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Somalia: Journalists and Civilians under Attack
AfricaFocus Bulletin
Nov 15, 2007 (071115)
(Reposted from sources cited below)
Editor's Note
The Ethiopian-backed Somali government has closed down three
independent radio stations, a media crackdown that coincides with
escalated fighting in Mogadishu and an estimated 173,000 internally
displaced people (IDPs) newly fleeing from Mogadishu. Human rights
and media rights groups in Somalia and around the world have
condemned the assault on journalists.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists
(http://www.cpj.org), seven Somali journalists have been killed in
the line of duty this year, the second highest death toll worldwide
behind only Iraq.
This AfricaFocus Bulletin contains brief reports on recent
developments in Somalia from Reporters without Borders, the
National Union of Somali Journalists, the UN High Commission for
Refugees, and FAST International, a monitoring service provided by
http://www.swisspeace.org
Another AfricaFocus Bulletin sent out today concerns the increased
threat of renewed war between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
For earlier AfricaFocus Bulletins on Somalis, visit
http://www.africafocus.org/country/somalia.php
++++++++++++++++++++++end editor's note+++++++++++++++++++++++
Somalia - Government asked to explain closure of three radio
stations in two days
Reporters Without Borders Update
14 November 2007
For more information:
Leonard Vincent, Bureau Afrique / Africa desk
Reporters sans frontiŠres / Reporters Without Borders
Email : afrique@rsf.org / africa@rsf.org
Web : http://www.rsf.org
Reporters Without Borders today called on Somalia's transitional
government to explain why it has arbitrarily closed three
independent radio stations in the past two days, breaking its
promises and leaving the capital with virtually no independent news
outlets.
"A government's undertakings are still valid even in war time," the
press freedom organisation said. "The Somali civilian authorities
signed a charter guaranteeing press freedom but they have clearly
given way to the military forces in the capital, which are openly
flouting the rights of its journalists. The public has been left in
the dark, the media have been silenced one by one, and their
employees have been forced underground or into exile. The
consequences of this authoritarian behaviour are disastrous."
Twenty-four hours after closing independent Radio Shabelle, Somali
government forces yesterday raided the studios of two other
privately-owned radio stations in Mogadishu, Radio Banadir and
Radio Simba, ordering them to cease broadcasting at once. "They
said the closure order concerned all the independent radio stations
in Mogadishu, Simba Radio news editor Mustafa Haji told Agence
France-Presse.
The federal transitional government has not commented publicly on
these raids, which have coincided with a major sweep by Somali
government forces supported by Ethiopian troops through the
capital's Bakara market neighbourhood in search of weapons and
Islamist insurgents.
Popular Radio Station Silenced, NUSOJ Strongly Protests
National Union of Somali Journalists (Mogadishu)
Press Release
12 November 2007
http://allafrica.com/somalia
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) is gravely
concerned about the growing press freedom crisis in Somalia
following today's (12 November 2007) shutting down of Radio
Shabelle, a popular Radio Station in Mogadishu, by the Security
Forces of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.
Around 11:30am Mogadishu time, heavily armed security forces
operating in Bakara Market forcefully entered the premises of the
Radio Station and ordered all staff to come down from their
building, according to the management of the Radio. The security
forces, subsequently, commanded the Radio Director Ja'far Kuukay
and head of its Programmes Abdirahman Yusuf, publicly known
Al-Adala, to go with them. Although Shabelle staff were released,
they were informed by the commander of the army that their station
is closed, Chairperson of Shabelle Radio Abdimalik Yusuf told
NUSOJ. The radio station, immediately, went off air as ordered.
The security forces of the Transitional Federal Government did not
cite the reasons behind their closure. But the Radio Shabelle
journalists believe that their professional and independent stance
caused the closure.
"We denounce this illegal action from security forces which
silenced today Radio Shabelle" said Omar Faruk Osman, NUSOJ
Secretary General. "We appeal to Transitional Government to allow
Radio Shabelle to resume its operations because of the important
community service function it performs in serving the news and
information needs of the people".
Radio Shabelle and its journalists experienced gross violations of
their professional freedoms and rights, according to the records of
the National Union of Somali Journalists. Apart from continuous
threats and terror acts against its employees, its acting
Chairperson Bashir Nur Gedi was recently assassinated at his home
in Mogadishu.
"Somalia became the worst country for press freedom and security of
journalists in Africa and the second most dangerous place for
journalists in the world after Iraq, because political groups do
not like the Somali media's role of disseminating useful, impartial
and objective information to the public" Omar Faruk added.
