No Longer at Ease

During the so-called ‘Scramble for Africa’ in the late 1880’s, various European empires claimed different African territories and as a result lands with Somali speakers/Somali people were taken by different colonial powers. Somalia become one of the countries that was colonised by several super powers at once; Britain claimed Northern Somalia, Italy took control of Southern Somalia, France took Djibouti whilst the Ogaden was returned to Ethiopia in 1948 after it had previously belonged to Somalia under Italian rule in what was called the Italian East Africa. In the summer of 1960 both the UK and then Italy agreed to grant independence to its territories and thus the two main Somali territories joined to form a united Somali Republic on the 1^st July 1960. My view of this is (of course) bias to me being Somali so I have to point out that Somali people are nomads and that before independence and colonisation, there was never an officially established "Somalia"; only a large area inhabited by various ethnic races at one point or another but where Somali speaking people were always the majority and thus early on became known as Soomaaliya.

As one of the starting points of independence, the new Somali government supported the right of all the Somali speaking lands to be united under a greater Somalia and thus there were often (and still is) a lot of clashes between the borders of Somalia and Ethiopia and Somalia and Kenya (due to the largely Somali-inhabited northeastern region of Kenya). So already we have a very fragmented national history where the maps created and redefined by external colonial powers drew borders that don’t accurately reflect the different people of the regions and often even the majority of each region and thus end up separating people, politically, who otherwise share the same ethnicity, culture, religion and of course language.

Literature wise, the novel that best highlights the plight of The Ogaden is the brilliant Somali author Nuruddin Farah's highly recommend book Maps. As a work of fiction, it deals more with the more complex psychological consequences of living in such a widely disputed area, being Somali but not quite in Somali soil according to official records etc. This whole ongoing issue has fueled my pre-existing obsession with borders and maps (beyond The Ogaden, Palestine or Tibet) and is one of the big reasons why I'm doing my MA in Post-Colonial studies. There are so many on-going border conflicts in different parts of the world (some unfairly lesser known than others) where simple lines, drawn by men, never regard the every-day reality of who is living there and how it affects them. Ethiopia and Somalia are of course neighbours endlessly fighting over literally a desert area between the two countries, metaphorically a child whose disputing parents end up neglecting and not considering what is best for it, in their fight for full custody. One of the more powerful quotes from Maps is when one of the characters says: "it is easier ridding yourself from a colonist beyond the seas than it is to oust an African one..."

It's important to note however that the Somalis in The Ogaden, although the biggest majority, are not the only ethnic race living in that specific region and so the question is: how do those other minorities (within minorities!) become identified in a map? In order for The Ogaden to re-join Somalia, it has to sacrifice its already established identity as a place not just inhabited by Somali speaking people. However, it also cannot remain in this current state of limbo under the umbrella of the Ethiopian empire that's not exactly doing all that it can and indeed should for the area it has politically claimed for strategic reasons. It's frustrating enough that Somalia doesn't get enough press coverage (unless you're a "pirate" - do you really think that people without aid will just quietly perish after being colonised and war torn?) the same way that other African nations and areas do whilst The Ogaden conflict remains swept under the international media rug.

This is a struggle I feel very strongly about both patriotically and emotionally; my grandmother was born in The Ogaden, in Wardheer, and a few weeks ago I asked her how she feels about it being politically seen as Ethiopia and, (my grandmother who has a habit of answering important questions in Somali proverbs and other sayings) said something that can best be translated as: "your landlord might own your home but he has never lived in it the way you have". Enough said.

For more basic information of the region, start here.

Refugees returning to Mogadishu

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 18:42:00 +0000

Calm has returned to Mogadishu and so have tens of thousands of refugees. They'd fled the two-year long brutal Ethiopian occupation (that's according to Amnesty) and had been living in dire circumstances since. There is no peace yet in Mogadishu but at least there no fighting, for now. The situation is still tense and fighting could brake out any moment but there is also serious talk about peace.

