Yemen federation deal gives autonomy, not independence, to south BY MOHAMMED MUKHASHAF ADEN, Yemen Mon Feb 10, 2014 11:31am EST Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi signs the final approval on transforming Yemen into a federal state of six regions in Sanaa February 10, 2014, in this handout photo provided by the Defence Ministry. REUTERS-Yemen's Defence Ministry-Handout via Reuters 1 OF 3. Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi signs the final approval on transforming Yemen into a federal state of six regions in Sanaa February 10, 2014, in this handout photo provided by the Defence Ministry. CREDIT: REUTERS/YEMEN'S DEFENCE MINISTRY/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS RELATED TOPICS World » Yemen » (Reuters) - Yemen's president on Monday formally approved turning the country into a federal state, giving the south more autonomy and completing a milestone in his planned transition to democracy. But the move was immediately rejected by some southerners who insist on a separate state, raising fears the impoverished country may face further instability on top of the challenges it already has from Islamist militants and a northern rebellion. Demands by southern separatists to restore the state that merged with North Yemen in 1990 had delayed an agreement on broad reforms ahead of general elections. Under the new system approved by President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, Yemen will be split into six regions. The former South Yemen will be divided into two regions, Aden and Hadramout, according to state news agency Saba, and the more populous former North Yemen into four regions. Under a U.S.-backed power transfer deal that forced former President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down in 2012, Hadi is overseeing reforms for an interim period. Political factions last month gave Hadi an extra year to finalize Yemen's status as a federal state and oversee drafting a new constitution that will form the basis for elections slated for next year. Work the constitution could not progress without an agreement on the shape of the Yemeni state. Saba said a federal state comprised of six regions garnered the "highest level of agreement" against another proposal to divide the country into two regions, one in the north and one in the south. Southern Yemeni leaders rejected the accord. "What has been announced about the six regions is a coup against what had been agreed at the dialogue," said Mohammed Ali Ahmed, a former South Yemen interior minister who returned from exile in March 2012. "That is why I pulled out of the dialogue," he told Reuters. Ahmed withdrew from the talks in November, and in December three other Yemeni parties rejected the proposal to turn the country into a federation. SOUTHERN FEARS Some southerners fear that having several regions would dilute their authority and deprive them of control over important areas such as Hadramout, where some of Yemen's oil reserves are found. Nasser al-Nawba, a founder of the southern Hirak separatist movement, also rejected the deal, saying the only solution was for the north and south to each have their own state, as was the case before 1990. "We will continue our peaceful struggle until we achieve independence. We are against violence," he said. The 1990 union between the tribal North Yemen and the Marxist South soon went sour and a civil war broke out four years later in which then-President Saleh crushed southern secessionists and maintained the union. Anna Boyd, senior Middle East analyst at IHS Country Risk, said that while the deal "closes the door on southern separatist ambitions", the government was unlikely to be able to re-establish control over most of Yemen's territory over the next year. "Militant separatist factions will probably capitalize on the diminished capability of security forces in southern provinces, coordinate their efforts with other insurgent factions to acquire weapons and expertise, and increasingly resort to attacks targeting infrastructure, energy and security forces to further erode the government's authority over southern Yemeni territory," she said. (Writing by Yara Bayoumy; Editing by Sami Aboudi and Robin Pomeroy)

Listen to his wisdom speech how he united the Parliament of SL

Somaliland: Elder Abdi Warabe Calms Legislators Nerves Monday, 10 February 2014 22:09 Elder Abdi WarabeElder Abdi Warabe HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) - Elder Abdi Warabe managed to diffuse tension in parliament related to a motion sponsored by the ruling party Kulmiye to vote out the opposition national party chairman Hon. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdilahi (Irro) from his position of speaker in house of assembly. The intention of the government came to light as the public came to know the agenda of the Kulmiye legislators. The renowned elder Hon. Abdi Warabe was forced to intervene as matters almost went out of control as members of parliament almost fought in house. It was agreed that the speaker should revoke his earlier decision to reduce some powers of his two deputies from the ruling part Kulmiye

