Somalia Research Report
A Monthly Publication on Somali
In This Issue
1 Introducing Somalia Research
Report
2 Will Somalia benefit from the
Pentagon-State Department part-
nership?
3 Danish link to Mogadishu hotel
bombing questioned
3 Female genital mutilation debate
in the UK
5 Puntland and the media
8 One-size-fits- all policy for Soma-
lia?
9 Amin Amir caricatured as a propa-
gandist
10 Al Shabab and remittances
11 Irin’s cartographic misjudge-
ments
13 Book Review
14 ICG on Somaliland
15 Civil Society Conference Com-
muniqué
1
January 2010 / Vol.1 No. 1
A new book by Dr
Hussein Bulhan
Available @
www.kayd.org
Introducing Somalia Research Report
Somalia is categorised a s a failed state. but the approach
to the reconstitution of the Somali state does not take into
account the causes of the state failure, local governance ini-
tiatives with potential to be springboard for a future So-
mali state.
Somalia Research Report aims to enhance the debate about
Somalia, contribute to challenging unexamined assump-
tions about Somalia, analyse and discuss news stories,
commentaries and research on Somali politics, society, cul-
ture and economy. Somalia Research Report will not only
concentrate on what is written on Somalia in foreign lan-
guages but it will also share with readers abstracts on well
written and researched writings on Somalia written in
Somali, helping policy makers and researchers to follow
the discussion on Somalia.
We welcome readers’ contributions in the form of letters,
articles, book reviews, critiques and suggestions. Wel-
come to the first issue of Somalia Research Report.
Liban A. Ahmad
Editor
Somalia Research Report
 Victims of landmines in Somalia
In December a landmine killed six children of the
same family while their mother was preparing meal
for them in Balanbale district of Galgudud region,
central Somalia. Balanbale is located on the border
between Somalia and Ethiopia known to be littered
with landmines. People of Balanbale need mine
awareness seminars and demining projects. The dis-
trict comes under neither Puntland administration
nor Galmudug administration. According to The
U.N. Mine Action Center, more than 350 communi-
ties are at risk from mines .
—————————————————————
America to push for trial for Somali war
crimes
The Somali news website, mareeg.com reported
that the Kenya based U.S. political counsellor
for Somalia at the American embassy in Kenya, ,
Robert Patterson told reporters in Nairobi that
the Somalis who committed war crimes will be
brought before a court. He said that his govern-
ment was “working on proposals of warrant
arrest against those who committed war crimes
in Somalia.” The United States will face legal
challenges if it pursues such a policy against So-
mali war criminals.
Special report on America’s new policy against
Somalia’s war criminals will appear in the next
issue of Somalia Research Report.
Will Somalia benefit from the new
Pentagon-State Department partner-
ship ?
The US Defence Secretary, Robert Gates , is
upbeat about a proposal that will end what
the Washington Post described as “defense-
state turf war’ on nation building. The State
Department and the Pentagon have always
disagreed on what approach to use: civilians
or better funded military . The Defence Secre-
tary's proposal will not be confined to coun-
tries where the United States has military
presence but also will affect countries such
as Somalia and Yemen where , according to
the American Administration, “ terrorists can
find a safe haven”.
The fund for the new partnership is 2 billion
dollars to be used for training security forces,
conflict prevention in war-torn and war
prone societies in the world.
Somalia stands a chance to gain from such a
policy. The unrecognised Republic of Somali-
land has political parties and institutions that
can gain from a carefully injected seed money
to enhance its institutions as America wants
that part of Somalia not become a new
stronghold for Al Qaiada or its affiliate or-
ganisations.

