Safiirka Maraykanka ee Nairobi oo Shaaca ka Qaaday in Dawladdiisu ka Hawlgeli Doonto Aqoonsi Somaliland ka Hesho Caalamka Thursday, 27 December 2007 Nairobi (Halganews)- Safiirka dawladda Maraykanka u fadhiya magaalada Nairobi ee dalka Kenya, Ambassador Michal Ranneberger, ayaa markii u horreysay shaaca ka qaaday in dawladdiisu ka hawlgeli doonto sidii Somaliland aqoonsi caalami ah uga heli lahayd beesha adduunka. Ambassador Michal Ranneberger oo la hadlayey wefti ka socda Somaliland oo Kenya u tegay inay goob-joognimo uga qaybgalaan doorashooyinka Khamiista maanta ka dhacaya dalkaas, waxa uu xubnaha weftiga ku wargeliyey in dawladda Maraykanku si buuxda uga hawlgeli doonto sidii Somaliland aqoonsi diblomaasiyadeed uga heli lahayd beesha caalamka. Mr. Cumar Jaamac Faarax, Xoghayaha Siyaasadda ee xisbiga UDUB oo xubin ka ah weftiga Somaliland ee goob-jooginimada uga qaybgalaya doorashooyinka dalka Kenya, ayaa warsaxaafadeed uu shalay khadka internetka saxaafadda u soo mariyey waxa uu faafhaahin kaga bixiyey kulankii weftigooda dhexmaray Safiirka Maraykanka u jooga Nairobi Ambassador Michal Ranneberger. “Dawladda Maraykanku waxay si fiican u gacansiin doontaa Somaliland sidii loo aqoonsan lahaa, waxana loo baahan yahay in waddamada AU-da culays badan lagu saaro arrintaas, annaguna waxaannu diyaar u nahay in aannu raacno dawladda u horreysa ee ku dhawaaqda arrintaas oo aanu gacan ka geysan doono,” ayuu yidhi Safiirku. Wefiga ka socda Somaliland oo isugu jira xubno ka kala socda Komishanka Doorashooyinka, saddexda xisbi qaran iyo saxaafadda madaxaabannaan, ayaa Isniintii dorraad gaadhay magaalada Nairobi ee dalka Kenya, halkaas oo ay kulamo kula yeesheen masuuliyiin iyo madax ka kala tirsan beesha caalamka. Weftigan oo ujeeddada booqashadiisa Nairobi ku qotonto sidii ay goob-joognimo ugaga qaybgeli lahaa doorashooyinka la filay inay maanta ka dhacaan dalka Kenya, ayaa waxay habeen hore kulan casho-sharaf ah la yeesheen Safiirka Maraykanka u fadhiya Nairobi, Ambassador Michal Ranneberger. Xubnaha weftiga ka socday Somaliland oo ka degay madaarka caalamiga ah Jomo Kentatta Airport ee magaalada Nairobi, waxa halkaa ku soo dhoweeyey masuuliyiin ka tirsan Mac-hadka International Republican Institute oo suurtogeliyey safarkooda Kenya, kuwaas oo u gelbiyey guriga uu deggan Ambassador Michal Ranneberger, kaas oo isaguna si diirran u soo dhoweeyey . Waxa kale oo Safiirku kulankaa ku soo hadalqaaday wufuud kala duwan ka kala socda waddamo dhawr ah oo goob-joog ka noqon doono doorashooyinka Kenya, isaga oo dalalkaas si gaar ah carrabka u dhejiyey inay ka mid yihiin Somaliland iyo Bosnia Helsagovena. Casho-sharaft Safiirku u sameeyey weftiga Somaliland waxa kale oo uu ugaga warramay aragtida dawladdiisu qabto aqoonsi Somaliland ka hesho beesha caalamka, isaga oo tilmaamay Somaliland in wax badani iska beddelay aragtida dawladda Maraykanka ee dalkii Soomaaliya, isla markaana Somaliland si fiican uga gacansiin doonaan sidii ay u heli lahayd aqoonsi. “ Waxa weftiga iyo sifiirku ka wada hadleen waxyaabaha Somaliland kaga duwan tahay Soomaaliya iyo siday ku hanatay nabadda ay haysato, iyaga oo weftigu u sheegay in dadka reer Somaliland dhaqan u leeyihiin nabadda, lagana soo bilaabay geed hoostii, go’aanna ay ku gaadheen inay dhistaan qaran la yidhaa Somaliland. Sida oo kale waxa ay weftigu shalay booqasho ku tageen goob lagu dhaqo xayawaanka oo lagu magacaabo (Safari Parka), waxaanay subaxnimada hore ee saaka u ambabixi doonaan degaannada Northeast Garisa oo ay goob-joogayaal ahaan uga qaybgeli doonaan doorashooyinka madaxtinimada, iyaga oo weftigu u kala qaybsami doonaa saddex aag oo kala ah Nairobi, Massay dhulka Massaydu degto iyo Garisa oo ah degaanka Soomaalida Kenya, halkaas oo ay joogi doonaan muddo laba maalmood ah. AA.Sheekh, Hargeysa.

