War, Women and Education

[Alle-ubaahne]

Rising from the ashes of war

 

Prof. M. J. Farah

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

 

 

 

Rising from the ashes of Somalia’s devastating civil war is an image so powerful, it could help provide a solution to the never ending devastation: educated Somali women. Women with the power and knowledge to pass their education to their offspring have the chance to construct a healthy and successful society from the chaotic rubble of war. Civil war, centering around the capitol city of Mogadishu, began on the morning of New Year’s Eve in 1991 and has evolved into a huge life-sucking black hole, from which there seems no escape. But, that’s what black holes do; they devour everything around them, and nothing gets out.

 

 

 

 

 

A woman named Asha, 19 years old on that New Year’s Day in 1991, and her family were amongst those swallowed up by Somalia’s swirling black hole. Like most of Somalia’s young women, she was uneducated, married, and already the mother of two sons. As the fog of war engulfed Mogadishu, she and her family decided to stay, rather than move away. As often happens in tribal conflicts, Asha encouraged her husband to fight for their tribe’s honor and dignity. After all, that’s a woman’s role in Somalia.

 

 

 

Shortly after joining the fight, Asha’s husband was killed, another casualty of the civil war. His death created three more casualties; Asha and her two sons, left without a father/husband to survive on their own. Instead of fleeing Mogadishu, Asha decided to stay there, while her sons have become warriors and potential future casualties of war.

 

 

 

With no particular skills or work experience, Asha, like most Somali women, was a stay at home mom, while her husband was the bread winner. While marriage and raising families is certainly encouraged in any society, it has become equally important for young women to seek higher education in many countries of the world, but not in Somalia.

 

 

 

It is time for this to change.

 

 

 

If Asha had been able to seek an education, her sons might likewise have carried schoolbooks instead of AK47s, which they’ve been doing now for four years. Even today, there are exceptions to Asha and 99% of her countrywomen, and Asha Geele Diiriye, a Minister of Women’s Affairs in Puntland, a regional state of Somalia. In December of 2008, she initiated a meeting in order to persuade a group of rival presidential candidates from engaging in war. Armed to the teeth, they could easily have used battle instead of ballots to settle their differences.

 

 

 

Diiriye asked that they engage in a civil political discourse, and to respect the outcome of planned elections. As a result of that meeting, the candidates held a joint conference and publically announced they would set aside their differences and respect the election results. Diiriye’s direct involvement, telling the candidates, “You can respectfully disagree, but do not resort to violence and respect the outcome of the election,” had turned the tide. She spoke…..they listened.

 

 

 

Had 19-year-old Asha been given the opportunity of education, perhaps her two sons would have been influenced by a speech similar to Diiriye’s. Or, her whole family may have moved away as the fog of war rolled in, and her husband would be alive today. Mothers are the foundation of every family. It is known that behind many successful men, there is a strong woman. For instance, President Barack Obama is married to a remarkable and intelligent woman, Michelle Obama. Michelle holds degrees from two Ivy League universities and is an asset to both the President and their family. Also, she is a role model to women worldwide.

 

 

 

There is an African proverb that says, “If you educate a boy, you educate an individual, but, if you educate a girl, you educate a community.”

 

 

 

For the sake of Somalia, let the education begin.

 

 

 

Prof. M. J. Farah

 

Sahan93@gmail.com

 

 

 

M. J. Farah is an independent analyst, lecturer, writer, entrepreneur, and he currently reside in the Unites States.

 

Source: www.hiiraan.com

[FatB]

mj... classic!

[Fluid]

Macha Allah .. this is a nice post.

[Blessed]

Hear, Hear! Tell that to SOLs very own KBDS who seem to break out in rashes when education and Somali women are put in the same paragraph.

[Malika]

^It will take time,for transition to happen as perhaps those you mentioned are still bound by traditional mentality of roles of women in their society.Not realising,social roles have really nothing to do with one's sex characteristics hence the lack or limited appreciation of what a woman is,can be and will be if she is educated.

 

Indeed,let education begin..

[Paragon]

^What's the gist of it?

