Drawing Muslim Image on Kenyan Airwaves

Over the past few years, Kenyan media have often demonized the Muslim community, especially following the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the 9/11 attacks.

Read about what Muslim community in Kenya is doing to liberate the spoilt airwaves.

Somalia wiki-cables: FORMER TFG PRIME MINISTER WORRIED ABOUT RIVAL

Fearful Sharmake.


As the Sobbing Somali brings you the usual daily discourse concerning leaked US cables, today I take you through this classified cable, during a brief Nairobi airport meeting former TFG Prime Minister Sharmarke worried about the influence of rival organization Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama'a and the failure of talks in Mogadishu and Addis Ababa to result in an agreement to cooperate.

Click and read this link containing the wiki-cables about Sharmake’s fear

The stereotype Kenyan Media that coaches its sources to victimise Muslims

I don’t know the kind of agenda they are up to, I really know some of them, but these cheap Kenyan reporters have started coaching media sources in a way that is seemingly making their coverage alienates and demonises a vulnerable Muslim minority.

The recent Eastleigh attack is one case in hand; you are my witness that television footage proved their biased story with video images of some people saying the grenade was thrown from along the street by men wearing Islamic attire.

Throughout the following days, they repeatedly carried the story with reports that Al-Shabaab sympathisers -supposedly meant to finger-point the Somalis- were behind the attack.

But everybody knows what the police investigations revealed. The grenade was said to have been planted inside the vehicle.

Such are the kinds of uninvestigated reports that these poor reporters and their unprofessional editors always tell their viewers every passing day, it is not a wonder that they are misinforming Kenyans therefore destroying the mutual co-existence of communities.

To assume and believe that this relentlessly down beating coverage of a marginalised minority has no effect on community relations or on integration is naive, if not deceitful.

Exposing Muslims as different and dangerous community can have serious repercussions, and local media draws attention to a growing number of Muslims who now live in daily fear; some because their Islamic identity has been associated with violence and are repeatedly harassed because of nurturing their culture, while others have been denied their basic rights and have suffered devastatingly in the hands of the security agents.

The media beats the drum for the Isolation of the Kenyan Muslims, in many ways; the press has been given free rein to effectively demonise the Islamic faith and its followers in the country, leading to victimization of local innocent Muslims.

I grow tired of having to also endure watching a barrage of lazy stereotypes, inflammatory headlines, withering generalisations and often erroneous and baseless stories.

'Pirate or Al-Shabaab' is the black mark beside my name....

Now I've got another black mark beside my name, these days they call me ‘the pirate’ or the Al-Shabaab whenever I meet with my friends.

I was hurt many times by supposedly best friends; I don’t know why my Kenyan colleagues enjoy insulting me. They don’t know that they make me hate the world.

I distance myself from those types of friends these days, not because I’m afraid but because they will make me guilty of crimes that I have not committed. I still give my friends the polite smile that they deserve and which emanates from my worried face. I must forgive and keep smiling.

Even my local barber shop attendant calls me pirate or Al-Shabaab these days. Not mentioning the streets when every staring human being looks me through their gloomy eyes, as if I have a long nose or as If I am walking on my head down.

A woman we boarded the same Matatu in Mombasa, insulted me the worst of all. I had just taken ablution to pray at a town Mosque, but as I entered the vehicle, this woman cautioned her friend to be wary of this Al-shabaab passenger. I gave her the usual polite smile, when I had the opportunity to curse her for ever for insulting me at a time when I am going to pray.

I know why they call by these names; it is simply because I am Somali and to them every Somali is a pirate or an Al-shaabab. It is like in the West where every Muslim is a terrorist.

I am a Kenyan, born and brought up in Kenya, but it seemingly sounds that I am not a Kenyan like them, perhaps that is why my friends call me ‘pirates or Al-shabaab.

It was better the days when I made the name ‘Waryaa’ but now naming me ‘pirate or Al-Shabaab’ sounds like a completely different brand.