First of all i would like to say the web designers good job the front and the news how its all put together well done. But i am not to happy with the Forum index its to small the discussion board is to small back in the days it was so big , i cant breath. The rest of the forum is good easy picture upload easy video upload perfect. But the forum is so mall why do we need to have the right and i also do not like the letter type. It has to be catchy for every one to read.The entire right side with all the pictures of members is unnecessary just my opinion

Doctor ofcourse the president matters but the problem in here is saaxib Somalis lama shaqeyaan madaxdooda hassan cannot do anything with out Somalis supporting him if Somalis were honest and god fearing people and really cared for Somalia they would have supported him , hassan is not illiterate or incapable of leading its the Somalis who are not giving him a chance there are other external factors that play a role there are influential clique in Somalia that make it impossible for him to do the best he can. How is hassan sheikh different than sh sharif , was sh sharif also incapable of leading these presidents all had higher education and were in politics for quiet some time, i believe Somalia is facing domestic problems Somalis who are not honest and international meddling Foreign troops etc that play a role.

we hope everything is oke with president hassan ilahay caafimad shifo dawo, to him and the muslims.

<cite> @Libaax-Sankataabte said:</cite> That was the position of the IC since Somaliland declared independence. Not exactly brother Libaax it was first let Somalis no matter who and what entity they are let them decide their future remember during abdilahi yusuf and during abdiqasim but recently i believe since 2012 and since the sessions of SL and Somalia talks the notion of a Somalia and Somaliland as two distinct entities deciding their future is being presented in here and the international community is supporting this now can they decide their own future with out foreign mediation probably not we have seen that.

Its Abdi waraabe the oldest guurti member look at the gesture and they way he instructs Hirsi the most outspoken Minister and powerful Minister in the Somaliland cabinet. He gave him the look only grandfather can give a child. He is not faisal ali waraabe father the only thing they have in-common is they belong to the same sub sub clan, and ofcourse the waraabe name.

SOMALIA AND SOMALILAND HAVE TO DETERMINE THEIR FUTURE RELATIONSHIP: UK GOVERNMENT February 9, 2014 - Written by Ali jaamac London- The House of Lords in a question and answer session about DFID and Somaliland and Somalia future relations and recent dialogue, Lord Chidgey asked Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office , Baroness Warsi about Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the extent to which the Somaliland Development Fund has been successful in assisting donors to support Somaliland’s own National Development Plan in their aim of enhancing governmental structures and the rule of law and assisting security forces and the police to maintain stability and enhance human security? Baroness answered, “The Somaliland Development Fund is a multi-donor fund supported by Denmark, Norway and the UK. It is targeted on specific sectors within the Somaliland National Development Plan, namely: water, livestock, roads and the environment. These were agreed through a prioritization process between the National Planning Commission and donors. This process has helped to strengthen the role and performance of the National Planning Commission itself. It has also opened opportunities for broader donor support to the Somaliland government, for example on public financial management reform and public sector management strengthening.” DFID Lord Chidgey asked her what steps they are taking to assist Somaliland to meet the Millennium Development Goals to eliminate extreme poverty and hunger, and reduce infant mortality in its region? Baroness answered: In health, between 2011 and September 2013, DFID achieved the following results in reducing infant mortality in Somaliland: over 20,000 children had routine vaccinations for common childhood diseases; over 47,000 children under 5 accessed nutrition services. Lord Chidgey asked: what is the projected cost of aid from the Department for International Development to Somaliland, as compared to aid provided to Somalia, for the period 2010 to 2015? Baroness answered: DFID does not compile formal aid expenditure statistics broken down at sub-national level. UK bilateral overseas development assistance to Somalia (including Somaliland) was (in thousands): £40,359 in 2010, £94,907 in 2011 and £89,754 in 2012 Lord Chidgey asked the minister: what assessment they have made of Somaliland’s declared independence from Somalia? The Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Warsi): The British Government considers that it is for Somalia and Somaliland themselves to determine their future relationship and for neighboring countries in the region to take the lead in recognizing any new arrangements. Following the London Conference in February 2012, which “recognized the need for the international community to support any dialogue that Somaliland and the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) or its replacement may agree to establish in order to clarify their future relations”, the TFG and Somaliland met for the first time at Chevening in the UK, in June 2012. We agreed to cooperate on matters of mutual interest. Somalia and Somaliland have held several further rounds of talks in Turkey, at Ministerial level, including earlier this month. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), raised the importance of a lasting and mutually acceptable agreement between Somali and Somaliland during his discussions at the 2014 African Union Summit in Addis Ababa with the new Somali Foreign Minister, Abdurahman Duale Beyle.

