Friday, June 11, 2010

Seeking asylum, dozens of Somalis wait in Tacoma

TACOMA, Wash. -- Dressed in a blue prison jumpsuit, 21-year-old Allie Muktar - the only one who can speak English well in a group of about 40 Somali men - interprets legal tips from a pro-bono attorney in a meeting room of the Northwest Detention Center.
All the men are seeking asylum in the United States after entering the country through Mexico. They are part of a growing number of East African immigrants who in recent years have used routes traditionally traveled by Latino immigrants.
"I've seen, read all of your (stories) and you all have the chance to qualify to stay here," Betsy Tao, a lead attorney for Northwest Immigrants Rights Project, tells the group.
Muktar translates. The men listen attentively.
Nearly 80 Somali nationals have been transferred to the detention center in Tacoma since March, sending the lone free legal aid firm that serves the detention center scrambling to try to help the asylum seekers navigate the country's complex immigration laws.
Nearly 260 Somalis have reached the U.S.-Mexican border in the first eight months of the fiscal year 2010, eclipsing the more than 240 who sought asylum the entire year before, according to statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The number of Somalis arriving at the border in 2009 were more than double those in 2008.
A handful of Eritreans and Ethiopians are also seeking asylum after using the same migration route, Tao said.
"We've tried to do the best we've can with the limited resources we have," Tao said.
For the past few years, Muktar and other East Africans have journeyed by air, sea and land to reach the United States, taking them through routes in Mexico and Central America.
Their journies to the United States involve planes, cargo ships and cars before they set out on foot to reach the U.S.-Mexican border.
At the border, the asylum seekers look for America authorities and ask for asylum. Customs officers then conduct a screening interview to gauge if their stories are real.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Lorie Dankers says the government is well equipped to handle the influx of East African immigrants entering through Mexico. The group arrived in Tacoma as the government sought adequate bed space. The detention center in Tacoma was recently expanded to 1,575 beds, up from just over 1,000.
Tao said many of the Somalis in Tacoma traveled through a dozen countries to get to the U.S. often paying fees starting at between $5,000 to $6,000. Muktar said he paid $10,000.
The suspension of a refugee program and the continuing instability of Somalia are fueling the migration.
Somali refugees say they are fleeing repression by armed militias defending majority clans and the Islamic militant group al-Shabab, which has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States.
In 2008, the U.S. suspended a family reunification program for refugees over fraud concerns. The number of Somalis admitted by refugee programs dwindled to about 4,000 last year. There are about 87,000 Somalis in the country who have settled in cities like Minnesota and Seattle. Most arrived through U.S.-sponsored refugee programs.
Tao said it's too early to tell how the dozens of asylum applications will turn out.
Muktar's route took him through Kenya, Djibouti, Dubai, Russia, Cuba, South America, Central America and Mexico. He was detained for ten days in Costa Rica and for 28 days in Mexico.
He and others were robbed at gunpoint while crossing the Costa Rican-Nicaraguan border. He crammed into a truck to cross Central America, and finally took a cab from an airport in Tijuana to reach the San Ysidro border crossing.
"All I thought, to be honest, that to come here all problems would be solved," Muktar said. "I know this country helps people all over the world. People in this country know the situation in our country."
Muktar left Kismayo, Somalia when he was 10 years old after unrest there forced his uncle to send him to Kenya with a relative. His entire family had already been killed in the mayhem. He left Kenya when authorities there started deporting and arresting Somali immigrants.
"My expectations were maybe high that I would get help... I don't know what to expect now. I was like kind of freaked out the first time with the big chains all over our legs. 'God, what did I get myself into?' But I'm still expecting nothing but the best."

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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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