First Thoughts of International Election Observation Team

29 Nov. 2012

First thoughts of international election observation team assembled by Progressio,  DPU and Somaliland Focus (UK) for Somaliland’s local council elections on November 28^th. The team of 50 observers from 18 countries observed voting at 20% of the more than 1,700 polling stations, visiting 15 of the 21 districts across the country where the election took place, and followed up by witnessing station counts through the evening. Team members are continuing to observe counting and tabulation ahead of final results.

The mission follows previous observations of elections in Somaliland in 2002, 2005 and 2010, which observers were able to judge free and fair. The 2010 presidential poll was especially notable for the peaceful and smooth transfer of power on the defeat of an incumbent.

This poll is especially significant in that it will shape Somaliland’s political landscape by determining which three parties contest national elections for the next decade.

With a fuller team assessment to come in early December, preliminary indications suggest that, despite some reports of violence, and no voting taking place in some disputed districts in the country’s east, Somaliland’s electorate has, once again, turned out with enthusiasm and in large numbers.

Particularly heartening has been wide participation by female voters, a boost in numbers of female candidates and, thanks to the lowering of the qualifying age, youthful candidates standing in significant numbers. However, at this interim stage, a few concerns have emerged, including, once again, apparent attempts at underage and multiple voting.

Observers have also reported excessive use of force by security forces outside polling stations in some areas; some poor organisation surrounding the electoral process, including delayed opening of polling stations; insufficient electoral materials; and technical problems with voter safeguards, such as the ink designed to prevent multiple voting.

Fuller consideration of these matters awaits our interim report. In the meantime, the team encourages Somaliland’s National Electoral Commission to ensure a transparent and accurate tabulation process and declaration of final results. With the stakes so high, there is potential for post-poll disputes.

Steve Kibble, the mission’s joint co-ordinator, said: “We commend the National Electoral Commission for ensuring that voting has gone ahead on November 28th as scheduled. Now we look forward to a peaceful conclusion to the process.?

A press conference will be held at the Hotel Maan-Soor, Hargeisa on December 3rd at 9am

Notes to Editors

1. For further information or to arrange an interview with a member of the coordination team, please contact Conrad Heine in Somaliland on + 252 2 486 5255 / media@somalilandfocus.org.uk, or in London Lucy Jenkinson on 020 7326 2011 / lucyj@progressio.org.uk , or Tim Aldred on 020 7326 2003 /

tim@progressio.org.uk.

2. Somaliland declared unilateral independence from Somalia in 1991 following the collapse of Somalia?s government. It remains internationally  unrecognised.

3. The joint mission follows on from similar missions to observe Somaliland´s inaugural local elections in 2002, followed by the parliamentary elections in 2005, judged by observers as “basically free and fair”, and the presidential election in 2010 http://www.progressio.org.uk/sites/default/files/Somalilandelections-2010-report.pdf , which saw an orderly transfer of power and was judged ?a peaceful expression of popular will?.

4. The mission has been invited by Somaliland?s National Electoral Commission (NEC), and funded by Britain?s Department for International Development (DFID). It will follow up with a post-poll interim report to the NEC and donors, with the final report to follow in early 2013.

5. A pre-election assessment of the conditions for the local elections took place in 2012 and can be viewed here:http://www.progressio.org.uk/sites/progressio.org.uk/files/Preparing-for-localelections-

Sld-2012.pdf

6. For more information about Progressio, please seewww.progressio.org.uk and about Somaliland Focus, seewww.somalilandfocus.org.uk.

Musharaxa Cabdiraxman Cali Giire oo Taageerayaashiisu Ruxeen Suuqyadda Caasimada Iyo Qorshayaasha uu reer Hargeysa u Hayo

Lambarka Codaynta 307

Tirada taageerayaasha Musharax  Cabdiraxman Cali Giire ayaa ruxay dariiqyada waaweyn ee caasimada Hargeisa iyagoo ka qayb galaya maalintii ugu dambaysay ee xisbiga Kulimiye u lahaa ololaha doorashada musharaxa oo beerta xoriyada kula hadlayay taageerayaashiisa iyo kuwa musharaxiinta xisbiga Kulmiye waxa uu daboolka ka qaaday qorshayaasha uu hirgalindoono haddii ay isaga codkooda siiyaan qorshayaasha musharax Giira uu u soo bandhigay guud ahaan muwaadiniinta ku nool caasimada dalka ee Hargeysa waxay kala yihiin:

