A week or so ago, a friend of mine and I were flirting with the current Somali situation, a common enduring lesson, perhaps, for most Somalis who are absorbed with the affairs of our desperate nation nowadays. It is a love-hate romance, though consequentially a heartbreaking thing in nature that most Somalis would like to explore in the hopes that one would get intimately closer in understanding the contentious issue called Somali politics. Logic dictates that all those colossal international efforts channeled to the Somali problems would produce results, tangible results that could be integrated to amount to something that could give my friend and I a hope.

A hope that the true obstacles to peace and reconciliation, the Mogadishu warlords and the Speaker of the Parliament (Sharif Hassan), would come to their senses and deliver what they agreed to in Kenya--changing their old ways. A hope that the Somali people would rally in great masses marching in support of the last hope of having a government that enforces a desperately needed law and order in the streets of Mogadishu. A hope that finally the Somalis could take one step closer in moving towards understanding the origins, nature and scope of the long debated Somali conflicts. A hope that the malicious, deliberate, inhumane execution of Somali intellectuals and peacemakers, like Abdulkadir Yahya Ali and the attack on people working for media outlets would come to an end. A hope that the continual out of control clashes between the militias belonging to Mogadishu warlords and their illegal “ISBARTOS” would disappear out of site, bringing a better day for the thousands of Somalis who lost both their communal and personal rights and dignity, who succumbed to daily humiliation, depression, fear and anxiety. A hope that Mogadishu warlords and their mouthpiece, the Speaker, would finally understand that time is not on their side any more. A hope that peace and security could be realized only through sincere commitment and honest dialogue, not through intimidation and illegal control of public property.   That peace could only be reached, not through indiscriminate violence and collective attacks or punishment, but through constructive dialogue and vision for a better future. A hope that Sharif Hassan opens his eyes to the reality of the day that Mogadishu can not regain the status of being a city for all Somalis, the Capital, unless it loses its current status (Kill Zone), where its sons and daughters are being slaughtered unabashedly day and night.

If the first requirement (security in Mogadishu) is not dependent on the second requirement (the government moving to Mogadishu), as the Speaker decries, then the often mentioned agreed upon suggestion of Mogadishu becoming the Capital has no merit or enough reasons to exist and should be nullified. The Speaker failed to explain clearly or successfully convince the public as to why it is that important to move the government to Mogadishu when the government has no control on anything to run its day to day business as it wishes other than putting their safety under the mercy of these gutless warlords, who made no secret that this government is doomed to collapse unless they dictate every action that the government might take, taking a page from the tactics they employed to bring down Abdulkasim's government. It beats the logic and raises a genuine suspicion in the minds of sane people as to why the Speaker betrays his oath of office of seeking peace under all possible situations to help his own communities return to their homes, addressing the issues of displacement and resettlements and to devise a plan to prevent this happening again.   He seems to be running away from the sacred responsibility which this government undertook to shoulder for better or worse in its course of bring peace back to this nation of ours. One very important lesson the Somalis, except the Speaker, have learned during these long testing times is the undeniable fact that conflict has been perpetuated through lack of communication, misunderstanding and un- substantiated rumors that fuelled the on going violence. It seems that the Speaker is out there promoting his own agendas by supporting the same inter-communal violence, creating an enduring culture of mistrust and suspicion that has become the cause of the destruction that this nation has experienced. What the Speaker is supporting is the long existed community conflict that has divided the Somali people for years, where all social structures and routine social interaction have been disrupted; resulting feelings of isolation, fear and mistrust, a situation that benefits only the warlords and their militias.

In this respect, the Mogadishu warlords should realize that sabotaging a government they are member of is a tactic that could lead to nothing more than damaging the peace process. These warlords should wake up and grasp the magnitude of the destruction that their actions have already caused the Somali public and the nation in general. Most significantly, perhaps, is the expressed concerns that underscores how dangerously the Speaker's tactics could sabotage Abdillahi's government, albeit the positive measures so far taken by Prime Minister Gedi and his government, aimed to move forward with the peace process as planned. There is a chance that the Somali people could reflect on rebuilding their nation, provide opportunities for people to rebuild trust and social relationships through communication.

However, the irony couldn't be greater for the Speaker of the parliament, and the most puzzling in all of these is the fact that the Speaker seems to be talking in both sides of his mouth, however. He is being lead not by a clear vision but by an illusion based on wrong presumption--- on one hand he teamed up with the most notorious warlords who control Mogadishu's ISBARATO and check points to fatten their wallets, and on the other hand he is misleading the people and maybe even his own self that he could bring peace to Mogadishu, where he failed miserably to deliver any tangible change nor to garner significant peace agreement among these warlords. More over, he turned down all positive gestures extended by both the President and the Prime Minister. Perhaps his shortsightedness and lack of vision failed him to understand or contextualize the hard reality that Mogadishu at the present situation remains the “Kill Zone” it has been for years now. Maybe he misconstrued being hardheaded and stubborn for toughness—Mr. John Wayne, a foolish behavior that doesn't serve the Somali people at this present test times.

