A message to the Somali youth in 2011

[Somalina]

Don’t ever be discouraged by the grim reality of our people. Grimness of any nation stays only as long as its youth allows it to stay. You have good examples in history. There are countries that are advanced and prosperous today that have seen worst days than we have in our region. The resilience of the human spirit knows no bounders and once you hit the gutter, the only option you have is to climb up to the top. And this is what you should do to wipe out the tears of your mothers and prove to them that their dreams in you, the dream of any mother for her sons and daughter, will be realized. You should reassure them that the long night would soon end, sing to them with me:

“Dalkaygow wallaahiye

Warwarkiyo waxyeeladu

Cidna lama walaaloo

Qofna weerka dhiilada

Wehel looma siiyoo

Kuma waaro ciilkee;

Waxad wayda haysaba

Waagii dhawaayoo

Walaacani ku haystiyo

Walbahaarku wuu tegi;

Wallee maalin dhow waqal

Weelka loo dareershiyo

War caloosha deeqoo

Gaajada badh wiiqoo

Wadnaha ii qaboojiyo

Weedh aan ku diirsado

Waayeelka hirarkiyo

Ababshaha wardoonkiyo

BBCiidu way werin…” (My poem Walbahaarku wuu tegi, 1999)

 

Youth of my people; you have the tools of enlightenment to fight the darkness of tribalism. You have the pen, the football, the music and the technology in your possession. Create your own sports and cultural clubs. When the nomads and farmers start their fratricide games, you reply to them by playing games together, reading books together, singing together, dancing together and meeting on Facebook and twitter to reach out to each other. When they battle with guns, clash on the pitch in peaceful, bloodless and friendly games. Prove to them that you would better play, dance, sing and embrace the beauty of life with your maternal cousins and uncles than kill them.

 

Reject the vulture politicians who live on the nation’s carcass, fossilized academicians with retired ideas who trade in intellectual prostitution and extremist mullahs whose mission in life is to kill everything beautiful so they could thrive on the rotting flesh of their mothers, sisters and daughters whom they killed for nothing more than selling vegetables in the market, breast feeding a child, laughing with a neighboring boy, singing in a wedding or wearing a bra.

 

Youth of my country, you can start your enlightenment revolution by proclaiming 2011 as the year of the Somali Youth Renaissance; a year that you walk out from the cloak of tribalism to the light of civility and modernization; a year that you see your fellow Somalis as your family members and not your enemies and other people everywhere as your brothers in humanity that you share with them one endangered earth and not as infidels that deserve to burn in hell. You should start your renaissance from yourself. Only when you liberate yourself from the clutches of the petrified medieval ideologies and tribalism and you forge ahead with your future shoulder to shoulder with the youth of the world, only then you can look yourself in the mirror and say: “Yes, I am free, I am my own man or woman”, and only then you can help others to stand up as well.

Shining moments

By: Bashir Goth

[Somalina]

Read the whole article here http://www.hiiraan.com/op2/2010/dec/a_message_to_the_somali_youth_in_2011.aspx

[Somalina]

The condition of our brethren remaining in Somalia is equally dreadful and dire. In addition to braving bullets and bombs on a daily basis, common Somalis are subject to other grave risks, including frequent and often severe shortages of food, water, health care and other vital needs, too familiar trends that often culminate into recurrent catastrophes and horrendous humanitarian crises. The ongoing warfare, stirred by contests for control of the country, perpetuate the very wickedness, carnage, mass destruction and displacements that never-endingly and disproportionately victimize innocent civilians, bringing those living therein to their knees and holding their hopes and dreams hostage. For as long as we remain oblivious to their plight and uphold the custom of fading root causes of problems into oblivion, the status quo is predestined to prevail.