—————————————————————
Source: Overhaul eyed to end Defense-State
Worth quoting
turf war, Washington post, 24/12/2009
Ba-Hoku Barigye, a Ugandan Army officer tells the
_______________________________________
A New Yorker magazine journalist, Jon Lee Ander-
son, : “You can have a million tanks on the streets
here, but you are not going to bring peace until the
Somalis want it.” Letter from Mogadishu, “The Most
Failed State,” The New Yorker, December 14, 2009. Somalia Research Report
2
. Female genital mutilation debate in
Danish link to Mogadishu hotel
bombing questioned
The popular Somali website, calanka.com
published new pictures about the Moga-
dishu hotel bombing that killed three of
Somalia’s Transitional Federal Govern-
ment cabinet members, graduate doc-
tors and civilians who were attending a
graduation ceremony for medical college
graduates of Banadir University. The
photos show the alleged suicide bomber
sitting and wearing a black stripe shirt
same as the one the alleged bomber was
wearing. The calanka.com pictures chal-
lenge the Somali government’s version
of the story. The Speaker of Somalia’s
Transitional Federal Parliament Sheikh
Aden Mohamed Nor, ( aka Sheikh Adam
Madobe) who told the Wall Street Journal
the suicide bomber “ was one of the So-
mali children who fled from Somalia's
war to Denmark, who returned to the
country for a suicide attack when he got
older. "He was sadly brainwashed by
foreigners to massacre his people.”
Three versions Shamo Hotel bombing
emerged on December 3. The bomber
was said to have been wearing woman’s
clothes and was challenged at the main
entry to hall where the graduation cere-
mony was being held, this version of
the story went. The other version said
the bomber lived in the hotel and easily
found his way to the ceremony. The
third version is from the father of the al-
leged bomber who said his son was in-
vited to the graduation ceremony . “His
body left at the scene of the bombing for
two days and people took his body and
took pictures of it,” he told the VOA So-
mali Service.
3
the UK
A sketchy debate on a heinous practice
The Independent on Sunday reported that many
Somali speaking girls undergo female genital
mutilation known in Somali as gudniinka fir-
cooniga ( Pharaonic circumcision). Some of the
girls are sent to Somalia over the Christmas
holidays whereas some families organise
“mutilation parties involving up to 20 girls to
save money.” The practice is on the increase be-
cause no one was convicted of FMG in the UK,
according to the paper. Early 1980s the toppled
military Somali government launched anti-FMG
campaign to educate Somalis against the health
hazards of FMG. Raqiya Haji Duale, former
deputy health minster and writer on parenting
wrote her classic, Sisters in Affliction, which was
translated into Somali for wider readership. In
1985 The former Somali Academy published a
research, Female circumcision in Somalia : medical
and social implications, by Mahdi Ali Diriye. The
success of the British Government’s campaign
against FMG depends on targeting the whole
communities known to practice FMG. The Inde-
pendent on Sunday mentions Sudan , Nigeria as
well as Somalia, without mentioning Egypt
where FMG originated from and is widely
practised, according to Newsblaze , the news
website: “In 2005, the Egyptian Demographic
and Health Survey found that over 95 per cent
of Egyptian women had undergone some form
of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). This basi-
cally consists of the ablation of the clitoris, and
sometimes, other genital parts as well. “
Sources: UK fails to halt female genital mutilation, Inde-
pendent on Sunday, 20 December 2009; Egypt's Villages
Fight Female Genital Mutilation Published: February
03,2009 Womens Feature Service
Somalia Research Report
 Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a bans veils in
Galguduud
Puntlanpost.com reported “the Somali armed
group, Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a banned veils.
Sheikh Hassan Mohmed Dirshe, an Ahlu Sun-
naWal Jama’a officer said: “The veil is not
obligatory. It can be used to harm people.”.
Women in in Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a con-
trolled area in Galgudud were told not to
wear the veil. “Any one who does not follow
the order will face the law”, Puntlandpost.com
reported. Galgudud was once an Al Shabab
turf. Its a d m in i s t r a t iv e district,
Dhuusamareeb is where Adan Hashi Ayro
the former Al Shabab leader was killed along
with senior Al Shabab leaders in in a US air-
strike. Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’s decision to
ban the veil was said to have caused by un-
substantiated reports that the “suicide
bomber” behind Mogadishu hotel bombing
on December 3 was a man wearing a veil.
————————————————
Shawey: I have not applied for asylum
in the United Kingdom
Abdiasis Shawey, former deputy governor of
Banadir region was interviewed by Universal TV
on 5 December. He denied report that he had
applied for asylum in the United Kingdom. About
the Mogadishu hotel bombing he said: “ We have
to fight those behind atrocities. We have to re-
member that targted killing and suicide bombing
were taking place [before Sheikh Sharif Sheikh
Ahmed was appointeda president in January