"Since this is blatant violation of international law that severely
restricts the Somali people's access to information, an
internationally-recognized human right, we call upon the
international community to immediately intervene and end ongoing
grave violations of press freedom" Omar said. "We again inform the
Transitional Federal Government that it has international
obligation to protect and respect journalists by allowing them to
freely seek, receive, and impart information without fear of their
safety'.
Somalia: UNHCR responds to exodus from Mogadishu
13 Nov 2007 | UNHCR Briefing Notes
http://www.unhcr.org/news/NEWS/47397e9f4.html
UNHCR is sending more aid supplies to thousands of displaced
Somalis as the exodus from Mogadishu to outlying areas continues
amid ongoing fighting between Ethiopian troops and insurgents in
the strife-torn capital.
Over the last two weeks, an estimated 173,000 internally displaced
people (IDPs) have fled from Mogadishu - nearly 90,000 of them to
nearby Afgooye, some 30 km to the west. Another 33,000 have been
displaced to various other places around Mogadishu, while thousands
more have gone to other locations in Lower Shabelle. This morning,
staff reported that private trucks were still evacuating families
from Mogadishu to Afgooye, which is struggling to cope with more
than 150,000 IDPs who have fled there since the beginning of this
year.
Yesterday, UNHCR emptied its Mogadishu warehouse of the last
remaining stocks of aid supplies - enough for 2,500 families - and
has sent them by truck to the Afgooye area for a planned
distribution tomorrow. The drivers, however, are complaining of
difficulties at checkpoints, where soldiers are demanding payments
of up to $300 before letting the aid through.
The planned distribution tomorrow, in co-ordination with various
NGOs who are also trying to deliver other aid supplies, will focus
on Lafoole near Afgooye, where there are 15 settlements hosting
thousands of IDPs. Partner NGOs today were in the settlements
providing tokens to heads of families, who will then exchange the
tokens tomorrow for aid supplies.
The needs in the Afgooye area remain immense, however. People can
no longer find space for shelter around the town itself. Many
families are simply living under trees. Although several NGOs are
trucking water to the sites, it's not enough to meet demand. There
are long queues around water trucks and some IDPs report having to
wait in line for up to six hours for 20 litres of water.
Last week, a UN inter-agency team which traveled to Afgooye found
thousands of newly displaced Somalis living in extremely harsh
conditions. Fifteen new makeshift settlements had mushroomed along
the road between Mogadishu and Afgooye, bringing to 60 the total
number of spontaneous camps lining the route.
In Mogadishu itself, Ethiopian troops are continuing with their
hunt for insurgents and weapons, mainly in and around the Bakara
market - Mogadishu's main trading centre. Yesterday, the
house-to-house search and street patrols for insurgents expanded to
six of the city's 16 districts, trapping civilians in some of these
areas. All roads leading to districts such as Hawlwadaag, Hodon and
Wardigle and Bakara market in south Mogadishu were sealed off by
Ethiopian troops. Other areas such as Dayniile, Yakhshiid and
Huriwaa to the north were also affected, restricting the movement
of civilians. Residents in some of the areas said soldiers had been
posted on rooftops.
A woman trapped in her home in the Hodon district said by phone
that there were soldiers outside her house. She said she and her
children had been ordered to stay indoors although they had no
food, water or electricity. Soldiers told her that anyone moving
about during the search would be shot on sight. In other parts of
the city, those who could leave their homes fled on foot or using
donkey carts or wheelbarrows. There was little vehicle traffic due
to the closing off of many major roads leading into and out of the
city.
This morning, there were reports that some parts of Bakara market
have re-opened, but roads leading to and from the area remain
sealed off.
The total number of IDPs in Somalia has risen to 850,000. This
figure includes some 450,000 who have been displaced by conflict in
Mogadishu since February 2007.
Somalia | Trends in conflict and cooperation #4
FAST Update - Somalia team
email: somalia@swisspeace.ch
http://www.swisspeace.org
Trends in conflict and cooperation #4.
Aug. 15-Oct 15 2007
[FAST International is the early warning program of swisspeace,
covering 25 countries/regions in Africa, Asia and Europe. Based in
Bern, Switzerland, the program is funded and utilized by an
international consortium of development agencies.]
Security
In December 2006, the dissolution of the Somalia Islamic Courts
Council (ICC), that attempted to unify Somalia under an Islamic
state based on Shari'a law, opened up a political vacuum. Somalia's
Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which is unpopular, weak and
dependant on Ethiopian support, is unable to fill this gap. The
previous FAST updates had reported increasing tendencies towards
destabilization and political devolution in Somalia since the
defeat of the ICC. The TFG's military efforts to stabilize Somalia
became difficult and progress remained halted.