Madaxweyne Rayaale oo Marti Qaad Rasmi ah ku tagaya Maraykanka(Updated:-(Thu.27.Nov.2007) Hargeysa (Bnn) Madaxweyne Daahir Rayaale Kaahin ayaa la filaya inuu socdaal rasmi ah ku tago Dalka Maraykanka Horaanta sanadka cusub. ilo xogogaal ah oo ku dhawdhaw qasriga Madaxtooyada ayaa Bnn u xaqiijiyey in marti qaad rasmi ah uu madaxweynuhu ku tagayo dalka Maraykanka kaas oo qaban qaabadiisa uu Wasiirka Arimaha Dibada SOmaliland u joogo magaalada Addis ee Caasimada Ethiopia. siday ilahaasi xaqiijiiyeen Madaxweynuhu wuxu socdaalka ku tagi doona United States-ka Janaury sanadka cusub, waxayna Madaxweyne Rayaale iyo maraykanku ka wada hadli doonan danaha labada dal iyo iskaashi dhex mara. wali ma jiro wax wara ah oo madaxtooyadu kasoo saartay marti qaadka Madaxweyne Rayaale u fidiyey Maraykanku, balse war saxafadeed uu xalay soo saaray Afhayeenka Madaxtoyada JSL ayaa lagu sheegay in wasiirka Arimaha dibada Somliland iyo wafti la socdaa uu casho sharaf u sameeyey Safiirka Maraykanka u Fadhiya Ethiopia, Sidoo kale wafti reer Somaliland ah oo ka qayb galaya doorashooyinka dalka Kenya ayaa iyagana waxa casho sharaf u sameeyey Safiirka Maraykanka u fadhiya dalka Kenya. Casha sharafooyinka safiiradu u sameeyeen Wufuuda somaliland iyo Safarka la filayo in madaxweyne Rayaale ku tago dalka Maraykanka waxay hor dhac u yihiin Jihada cusub ee siyaasada dalka maraykanka ee ku aadan Gobolka Geeska africa u jeedsatay, iyadoo bishan gudaheeda wasaarada Gashandhiga Maraykanka ee Pentagonka ay ka dhawajisay inay taageersan tahay Aqoonsi la siiyo somaliland. Borama News Network Hargeysa Office

Madaxweyne Riyaale iyo wefti uu hoggaaminayo oo la filayo inuu booqasho ku tago Maraykanka December 26th, 2007 [News] | Hargeysa (Somaliland.org) - Madaxweynaha Somaliland, mudane Daahir Riyaale Kaahin ayaa la filayaa toddobaadka soo socda inuu u ambabaxo booqasho uu ku tegayo dalka Maraykanka. Sida ay sheegeen warar ku dhowdhow Madaxtooyada, Madaxweyne Riyaale oo ay socdaalkiisa ku wehelin doonaan Wasiirrada Arrimaha Dibadda, Caafimaadka, Caddaaladda iyo Wasiirkuxigeenka Qorshaynta, waxa ay martiqaad ka heleen Dowladda Maraykan. Wasiirka Arrimaha Dibadda, mudane Cabdillahi Maxamed Ducaale oo ay weheliyaan Wasiirrada Caafimaadka, Caddaaladda iyo Wasiirkuxigeenka Qorshaynta ayaa iyagu hadda ku sugan magaalada Addis Ababa ee xarunta dalka Itoobiya, halkaas oo la sheegay inay ka soo qaadanayaa fiisayaasha Madaxweynaha iyo weftigiisu ay ku tegayaan Maraykanka. Socdaalkan ayaa noqonaya kii u horreeyey ee Madaxweyne Riyaale ku tago dalka Maraykanka. Waxaana la filayaa in ay martiqaadkan ka heleen saraakiisha ammaanka ee dowladda Maraykanka, iyada oo tibaaxaha u horreeya ee booqashadanina ay sheegayaan in Madaxweynaha lagala xaajoon doono Saldhig Milateri oo Maraykanku ka doonayo Berbera. Cabdirisaaq M. Dubbad, Somaliland.org, Hargeysa. E-mail: dubad@somaliland.com

It looks like this is an organised crime by some Puntland bigwigs. GEN. Cadde Muuse oo Afduubka Ku Eedeeyey in ay ka Dambeeyaan Wasiiradii la casilay!!

In stark contrast, watch this film which was recorded just before the Xabashi occupation of Mogadishu. See how things are total opposite. A year ago, there was hope. Today, there is death, despair and destruction. State of Need

Originally posted by Peace Action: The fact is, all Col. Cadde Muse done was to read out load what was in printed in the Constitution of Puntland. What a bold face lie is this? Why did Hashi run for President if it was against the constitution of Puntland? ^^It is well known fact that in Puntland each clan is allocated a particular seat. We haven't seen any change of that fact since Puntland was established 10 years ago, except for the breif "care-taker" 6 month period in which Ina Xaashi presided till Cadde Muuse took the helm. Even in that "care-taker" period, Ina Xaashi was subjected to humiliation. I remember reading those days, at one point Ina Xaashi was told off by Col. Yey saying "Those from Lascaanood are never good for anything except of being footsoldiers" accusing Ina Xaashi of inability to run Puntland properly while Col. Yey was in Kenya. Of course we understand the reasons why Ina Xaashi was unable to run the place during those days - all the ministers from the Main Clan refused to work with him. Ninka Ina Xaashi sinaba caadi uma aha. Wuxu u dhabar adaygay humiliation aan qof kale sinaba u ogolaan karin.