1.       Cashuurta D/Hoose waxa la galin doonaa habka casriga oo Computerized ah kaasi oo mehered kasta guri kasta cashuurtii ay bixiyeen cadadkeeda iyo magacoodaba ay ka akhrisan doonaan Website loo samayn doono D/Hoose gaar ahaan qaybtiisa Waaxda Dakhliga Cashuuraha. Sidoo kale cashuurta dadwaynaha laga ururiyo halka aya ku baxdo iyana Website-kaasi ayay kala socon doonaa!!!!!;

2.       Dhamaan Degmooyinka Caasimada waxa D/Hoose ee Hargeysi ka hirgalin doontaa Xarumo Caafimaad oo habeenkii heegan ah ayna ka hawlgalaan xirfadlayaal caafimaad oo aqoon la hubiyay lehi!!!!!;

3.       Taxi-yada Caasimada waxa lagu buufin doonaa midab gaar ah oo lagu aqoonsado sida caasimadaha dunida oo kale!!!!!;

4.       D/Hoose ee caasimada qaabdhismeedkeeda waxa lagu soo kordhin doonaa Waaxda Waxbarashada iyadoo la siin doono dhamaan dugsiyada Hoose, Dhexe iyo Sare ee xukuumada miisaaniyad kabniin ah oo Wasaarada Waxbarashadana lagala shaqayn doono si loo tayeeyo waxbarashada ubadkeena. Waaxdani waxay si joogto ah u kormeeri doonta dhamaan dugsiyada dawlada iyo kuwa gaarka loo leeyahay ee ku yaal Caasimada Hargeysa si loola socodo waxa la barayo ubadkeena!!!!!;

5.       Gudiyo Dadwayne ayaa laga samayn doonaa dhamaan degmooyinka iyo xaafadaha caasimada gudiyadaasi oo Golaha Deegaanka Hargeysa kala talin doona arimaha nabadgalyada iyo amaanka khuseeya iyo baahiyaha haysta dadwaynaha ku nool degmooyinka iyo xaafadaha caasimada!!!!!;

6.       D/Hoose ee Caasimadu waxay iyadoo kala shaqaynaysa Wasaarada Caafimaadka ee Xukuumada Somaliland daraasad ku samayn doontaa dhamaan xarumaha Cilaajyada loo yaqaano oo ay dadwaynuhu u doontaa caafimaad, daraasadan ayaa diirada saari doonta tayada adeegyada caafimaad ee ay bixiyaan xarumaha Cilaajyadu iyo hawlwadeenada ka hawl gala goobahaasi, gabogabada daraasadan waxa ka soo bixi doonta siyaasad iyo shuruuc lagu dhaqo xarumaha Cilaajyada iyo adeegyada ay bixiyaan taasi oo D/hoose ee Hargeysi ay hirgalin doonto!!!!!;

7.       Sanadka Koowaad waxa D/hoose oo kaashanaysa Haya’adaha Qaramada Midoobay kuwa Caalamiga ah iyo Xukuumada Somaliland la gaadhsiin doonaa dhamaan degmooyinka iyo xaafadaha Caasimadda Biyaha oo aasaasi u ah nolosha codbixiyayaasha muwaadiniinta ah.

Hadaba Muwaadin si qorshayaashaasi uu u hirgaliyo u hur oo u codee Musharax Cabdiraxmaan Cali Giire oo lambarkiisa codayntu yahay 307

Increased educational opportunities in Somaliland lead to greater professionalism

November 20, 2012

Unlike her older siblings, Amran Yonis, a 22-year-old business administration student at Golis University in Hargeisa, said she had plenty of options available to her when she was looking to enrol in higher education in 2008

"My elder siblings who finished before me had to wait three years because there was only one institute of higher learning, the University of Hargeisa," she told Sabahi.

Yonis is part of a rising generation of Somali students eager and able to further their education.

Technical Veterinary School students take part in a field activity April 18th in the Somaliland town of Sheikh

Saeed Ahmed Hassan, president of Golis University, said enrolment at his university has increased dramatically. "Three years ago, we had 500 students, but now there are 3,000," he told Sabahi. "In 2012 alone, we admitted 1,200 students."

He added that business administration, engineering, sharia law and medicine are among the most popular programmes.

 According to the Somaliland Higher Education Board, more than 60% of college students in Hargeisa are women.

To accommodate the influx of new students, the school has rented three additional buildings and constructed a fourth. In addition, the need for more qualified teachers has prompted the university to recruit from Kenya.

The impact of war

The protracted civil war that began in 1991 and the lack of strong government institutions able to uniformly regulate schools mean that degrees from local universities are often not recognised internationally, according to Mohammed Nur, a retired school administrator who consults with the government on education matters.

