A message to the Somali youth in 2011

[Somalina]

It is great to be in the same site with you too Kulmiye!

[Somalina]

Broken Dreams - Documentary film about the vanishing youth in Minneapolis, Minnesota

 

[Somalina]

With Education, Somali Youth Can Turn Somalia Around.

 

Yasin Ali

Saturday, February 12, 2011

 

In 1992, I was born not knowing anything about Somalia. I grew up as a Somali citizen and throughout my nineteen years of life, I have not seen or enjoyed a peaceful Somalia. I have lived all throughout my life, waiting with hope, that one day I will see my homeland united and peaceful. Year after year, my dreams of seeing a peaceful Somalia are diminished. Peace deals after peace deal, the hope of seeing Somalia becoming a country where its citizens will have the basic necessities of life are taken away from me. Prime Minister after Prime Minister, the same routine and the same clan-based government always repeats itself in different forms. Now I am tired of waiting. I am tired of hearing former warlords calling themselves Ministers and Members of the Parliament. I am tired of hearing incompetent and uneducated clan-based politicians controlling the fate of the Somali people. I am tired of seeing former warlords and politicians killing innocent Somalis to further their agenda. I am tired of hearing how my beloved religion is used to murder innocent girls and women. I am tired of people who will do anything and everything to gain power, even when that means murdering innocent people and taking away their fundamental right of life and liberty.

Some of you, and I know some Somalis will definitely ask, how can an eighteen year old who does not know anything about Somalia comment on Somalia’s politics? Well, I have some news for you. I maybe eighteen years old, I maybe a citizen of another country, but the love that I have for my people and my homeland surpass age, experience or anything related to that. This mentality of age being the factor in the Somali culture is something we need to leave behind. Do not get me wrong, I love and respect my elders, but they need to step down and let the upcoming generation take over. It is time for the new generation to bring new ideas on how to rebuild our country. It is time to allow the young generation to bring new perspectives on how to resolve conflicts in peaceful ways. And most importantly, it is time for educated and competent individuals to lead Somali ministries and government.

 

To all Somali youths who live in the diaspora, it is time for you guys to work towards achieving peace in your homeland. It is time for you to build a grass root movement to challenge and take over Somali politics.

This dream would never come true by joining the ranks of Al-Shabab. It would never come true by being involved with gang activities and doing drugs on the street corners. It would never come true if you drop out of school and take a minimum paying job, and certainly it would never come true if you do poorly in school. The only way we can bring peace to Somalia is getting education and competing with our fellow peers to attend the highest ranked institution one could enter. If the young men who left North America and Europe to join the ranks of Al-Shabab used the enthusiasm and the courage they had to tackle their education, today we could have a future lawyer, a doctor and maybe an educated politician who could have contributed positively to the situation in Somalia.

 

We are the future of our country, we are the generation that could bring peace in Somalia but we are also the “lost” Somali generation as our elders always refer to us. Somali youths are murdered every day, not in Somalia, but in North America and in Europe. They associate themselves with gangs, do drugs, traffic innocent Somali girls to prostitution and shed their own brothers’ blood in the name of gang loyalty. Let’s be honest, our elders have a point when they call us the “lost” generation. Our parents did all they could to bring us to these different countries we live in, not for their own sake but for us to have a better future and access the numerous opportunities available in these countries that took us in and protected us from the murderous, power hungry politician of ours. We have a responsibility to pay them back. We have a responsibility to our parents, our families and all of those who did everything they could to see that we are having a chance to succeed in this world. We need to pay them back by educating ourselves and taking advantage of the opportunities available to us. We need to pay them by becoming peace loving individuals, good citizens of the world and finally, we need to pay them back by helping those who were not fortunate enough to achieve or access these opportunities.

 

I am not preaching to you nor am I writing to you as a snobby, rich kid who is protected from the reality. I am your typical Somali immigrant kid. I also get it; going to college is hard and tiring when you have bills to pay and nobody to support you. Believe me, there are days when I wake up and I just want to quit. There are days when the best effort I put in a class is not enough and I get a D on a test. There are times I have to work on an evolution theory paper all night and all I want is to go to bed. I mean, I don’t believe in it, why should I bother writing about it? Well, there is something that keeps me writing, there is something that stops me from quitting and there is something that keeps me working harder to achieve a better grade in the next test. That is success, I haven’t seen it yet but I smell it.

