BBC/ 31 October, 2003, 10:16 GMT/By Grant Ferrett. BBC, London
Somaliland defends expulsions
The authorities in the self-declared republic of Somaliland have been defending their decision to expel tens of thousands of illegal immigrants.
The death of Enid and Richard Eyeington shocked Somaliland
The move follows the killings of three foreign aid workers during the past month.
This was described by the Somaliland administration as a concerted attempt to destabilise the country.
Since the northern region of Somaliland broke away from the rest of Somalia 12 years ago, it has failed to secure international recognition, but it has developed a reputation for being relatively secure.
In contrast to the civil strife and absence of central government in the south, Somaliland has been largely peaceful and organised.
But its hopes of building on that reputation to gain international acceptance have been severely undermined by the killing of an Italian and two British aid workers in the space of a few weeks.
Plus
The response of the authorities has been to announce that all illegal immigrants - an estimated 77,000 people - should leave by early December.
Somaliland's foreign affairs spokeswoman, Edna Adan Ismail, said that far from damaging her administration's international standing, the move was likely to enhance it.
"I think our friends would appreciate that we are taking more serious action in maintaining the stability of Somaliland," she told the BBC.
"I think it's a plus for Somaliland rather than a discredit."
Most of those who face expulsion are Somalis.
Asked how Somaliland would identify who has a right to remain in the country, the president said simply that local people knew each other well, and could distinguish foreigners.
What Somaliland fears most is being dragged back into the killings and disorder of its southern neighbour.
The danger in calling for large-scale expulsions is that the breakaway republic will contribute to the strife it seeks to avoid.
BBC World Service
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 31, 2003
SOMALILAND WEEKLY URGES WEST TO HELP AUTHORITIES FIGHT TERRORISM, GAIN STABILITY
Text of editorial in English entitled "Terrorism is here" by The Somaliland Times web site on 29 October
Whether they are from the so-called fundamentalist groups, or Somalia's factions that are opposed to Somaliland's independence, or both, the people who cold-bloodedly murdered (British nationals) Richard and Enid Eyeington last Monday night (20 October) and Annalena Tonelli (Italian national) earlier this month, are terrorists. By targeting aid workers in the two sectors of education and health, it is also clear that these killings are politically motivated. Who else, except terrorists, would be so inhuman that they would kill such an extraordinary and selfless couple as the Eyeingtons, a couple who were adored and loved by both the larger Sheikh community as well as the students they taught? Who else, except terrorists, would be so cruel that they would kill such a remarkable lady as Tonelli who was engaged in a battle of treating people suffering from Tuberculosis, a lady who also helped deaf and blind children? By failing to tighten security around humanitarian aid workers following the 5 October assassination of Dr Tonelli, the Somaliland government had obviously misread the message conveyed by that killing. The government should have known that after the successful local and presidential elections, Somaliland's enemies, from warlords Abdullahi Yusuf (Puntland leader) and Abdiqasim (Salad Hasan, interim Somali president) to Al-Ittihad (Islamist group) and their Arab backers, would try harder to damage the reputation of the country as an oasis of peace and democracy in a region torn by wars and totalitarianism.
Somalia's warlords and al-Ittihad usually disagree on everything, but there is one thing they agree on: enmity towards Somaliland. Nothing frightens them more than the spectre of a Somaliland that has been recognized by the international community. These groups, who have been keeping their own local populations under subjugation and terror for decades, rightly believe that a recognized Somaliland would provide an attractive alternative to the politics of the gun, and that is why they have attacked Somaliland.
President Riyale has taken a sound decision when he disclosed to Somalilanders, and to the world, on Thursday, that Somaliland was attacked by terrorists and that both Somaliland and the international community would have to step up to their responsibilities if terror is to be defeated in this part of the world. Now that Somalilanders have been made aware of the real dangers terrorism poses to their security and well-being, they will be more willing to combat terrorists.
The highest priority right now should go to preventing another murder. Somaliland just cannot afford another blow to its image. But tight security should not just be limited to expatriates; it should also include government officials, the Guurti, the highest authorities in the land, important offices and vital installations. Somaliland should also seek outside assistance in improving security, especially from the British government, which may be willing to oblige since two of the victims were Britons. Somaliland should ask the British government to send Scotland Yard to investigate the murders and to train Somalilanders. Somaliland should also appeal to the US to help in fighting terrorism.
The people behind the murders may be trying to kill two birds with one stone. By killing Western expatriates, they are destabilizing Somaliland and at the same time hurting the West. So there is a convergence of interests between those who hate Somaliland and those who hate the West. Similarly, there is a convergence of interests between Somalilanders who want to defend their sovereignty and the international fight against terrorism. The problem is that, so far, Western countries have left Somaliland to fend for itself and the terrorists took advantage of the situation to kill Westerners and destabilize Somaliland. Therefore, it is in the West's interests to change its policy of neglect towards Somaliland into a policy of engagement. The West should support Somaliland's twin objectives of remaining stable and fighting terrorism, because these objectives are congruent with Western interests.
Source: The Somaliland Times web site, Hargeysa, in English 29 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
Africa News, October 30, 2003/BYLINE: Business Day
Somalia; Somaliland's Painful Push for Recognition
AN OLD MIG fighter plane is mounted on a plinth in the centre of Hargeisa, capital of the breakaway Somaliland republic. It is a stark reminder of the civil war fought more than a decade ago in which about 50000 died.
The city itself was flattened by repeated bombing sorties by the forces of then Somali president Siad Barre.
After the war, Somalilanders decided to go it alone. They took a devastated territory and made it into a peaceful democracy in what many of them refer to as a "rough neighbourhood". Recently, that peace has been shaken by the murder of three foreign workers in two separate incidents.
On October 5, Italian doctor Annalena Tonelli was killed outside the hospital she founded in Borama, a town on the border with Ethiopia. Last week, two British teachers working for an aid agency were killed by unidentified gunmen. A number of arrests have been made but no motive has yet been identified.
The first murder could have been dismissed as a random killing but the second, soon afterwards, suggests a pattern. There are fears it may be the work of Islamic fundamentalists or possibly a politically motivated plot to undermine Somaliland's bid for international recognition as an independent country.
The nation's peaceful record has been a crucial pillar in its tireless efforts to gain recognition. Its hard-won peace is noteworthy. The long process of demobilising armed militias and re-employing them into state security functions is a major success story.
So is the fact it has held two successful elections a record many recognised governments in Africa cannot claim. Its nationhood is a grassroots initiative kept on track by a determination to succeed.
Keeping the peace is a major part of the plan. And as a result, it has held despite the fact that the country is, by most standards, heavily armed. Almost every household has at least one weapon.
Understandably, security is an issue. Somaliland's lack of international recognition leaves it bound to Somalia, the lawless country to its south of which it is officially still a part despite Somaliland's 12 years of self-declared independence.
Somalia, now in its 14th round of peace talks, is a country without a government, which presents a major security headache for the whole region.
Somaliland, on gaining its independence from Britain in 1960, was independent for just five days before electing to merge with Somalia, formerly an Italian colony. When it broke away and declared independence in 1991, it kept the British colonial boundaries.
This fact has been an important argument in Somaliland's appeals to the African Union (AU) for recognition. The AU has stated it will not tamper with colonial boundaries. But regardless of Somaliland's protests on the border issue, the AU has ignored it in favour of recognising whatever government the failed state of Somalia comes up with.
While its legal case for recognition is persuasive, there are myriad reasons it has not happened. Among them are the fact that the international community appears to be waiting for an African nation to take the lead in officially recognising Somaliland while African nations are waiting for someone to do so first.
The situation has been complicated by regional politics involving, primarily, Ethiopia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Djibouti, which have to do with complex issues mostly relating to the balance of power in the Horn of Africa.
Somaliland has a good unofficial relationship with SA, Zimbabwe and Mozambique as well as Senegal. But so far no one has been prepared to promise more than the possibility of low-level contact at a diplomatic or trade level.
Somaliland's fate hinges largely on what resolution is found, if any, in Somalia. A legitimate government in Somalia, for Somaliland to negotiate independence with, seems to be what the international community wants.
Somalilanders are bitter about the influence events in Somalia still have over them. Said one: "Those of us who have established order and democracy in the north are being ignored while those who have created chaos and anarchy in the south are being pandered to by the international community. How does that add up?"
Meanwhile, Somaliland has been surviving on its own with no donor aid or access to international finance. There is limited aid assistance through the United Nations and foreign nongovernmental bodies, though the latest killings have shot alarm through such organisations.
Its resources are limited. Its main income is, like several other African countries, remittances and investment from the diaspora, which is estimated to be as high as $300m a year. Livestock is another, although this has been significantly reduced by Saudi Arabia's ban on livestock imports from Somaliland, officially because of Rift Valley fever but unofficially because of Middle East support for a united Somalia that includes isolating Somaliland.
There are also some oil concessions offshore, which have yet to be taken up by their signatories because of the recognition problem, and large reserves of minerals and gemstones.
Otherwise the country has to make do with its limited tax revenue, port duties and a few other income streams. It survives on a total budget of a meagre $18m, the biggest chunk of which goes towards civil service salaries, especially for the armed forces. This has held back postwar rebuilding of the country.
Although the government is firmly focused on the issue of recognition, there is acknowledgement that recognition alone will not solve all its problems overnight. There is even concern that aid and international engagement may skew its priorities, as has happened in so many African countries.
In the climate of political peace and political accommodation that have prevailed in Somaliland during the past few years, the murders this month have come as a shock.
The government's assertion that the incidents are a plot to undermine its case for recognition might be right. This is indeed a rough neighbourhood.
However, the international community should not underestimate Somaliland's determination to succeed. Across the board, people say they will fight to keep the independence they have already fought so hard for. "Recognition is more than just the political expression of the people, it is a matter of life and death," said an opposition party politician. And he is not alone in this view.
Recognition is as much a question of security as it is economic development. The longer Somaliland remains unrecognised, the greater its vulnerability.
Africa needs to find a solution to this problem that does not create more problems than it solves and it needs to do so soon.
Games is a director of Africa@Work, a company focusing on African issues.
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 30, 2003
SOMALILAND GOVERNMENT APPEALS FOR HELP TO TACKLE DEVASTATING DRAUGHT
The vice-president of the Republic of Somaliland, Hon Ahmad Yusuf Yasin, has announced the existence of a devastating draught in Sool and Sanaag regions as well as some parts of Togdheer region.
The vice-president described the drought phenomenon as savaging situation which the area had not witnessed for a long period, adding that the regions did not get rainfalls for three consecutive seasons. He said the area residents are in dire need of emergency aid as they are unable to tolerate the draught. He appealed to donors and the international community to assist Somaliland government over the disaster affecting eastern part of Somaliland, particularly the most hit area of Sool and Sanaag regions.
Source: Radio Hargeysa in Somali 1700 gmt 30 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
BBC, 27 October, 2003, 10:16 GMT
Family mourns teachers' deaths
Enid and Richard Eyeington first moved to Africa in 1962
The family of a British head teacher and his wife killed in Somaliland are gathering in Kenya for a memorial service.
Richard and Enid Eyeington were shot on 20 October through the window of their flat at a secondary school in Sheikh, 140 kilometres (87 miles) north-east of Hargeisa, the region's capital.
Their bodies were flown back to England last Friday, and a service and cremation are due to take place in London on 1 November, which would have been Mr Eyeington's 63rd birthday.
The couple's two children, Mark and Louise, along with Enid's sister, Joan, and Richard's sister, Joyce, are in Nairobi to pay tribute to them.
Mr Eyeington's brother, John, has described him as "do-gooder" who was passionate about teaching and helping people.
"We knew it was dangerous, and we thought he'd done enough already", John Eyeington
He said his brother had rejected his family's pleas not to move to Somalia's self-declared republic of Somaliland.
"We knew it was dangerous, and we thought he'd done enough already," he said.
"But he was determined, and now he's paid for it with his life."
At least 10 people have reportedly been detained by police in Somaliland in connection with the Eyeingtons' deaths.
The president of the breakaway region, Dahir Riyaleh Kahin, was quoted as telling a local radio station the 13 suspects were mostly security guards at their school, Sheikh Secondary.
On Friday Mr Kahin's administration offered a $10,000 (£6,000) reward for information leading to the capture of the British couple's killers.
It also ordered foreigners without permits to leave within 45 days in a security crackdown following a series of high-profile killings.
Warning
Austrian aid agency SOS Children's Villages, which ran the school, said that hostility towards Westerners in the area had risen in recent months, but there had been no previous attacks on staff.
The son of a coal miner, Mr Eyeington grew up in Pelton Fell, County Durham, before going to grammar school and teacher training college.
The family first moved to Africa in 1962, where Mr Eyeington worked as a teacher in Kenya.
They later moved to Swaziland where Mr Eyeington was headmaster of a school attended by the children of former South African president, Nelson Mandela.
They joined SOS Children's Villages in June 1995, working in Swaziland, before moving to Somaliland in September 2002, where Mr Eyeington became head teacher.
Mrs Eyeington, who was 61, worked as a teacher at the school.
Their mission to the war-torn country was to be their last challenge before retirement.
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to southern Somalia and to the Sool and Sanaag parts of Somaliland
The Independent (London), October 27, 2003, SECTION: NEWS; Pg. 8
SCHOOL SECURITY GUARDS ARE AMONG TEN ARRESTED IN SOMALILAND OVER MURDER OF BRITISH TEACHERS
BYLINE: DANIELLE DEMETRIOU Enid and Dick Eyeington were shot through the window of their flat as they sat watching television PA
POLICE INVESTIGATING the murders of two British teachers in Somaliland have arrested a number of security guards working at their school.
The security staff were among 10 people detained in connection with the murder of Richard Eyeington and his wife Enid who were shot dead last Monday on the grounds of a school in the east of the breakaway republic.
Dahir Riyaleh Kahin, president of Somaliland, revealed that the majority of those arrested worked as security guards at the Sheikh Secondary School where Mr Eyeington was headmaster.
The arrests came only days after Mr Kahin offered a pounds 6,000 reward for information leading to the capture killers. Foreigners without permits were also ordered to leave within 45 days as part of a new security crackdown.
Mr Eyeington and his wife, from Pelton Fell, County Durham, were killed after more than three decades teaching in Africa. Mr Eyeington had formerly been headmaster at a multi-racial boarding school in Swaziland, whose alumni include Nelson Mandela's children and the actor Richard E Grant.
The couple moved to Somaliland a year ago to assist with the re-opening of the school, which they feared would otherwise be abandoned. It was to be their last mission before retirement.
Gunmen shot the pair dead through the window of their flat in Sheikh, 550 miles north of the Somalian capital Mogadishu, while they were watching television.
Following their death, tributes arrived from former pupils, colleagues and associates, including Lord Richard Attenborough, the film maker, who described them as "the most inspirational couple I have ever met".
The murder of the British couple was the second fatal attack on Westerners in two weeks in Somalia's self-declared republic, prompting fears of an Islamic terror campaign in a country linked to the al-Qa'ida network.
Two weeks earlier, Annalena Tonelli, an aid worker from Italy, was shot dead in the grounds of a hospital she operated 78 miles northwest of the capital Hargeisa.
Somaliland set up its own administration after breaking away from the rest of Somalia when the Horn of Africa nation descended into chaos after President Mohammed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991.
The region has remained relatively peaceful, while clan-based fighting has swept the centre and south of Somalia, and it has its own police force, but has not succeeded in gaining international recognition.
Last week, the United Nations announced that it was restricting its staff to the region's capital Hargeisa following the recent spate of violence against Westerners.
In a statement, the Somalia Aid Co-ordination Body, which co-ordinates activities of donors, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations working in Somalia, said the killings indicated "a serious deterioration in security focused on international aid workers".
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to southern Somalia and to the Sool and Sanaag parts of Somaliland.
XINHUA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE, October 26, 2003
Murder in Somalia causes unsafety
MOGADISHU, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The murder of two British nationals which preceded by the killing yet of another Italian aid worker in the breakaway republic of Somaliland has made unstable that part of Somalia which normally has been relatively a safe place.
The United Nations has issued a security advisory communiqu in which they have ordered all of its staff members to move and concentrate into Hargeisa and remain confined in their hotels or compounds of operation and those outside Somaliland should not come into the region until further notice.
The killing of the two Britons, a man and his wife, who have been running a high boarding school in Sheikh town, 200 km east of Hargeisa, has shocked the administration of the breakaway republic and a team of ministers and scores of policemen have been dispatched to the area for a serious investigation.
President Dahir Riyaleh Kahin who spoke to the journalists Saturday has declared that 12 people have been apprehended so far in connection for the killing of the international aid workers.
"Two men are being questioned in connection for the killing in Borameh town of the Italian aid worker," he said, adding "ten others have been arrested for the killing of the British headmaster of Sheikh High School and his wife."
"The suspects are mainly those working in the school as security guards and the investigation continues," said Riyaleh.
Also, there has been a large meeting Saturday in Ambassador Hotel in Hargeisa town where all of the international aid workers and officials from the administration of Somaliland have discussed the measures needed to take in the wake of the start of the killing of the aid workers.
Somaliland has also declared that they offering 10,000 US dollars reward to anyone who gives any information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the killing of the British couple.
The interior minister of Somaliland, Ismael Adan Osman, has granted the expatriates that Somaliland will spare no efforts in securing the safety of the aid workers.
"But, still we will have to have proper guide lines as to how you can implement your duties," he said.
"Even if necessary, we can provide you with armed policemen on a separate vehicle to give you an escort when you're going out of Hargeisa or operating in the fields," said Osman who admitted that the policemen in Somaliland lack lots of things including vehicles, communication equipment, training etc, something seen as a request at the wrong time.
The administration of Somaliland has also issued an ultimatum to the non-Somaliland people who stay illegally in Somaliland to leave within 45 days.
The ultimatum did not specify those whom the ultimatum really concerns, but Dahir Riyaleh Kahin said it is the people coming from the neighboring places such as Ethiopia and southern Somalia.
Somaliland is desperate to find someone to blame for the killing of the western aid workers, but according to the local sources in Hargeisa town the killings may not have had any political significance since the unemployment is very high and that everyone might try to find jobs with the aid agencies and since they can employ only a limited number of people, very many people might think that they had been nepotism in the job offering and this endangers the lives of the foreign aid workers.
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 25, 2003
DJIBOUTI TO OPEN CONSULATE IN SOMALILAND
The President of the Republic of Somaliland, Dahir Riyale Kahin, returned to Hargeysa yesterday (17 October) afternoon from a three-day visit to the Republic of Djibouti.
Shortly after his arrival in Hargeysa, the Somaliland president told reporters that a number of accords had been reached between the two governments with the aim of improving bilateral relations and cementing the basis for political collaboration in the future, as well as cooperation on migration, land and coastal security, and extradition of criminals wanted for justice in either country. President Riyale said: "The Somaliland passport will be accepted by Djibouti's immigration authorities." He added, "The Djibouti government will establish a consulate (liaison office) in Hargeysa while Somaliland will re-open its office of representation in Djibouti." The two sides also agreed to improve bilateral trade relations and explore areas of further cooperation.
Mr Riyale said they reached an agreement for extraditing criminals wanted for justice in either country. The two governments discussed a road project that will connect Djibouti to Kalabayr, west of Gabiley, he explained. The Djibouti government will also provide two electric power plants for Hargeisa Power Authority and military uniforms for Somaliland's Army. (Passage omitted)
Source: The Somaliland Times web site, Hargeysa, in English 18 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Date: 24 Oct 2003
UNHCR briefing notes: Somalis return from Ethiopia
Briefer: Peter Kessler - Media Relations
This is a summary of what was said by the UNHCR spokesperson at today's Palais des Nations press briefing in Geneva. Further information can be found on the UNHCR website, www.unhcr.ch, which should also be checked for regular media updates on non-briefing days.
1) SOMALIS RETURN FROM ETHIOPIA
A UNHCR repatriation convoy yesterday took another 205 Somalis back to their homeland in a voluntary repatriation program that we hope will result in the closure by year's end of what was once the world's largest refugee camp - Hartisheik, in eastern Ethiopia.
At the end of the five-hour journey, local authorities were on hand to receive the returnees in Burao and Berbera outside Hargeisa, capital of the region called Somaliland. The convoy could be the last until after the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins over the weekend.
In the meantime, Somaliland authorities, hobbled by a lack of resources, are attempting to arrange facilities for another 1,700 Somalis who remain in Hartisheik camp and who expect to return home by the end of December. Many of those still in Hartisheik have already turned in their ration cards in exchange for a repatriation grant of 320 Birr ($40) and food supplies in anticipation of their return.
Hartisheik camp was established in 1988 to shelter Somali refugees fleeing to Ethiopia to escape Somaliland's war of secession that had erupted earlier that year. By 1992, more than 600,000 Somalis had fled eastern Ethiopia following the collapse of the Siad Barre regime. Facing appalling conditions in the remote, semi-arid region, many died of exhaustion, hunger and lack of water.
UNHCR struggled to mobilize emergency assistance in the inhospitable region and soon managed bring some order in Hartisheik, setting up camps nearby, digging wells and offering medical services. One of the major problems in Hartisheik and its adjacent camps has been a lack of water. Water supplies that were brought in by tankers several kilometres away did not adequately meet the needs of refugees. The semi-desert region does not have any ground water.
As the situation in northwest Somalia improved in the late 1990s, UNHCR organised the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of refugees from Hartisheik and other camps in Ethiopia back to Somalia. Many other Somali refugees have also returned home on their own.
Hartisheik, which was once the largest refugee camp in the world, is now nothing more than small clusters of ragged huts close to the Ethiopian border. Apart from the remaining 1,700 refugees who wish to return to Hargeisa, some 600 others, believed to be from southern parts of Somalia that are not yet safe for return, will be interviewed in November before being transferred to other sites in Ethiopia.
ETHIOPIA-SOMALIA: Camp for Somali refugees to be closed
ADDIS ABABA, 24 Oct 2003 (IRIN) - An Ethiopian camp for Somali refugees - once the largest of its kind in the world - will close by the end of the year, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). It said in a statement on Friday that the closure of Hartishek camp, located in a semiarid area near the border with Somalia – would bring to an end "one of world's most tragic refugee cases".
Some 600,000 Somalis poured into the camp from 1988 onwards, continuing after the collapse of the Muhammad Siyad Barre government in Somalia in 1991 and the inter-clan wars which then ensued. "Many died of exhaustion, hunger and lack of water," UNHCR said. "Relief workers at that time said the Somalis were dying like flies upon reaching Ethiopia."
Coincidentally with the arrival of the refugees, UNHCR set up camps, dug wells and provided health care. The most serious problem proved to be supplying sufficient water. "One of the major problems in Hartishek and its adjacent camps has been a lack of water," UNHCR said in the statement. "Water supplies that were brought in by tankers several kilometres away did not adequately meet the needs of refugees."
In recent years, UNHCR has been repatriating Somalis from Hartishek, particularly to the self-declared Republic of Somaliland in northwestern Somalia, where relative calm prevails. It has also organised the repatriation to Somalia of hundreds of thousands of refugees from other camps in Ethiopia. Many Somali refugees had also returned home on their own, UNHCR said.
On Thursday a convoy of 205 Somalis set out for northwestern Somalia under the voluntary repatriation scheme the UN refugee agency hopes to complete by December. Many of the remaining Somalis have turned in their ration cards in exchange for a repatriation grant of US $40 and food supplies in readiness for their return home.
Some 2,500 refugees are left in the camp, a UNHCR source told IRIN.
They include about 1,700 refugees who wish to return to Hargeysa, capital of breakaway Somaliland, and some 600 from areas in war-torn southern Somalia which remain too unsafe for returnees. These are to be interviewed in November before being transferred to other sites in Ethiopia.
BBC, 24 October, 2003, 11:51 GMT 12:51 UK
Somaliland killings 'terror acts'
Riyale wants his country to be recognised
The recent killings of three Europeans in the self-declared republic of Somaliland have been blamed by the president on global terror networks.
President Dahir Riyale Kahin asked for help from the international community, which does not recognise Somaliland's independence from Somalia.
He was speaking to the BBC Somali service following Thursday's decision to expel all illegal imigrants.
Two British teachers and an Italian nun have been killed this month.
In 1991, the former British protectorate of Somaliland declared unilateral independence from Somalia, which is deeply divided by clan fighting.
Somaliland had been more peaceful than the rest of Somalia.
Passport problems
Interior Minister Ishmail Aden Osman blamed the killings on "other Somalis".
"They are destablising our security and the peace that the country has," he told the the BBC Focus on Africa programme.
These "other Somalis" will be expelled, along with Ethiopians and Kenyans, he said.
Ten people have now been arrested in connection with Monday's shooting of British teachers Richard and Enid Eyeington.
Two more have been arrested over the killing of renowned Italian aid worker Annalena Tonelli earlier this month.
Because Somaliland is not recognised internationally, most Somalilanders travel on Somali passports, says Abdisalam Mohamed, from the BBC Somali service.
But President Riyale said this would not be a problem.
"In Somaliland, we know each other, we know who is a Somalilander," he said.
The BBC reporter says this means anyone who is not one of the clans originally from Somaliland is likely to be expelled.
BBC World Service
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 23, 2003
SOMALILAND PRESIDENT ORDERS SECURITY FORCES TO EXPEL FOREIGNERS WITHIN 45 DAYS
The president of the Republic of Somaliland, Hon Dahir Riyale Kahin, today ordered the Somaliland security forces to, in the next 45 days, expel foreigners who are in the country illegally without causing them any harm.
The president was speaking at a news conference held in his office to stress the role and importance of the security forces in boosting the security of humanitarian workers after the two incidents in which the head of the TB hospital in Boorame and the principal of Shaykh High School, Mr Richard Eyeington, and his wife, Enid, this October. The president urged the people of Somaliland to support the security authorities in order to arrest and bring before justice the criminals who carried out the heinous acts.
Hon Riyale ordered the investigation departments to bring those suspected or implicated in the incidents, whoever they are or whatever class they belong to, to justice.
The president once again sent condolences to the family and relatives of the two teachers of Shaykh High School, Mr Richard and his wife who were killed. (Passage omitted).
Source: Radio Hargeysa in Somali 1700 gmt 23 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
Source: Reuters, 22 Oct 2003
Security fears rise in Somalia after teachers killed
By Arnold Temple
NAIROBI, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Aid workers condemned the killing of a British couple working as teachers in Somalia on Wednesday and warned that a string of murders of foreign workers could engander relief work in the impoverished country.
Richard Eyeington, 62, the headmaster of the Sheikh Secondary School, and his wife Enid, 61, a teacher at the school in the town of Sheikh, were shot dead as they watched television at home in the northwestern enclave of Somaliland on Monday.
The shootings followed the separate killings of an Italian and a Kenyan, bringing the total number of murders of foreign relief workers in Somalia to four in less than six weeks.
"I am deeply shocked by their killing," the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Maxwell Gaylard, said in a statement in Nairobi.