"The requirement to open colleges or universities is minimal," he told Sabahi. "Important things such as facilities are not checked and [universities] admit students regardless of what they scored in secondary school."

Addressing these concerns, the government says it began implementing measures to regulate higher education when it set up the Higher Education Board in 2010.

According to Khadar Ahmed Diriye, the board's director, 16 universities have been established across Somaliland in the past 20 years.

"We found most [universities] were easily registered previously without proper procedure," Diriye told Sabahi. To establish a regional standard, the board recently required all universities to re-register and issued them with temporary charters while their credentials are reviewed.

Diriye said the government brought in senior officials from Kenya's Higher Education Commission to help re-organise the education sector in Somaliland.

Partnering with universities in neighbouring countries

Universities in neighbouring countries are partnering with local colleges on a wide range of specialised programmes.

For example, thanks to a partnership with Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Nairobi, Golis University now offers a master's in business administration.

In addition, Ethiopia's Admas and Alpha Universities, and Uganda's Fairland University have opened campuses in the region.

Hassan of Golis University said these collaborations provide local universities with the opportunity to adopt best practices in management and curricula development, strengthening Somali universities' capabilities and credibility.

Challenges and opportunities ahead

University graduates are expected to boost the highly depleted employment pool in Somaliland, said Mohamed Dahir, a manager at Somaliland Civil Service, the recruitment arm of the regional administration.

College graduates hired by the administration in the past two years have already helped transform government institutions, he told Sabahi. He said these professionally trained employees have helped streamline the administration's revenue collection system and improve efficiency at airports and other ports of entry.

"We have employed trained accountants, clerks and immigration officers, among others, who are technology savvy," he said. "We have recently witnessed very good results. Previously, virtually all our personnel lacked proper education or training, which affected service delivery."

US judge rules former Somali security colonel Abdi Aden Magan who lived in Ohio responsible for Somali human rights attorney’s torture

By Associated Press, 

COLUMBUS, Ohio — A former military colonel with a Somali security force dubbed the “Gestapo of Somalia” by its critics was responsible for the torture of a human rights advocate in the 1980s, a federal judge ruled Tuesday in a decision that opens the door for a hearing on potential financial damages.

Abdi Aden Magan, who lived for several years in Ohio, did not present any evidence to dispute the allegations that he directed subordinates in carrying out human rights abuses under the regime of former dictator Siad Barre, U.S. District Judge George Smith said in Columbus.

Abukar Hassan Ahmed, a lawyer and human rights advocate now dividing his time between London and Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, alleged in a 2010 lawsuit that the three months of torture he endured make it painful for him to sit and injured his bladder to the point that he is incontinent.

Ahmed says the torture occurred when Magan served as investigations chief of the National Security Service of Somalia, a force dubbed the “Black SS” or the “Gestapo of Somalia” because of techniques used to gain confessions from detainees.

Magan “has not come forth with any evidence demonstrating that he took steps to prevent abuses from occurring or to punish his subordinates for engaging in human rights abuses,” Smith wrote.

Magan’s attorney had not seen Tuesday’s ruling and could not immediately comment. Magan declined to comment to The Associated Press when the lawsuit was first filed. He fought the allegations in court filings for a while, but he has since left the U.S. for Kenya and has not responded to additional court motions.

Initially, Magan argued the lawsuit was filed in the wrong country and too long after the alleged abuse. He also said he was immune from prosecution as long as he was acting within his official capacity and on behalf of the government.

The fact that Magan left the U.S. makes it uncertain whether Ahmed could ever receive financial damages, but the judge will have a hearing where Ahmed can testify about what happened to him, said Kathy Roberts, staff attorney at the San Francisco-based Center for Justice and Accountability, which brought the lawsuit.
She said the case has never been about the money.

“Today’s decision is important not only because it acknowledges Col. Magan’s crimes against Professor Ahmed, but it’s also important because it sheds light on the role of the security services in suppressing dissent against the Barre regime.”

In August, a federal judge in Virginia ordered the former prime minister of Somalia, Mohamed Ali Samantar, to pay $21 million in compensatory and punitive damages to several members of the minority Isaaq clan, who said they suffered brutal repression — including torture and mass killings — under the Barre regime.
___
Andrew Welsh-Huggins can be reached at http://twitter.com/awhcolumbus.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Somali livestock trade booming despite war

Posted by AFP on November 20, 2012

Amidst the chaos that has characterised life in conflict-ravaged Somalia, the animal trade has survived — and even managed to prosper./ AFP

HARGEISA, Somalia, Nov 20 – At Hargeisa’s dusty livestock market two men quietly size each other up, haggling over animal prices by placing fingers on their chequered headscarfs to indicate how much they would pay.
“If I press one finger, it means 100 shillings, the whole hand, 500, a bit of a finger, 90 shillings…we want to hide negotiations from other traders,” said animal trader Mohammed Iid, explaining the reasoning behind the silent barter.