[Malika]

^The gist of education or educated woman? The gist was,and is for women to be given equal opportunity to education,which will enable them to develop skills and allow them to make decision and influence our society's change..Just an example of what I call traditional mentality,the gogool aka gaar,this is were major decisions are made in our nomadic culture and women are not invited to participate..why? even though,there we are equally intelligent and resourceful.

[Paragon]

I am very pro-education but not so very pro-mixing haween in gar issues. That's a lethal combination, really. Unless they'll be allowed to carry baakoorad as well.

[xiinfaniin]

Originally posted by Malika:

Just an example of what I call traditional mentality,the gogool aka gaar,this is were major decisions are made in our nomadic culture and women are not invited to participate..why? even though,there we are equally intelligent and resourceful.

Any chance that good Malika’s sentiment in this post has been prompted by my comment in the gar session between ninkii waallaa iyo Hunguri?

[Qandalawi]

Excellent article, the key word here is education for girls from a young age.

 

Not women

[Malika]

^Doesn't a girl grow to be a woman?

 

xiin, maya aboowe,It is the reality of 'our ways' dee,which I think has to change..The era of sitting under a tree for days on end playing Shah,and drinking Shaah pretending to be so important is gone,time for progress,waqti lamaa hayo! 20 sod years and peace/prosperity/development is still illusive..

[LayZie G.]

J11, if you would be so kind as to define gar and gar issues, only then would people understand your opposition to mixing genders on such an important issue.(after all u oppose the idea, so it must be important)

 

Just like anything in life, before you assign ownership, you have to define it and ask yourself the central issue. Does it have an impact? Why and why not? Above all, what is its significant, the gar issue that is?

 

C'mon, own up to your gar issue and dazzle me so I too can oppose such gender interactions and the power of one.

[Muriidi]

educated somali women!

i hated them...

cowards who fueled somali tribal war and helped spread it to other cultures..

what makes them any different than the educated somali men who are too scared to spell their last names 'cause they might lose their jobs if they don't call their bosses "pappa" ___lol

 

the industrial rovolution is over,it's too late to start educating women in particular.

special education just for women will not be financed!you can even sepperate the classrooms but not the content of the lecture.

i hate those preachers who teach women only about their periods and how to obey men...but at least they were teaching them to obey their own husbands.

and teaching men how to treat women and children:

be very nice to them ,if they disobey you hit them.sounds like too brutal and intellectually insulting even for pets.would anyone treat their housecat the way they preached to treat women and children? yes i mean those paltalk preachers.

 

the only special treatment women get from men should be based on lust!

[SeeKer]

Originally posted by muriidi:

the only special treatment women get from men should be based on lust!

:rolleyes: And here I was thinking the Neanderthal man was evolved. Quick someone call the museum of Natural Science

[Paragon]

Seeker, do you know who you are addressing my dear?

 

Originally posted by LayZie G.:

J11, if you would be so kind as to define gar and gar issues, only then would people understand your opposition to mixing genders on such an important issue.(after all u oppose the idea, so it must be important)

 

Just like anything in life, before you assign ownership, you have to define it and ask yourself the central issue. Does it have an impact? Why and why not? Above all, what is its significant, the gar issue that is?

 

C'mon, own up to your gar issue and dazzle me so I too can oppose such gender interactions and the power of one.

Lazy, my dear, you misunderstand me! I do not oppose mixing men and women in gar issues because of gender, no. You see I am with you (meaning you girls ) on this one (and many others), but what makes me raise the alarm has alot to do with 'health and safety'.

 

You see, these gar issues are highly dangerous and are not contrained to 'af-ka-hadal' only but things often, quite easily, accelerate toward 'gacan-ka-hadal', where the Baakoorad does all the talking.

 

So Lazy, do you think that sort of melee (think: Somali parliamentarian chair-throwing hustle in Nairobi) is really the sort of gathering Somali women want to be part of? I mean why should they suffer bruises just because two elders had found the need to have an ego-testical tear-up?

 

That's why I added 'unless they'll be allowed to cary Baakoorad as well' in my earlier post. I can be a reasonable man you know? He thinks about the safety of others before his.