In Kenya today, I am completely a label of the pirates and the Al-Shabaab in Somalia. I've always been that way ever since these names started cropping up a few years ago.

When a ship is hijacked by Somali pirates, that day the number of times I respond is so enormous, numerous times, they call me by those names oblivious of how many times my heart misses a beat. These names make me feel guilty of been a Somali, even when my community means a lot to me.

I ask you, do I look like an Al-shabaab or a pirate. Kenyans why do you call me, it pisses me off. I feel like insulting you really bad but all I do is hold it in. I am cool with everyone except the people which call me that. What can I do about the people who call me that?

Okay, I know I should just ignore and all that, but seriously I have had enough of that and that’s. You don’t say anything and they take advantage of your silence....

Even when the black sheep is innocent, no one will ever accept.

The Eastleigh grenade attack will obviously have a repercussion, a great one indeed, Somalis have to bear the brunt of the attack.

Somalis in Eastleigh have in the past suffered from constant police harassment and abuse. Every refugee living in this Nairobi neighbourhood has a story about being hassled by the police and threatened with arrest and detention.

Possibly by now the finger is pointing towards the Somalis community in Eastliegh. As has been the case, the community in Eastleigh should brace for a major police crackdown whether or not they are innocent.

Of course the Sobbing Somali is very much concerned over the death and injuries of the innocent police officers. I condemn any such barbaric act in the strongest terms.

and for now the black sheep cannot turn its tail.

The Monkey business of protecting Somalia waters

Somali pirates now hold 22 vessels and 521 hostages. The latest victim is a Malaysian-flagged container ship plus its 23 crew.

All these abductions go on despite the presence of a heavy EU Naval force in the Indian Ocean. The Naval force often say they work their fingers to the bone and despite their bold intervention, anti-piracy efforts remain doldrums.

The billion dollar question is what are these guys up to in the international waters, what are the ten warships lead by the French flagship doing in the dangerous waters? Are they on an adventure sailing.

Discussing the Monkey business inside the French flagship De Grasse/ Photo :Abduallhi Jamaa









Why is the world allowing the continued waste of the hard-earned money that is going down the drain with little value for the antipiracy campaign?

The force is simply fiddling while Somalia burns every passing moment. I think there is some Monkey business going on.

Surviving on the edge

As world leaders start discussions in Mexico on the global challenge of climate change today, I volunteered my precious time to shed light on the plight of herders living along the Kenya/Somali border. listen to this touching photo story.

The skeleton gov't of Sheikh Sharif

Somalia’s current president Sheikh Sharif first emerged as a hero and saviour for the Somalis, both at home and in the Diaspora. But nothing comes tangibly improving for the ravaged nation.

And much to my amazement and that of many other analyst, since his authority’s inception, there was no effective government to protect its citizen from violence or even to marshall a bold peace campaign.

And today in Somalia the presidency comes up with an attitude of laissez-faire but that cannot prevail even for his own desireable results.

Sharif has got an evident catalogoue of unperformance that seems to prove wrong his leadership ability.

And Somalis cannot expect much from a lame duck, as analyst like Dr. Yahya puts into focus(click the title of this story to read Dr. Yahay's analysis)

For now it is a matter of helplessness for Somalis who are still hoping to get much from the government of president Sharif.

His term will expire soon, and another grandmaster of bad-politics, probably worse than Sharif might come to power only to waste the precious time for Somalia to enjoy peace and stability. Allah forbids.

Roads: Kenya's deathbed

The state of Kenyan roads are very dangerous indeed, reckless driving, ineptitude governance and relaxing pedestrians are all that results the fatal and numerous accidents in Kenyan roads.
Have you known how your child crosses the road everyday as he goes to school, listen to this BBC Monday Documentary about the country's ill-fated roads. Road kill.

Somali Culture Meets Islam

It is a longtime tradition in the Somali culture to organize weddings on `Eid Al-Adha and `Eid Al-Fitr, the two most important celebrations on the Islamic calendar.

Another Ayan Hirsi emerging..............