Islamic scholars, from Somalia and outside, are in Mogadishu and have been mediating between the government and the armed opposition. Why Islamic scholars? because both sides are Islamists calling for the implementation of Sharia. Please read Mohamed Adow's excellent explanation of the current situation here.

Just in: Sheikh Sharif Ahmed running for president

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:14:00 +0000

Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, the former leader of the Union of Islamic Courts, announced he was running for president, in the peace talks currently held in Djibouti. There are many other contenders, and his announcement doesn't come as a surprise. He has a strong support from the parliament and he himself will select about 200 MPs - he has a good chance of becoming president

Somalia Update

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 18:16:00 +0000

More deaths in Mogadishu. AU peacekeepers retaliated with heavy artilary to an Al-Shabab suicide bombing in Mogadishu yesterday, the result: more than 20 civilians dead and 30 more injured. The minaret of one of the more famous mosques in Mogadishu, Sheik Ali Sufi mosque, was damaged by an artilary shell.

Al-Shabab, and other Islamist militias, made it clear they will continue fighting the African Union peacekeepers despite the withdrawal of Ethiopian forces from Mogadishu. Now, the 3000 AU peacekeepers are trapped in Mogadishu, attacked by Al-Shabab and despised by the population. Their presence in Mogadishu has only made the situation worse and the question is: what peace are they suppose to keep? Not only is there no peace, there is no political process that could lead to peace - at least not anytime soon.

The government has virtually collapsed but there now sign it might be resurructed. Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, the former leader of the Union of Islamic Courts, had signed a power-sharing deal with the government few months ago - it was never implemented, until now.

The opportunity came when former president Abdullah Yusuf, who had opposed the power-sharing deal, resigned. Now Sharif Ahmed, prime minister Nur Adde, speaker of the parliament Adan Madobe and MPs are gathering in Djibouti to select a new president and form a new government that includes Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's Islamist supporters. The talks in Djibouti is sponsored by the UN and has the support of the international community, or so it seems.

Back in Somalia, Al-Shabab and Ras Kamboni brigades reject the legitimacy of the government, even if other Islamists join it and say they will continue fighting as long as foreign troops are present in Somalia. They control large part of southern Somalia including the strategic port city of Kismayo and are heavily present in Mogadishu.

The Ethiopians are still around, too. Barre Hirale, a veteran warlord, told BBC Somali radio that he is heading to Kismayo with his militia along with Ethiopian troops to fight Al-Shabab. Hirale was chased out of Kismayo in 2006 by the Union of Islamist Courts and in 2008 by Al-Shabab, and twice more before that. He is one of a number groups that had been armed by Ethiopia in anticipation of their withdrawal.

Ethiopian had troops inside Somalia since 1996, backing and arming warlords - and Eritea has been doing the same, too. For Ethiopia and Eritrea are back in the business of proxy wars, in Somalia.

Israeli army targets UN-run schools, killing 130

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:28:00 +0000

Israeli army bombed two UN-run schools yesterday, killing more than 130 civilians. UNURWA, the UN agency working in Palestinian refugees, converted the schools into temporary shelters for people fleeing the Israeli attacks. To insure the safety of the schools UNURWA gave the coordinates of the schools to the Israeli army so it wouldn't be bombed - leaving no room for the Israelis to claim it was an 'error', but they were bombed.
Israel claims that rockets were fired from one of the schools, but even if that was the case, though doubtful, it doesn't justify the bombing of schools that the UN labelled a civilian area. I'm I surprised? No. Israel targetted civilians in Lebanon in 2006, and for the past 60 years.

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 09:15:00 +0000

I'm back from a long break from blogging. I wanted to congratulate everyone on the new year but that would inappropriate when Israel, in only five days, murdered four hundred Palestinians, and injured close to two thousand, in Gaza while the world watches.

