Fish is damn expensive. Especially yellow fin tuna which is very rare in the world. The Somali waters happen to be full of them. If they do this they should follow the world market prices. This sounds like a good plan. Btw it's too bad many Somalis don't eat fish. Fish (depends on what kind) is healthy and nutritious. I'm wondering, do people at coastal cities have huge refrigerators to store and conserve fish?

Interesting! It may seem that there might be a market for this if plastic bags are banned. Some may think why are we discussing a simple topic such as the use of plastic bags? It is one of the many steps that could be taken to change a careless way of life and to work for an environmental friendly clean city. Hmmm I wonder how our bins will look like. Each city could compete with one another to become more beautiful than the other and show its uniqueness. Even with a small thing such as trash bins. I hope peace will come sooner than later. The future of rethinking Mogadishu and other cities in Somalia seems exciting. I have some ideas myself that could be implemented to improve the city life. I just don't want cities in Somalia to be dusty, dirty and with lack of adequate hygiene and bad use of space such as some other African countries. Somalis when in peace should reach for the sky and aim to become like clean and orderly areas such as Singapore, Tokyo, Fukuoka or Seoul. Good urban planning is extremely necessary. We have no excuse to stay behind. Especially with the Somali diaspora haven seen what the world has to offer. It all begins with peace, security, education and a strong vision.

Good work! Great people. It keeps them busy and bond even if they're from different clans. It's also good for their self esteem, especially the girls. This reminds me of Kigali, Rwanda. I vote for a clean Somalia, a better Somalia . I also hope if we get peace we can ban plastic bags.

En wanneer gaan de Nederlanders fietsbanen aanmaken in Somalië? Nice pics. Thanks. The interest in Somali stability is great. Not only for the sake of Somalia, but stil...

burahadeer;839002 wrote: ...was always wondering why sisters r lighter than their brothers in many cases:confused: It may also have to do with natural selection with men in the past choosing the lighter skinned females over the dark(er) skinned females. This is merely a guess of mine. Of course there is a variety of color types in Somalia today, but it is very noticeable that Somali women overall are lighter skinned than Somali men. I think Somalis are a race on their own called the Somalids and speak a Cushitic Afro Asiatic language. The world is not black, white or yellow as some may want to simplify it. Countries With the Best-Looking Locals. http://guides.travel.msn.com//Guides/MSNTravelSlideShow.aspx?cp-documentid=1089229&imageindex=6

Xaaji Xunjuf;838890 wrote: Why are all east Africans obsessed with race. Because our women are fine. Lol. No idea why really. We just look interesting as many people have a rigid view of how Africans should look like. Therefore Somalis would want to know and explain 'who they are'?

In the meantime the common people must learn what democracy is and what their rights and duties are.

Even racists can't get enough of our race. http://www.stormfront.org/forum/t554149/

Hmmm I guess (most) Somalis are neither negroids nor Arabs. Let's just call ourselves Somalid, which is a haplogroup E1b1b1. We do have the most of this in the world and are closely linked to Berbers. We barely have so called 'Arab' blood in us. Germans even have more Arab blood than we do, yet they don't consider themselves partly or wholly Arab. Yes we are Africans. No we're not negroids. Using the word African as a connotation to describe a negroid (Hottentot, Australoid, African Negroid etc.) is unjust. We have to remember that Africa is the most diverse continent in this world when it comes to genetics.

@ Abwaan, who do you think will become the new president? I'm interested to know everyone's view btw. The new president is not chosen by the people. Also, will he stay in office for 4 or for 6 years?

I hope the president will also visit Rwanda and hopefully learn more about post war development. Remember Rwanda and the genocide and destruction not long ago? Watch this and see how the capital city Kigali has changed.

No way? The Eaton Centre in Toronto? I used to chill over there from time to time. It's so sad this has happened. I feel for them. You can really tell the entire city is shocked. The guy is indeed a coward.

I need proof! I'm guessing this evil man will get immunity? Or a seat in the government. If so, I'm very disappointed. There should be some sort of justice if this story is correct.

I know that people have free will, but isn't it one of the tasks of the government to limit the easy acces to sin? For instance by only selling alcohol at certain places and to certain people (non believers). Easily offering some 'sinful' things to the public for them to choose between right or wrong is not the way to go according to me. Here in the Netherlands people are contemplating to change the minimum age of buying alcohol from 16 to 18 for instance and selling alcohol at certain specific places (no more in the supermarket). Although I don't think this will be accepted widely by the elite and alcohol companies. Yes there is a lot of hypocrisy within some Muslim states. An example for this is when I was in the K.S.A. and posters with children on it were pixelated, because the state thinks this will increase pedofilia. The fear of sinning is rampant over there and very laughable. Religious police is backwards and nullifies the concept of sinning. It does not accept that people can make mistakes and repent themselves to the AllMighty on their own terms. There should be a balance between the right to sin and that the government should protect the moral fabric of a society.