2009]. The Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia
of which president Sharif was a chairman until
January last year never spoke up against
assasinations that made life for the Transitional
Federal Govennrmnet officials and local govern-
ment workers difficult. Mr Abdullahi Mo'ow of
the Somali Security Service gave VOA Somali
Service an interview in which he explained Al
Shabab’s intelligence gathering strategies.
4
They visit government offices; they killed key
founding members of Alliance for The
Reliberation of Somalia: Omar Hashi Adan,
Fomer Natioanal Security Minsiter; Ibrahim
Hassan Addow, former Minster of Higher
Education.
Abdullahi Waayeel Waayeel, former Minster
for HigherEducation. Qamar Adan Ali,
Minister for Health, died on 3 December at
Hotel Shamo, the scene of the bombing.
————————————————-
Puntlandgovt.com: An Unupdated
Website
The Puntland Government website, particu-
larly the state profile ( both in English and So-
mali) , has not been updated since president
Farole assumed presidential responsibility in
January 2009. The state profile states that
Mohamud Muse Hersi (aka Adde Muse) is a
president. Adde muse lost to Farole in Janu-
ary 2009. The Puntland Government website
(www.puntlandgovt.com) was used by Adde
Muse administration to publish press re-
leases. The new administration uses the news
website, Garowe Online, to publish press re-
leases and policy papers. Garowe Online and
Puntlandgovt.com were engaged in bitter me-
dia war over the role of Range Resources in
oil prospecting in Puntland, with Garowe
Online criticising the former administration
for signing a deal with a company with dubi-
ous reputation.
____________________________________
No Part of this publication can be reproduced
or distributed without permission from the
publisher.
Somalia Research Report
 Why does Puntland administra-
tion find it hard to work with the
media?
One month after Abdirahman Farole
was appointed the president of Puntland
in January 2009, Amin Amir, the Somali-
Canadian cartoonist faced legal threats
from the Puntland president who was
angered by a cartoon that portrayed him
as the owner of a money-printing ma-
chine in Puntland. President Farole
vowed to take Amin Amir to court. He
hasn’t. In September 2009, Puntland gov-
ernment suspended the work of VOA
Somali Service stringers and local FM
radio stations that transmit VOA Somali
Service programming after an interview
with a man claiming to be a representa-
tive of Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a group
was broadcast the VOA Somali Service.
After international pressure to allow
VOA stringers and local FM stations to
resume their work, the Puntland ad-
ministration relented . In December Pro
-Puntland website, mudugonline.com re-
ported that a reporter was harassed in
the presence of Mohamud Caaqil Xasan,
the director if Holy Koran Radio Station
in Garowe. Again December, 2009,
Puntland authorities arresetd a VOA So-
mali Service reporter in December ,
prompting the United States embassy in
Nairobi to “call for the immediate release
of the reporter.” The arrest of Putland
based reporters and stringers is becom-
ing very common. Recently, Puntland
president appointed his son, Mohamed
Abdirahman Farole, former editor of the
Somali news website, Garowe Online, a
media adviser based in Puntland presi-
dency.
5
U.S. Calls for Immediate Release of
VOA Reporter in Puntland
The United States government is concerned
about the state of freedom of the press in the So-
mali region of Puntland. The December 21 arrest
of a Voice of America (VOA) Somali Service re-
porter highlights the difficult conditions in
which journalists practice their trade in Punt-
land. We call for the immediate release of the
VOA reporter. Furthermore, we call on the re-
gional government of Puntland to exhibit full
respect for media practitioners and their right to
freedom of the press—U.S. Embassy, Nairobi, Kenya
———————————————————————-
A ‘regional’ flag for Punltand
According to Garowe Online, “in a parliamentary
session held in Garowe, the administrative capi-
tal of Puntland,” 38 legislators voted in favour of
the new flag; 2 abstained while one lawmaker
voted against the adoption of a new Puntland
flag. Horseed media described the characteristics
of the Puntland flag as : ( top): blue with the
white star symbolising the Somali flag and
unity; (Centre): white color in the centre, sym-
boliszing the peace and stability of the region;
(Bottom): green color symbolizing the natural
wealth of the Puntland State of Somalia.
Somalia Research Report
 Somaliland Political Parties
Somaliland elections are expected to take
Somaliland Business in the media place in 2010 if the three parties agree on a
date .
Saudi livestock move boosts Somaliland
economy
Hargeisa(Irin News)— (Days after Saudi
Arabia lifted a nine-year ban on livestock
imports from Somalia, the market in Har-
geisa, Somaliland, has seen a 10-fold in-
crease in sales, according to local traders.
"One thousand five hundred sheep used to
The logo of the ruling party, UDUB
be sold in the market before the recent an-
nouncement compared to more than 16,000
animals in the market daily in the last few
days," Jama Farah Du’alle, a middleman
(`dillaal’) in the market, told IRIN.

