The U.S. Recognition of Somalia: Implications and the Way Forward The U.S. recognition of the Somali government on 17 January 2013 is a great and timely opportunity that could contribute to Somalia’s effort to retake its rightful place among community of nations. In the two decades Somalia took hiatus from the international scene, many opportunities that could have helped Somalia shed the ‘failed state’ designation appeared and vanished with the same speed. Thus, it’s up to the Somali government (and citizens) to ensure the U.S. recognition does not turn out, yet again, another squandered opportunity. More importantly, the government must compliment the international diplomatic successes with tangible domestic achievements anchored in the president’s sixpillar policy. More broadly, Somalis need to properly understand what, exactly, the U.S. recognition entails, what opportunities it avails as well as what challenges are embedded with it. In doing so, they must be guided by the cardinal truth of international relations; that foreign policy decisions are always made to advance national interests. From the outset, therefore, the U.S. recognition should be seen as an outcome of strategic calculations, which reflect that it’s in the best interest of the United States to recognize Somalia at this particular time. It should not be, under any circumstance, viewed as a favor to the war weary Somalis. What Somali politicians and citizens should have been euphoric about is NOT the recognition itself - as the case has been - but the fact that that in the eyes of United States, Somalia’s fortunes have improved so well that the U.S. government wants to recognize it. Somalis should also be very conscious that interactions between states are entirely a give and take process. It is the responsibility of national leaders to defend nation’s interests against those of partners, who at times have more leverages and negotiation powers, as clearly the case currently is between Somalia and the U.S. Moreover, one missing question that should have piqued the public’s curiosity and at the same time generated serious media interest is what has the Somali government give in or give up in exchange for the official U.S. diplomatic recognition. The fact that the recognition coincided with the resignation of Somalia’s Special Envoy to the U.S., Abukar Arman, raises more questions about the internal deliberations of the new government. The departure of the key Somali interlocutor amid the most important recognition in what he described as “misunderstanding” over policy issues is interesting. That said, the price paid by the Somali government for the recognition was not too steep. However, the absence of any serious discussions about the reality of give-and-take based foreign policy was noticeable. Understandably, the Somali government was too jubilant about the recognition, but it seemed to have placed high premiums on the symbolisms of president Hassan Sheikh’s brief encounter with President Barack Obama. A key challenge now is how to capitalize on the U.S. recognition. This requires putting the issue in context, outlining possible opportunities and drawing attention to potential blind spots. The Context Contrary to the assertions of Somali government officials, the recognition was neither triggered by policies (such as the formation of small cabinet) nor personalities (the ascendance of three civil society leaders). Instead, it was a logical conclusion and culmination of a decade-long international and U.S. efforts to bring stability and give legitimacy to Somalia’s nascent national institutions. In strict legal terms, the United States has always recognized the Somali state as a contiguous nation in the Horn of Africa. It’s only now recognizing the legitimacy of the new government of that state. Having played a prominent role in the process that ended the dysfunctional transitional governance that ushered in fragile yet semi-permanent national institutions, the U.S. government would have recognized any post transition entity. For over a decade, the U.S. was looking into Somalia through the prisms of counterterrorism and the need to contain and combat al-Qaeda affiliated al-Shabaab fighters. Similarly, the problems of piracy off the Somalia coast as well as the need for a constant international intervention on Somalia’s recurring humanitarian crises made Somalia a constant fixture on U.S. foreign policy. Opportunities By appearance and practice, United States’ attitude and interactions with Somalia was antithesis to the accepted norms of state-to-state relations. The U.S. practiced what it termed as the “Dual Track Policy” which essentially meant dealing with sub-national entities notwithstanding the central government. Given the limited territorial control of the Mogadishu-based Federal Government, that policy will likely continue in one form or another. Still the official recognition has the appearance of a paradigm shift and the emergence of a partnership, however titled. On the other hand, the U.S. recognition boosts the prospect of national unity and deals a big blow to the biggest national security threat Somalia faced in the past twenty years – the breakup of the country. The significance of the U.S. recognition was not lost to the advocates of Somaliland separation as both the government and opposition groups noted it as a major setback to their aspirations. The U.S. recognition enables the Somali government to reopen its diplomatic mission in Washington. This will facilitate the government’s bid to make its case to array of power centers within the U.S. government, media and other opinion makers. Recognition also opens up direct U.S. government assistance and at the same time bestows further credibility in the eyes of other international donors. With U.S. recognition, prospects to tap into international financial institutions, such as the World Bank and the IMF, improve markedly. Crucially, President Hassan Sheikh’s government can use the U.S. recognition as a leverage against the adventurist and scheming strategies of the neighboring countries who often misled the American policy towards Somalia. Many other states will no longer see Somalia as a source of terror, pirates and refugees but an untapped economic frontier and a country requiring major reconstruction. The more other countries establish relations, the more the manipulations of the regional actors decrease, giving Somalia leverages and tools to negotiate effectively and advance its strategic national interests. There’s no doubt that the Turkish model—where Ankara sees Somalia not as an irredeemable and failed state but as a friend in need with full potential—greatly affected many countries’ calculations, including the timing of the U.S. recognition. Although it’s the newest country to intervene in Somalia, Turkey is one of Somalia’s most influential partners and perhaps best strategically positioned to benefit any reconstruction boom as well as exploitation of the country’s untapped natural resources. With a modest financial aid and an unprecedented diplomatic engagement, Turkey won the hearts and minds of the Somali people in an extraordinary and unrivalled manner. The U.S., which invested millions of dollars in the African Union’s peacekeeping mission that essentially defeated al-Shabaab, had hoped to get even a fraction of the immense goodwill that Turkey has. Most probably, the U.S. government concluded that Turkey set the trend and the only way it could catch up or get parity is to follow suit the Turkish model and establish visible, bilateral and direct relations Given the aggressive Chinese and European oil interests in the region, the activities by upstart oil firms in certain Somali regions such as Puntland and Turkey’s strategic and strong presence on the ground, it’s not surprising that the U.S. sought be in the right place at the right time. Finally the U.S. recognition reinforces the already prevailing optimism among the Somali people and international partners. It was with the U.S. departure after the Black Hawk Down incident in October 1993 that made “stay away from Somalia” the standard international norm. Now, with the United States forging a new partnership, others have already begun rolling the red carpet for the Somali president. Many educated Somalis who hitherto were avoiding returning home are coming back in droves to be part of the recovery phase. There has also been an exodus of Somali refugees and businesspeople selfrepatriating from Kenya. With a robust international diplomatic presence, what is happening inside Somalia becomes more transparent, forcing the government to be more accountable, more democratic and eventually more responsive to the needs of its citizens.

