude for their steady support to Islamic causes the world over and to the organization of the Islamic Conference.

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Final Communique of the Third Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference, “Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century, Solidarity in Action,”

Makkah Al-Mukarramah,5-6 Dhul Qa’adah 1426H, December 7-8, 2005

In response to the kind invitation addressed from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz to his brothers and sister, the leaders of the Muslim Ummah, the Third Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference was held in Makkah Al Mukarramah on 5-6 Dhul Qa’adah 1426 H (7-8 December 2005).

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Third Session of the Extraordinary Islamic Summit Conference December 7-8, 2005

Bismillahi Arrahmani Arrahim

In the Name of God, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful

We, the Kings, Heads of State and Government, and Emirs of the Member States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), meeting in the Third Session of the Extraordinary of the Islamic Summit Conference, held in Makkah Al-Mukarramah from 5 to 6 Dhul Quidah 1426H (7-8 December 2005), declare:

We praise high the Name of Almighty Allah, Who has blessed us with the grace of gathering together on the soil of this hallowed land, cradle of the revelation of Islam and its message, and Qibla of all Muslims, from which the light of Islam shone forth to guide humanity to the path of prosperity and peace, thus enabling the foundations to be laid of an Islamic civilization that was able to bring a much-needed, timely, and decisive contribution to human civilization.

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