Little known Kaha Aden is another Somali-Italian female writer who has an unbounded ambition of fighting for the rights of Women in Somalia, but she is seemingly starting to hold the wrong end of the stick obviously she will fail if this is the way she has chosen to address Somali women issues.

During her interview with Kenya’s Daily Nation, she has disrespectfully started attacking both the tradition and culture of Somalis and Muslims.

In her Interview she has attacked the dressing code of the Somali women in Mogadishu saying that “the current mode of dressing where women cover their whole bodies leaving only a tiny opening for the eyes, is a survival tactics to save their bodies from violence”

By nature of both the Islamic culture and the Somali tradition, covering the body by Somali women is something very strong and deeply entrenched. The non-spoilt Somali women are by far known for their respect to date, by covering their bodies.

Whether they are living in the neighborhood of Minnesota without fear or in the darkened alleyways of deserted Mogadishu, the Somali women dress will stay forever.

It is not a right that they need from people like Kaha, but a respect they have cherished for years and one that they will pass on from generation to generation.

I believe such statements are very much derogatory, Kaha’s statements as per the report is simply a deviation from the Somali practice during this contemporary times or even old days.

I don’t know whether the writer is putting things she had not said, but all the while, if her interview is anything to go by, her mission is simply a faltered ambition seemingly aimed at propagating certain western ideas which are at the moment unwelcome in both the Islamic world and among the Somali populations.

You cannot fight for the right of women, when you are trying to interfere with the rights they are already enjoying and rights that are enshrined in their Islamic teachings unless you are indirectly telling Somali women to divert from their religion.

Kaha you are simply talking before you can even walk.

You can read the story about Kaha Aden which is based on her recent trip to Kenya clicking on this link.

Obama is failing to keep Cairo promises

President Barack Obama's pledge to strive for better relations with the Muslim world drew skepticism in Cairo, where last year he called for a new beginning in the Middle East after years of mistrust.

The media in Kenya distorted the success of Somali businesses, they talk about piracy, but I say it is a mere stereotype.

As usual the smearing campaign against Somali businesses and properties in Kenya continues unabated, with the local media shamefully spreading stereotype stories, propaganda and prejudice aimed at misleading the public.

Out of ignorance or even hatred, Kenyan national dailies have been working on fictions especially on the issue of piracy with claims that the mushrooming Somali properties and businesses in Kenya are funded by pirates.

The Western media have taken the same path, packaging information with heavy claims against a community whose businesses largely relies on trustworthiness, sheer determination and hard work.
The smearing campaigns are so bold that the security of the Somali businesses is jeopardized. With little or no understanding of the Somali community, the media is circulating a new demon they call “The Illegal Somali Business".

A stereotype common to media thoughts, portrays Somalis as a filthy community. Reporters who cover the piracy world often know very little details about it. The media then develops a distorted image of the Wealthy Somali Community.

In Kenya, both the Daily Nation and the Standard are creating inaccurate ideas about the Somali businesses. Their ignorance on how Somalis handle investments is clearly expressed on how they have failed to show the History of the Somali merchandise.

They failed to identify that the Somali economy is a global empire, not only in Africa but in Americas and Europe. Piracy actively started in 2006 but the Somali business was booming before at an impressive pace.

This ignorance that the media accumulates about the wealth of Somalis also includes manipulation, purposely because of biased feelings, by the media to present a negative image about the community.

Somalis are naturally aggressive when it comes to business; most of their businesses are built on cooperation with unwritten agreements because trustworthy is the cornerstone of the Community’s trading activities.

But, the true side of success stories most often does not correspond to the media’s reports. As Somali business empire grows more and more, the biased media in Kenya and in the West will eventually learn the truth and find out that these negative stereotypes are incorrect.

Piracy will stop anytime soon, but the Somali businesses will never collapse.

Secrets of Kenya's first civil war

Read about the Somali uprising and the desire of the Somali community in Kenya to join Somalia shortly after independence. It was the war when Somalia tested the tenacity of Kenya's military strength.