By Ikar Mohamed Ikar

 

http://www.hiiraan.com/op2/2010/dec/a_call_to_the_collective_somali_conscience.aspx

[Somalina]

A few, relatively stable clan and national enclaves think it is mission accomplished for them, not knowing that for centuries the fate of all Somalis has been as intertwined as a Persian carpet. I am talking here not just of “Somaliland”, “Puntland”, Galmudug and all the self-styled regional governments that are forming by the day. This also includes the myopic leadership of the Somali community in Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya. It is in everyone interest to have a stable, peaceful and prosperous Somalia. Such a Somali mother country is the only guarantee of stability in the wider region. It is only if Somalia is a functioning state that there can be meaningful development in Wardheer and Wajeer. Therefore, it is in no one’s interest to point fingers at anyone. It is in our collective interest in fact, to put our money where our mouths are and work towards the same goal. While our homeland bleeds, its best minds can not blubber from the towns and cities of Europe and North America. They need to pack their bags and move closer home and fight the good fight. Somalia more than ever, needs its people now.

By Samatar Yuusuf

 

http://www.hiiraan.com/op2/2010/dec/it_is_time_to_reclaim_the_motherland.aspx

[Alpha Blondy]

is tribe even an issue for young people these days. give them jobs and take care of their interests and you'll find that no one really cares about tribe. look at somalis in the diaspora, they are the ones who are deliberately exaggerating the role of tribe, so as to justify their self-imposed exile from Somali peninsula. here in the somaliland, we dont care much for tribe because we are focused on developing and any obstacle to our targets will be removed - including tribe.

[Somalina]

Ururka Mustaqbalka

 

 

2:39 Somali ayaa lagu hadlaayaa

[Hales]

I especially like this part.

 

 

Brain harvesting versus harboring tribal hatred<O:p< p O:p </O:p

<O:p< p O:p Youth of my people, as you can see the world as your fathers knew it has changed; technological explosions of volcanic proportions have created new realities, new cultures and new societies. Anyone who denies swimming with the flow or sits on the sidelines will be either crushed by the waves or left to rot on the banks. The pastoral life of your forefathers that was based on herding livestock, small subsistence farming and a primitive culture of small groups of family bloodlines huddling together against perceived enemies is no more sustainable and may soon disappear as the urbanization advances consuming all available land for modernized agriculture and industrialization while climate change takes its toll as well.<O:p< font O:p

The most precious asset that you have in today’s world is indeed your brain. I reflected on this in my poem DAWAN which I wrote on 4th November 1998 on the inauguration

“…Waxa maanta dunidani

La isku daba furaayaa

Dirirtuna ka joogtaa

Waa maadh dahsoonoon

Daymo lagu arkayn iyo

Dal waliba aqoon iyo

Inta uu garaad da’o…” (Dawan, November 4, 1998)

Yes, this is what you have to invest in and harvest, not rearing camels in barren lands or continuing internecine and outdated clan wars. That was the life of yester years, the life of your nomad forefathers. That does not mean that you cannot go back to the countryside and modernize the way the nomad and farming communities live, but to do so you must first gain education and shape your destiny not only with the aim of getting more income but also by shaping and advancing your thinking and your culture.

 

As the Somali adage says: “Dhar magaalo sida loo xidhaa way dhib yartahay, dhal magaalo sida loo noqdaase way adag tahay.” (It is easy to dress like city people, but it is difficult to get the character and values of city people – meaning civility)”.

 

If you think that by going to school, living in a city and dressing like city people you can become a civilized person think again. Education should change your mental attitude, your philosophy of life and should open up your mind to evaluate issues on their moral grounds and not on inherited cultural and tribal mindsets. Baffled by why Somalis do not learn from their interactions with other cultures, Jama Duale, a poet whose reflections I admire, not only comes to the same conclusion but also satirizes about the futility of the Somali claim of brainstorming through Qat sessions in the following lines of a poem he wrote in the 1950s:

“…Maraakiibta way raacayeen, reer masar ahayde

Mijilisyada way garanayaan, laga macaashaaye

Maroongigana way daaqaayaan, maalin iyo layle

Mirqaankeeedu Soomaali sow, meela uma sheego…”