Conflictive events continued in Mogadishu and in other parts of the
country after the National Reconciliation Conference (NRC) (see
graph). Armed opposition to the TFG, particularly the jihadist
Youth Mujahideen Movement (YMM), which had claimed responsibility
for many attacks in Mogadishu during the NRC, continued to disrupt
the proceedings. During September, groups of several dozen YMM
fighters attacked police stations and TFG and Ethiopian military
bases with heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. On 29
September, the attacks peaked when three police stations and two
Ethiopian bases came under fire. Conflictive events reported over
the last two months of 100 insurgents and 45 government soldiers,
and the arrests of 700 people supporting the insurgency.
Local resistance to Ethiopia-TFG forces has been reported in
regions where the TFG's armed opposition originated. The central
regions of Hiran and Galgadud, which is the heartland of the Ayr
sub clan of the Hawieye clan family and the home of former chair of
the ICC, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, continued their resistance to
the TFG administration. In the Lower Shabelle region, the "fief"
struggle between the Ayr warlord and ICC Defence Minister Sheikh
Indha Cadde remains unsettled. Several clashes were reported
between TFG forces and militias claiming loyalty to the old
administration.
The dispute between Somaliland and Puntland over most of the Sool
and Sanaag regions escalated into a broader military conflict. The
conflict's development in Sool, which has been occupied by Puntland
since 2003, makes another full-scale war between the two entities
increasingly likely. On 17 September, forces loyal to Puntland's
government clashed with local pro-Somaliland militias near the Sool
region's capital Las Anod. On 20 September, renewed fighting
mounted between Puntland forces and Somaliland troops. On 24 and 28
September, heavier fighting broke out. On 1 October, fighting broke
out in Las Anod with up to 15 people reportedly killed. The
conflict takes place at a time when the TFG leadership has
dissolved many of the militias of the otherwise heavily militarized
Puntland - a fact worsened by the region's deep economic crisis.
Political
The continuing clashes in Mogadishu and the conflict between
Somaliland and Puntland increased civilian causalities during the
reporting period. Fighting between government troops and
anti-government elements in Mogadishu injured over 30 people and
killed several civilians, including three journalists. Field
reports from aid agencies indicate that the conflict between
Puntland and Somaliland displaced about 500 families. Assistance to
vulnerable people was further complicated following the abduction
of WFP staff in Mogadishu by TFG forces on 17 October. WFP
suspended food aid distributions as well as the loading of food in
Mogadishu, which was supposed to be distributed to 75,000 people.
On 23 October, WFP staff has been released without any
precondition.
A political solution to the Somalia crisis through the NRC remained
unpromising, if not disappointing. The NRC, which domestic and
external actors had described at the beginning as an opportunity
for Somali warring parties to bring peace and integrate Somalis,
increased polarization and political fragmentation. With no other
major inclusive political reconciliation initiatives in the future
at the national level, the NRC created a confused political picture
that stimulated clan based solidarity.
The failure of the NRC in bringing a political solution to the
Somalia crisis was nothing more than the failure of two
reconciliation conferences: the NRC, which was later transformed by
the TFG into its desired alternative NRC; and the Somali Congress
for Liberation and Reconstitution (SCLR) organized by the political
opposition based in Eritrea.
The outcome of the conferences confirmed that neither the TFG nor
the opposition is united enough internally to provide Somalia with
a credible political formula and is far too unorganized to
compromise with its rival.
The TFG's failure to reconcile over key issues became evident when
at the closing; the organizer of the conference expressed his
disappointment about the many delegates who believed that matters
of concern (to their clans) had not been adequately addressed.
Having achieved no substantive reconciliation, the NRC did not
appear to have achieved its major objective, which is to preserve
the transitional institutions and its personnel. The TFG remains
weak, unpopular and internally fragmented.
This reporting period indicates that their diverse aims and support
bases made it impossible for the opposition to merge their agenda
and come up with an attractive political formula. The failure of
the SCLR began from its inception when disagreement among
opposition groups over the agenda, modality and leadership alliance
mounted. On 1 September, the Hawiye sub-clans refused to
participate in the SCLR after the failure of opposition groups to
even address their common commitment to removing Ethiopian
occupation from Somalia.
The conference opened on 6 September, but before it could proceed,
a disagreement broke out on the modality of reconciliation. The
question as to whether the SCLR "reconstitution" means determining
a political formula for a future Somali state or simply forming an
alliance aimed at "liberating" the country from Ethiopian
occupation needs to be addressed. Nationalists withdrew because
they argued that the conference would not consider their case for
building a single national movement dominated the ICC.