Tales of African lionesses

Where does feminism fit in our narrative of African experience? What is the vision of Africa’s ‘lionesses’- feminist thinkers and doers? Jessica Horn reflects on the opening of the third African Feminist Forum

The exodus of British and American Somalis to fight in their home country

The BBC’s radio 4, recently aired testimonies of British Somali families missing their young Somali men who have allegedly gone to fight alongside with Al-Shabaab in the insurgency campaign that is getting fierce in Somalia.

But the billion dollar question for now is: are these British and American Somalis justified to fight back in Somalia at this time when innocent Somalis are fed up with the endless conflict.

Somalis do not need more bloodshed. The case of these young men is that of any port in a storm and their families are seemingly seething and sobbing in frustrations.

Somalia’s conflict resolutions have on previous occasions fallen by the wayside, and the introduction of Iraqi and Afghan-style insurgency will not do any good for this God-forsaken country.

These young men are going for the sake of their country, of course we want them to go and bring stability but they need to choose decisively the lesser of evils to avoid degenerating the conflict into a worsening trend.

Failing Eritrea

Horn of Africa analyst Hogendoorn describes Eritrea as a failing state, he says just a decade ago, Eritrea might reasonably have been described as challenged but stable. Today it is under severe stress, if not yet in full-blown crisis.

It is a cock-and-bull story to declare the corruption in Somalia the worst in the world. what of Kenya?

The annual Transparency International index about corruption indicated Somalia as the worst country where the practice is widespread. Of course a country without a central government is like a household without both parents.

In the first place when I read the report a few days ago, I could not immediately take a side, but over the last few hours I have been thinking deeply about the corruption index that put Somalia the worst in the world. I said to myself what of Kenya?

Contrary to my understanding of the governments in the Eastern African region, the annual index comes with a faltered survey.

There is a time and place for everything but Kenya should be the worst in corruption in the world than in Somalia, Afghanistan or Myanmar.

May be like a malevolent virus, the prevalence rate of corruption in Somalia may be high. But the incidence rate of grand corruption in Kenya cannot come to any comparison.

The Transparency International’s report is just another cock-and-bull story since it failed to declare Kenya’s grand corruption as the worst in the globe.

Missed opportunities in Somalia

Source: IRIN

Weak leadership and internal divisions have prevented Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) from exploiting splits among its Islamist insurgent enemies, say analysts.

Al-Shabab and Hisbul-Islam insurgents have, in the past two months, intensified attacks against government forces and allied African Union (AU) troops. Clashes in Mogadishu between 1 and 3 October, for example, left at least 50 people dead and 174 wounded, according to local human rights organizations.

However, divisions within insurgent ranks have increased to a point where rival groups are close to confrontation, sources said, allowing TFG and the AU troops to make some gains.

"They had promised to topple the government by the end of Ramadan, but they did not," one civil society activist working in conflict resolution told IRIN. "They are divided over policy, but the TFG did not or cannot take advantage of this opportunity. It is a sign of how weak the TFG is."

According to the activist, the divisions among insurgents are an opportunity that a shrewd government could exploit to reach out to some insurgent factions. "The TFG has failed on multiple fronts," he said.

The latest major setback for the TFG was the resignation of Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke on 21 September, following a power struggle with President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed.

Other analysts said the key problem was that the TFG itself badly needed to build popular support. "The Somali TFG is very weak and suffers a lack of popular support," said Laura Hammond, a senior lecturer in the department of Development Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London.

According to insiders, a group of Al-Shabab commanders, mainly from south-central Somalia, led by Mukhtar Robow, feel marginalized by Ahmed Godane, his deputy, from the northern Somaliland region and foreign fighters who support him.

The divisions are "about taxes collected and funds used for fighting and the role of foreign fighters", one Somali analyst with ties to the TFG said. Robow and his group are in talks with Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, the leader of Hisbul-Islam, to form a united front.

Robow and his group favour talks to resolve their differences with the TFG and also want aid agencies to greatly expand their area of operations, currently very limited by insecurity, to have access to the needy, the analyst added, noting that a united front between Aweys and the Robow group would create a major headache for Godane and his foreign militants.