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In 1997, three years after the genocide in Rwanda, the United Nations organisation that I worked for sent me to Kigali to document progress made on its projects there. I was taken aback when the project manager in Kigali took me to a government building and showed me the broken toilets and leaking roofs the project had rehabilitated. The building still had bullet holes in it — evidence of the fighting between the Interahamwe militia and the Rwanda Patriotic Front — but I was assured that the holes would be fixed when the project started work on the exterior of the building. At the time, it seemed odd to me that the Rwandan Government was prioritising toilets in government buildings rather than using the funds on other needs, such as the resettlement of displaced people. But years later, I can see the logic of it. President Paul Kagame’s government understood that the people of Rwanda would not regain confidence in government institutions if civil servants worked in buildings that leaked or had no furniture. To instil faith in government institutions, it was necessary to rebuild those institutions, not in an abstract sense, but literally. I was reminded of my trip to Kigali when I read an interview of Somalia’s new President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in which he complained about the dysfunctional state of the President’s Office in Mogadishu. President Mohamud said he was shocked to learn that he had inherited a government whose coffers were so empty that army commanders were threatening a mutiny because they had not been paid for five months. He had to call up Somali businesspeople and donors for emergency financial assistance to pay their salaries. Meanwhile, donors are unsure about how they should continue assisting Somalia, given that there are no functioning and accountable public financial institutions in place. A World Bank assessment of Somalia’s finances in 2012 found that the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank, the Accountant-General and the Office of the Auditor General were institutions in name only, and did not have the capacity to collect government revenues. At an informal donors’ meeting recently, some Western donors talked of forming a co-ordinating mechanism that would oversee donor funding. In principle, this is a good idea. However, it is important to recognise that most donor-funded projects can take years to implement, and can be unnecessarily wasteful, consuming up to 75 per cent of funds on administrative and operational costs. There is also a tendency among Western donors, particularly in relation to Africa, to emphasise “good governance” rather than bricks-and-mortar issues that focus on rebuilding of infrastructure and institutions. This means that a lot of time and resources are spent on peace and reconciliation meetings, the drafting of constitutions and the holding of conferences. Infrastructure is key to good governance and security. For instance, if Mogadishu’s crumbling football stadium was rebuilt, a lot of idle youth would spend time there, instead of being recruited by militia. If there was an efficient tax collection system, perhaps some of the millions of dollars earned by businesses could go towards rebuilding the country. Good governance is not an abstract concept; it requires infrastructure to be meaningful. The Turkish government has understood this well, hence its emphasis on rebuilding schools and hospitals, among other infrastructure. Institutions also need to be supported. The government cannot claim to be functioning if soldiers and civil servants are not paid. It is likely that donors will continue doing “business as usual” in Somalia by imposing their own priorities, rather than asking the Government of Somali what its priorities are. Western donors are understandably cautious about working bilaterally with the new government; many are still relying on their traditional partners — the UN and NGOs — to implement projects, which focus on humanitarian and emergency aid. However, past experience has shown that these projects did little to rebuild Somalia’s shattered infrastructure or to make the country more self-reliant. rasna.warah@gmail.com

