Thursday, March 11, 2010

Somalia: President Sheikh Ahmed: The Man in the Mirror

Sheikh SHARIF Sheikh Ahmed, a former Commander in Chief of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), became the 7th President of Somalia on Saturday, January 31, 2009.  During his presidential campaign, he promised to bring much-needed reconciliation to Somalia’s warring tribal factions.  The Somali people held a degree of trust for him because he came from the religious community, the most successful constituency within Somalia.  Somalis from everywhere welcomed his election. Moreover, the international community applauded his victory, and even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described him as the “best hope” for the war-torn nation of Somalia.

The U.S Government went further by embracing President Ahmed’s administration with diplomatic cover and financial backing.   With this enormous political capital from the Somali people and the international community, the question is, what has President Ahmed done with this political capital?

He was elected a little over a year ago, and it is now apparent to everyone that his administration is on the verge of collapse.  It is important to place President Ahmed’s policies up to the mirror, and learn from his missed opportunities in order to put this fractured nation back together.

In retrospect, the ICU was made up of various tribes who reside in Mogadishu.  They were tired of the conflict, and therefore went back to the one thing that unites them five times a day, the religion of Islam.  People congregate in the Mosques to pray the five daily prayers, and those who are regular attendees develop a degree of trust.    With this trust in hand, various tribal factions agreed to hand over the security of Mogadishu to the religious community.  This was a wave, a political movement from the local people.  He caught this wave at the right time, and became the leader of the ICU movement.

Upon his election, President Ahmed had ninety days not only to form a government, but to also start building trust and confidence within the stable and the unstable regions of the country.  He could have flown to those regions, and learned what the locals do best, rather than his embarrassing trips to foreign countries.

His opponents are not foreigners or terrorists as he claims.  They are largely made up of locals.  They do not trust President Ahmed’s administration, as he has shown himself to be a politically naïve individual, judging by his reckless political moves which has further weakened his administration.  President Ahmed’s government control small blocks in Mogadishu, and he is, in fact, under the protection of African Union peacekeeping troops.

In October of 2006, he declared a religious war against the TFG, and its then backer of Ethiopia.  On June 22, 2009, he asked the neighboring countries including Kenya, Djibouti, Yemen, and even Ethiopian government to send troops to Somalia.

While Ahmed was fighting against the former President Yusuf’s administration, and the Ethiopian army, he organized many of liked minded fighters.   As he used the nationalist card, and waved the religious flag, his strategy was to attract individuals with any inclination to fight against his opponents, regardless of their long-term political motive. The fighters did not need to have any special skills or subscribe to a nation building.  They just needed to pick up the Kalashnikov, and fight against the intended target, the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and its main backer Ethiopian army in the capital, Mogadishu.

Once Ahmed was elected president, he continued to use the same strategy, and filled important government positions with those who do not possess credentials for their positions.  He failed to realize that he needed to change strategy, and hire the country’s top experts who could engage the various regions within Somalia, including Puntland, and the self-declared autonomous Somaliland region.

There are two powerful constituencies in Somalia, the religious community, and the tribal groups.   He has failed them both. Furthermore, he has failed to engage with the local fighters in Mogadishu, as he constantly labels them “terrorist” or “foreign fighters”.   He utters anything that is politically convenient, without considering his words’ long-term implications.

When Somali people placed their support behind him, they expected him to travel within the country, make peace deals and bridge gaps. The late Thomas P. O'Neill’s quote comes to mind “All politics is local.”  It is essential that he travel, and build strong international partners.  But, the Somalis will judge him upon things he has accomplished locally.

Tribes are nothing more than a constituency with their own interests.  Of course, in Somalia, there is a degree of mistrust between tribes because of the civil unrest for the last 19 years.  This mistrust is expected as a result of the conflict, and it is curable with the right leadership.

President Ahmed has yet to demonstrate the leadership courage, and the conviction necessary to put peace deals together between Somalis in order to move the nation forward. Somalis everywhere, as well as the international community, welcomed his election.  But, he failed to deliver on his promises, and history will judge the legacy of his administration, if there is any. He has squandered his political capital and he will soon vanish into thin air.  However, important lessons have been learned, lessons that can help us move forward, save our country, our women, and children from the humiliation they are enduring in the refugee camps all over the world.  Policies and decision should be made keeping in mind the painful plight of our people everywhere.


M. J. Farah is an independent analyst, lecturer, writer, aspiring entrepreneur, and he currently resides in the Unites States.   He can be reached by email at: sahan93@gmail.com.

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author
and do not necessarily reflect the views of  TF.SF
 

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Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

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