Somaliland to contract French firm in run-

ning of major port
Somaliland’s Foreign Affairs Minister Ab- The logo of the opposition party, Kulmiye
dillahi Mohamed Dualeh has stated that his
administration was going to hand over the
Berbera port to a French company in an ef-
fort to modernise the deep-water facility in
the Red Sea port to meet modern demands
in the region. Representatives from France’s
”Bolloré Africa Logistics” have been holding
talks with senior Somaliland leaders.
Daallo Airline Introduces New Jets and
Flights
Hargeisa, 15 June 2009 (Somalilandpress.com)
— Daallo airlines has launched a new, daily The logo of UCID party, an opposition party
nonstop services connecting Somaliland’s capi-
tal Hargeisa to number of cities in Africa, Mid-
dle East and Europe using its new fleet – the Advertise in Somalia Research Report
McDonnell Douglas DC-9, a twin-engine, single-
aisle jet airliner.

Somalia Research Report

6
 The Somali metre debate: Some
questions for the discoverers
The debate about who discovered “the
rules of Somali metre” has been going on
for a couple of years. In this article I dis-
cuss some views expressed by Dr. Said
Fahia in an article (Who discovered the
Metrical Structure of Somali Poetry?)
published in wardheerNews.com.
“In my humble opinion I tip the hat to
(sic)Mr. Arale for discovering the scan-
sion of Somali poetry,” wrote Dr Fahia
who is a contemporary of Mohamed
Hashi Dhamac (aka Gaarriye) and Abdil-
lahi Diiriye Guled ( aka Carraale). Based
on my reading of the works of Gaarriye
and Carraale, and on what other scholars
said about the Somali metre they discov-
ered, I share the view of Mohamed Ab-
dillahi Riiraash and Dr Martin Orwin
who, in their paper, An Approach to Rela-
tionships between Somali Metre Types,
wrote:
“The study of Somali metrics was
revolutionized in the mid-1970s
with the publication, in the Somali
national newspaper Xiddigta Ok-
toobar, [(October Star,)] of a num-
ber of seminal articles by the two
Somali scholars and poets Max-
amed Xaashi Dhamac
'Gaarriye' (referred to in this arti-
cle as Gaarriye, except for biblio-
graphical reference) and Cabdul-
laahi Diiriye Guuleed, who made
the long-awaited breakthrough in
Somali metrical studies, appar-
ently independently.”
7
Since Dr Fahia has no doubt about the original-
ity of Carraale's reasearch, I will set out to ex-
plain why Gaarriye equally shows creativity in
his series of articles published in the now-
defunct Xiddigta Oktoobar news paper in
1976. The evidence I am going to use to make
my point partly lies in the approaches Gaarriye
and Carraale used to explain the rules of the
Somali metre.
Gaarriye emphasises the primacy of the vowels
in any Somali poetry genre whereas Carraale
uses both syllable and vowels to formulate his
theory of Somali metre. I read Carraale’s book
(Miisaanka Maansada) and Gaarriye’s 1976 se-
ries of articles reproduced in Cabdiraxmaan C.
Faarax’s Mahadhada iyo Waxqabadka Maxamed
Xaashi Dhamac "Gaarriye". I found Gaarriye’s
style to be suitably conversational—remember
official written Somali was three years old
when Gaarriye had his pieces published in Xid-
digta Oktoobar. Gaarriye did his undergraduate
studies at Somalia’s former College of Educa-
tion ( Lafoole) and earned a degree in biology
and chemistry. He approaches the Somali metre
with the mind-set of a scientist and someone
familiar with the history of scientific revolu-
tions.
In his 1976 articles Gaarriye shows confidence
to face criticism and modification of his theory
of Somali metre should anyone find “errors in
the metre”. His poem , (Maahmaahdii Daarwin
‘Darwin’s proverb’) on the theory of evolution,
contains the line: “ haddaan maluhu beenoo-
bin” ( if the theory is not falsified.)
See page 12, column 1
Somalia Research Report
 One-size-fits-all policy for Somalia?
Abukar Arman does not seem to be paying
The Somali writer Abukar Arman, argues attention to the realities in the ground: Soma-
among other things, that the International liland, Puntland, and the persistent failure of
community put its weight behind the Tran- Mogadishu based initiatives. Abukar’s argu-
sitional Federal Government of Somalia. ment would sound a little more plausible
Abukar advises against the hard power the had he not thought of Somalia as a country
US used to deal with perceived and real controlled by the feeble Transitional Federal
threats. To undermine the thesis of hard Government of Somalia.
power Abukar reminds us of the “US Ma- Source: A New Paradigm for Engaging Soma-
rines [who] were stationed in Somalia be- lia Newstime Africa
tween 1992 and 1994; or when the late Gen- ———————————————————
eral Mohamed Farrah Aidid assembled the
largest ever clan-coalition between 1995 and
1996; or when Ethiopia unleashed its brutal
2 year occupation between 2007 and 2009.”
He would like the United States to remove
the names of Somalis in the list of terrorism Somalia Research Report
suspects so they can play a role in recon-
ciliation and peace-making. “So, any effec- EDITOR
tive engagement on the part of the interna- Liban Ahmad
tional community would require an ap-
proach that is radically different from the SENIOR EDITOR
one applied in the last two decades; and
Mahdi A Diriiye
this, needless to say, would require new
thinking,” writes Abukar. In his piece Abu- RESEARCHER
kar’s view of Somalia is Mogadishu-centric