Amidst the chaos that has characterised life in conflict-ravaged Somalia, the animal trade has survived — and even managed to prosper.

Traders in the northern Somali city — capital of the self-declared independent nation of Somaliland — rake in healthy profits, with sales spiking during Islamic festivals.

The symbolic sacrifice of sheep in accordance with Islam sees orders increase from neighbouring countries such as Yemen, some 200 kilometres (125 miles) across the Gulf of Aden.

Up to $250 million is generated from the export of goats, sheep and camels, although the lucrative trade was crippled when Saudi Arabia — one of the biggest consumers of animals from the Horn of Africa — imposed a nine-year ban on imports amid fears of an outbreak of Rift Valley Fever.

After the import ban was lifted in 2010, Somalia exported 4.3 million animals to Saudi Arabia and 4.7 million the following year, even though Somalia was experiencing one of its worst droughts on record.

Animals are exported through the ports of Berbera in Somaliland and Bossaso in Puntland. Both have established relative stability compared to the two decades of civil war that has ravaged southern and central Somalia.

From behind a pair of glasses, 78-year-old Mohamed Aden offers an insight into what the livestock trade means to the average Somali.

Up to $250 million is generated from the export of goats, sheep and camels.

“Animal rearing is our life,” he said, an animal trader for 21 years. “They are the source of our resources, our work and a source of tax for the government.”

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says Somaliland’s animal industry provides 40 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, employs 65 percent of the workforce and is responsible for up to 80 percent of foreign exchange.

Over two thirds of Somaliland’s rocky and bushy scrubland are given over to the animals.
“They are free range animals, they are organic,” said Ali Gulu, chief veterinary officer for the key port of Berbera.

Berbera, constructed by Russia during the Cold War, has already exported three million animals this year.

“The port is our main source of revenue…it funds up to 80 percent of the country’s budget,” said Omer Abokor Jama, the port’s deputy manager, noting the port earned $120 million in revenues last year.

“They are free range animals, they are organic,” said Ali Gulu, chief veterinary officer for the key port of Berbera.

While the lucrative business may be making enormous profits today, its foundation lies in long-standing ancestral ties between the Horn of Africa and the Arabian peninsula.

“It is easy for us to do business with them… they have always been our traditional business partners,” said Dhamac Barud, one of the most prosperous traders, earning over $1 million a year from exports to Saudi Arabia.

Britain’s seizure of Somaliland in 1888 was driven partly by the wish to secure regular livestock exports to fuel its growing empire, including the major Yemeni port of Aden, and that link is maintained today.

Britain supports the FAO’s efforts to develop the livestock industry, encouraging the growth of other related industries.

In Hargeisa, women extract marrow from the bones of slaughtered camels, mixing it with incense and soda ash to create soap, undercutting imported bars from surrounding nations.

Somaliland:Electoral Ethics Monitoring Body Accuse Sahil Politician’s of Violating Electoral Code of Conduct

The Electoral Ethics Monitoring body spokesperson Mr. Ahmed  Mohamed Cadaad speaking to the press today during a press conference today revealed that some candidates Sahil region have opened offices in Hargeisa in a bid to lure the electorates contrary to electoral code of conduct.

The Three Sahil politicians have opened the office in anticipation of the upcoming local election which is due soon, but the real motive of opening these offices is to buy of voters so as to crucial votes.
Prominent among those Sahil politicians accused of been in breach of the electoral code of conduct is the current Mayor of Berbera Municipality Mr. Abdale Mohamed Arab has already opened three offices in

Hargeisa in a bid to recruit potential voters in anticipation of the upcoming elections.
The fourth round and also the final round of electioneering campaigns just around the corner, some of the current Aspirants running for political offices are turning to crude means to attain their goals

Source: Hadhwanaagnews .com

Somaliland elections: Everything is fine (except when it is not)

Somalilanders are great optimists and at our many meetings we are being constantly assured that everything in the electoral process is going to be OK. Sometimes we look at each other and ask ‘It’s quiet Carruthers?’ ‘Yes… too quiet’. But largely speaking even the opposition associations/parties are happy. Except… up in Toghdeer region not far from the Ethiopian border there are some problems, unsurprisingly enough related to clan (dis)advantage.