Disputes have also been reported between the ICC and two other
elements - diaspora groups and the Free Parliament faction - on the
structure of the alliance related to positions and number of seats.
The ICC managed to apportion 45 percent of the 191 seats, and the
remaining 25 percent went to the Free Parliament, 16 percent to the
Diaspora and 14 percent to clan elders, civil society organizations
and intellectuals. On 15 September, non-Islamist delegates walked
out of a session in a dispute over the issue of whether to include
the term "jihad" in the proposed charter for the alliance. Later it
was decided to use a more general term, "struggle."
At the conclusion, the alliance spokesperson announced that the
movement it had formed - the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of
Somalia (ARS) - would pursue armed resistance and diplomacy to
achieve an Ethiopian withdrawal from Somalia and would be
"dissolved" when the occupation ended, which reflects the inability
of the opposition to come up with a political solution to Somalia's
crisis.
Apart from the failed reconciliation efforts, the internal rifts of
the TFG deepened severely during the reporting period. In
particular, conflict surfaced between President Abdullahi Yusuf and
Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi over the mandate of transitional
institutions. Among other events, divisions were displayed by the
sacking of the public prosecutor that was initiated by Gedi in
order to punish the prosecutor and by the prosecutor's refusal to
leave his post supported by Yusuf. The personal dispute of the
leadership had been growing for over a year but hardened
significantly over the granting of oil concessions to foreign
companies and the USD $32 million Gedi received from Saudi Arabia.
As a consequence of the growing power battle, the two men are said
to have established their own personal militia and Gedi, in
particular, is seeking much closer ties with his own clan platform
than before.
International
The failure of the TFG's strategy to gain external support through
the NRC became evident when external actors gradually lost interest
in supporting the TFG. During September, although external actors
were not satisfied with the outcome of the conference, they
remained consistent with their original position and efforts;
continued pressing the TFG to engage in reaching out to the
political opposition and calling on African states for
stabilization. On 12 September, the Washington-inspired Contact
Group for Somalia, which includes the US, the EU, European donor
states, and international and regional organizations, met in Rome
and repeated its calls for African states to contribute to AMISOM.
So far, however, there is no measurable progress in withdrawing
Ethiopian forces from Somalia or the deployment of troops by other
African states. Ethiopia has reportedly sent reinforcements with
troops now estimated up to 50,000. The most likely addition to
AMISOM is likely to come from Burundi, where training by the US
military has been completed. However, the 1,700 Burundians still
lack capabilities and will not make a significant difference on the
ground. As the SCLR conference proceeded Prime Minister Gedi -
under pressure from donors - traveled to Djibouti in a failed
attempt to open talks with opposition figures, including ICC
supporters. On 17 September, President Yusuf was in Saudi Arabia
where he and some former delegates to the NRC reaffirmed the
agreement of the conference. But the opposition quickly announced
its rejection of the pact.
The United States continued its effort to isolate Jihadists and
their supporters from TFG supporters. The US urged Saudi Arabia to
support the TFG in order to isolate its domestic opposition and
threatened to put Eritrea on its list of state sponsors of
terrorism. At the same time, an US donation of USD $97 million to
Ethiopia for development seemed to encourage its military presence
in Somalia. The missing link between external actors and the TFG
reached a peak during the end of the reporting period, notably
following the erosion of Yusuf's power, which left external actors
with no one to turn to anchor their policy.
Outlook
Given the uncompromised divergence of interests within and between
the TFG and its opposition, Somalia will continue to experience
devolution in which power remains dispersed to regional and local
clans and warlords. The leadership split within the TFG threatens
to turn into an open military division along clan lines. Wider
armed resistance against Ethiopian and TFG forces is certain, which
the TFG will likely seek to counter with large-scale offensives
against Islamist-controlled areas across the south. Neither the
internationally recognized TFG nor the opposition alliance will be
able to come up with an attractive political formula that would win
legitimacy by the majority of Somalis. With the TFG evidently
failing to deliver on any front, the discord with external actors
is expected to grow further. Most African states continue to be
reluctant to commit to AMISOM, and Western involvement remains
shallow and limited to their "antiterrorism" agendas.
Meanwhile, the unattended conflict between Somaliland and Puntland
threatens to get out of hand, and Puntland's internal stability
looks increasingly shaky.
AfricaFocus Bulletin is an independent electronic publication
providing reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with
a particular focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus
Bulletin is edited by William Minter.
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