^^ Dartaysan ogidaa Caamirow? Taladaadu waa sidii ninkii yidhi: Geela aan soo dhici doono, caanaha aan ka lisi doono, lacagtaan ka heli doono, gurigaan ka dhisan doono, inantaan ku hoyn doono, caruurtay ii dhali doonto.... .... 2009 ma hubta in Col. Yey sii joogi doonoba? Mise ku talo gashay in aduunku is gadiyi doono oo sidaad wax u aragtid mahe si ka duwan u noqon doono? ii Cug Canabay; Ciirso Caliyow Car Waa Maantaba; Carigii ay Ceebtu Raacdaaayeeeey

Originally posted by Peace Action: There was fair election for the Presidency and it went to the second round. The first round was won by Hashi and if it was not for three votes, he will have been President today. Hashi, according to interviews he gave, lost becuase some Sool MPs gave their votes to Cade. Puntland would have been better off with seasoned and experienced politician like Hashi. Any Somali who resides in Puntland can run for the President but he or she needs to compaign and get support. Ina Hashi is just being nice about his ordeal. Naag umuliso ah iyo Ninwayn labaduba siday wax u ogyay uma sheegaan. The fact is, all Col. Cadde Muse done was to read out load what was in printed in the Constitution of Puntland. In otherwords, Ninwayn tag lama yidhaa wuxu ku tago ayaa la tusaa. Nin kale uma adkaysteen sida loo bahdilay Ina Xaashi. Laakin waxa jira rag ka dhiidhiyey dhaqanka xun ee Garoowe yaal sida Wasiirkii hore ee Ciyaaraha Puntland iyo Wasiirkii Arimaha Gudaha Puntland Ina Xaabsade, iyo Taliyihii Ciidamada Gobolka Sool ee Puntland Col Yusuf Quuje.

Very moving pictures.

Jibriil was one of the UDUB candidates for the 2005/06 parliamentary elections ( Number 209 from the candidates list). He was competing for the non-contested 3 seats that were allocated for the Eastern Sanaag clan. Many believe the reason why Jibriil fell out with UDUB was because UDUB named Mrs Baar Saeed (number 203 on the list) to represent Jibriil's electorate. Mrs Baar Saeed is said to be a highly educated lady from Dhahar and draws bigger support from Eastern Sanaag folks. One of the reasons why Jibriil created Maakhirland state was to show UDUB that he is no someone that can be dumbed down that easily. Since we know the nature of some folks, I am wondering, Caamirow, Hadii Daahir Riyaale jago u magacaabo Jibriil Hargeisa ma iska xaadirin lahaa?

The American guy is very funny. Akhyaar camal ayuu u kaftamaya. Check this speak Somali as well. Waa wareey, dhawaan Af Soomaaligii cidna ku xaman karimaysid.

^^look at the source... no need to go any further. They are also running this this article on their frontpage. Cabsi xoog leh oo soo wajahaday Ciidanka Somaliland. Classic. Hadraawi once said: Dalka waan aqaana; Bahal iga da'weynoo; dad cun ahi ma joogo.

I think Daahir Riyaale should note down some hard lessons from this ordeal. He should've by now realised that putting people in prison doesn't change a single thing on the reality on the ground. Qaran Party leaders have come out of prison stronger and with even more supporters than they had before. The only looser in here is the UDUB regime and Daahir Riyaale in particular. Cago-juglaynta caruurta ayaa lagu cabsiiya. Ina Rag, cadaalad ayaa deeqda oo ku qancaa.

^^ Cadde Muuse waa nin daacada oo runta aan ka gaban. Its those who support the Warlord/Yey that are having hard time working with this honest man. Very few politicians honour those who do them favours when they are in need. Cadde is one those politicians that still remembers the goodwill that Somaliland had provided him when he was facing total elimination by the Warlord/Yey. What cemented this goodwill, I presume, is how Somaliland stepped in and took a peaceful position in as far as the fued between Cadde and Yey was concerned. Somaliland never armed nor tried to take advantage of the fued. I believe, that is the reason why he still dumbfounded about the whole thing. Halkee lagu arkay dad intay ku soo dhaweeyan waliba ku yidhaa si nabad ah dalkaagi ayaan kuugu celinaynaa? Anyways, he is the sort of man Somaliland can work with to bring about lasting peace and stability to the region.

Everything is coming back to normal. The town has been secured and local policemen keep an eye on the streets for troublemakers around the clock.

General Morgan maanu ahayn ninkii yidhi "maanta laga bilaabo shacab ayaan ahay oo siyaasaddi waan isaga hadhay" on public radio? I remember Duke and his folks coming here saying "Morgan ayaa soo socda, Morgaan ayaa Kaabiga Kismaayo ku soo haya, Margan ayaa sacaado ka bacdi weer soo qaadi doona". And the next thing you hear "Morgan ayaa la sii baacsanayaa", "Morgan ayaa firxadkiisi Kenya galay". Anyways, he is by all standards the BIGGEST LOOSER. Dagaal u galay oon la soo baacsan sida xoolaha ma jirto. It was Indho Cade's boys that disabled his small melitia when they chased Morgan the 400KM track ilaa uu xadka Kenya ka talaabay.