"If they [Aweys and Robow] form an alliance, then Al-Shabab [Godane wing] and their foreign friends will have a difficult time finding a refuge in southern Somalia," he said.

He suggested the divisions within Al-Shabab were the most important development in Somalia since the end of 2006, when, with the help of Ethiopian troops, the Union of Islamic Courts government was toppled.

The divisions should be exploited for the benefit of Somalis, he said, going on to describe Robow and his group as "nationalists in Islamist garb" with whom the TFG should find ways of opening dialogue.

"I hope whoever is the next prime minister will have the courage and freedom to enter into a dialogue with the group," he added. "It is the only way forward."

The wrangling within insurgent ranks and further weakening of the TFG come at a time when the international community has expressed growing interest in resolving the Somali question. UN Security Council members, in Africa last week, mulled the idea of increasing support to African peacekeeping efforts.

On 8 October, the AU appointed former Ghanaian president Jerry Rawlings as High Representative, to "work towards the successful conclusion of the peace and reconciliation process in Somalia". He is expected to strengthen the AU Mission, broaden the political base of transitional institutions and build the capacity of the TFG.

But analysts said recent international efforts had yet to have a significant impact. "The international community has to first learn the lessons from their blunder in 2006 when a homegrown solution was aborted by the international community at a cost of tens of thousands of dead Somali civilians, and nearly two million either displaced or in refugee camps," a political analyst said.

"Why not attempt to work with the Islamists? The alternative is to fight a long-term insurgency and [end up with] clan-based 'Bantustans'."

Weinstein added: "The international coalition of the US and UN has no domestic partner and holds no cards, yet they have the money bags and won't leave the situation alone, thereby preventing any moves for fusion within Somalia."

According to Hammond, dealing with Somalia primarily in terms of its terrorist threat was unlikely to be constructive, while the crackdown on financial flows and travel to the country by Somalis had been severe.

"People who want to invest in relief and development inside the country, even in peace-building, are afraid to do so," she added. "They fear that if they engage, they will be accused of supporting the insurgents. This will have a very negative impact on Somalia, a country that relies on its links to the diaspora for its lifeline."

An estimated two million Somalis need humanitarian assistance, according to the UN. Some 1.4 million others are displaced inside the country, while more than 600,000 are refugees in neighbouring countries. Since January, the three main hospitals in Mogadishu have recorded over 500 deaths resulting from war-wounds.

Kenya abandoned Renditioned Muslims

Do you know how the families of those Muslims renditioned from Kenya to Uganda say about the whole issue? From their own mouths they are terrorized with their broken hearts seething in an endless agony.

A mother of four told me “Terrorists are those who have renditioned our husbands and made our young children fatherless”

Their own government has abandoned them, just as they struggle to worry about their family members suffering in Yoweri Museveni’s cells, Kibaki and Raila have remained tight-lipped over the gross violations of human rights even as we implement a new constitution that allows for a complete respect of human rights.

After my encounter with the families in Nairobi, I recently did this story –Muslim Renditions Taint Kenya’s Image-about their trouble and vexation.

Somalia’s One-eyed leaders

The need for practical good leadership in Somalia is so apparent; of course it is because of lack it that the country is in an endless turmoil for more than two decades now.

Poor Somalis have always choked back their seething grieves and rages to get the kind of men and women who can lead them well into the road to peace and stability, but always in vain.

A leader will never find his way unless you lead him by the noose, but the leading classes in Somali have never given that opportunity to their subject, their desperate people, and have since lead the country from bad to worse.

The powerful political classes in Somalia, whether they are what I call ‘cooperate’ or clan leaders have only known which side of the bread is buttered.

They seem to lay their plans depending on what gains they can get without worrying about the trouble and vexation of their helpless and poor people. It doesn’t matter to them whether one person is dying or a thousand people are massacred.