as his concluding remarks shows: “There is Ahmed H Ahmed
an across generational rising political con- PUBLISHER
sciousness, or movement, if you will, that is
gaining traction. Its motto is “enough is Liban Ahmad
enough”. This rapidly growing segment of
Email: editor@somaliaresearch.com
the population who espouse that view is
ready to welcome any new idea or initiative
that is different than the rackets of the past
two decades. They hinge their hope on
President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed whose vi-
sion, charisma and moral balance radiate
promising optimism.” Abukar is promot-
ing the very old approach to Somalia he is
advising against: seeing Somalia as whole.
( Continued on the opposite column)
Somalia Research Report
8
Amin Amir’s Artistic Reputation at
Risk
The reputation of Somali-Canadian car-
toonist Amin Amir, was dealt a blow af-
ter a Somaliland political party chal-
lenged the cartoonist’s version of Somali-
land politics with a cartoon showing him
getting bribed by Somaliland’s ruling
party to draw cartoon showing the lead-
ers of the Kulmiye and UCID Ahmed
Mohamed Silanyo and Feysal Ali Ware
respectively . Mr Silanyo is aiming to cut
a tree symbolising Somaliland while Fey-
sal hold axes for Silanyo. Kulmiye’s ca-
toon shows that Amin Amir failed to un-
derstand the Somaliland politics. He sees
the opposition leaders as saboteurs just
as the former Somali military regime saw
opposition groups as “ enemies of the na-
tion”. Amin Amir was chief cartoonist for
the ex Somali Ministry of Information and
National Guidance's now defunct Xid-
digta Oktoobar, ( Oktobar Star), then only
Somali language newspaper, mouthpiece
of the government.
9
Pro-Puntland website Puntlandpost.com has
published a new cartoon critical of Amin Amir
for publishing a cartoon in which Puntland’s
new flag was depicted as a pirate flag. Punlad-
post.com cartoon alleges that Amin Amir is paid
by anti-Puntland and anti-government forces
who “dictate the themes of his cartoons”. The
title of the Puntlandpost.com cartoon is : Wel-
come to Media for hire.
It would be nice to ask Amin Amir how it feels
to be at the receiving end of a cartoonist’s sharp
pencil. His website , aminarts.com, is one of the
most popular Somali websites. His take on So-
mali politics generates discussions. In 2008
when Mohamed Maye , Somali MP was mur-
dered in Baydhabo, Amin Amir published a
cartoon in which the former Somali Transitional
Federal Government president, Abdullahi Yu-
suf Ahmed, was portrayed as the hand behind
the murder. Amir Amir withdrew the picture
from his site after he was told that a judge may
call his as witness.
Acknowledgement: We thank Kulmiye party and
Puntlandpost.com for granting us permission to
use the two cartoons. Editor
Somalia Research Report
 Does Al Shabaab benefit from
money remittances?
Following the foiled attempt of the Umar
Farouk Abdulmattaleb to bomb an Ameri-
can airline midair, Peter Beaumont, foreign
affairs editor at the London based Observer,
highlights the possibility that money remit-
tances from the Somali Diaspora may be
used by Al Shabab.
“More than $1bn a year in remittances goes
back to Somalia, [and] ... (sic) the Shabaab
would not be short of money for opera-
tions,” wrote Peter Beaumont in the Ob-
server. Money remittance are sent to indi-
viduals, not to organisations. Since 2002 So-
mali owned transfer companies have been
complying with money transfer regulations,
and keep a data base against which they
check the details of anyone sending or re-
ceiving money. Al Shabab has not levied
tax on money transfer companies’ agents
operating in areas it controls.
Beuamont points finger the US policies that
undermined the Union of Islamic Courts
that restored law and order in many parts of
Southern Somalia but resorted to threats to
attack Somalia’s neighboring countries
backing the Transitional Federal Govern-
ment of Somalia.
Source: Al-Qaida has changed its face and oper-
ates from a different base , The Observer Sun-
day 27 December 2009.
———————————————————
In the next issue:
 Somali war criminals
 Somalis in the UK and radicalisation
10
Combating rape in Puntland and
Somaliland
Civil society in Puntland are alarmed by
the rape to which women in camps for the
Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in
Bosaso are subjected , according to IRIN. A
35 year old woman told IRIN reporter that
her daughter had been raped. IDPs are
from the southern Somalia. It is not known
whether rapists are IDPs or people who
hail from Puntland. "We are seeing more
and more women who have been raped in
the displaced camps," Hawa Ali Jama, of
We Are Women Activists (WAWA) told
I R I N
In October the Universal TV reported that
Somaliland traditional leaders met in Har-
geisa for an awareness raising seminar
about rape.
"We are seeing more and
more women who have
been raped in the dis-
placed camps"
Unlike the Puntland, victims of rape in
Somaliland are Somaliland women. “We
investigate any rape allegations. When we
decide to press charges against rape sus-
pects, traditional leaders of the rapist and
the rape victim come to us to say they had
sorted out the matter traditionally. This en-
courages rapists,” said a Somaliland police
officer who attended the seminar.
Somalia Research Report
 Irin drags itself into Somalia’s
clan based politics