The tragedy is that nobody will stop Israel, and Arabs in particular. How could they when their governments are part of the plot, and specially Egypt which had approved of bombing Gaza in the hope of getting rid of Hamas.

The suffering of the people of Gaza didn't start five days ago. For more than a year, they had to endure a merceless seige both from Israel and from Egypt. Basic food and drugs were not allowed in, let alone the loss of jobs and the complete destruction of the local economy. As the Arabic saying goes "the aggression from your brother is more painful than that of the enemy", and for Gazans, it's the Egyptian government that had refused to open the Rafah crossing to let in food and medicine, and it hurts more.

The people in the Arab world have expressed their anger at their governments, but they know better than to expect much from them or the Arab League. Some of the Arab governments, just as it was with the Lebanon war in 2006, are counting on Israel to take out Hamas. At the end, Arab leaders will have a summit and meet when it's all over, and conguratulate themselves that they still have their seats.

And After Israel feels it has killed enough Palestinians and pulls out, the people of Gaza will still be under seige and as the Egyptian president confirmed Rafah crossing will not be opened.

Woo Hah - Busta Rhymes and Islam

noreply@blogger.com (Hanna) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:19:00 +0000

American rapper Busta Rhymes has certainly come a long way since his days of rapping about loose women and easy money, and now as a converted Muslim, has recently spoken out about how America should embody some of the characteristics of Arab culture:

"The one thing that the Arab culture has always exemplified for thousands of years is the significant value of spirituality; all the way down to the spirituality of financial and economic stability. At the end of the day, they grow, groom and condition their children to understand those values. They implement it successfully in their household. It seems really unfair to me, because as a man of Islam myself, I definitely want to make sure that I’m doing my part in being able to re-establish the integrity and the beauty as far as the Arab culture is concerned. It’s contradictory of us to have this impression of a culture that’s not only done so much for this culture, well this country rather. You know the United States don’t really have no culture. We take a little bit from everyone…"

Ambulances For Mogadishu

noreply@blogger.com (Hanna) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:13:00 +0000

It is hard to determine which fact is more horrific; the daily unspeakable violence that is still a reality for the millions in Somalia's capital or that Mogadishu is only now getting an ambulance service for the first time in almost 20 years.

Five ambulances may not seem like much, but as the saying unfortunately goes: it is better than nothing. This is a blessing and a good step forward. I only wish it had come from the so-called 'government' rather than the compassion of Irish charity.

Somalia - quick update

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:16:00 +0000

Somali pirates carried the most daring, and probably the largest, pirating operation ever. They hijacked a Saudi oil tanker carrying two million barrels, worth more than a $100 million. The pirates hijacked the ship 450km of the Mombassa, while 150 ships are guarding the Somali coast.

Meanwhile the Somali government is all but collapsed. The entire government and parliament are outside Somalia, with the president and the prime minister accusing one another for the failure of their government. Insurgents have taken most of southern Somalia, except Mogadishu (the control large part of it), Baladwayn and Baidao. The Ethiopian forces are getting ready to leave Somalia.

Barack Obama Is President

noreply@blogger.com (Hanna) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:01:00 +0000

In the words of the great man himself in his acceptance speech: "it's been a long time coming".

No Degree? No Job!

noreply@blogger.com (Hanna) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:50:00 +0000

Iran's Interior Minister got the boot after admitting that his honorary degree from Oxford University was fake. He previously stated that his degree was issued for his "managerial and executive experience and for submitting a thesis to Oxford University via a person who had opened an affiliate office in Tehran in English language affairs".

Via 'a person'?!

Perhaps he should have claimed the degree was from a slightly less prestigious University to make it more credible. Or better yet, wait until he actually earned one...no wait, this is a politician we're talking about.

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:51:00 +0000

Interesting article on young Islamic bloggers in the Arab world clashing with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Reading

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 09:06:00 +0000

Iran economy facing perfect storm - BBC

"The International Monetary Fund said in August that Iran would face unsustainable deficits should prices for its oil fall below $75 a barrel."