There is a simple test to do to assess whether education has changed you or not. Your nomad cousin comes to you crying and tells you that the clan’s homestead has been attacked by enemies who just happened to be your mother’s brothers. What will you do? I say this because how you react to this issue will determine whether your education has changed you and made you a better person or whether your brain remains fossilized in old times. If you would rather jump to your gun and follow your illiterate nomad cousin to shoot the hell out of his enemies, in this case your maternal uncles, instead of telling him to go to the authorities and file a case, then you should know that you are only dressed like city people and your education has failed to change you and make you a law abiding citizen. Unfortunately, most of us, Somalis, are so imbibed with the culture of revenge and empty pride that the passion for Tollaayey takes the best of us and we react impulsively to the tribal call.

Tollaayda qabiilku , Maxay dad qareen ah, Xumaan qabasiisay (My poem Qiiro, December 10,1984.)

 

Youth of my people, if you look at the revenge-based Tollaayey culture that many of us are so beholden to and defend with pride; you will see that there is indeed no pride in it. What pride is there in killing your maternal uncles? What pride is there in killing of any human being at all, let alone a close relative? Have you ever stopped to ask yourself since when did your paternal ancestry become more sacred than your maternal one; since when did your father become more sacred to you than your mother to the point that you can easily kill your mother’s brother but defend your father’s brother to death.

 

Youth of my nation, you are the cyber generation and the world is your oyster, it will be unfortunate if you limit your ambitions, your careers, your future and your innovation capacity to the clan horizon. Why should you insult your intelligence by narrowing your opportunities while technologies invented by your peers around the world are broadening your horizon and proving to you that there are no barriers to the outreach of the human mind? You do not need to shorten your lives on fighting for clan farms; camels or water wells when all you need to own is a computer to unleash your creative abilities. Why do you allow yourself to fall into the tribal vortex that sucks you to the bottom, dehumanizes your personality and reduces you to your basic animal instincts of revenge and bloodletting? Think about how you can connect half a billion people around the world, break all barriers of culture, time and distance, and create your cyber community like Mark Zuckerberg instead of succumbing to age-old traditions and spending your energy and your talents on scheming how to kill your uncles.

</O:p</O:p

[Somalina]

Soomaaliya Dhiman Meyso!!

 

Hadii aad fiiriso sida ay abaaruhu ugu dhufteen dalka gees ilaa gees. Hadii

aad fiiriso Colaadaha iyo Dagaalada aan dhammaadka lahayn. Hadii aad fiiriso

sida ay u adag tahay in Al-shabab laga adkaado ama ay iyagu ku adkaadaan

dagaalada socda.

 

Hadii aad fiiriso karti yarida iyo hufnaan la,aanta Maamulada jira. Hadii

aad fiiriso sida ajnabigu faraha wasaqaysan ugula jiraan arimaha Soomaaliya.

 

Intaas iyo inkale oo kasii mugdi badan hadii aad kafekerto, waxaad is

leedahay iska illow Somaaliya iyo Soomaalinnimo, waxaad gaareysaa inaad

qaamuuskaaga ka saarto erayada “ Ummad, Dal,Qaran,Xaq,Xoriyad, iyo

jiritaan”.

 

Laakiin qoraagii caanka ahaa ee Masaarida “ Mustafa Amiin” [ waa ninkii

sameeyay wargeyska caanka ah ee Akhbaar Al-yoom], ayaa laga bartay oraah uu

cuksado ama ku tiirsan karo qof ama ummad kasta oo waayuhu la ciireen, wuxuu

yiri” Habeenka saacadaha ugu gudcur badan waa marka Ileyska waaberigu uu soo

dhowyahay”.

 

Waa oraah run ah oo rajo gelinaysa qof ama ummad kasta oo marxalad adag

kujirta, waa oraah falsafadeed oo aan si qeexan kuugu tilmaameyn halka uu

yaallo furaha xalka mushkilada,laakiin diidan in uu damo ilayska rajada.