^^ holac its not the president trust me the next president will have the same challenges there is no point of changing the president, corruption will always exist. President hassan should remain in power and finish his term. Somalia faces constitutional problems sectarian conflict tribal conflict Somalis that think one man can solve all of this. Its very difficult only Somalis together can solve and that i mean Puntland Jubba state galmudug alshabaab the government all work together aslong as Somalis dont work together the problem will exist the next president will face the same problems its not the personality of the president its the collective Somalis who are not honest.

Ciidammo ONLF ah oo isku dhiibay Ismaamulka Soomaalida Itoobiya Isniin, Febraayo 10, 2014 (HOL) – Ciidammo ka tirsanaa jabhadda ONLF ayaa la sheegay inay isku soo dhiibeen Taliska amniga dowlad deegaanka Soomaalida Itoobiya, iyadoo ciidamadan lagu qanciyay inay nabadda qaataan si looga gudbo caqabadaha hortaagan is-fahan dhamaystiran oo ay gaaraan dhinacyada dowladda iyo mucaaradka. Sida lagu sheegay war ay dowladdu arrintaa kasoo saartay, waxaa kooxda isa soo dhiibtay hoggaaminayay nin lagu magacaabo Muxumad Aani oo isagu muddo ka tirsanaa jabhadaas, kana soo jeeda magaalada Dhagax-buur oo xarun u ah gobolka Jarar ee Ismaamulka Soomaalida Itoobiya. Masuulka isa soo dhiibay oo la weydiiyay sababta keentay arintan ayaa sheegay in ay qadka Taleefanka kuwada hadleen Sulub Cabdi Axmed oo ka tirsan dowladda ,isla markaana uu ku qancay dalabka loo soo jeediyay, isaga iyo tiro ciidan ah oo la socota. Qaar kamid ah xubnaha ay wada socdeen sargaalkan oo magacyadooda la shaaciyay ayaa waxa ku jiray Carab Xawawar iyo waliba Mukhtaar Casood oo labaduba u dhashay dowlada deegaanka Soomaalida, lamana sheegin halka looga hortagay kooxdan iyo tiradooda guud inta ay tahay. Madax ka tirsan hogaanka nabad-galyada DDSI ayaa ugu baaqay qurba-joogta ka tirsan ONLF in ay nabadda fahmaan ,isla markaana ay isa soo dhiibaan, waxaana loo ballan qaaday in ay qayb ka noqon doonaan harumarka ka socda guud ahaan gobolka, isla markaan si wacan loo soo dhaweyn doono. Cabdi Maxamuud Cumar madaxweynaha dowlad deegaanka oo dhawaan booqasho ku tagay magaalada London ayaa si lamid ah sheegay in cid walba oo nabadda ka soo horjeedsata laga hortagi doono. Ugu danbayntii ma ahan markii ugu horeysay oo xubno ka tirsan jabhadda ONLF ay isku soo dhiibaan dowladda deegaanka ,waxaana arintan ay ku soo aadaysaa, iyadoo dhawaan dowladda Itoobiya ay beenisay in xubno ka tirsan ururkaas laga soo afduubay Kenya.

And Somaliland politicians listen to the wise words of the oldest Guurti member of Somaliland.

Hawdian reer bay and bakool have the numbers in Somalia but they are like the oromos of Somalia and lack the cohesiveness and can never subdue the reer gedo and lower shabelle under their grip. I believe they should stick to bay and bakool and perhaps take the lower shabelle if needed.

