Somalis yearn for the return of Islamic Courts rulers

[Juje]

Somalis yearn for the return of Islamic Courts rulers

 

'If the Islamic Courts came back, not just this area but the whole of Somalia will be safer'

 

The ruins of the old sugar factory in Marere, in the southern interior of Somalia, tower over the wooden shacks and brick huts which shelter the 2,000 or so people still living here. This used to be the second-largest sugar factory in the world, employing more than 20,000 people. Now, its rusting steel frame, chimneys and pipes sunk deep into the tall grass provide a painful echo of the wreck which Somalia has become.

 

 

 

Everything worth anything has gone, the scrap metal systematically torn off and shipped to India or old equipment taken by scavengers to be sold off at the market in nearby Jilib.

 

"Maybe one day someone will rebuild it," said Abdirizak Hassan Moalim, squinting into the sun. The 21-year-old has been living in a village near the sugar factory for two months after fleeing the violence in Somalia's capital Mogadishu. "It needs to be safe here first though," he added. "There was a chance under the Courts, but now, I don't know." Six months after the fall of Somalia's Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), insecurity has returned to the country.

 

 

In this rural district in the south, where in the past 12 months floods have followed drought, the rule of the gun is back. The government has failed to take control, leaving Marere and the surrounding areas in limbo.

 

The UIC controlled Marere and the neighbouring district of Jilib for just three months at the end of last year. After Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, fell to the government and its Ethiopian allies at the end of December, the Courts melted away.

 

Local people, from teen-agers to elders, now talk of the brief period of rule by the Islamic Courts in wistful tones. For the first time in a generation, there was a level of security in the district that few had believed was possible. The various clan-based militias which terrorised the region, setting up checkpoints and settling disputes with guns, buried their arms.

 

Before the Courts' arrival, there had been nine roadblocks along the route from Marere to Kismaayo, a port town roughly 100 miles away. Controlled by individual militia groups, they demanded money from everyone who passed. Under the Courts, the roadblocks disappeared.

 

The effect was immediate. The price of food in Marere fell as traders travelling from Kismaayo no longer had to factor in the cost of roadblocks. The cost of travelling between Marere and Kismaayo also fell - from 100,000 shillings to just 30,000. One commodity increased in price: cigarettes. The Courts banned smoking, along with the chewing of khat, a mild narcotic popular throughout Somalia. The price of a packet of cigarettes rose from 6,000 shillings to 20,000. But strict conservative policies like this began to erode much of the UIC's popular support in Mogadishu.

 

With the demise of the Courts, the militias have dug up their weapons and the checkpoints and insecurity have returned. A vehicle belonging to Médicins Sans Frontières (MSF) was shot at two weeks ago. MSF, which runs a hospital and feeding centre in Marere, was forced to evacuate its small team of expatriate staff.

 

"If the Islamic Courts came back, not just this area but the whole of Somalia will be safer," said Mohammed Abdullahi Gure, chairman of Marere elders' committee. "People used to fear the Islamic Courts. The government does not have the holy Koran so they do not fear them." The UIC's presence in Marere district was limited, but effective, Mr Gure said. A commander was appointed, based in the village of Gududey. He had just one technical - the souped-up 4x4s armed with machine guns - and a handful of soldiers, but few were prepared to risk committing a crime.

 

"There wasn't a militia man who would move with guns," said Mr Gure. "They feared because they were told the Islamic Courts forces would have the Holy Koran as their guide." Without the sharia law which the UIC imposed, Mr Gure and his committee of elders are unable to keep the peace. There is no system of justice in Marere. The men who shot at MSF were forced to write a letter apologising for their actions but they continue to live freely in the community.

 

The weak transitional government is now entering its sixth month based in Mogadishu but it is still struggling to assert its authority, reliant on the support of Ethiopian troops. In an Ethiopian-led offensive in April, up to 400,000 people fled the capital as the government attempted to pacify an insurgency.

 

Mr Moalim lived in one of the areas deemed by the government to be home to remnants of the Islamic Courts' military wing, Al Shabbab. After two Ethiopian shells hit his home, he moved to GSB camp. "It is just not safe enough any more," he said.

