By Osman Hassan
Introduction:
Mogadishu epitomizes all that is good and bad about the Somali people: it is the pride of Somali history and the cradle of Somali nationalism that ultimately brought the independence and unity of former Italian Somaliland and British Somaliland- an act that was hoped would lead to the fulfilment of Greater Somalia. But Mogadishu is also indelibly associated with the worst of Somalia’s history: those in Mogadishu who ousted President Mohamed Barre and his government wanted to grab power at any cost. And indeed they did but at what cost!! The overthrow of the Somali Government in 1991 led immediately to the collapse of the Somali State with untold dire consequences with almost half the Somali population either killed, starved, ethnic-cleansed, internally displaced or forced to flee the country and seek refuge in foreign countries. And Mogadishu itself has paid the price to the point of total destruction.
Apart from the human and physical damage, no less calamitous is the demise of Somali nationalism, the glue that held together the Somali people from different clans and different region. Its passing has ushered the nation’s fragmentation into clannism, bogus federalism and secession. Revival of the State and nation could only come back with the revival of Somali nationalism. That, however, would only be possible when Somalia has honest patriotic visionary leaders which so far has eluded it. And as long as this remains the case, support from the international community is unlikely to bear much fruit as we have seen over the recent years since this federal government took office. It is against this background that I paid a visit to Mogadishu for the first time after an absence dating back to 1990.
A return to the homeland
Landing at Mogadishu Airport
There are many shocks awaiting a Somali diaspora returning to Mogadishu for the first time since the collapse of the State in 1991. Landing at Mogadishu Airport (the old one) is the gateway, the window to Somalia and one’s first eye opener. Even if one is aware that the once proud and independent nation has been brought down from its pedestal and torn apart by years of destruction, turmoil and anarchy at the hands of egregious warlords and their partisans, it is all the same shuttering when one sees with ones own eyes how familiar sites have changed beyond recognition.
What immediately strikes one on arrival at Mogadishu Airport is what looks like a country under occupation: the whole seaside overlooking the airport has been siphoned off by foreign interests and out of bounds for Somalis. This might be for security reasons given the fear of attacks from Al Shabaab. It is unlikely this carve-up of the sea side has been sanctioned by due process of law. At best, it might have been grabbed with a nod from the president (an autocrat who constitutionally is a figure head but has usurped the powers of the Prime Minister). And reflecting this foreign domination are the presence of African Union peacekeeping forces known as AMISOM who are conspicuous for their assertive intrusion posing as the new masters of the land.
Once you manage to get away from the airport (the old one), still as messy and chaotic as I had known it, one comes face to face with the status of the ordinary Somali people – confined to the outer periphery of the airport security zone, a sight reminiscent of the old colonial days. This is again justified on security grounds. Here and there, one finds skinny and miserable-looking Somali soldiers, once the pride of the nation. Their menial task is to control the entrance to the airport. Often unpaid for months, some are forced to swallow their pride and ask for money from arriving or departing passengers to feed themselves and their families. The contrast between them and their well-fed and well-paid AMISOM counterparts is tormenting.
Ali Baba and his thieves
Government corruption did not start with the current leaders. Their predecessors in the transitional governments have in varying degrees embezzled public funds. The former president, the presumably God-fearing Sheikh Shariif, who one would have thought would be faithful to the teachings of the Quran, went into the business of steeling public funds with abandon as if it was all manna from heaven!. But his record pales in comparison with the current leader. From the word go, plundering government coffers was the main preoccupation of the President and his cohorts.
The story of Yussur Farah Abraar, resigning in October 2013 from her post as Governor of the Central Bank, because she refused to facilitate the transfer of millions of dollars from the Bank, was the centre piece of the Report of the United Nations Monitoring Group on Somalia. This was the beginning of the end of any trust donors and international community had on the probity of the president and his government. In private, some donors refer to the establishment as Ali Baba and his thieves and keep their distance. Amin Amir’s regular cartoons say the same thing but more sharply and captivatingly.
Rad more: A Letter from Mogadishu -The birth and burial of Somali Nationalism
Osman Hassan
email:[email protected]
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Osman Hassan is a seasoned journalist and a former UN staff member. Mr Hassan is also a regular contributor to WardheerNews.
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