IRIN (Integrated Regional Information

Networks ) comes under the United
Nations Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs, but “has” an
editorial independence. IRIN’s editorial
independence has been dquestioned
because of failure to be alive to the
intricasies of Somalia’s clan based poli-
tics. Does IRIN use the same map when it pub-
In October 2009 IRIN reported that two lishes stories on Somaliland? An IRIN story
Somaliland [sub]clans were rearming — “Rape a major problem for Bosasso IDPs”—
for a another round of conflict. another map Puntand was used. The two
IRIN quoted a police officer in Gabiley maps have one thing in common: Puntlanders
as saying: “We are afraid [that] new and Somalilanders cannot agree on which of
conflict could break out any time.” The the two maps is correct because Somaliland
feud between Reer Nour subclan of map contains territories that Puntland claims
Samaron and Reer Hareed subclan or and vice versa. Will IRIN salvage its reputa-
Habar Awal was triggered by a dispute tion by setting the record straight on carto-
over the farm dating back to 1950s. graphic misjudgements ?
IRIN identified Reer Nour as former
supporters of the milaitry regime, but
describes Reer Hareed as suporters of
the former Somali National Movement, an
armed Somali opposition outfit that
had a role in toppling the military re-
gime of Somalia in 1991.
If a certain Somali clan did not support
a clan based (armed) position group
from 1978-1991, it does not have to lead
one to conclude that the clan was pro-
dictatorship. IRIN’s characterisation of
Reer Nour as pro-government is bi-
ased. It may fuel the hostilities. Six-
teen years have elapsed since Somali-
land took a path of reconciliation. The Sources: (1) Rival clans re-arming over Somaliland
map IRIN used to illustrate the story is farm; (2)Rape a major problem for Bosasso IDPs.
the same as Somaliland’s map.

Somalia Research Report

11
 From page 7 column 1
The following quote from professor John
Johnson—Dr Fahia uses it in his article—
corroborates Gaarriye’s approach to the So-
mali metre: an emerging field to which
scholars may modify or add something to:
“About fifteen years ago a breakthrough oc-
curred in the study of Somali poetry when Cab-
dillahi Diiriye Guuleed found vowel length to be
one of the key elements in the prosody of Somali
poems.”
Carraale’s later contribution to the theory of So-
mali metre dates back to 1981 or 1982, almost 2
years after his paper on the Somali metre was
published in Somalia and the World
(Proceedings of the International Sympo-
sium).
Both Carraale’s and Gaarriye’s contributions
have generated lively discussions. However,
there are questions that their formulations
on the ‘metre’ have thrown up:
 Has Carraale incorporated his later find-
ings into his book Miisaanka Maansada
Soomaaliyeed? If the answer is “yes”, has his
findings affected his earlier formulations in
Gorfaynta Gabayga, Xiddigta Oktoobar and So-
malia and the World?
In his 1976 Xiddigta Oktoobar articles, Gaar-
riye argued that talent for poetry exists, but
anyone can become a poet. In response to
a wardheernews.com interview question
about readers who “thought they could be-
come poets once they mastered the Somali
metre, “ Gaarriye said:
12
“Maya, shardi ma aha in laga baran karo. Berri-
gaase waxaan qabay in gabyaa la noqon karo
marka la barto[miisaanka maansada].”` (No,
[becoming a poet] is not conditional on learning
the metre. But then I was of the opinion that one
can become a poet when one learns [the me-
tre].”).
 From this response it is clear that Gaar-
riye believes some people can acquire the
poet’s language skills after learning the me-
tre but he stopped believing that one can
become a poet after mastering the metre.
Gaarriye ought to clarify his views so read-
ers can know if he has changed his mind on
what he wrote nearly thirty five years ago.
In his 8 May 1976 article in Xiddigta Oktoo-
bar, Gaarriye, in response to the late poet
and critic Ibrahim Awad (Kholi), insisted
on the need to do away with alliteration
since “ it trusses up the ideas of the poet. “
The late Ibrahim Awad’s point about non-
alliterative Somali poem is still relevant: “…
Gaariye’s disciples expect him to compose a non-
alliterative [Somali] poem.” Does Gaarriye still
hold the view that alliteration is more of a
hindrance than a help to the poet?
Finding answers to the questions outlined
above, I think, will help us move the focus
from who first discovered the Somali metre
to questions about impact Gaarriye’s and
Carraale’s views on the metre have on their
formulations.
Liban Ahmad
—————————————————-
This essay appeared in the Smali news web-
site wardheernews.com
Somalia Research Report
 BOOK REVIEW
“The architects of the destruction of So-
malia”
There is an ongoing debate among So-
malis about who is responsible for Soma-
lia’s implosion in 1991. A new book by
the Somali-British writer, Abdiaziz Ali
Ibrahim (aka Xildhibaan)—the author of
many books on Somalia— attempts to
point finger at those he regards as “the
architects of the destruction of Soma-
lia” ( Horseedayaashii Halaagga
Soomaaliya).The author does not mince
his words about Somalis’ role in the col-
lapse of the state. The first chapter of the
book revolves around the emergence of
the Somali Islamic courts and their roots
in the former Al Itihaad group whose
forces clashed with forces loyal to the
former president of Somalia’s Transi-
tional Federal Government in 1992 in
Bosaso when the latter was the chairman
of the Somali Salvation Democratic
Front’s Emergencies Committee.
Horseedayaashii
Halaagga Soomaaliya
By Abdiaziz Xildhibaan,
388 pp, Xildhibaan Publica-
tions
The author argues the American sup-
port for the defeated, warlord-based Al-
liance for Counter-Terrorism was meant
to test the ability of Somalia’s Islamist
organisations who “share one thing in
common with Somalia’s opposition
groups and war-lord based groups: lack
of planning”.
13
The author reproduced in the book constitu-
tions of Somalia’s former armed opposition
groups except the Somali Patriotic Move-
ment. Constitutions and partnership agree-
ments of post-1991 political and armed
groups such as Rahanwein Resistance Army,
the Somali Salvation Council and the Alliance
for the Reliberation of Somalia are included
in the book. The author presents an overview
of Somalia’s recent turbulent history—civil
wars, setting up of autonomous administra-
tions such Puntland and Somaliland, and
emergence of militant Islamist organisa-
tions— and the role of the media ( he thinks
its role is neither informative nor construc-
tive). In the last few pages of the book, the au-
thor dedicates an ample space to the pictures
of warlords, militant religious leaders and vic-
tims of Somalia’s prolonged civil war. Some
of the pictures are heart-rending.
Horseedayaashii Halaagga Soomaaliya is book
that should deserve space in the shelf of any
anyone interested in Somalia’s post-1991 poli-
tics and history.
The author with Dr Martin Orwin of SOAS
Somalia Research Report