 

As one of the few Somalis in this district to have received an education - he grew up in Kenya - Mr Moalim has found work as an English teacher, helping MSF's Somali staff master the basics. "I hope I can save enough to go to college. I would like to be a lab technician. My dream would be to return to Mogadishu and be safe there."

 

Source: Mathaba News Agency, June 16, 2007

[Socod_badne]

I don't blame them. What they had six month prior was infinitely better.

[Kashafa]

Local people, from teen-agers to elders, now talk of the brief period of rule by the Islamic Courts in

wistful tones

. For the first time in a generation, there was a level of security in the district that few had believed was possible. The various clan-based militias which terrorised the region, setting up checkpoints and settling disputes with guns, buried their arms.

If the Islamic Courts came back, not just this area

but the whole of Somalia will be safer

," said Mohammed Abdullahi Gure,

chairman of Marere elders' committee

. "People used to fear the Islamic Courts. The government does not have the holy Koran so they do not fear them." The UIC's presence in Marere district was

limited, but effective

, Mr Gure said. A commander was appointed, based in the village of Gududey. He had just

one technical

- the souped-up 4x4s armed with machine guns - and a handful of soldiers, but few were prepared to risk

committing a crime

.

There wasn't a militia man who would move with guns," said Mr Gure. "They feared because they were told the Islamic Courts forces would have the Holy Koran as their guide."

Without the sharia law which the UIC imposed

, Mr Gure and his committee of elders are

unable to keep the peace.

There is no system of justice in Marere

'Nuff said. Compare the Sharia-enforced ICU-era with the wave of dhac, dhil, and kufsi sweeping thru Kismayo. Yet, some deluded few will argue, in all seriousness, that Kismayo is peaceful and stable, that the ICU were 'tuugo with red cimaamads'. When people have unrelenting obsessions like "Kismayo anaka aa iska leh" or "Barre Hiraale is a god-king above all criticism", their credibility and intelligence suffers as well. This article is yet one more piece of international reporting that highlights the amazing and historical success of the Islamic Courts of Somalia.

 

Sabran brothers Gure and Moalim. The Courts, and Sharia law, will be back soon-time, Allah-willing, accompanied by the security and stability that we all crave.

[Gabbal]

Kashafa,

 

Barre Hiiraale miyaad adeer adiguna hal-qabsi ka dhigatay? I have not seen you write an article without mentioning Barre Hiiraale's name in any of your articles. Is Barre Hiiraale in Kismaayo? Has he been in Kismaayo? Have any of the things that occured in that city, starting with the second the Islamic Courts entered it, occurred under Hiiraale?

 

Adeer, fact is the so-called militiamen with red cimaamad were the first group to send Kismaayo back to earlier 90's conditions. Everything that has occurred in Kismaayo since then is a cycle engineered by the heinous crime committed against the people of Kismaayo that disturbed their livelihood.

 

Maybe you don't know Kismaayo or maybe you find it easy to make a case out of the daily diatribe by our shirt-changing charlatons, but this was Kismaayo under the so-called ICU, an unwanted alien entity the people of Kismaayo are glad to have seen the back off. Islam is not a political card adeer for a marauding militia that came out of nowhere.

 

[Gabbal]

Somali militia open fire at demonstrators

 

Thursday, September 28, 2006

By Nasteex Dahir Farah

The Associated Press

 

Kismayo, Somalia - Islamic fighters opened fire on stone throwing demonstrators in a key Somali seaport on Thursday, in a third day of protests over their seizure of the town. No casualties were reported.

 

Seven women were arrested by the Islamic militia after they joined demonstrations that have erupted in Kismayo, Somalia's third largest town, residents told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

 

The stone-throwing crowds chanted that the fighters "are not Muslims" and "use Islam as a cover."

 

The Islamic militia has swept through southern Somalia since taking over the capital in June. Its strict and often severe interpretation of Islam raises the spectre of Afghanistan's ousted Taliban militia, and contrasts with the moderate Islam that has dominated Somali culture for centuries. Some Somalis, though, have welcomed the order the militia have brought after years of anarchic clan rule.