Prime Minister Gedi, unlike Abdulkasim, understands well and was probably well coached by Abdillahi Yussuf that for them to stand any chance of moving the peace process forward, they should stay away from Mogadishu as long as it is under siege, controlled by these vicious warlords who have no intension of making peace with any one, not even among them selves. As Gedi made it public, his roadmap makes sense to anyone who is listening with open mind. His proposal begins with measures that assure the safety of his government and its members first and foremost. In the absence of strong loyal Somali troops and as the result of the rejection by the Speaker of any foreign troops coming to the country to protect the government, the Prime Minister is trying to do what is possible by moving ahead in rebuilding a national military to provide security as suggested by the international community, and is also urging all those who have the Somali interests in their hearts to join him. The Prime Minister stressed his commitment to do that all possible to keep this process moving and has been asking those Mogadishu warlords to come to the table and do the job they promised to do within the framework of what is acceptable to the Somali people. He never ruled out the possibility of his government moving to Mogadishu when and if security permits them to do so. Yet, the Speaker and his cohorts vowed to attack Jowhar if the Gedi's government starts rebuilding the national army comprising militias from all regions of the nation. This is a clear indication that these Mogadishu warlords have no intension of agreeing to peace, never had and never will unless it is their way. Whenever peace was negotiated in order to resolve the Somali conflict, which has been numerous occasions, their practice of rejecting all peace-oriented initiatives continues, even when they have been given some of the highest ranks in government. Clearly, these guys are seeking a greater political role for themselves and are forcing their own agenda of controlling Mogadishu forever. They are once again asking the international community to come and broken peace deal between them the government that they are member of, in the hopes that the international community would persuade Abdillahi Yussuf to move to Mogadishu, the only place where these warlords could call the shots. Any serious student of contemporary Somali politics and international trends would recognize that this desire doesn't stem from nowhere all of a sudden. To the contrary, they have planned all along thinking that Abdillahi Yussuf would fall for it, just like Abdulkasim did mindlessly. This conspiracy to undoubtedly subvert the hard won peace agreement is the only thing in their mind and anything less is unacceptable to them. However, Abdillahi Yussuf is no fool, as he has already proven to them.

Wheras President Yussuf agreed not to move to Puntland, the region he hails from, but to Jowhar, 90 km from Mogadishu, a practical and sound move to demonstrate his willingness and commitment to peace, the Mogadishu warlords refused to travel a short distance of 90 km to show the public that they are committed to peace. Under very restricted political conditions and under a paralyzed system that lacks security for his government, Abdillahi yussuf and his Prime Minister,Gedi, are proposing sound initiatives to create a peaceful environment where all warlords could work together without the burden of worrying about whose militia controls the Capital, if in case something goes wrong. And if he found the city of Jowhar to be that safe haven, so be it. Why not, isn't it a Somali city? However, Abdillahi Yussuf's proposed initiatives would need cooperation and internal cohesiveness among his government members for their implementation. Building peace within communities relies on understanding the causes as well as the symptoms of conflict, something Mr. Gedi demonstrated to have the ability to deliver. To the contrary, nonetheless, other than hasty condemnation of these initiatives, which they labeled as outright autocratic acts, the Speaker and his Mogadishu teams have yet to show any leadership or to have control of the situation in Mogadishu. If you ask me, I believe the time favors Yussuf and Gedi in this one.

Whereas Gedi is employing efforts to bolster internal cohesion and to improve the political atmosphere as well as restoration of broken relations both within his government and in the nation at large, Mogadishu warlords and the stubborn Speaker are vying for imminent collapse of the government. They are focusing on how to undermine the emergence of strong institutions with vision that serve the nation, and with a purpose of introducing systems and the means to end the sufferings of the public at large. The intension of the Speaker is to sideline this government as much as he could and see to it that it collapses. We are earnestly requesting the Speaker to think straight, show commitment to peace and exercise common sense. Nobody should say I am boycotting a dialogue as nobody loses in open-end dialogue. Everyone gains by joining in talks where peace is being discussed, especially when one is the Speaker of a parliament that is cession. The question is, where is the Speaker? How could he sleep soundly at night, or does he?

I guess my friend I should wait much longer than we wish for our hopes to materialize.

Ali Bahar
E-mail:abahar@bcm.tmc.edu 

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