 

Haa dalkii waa burburay, dadkii qax, dhimasho iyo dhaawac ayay u bateen,

mudaaduna waa in ka badan Labaatan sano.Tolow waa maxaay Ilayska haray ee

weli rajo laga qabi karo?.

 

Rajo ayaa ku geleysa kolkaad daawato sawirada farshaxanka ah ee fanaanka

Amiin Caamir sida uu sanooyin badan Burushkiisa uu ula hor taagan yahay qof

ama koox kasta oo diidan in Somalidu nasato oo qarankoodii kabkabato.

 

Rajo ayaa kugeleysa Markaad daawato, ama dhageysato Suugaanta iyo Muusigga

“Jooqle, Axmed naaji, Saado Cali, Maryan Mursal, iyo Wiilasha iyo gabdhaha

kale oo hesaha damqashada leh ugu maansoonaya dalka, calanka iyo khasaaraha

na gaaray.

 

Rajo ayaa ku gelaysa markaad maqasho sida uu usii kordhayo dareenka

Soomaalinimo iyo waddan jacaylka ay qabaan “Somali diaspora”.

Rajo aya aku gelaysa markaad aragto sida Al-shabab ay hubka uga dhigayaan

********tii ugu dhibka badnayd koofurta Soomaaliya.

 

Rajo ayaa ku geleysa kolkii aad ufiirsato Sida mudane Farmaajo iyo wiilasha

iyo gabdhaha la shaqaynaya ay uga go,antahay inay isbedel sameeyaan oo ay

dowladnimada fidiyaan.

 

Mugdi kasta oo jira, si kasta oo ay xaaladdu u murugsantahay soomaalidu weli

way dhaq dhaqaaqayaan.

 

Soomaaliya Dhiman Mayso!!.

 

 

W/Q: Yusuf Aybakar Shadoor

[Somalina]

[Taleexi]

Marka shimbiraha loo heeso baad goroyada u heestaa.

 

 

Alpha Blondy;684730 wrote:

is tribe even an issue for young people these days. give them jobs and take care of their interests and you'll find that no one really cares about tribe. look at somalis in the diaspora, they are the ones who are deliberately exaggerating the role of tribe, so as to justify their self-imposed exile from Somali peninsula. here in the somaliland, we dont care much for tribe because we are focused on developing and any obstacle to our targets will be removed - including tribe.

[Kulmiye]

i think its a brilliant message whether tribe is an issue or not. beautiful speech!

[Somalina]

Low-profile mentoring program gets results

 

David B. Allen, Sadiq Alihashi, Abdifatah Warsame and Abdi Bare, from left to right, volunteer their time working with Somali-Canadian teens through the Centre for Youth Development and Mentoring Services in Toronto.

 

Raveena Aulakh

Staff Reporter

Sunday, January 16, 2011

 

Sadiq Alihashi is a good guy but don’t tell him that — he thinks it’s patronizing.

“My friends and I do what we believe is right . . . not because we want any recognition or money,” says Alihashi, his brow furrowing.

 

“And this is right.”

 

This is the gymnasium at York Humber High School near Weston Rd. and Jane St. It’s about 8 p.m. on a Friday and some three dozen teenagers, mostly Somali-Canadians, are playing basketball. They are quick on the floor, darting from one side of the court to the other. Two coaches watch the players, use their whistles liberally and every minute or so yell out rapid instructions.

 

“Move it . . . faster, faster.”

 

“Don’t lose that ball.”

 

So it goes for three hours — yes, on a Friday evening. It’s one facet of Centre for Youth Development and Mentoring Services, a non-profit organization that works with youth, to help them avoid a life of drugs and gangs by keeping them busy.

 

Started by four friends — Alihashi, Abdifatah Warsame, Ali Sheikh and Abdi Qami — in 2006 with just a dozen teens, the group now has as many as 80 registered at any one time. Between the ages of 12 and 18, they come from north Etobicoke and North York.