 

In Kismayo on Thursday, demonstrators, most of them women and children, blocked roads with trees and rocks to prevent Islamic militia using their armoured trucks, many of which were flying the black flags associated with Islamic extremism, to break up the protests. Local businesses and markets closed down because of the demonstrations in this town 420km south-west of the capital, Mogadishu.

 

The militiamen, armed with guns and wearing green military fatigues and white headbands, patrolled the streets.

 

Adan Farah Sed told the AP by phone from Kismayo that residents felt threatened by the militiamen. Another resident, Adni Sagaro, said they should "go back to their bases and leave our city alone."

 

The militiamen had opened fire on a similar protest on Monday, a day after they took Kismayo without a fight. Witnesses said a teenager was killed and two others wounded.

 

On Wednesday 300 fighters surrendered their guns and armoured trucks to the Islamic militia and pledged to join their forces. Aden Hashi Ayro, the military chief of the Islamic group in Somalia, accepted the weapons, saying their aim "is to worship Allah and fight for the sake of Islam."

 

Ayro, who according to the UN is a suspected al-Qaeda collaborator who trained in al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan, said, "Among our militia will be Somalis and foreigners."

 

The United States has accused the Islamic group of sheltering suspects in the 1998 al-Qaeda bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden has portrayed Somalia as a battleground in his war on the US.

 

Somalia has not had an effective national government since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on one another, throwing the country into anarchy. The Islamic group has stepped into the power vacuum.

 

Source: AP, Sept 28, 2006

[xiinfaniin]

 

^^^Those qad merchants were loud in their protests and quite violent at times, yet small in numbers they were. They did not represent Kismayo’s silent majority. The city has in fact begun to flourish in that short period. And as the article above described, people generally welcomed Court’s men. Business men who were burdened by the heavy and unfair baad imposed by the moryaanis felt relieved. Even Kismayo’s men started to enlist with the Courts when the fateful days of Ethiopia’s invasion started to unfold…

 

So pictures of a minority group, nostalgic of the warlord era, does indeed fail to capture the cheerful feelings of the general public in Court’s days in Kismayo.

 

Ku dur-duri...

[Gabbal]

Clearly, one does not understand the concept of chain of events or the relevance of timespan. But then again, such responses are expected from more resentful corners.

 

They act as if this is the stone age and not the information age. The demonstrations started even before the militia entered the city of Kismaayo and continued as this article written three days after the takeover of Kismaayo is witness. Khat and the importation of khat was banned two weeks after the Courts settled. Look for another excuse.

[Gabbal]

A day after the ICU entered Kismaayo, and the AP writing of "thousands" continuing to protest for the second day.

 

 

By NASTEEX DAHIR FARAH

The Associated Press

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

 

KISMAYO, Somalia -- Women took to the streets of this strategic port town Tuesday to protest the arrival of a radical Islamic militia, one day after the militants opened fire on a larger protest here and killed a teenager.

 

Militiamen quickly broke up Tuesday's protest and arrested 20 women, according to relatives of the demonstrators who didn't want to be named for fear of reprisals. The militants also parked their "technicals" _ trucks mounted with guns _ along roads to prevent gatherings.

 

The group's strict and often severe interpretation of Islam raises memories of Afghanistan's Taliban, and contrasts with the moderate Islam that has dominated Somali culture for centuries. Somalis fleeing the conflict have pushed the number of refugees in neighboring Kenya to the highest level in a decade, the United Nations World Food Program said Tuesday.

 

The number of registered refugees in Kenya has reached 240,000, with thousands more new arrivals, straining resources severely, the U.N. said in a statement.

 

The United States has accused the Islamic group of sheltering suspects in the 1998 al-Qaida bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden has portrayed Somalia as a battleground in his war on the U.S.

 

Still, some Somalis have embraced the radicals because they have brought a semblance of order in a troubled corner of Africa.

 

The country's official government was formed two years ago with the support of the United Nations, but it has failed to establish any control outside its base in Baidoa, 150 miles from the capital, Mogadishu.

 

The militia has been sweeping through southern Somalia since taking over the capital in June. On Sunday, the militia took Kismayo, 260 miles southwest of Mogadishu, without a fight, although thousands protested their presence the following day.

 

Islamic militiamen wearing white headbands opened fire on the crowd, killing a 13-year-old boy, said resident Abdiqadir Filibin. Two other children were injured, witnesses said on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Sporadic gunfire could also be heard.