This is one of the most disgusting written pieces I have ever read. Some may neglect that because they love to see Somalia in pieces. And love the idea that Puntland may become an oil state. But how can you not see this article was written by a Jewish lobbyist? I'm not an anti-Semite, but still... He doesn't even get the Somali history and genealogie right. A blatant lie and an ethnocentric point of view by a white man that cannot accept our uniqueness and claiming it their own: The Somalis — a dark-skinned people with Caucasian features — didn’t even exist until circa 1200 AD when the male Arab colonizers of the Horn of Africa formed new clans by marrying blacks, multiplying in number rapidly, and then squeezing most non-Somalis — those without male Arab lineage — out of the lands There is absolutely no fact or base to this. He is a simple minded person that rather have us colonized.

faarah22;837436 wrote: it's not only their architecture that looks alien. its their clothing also. you often seen them rocking comically long cotton shirts, and funny looking baggy trousers akin to sarwal of pakistanis (in eastleigh, xamar, bosaaso, hargeisa). the contemporary dress trends do indeed seem to bypass somalis. How do you guys think Somalis will be dressed when peace comes again inshallah? Do you think Western style clothing will be more popular or more in the line with traditional Somali or (Saudi) Arabic style? I think when peace returns most people will become and stay pragmatic. Especially the men.

A_Khadar;837300 wrote: This is the best move thus far. They should move and the overhead costs and the misuse of the donated money should stop.. 1 billion dollars? Where did you get this amount from? I'd like to know what they have pledged (and who) during the conference.

Some Arabs think we're Arabs too. That is extremely confusing. Defining what a Somali is has got to be the most difficult thing. A Somali is at times not even seen as an African by our African brothers. We are in some kind of a limbo. Therefore I agree with that we need to define who we are better. But an Arab is: " a person whose language is Arabic, who lives in an Arabic-speaking country, and who is in sympathy with the aspirations of the Arabic-speaking peoples." If Arabic is our 2nd language than this could be correct. Also, I have read in one of the draft constitution that Somalia will be both an Arabic and an African state. Arabic will be the 2nd language of the country. Also to ad to this conversation, no one cares about Somalia. Not even the rich sheikhs and their corrupt states. It should only be the Somalis that should care for it. And hopefully rise as a secular democratic state that protects the rights of the individuals. When I was in Saudi Arabia I thought I had rights as a Dutch citizen. But I was a fool as I had forgotten it is a police state where even the police harras you. The Arabs (Saudi Arabia specifically) can only destroy Somalia by introducing a form of islam that is alien to us.

I do enjoy reading Western propaganda. Lol. It is silly at times.

I'm all for secularism and a strong civil society and government that protects the Somali culture from outside forces (Wahhabism etc.) Did you already read this? Even though it's about southern Somalia, I think the north has also potential to become a place of peace and prosperity such as in the past. We should find a balance between modernism and our culture. Discos to destruction: Images of Mogadishu A new photo exhibit offers proof of Mogadishu's forgotten past alongside more recent images of a country ruined by famine and war. Funky dancing in a seaside bar, Vespa scooters on elegant, broad boulevards: the faded images of a lost Somalia and its ancient capital are at odds with a place now better known for famine and war. Female police officers in caps and tight blouses pose in another shot from the 1980s, an image unthinkable today in the restive capital even though the Al-Qaeda affiliated Islamist Shebab insurgents were driven out last year. In another shot, a narrow street with Moorish architecture like that in the film classic Casablanca leads to a white-washed stone archway, beyond which the deep blue waters of the Indian Ocean glitter in the distance. "Instead of looking at our differences, the photographs help to show what we all have in common -- our history," said co-curator Ismail Osman, who grew up in Somalia but fled to the US in 1991.

Holy moly. Everyday seems to be like a latin soap opera. I'm just wondering why the TFG didn't know about who the civil society was that was invitied to Turkey. And how can Turkey think to decide who belongs to the civil society of Somalia? People need to communicate! I don't mean to get paranoide, but I'm not buying this anymore: Turkey sees Somalia as neither an area of interest nor as a risk or security threat, but as a place where humanity’s conscience would be tested. We do have to keep it together. This conference could make Somalia receive over a billion dollars in reconstruction alone. I really hope to see a positive outcome. And perhaps even interesting sketches and renders of infrastructure. But I guess the Somali drama continues. It reminds me of Game of Thrones.

100%? Wow. Perhaps they should build an iconic signature mosque at the same place.

Are they going to rebuild the Italian church as well? I know it's a silly question, but I have always been impressed with its architecture. And it showed the sense of tolerance. But I guess that sense of tolerance has flown away.

If Somalis can't even control a smaller part of Somalia, why pursue a Greater Somalia? I think Somalis should focus on nation building and becoming a respected member of the international community. Fighting for land is useless. It is a huge country with a population of about 9 million people. Which means that is it quite unsustainable to use all of the land we already have. The land needs more people, not more land. It's sad that other Africans are extremely xenophobic against us. I've read somewhere on SOL that we are even called 'mzungu' in Uganda which means a 'white person'. We need to get rid of our identity issue and choose between being Arabs (not by race but by culture, religion and history) or Africans. And not both as the new constitution will probably say. And hopefully we'll get out of the Arab League soon enough. Have you ever read this article of the BBC? It's called Somalia: Far from a failed state? "Urban businessmen, international corporations, and rural pastoralists have all functioned in a stateless Somalia, achieving standards of living for the country that are equal or superior to many other African nations." Somalis have indeed many similarities with Jews when it comes to being an enterprising people and scattered all over the world.

That show is amazing. I haven't read the books, but I've heard the books are very good as well. There's just a lot of random sex, incest etc going on which doesn't really do much for the story. But perhaps it is to show the decay of morality in the kingdoms. There is very little loyalty to the main kingdome which could relate to the lack of nationalism in Somalia. They do know how to keep us captivated even after Rob Stark's tragedy.