 

Success does not come easily to everybody, but dreaming and hoping to succeed is something we can all do. Let’s dream about it because this is our time. This is the time for the Somali youth generation to step up, educate themselves and work towards achieving a peaceful and united Somalia. Let’s get to work, let’s hit the books and let’s use the knowledge we learn to bring peace to our homeland and help the humanity in general.

 

Yasin Ali

aliym0@wfu.edu

Yasin Ali is a student at Wake Forest University majoring in Political Science.

[Somalina]

Doorka Dhallinyarada ee Dhisidda Nabadda

 

Talaado, 15 Feberaayo, 2011 (HOL) – Dhalinyarada oo ah udub dhexaadka bulsha walba, laguna tilmaamo ubaxa iyo hogaamiyeyaasha berrito ayaa ah kuwa qayb libaax ka qaata dhisidda nabadda iyo dhoowrista xaquuqaha aasaasiga ah ee dadkooda iyo dalkooda.

 

Hadaba, ilaa iyo intii ay dhacday dowladdii hore ee kacaanka ahayd 20-sano ka hor waxaa dhallinyarada Soomaaliyeed lasoo darsay duruufo aad u adag oo ay dhexda u galeen, dhalinyarada intii aqoonta lahayd ayaa waayay tacliin sare iyo shaqo ay qabtaan, kuwoodii miyiga jirayna waxay soo galeen magaalada iyagoo ku kala biiray hoggaamiyayaal qabiil iyo jabhado Qaran dumis ahaa.

 

Dhallinyarada ayaa waxay noqdeen kuwa laga dhigto xaabadda dagaallada lagu huriyo isla markaana qabqable waliba uu ku awr-kacsado magaca qabiil iyo qabiileysi tiiyoo uu ka dhigto jaranjaro uu ku gaaro mansabka siyaasadeed ee uu doonayo.

 

Dhallinyarada waxbartay ayaa aad ugu yaraatay dalka, gaar ahaan Koofurta Soomaaliya oo colaaduhu ragaadiyeen iyadoo intii waxbaratayna aysan helin aqoon kororsi iyo shaqo, taasoo sababtay inay ku kala biiraan hadba cida ku hardameeysa siyaasadda magacay rabaan ha yeeshaane, waayo illaa muddadan 20-ka sano ah waxaa la qabanayay shirar dib u heshiisiin ah, iyadoo qaarkoodna lagu soo dhisayay dowlado KMG ah balse ma jiraan intaa oo shir ah mid lagu casuumay ama lagu martiqaaday dhallinyarada Soomaaliyeed iyadoo aan sinaba loo tixgalin doorka shariifka ah ee dhallinyaradu ka qaadan karto dhisida nabadda iyo is-dhexgalka bulshada.

 

Haddii aan milicsano dhalinyarada kaalinta lixaadka leh ee ay ka qaadan karaan dhisidda nabadda ayaa ah inay yihiin kuwa kaliya ee abuuri kara jawi is-dhexgal kasoo ay u marayaan is deegaameysi, kulammo saaxiibtinimo, isboortiga iyo waxbarasha, kuwa maleeshiyaadka ahna waxay u baahan yihiin oo kaliya in la dhageysto lana tixgaliyo baahiyahooda aasaasiga ah ee ku qasabtay inay qolo ku biiraan kuna haligaan naftooda iyo tan dadka kaleba.

 

Waxaa hubaal ah in dhallinyarada loo adeegsanayo qabiilka iyo qabyaaladda ay maanta ka dhargeen in waxay ka dhaxleen ay tahay cuuryaanimo, dhimasho, nolol xumo, magac xumo, iyo aakhira la’aan, waxayna intooda badan oo aan la sheekeysanay aaminsan yihiin in haddii ay heli lahaayeen cid gacan kusiisa inay dhisto aqoontooda xirfadeed iyo middooda maskaxeedna ay door muhiim ah ka ciyaari lahaayeen dhisidda nabadda iyo is-dhexgalka bulshada. Sidoo kale dhillinta waxbaratay ayaa iyaguna aaminsan in haddii talada dalka wax laga siiyo ay soo dumi lahaayeen dhammaan dhalinta kale ee siyaabaha qaldan loo adeegsado.