Wafdi ka socda hay’ada WFP oo maanta soo gaadhay magalaada Laascaanood (Daawo Sawiro). Waxaa maanta soo gaadhay xarunta Gobolka Sool wafdi ka socda hay’ada WFP oo ah hay’ada cunada aduunka masuuliyiintan ka socday hay’adan ayaa waxa ay shir la qaateen masuuliyiinta Gobolka ee maamulka Somaliland iyagoo ka wada hadlay xalaada Gobolka. Wafdidan ayaa waxa ay kasoo kicitimeen xarunta maamulka Somaliland ee Hargeisa waxaana ay socdaalkoodan ku wajahnaa si ay u eegaan xaalada ka jirta Gobolka xag nabad galyo iyo waliba dhamaanba arimaha Bulshada oo ay dadku si wayn utabayaan. Hay’adan ayaan horay u imaan Gobolka tan iyo intii uu la wareegay maamulka Somaliland wallow uu horay uyimi masuul ka socda UN security kaas oo eegay xaalada nabad galyo ee Gobolka ugu danbayntiina si wayn ula dhacay nabada taal Gobolka oo aan oolin inta badan Gobolada dalka. Masuuliyiintan ka socda Hay’adan ayaa waxa ay shirar la galaeen maamulka Gobolka oo ay ka wada hadleen xaalada nabad galyo ee Gobolka iyo sida ugu sahlan ee ay hay’adan uga dhaqaajin karto Gobolka mashaariicda uu xaqa ulee yahay si nabad galyo ah. Masuuliyyinta Gobolka iyo kuwa Degmada oo ay kala hogaaminayeen Gudoomiye kixigeem Gobolka Maxamed Axmed Faarax (IndhoBuur) iyo Duqa Degamada Laascaanood Canbaashe aw Daahir iyo masuuliyiin kale oo kamid ah gudida nabadgalayada ee Gobolka ayaa waxa ay hay’ada kala hadleen sidii ay usii dayn lahayd mashaariicda Gobolka uuna Gobolku yahay mid amaan ah. Hadaba masuuliyyinta hay’adan ayaa waxa ay socdaal ku mareen kadib markii uu dhamaaday shirkaasi qaybo kamid ah magaalada sida Isbitaalka,Iskoolaadka magaalada,qaybta qashinka oo ubaahan in wax laga qabto,iyo waliba airport ka magaalada. Ugu danbayntii masuuliyiintan ka socday hay’adan ayaa waxa ay balan qaadeen inay usii dayn doonaan dhamaanba qaybaha ay mareen mashaariicdooda iyo waliba adeega WFP ay ku bixiso Iskoolaadka iyo Isbitaalada kuwaas oo ah cuno iyadoo ay sidoo kalena ay balan qaadeen in ay airport ka magaalada wax ka qabanayaan.

Gudoomiye ku Xigeenka Gobolka Sool Indhobuur oo ka Warbixiyey Waxqabadka Maamulkiisa qabtay Warkii 13-Dec-2007 iyo Qormadii: Ahmed Abdulahi Binow Gudoomiye ku xigeenka Gobolka Sool ahna kusimaha Gudoomiyaha Max’ed Max’ud Faarax oo aannu waraysi la yeelanay ayaa wuxuu ka waramay horumarka SL ka qabatay gobolka mudadii yarayd ee ay maamulka gobolka gacanta ku hayeen. G/ku xigeenku wuxuu sheegay in gobolkiisa laga bilaabay wax qabadkii ugu horreeyey ee ugu balaadhnaa ee laga hirgeliyo gobolka Sool wixii ka dambeeyey xiligii burburkii Somaliya, isagoo ka tibaaxay wax qabadkaas: * Dib u habayn guriga gobolka * Dib u habayn Saldhiga booliska * Dib u habayn guriga dawladda hoose * Dhisid wadada cusbitaalka * Dayactirka laamiga isku xidha Lascanod iyo Burco Wuxuu kaloo G/ku xigeenku sheegay in ay qorshaysan tahay in dhakhso wax looga qabto xaga biyaha, dhismayaasha waxbarashada iyo wadada labaad ee magaalada ee xaga hawdka u baxda. G/ku xigeenku wuxuu sheegay in gobolku u baahanyahay horumar dadka degaanka u dhashayna ay tahay in ay ka fekeraan sidii degaankooda loo horumarin lahaa kana wada shaqeeyaan wixii gobolka horumar u siyaadinaya wuxuuna booriyey in la adkeeyo nabadgelyada, deris wanaagga, wada noolaanshaha, maamul wanaagga, wadatashiga iwm, isla markaana meel uga soo wada jeestaan wixii dib u dhac u keenaya sida: dagaalka, isku dirka, been abuurka, anshax xumada iwm. G/ku xigeenku wuxuu ugu baaqay dadka reer Sool in wixii khilaaf iyo ismaandhaaf ah lagu dhameeyo wada hadal iyo nabadgelyo, wuxuuna ka digey wixii qalalaase iyo dhib bulshada u keenaya, wuxuuna soo dhoweeyey cid kasta oo wax qabad iyo horumar ku soo kordhinaysa gobolka. Afnugaal