Turkish orphange projects under construction in somalia http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KW5es-ZVPhM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

Wonderfull.

Jacpher;907731 wrote: ^Oba I wasn't mocking you bro if you took offense to it, my apology. Is this honorary master's degree by the way? I still think Sharif coming to America for education isn't the whole story. I'm sure there are many universities that give plenty of honorary degree each year to dignitaries as they pay a visit to their institutions only to make a speech. Sharif getting invitation out of xamar for educational purpose is fishy to say the least. If he was heading to Qatar or Cairo or Johannesburg for master's degree, perhaps but America?? Is the man cashing in for switching sides to backstab AS in '06? Not that there's anything wrong with being air lifted to a five star hotel while your comrades get droned? What's the whole story Oba? Jacpher there is a residence program at the boston university for african leaders who have left power peacefully, kaunda was the first participant since then there have been other like joachim chissano of mozambique, it is a extremely patronising concept but I think shariff took the opportunity after all somali iyo mareykan maxaa kala haya

another version of the same interview Gudoomiyaha Gobolka Banaadir ahna duqa Magaalada Muqdisho ayaa ka hadlay Dadka qurbaha ka yimid gaar ahaan dumarka, kuwaasoo uu sheegay inay dalka la yimaadeen dhaqamadii xumaa ee dibada yaalay. Maxamuud Axmed Nuur Tarzan ayaa ku eedeeyay Haweenka ka imaanaya qurbaha inay cowradooda banaanka taalo,isagoo sheegay inay isku heystaan dad dhaqan wanaagsan wata. ” Dadkiina qurbaha ka yimid dhaqan ma heysaanee ee anshax isku yeela, waxaad arkeysaa Haween dabaal u yimid Badda oo Baridooda ay muuqato ” ayuu yiri Tarzan. ” Qurbo joogta ka timid Mareykanka iyo Yurub, gaar ahaan Mareykan waxay isku heystaan inay dadka kale ka dhaqan wanaagsana yihiin, war dhaqan ma heysaanee adinkaa u baahan in la idin dhaqan celiyo ” ayuu si caro leh u yiri Maxamuud Axmed Nuur Tarzan. ” Gabar Jirkeeda soo qaawisay ayaa waxy wiil la dhexmareysaa Xeebta Liido, bal fiiri sida ay anshaxa ugu dheelayaan, waa laga war qaba waxkasta oo ay sameynayaan ” ayuu hadalkiisa sii daba dhigay Tarzan. Gudoomiyaha Gobolka Banaadir ayaa sheegay in ay ciidamada Booliiska ku wargaliyeen inay soo xiraan gabadhii qaawan ee Bada Liido timaada, isagoo ku eedeeyay inay dbaqan xumo keenayaan Xeebta Liido. ” Ciidamada Booliiska Amar ayaan ku siinay inay soo qabtaan gabadhaha Baridooda soo qaawiya, dhaqan xumo ayay keeneen xeebta Liido,balse uma dulqaadan doono ” ayuu ku hanjabay Maxamuud Axmed Nuur Tarzan Gudoomiyaha Gobolka Banaadir oo la yaabay dhaqan qurba joogta.