 

"There are Islamic technicals everywhere in the city," said Abdirahman Abdullahi Farah. "We tell them to go back to Mogadishu or face ejection by force."

 

North of Kismayo, troops from neighboring Ethiopian arrived Monday to support the weak government. Witnesses saw about 300 Ethiopians in a convoy of 50 armored trucks in Bardaale, 40 miles west of Baidoa, the only town held by the government.

 

Islamic forces believe Ethiopian troops aim to cut off their route between Kismayo and Mogadishu, and called their incursion a declaration of war.

 

Several thousand demonstrators protested against the Islamic militia Monday in Kismayo. Militiamen with white bands on their heads opened fire on the protesters. Kismayo resident Abdiqadir Filibin said he saw a 13-year-old killed.

 

Somalia has not had an effective national government since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on one another, throwing the country into anarchy.

 

Hassan Turki, a leader of the Islamic militia, acknowledged Monday for the first time that foreign fighters were helping the militants. He was speaking to a demonstration in support of his group in Kismayo. Turki, who is rarely seen in public, is on the U.S. and U.N. lists of suspected terrorists for having alleged ties to al-Qaida.

 

In an interview with the AP on Monday, Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi said "terrorists" dominate the Islamic group. Speaking in neighboring Kenya, he called on the U.N. to partially lift an arms embargo to allow for the deployment of African peacekeepers.

 

The Islamic group opposes any foreign intervention in the country.

 

The Islamic group and Gedi's government have agreed to a cease-fire, but the Islamic fighters have continued to advance across the country.

 

Associated Press writers Salad Duhul in Mogadishu, Mohamed Olad Hassan in Baidoa and Chris Tomlinson in Nairobi contributed to this report.

 

Source: AP, Sept 26, 2006

[Gabbal]

Ku durduri adigu lana ciilow!

[rudy-Diiriye]

n/aa! lol. icu are not wadaads, they are politicans. lets keep it real. another thing, they shot their own foot.

 

they wont even let kids watch a soccer match! what do they want them to do??

[Jacpher]

Horn, While you're too busy digging old reports to prove a futile political point, why don't you dig a bit harder and find the reports of drug lord Indhacade's giving ultimatum to the place holder? What was the headline? Indhacade: Hand over or see you in my office?

 

I understand Hiiraale is in your good books but I don't think anyone would've stood up for this powerless evil dagaal-ooge this long unless one is obliged to turn good. Spill the beans sxb. Tell us about the favorites so we let it go unnoticed, maybe once or twice. Is it a piece of land in a public property or aseendo in Juba Valley area left behind by a bantu? A dream of landing promising job title? What is it? It just can't be for nothing.

 

Back to the topic. What took place in Kismaayo hardly speaks of the success or failure of the ICU or their true political motive of the country. Kismaayo just happened to be in the strategic location all these forces were fighting for. ICU, TFG & Amxaaro all wanted a piece of the city. Horn is just way too emotional to account Hiiraale's lost to control the city as a failure of the courts. Hardly holds any truth. If there had been any failure, it was Hiiraale who failed his boss Indhacade for Ina Yusuf, thus paying a price on his person, position and political ambition.

 

EDIT:

 

I say the man is not worth a penny. Horn, he personally failed you for that Jubaland State you've envisioned. That dreams is long gone. I don't think you should hold the courts responsible for losing the illusive hope of Jubaland State. Ditch the man.

[Gabbal]

Jimcaale-

 

I await Afgaduud's big return you promised me young man. :cool:

[N.O.R.F]

N/AA

 

I remember you actually said your opposition to ICU in Kismaayo was on tribal grounds. If only I could remember the title of the thread,,,,,

[Gabbal]

Northerner-

 

Why the need to search anything? Have I denied saying anything?

[Jacaylbaro]

the ICU era is over saaxibayaal ,,,, i don't believe they were ruling with Shari'ah except some few hand-cutting they did it with the minorities ,,,,,,,, They secured Banadir for only 6 months on the expense of other region's security and stability.

 

There are some good Wadaads among them with really good intention but the majority were not ,,,,,, they were politicians, military gangs and so on.