Oodweyne, Frankly speaking, I would be more inclined to take them seriously if they were advocating for a PAN Abyssinia ideology (Haile Salaase's ideology). That is more fitting than anything else. PS Read here about Mohamed Cabdille Xassan's son and his relationship to Haile Salaase's PAN Abyssinia Project. The author is no other than the heavyweight Axmed Maxamed Adan (Qaybe) from Buuhoodle. Xiin: "the man is hoping to replace the very people (Yey, and co.) whose supporters he harshly rebuked as far as their current relationship with Pentagon or Ethiopia is concern" In what way does Somaliland want to replace the warlord ridden TFG, xiinow? Is Rayaale being groomed for Mogadishu? Surely, you are not suggesting that having a healthy and matual relationship with other countries is bad at all? And surely, you are not saying that, Somaliland can't defend itself and is so desperate like the overly Defeated Lot, that they will run to Xabashi to defend themselves? Maybe quoting Cadde's famous admission comes in handy to put the point across. Cadde Muse : Anagaa u yeeray Amxaarada iyo Ciidanka Ethiopia waxayna difaacayaan Dhulkayaga anigu dantayda waa aqaana, hadii aan qariyo oon been ka sheego soo ma noqonaayo nin beenaale ah, sidee baa ii aaminaysaan waxaan ahay m/waynihii dalka. Waa loo wada jeeda barqo cad ayay yimaadeen oo soo galeen gudadaha dalka. Translation: I was the one who asked for the Ethiopians and their army to come to defend us. I am a man who knows what is best [for the country]. How else can you trust me if I lie about their presence? They came inside the country in daylight and everybody knows about it. PuntlandPost.com

Nin ayaa laga hayey laba walba isa saaray laba tagoogo waligay isma saarin. Xabashi xeebta ku xaara waaan filaayey laakin Xabashi maasijkii ilaahay saxaro la soo raadsada waa wax aad looga naxo.

^^true that the Somaliland borders were built by colonialists, so has every other African country. Big deal!! But it is very upsetting that you think "it is time" at this juncture in history when Mogadishu itself is under occupation for Somaliland to join, when any other Somali person would have urged otherwise!!! It is very telling indeed. Anyways, sxb, waxba ha is wareerin. 50 years later, Somaliland will still be Somaliland. Wax aanad waxba ka qaban karayn wakhti la iskagama lumiyo. Adigu Somaliland ayaa ka hadlaysaa, I am more concerned about what will happen when Mogadishu is freed, will Mogadishu people think twice about sharing a country with those that invited and ululated for the Xabashi occupation? I think time will tell.

Rudy Those are no Somali. Most likely Eritrean or Ethiopian.