A case of emptying the sea with a bucket....of all things the mayor of Mogadishu has got on his plate is this really relevant? And I can already see in the feverish need that Somalis have to blame others, the diaspora returnees being blamed for all the bad habits that there is in mogadishu! Is it the diaspora who taught mog residents qurbatul siir that is little else than prostitution? Alcohol being available under the table in many so called 5 star joints? Late night hush hush parties at the beach, private residences or hotels? So called shuukansi consisting of driving past IDP camps with SUV's and hunting young girls? The use of hashish by many youth as well as the so called police? What about the light skinned arab looking girl with the EPIC breasts, who is illiterate and wouldn't know the difference between a computer or a horseman of the apocalypse, that acts as one of the Mayors secretaries and draws a salary at the council?:rolleyes: Somalis are hypocrites simple as that :cool:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pEhVdVmoK38" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

Hotty at 1:00

Banadir council trains operators for ambulances, rubbish collectors, ambulances " frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

loool ayoub you got it, when people like the afore mentioned you had real debaters and people with their two cents to give, Iminka naa just scripts using all the supposedly ban terms. Suppressed and ridiculed I say, laakin it still doesn't change facts on the ground

Naxar Nugaaleed;906593 wrote: Certain people have been so busy with ideas of provencial statehood, they have forgotten all the work of a real state. Rest assured that all that needs be done in Muqdishu is being done. Much thanks to the Foreign minister and her team in their thankless efforts to not only reclaim neglected assets but also restoring the degnity of a sovereign Somali state once again. +10000

Wadani;905613 wrote: Somalia, u can believe in midnimo and still have immense respect for somaliland. This is the view of Axmad Ismaaciil Samatar and his party Hiil Qaran, and HAG. Anti-Somaliland elements are found only among those the guru Oodweyne used to refer to as 'the defeated lot' lol. +10000

Somalia;905610 wrote: LOL funny, HAG can't believe in midnimo, you are right about that. You are the troll who created this script, and some one said you are getting less impressive , if you have issues against somaliland then be a man about it and do it directly fulaay yahoow what is the worst they would give you a cyber punch? As for Hargeisa Mashallah, and Inshallah it will become even more beautiful and developed.

SomaliPhilosopher;905729 wrote: Interesting. During my stay in Mogadishu, I was told such a project was going on but the person in charge was quite the inactive typical TFG character. I myself was interested in partaking in such a project, but I have been deterred by the claim, probably is fact, that the Somali culture has grown to become very conservative to the point where statues would not be accepted and would be deemed as unislamic or simply unwanted. What do you think of this? Well that is interesting I think under the new dispensation you would do very well, since TIKA sources its own manpower and is actively seeking locals for all positions and since you will be paid directly by them waxbaa haaka weelwelin niin FG ah inu isbaaro ku digo laacagtadha. As for this tripe about statues, in my opinion and I might get some slack for this, and from my travells across almost all somali lands I think that this famed conservatism simply does not exist and certainly not to the extent of having a constituency able to block a public works project, do not think the net is the reality, people in xamar are like all Somalis are, pray 5 times a day and run to the local marfish, a girl might be told to cover up walking down the street to meet her boyfreind at lido beach, damn in some areas of mogadishu at night, I was irritated by a bad smell turns out it is when the local young boys diaspora and local were lighting up hashish, so do not be dettered by that, meshaan like every where somalis are waa quruun qarsoodi oo bakhti habeen lacunayo...

*ANWAR*;905591 wrote: Statues ARE haram in Islam and the new constitution says that Somalia shall follow Islamic principles, so that means Statues are illegal in Somalia Ummm thats obviously your interpretation but shabaabism will not come through the backdoor, build those statues sky high I say and that is what is happening any way

Marksman;905535 wrote: Daqane. I have a question for you. Are there any plans to rebuild the looted/stolen statues in Mogadishu? Those of historic figures such as Hawo Tako and Ahmed Gurey? Yes there are to my knowledge please read my previous posts...

Rudy meesha waxaa loo bixiyeey DC republic now you know loool

Haatu;905770 wrote: War what do you expect. Kuwa magaaladda imika jooga waxaan u maleyn iney yihiin kuwii musqulaha saaxan jirey berigii la qaxaaye Exactly this place needs a vocational school of some sorts for the basics of construction, brick laying, plumbing, paint work but it is a good time to be in construction in any way, you need to almost get on your knees to get someone to do some painting hahaha [Ding, Ding, Ding bussiness idea]

Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar;905766 wrote: Wax walba rinji nuuryo ayee marinoyaan oo maba oga the taalooyin and masaajidkii Isbaheysiga waxa lagu dhisay marble. Markaa arkay taaladii Axmed Gurey meeshii surneyd oo rinji baluug la mariye waaba baxay. It used to be marble stone. Same with masaajidkii weynaa ee Isbaheysiga banaankiisa tiirarkii ku yaalay. Tan Daljirka Dahsoon in rinji cad ama baluug ah la mariyo ka cabsanaaba. The monuments are going to be returned to their original glory I.A for now it is a "broken windows" paradigm...