 

Isku-soo-wad-duuboo dhallinyaradu waxay rumeysan yihiin in la joogo xilliigii caqligu shaqeyn lahaa lana siin lahaa fursadooda dhallinyarada loona abuuri lahaa barnaamijyo waxbarasho oo heer walba ah iyo shaqooyin, lana tixgalin lahaa doorkooda wax ku oolka ah ee ay ku dhisayaan nabadda.

 

Dhalinyaradu waa xoog furan oo haddii sida haboon loo jiheeyana wax badan dhisi kara, hadii si qaldan loo adeegsadana wax lagu dumiyo sida maantaba nahaysata.

 

Waxaa odoyaasha dhaqanka, cuqaasha, siyaasiyiinta, hooyooyinka iyo aqoonyahankuba la gudboon inay u ololeeyaan sidii dhallinyarada loo siin lahaa fursado iyadoo ay xasuusan karaan in xorriyada maanta aan harsanayno ay dhaliyeen 13-kii dhallinyaro ee SYL iyo dhalintii ay abuureen ee iyaga ka danbeysay waxaana dhalinyarada hal-ku-dhigoodu uu yahay: 'Dhallinyaradu ma ahan kaliya hogaamiyeyaasha berrito ee waa badbaadiyayaasha maanta'.

 

Maxamed Xaaji Xuseen, Hiiraan Online

maxuseen@hiiraan.com

Muqdisho, Soomaaliya

[Somalina]

 

Canadian Somali Congress interviewed on the Journey for Justice Event in Ottawa

[Somalina]

Somali native aids child education in Africa

 

By Devika Rao

Monday, March 21, 2011

 

After Hodan Guled, 32, finished her master’s degree in public health at Emory University, she knew she had to give back.

“I always looked for volunteer opportunities or ways to give back when I was in school, but the current situation [in Somalia] made me want to do something [more],” said Guled, whose native country’s situation has never been far from her mind.

 

Guled and her family fled Somalia when she was 12, to seek refuge in Nairobi, Kenya. She now lives in Chamblee.

 

Guled founded S.A. F.E., or Somali and American Fund for Education, in 2008 to help schools and children in the African nation.

 

Without education, many children of war tend to get tied up in unsafe situations, but Guled noticed that in Somalia, some communities took it upon themselves to improve things. Teachers and parents did the heavy lifting as they tried to fund salaries, or sometimes, even worked for free.

 

S.A.F.E. supports communities that have already shown a commitment to education.

 

In 2009, S.A.F.E. raised $10,000 to assist Abaarso Tech, an all-boys boarding school, which received the financial strength to build a girls’ dormitory allowing 14 girls to get enrolled and receive a chance in education.

 

“We based our model on ‘how can we help you?’” Guled said, as more funding is being appropriated toward facility and infrastructure. “Some of these schools need something as simple as toilets, so we want assist in building a clean, learning-friendly environment for these students.”

 

“S.A.F.E. donated the money towards us constructing the lab building into a girls’ dormitory,” said Jonathan Starr, managing director at Abaarso Tech in Somalia.

 

S.A.F.E helped create a competitive advantage for the children and the community. “Our school is training [the children] at a level which competes with any boarding school in the world,” Starr said.

 

In 2011, S.A.F.E’s goal is to raise $50,000 to help five schools, and the organization has received a $25,000 grant from Coca-Cola Co.

 

With so many other causes out there, Guled chose one that mimicked the values embedded in her.

 

“My parents constantly pushed education on us,” said Guled, who also studied at University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill. “We were given the core belief that education is the key to success.”

 

Guled moved to Huntington, W.Va, in 1993, where her cousin lived, to complete her education.

 

“I consider myself to be a fortunate Somali refugee,” Guled said. “I got this rare opportunity to come to America. I know not a lot of people in situations such as mine get these kind of chances.”

 

She’s also getting to go home again.

 

A public-health analyst in the Atlanta office of RTI International, a North Carolina-based research institute, Guled soon will be going back to Somalia for the first time since arriving in the U.S. in 1993.

 

“I will be going to train our local partners, two universities, who will be our monitors for the funding we send from here.”

 

Source: ajc