Investing in a country that doesn’t exist: Somaliland’s hard sell SIMON ALLISON AFRICA 10 FEB 2014 12:19 (SOUTH AFRICA) SHARE ON TWITTERSHARE ON FACEBOOKSHARE ON EMAILSHARE ON GOOGLE_PLUSONE_SHARESHARE ON LINKEDIN simon-somaliland Somaliland, the self-declared republic, is desperate for someone to find vast mineral reserves under its soil. But without international recognition – and the probability of legal battles in the future – it’s a big risk for any company to take. Somaliland too should be careful. Having dodged the aid curse, will it fall victim to the resource curse instead? By SIMON ALLISON. At the recently concluded Mining Indaba in Cape Town, Somaliland’s energy minister Hussein Abdi Dualeh had possibly the hardest sell of all. It was his job to convince the assembled mining bigwigs that his country was a viable, risk-free environment in which to invest millions and millions of dollars – all on the hope that there might be base and precious metals hidden somewhere under its drab scrubland. He tried hard. “We have also a unique geographical location,” the minister said in his speech at the conference. “If you have a mineral deposit and if you exploit it, it will be very cheap to take to market…it’s definitely much less costly than a really getting fantastic deposit the middle of continent, which will cost you really huge amount of money to export it…even the small deposit is commercially viable considering the logistics involved in taking the minerals to market.” It was a good effort, but will it be enough? There are, after all, a few other factors which mitigate against Somaliland becoming Africa’s next mining hotspot. The biggest problem is that Dualeh’s country is not actually a country. Officially, legally, Somaliland is a territory of the Republic of Somalia. A rogue territory at that, one which refuses to answer to the writ of the central government in Mogadishu. It considers itself independent, and operates accordingly, with all the trappings of sovereignty: the flag, the currency, the national anthem. Dualeh himself is part of Somaliland’s government, which is chosen in free and fair elections every five years (some say Somaliland is the most functional democracy in the Horn of Africa, and there’s substance to this description). This de facto autonomy is no bad thing: while Somalia proper has been mired in civil war and violence for the last two decades, Somaliland has been stable, secure and relatively prosperous; its self-declared independence a conscious attempt to isolate itself from Somalia’s chaos which, by and large, has worked. But as Somaliland seeks to develop, this independence – not formally recognised by anyone else in the world – is also holding it back. As miners contemplate entering Somaliland, they have to first ask and answer some tough questions about whether the government in Hargeisa has the authority to grant exploration licenses in the first place; and, once granted, if those will be honoured if and when Mogadishu is in a better position to assert rights of its own. Already, these problems have crippled Somaliland’s oil sector. For years, oil exploration was dormant as companies fought over ‘legacy contracts’ (those granted in the late 1980s by dictator Siad Barre’s Mogadishu-based regime) and new contracts issued by the Somaliland government. Exploration has now started, but getting to this point was a long and complicated process. Minister Dualeh claims there are no legacy contracts that could influence the mining sector – but that doesn’t mean there won’t be problems in the future between the two competing centres of power. Somaliland’s lack of formal independence has also cut it off from another lucrative source of income: aid money. Almost all international aid to Somalia is all channeled through Mogadishu. With the exception of a few minor United Nations programmes, Hargeisa gets nothing. Not that Hargeisa minds. Dualeh argues that the lack of aid has actually worked in Somaliland’s favour. “That is a blessing in disguise. Aid never developed anything,” he told Reuters’ Ed Stoddard on the sidelines of the conference. “Aid is not a panacea, we'd rather not have it... How many African countries do you know that developed because of a lot of aid? It's a curse. The ones that get the most aid are the ones with the problems.” Intrigued by this counter-intuitive position, the Daily Maverick contacted Minister Dualeh and asked him to elaborate. “There wasn’t really any aid opened to us because we weren’t recognised,” Dualeh explained in a telephone interview. “We’re not like Kenya that gets 40% [of its budget from] aid money; tangible aid hasn’t been coming our way because of our political status. Aid comes with strings attached but we don’t have any of that. We don’t owe anything to anyone.” In practice, Dualeh believes that this leaves Somaliland free to make its own decision, unbeholden to any external backer that might not have the territory’s best interests at heart. “We have our own organic solutions to our problems; we have no outside influence; I think a lot of the good things that have happened to us are because we have found our own solutions.” As an example, Dualeh cites the original decision to break away from the then-Federation of Somalia in 1991. This, he argues, was Somaliland taking its destiny into its own hands. In Somalia proper, on the other hand, decades of foreign meddling has just made the situation worse. “The difference between us and Somalia is that we sat down under the proverbial big tree and we basically stated our independence and tried to find our own solutions through uniting; we found a solution that has resulted in power right now, with no war or conflict.” Somaliland may have avoided the aid curse, but as Dualeh seeks to drum up investment in the mining sector he would do well to recall the lessons of other African countries, where the curse of vast mineral wealth has proved just as devastating. Dualeh dismisses these concerns. “The resource curse is just a cliché. We’re not taking it lightly, we are trying to avoid it by making sure that we have good governance and good legal regimes to make sure that everything gets sorted ahead.” In the Horn of Africa – a part of the world not famed for good governance or tight legal regimes – this might just be the one thing that Somaliland has going for it. DM http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2014-02-10-investing-in-a-country-that-doesnt-exist-somalilands-hard-sell/#.UvjG4Pl5PPn