Egal international airport I landed at Egal international airport about 4 o’clock in the evening. The airport was small but was getting bigger and better. The son of the man with the whitespear (Waranadde) is said to be doing very well and expectations were high. I left the airport towards the main town. The road was unwelcoming; it was rough small and dilapilitated. I could not believe that this was the road leading to the national airport. From the high grounds of the airport, Hargeisa looked just fabulous. The two hills Naso Hablood… the “breasts of Girls” overlooking the town from the north give Hargeisa a rare graceful look. However, regrettably one of the breasts has been damaged. Some suspected foul play, others suspect neglect. At night, Hargiesa looked even more beautiful with its valleys and hills. However the town lacked three essentials… good roads, good running water and reliable electricity. I landed at Imperial hotel in the vicinity of the old government secretariat. From my residence to down town Hargeisa, I usually took a bus. The bus system was frequent, cheap and lively. By the way Hargeisa has no street names, no street numbers and no traffic nights. That took me unaware. On my way to down town Hargeisa, we went through an extremely congested road. The road was rough, small and completely potholed. People observe no traffic rules and do not see that as a problem. I saw donkeys, cows, sheep, goats and even monkeys on the road without anyone raising an eyebrow. The beast of burden; the donkey pulled a cart in front of us; however we tried, we could not pass. “What a mess,” I said to the man sitting next to me in the bus. He replied rather loudly, “this is Hargeisa; we are at peace with ourselves and with our animals. Do you want us to become like Mogadishu…my way or no way mentality? “But is it okay for animals, cars and people to use the same road”? I asked. “It is okay with us. This is a democratic country; both people and animals have rights. The road is for all and nobody has the right to restrict its use or exclude others”. Another man jumped on the scene and said, “We made a lot of sacrifice to get to where we are, we don’t like somebody to tell us what to do and what not to do. But I said, “Is it not chaotic this way… is it not dangerous this way. I don’t mean to take away your rights or your democracy, but can’t you have some sort of order… some sort of rule… I mean democracy with an order”. While the discussion was going on, a flock of sheep passing the road stopped us for a while. Some minutes later, the car in front of us stopped and the driver went out to get some thing from a shop in the street. We waited for him too, but for him it was business as usual. Two cars approached us from the wrong side of the road and I was scared but no one else was. To them the situation looked very normal. “You have a lot of patience here,” I said. A woman sitting some seats away from me retorted, “Yes patience is our virtue here, otherwise life would be difficult. The only thing we have here is peace of mind. We don’t want to lose even that. You may not be aware, but I tell you; there is order in our disorder. We know both war and peace and we have chosen peace over war. We have seen powerful governments and weak governments; we have chosen a government that gets its strength from the people. A government that knows its survival depends on the support of its people not one that imposes its will on the throat of its people”. While the discussion was going on, the bus stopped and I jumped out of the bus to see my brother in one of the hotels. Imperial Hotel A monkey business: I left the bus very cautiously because the door opened on the road side which was dangerous. I met my brother in front of the hotel and we decided to go to a tea shop and have a tea there and discus family matters for I haven’t seen him for more than thirty years. It was an emotional reunion. Before we went for the tea, he asked me to see his room to witness a monkey business for myself. A monkey slipped into his room and made a monkey out of his belongings. He destroyed his glasses, destroyed his diabetic medicine and a whole lot more of monkey business. What is the monkey doing in town anyway, I asked myself. We left the room and went to the hotel management. I asked him about the monkey business in the hotel. The manager calmly and coolly replied, “There are a lot of monkeys in the vicinity of the hotel and one must be careful not to leave windows open, other wise this monkey business is hard to avoid here”. Judging from the damage the monkey has done, we concluded that the monkey was drugged with Qat. If anything goes wrong in Hargeisa suspect Qat. Qat is the real culprit in Hargeisa. Set a thief a thief: I stayed a couple of hours with my brother after which I retired to my Residence. At around eight o’clock my friends Dr Osman and Professor Hero came to me in the hotel. We decided to go down town and see Hargeisa’s main business centre. We took a car and went to the heart of Hargeisa’s business. We could not get a parking space for some time. But at last we settled for a small parking space far away from where we wanted to park. We walked through the narrow but densely populated streets. The streets were full of goods; all kinds of goods and in the open. The amount of goods lying in the open was amazing. We asked our selves how could all these goods be transported at night and returned in the morning. And do they have such big warehouses that can store all these goods. We decided to ask them. We asked the guys who were selling some electronics, how do they transport all those goods at night to safe custody. The guys gave us a big smile and said it is not what you think. Nobody in his right mind can take these goods to storage houses. It is both difficult and expensive. We don’t have even storage houses. We sell here and store here in the open. At night, when business comes to an end, we just cover the goods and leave it here. We come back in the morning and uncover it. That is all. “Are you implying that there are no thieves here in Hargeisa”? We asked.“We are not implying anything. We are just telling you facts. But since you mentioned thieves and theft, we are glad to tell you that we have made an agreement with the union of the thieves to take care of our goods in our absence. Since then our goods are in good safe hands… the good hands people… the thieves. The competition as you see is tough here and one has to be innovative to survive,” they said. We left them amazed and in fact humbled. Hargeisa is a town that never seizes to amaze its visitors. I remembered the old British wisdom which says, ‘set a thief a thief’. I never thought in my wildest dreams that such a saying could work in Hargeisa before that day. It is heartening to witness that Hargeisa has come to terms with its own thieves. The peace and stability that Hargeisa has chosen as a way of life, turned thieves into useful citizens. While Hargeisa has rehabilitated its thieves, in sharp contrast, Mogadishu could not even rehabilitate its Sheikhs. A street in Hargeisa Hargeisa is fishy: One day my friend took me for lunch to a fashionable newly opened restaurant called Tourist Hotel. I never expected to find fish in Hargeisa’s restaurants. When we sat, the waiter came and my friend ordered fish for both of us. I had Qat the previous day and I did care less what type of food I eat, but fish has never been my favorite food. But when the fish arrived, it was spicy and delicious. I told my friend that the fish was superbly prepared. He told me fish is the most favorite dish in Hargeisa and that is why I brought you here in the first place. I knew you would like it. Hargeisa has gone a long way in its fishy diet. In my old Hargeisa, there were no fishy foods at its restaurants. The fish from Berbera has invaded Hargeisa, and Hargeisa has fallen in love with the fishy foods with good reason, it is healthy and it is one of our natural resources. It is a big addition to the diet menu of Hargeisa. The fish is now known to be friendly with the heart. The heart loves fish, because the fishy foods fight the enemy of the heart… the bad cholesterol. As a result the fishy fish was no longer fishy in Hargeisa, but became the darling of the heart and soul of Hargeisa and rightly so, the favorite camel meat has been relegated to second or even third position A drug of choice: I am not a habitual Qat eater. But if you are in Rome you will do what the Romans do. My friends invited me one day for a Qat chewing session. They took us where the Qat is sold. One of the amazing things about the Qat sale was, almost all the retailing was done by women. It was a common sight to see a woman selling Qat under an old