Somalia is not the country of the blind, there are many good capable men and women who can really make their people proud, but the real problem is that one-eyed men always want to be the kings in this failed state.

Some people say that Somalia is a country where everybody wants to be the president, but I say Somalia is a country like any other in the third world where visionary leadership is absent to fast track reconciliation process.

Over the last two devastating decades an estimated one million Somalis have been killed, many more million of others have been displaced. Far more awesome the country is degenerating into a worsening trend every passing day.

From every end: much from within Somalia and from the international community, the blame game concerning the Horn of Africa nation continues unabated , and in the process we only see more deaths, displacements and destructions.

In Somalia there is really a total crisis of leadership, the failure of finding the right honorable prime minister in the last three transitional governments is a testimony to the boring patterns of bad-politics in this poor nation.

From the administration of both the immediate former president Abdullahi Yussuf to the current regime of Sheikh Sharif, several prime ministers have left the government with their tails between their legs.

There is all the reason to believe that the people of Somalia always find themselves backing the wrong horse.

The catalogue of resignation of about five prime ministers over the past a half a decade signals how the lagging lords in Somalia is hitting a dead-end leaving behind  little hope and aspiration for new comers into the power nod of the country.

From the vacation of Ali Mohamed Gedi who has been the country’s premier from 2004 to 2007, to the most recent victim Ali Sharmake, we have only known to see an array of resignation after resignation casting doubt on whether Somalia can ever produce an able-bodied prime minister and president.

Not mention the period of president Abdulqasim, first resignation started with Mr. Gedi in December 2007 after along standing difference with President Abdullathi Yussuf.  Following the resignation of Gedi, Premier Nur Hassan rose to the helm but later fought decisively with his appointee only to result in the downfall of the entire interim authory forcing president Yusuf to vacate office consequently.

The regime of president Sharif has inherited the same unyielding appointments that only wasted the timeframe to enhance institutional strengthening of the country. The reason why many premiers left their job has been lack of cooperation between the executive arms.

Now the same game goes on and on, president Sharif follows the same path his two predecessors have failed to quantify accurately for Somalia’s hard-to-crack peace process.

As time and tide wait for no man, we only anticipate seeing an expiry of the transitional government come Augst2011 without any significant achievement for the people of Somalia.

This kind of  leadership in the successive interim governments is undoubtedly not a solution for Somalis; it rather shows the edifice of a complicated peace process that will ever remain hanging in the balance.

The ever-stale political quagmire nurtured a not-promising situation, if the current poor leadership in the country continues to rule, the people in this God-forsaken nation will only have a chance in hell.

For the people of Somalia it is now time to take the bull by the horns, there is always more than one way to skin a cat, there is no need to waste time on the same process again and again that resulted total failures.

The appointment of the new Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi will never make difference in as long as the same failures that trapped his predecessors still remain. Mr. Abdullahi has been praised from Cape to Cairo but he should know that he is not a sacred cow, and that he will certainly resign one day.

His appointment comes with nothing big, it is the same Somalia that he has left a decade ago, nothing has changed really for you premier.

I am sure those who have appointed you have misled your integrity as a scholar and by accepting the offer you have certainly thrown yourself into the lion’s den.

Now it’s your time and turn, but remember everyman is the architect of his own fortune. The people of Somalia cannot remain ruined by worthless leaders who have no moral fortitude to act decisively and in the best interest of Somalis.

The bleating sheep that cannot leave the herd

Everybody in our family have endlessly complained about one black sheep. This sheep in our herd is very disturbing to the extent that even our young herd boys are considering to chain and leave her behind while the rest of the animals are grazing out in the plains far away from our homes.

The problem with this particular sheep is very worrying, every night she is the noisiest creature in our neighbourhood.

Every sunrise complains reach us that old men are unable to spend their nights peacefully. Wailing young children are unable to spend the night sucking the breasts of their mothers.

Everyday, the question our neighbours are asking is “what is all the bleating about” and we say as usual, it is the ‘black sheep’ that they have known for months now.