ICG Policy Briefing on Somaliland
In December 2009 the Brussels based Inter-
national Crisis Group published a policy
briefing on Somaliland. Entitled Somaliland:
Way out of the Electoral Crisis, the policy
briefing highlighted electoral impasse
caused by voter registration system. The
ICG locates the current electoral crisis in
2002 Somaliland elections. To find way
round the electoral crisis Somaliland has to
address political problems including “a
winner-takes all political culture…and po-
litical leaders [who] have entrenched cen-
tralised, patrimonial systems of authority
that undermine institutions and the rule of
law.”
The Somaliland political crisis was trig-
gered by disagreements over the use of the
voter registration system which has been
tainted by fraud—multiple registrations.
According to the ICG the three political
parties of Somaliland—UDUB, Kulmiye
and UCID—have clan based electorate.
Voter registration fraud came to light when
the first stage of the registration started in
Boorame( Awdal region) and Berbera
( Saaxil region), the cities where the Soma-
liland president and vice-president regard
as electoral strong-holds.
An analysis of the data made available to
the ICG shows that “fraud was low in Aw-
dal during the first registration, but high in
the supplementary period.”
_____________________________________________
Source: Somaliland: Way out of the Electoral Crisis,
ICG, December, 2009.
14
ICG does not back up this analysis with data
comparing the first and supplementary peri-
ods of registration. The ruling party and the
two opposition parties signed a Memoran-
dum of Understanding to break the electoral
logjam but “ there is nothing to enforce com-
pliance.”
ICG policy briefing is critical of all stake hold-
ers—political parties and the Guurti,( the
Council of Elders) and urges the political elite
to refrain from anything that can undermine
Somaliland’s progress.
——————————————————
Somalia and the year 2010
Somalia features in The World in 2010 not as
an emerging market but as “the worst country
in the world.” The World in 2010 editors
passed the judgement alliteratively: “piracy,
poverty and perdition, Somalia takes our un-
wanted prize. Calling Somalia a country is a
stretch”
Three categories—mortality rate, worst cor-
ruption and riskiest businesses environ-
ments—were used to place countries in a
“league of degradations.”
Somalia was rated in the first two categories,
and ranked first in the worst corruption cate-
gory and nineteenth in the mortality rate cate-
gory with a rate of 142. Sierra Leone ranked
first in the mortality rate category with a rate
of 262; Afghanistan ranked the second with a
rate of 257. Given the two phenomena with
which Somalia is associated—piracy and reli-
gious extremism—The World in 2010 paints a
bleaker picture: “The world’s most failed
state , regrettably, threatens to become a big-
ger problem for the rest of the world.”
Source: The World in 2010, The Economist
Somalia Research Report
 · The conference appreciates the AMI-
SOM’s invaluable contribution towards the
Somali Civil Society Conference peace keeping in Mogadishu. It is concerned
AMISOM’s use of excessive force and the
Communiqué consequent large civilian casualties.
Held in Mombasa, Kenya 7-11 December 2009
After a long deliberation and sometimes intense dis- · The participants of the conference strongly
cussions in all the above important points, the par- condemn the use of violence as a means to a
ticipants: political end as currently practiced by Al-
shaab and Hizbu Islam.
· Condemn tragic incident of December 3rd,
2009 in which high profile Somalis including
Government Ministers, University profes-
· The conference recognizes the contribu-
sors, journalists, graduating students and
tion and selfless sacrifices made by the me-
their parents were massacred while attend-
dia professionals. It urges all the stake hold-
ing a momentously joyous graduation cere-
ers to respect and protect their vital role in
mony in Shamo Hotel, Mogadishu. In this
the reconstruction and the recovery of the
regard, the participants of the conference
Somalis state. · The conference urges
strongly condemn such barbaric action
the international community to provide logisti-
which is alien to the Somali culture and the
cal support to local administrations where
Islamic religion. Suicide bombing is a crime
piracy is rampant. Piracy can only be de-
against humanity and those responsible for
feated by uprooting pirate camps in the
the planning and the execution of this hor-
mainland. The conference believes Youth
rendous act should be brought to justice, no
engagement programs must be introduced.
matter how long it takes. The conference
The idle youth are those who are joining the
appeals to the Somali people and the inter-
pirates in droves. International community
national community to support for the Bena-
must help local administrations in creating
dir University.
jobs through infrastructure building. The con-
ference expressed its concern in sustained
· The conference denounces the continu-
looting of the Somali marine resources as
ous culture of impunity in Somalia and
well as dumping toxic waste in the Somali
urges the UN Human Right and other inter-
waters.
national bodies to set up investigative com-
· The conference recognizes the invaluable
mission.
contribution that the women make towards
the peace and development in Somalia. The
· Based on the tragic humanitarian, political
participants urged the government to respect
and security situation in Somalia the confer-
the constitutional rights for women participa-
ence calls International community to alter
tion in the national government. It was noted
its policy towards Somalia. It should support
that in order to enhance the role of women in
and develop a true institutional building and
various sectors of the society, women should
implant seeds of good governance.
form a united and common vision.
 The participants recognize the difficult
environment in which the TFG operates · The conference recognized that Somali
in. However, the conference is concerned communities abroad (diaspora) contribution
the slow progress in establishing the neces- is important to the development and sustain-
sary state institutions and systems. There- ability of the livelihoods of millions Somalis in
fore, we call the Transitional federal govern- Somalia. However, it expressed its concern
ment to build the necessary basic state in- for monetary contributions towards the war-
stitutions in order to restore rule of law in ring functions in Somalia.
the country.
· The participants further encourage and See page 16, column 2
recommend the TFG to actively seek and
develop human capital so that civil service
will be affective in bringing the good govern-
ance to all the regions in Somalia.

