tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post116564718011303400..comments2024-01-12T17:19:55.321+03:00Comments on No Longer at Ease: Somalia 2007: A Dangerous Year AheadAbdurahman Warsamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04579533788286692720noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post-1165942465716364062006-12-12T19:54:00.000+03:002006-12-12T19:54:00.000+03:00Re: your statement"The point is that Ethiopia supp...Re: your statement<BR/><BR/>"The point is that Ethiopia supports Puntland, is the only country to recognize Somaliland as an independent state and support the Transitional Government..."<BR/><BR/>Doesn't South Africa also recognize Somaliland as an independent state? Doesn't the EU and other international government bodies provide assistance to the fledgling elected governments of Somaliland and Puntland? I believe the answer is YES.<BR/><BR/>I will agree with you that some people in Washington D.C. are stirring up the bottom of the pot in Somalia. But so are a lot of other governments and outside players.<BR/><BR/>Isn't the interim TFG in Somalia supported by the United Nations, giving it full legitimacy to form a government for all of Somalia excluding the two breakaway republics? You can't have it both ways. Either the UN are the good guys or the bad guys. Which is it?<BR/><BR/>P.S. Oh I know that the weapons that the ladies are brandishig are real. My question is are these the low cost Made in China models or the high-end stuff out of eastern Europe? Sudan has recently opened a new Chinese-built munitions factory you know. Cuts down on the high transport costs and import duties on foreign manufactured arms for the region. Sudan is going to make a killing$$$ on this conflict, literally.BREhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09668844948345978806noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post-1165920311072257512006-12-12T13:45:00.000+03:002006-12-12T13:45:00.000+03:00Joshua,Thanks for dropping by, I've just checked y...Joshua,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for dropping by, I've just checked your blog, informative and a great read. The conflict in Northern Uganda is largely ignored and especial the human cost and the suffering of the people there. What's fascinating in East Africa, is that countries with major internal problems of insecurity, AIDS, hunger like Uganda, Ethiopia and Eritrea, would interfere in other countries conflicts and spend money and resources they don't have. Uganda in Sudan, Ethiopia in Somalia ... can these regimes get any more dysfunctional?<BR/><BR/>Citizen journalism is something i'm very interested in (though I don't write about it as often as I should), in fact it might become my job soon. I like your photos of Uganda, if you've a flickr, add me to your profile; http://flickr.com/photos/shirsoore<BR/><BR/>I'll add your blog to my blogroll and drop by often, please keep it up because we need more voices from Africa.Abdurahman Warsamehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04579533788286692720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post-1165918639939114582006-12-12T13:17:00.000+03:002006-12-12T13:17:00.000+03:00Black river eagle,Well, the US had no one on the g...Black river eagle,<BR/><BR/>Well, the US had no one on the ground for a while, but collected intelligence in Kenya and Ethiopia, that's until early this year. The Washingtonpost (and all other major media outlets) have reported the US's support for the warlords:<BR/>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/16/AR2006051601625.html<BR/><BR/>Since 2002, US forces are stationed just next door in Djibouti. From their positions, they can easily monitor what is happening in Somalia. The presence of Ethiopian troops isn't secret by any means, it was reported by UN, Aljazeera, BBC ...etc. UN and EU officials have also spoken out against Ethiopia's presence as the prime source for more conflict. The previous Somali government had also formally complained to the security council about Ethiopia. <BR/><BR/>The point is that Ethiopia supports Puntland, is the only country to recognize Somaliland as an independent state and support the Transitional Government (which, at least on paper, has sovereignty over the whole of Somalia), doesn't that sound contradictory? Yes, but Ethiopia isn't interested in peace in Somalia and the US is the only country able to tell Ethiopia to get out of Somali but it has never done so, why not? No doubt, US can have a positive influence if it wants to, but it's more interested in the useless and baseless accusations of Islamic courts on terror activities (and even before the Islamic Courts). I'm not against or for the Islamic Courts, but I dislike the US's sickening stance on Somalia. Just after 9/11 they freezed the assets of Barakat, the biggest money remittance business in Somalia without any evidence or charges against anyone, not even caring about the fact that Barakat was serving and employing thousand of Somalis.<BR/><BR/>The ladies in the photo are carrying real AK-47, as a rule of thumb, if you see a Somali carrying something that looks like a weapon, then it's real. In fact, weapons are so widely available that the fakes will be more expensive than the real ones. No, ladies don't fight (at least not anymore), it's just for the cameras.Abdurahman Warsamehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04579533788286692720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post-1165902555075713922006-12-12T08:49:00.000+03:002006-12-12T08:49:00.000+03:00hello from uganda!i really enjoy reading your work...hello from uganda!<BR/><BR/>i really enjoy reading your work. thanks<BR/><BR/>i'm at <BR/>www.inanafricanminute.blogspot.com<BR/><BR/>and looking alot at northern uganda issues. recently become more intrigued in how the conflict in uganda is linked to larger geo-political issues, both in the Sahel, and in the Horn. Would love to get your thoughts on thatAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31643792.post-1165850723295581222006-12-11T18:25:00.000+03:002006-12-11T18:25:00.000+03:00It is a bit unfair to claim to know what the U.S. ...It is a bit unfair to claim to know what the U.S. government position is in regards to the impending conflict between rival groups and outside parties in Somalia. Can you provide us with any verifiable information about what the U.S. government is doing inside Somalia? How about providing references to recent statements re: Somalia from official U.S. government sources? Please don't forget the "other foreign players" involved in this potentially catastrophic conflict on the Horn of Africa.<BR/><BR/>The Power and Interest News Report (PINR) and the International Crisis Group (ICG) have been publishing a series of expert reports containing facts and commentary about the TFG vs. UIC showdown. Jonathan of the Head Heeb blog has written a very interesting post titled Pincer Movement that may interest you.<BR/>http://headheeb.blogmosis.com/archives/033239.html<BR/><BR/>Either way, this pending bloody conflict spells even more misery and suffering for the people of Somalia and for the entire region. Sad, very sad indeed.<BR/><BR/>BTW: Are those women brandishing Chinese-made AK-47 knockoffs or is that the real (Russian-made) McCoy?? Can the girls really fight or is the image just a photo-op for the international press and media?BREhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09668844948345978806noreply@blogger.com