umbrella and behind her sat and chewed Qat a number of men. The ladies did not chew but only sold the drug. We took Qat by the kilo— three kilos to be precise and went to a fashionable house to chew. The room was lavishly decorated with pillows and mattresses. Tea and lots of water were served. We sat and the Qat was distributed accordingly. I insisted not to chew the Qat. But I accepted one branch so that I could be made busy like the rest. After I accepted one branch, each threw one branch at me and I graciously accepted. Before the Qat was eaten, some insisted that it should be thoroughly washed to remove toxics from the pesticides which were used to protect the shrub from insects. If the washing did not remove all the toxics, then Qat chewing posed potential danger to our society. I started eating the Qat instead of chewing it like the rest. Within no time, I had eaten all the seven or eight branches. We began to talk. Every one wanted to talk first. The session was chaotic. They say Qat is a stimulant, at the beginning and a tranquilizer at the end. So Qat eaters undergo periods of euphoria and depression— the Qat syndrome. I saw those periods in our session. At the beginning of the session every body wanted to speak. At the end of session, each spoke with the one sitting next to him in a low subdued voice. Qat is the drug of choice here; it fills your stomach, empties your pockets and shakes your mind. It is hard to live with it and hard to live without it. I was the first to get high and I started to lecture about female genital mutilation which I have written a book about, the dangers of irresponsible press, and of Qat eating. It was obvious to me that my lecture fell on deaf ears gauged by the cool response I received. One of my friends jokingly said, “we eat Qat here otherwise we will fight ourselves, we mutilate the genitals of our daughters so that they don’t become wild, time will take care of our irresponsible press. So my dear friend, there is a method in our apparent madness”. I left the session rather subdued and feeling heavy. I retired to my Imperial Residence to eat and sleep. But I was not in an eating mood for I lost my appetite due to the Qat. I went to my room to relax and sleep but I couldn’t sleep. All the Qat I have eaten was sitting in my stomach like a rock. I went to the toilet and threw all that I have eaten. I got a temporary relief, but some discomfort persisted. I was sure that I had a Qat poisoning. I called my Doctor for help. I asked him what type of medicine I should take. “Don’t take any medicine, because there is no medicine in the medicine here. Take a bottle of seven up. It is a better medicine than the medicine they sell here,” said my friend. A friend of mine visited me the following day. I told him about my Qat poisoning. “I think you have not eaten enough. We have a saying here, Qat yaraan buu Kugu dilaa— eat a kilo today and you will be fine. Take it from me; take it from the horse’s mouth, because qat was and still is an integral part of my daily diet and for heaven’s sake don’t accuse Qat for all of our ills. When I have a tree of Qat in my left hand and a packet of cigarettes in my right hand, I feel I have the whole world at my finger tips”. I took that as a joke, but my friend was dead serious. The Ethnic Purity: Being away from Somaliland for a long time, you will be confronted with a crude reality; the ethnic purity— the monoculture. In Hargeisa all speak Somali, smell Somali, read Somali, write Somali, eat Somali food and do politics the Somali way. But at the same time, they swear that they are all different. I sat in a tea shop to witness this one race one culture thing. But to my surprise I saw a lot of diversity within the monoculture — at least in physical appearance. As I saw people pass, I saw women dressed differently, some wore the hijab; the Somali way; some the Talibani way; and yet others the Arab way. Some wore no hijab and were content to dress the old fashioned Somali way. The men were equally clad with different dresses. Some wore the traditional Somali dress; others were dressed; like the Afghans; like the Arabs; like the Europeans; like the Americans etc. It looked to me that there was a multicultural diversity in Hargeisa contrary to my expectation. I wondered whether this type of diversity is a virtue in Hargeisa or whether it is real or artificial. [Telcom Somaliland Mobile phone booth] Mobile-mania There are a number of telephone providers in Hargeisa. Since competition is fierce, the telephone calls are cheaper compared to any other country I know. As a result the per capita mobile phone holders are possibly the highest in the world. Every body I know had a mobile. So Hargeisa as I saw was talking. People talked while they walked, while they sat, while they ate, while they chewed, while they drove cars on rough roads and that was the most dangerous of them all. Hence “he took the mobile” was coined which means he ran insane. Think of a mobile society with mobiles. Wherever you go or wherever you are, a mobile is ringing with different tones, ranging from favorite Somali songs to crying babies. The one that struck me was the tone of a mother shouting at her daughter. The mobile holder who struck me unaware was a man I thought to be a beggar was making calls. That may be the way of future begging. “This is a ‘miskeen’ call. You can’t see me; I am a ‘miskeen’ I have not eaten for days. Please help me and send your contribution through Dahab Shiil near Daalo airlines. I have a miskeen account there. God help those who help others. Thank you very much for your kind heart. May Allah bless you”. Think of twenty people or so chewing Qat each having a mobile. In every second there is a mobile ringing. Looks like a mad house. When the mobiles rang, some pressed the silencer, some said I will call you soon, even if they knew they will not call them back, some held the mobile in their hands and rushed out to talk in private. Mobiles made Hargeisa busy without business. When I left Hargeisa, Hargeisa was talking. It looked as though Hargeisa took the mobile. Or I may say; the mobile took Hargeisa. To be fair, I should not claim to know who took who, but definitely Hargeisa was infatuated with its mobiles and I expect the love affair to continue. Female Genital Mutilation: Subjecting young girls to pharoic circumcision is a heinous act perpetuated by mothers who want to protect their daughters. The criminal ritual is not rooted in our Somali culture or to our Islamic religion. Circumcised girls are known to suffer a life long; psychological, medical, and social trauma? The perverted logic is that the FGM protects girls from sexual intercourse before marriage. But we know that is not true. It has never protected a girl from being sexually active. In fact circumcision and infibulations provide false protection… try it, I am closed. It is also ludicrous to suggest that our girls are more promiscuous compared to girls say from Saudi Arabia who never heard circumcision as a method of protecting girls’ chastity. It is equally ludicrous to suggest that our boys want to have mutilated and destroyed girls as life partners. The ritual is banned in almost all countries of the world including our next door neighbor Djibouti. I asked a lot of people about the ritual, to my surprise nobody was in favor of it. In fact almost everybody knew the damage it perpetrates on our girls. But no one wanted to stop it for reasons I don’t understand. I asked an organization combating the ritual about the extent of the damage and I was told that the cruel knifing knife is still very much at work. They assured me that 98% still under go the cruel ritual. And to add insult to injury, girls from Europe and North America are brought to be mutilated and sealed… a process known as ‘reconditioning’. I want this weapon of mass genital destruction to be laid down to rest…it puts more than 50% of our people at risk. The best way to avoid sex before marriage is to teach our girls like the rest of girls in the Islamic world to say no; put the responsibility at their door steps. Hablaha Tii Hanweine Hal adagba Haleyn Habadeede: Haye fudud, Haye, Habeenka lahaabay Hubsiimadu Habooneyd. Girls’ protection is not about building walls, it is about responsibility…Haye fudud; easy yes to sexual predators, as the song says, is the real problem. Teach them to say just no. Mutilation of the genitals is destruction not protection. Mutilation is incompatible with the preservation of the integrity of women. It is a violation of human rights. A mother, who mutilates the genitals of her daughter because she loves her, sounds like the man who said; I killed my wife because I loved her. Dr. Omar Ibrahim Hussein Email: Omarh1980@hotmail.com