Somalia Research Report

15
 Facts undermine Somali Prime
Minister’s fiction From page 16 column 2

· The conference appreciates the level of the

In a letter to the Times newspaper, Omar Shar- attendance of the Somali business community
marke .the prime Minister of Somalia’s Transi- from Somalia, the region and abroad, and calls
for their active participation in peace and re-
tional Federal Government, is of the opinion that
construction of Somalia
America’s new Afghanistan policy can equally
be beneficial to Somalia. “Clare Lockhart’s article
(“At last. Obama’s vision offers hope for all
· The conference encourages the develop-
sides”, Opinion, Dec 3) marks a sea change in ment and institutionalization of local and re-
international support to troubled countries. What gions in Somalia.
is so startling is that all the conclusions are as
true about Somalia as they are about Afghani- · The conference urged the Youth groups to
form a united front in order to better contribute
stan” the prime minister wrote. One of the con- to the development of their country.
clusions in Clare Lockhart’s piece is about “. US
Geological Survey report show[ing] that Af- Done on 11 December 2009
Mombasa, Kenya
ghanistan has hundreds of billions of dollars of
mineral wealth.”, natural wealth that Lockhart
——————————————————
believes can be used for reconstruction in Af-
ghanistan. the Somali prime minster thinks col-
Somali Proverbs in translation
lapse took place in Somalia in 1989: “We accept
that after 20 years without government, the situa-
tion in Somalia will appear beyond repair but the
reality is very different’ “he argued. -Outliving your life span holds in store the
surprise to see camels giving birth
The Somali prime minister’s talk at Chatham
House was the subject of a blog by Richard Dow- -Truth and teeth are whitened
den, the director of Royal African Society. The
blog points out the prime minister’s selective -You can drink water to your satisfaction only
approach to current situation Somalia. : “no men- with your own hands
tion at all of the 5,000 Burundian and Ugandan
troops who put their lives on the line to allow Mr
Sharmarke to visit Mogadishu occasionally;
TFG’s intends to restore peace to Puntland and You can buy this
Somalia, “the latter particularly - have been at book by Dr
peace for nearly two decades thanks to setting up Hussein Bulhan
their own administrations and getting on with at
life, unlike southern Somalia which is still em- www.kayd.org
broiled in clan warfare”. In an attempt to brand
Al Shabab a Somaliland project, he told the audi-
ence that top commanders of Al Shabab were
from Somaliland.

Somalia Research Report

16