Analysis of Recent World And Somaliland Top Headlines Stories - By Suleiman Egeh

“To safeguard democracy the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect, and their oneness.”  Mahatma Gandhi

 Word of the day: “The Somaliland elders who carried this nation on their shoulders must rise up again and spill their magic on this election postponement controversy. Once again our miracle amalgam of traditional and modern hybrid type, of conflict resolution must come out and calm the situation. I may add you are the most credible and most respected group in Somaliland.”

Translation: “Guurtidada sharafta Leh EE Dalkan Garab Kooda Ku Qaaday Markale Mucjisa Dinnie Sara Khilaafkan Ka Yimid Dibu Dhigida Doorahada Madax Waynaha. Mar kale Fadlan Ku Qaboojiya Khilaafkan Tabihiinii Khilaaf Xalinta Ee Isugu Jiray Hab Dhaka Meedka iyo Habka Casriga Ah Si Ad Xaalada U Dijisaan. Waxad tihiin Kooxda Ugu Dacad San Aadna Shacbiga Dalkani Na Ixtiraam Wayn U Uhayo.” 

Top Stories  

1.  Somaliland elections must happen as scheduled 2.Obama’s speech in front the joint session of congress and stimulus package/Presidential Inauguration 

2.  Senator Burris under fire, Rod Blagojevich’s chickens are coming back to roast 4. Can post-colonial states survive the challenges of the 21st century?-AU, United Nations and Arab League are shell organizations that overstayed their usefulness

3.  Darfur is still on fire

4.  Mugabe still clinging to power by a Cliff hanger

5.  Is the banking and the economic collapse in the United States the beginning of the end of capitalism as we know it?

6.  Education is the key to a fully independent Somaliland

7.  Afghanistan-Pakistan-Taliban complex pose a huge threat to World peace and western forces stationed there neither understood nor can resolve that problem

8.  A sovereign, independent Somaliland is a moderating influence for peace in the Horn of Africa and beyond.

9. Can fragile and failing states survive the political, economical and leaderships challenges of the 21st century.

10.  The Gabiley-Bakki conflict must be amicably ended now 

1. All Somalilanders has the burning desire of seeing the election schedule to be respected no matter what. The presidential election must take place as scheduled. Somalilanders must peacefully demand the conduction of the election on time. At this time, no excuses are good excuses. Clearly the overwhelming majority of Somalilanders want a real change to take place. Somalilanders have the same feelings as Americans have in November 4, 2008. Somaliland election should not be postponed and must happen on time.

The secretive, combative and bickering  Rayaale government must come out from their hiding bunkers, and involves the public by spilling out as to why the election has to be postponed. It is disappointing to hear the postponement of Somaliland elections. Again something must be worked out between the opposition and the government and the election must take place on time. Once again our miracle of conflict resolution must come out and calm the situation. The Somaliland elders, who carried this nation on their shoulders, must rise again and spill some of their magic on this matter. If the coming elections happen to be successful, the so-called international community has no choice but the full recognition of Somaliland.   

2. On February 24, 2009, president Obama has delivered a great speech in front of the joint sessions of the United States congress. In that speech he spilled out in detail about his plans to take the United States out of the recession, banking mess, the foreclosure abyss, and unemployment it is in. President Obama set a hopeful note for the American people who were bombarded by grim news from the round the clock cable news. He said the stimulus package includes money for infrastructure projects, education, health care, extension of the unemployment benefit, and money to boast state budget shortfalls. It also includes money for college students, saying his administration will make college affordable for more nine million Americans.

Obama Inauguration:  01/17/09, president-elect Obama took a train express from Philadelphia to Washington D.C. The train slowed down in Hayward Delaware, to wave to enthusiastic crowds standing, on the two sides of the train tracks waiting to have a glimpse of the president. In Wilmington, Delaware, Obama picked Vice-president Joe Bidden and his wife Jill. Both the president and the vice-president delivered speeches. On their way to Baltimore, Maryland, the train express again slowed down for well wishers in Edge wood, MD. By almost 7.00 o’clock, the train reached Union Station in Washington D.C. where waiting limousines whisked the president and vice president to Blair house where they will stay until Tuesday after noon.

On Sunday, the president will appear into inaugural balls honoring Senator John McCain and Collin Powell, the theme of the get together is about volunteerism and involvement. There are also numerous other star-studded balls going on all over Washington. The president and the vice-president laid a wreath on the on Unknown Soldier memorial; the latter is a memorial for the United States war dead. On Tuesday morning at about 11:30 Eastern Time the president elect were sworn in and he became the 44 president of the United States. More than one million people have showed up for the inauguration event in Washington. On the 19th of January the president participated in several inaugural balls for Vice-president Joe Biden, Collin Powell and Senator John McCain.

3. The Senator who took Washington by surprise about a month ago is in trouble, which may be due to some discrepancy between his sworn testimony in Illinois congress and what he actually said to former Illinois governor’s brother. The polical hurricanes he calmed before came back roaring with full force. I have no individual opinion what Seantor Burris has to do now. But He needs to clear this cloud hanging over his head and soon.

4.  Things may change for the better, but using what we have witnessed for the last 30 years as a sign post, the prognosis of these states is not good. They are artificial and defective states. Their former colonial power never have planned for them to become viable states. These fragile states that are mostly saddled with bad, inept and visionless leaders who never being honest, or worked very hard for the development of these states, they easily inherited from the hastily departing colonial powers. Many of these accidental leaders filled big shoes which they have never filled them right.That is why so many post colonial states and particularly in the African continent are failing, or failed states. In some cases some states have already collapsed.    

AU, Arab League and the United Nation are also increasingly becoming shell organizations that have long over stayed their usefulness. None of these organizations have fulfilled any of the reasons for their foundation. Among other things all these organizations were founded to maintain regional and world peace. They were supposed to do conflict prevention and resolution. All of them have so far failed in all their objectives and mission statements.     

5.  Darfur is still on fire again. Civilians are still dying. The Sudanese forces are still burning villages unemployment, and driving civilians out of their homes. The United Nations failed to do anything about this endless human carnage. AU, the so-called United Nations and other debating societies failed to resolve this human misery and carnage. The repressive Sudanese dictatorship is still carrying out its genocidal actions against the civilians of Darfur. The people of Darfur are crying for help. Apparently that help is not coming from the AU, the den of dictators, and the corrupt United Nations. The people of Darfur are to fend for themselves. No one is coming up with any effective resolution of this human catastrophe. 

6.  Despot Mugabe is still clinging to power through a cliff hanger. His new gimmick of the so-called inclusion of the opposition to his despotic government may prolong his life by few more days. Again the African Union, the do nothing den of despots failed to do anything about him. On the contrary he was welcomed in the dictator gathering in Addis Abba, he was treated as regular head of state. This means his evil deeds and theatrics are condoned, tolerated and even encouraged by the AU. No resolution of this vicious old dictator who dragged a once beautiful to the ground has been reached. As usual the AU comes short again and the recalcitrant dictator who caused all the misery in zimbabe was welcomed among their ranks like a normal ruler. No one even one dictator said anything about him there. He wined and dined like everybody else and everything was OK. Dictators rarely criticize their brethren-other dictators     

7.  These days we have witnessed massive bank failures, wide spread home foreclosures, state budget short falls and rampant unemployment. What started as few bank failures and the insurance giant AIG has changed into a tsunami that has driven down the American economy, in turn broiught down the world economy. Mnay experts are asking this question, Is the beginning of the end of capitalism as we know it already started? We may not know the answer for this difficult question now, but one thing is very clear, the world will never be the same again. This massive meltdown of the international banking system will apparently have a profound effect, on many post-World War II organizations such as the United Nations, the so-called World Bank, and the IMF. There is a dynamo effect here. What have affected the giant international institutions will definitely have an effect on the regional organizations such as the Arab League, the AU and others. Only time can tell, but the current economic tsunami will affect the whole world. Poor countries will pick the brunt of this economic mess.      

8.  Educating our coming generations will be the key to our full independence and freedom. Creating a talented human capital will be important for our development. This is the only way we can break out of the old system, the old paradigm that usually supports failure and dysfunction. Hard work, unity and resilience will help us break out and survive the powerful chain, world’s failing structures of the last century put on our legs. Education is the force that can help us break free from the albatross the Mugabe’s of the world, the Zinew’s of the world, the Kibaki of the world, the mini despots of the Horn and their bigger brethren the debating clubs of the AU have wrapped around our necks  

9.  Afghanistan-Pakistan complex is a deep rooted problem that involves religion, governance, power-sharing, tradition versus modernity, colonialism and a raging civil war between the majority Bashtuun and the Tajik-Uzbek ethnic groups. Sending troops is not the answer to this complicated and multifaceted matter. I understand it is one of his president Obama’s campaign promises, but dispatching 17, 000 more young Americans to this forbidding land, where many powerful foreign invaders were defeated and chased away, in the past was not a wise and realistic policy. This is the land where the so-called Alexander the great of Macedonia, the British and the Russians were all defeated. We must learn from history. No foreign power has ever left Afghanistan and Mesopotamia victorious. That is adaunting record which could not be ignored. Nobody fully understood this conflict. Those who fail to understand Afghanistan will repeat  the costly mistakes past invaders have made.       

10.  An independent and sovereign Somaliland is the key to the stability and peace in the Horn of Afica.The IGAD dictatorships, who repeatedly failed to create a government for a nonexistent country called Somalia, can no longer ignore the independence and sovereignty of Somaliand.The volatile Horn of Africa needs a peaceful, independent Somaliland which is at peace with itself and neighbors. When IGAD dwarfs stop obstructing the independence of the people of Somaliland, then and only then may be a real peace will prevail in the Horn of Africa. If you look at the IGAD states, all of them have ethnic, tribal and political problems. Some of them have serious potential secessionist problems. Creating fictitious entities, bitting one warring faction against the other and siding with one faction of the parties of the eternal power struggle is not a solution. Calling a narrow faction which does not have much support will not work. I think the IGAD despots have already played all their cards. I wonder if any scintilla of credibility is left on these outdated dictators. They need to stop lying to the world by telling them a narrow faction or a group in Somalia is a government. I wonder how can the world will believe these factually challenged dictators.     

11.  Fragile states who failed to provide goods for their people, and cannot have a monopoly on violence and instruments of death-weapons cannot survive the challenges and tests of time. The 64 thousand question many people are asking today is, can they survive the 21st century? Some historians and experts in the field of government, economics, politics and international relations, are convinced that many fragile states, cannot cope with the monumental challenges of the 21st century, such as global warning, terrorism, and shortage of food, water, political upheavals, terrorism, and others. These experts believe these hastily assembled fragile nations are not equipped to deal with the above-named daunting challenges. Their current configuration and leadership is far from being ready to face these challenges. These are difficult problems that can even test the advanced and better prepared countries such as the United States.

12. This is not the time for finger pointing and blames game. This is the time for a real conflict resolution. The legendary Gurti has once again to step into the plate and use their magic hand. The long-lingering Gabiley conflict between the brotherly communities of Baha-Smaroon and Jibril Abokor must be resolved amicably now. I am saying to the honorable Gurti, you have carried this country on your shoulders many times, once again go back to your magic box and peacefully revolve this conflict. We need no distractions. We need undivided attention. Our collective attention must be directed towards the development and the overall health of our country. Our focus must be to stay unified and be vigilant against all the conspiracies our enemies are conniving for us. This senseless disagreement must end now. Don’t let radicals poison the good relationship between our communities. Narrow-minded radicals must be marginalized and chastised by all. The man who started this recent active skirmish must be put in front a court of law.           

Suleiman Egeh - Freelance writer and an a senior science Instructor