How we lost the war we won – Nir Rosen, RollinStone
Nir shows the dark humor and confusion in NATO's efforts to fight the Talibn:

As we drive away, Ibrahim laughs. The soldiers, he explains, thought I was a suicide bomber. Ibrahim did not bother to tell them that he and Shafiq are midlevel Taliban commanders, escorting me deep into Ghazni, a province largely controlled by the spreading insurgency that now dominates much of the country.

Why I blog - Andrew Sullivan, Atlantic
An excellent piece on blogging as a literary form and its relation with journalism.

Inside Egypt: Nostalgia for Colonia Rule – Angry Arab, As'ad Khalil
What an entertaining book review! Khalil tells it as it is.

This morning

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 08:21:00 +0000

Turkey's constitutional court ruled "that key members of the ruling AK Party, including Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, have been involved in anti-secular activities.". The court didn't ban the AK party as some have expected.

Another famous Republican endorses Obama, and it seems they like him in Columbia (that country south of US and A).

Speculation on Palin 2012 is rife and the Economist takes a dip.

Piracy hasn't been all bad for Somalia

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:45:00 +0000

'Toxic waste' behind Somalia piracy - Najad Abdullahi, Al Jazeera

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) reported the tsunami had washed up rusting containers of toxic waste on the shores of Puntland.

Nick Nuttall, a UNEP spokesman, told Al Jazeera that when the barrels were smashed open by the force of the waves, the containers exposed a "frightening activity" that has been going on for more than decade.

"Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there," he said.

"European companies found it to be very cheap to get rid of the waste, costing as little as $2.50 a tonne, where waste disposal costs in Europe are something like $1000 a tonne.

"And the waste is many different kinds. There is uranium radioactive waste. There is lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes – you name it."

Nuttall also said that since the containers came ashore, hundreds of residents have fallen ill, suffering from mouth and abdominal bleeding, skin infections and other ailments.

Colin Powell: “ ... What if he is a Muslim?”

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 22:59:00 +0000

Colin Powell asked a simple question that no one in US politics dared to ask, including Obama himself. He deliberately avoided asking it, and instead to state that he was a Christian, because he knew, like most Americans, that it was too risky when it came to Islam: anyone can run for president, Jewish, Mormon or Catholic but not a Muslim - and you shouldn't be linked to them. He also knew that most Americans have little idea about Islam, and that it was probably negative.

So Obama must be relieved that someone else has asked the question. Would anyone take a shot at answering it? Lets wait and see.

Colin Powell: "Those kind of images going out on Al-Jazeera are killing us around the world"

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 14:41:00 +0000

Colin Powell:

"Those kind of images going out on Al-Jazeera are killing us around the
world. This business from the congresswoman from Minnesota saying, let's examine
all congressman to see who is pro-American or not pro-American." From
Atlantic

A referrence to Al Jazeera's report on racism in the US election, which has received over a million hits and wide coverage in the US media. Watch the report here.

Iraqis: US troops should leave

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 22:05:00 +0000

A massive demonstration by Moqtada Al-Sadr's followers took place in Iraq today, with one message: Iraqi parliament must reject the security pact to be signed by the US and Iraq governments. Iraqi government last week announced that it has reached a deal after the US government agreed to give in on some of sticking points (US troops to be tried in Iraqi courts and timetable for US withdrawal). But Iraqis, both Sunna and Shia, have come against the deal.

The top US commander in Iraq accused Iran of bribing Iraqi MPs but that's an oversimplification because most Iraqis who're Iranian influence in their country are also opposed to this deal. No doubt, some Iraqi MPs are close to the Iranians but many others are rejecting it because: they don't like what's in this deal, they oppose the presence of US troops in their country or they simply think the US presence should be extended without having to sign a pact that will legitimize American long presence (and bases).