New hotel being built Hotel al-hayaat zobe-Hodan district

Paragon;905521 wrote: [ DISCLAIMER: For whetever I write herein I can not be held accountable. I do not intend to sour the positive sentiments, hopes and dreams of anyone, nor is it my intention to appear apocalytic in my personal analyses of issues. The views represented herein are mine and mine alone. No offence intented. ] Ahlan wa sahlan akhyaarta, Lol, Northerner. nuune waa khabaar daar when it comes to what I'm up to. On political prospects, Sxb wax lagu degdega ma aha bahashu, weli siyaasadda Somalida ma daggana. There's alot to it that doesn't meet the eyes in the first glance. That is given the eyes concerned are that of Paragon and none else's. Waxaabad mooddaa siyaasaddii Somalia iyo tii Kenya in ay si ba'an oo khatarteedu badan tahay isugu labanyihiin. Mararka qaar waxaan dib u u xusuustaa ereyaddii AUN Qalinle ee ahaa 'taloow yaa na kala guri'. It's gotten that bad since the day Kenya went into Somalia and even beyond that. And the traggic think is that lay folks haven't got a clue just hit them in Eastleigh, Garissa, Kismaayo and Mogadisho. Intaa aan kaga haro before aan afkayga eedin. Si gaar ahaaneed ayaan kuugu warami doonnaa hadduu Eebe nafta nagu daayo. 'Mass exodus from Eastleigh to Xamar' Honestly, all depends on one's definition of the words 'exodus' and 'mass'. Frankly in personal view, the word 'exodus' conjures up mass movements of rather biblical proportions. Now conjoin the word 'mass' unto it and what we truly have an image or sight that defies the human intellect to meaninfully comprehend. Well, that is according to me and me alone. Very well. There is a visible flight of people whose destination is either Xamar or Xeryaha qaxoontiga. The number of these people is quite sizeable - sizeable because flights are often over booked. I know this because it happened to me in person. I took my older brother to the airport with an African airlines flight to Xamar only to be told the plane has already taken off, and actually there were 80 overbookings including his. I was vexed and made some noise. An agent calmly told me 'idinku waabad fiican tihiin sxb waayo flight-dada qaar there were over 150 overbookings'. Mind you, that was 3 weeks ago . Then I had neighbours in the block.Now the family to the left has gone and the one to the right is going, the floor beneath me seems to be emptying and the landlord seems to have started begging tenants to stay. Lol. The rent was 30k and now we are huggling over whether it would 15 or 16 - he, the landlord, is ofcourse all kinds of uncustomary noises. Well, suits him. The point I am trying to make here is that Eastleigh is emptying and there is noticeable migration out of it and not into it. Every day you'll loaded lorries, cars, carts and family members carrying household belongings on their shoulder. What is quite popular in Eastleigh are auctions, auctions and more auctions. Majority of the people leaving are, however, those who had an peculiar documentation called 'Alien' primarilly issued by the UNHCR . There are also Somalis with legal Kenya documents that are leaving but their numbers isn't large as the 'alien' group. Having said so, the make up of the people leaving Eastleigh for Somalia seems to be uncunningly specific in clan identity. There are others are rumoured to be leaving for Kampala with the plan of coming back when the dust settles in Nairobi. In Garissa, there were rumours that non-indegenous Somalis were not so welcomed as before. Above all that the political rhetorics in somalia over Juba state creations vs Villa Somalia vs Kenya vs Kampala vs God knows who else seems indicative of driving the dynamics of on-goings of all these. I will refrain from theorising who is doing what and to who or even share my views of what is trully causing all this fuss but you're welcome to have a go at it. Do please do. I just hope to Allaah that my worst fears are proven to be unjustified 'cos Somalis here and Somalia cannot afford to through a bitter cold-war like one I suspect some evil hearted folks are planning for the poor folk. Solers unless the signs change, I think we'll need to brace ourselves for major political sh!t to hit the fan. Strength is needed to weather through it. Thanks for the contribution Paragon and also the guys oo qabiil gaar ah well the fact is they have some where to go to now, also paragon the alien card was introduced by the kibaki goverment in 2002, after pressure from the local somali bussiness community and the NGO's the idea was that it would be I.D for refugees cleared by UNHCR that would allow somalis to run their businesses, open bank accounts, register bussinesses, rent premises e.t.c and if they had no criminal recored over a 5 year period they could apply for kenyan nationality, I know several people who got nationality in this manner, and it really helped the boom time islii of the 2000's. keep it coming brother

Oh no problems Malika maxaad rabtaa mushahar badhaan misee dacdac badhaan?? be careful now...