Saturday, August 16, 2008

Diaspora Conference halted in Puntland

GAROWE, Somalia - A conference organized by a local non-governmental organization and scheduled to be attended by intellectuals from the Somali Diaspora has been halted by the government of Puntland.
Statements issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Planning jointly called for the Diaspora Conference to be stopped, after the Puntland administration indicated that the conference has "political" motivations.
The conference, organized by the Puntland Development and Research Center (PDRC), was officially scheduled to open on August 13 in Garowe, the capital of Puntland.
Many of the 50 invited intellectuals from the Somali Diaspora have already arrived in Garowe, according to organizers.
The Puntland administration said its concerned about the conference and its outcome, although organizers tell Garowe Online that the conference would discuss issues of social, economic and political development.
Last month, Puntland lawmakers and traditional elders rejected a new constitution for the region, which PDRC was contracted to prepare.

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