The most frightening thing for our family and our neighbours is that her blowing bleat attracts wild cats, hyenas and the lurking lions.

In fact several of our herds are missing and lost after hyenas attracted by the noise stormed into our boma.

Much to her own suffering, she lags behind always when the rest of the animals are coming home in the evening. In fact she is the last to arrive. So an extra herd boy should always remain behind with the ‘black sheep’ so that she can be safe to reach home at dusk.

Now we are in trouble because of this ‘black sheep’ that has taken over our bushy compound.

But to my father, this sheep is so important as well. It is the only high breed animal in our village, everyone admires because she produces the best of milk and young ones every breeding season.

She has been the apple of my father’s eye. Everyday when the animals arrive he has to count starting with the black sheep. So her absence to my father, a longtime Somali herder is like missing one of his eyes.

My father has personally received complains about the sheep so many times, but he does not take things seriously.

He is seemingly reluctant to bring solution to our herd and to address the complains of our  neighbours. Things are not coming clear to him as it appears to me and the rest of family.

I can no longer put up with our grueling neighbours. For members of our family, the black sheep has become an identity. When we walk around the village, we hear rumours behind our back. Bush boys call us all sorts of names including the family of the ‘bleating sheep’

I am the eldest son of my father, and as our pristine Somali culture dictates, I have the privilege to discuss and advice my father concerning our homestead.

Clearly this is a big menace in our family, and we need to get an urgent solution in this regard. I was thinking about slaughtering the sheep or selling it at the local livestock market in Wajir,  my pastoral hometown.

But before I share the problem of the black sheep with my father, I decided to think about the matter seriously.

I know of course my father is a very wise man, obviously he has all the reasons why he does not want to get rid of this troublesome animal.

I don’t want to see him over the issue unless when the time comes to be able convince him to eradicate the black sheep.

I am still thinking about why my father is not taking the matter seriously and why he is keeping this problematic 'black sheep' in our compound.

(Short story  developed by: Abdullahi Jamaa)

Consumption of Khat will soon be culturally unacceptable in the UK. And you Somali?

The Guardian newspaper in the UK reports that the consumption of Khat in the UK is likely to be restricted or even completely banned as unacceptable cultural practice.

Here comes my Somali community which is by far and wide entangled by the dangers of this mild stimulant drug, it is indeed one of the reasons why I am a sobbing Somali.

The decision to refer Khat to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs in the UK is timely and there needs to be an urgent intervention to declare Khat an illegal drug.

If the UK is thinking of considering Khat as unacceptable cultural practice, what does it mean for you as a Somali- a culture deeply entrenched in the roots of our societal lifestyles?

Ugandan Forces Cannot Claim Progress in Somalia

The Ugandan Media Centre posted an article headlined ‘The UPDF Has Done A Great Job In Somalia’ but this is totally unacceptable and is seemingly a here-say, a mere lopsided propaganda all together,  to justify the presence of Uganda’s People Defense Force in Somalia.

To my understanding of things, the situation in Somalia has been an acid test for any country that had ever interfered militarily in Somalia, Uganda included. Its claim of progress is not reflected on the ground, if what is happening in Mogadishu is anything to go by.

The opposition parties in Uganda should not be condemned for their expression of deployment of their troops in Somalia, for they know the dangers that come with.

Of all things Uganda is a very poor East African country, its ill-equipped defense force cannot claim advances in a country where the 1993 US humiliation is still fresh in the minds of many people.

Lest anyone forget, Somalia is the first country in Africa to democratically hand over power to a majority-elected president in the 1960’s when majority of states in the continent like Uganda were  still under dictatorship. Even today.

Military interventions do not work in Somalia mind you, democratic acceptance from the people of Somalia can lead the light here, and the Ugandan forces are not accepted to operate in Mogadishu.

Somalia conflict

The Somalia conflict is always aggravating. What do you think will be the fate of the failed state given that at the moment there is an emerging split within Al-Shabaab's top commanders. For me it exacerbates the situation further leaving Somalis with slim chances for peace and instability.