Only a grassroots process will restore Somalia’s tattered fabric

[Deeq A.]

Participants during a workshop session on peacebuilding and conflict resolution mechanisms in Mogadishu, Somalia on May 7, 2017. Somalia can benefit from the experiences of countries such as Rwanda, which deployed traditional methods of justice and reconciliation to address the aftermath of the catastrophic conflict between communities that resulted in genocide. PHOTO | AMISOM

Somalia is making modest progress in rebuilding after the destruction wrought by decades of civil war, but the agenda of grassroots truth, justice and reconciliation is not receiving the attention it deserves.

The civil war not only precipitated the meltdown of state institutions and destruction of infrastructure and the economy, but also the unravelling of the social and cultural fabric.

Without a comprehensive plan to rebuild the shattered trust and goodwill and address deep-seated grievances between individuals, families and communities at the grassroots, reconstruction will not be sustainable.

Somalia is one of the few countries in Africa with a homogenous population that shares language, religion, bloodlines and culture, but the widespread violence, human-rights violations and injustices during the civil war exacerbated social divisions and disharmony, mainly along clan lines.

Until now, not much has been done to repair those relationships, build bridges and address underlying grievances, thus eliminating common spaces for dialogue, accommodation and coexistence.

There have been many conferences since the early 1990s, ostensibly to bring about reconciliation between segments of the Somali population, but they have hardly had any impact in the grassroots.

This is partly because the initiatives have largely been dominated by politicians and clan leaders, including warlords, without much involvement of the people in the grassroots, who should be the main drivers of such initiatives. In fact, the conferences have been more about power-sharing between clan leaders than fostering genuine grassroots truth, justice and reconciliation.

The searing impact of the Somali civil war has been so widespread that it is difficult to find a Somali national who is not nursing deep-seated grievance and trauma due to the killing of loved ones or loss of property or dignity. That’s why the time for Somalia to have its own indigenous process of truth, justice and reconciliation is long overdue.

The process will give safe spaces for people to explore the full extent of the crimes and violations that occurred in the civil war and continue to occur, come to terms with the pain, anger and grief as well as look into appropriate avenues of justice, compensation, forgiveness and reconciliation.

I have always felt the need for such a process, and a personal tragedy in September 2014 strengthened my conviction regarding it. I was in a restaurant in Mogadishu when a man approached me and unexpectedly confessed to having been part of the gang that attacked my home in Mogadishu in 1992 in which my 18-month-old daughter, Yasmin, was brutally killed.

The man then remorsefully begged for my forgiveness, saying the matter had troubled him for many years. Initially, I felt so much anger, with memories of the body of my lifeless daughter flooding my mind. I felt like killing him on the spot to avenge my daughter.

But after some moments of silence, I felt some calm return to my heart. I then told him I had forgiven him. The man hugged me and we both couldn’t hold back tears. Immediately after the incident, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I felt whole again.

When the incident was reported by local media, similar actions emerged in various parts of the country. Since then, I have been keen to use that personal story with a hope of promoting grassroots reconciliation in Somalia.

However, there is a pressing need for a more structured process at the grassroots to realise truth, justice and reconciliation so that the Somali nationals can explore the dark past together and come to terms with it. Any such process should not be led or controlled by politicians or clan leadership, but by the people without interference and manipulation.

In this regard, Somalia can benefit from the experiences of countries such as Rwanda, which deployed traditional methods of justice and reconciliation to address the aftermath of the catastrophic conflict between communities that resulted in genocide.

Somalia, too, has rich traditional and religious systems that can be tapped to successfully rebuild the shattered social fabric.

Before the country can take its place in the community of nations, it must bravely face and address the horrors of its history.

Mohamed Ali Nur (Americo) is a former presidential candidate in Somalia (2017) and former Somalia envoy to Kenya (2007-2015). Email: nabad1012@gmail.com