It's baffling, quite frankly, to see that there are still people who are hopeful of a reconstituted and re-united Somalia after 17 years. It seems these people have not yet come to terms with the reality on the ground that a re-union IS NOT an option at all. There are only 3 options on the table: 1. A continued stalemate/status-quo/civil unrest and conflict in that part of the world 2. A one-sided dissolvent of the union akin to the Kosovo issue as of now 3. A matual agreement on dissolving the union of the 1960 Henceforth, Option#1 has been the case. But the clock is ticking towards to Option#2, as many international actors loose hope of Option#3. That said, the reconstitution of Somalia will only become an option if the Somaliland populace change their current position through a Referendum.

Countdown to Kosovan independence Kosovo could be independent from Serbia early next year, following the collapse of talks over its future, and despite opposition from Belgrade and Moscow. The timetable is now clear. There will be no hasty unilateral declaration of independence this week. But it will be soon: probably in January. It is all being carefully co-ordinated with Kosovo's pro-independence allies - the United States, Britain, France, and Germany. They will recognise the new state quickly, open diplomatic relations, exchange ambassadors. Serbia will refuse to recognise it and will be supported by Russia, which is hostile to breakaway regions within its own borders. Kosovo is where it all began, 20 years ago. Yugoslavia's bloody disintegration, the descent into barbarism, the coining of a grim new euphemism to add to the lexicon of conflict: "ethnic cleansing". This is where Slobodan Milosevic established himself as the champion of the Serbian nation. 'Famous battle' He stood in front of a crowd of a million Serbs at a rally to mark the anniversary of the battle of Kosovo in 1389 - the battle in which the Serbs were defeated by the Turks - and rallied the nation to what he said was a new fight for national survival. The legend of 1389 has given Kosovo a mythical, almost mystical significance in Serbian nationalism. It is also - appropriately - the place from which Milosevic launched what was to be a series of wars - in Slovenia, in Croatia, in Bosnia, and finally Kosovo itself. The arc of Milosevic's life reads like a character written by Goethe. There was something Faustian in the pact he made with the twin demons of Balkan nationalism and war. They kept him in power for a while. War was his power base. But they destroyed him in the end. 'Disastrous experiment' And now the Serbs - and Serbia itself - are paying the price of that disastrous experiment in ethnic supremacy. I remember them at their hubristic high water mark. The territories held by the Serbs swept across the western Balkans, observing no legal frontiers. All of Serbia, including Kosovo, all of Montenegro, two thirds of independent Bosnia, one third of Croatia they held. I was there the day they unfurled the maps of the state they proclaimed as Greater Serbia: bearded men in World War Two uniforms of the Serbian royalist Chetnik forces, self-consciously atavistic, fighting and killing and dying to avenge an injustice that had begun in the 14th Century. All the Serb lands west of the Drina River were to be renamed Western Serbia. Serbia would now stretch to the gleaming Adriatic at the Croatian port of Zadar. And the non-Serbs whose homes are on those territories, who have been driven out, ethnically cleansed, we asked. What was to become of them? Frankly, they did not give a damn. There was an old nationalist song they used to sing. "Who dares say it, who dares tell the lie, that Serbia is small?" they sang. "It is not small, it is not small". Well it is small now. First the Serbs lost their territories in Croatia. Then the Serbs in Bosnia - under immense military and diplomatic pressure - agreed to be part of an independent Bosnian state. Serb identity Even Montenegro abandoned them. And finally, now, the cradle of Serbian national identity, Kosovo. There was a time when a declaration of independence would have plunged this region back into full scale war. Will it this time? Few here think so. And here's why. Wars in the Balkans do not happen spontaneously. They have to be planned, organised, funded, resourced, armed, equipped, guided. Milosevic threw the weight of the entire state behind the effort of the 1990s. It was a huge mobilisation. There is no state in the Balkans ready or able to make that sacrifice now. Serbia is in no condition to launch an invasion to retake Kosovo by force. Even if it were, it is doubtful that Serbian public opinion would, this time, walk hand in hand with the project. Serbia will be angry and resentful - but most Serbs now want to get on with the business of becoming a normal European country. Criminal haven Britain and America have become the most important sponsors of independence, because they think that without it there can be no economic progress, and without economic progress, Kosovo will continue its dangerous slide into criminality. It is already a haven for drug smuggling and people trafficking - a headache that is felt across the European Union and beyond. One pro-independence Western diplomat here likened the situation to Northern Ireland. Your Paddy Ashdown," he said, referring to the former International High Representative in Bosnia. "Your Paddy Ashdown put it well when he said that there were some nations who forfeited the moral authority to govern - the moral claim to sovereignty - simply by dint of their own actions. That was true of the British in Ireland 80 years ago. It's true of Serbia's historic claim to Kosovo now," he said. But there could be consequences, the most important of these in Bosnia. 'Violent unravelling' Bosnia remains territorially divided under the terms of a peace treaty that ended the war there 12 years ago. Fifty per cent of Bosnian territory is controlled by Bosnian Serbs. They might well now unfurl those old maps again, follow Kosovo's example and declare themselves not part of Bosnia at all but - as they once aspired to become - western Serbia. And that, rather than Kosovo itself, could be the start of a dangerous, and perhaps violent, unravelling. From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Saturday, 8 December, 2007 at 1130 GMT on BBC Radio 4. Please check the programme schedules for World Service transmission times.