 

So we left the hothouse of Hargeisa and headed to the coast and up the mountains to find out what the problem was. Given we are all non-Londoners, we thought this was a good opportunity anyway to get the view from outside Hargeisa – since capital cities generally take little notice of what happens elsewhere.

Giant tortoises

So after the ritual search for our armed protection unit and a little negotiation, we went through the scrubland, desert and savannah, reminiscent of being high up of the fynbos (natural shrubland) of the Western Cape. Rocky terrain, camels and goats among the still green trees, but also baboons, ground squirrels, warthogs, dikdiks and the odd raptor above. Giant tortoises crossed the road – best to treat them as a roundabout.

As we left Hargeisa the blue plastic bags flowering in the acacias lessened. The termite mounds were impressive, the thin tall ones resembling cloaked statues and the big ones, Moores or Hepworths in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, although the latter rarely have acacias growing out of them. The lunarscapes of the desert would have had Sergio Leone frantically whistling up his camera crew.

Frontier town

We called in on the regional electoral commission in the coastal town of Berbera where the temperature was down to a pleasant autumnal 36 degrees (high summer sees 45-50) and again all was fine – including a good meal of fish accompanied by a chorus of local cats (bit off if you don’t like light opera while eating).

Burao, spelt Burao, has the feel of a frontier town (Dodge City? Gretna Green?) despite being 100 miles from the Somalia border, as it is where two historically opposed clans meet – depending on whose mythology you trust. But then again as in most places, this rivalry is overlaid by the Diaspora experience – the hotel keeper was a Blades supporter from Sheffield, his deputy was from Tottenham and the governor of the region was a long time Brummie (bloke from Birmingham to our international readers).

Clan interests

Given that sub clan interests and desire for unity trumps all, there had been complaints from one (Habr Younis) that the western, southern and northern parts of the city only had around 80 polling stations while the other clan in the east – Habr Jeclo – had around 150.

The reason for this was simple and based on returns from the 2010 presidential election. In that contest the incumbent from Somaliland’s west was being challenged by the eventual winner ‘Silanyo’, who is Habr Jeclo, and another contender in whom Habr Younis had an equal lack of interest. Therefore they didn’t bother turning out to vote. NEC (Somaliland National Electoral Commission) relying on the computer-generated figures from last time therefore gave them fewer stations. Technically correct of course, but seasoned hands reckon better safe than sorry – always better to consult the parties, elders etc and head off a problem.

Anyway we sat under a tree (possibly giving us the spurious air of wise elders) and listened to the complaints of the relevant parties (not all turned up and some came mob-handed). We promised to forward their concerns while rejecting the idea that we should rectify this problem directly. Meetings are going on in Hargeisa on this issue as we write, with important folk flying in to try and solve it. Several solutions occur to us, but we will see what compromises emerge from the no doubt lengthy discussions. Anyone with a deep interest in this exciting interface between psephological science and clan dynamics can get in touch with Michael for further details no doubt.

Code of conduct

Now (Thursday 15 November) back in Hargeisa it is the Islamic New Year’s Day of 1434 and a public holiday although naturally meetings continue. As well as the Burao issue, we are tracking a number of issues. One is implementation of the code of conduct that all the parties signed (and one immediately denounced). Second, accusations that the governing party is using state resources for party purposes – something they vigorously deny. Party campaigning in public places has been suspended for the middle two of the four campaign weeks. This means that the colourful convoys with young women endangering life and limb by leaning out of bus windows waving flags, and young men doing the same from the tops of the buses, has at least diminished if not entirely disappeared. Big blow for photographers everywhere…

The naughty step

We are also enquiring about the effectiveness of voter education programmes as well as training for polling station and party agent staff – there are lots of initiatives including those run by Progressio partners like the women’s network NAGAAD and the NGO coordinating body SONSAF, but it’s a bit of a fitful picture overall.

The yellow weaver birds and red-chested finches are out in force in the Maansoor Hotel garden, although the giant tortoises of beloved memory have gone. The tame-ish gazelles are still in evidence. One with sawn-off horns (in retrospect that should have been a clue) took a shine to Steph – if you interpret that as running up from behind and prodding her with his horns. After a few occurrences we saw he had been put in the naughty step – the fenced off bit of the garden. The coordination team has now been joined by media mogul Conrad, number cruncher Aly and photographer Kate.

10 days to go…

Next week a learned exegesis on how the seven political parties get whittled down to the three allowed for in the constitution, plus what the UN is doing, how the Burao problem sorted itself out and much more. 10 days to go…

- Progressio