Sistani, the top Shia cleric, opposed the deal and so have the Sunni religious leaders. With this latest protests by the Sadris, it seems this deal will be shot down in the parliament. This will deny president Bush one last thing he would have liked to claim as a victory before his term ends.

Al Jazeera English report reveals racism in the US election

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 19:10:00 +0000

A report on the role of race (and racism) in the US election by Al Jazeera English's Casey Kaufman received more than a million views, and was written about in Washington post. Casey speaks to people attending a Sarah Palin rally and most of them have clearly racist feelings Obama, here is some of what they've said:

From an older white woman: "I'm afraid if he wins, the black [sic] will take over. He's not a Christian. This is a Christian nation! What is our country gonna end up like?"

An older white man: "When you got a Negro running for president, you need a first-stringer. He's definitely a second-stringer."

A young white man holding a child: "He seems like a sheep -- or a wolf in sheep's clothing to be honest with you. And I believe Palin -- she's filled with the Holy Spirit, and I believe she's gonna bring honesty and integrity to the White House."

An older white man: "He's related to a known terrorist, for one."

An older white man: "He is friends with a terrorist of this country!"

An older white man: "He must support terrorists! You know, uh, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck. And that to me is Obama."

A young white woman: "Just the whole, Muslim thing, and everything, and everybody's still kinda -- a lot of people have forgotten about 9/11, but . . . I dunno, it's just kinda . . . a little unnerving."

A white woman: "Obama and his wife, I'm concerned that they could be anti-white. That he might hide that."

An older white woman: "I don't like the fact that he thinks us white people are trash . . . because we're not!"

Watch the video, it's a great piece of report:

Here is Washington Post article.

I'm back, plus some readings

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 17:52:00 +0000

gI'm back. For few months I was largely absent from this blog posting only few times though there was so much to discuss. Now, I'm back though. To start with, let me share with you some articles I've read recently:

The can only go so far - by Francis Fukuyama
Fukuyama is back to defend his "End of History" theory of nearly two decades ago. He makes an interesting point that "Democracy's only real competitor in the realm of ideas today is radical Islamism". Of course, he had to say "radical Islam" and not Islam because that's political correct but it's Islam that provides the alternative: both political and economic alternative. This point was also made in the "Clash of civilizations" by Huntington

A shattering moment in America's fall from power - by John Gray
An interesting look at what the financial crisis means for US standing in the world.

Hedge fund manager: So long, idiots! Smoke pot - a letter by a fund manager
A fund manager's take on financial regulation, marijuana and government, and quits.

Somali pirates seize 33 tanks

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:53:00 +0000

Somali pirates seized a Ukrainian ship carrying 33 tanks, this is a very significant news. This news comes only few weeks after reports indicated that ransoms paid to the pirates helped Islamist fighters seize the port city of Kismayo. If the one of the armed groups (Al-Shabab, Islamic Courts or clan militias) decide to use these tanks, and I doubt they could, it would mean a significant military advantage. More on this later.

Uygher Muslims: prohibited from observing Ramdan

shirsoore@gmail.com (Abdurahman) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 09:24:00 +0000

Uygher Muslims in Xinjiang (aka East Turkestan) have long suffered repression from the Chinese government, but for the international media it's Tibet that takes the headlines.

The restrictions on practicing Islamic are aim to remove Islam from the lives of the Uygher people, by force. Some of these restrictions include forbidding anyone under the age of 18 from praying, learning Quran or even going into a mosque.

This Ramadan it has become tougher from Uyghres: government officials, teachers, students are prohibited from fasting - in fact students are forced to eat. Any sign of Ramadan such as changing restaurant opening times is also prohibited. Millions of Uygher are forced to fast secretly.

What's most unfortunate is the silence of the Muslim world about the plight of the Uygher people, I have not yet heard a single criticism from a Muslim leader against the Chinese government.

More in this Aljazeera report: