Grinov, u wlc. Gediid, yes we know who the criminals are but we can't prove anything against them. Do u know Tuke has been tried, after been exposed, in NA twice on these charges? He's been let go by courts. By the way, Gediid would u agree the clemency issued in Burco by the elders? Xassan nasra Allah, u have point there...we should acknowledge everything...no kangaroo court period. Actually u and Gediid are on same page on this...both of u are for justice, neither of u condone past crimes...the only thing is u r not reading each other I guess. Xassan, I think Tuke has something to do about what happen in Waqooyi cuz he was a commander in the time of the conflict and he was defending an oppressive regime...that point we differ. Ameenah, I don't know what to make of that...if it is what it seems (sarcastic remark) u are thanking me for making u :confused: If my brief piece make u :confused: sorry sis. I was trying to put things in prespective so young nomads can make sense out of this.

If there are young 'nomads'...out there, who don't know that much about Somalia or Somalis,...who are sitting back, holding their breath, and wondering! I would like u to see the bigger picture. We are, and have been, a tribal communities...socially, that is how we are organized. In disputes and conflicts, we settle things through clan chiefs or Nabadoono! We had unwritten rules "xeerar" in which no one have an institutional capacity to implement them...the fear of reprisal, revenge is what used to hold them in peace. That is, untill we attained independence and Somali state come into being. Leaders of the new state were not impartial at all and they abused their power. They betrayed us..worse than that they betrayed our confidence in any government system...unless our clan dominates it. After forty yrs the state collapsed...and ever since we were grieving and could not find political consensus that can take us out of this anarchy. As much as we hate what is happening back home, anarchy, triblism, etc...it is a reality that needs to be changed. We are not organised in classes, or political parties such as farmers, workers, big business..there is no such things in Somalia's political landscape...we are but tribal communities and such culture every tribe, clan has a compelling interest to secure part of the pie..the nomadic way. We won't be able to change it untill we all become realists, pragmatists...or have an inclination toward objective truth...we have to see they way things are...not what they ought to be. Case in point, this Tuke affair. There are so much grievences by so many victims in many different tribes...they were all wronged. U can choose to see one side of the coin or u can flip the coin and see the other side too...it is there. While it cannot be proved retrospectively who did what, onething is clear crimes were committed for different reasons by all sides of Somalia's civil war. Note: this is a brief background to disappointed nomads.

Xassan Even if we assume the victim, for the sake of argument, had done something..still u can't justify this despicable act. It is unheard of Somalis burning other Somalis, no matter how heated the passions get in conflicts...it is against both our religion and our nomadic culture. SNM and Barre's army were full of idiots...that conflict created animosity between tribes there...in the name of what they called 'a noble cause'. To some SNM are all Mujahidiin. We can certainly use good judgement. Lefty, CBC TV had broadcasted Tuke pictures in 1993 and they were not looked like this...out of politeness, let's give nomads the benefit of doubt. Nomads who reside in Canada can actually request a transcript to double check. Canadians released him and charged him for perjury and deported him to Niagara Falls, NY that was were he entered the country. US tried him and finally let him go. In 1993, when Tuke was exposed to authorities...in response Gen Isma'il Jama, the head of prison guards (ciidanka Asluubta) was exposed. Always as a community we lose..and the end of day the justice never get served. Tuke was for sure involved the killings of that part of Somalia...Somaliland guurti, in Burca gathering, had issued a decree of clemency to both sides of that conflict...that was very wise thing to do.

On the surface, it seems unfair to us to deny one criminal to run for office and let another criminal run the same office...but deep down, it is just plain wrong to let criminals get away with crimes...or look up to them as potential leaders or justify their candidacy...all of that in the name of justice. I'm for denying the opportunity...reducing the number of crooks is not breach to fairness. Let it be known to all warlords and former officers(we all know who they are..certainly victims know them) that they won't get sympathy or support from us...in fact, we shouldn't distinguish between them. Atleast, we can resist, new additions to this club of crooks who had been holding us hostage for too long.

Despicable, inhumane, cowardly act...the victim, along with many other victims, will surely see justice done in the day of judgement...as justice has not been served TODAY. To the victim...may Allah rest his soul in heaven for he was wronged by ignorant soldiers blinded by power.

Jazakallah sis for posting these useful tips.

S.O.S, So u wanna play the devil's advocate on this heh Let's see how well we can employ deductive reasoning...I will start! Baashi: yes, we aren't animals, but at the same time we are very similar to some animals to an extent. For example did you know 99.9 % of human DNA is junk DNA because we share it with chimps? True.. Chimpanzees may have identical DNA as humans but what does that tell u? U can't conclude that we are same cuz we have same building blocks...or u would risk, by logical extension, that all living things are same as well cuz they all share elemental property! How about the apparent differences: We don't look alike, we don't behave alike, above all they lack intellect...intellect is a faculty only endowed to us...humans.

So my question is; are humans animals or do humans transcend animals and are a species all their own. What do you think? We are not Animals..we are "Insaan"..axsanna taqwiimi. It is true that we got a lot in common with animals than plants...and it is Ok to group, not equate, humans with animals to facilitate understanding. But, in schools, they taught us with vigor, that we are cousins of chimpanzees (spelling?) and distant relative of Oratanges...and ur not supposed to question Darwin as it is "scientific" If we are to get A+ in Anthropolgy we better confirm the theory that life come to being by chance..life has no purpose and there is no intelligent design behind it...it happened by chance :Super Nova...big bang and then four essential elements reacted in perfect unisom and boom! first microorganism appeared million years ago..what a crap. Bottom line..we are not animals, we share several traits with animals..use that for classification purposes but don't stretch it to metaphysics.

"clean my house" how rude!....hehehe She got him good!

Gediid, As things stand, it is difficult to have discussion, let along unite, with 12 warlords whose agenda is as divergent as rainbow colors...I concede that. But that's the beside the point...once we go down that road, secession business, each and every region of Somalia can very well justify why they wanna secede and remember the fact that Somaliland is divisible too. It is my sincere opinion that seceding is not the answer.

All things considered, it is indeed monumental achievement. For crying out loud, there are some of us who managed to settle their difference through the ballot, remarkable!...other Somalis should follow suit. True...I don't see the logic behind the seccesion...maybe someday, someone will manage to explain it to me...but as of now, let's congratulate them and wish them peacefull election. There will be no elections in Buuhoodle, Sool, Sanaag(PL part)...it doesn't concern them...and Hargeisa accepted that fact. Why delete it as long as we can differ respectfully?...after all this is 'current event' catogery and should be discussed respectfully and with civilty.

Abaayo SCORPION-SISTA, Reasonable people can sometimes disagree...I sincerely thought that this question might be better handled by 'Ulama'...they are better equiped to answer it than most of nomads here. Abaayo I might have seen it from different angle than u...u see the nomads can read ur question and may wonder too...and if they don't get the answers...well that's not good! That's all. Please accept my appology if I mispoke...never meant to accuse u or any way to discourage reasoning, curiosity, discussion, and what have u. I agree with u...one would be better of to have knowledge in the faith one believes in than to have blind allegience to that faith. Note that I tried to answer it...the only thing we differ is to whom or where we should direct our inquiries...especially the religious ones with such depth as urs.

Xassan, i prefer muuse suudi yalaxow to this demon. Ouch! But again it is a matter of judgement! This guy ordered the killing of Somalis by the thousands not because they were threat to him or had done anything to him but because they happen to be different tribe than him. And later he spoke about these events, on BBC, to justify his candidacy for the highest post...

Scorpion-sista, u wlc...u seem to have more questions and that's natural curiosity...u must have high IQ to dwell on areas reserved for philosophers Okay let me try again if I may: If people make the statement that events, past and future, is pre-decreed, predestined, by Allah...that is indeed valid statement. If innocent Jamac dies, for instance, at the hands of Farah...and he does so willingly perhaps out of revenge we can make two statement: 1) Jamac is dead because Farah killed him not because it was written somewhere. It is written on a book because Allah in his infinite knowledge knew this was coming and had pre-decreed and recorded...Hadii aad maqashid tiisii baa gashay ama waqtigiisii baa dhamaadey...that is acurate statement. 2) Farah's action, to kill Jamac, which emanted from his freewill is not dependent upon Allah's pre-knowledge of that action. Thus pre-knowledge of any our deeds doesn't affect our deeds in any way. Allah's omniscience does not, in any way, affect man's free will. U may ask: Why punish poor Farah for an action Allah knew beforehand? that is only a philosophical question. It has no practical significance at all. It would only have had a practical significance had Farah known about what Allah knew beforehand and then would have tried to alter it. As things stand, for all practical purposes, Farah is responsible for the actions that he committed with his freewill and this responsibility is not affected by whether Allah knew about Farah's actions beforehand or not. phew! Sis this kind of philosophical question that may cast doubt in our hearts should not be posted (just opinion)..I hope nomads don't get confused...and learned nomads (culimada) can shed light on this difficult subject so Scorpion_sis has the clarity she is after.

The guy was a member of the highest echelon of that regime..or administration if u will. Government, regime, or administration is not one man business...it is collective responsibility. Those who had an iota of moral clarity ended up in exile or worse in prison because they quesioned the decisions made by the dictator...only those who were complacent were promoted to such high offices. At one point he was finance minister..and other point of his career he was foreign minister...he is on record denying and justifying all the actions of that government...BBC had it all in the archives and interviews including what he said about Hargeisa bombardmen..if that helps. He was the most loyal member to the dictator...he approved all his actions and remained loyal to him until his disgraceful fall. If he has nothing to answer for so is M.S. Barre...after all we can give M.S. Barre the same benefit of doubt that we are willing to give Buluq-buluq.

SCORPION_SISTA, Wow! This is deep sis. Let me try, before i do that let's agree on these premises: 1. Man's freewill is a fact...in other words SCORPION_SISTA has a total freedom to choose whether to kill her neighbor or not. 2. Allah is Omniscient...in other words Allah knows the future because his infinite knowledge. Now if we are in agreement...let's move on to say that Allah is testing man, by giving him free will to choose between right and wrong. It does not matter, if the results are already known to the Almighty or not. The thing that matters is that whether or not man is free to do right, if he chooses to, or not. Both faith and power of reasoning lead us to the right conclusion...we are indeed free! If u still have questions...u are not alone, the concept of freewill and predestination or Qadar is very complicated concept..I recommend u to listen Dr. Jamal Badawi's lecture on this very issue @ Islamicity.com and..click Radio then Dr. Badawi Islamic teaching series..browse through u will find 30 min segment of that lecture there.

Hambalyo brother

Miskin, U have a point there buddy...so is Jeenyo! The crisis is there and it has its causes...we may have noticed its symptoms lately...no argument there. Pressure is quite enermous...and the phrase 'melting pot' is more true today than it has been before...power of media is just beyond me. Yet nothing is more humbling than to see some of our women veiled walking through westren cities with confidence and grace despite the odds! in 911 era. I have never seen or heard, nor have I met with woman who has language barrier, who has to work to willingly support their relatives back home, who has to go to school, who has the strength to carry her problem and her folks' problems on her shoulder and yet able to manage to put on smile and go on with her business. To me that is the combination of faith and character...it is our pride side don't miss to see it! That's our distinctive culture too. As crissis back home..true that. Any nation/state would be just like Somalia if there is no law and order. Anarchy is anarchy! One factor attributable to our malaise is the negative tribalism...poverty, unfit system of governence, and list goes on. Our culture is not perfect...true that too. We shall overcome...bi'ithnillah

Interesting, very interesting! He got a lot to answer for...so is Abdikasim and many others. Officials of former regime, their crimes, their corruption and nepotism, and what they used to stand for are compared to today's anarchy (some parts of the country), the warlords, etc. And Somali folks forget how it's been and how we get where we are...what a pity! Now our hope to peaceful state and just government depends on the wisdom and understanding of these recycled, clannish zealots. Isma dhaanto iyo dhasheed! This reminds me the scene of the movie "Shawshank redemption" where Morgan Freeman, an inmate, as the narrator of the movie, realizes how he lacks the will to escape from the prison...how he become an institutionalized inmate. Reflecting his friends successful escape from the prison, he says: "..some birds are meant to be caged." But I am an optimist. Let's keep hope alive.

Ethiopia is a threat to Somalia. Somalia is a threat to Ethiopia's territorial integrity...atleast that's how they see it. It is sad but true that we are very vulnerable today and Ethiopia has what resembles a state and all the benefits state have whether that be diplomatic outlet to other states, security, agenda, access to credit so they can borrow money, etc. We don't have all of that today. Political vacuum left by the collapse of former regime resulted anarchy. Thus we are in a hole...it seems Ethiopia is taking advantage of that...its finger prints is all over our political landscape...its intentions, in my opinion, are not sincere the least to say. We have unresolved issue and that is land dispute. It is preferable if we can liberate our brothers peacefully. We, most of us, believe that Ethiopia controls Somalis and their land against their will. It acquired this land illegaly and by force with help of European colonial powers. It is well documented when and how they had acquired our land. We know the date, the location, and the signatories. Victims are Human beings, Muslims and Somalis. They are poor, weak, oppressed Somalis. Their hope: United strong Somali state with right leadership has not yet materialized. It is unlikely that Ethiopia will grant their independence without any kind of pressure or advocacy from Somali state. What regime went war or what motives it had is beside the point and actually irrelevent except we should learn from our mistakes...they are oppressed people that need to be liberated...that is the whole piont...are they in need of our help to free themselves from Habasha and their Coptic Christian values? In the same token, Jihad or no Jihad they need whatever help they can get from Muslim brothers. BTW, Any one who tries to take, let alone occupy, ur property, dignity, or threatens ur life in any manner is culprit...u are allowed, by our Islamic religion, to wage a war against them provided u say first: "hadii allahaa alla yahay i nabad gali.." in other words u warn them according the dictates of our religion. The principle of moral rightness dictates that u have the freedom god decreed and protection of the just government. Don't caught up with clannish politics and the mistakes of previous brutal regime or that matter the Jihad issue...this is clear cut case. Nomads don't disappoint me please!

is it hard to be a student and a husband/wife ? It is both challenging and rewarding. I would also like to point out that a whole lot depends on your situation. For instance your spouse's understanding and support, and your income. Have you had any hardships ? and how did you deal with them.. Won't list them here as it is personal and private but I would say that one problem stands out and that is the time management and how u balance work, studying, commuting, and classes. Best weapon at your disposal is understanding the system and taking whatever it offers. For instance, If things don't work out as you planned, as they sometimes will, you can take "I" grade and take the exam next semester instead of having "W" grade on your transcript or worse flanking. That way you won't fall behind cuz if you keep droping courses every time issues come up...u will get behind! Having family, working, and going school is not a piece of cake. By the same token, it is not that a big deal...and if u look at it...your efforts and courage have direction and purpose...that's, as they say, what makes world round. Let me close it by making this observation...ur response to Darman's question whether in affirmative or negative...will depend on whether u see schooling as a means to an end or the "end" itself. Hope that helps.

Waa dad debci u leh in ay is caawiyaan. Waa dad is jecel oo isa soo dhaweya meesha ay ku yar yihiin. Waa dad dadnimo iyo karti lagu yaqaan oo hadiiba horumar ku talaabsada hadii ay damcaan. Waayaha oo ka hiiliyey aawadeed baa waayahakan lagu arkey dhaqan fool xun oo ay ka mid tahay been iyo ceydh qaadasho, iyo waalid dhalaankiisa dafira amaba maxajabad tidhaahda boyfriend baa garacakan iga dhaley. Colaada iyo Soboolnimada hadii laga baxo waan hagaagi doonaa.

Mujaahid, brother that is very thoughtful of u to do this for all of us. Muraad and other knowledgeble folks out there, we will be waiting ur contribution on this. I, for one, will sure benefit ur contributions insha'alah.

O Allah, forgive us and our parents, and reward them with the finest reward. O Allah, elevate their position in the hereafter and this Dunya; make that which befalls them an expiation for their sins. O Allah, grant them residence in Firdaus, the highest level of Jannah, with the Prophets, the Siddeeqeen, and the Martyrs. Ameen. Amiin. Thanks for sharing it with us.

I'm inclined to say she did it so she could meet the guy(distant relative perhaps)when(if)he comes to the family funeral as he had done before. But!! Would she be there? She is murderer and thus she would be locked in prison...right?