 

On Tuesday and Friday evenings, they meet for some slam-dunk basketball while Thursday and Saturday evenings are reserved for help with homework and mentoring. Attendance is mandatory.

 

The program has carried on quietly for five years, keeping a low profile; but its results have been miraculous. None of the 300-odd teens who participated in the program have dropped out of school. Their grades have gone from low C’s and D’s to high B’s and, in some cases, A’s. And many have gone on to college and university.

 

But most of all, the teens have stayed out of trouble — away from the street crime that has plagued the community.

 

It’s a well-documented fact that children from Somali, Arab, Iranian, Portuguese and Vietnamese communities have a dropout rate two to three times greater than the national average.

 

(Somali children have a 36.7 per cent dropout rate, Toronto District School Board figures show.)

 

The four Somali-Canadian friends, in their 30s, could never wrap their heads around those numbers. Back in 2006, they chatted about how they could help teens in their community.

 

“They (teens) faced the same problems as we did,” says Alihashi. “Poor neighbourhoods, low-income families. We made it through school and based on our experiences, we wanted to help other kids.”

 

Soon after, the Centre for Youth Development and Mentoring Services was born.

 

Hassan Abdi, 15, joined the centre two years ago. When Warsame, who works at a high school in Mississauga, first asked Abdi to bring his report card, the teen’s mouth fell open. “What for?” he remembers asking defiantly. “To keep a check on your grades,” he was told.

 

The lanky teen with a wide smile wasn’t too happy but complied.

 

When his grades started creeping up from low B’s to middle A’s and math became his favourite subject, Abdi realized that Warsame and the others had designed a homework plan focusing on his weak subjects.

 

“I realized they were looking out for us,” says Abdi sheepishly.

 

If needed, the mentors will talk to a teen’s teachers.

 

Not only have 17-year-old Ismail Mohamoud’s grades gone up, he is already planning his future: he is interested in architecture or law.

 

“Do you think I would have even started thinking about my life if I hadn’t been here,” says Mohamoud, a gangly teen who can win a slam dunk contest hands down. “No way. . . . I would have been out doing something I shouldn’t be.”

 

Stories like these make the time spent at the gym worthwhile, says Warsame, who lost a young friend to gun violence in 2008.

 

He and his friends have never approached any government or agency for help. “We feel we don’t have to be paid to bring a change,” he says. “It’s what we want to do.”

 

Interestingly, there are no girls enrolled in the program.

 

“Because they do well at school. The problem is with the boys,” says Alihashi, shaking his head.

 

“If we can help a few dozen kids at a time, it’s a start.”

 

Source: Toronto Star

 

 

[BOB]

Beautiful and Positive threat...Well done Somalina and thanks for sharing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peace, Love & Unity.

[Somalina]

Thank you BOB!

----------

A friend mentioned this program to me the other day!

-------

 

 

 

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

 

St. Paul, Minn. — The BBC's program "Africa, Have Your Say" broadcasts live from the UBS Forum as part of a worldwide call-in based in St. Paul and London. The program will hear from young Somalis in St. Paul and London who've never known peace in their homeland.

They'll discuss perceptions of their homeland, the prospects for the future of Somalia and the prospects for their future in the Diaspora. MPR's Tom Crann will host the St. Paul portion of the broadcast and moderate the local discussion. MPR's Bob Collins will live-blog the event on News Cut.

 

The Call-in number is 011 44 20 7836 1836.

 

Guests

Mukhtar Osman: An engineer with MNDOT.

Hoodo Hassan: A student studying psychology and English literature at the University of Minnesota.

Zuhur Ahmed: A pre-med student at Concordia University. She also hosts the radio program Somali Community Link on KFAI.

Ruqia Mohamed: A student at the University of Minnesota majoring in political science and global studies.

 

 

Source: MRP news

[Kulmiye]

pretty awesome stuff Somalina! its an honor to be in the same site with you:)