Universal tv will never be ever allowed back in SL again. It has now a permanent ban

There was no fist fight in SL parliament just some buuq thats all no fist fight

homunculus i doubt alshabaab is infiltrated but Alshabaab is much smaller and it controls much smaller territories than before its mostly friction from with in so there might be some elements that want to get rid of Godane. Godane made sure that he no longer has opposition from with in after he killed Afhgani the bomb expert and the cashier of the shabaab movement. So now there are maybe other threats.

Mooge anigu cidna ma jecli Godane wa terrorist calaami ah laakin hadana dee runta fiican ninku awoodisa bu ku tamashleynaya intaasuun baan sheegey. Nor am i wishing for his well being or him being hurt he is just one of the Somali faction oo wax diidan.

Surely Alshabaab is ALQaeda affiliates but the Arab and Afghans In shabaab is overrated i am defending no one just being politically correct. The overall Majority of Shabaab are indigenous Somalis with radical and extremist takfiri views and thats about it.

Peace action faroole lost by one vote so i was still very close it shows that faroole still had clearly 49% of the votes and it shows that puntland mps had allot of trust in him.If you believe PHD and educated leaders will change Somalia for the good than u will be very surprised because its the environment they live in that is unsustainable.

Cabdi cawar shot him self in the foot when he made karaash and biindhe ministers he alienated khatumo further. Garaad jamac indhashesl and cali khalif galaydh will never fall for cabdi cawars tricks. Canbdi cawar cam only weaken khatumo in buhoodle with his vp, thats about it.

Atleast ahmed godane is not protected by African union troops what ever security alerts he might have its all on his call.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDOv2fBDorM#t=42

A 3 year war never ending External forces involved both having their own interest more than 300.000 refugees And Saudi sponsored Jihadist who hijacked the Syrian struggle against the Syrian Dictator the Arab spring became a nightmare for the Syrian people. Aid couldn't arrive in Hamidia Homs due to constant Assad's regime shelling today. The so called Nusra front Jihadist are fighting other so called opposition at the end of the day there is no clear winner super powers such as Russia and China will not drop their support for the Syrian regime. The United states wants Asad gone John Kerry US secretary of state said in a new Syria Asad cannot be part of it in the Geneva conference. The Saudi and Khaleej sponsored jihadist made it clear the other day that they will not support a democratic Syria hence they are not from Syria and are Foreign agents. All we can do for the Syrian people is pray it looks pretty hopeless may allah protect the Syrian people from those who want to harm them very sad seeing children and innocent people getting killed, by their so called president or by the so called liberators.