"The deliberate targeting of aid workers threatens the lives not only of those who are trying to help the Somali people, but the Somalis themselves whose access to aid may be jeopardised if we can't do our work safely," he said.
The Somalia Aid Coordination Body, (SACB) comprised of donors, U.N. agencies and non-governmental organisations, said the deaths showed security was worsening in Somalia, which collapsed into anarchy 12 years ago.
"The SACB sees this most recent tragedy as a serious deterioration in security focused on international aid workers," the organisation said in a statement.
NO PULL-OUT
The bodies of the two British teachers were flown to the Kenyan capital Nairobi on Wednesday as officials made arrangements to take them back to Britain.
Aid workers are particularly concerned by threats to their personnel in Somaliland, which declared independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 and had been regarded as relatively safe in comparison to lawless swathes of the rest of the country.
Somaliland leader Dahir Rayale Kahin said on Tuesday that the latest murders were part of a conspiracy to undermine his republic, which is not recognised internationally.
Award-winning Italian aid worker Annalena Tonelli, 60, was shot dead while visiting a hospital in Somaliland on October 5.
Children's charity SOS Kinderdorf, which employed the murdered Britons, said it was not planning to pull out.
"We are going to have to review our security procedure, of course, but we have a commitment to the people of Somalia and Somaliland, and we want to maintain that commitment," said Andrew Moir, regional management advisor of SOS Kinderdorf.
An attempted attack on the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Belgium agency on Tuesday in Dhoble town, southern Somalia, underscored the risks to aid workers.
Abdi Hassan, the chief security officer of the agency, said three gunmen entered the compound of MSF-Belgium planning to "kill or kidnap" expatriate workers but were repulsed by the agency's security team. The gunmen were detained.
Oyaw Abdiwahid, a Kenyan working for a religious charity, was murdered in the Gedo region of Somalia on September 15.
Agence France Presse, October 22, 2003/DATELINE: NAIROBI
Aid agencies condemn murder of Britons in Somaliland
Humanitarian agencies in Somalia on Wednesday strongly condemned the murder of two British aid workers in Somaliland, the self-declared republic in the northeast of the Horn of Africa country.
"I am deeply shocked by their killing," UN Coordinator for Somalia Maxwell Gaylord said after Richard Eyeington, 63, and his wife Enid, 61, who worked at a school in a small town south of the port of Berbera and were gunned down at their home late Monday.
"Deliberate targeting of aid workers threatens the lives not only of those trying to help Somali people, but Somalis themselves, whose access to aid may be jeopardised if we can't do our work safely," Gaylord warned in a statement released in Nairobi on Wednesday.
The Somalia and Somalia Aid Coordination Body (SACB), which comprises donors, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations, also strongly condemned the murder.
"The murder of Richard and Enid marks the third set of murders of international aid workers in Somalia in less than six weeks," SACB said, recalling the murders of Annolena Tonelli on October 5 and Oyaw Abdiwahid Ukash on September 14.
Tonelli, a 60-year-old Italian aid worker, had devoted more than three decades of her life to helping Somali refugees, work that earned her the United Nations' Nansen Refugee Award in June. Ukash was from neighbouring Kenya.
"The SACB sees this most recent tragedy as a serious deterioration in security focused on international aid workers," the SACB said in a statement sent to AFP.
The bodies of the two aid workers were brought to Nairobi earlier Wednesday and were to be flown to Britain.
Maria Essajee, an official of the Austrian-based SOS Kinderdorf International, which was running the school, said Richard Eyeington was the school's manager and Enid Eyeington was its educational adviser.
"Exact details why the two were killed had not been established, but Somaliland authorities were still investigating the matter," the assistant regional director of the organization, Andrew Moir, told journalists after receiving the bodies here.
According to an SOS statement released in Nairobi, "this was to be the last working challenge assignment before retirement."
Moir said: "The family members have been informed and we are making arrangements to fly the bodies to Britain in the next few days."
He pledged that despite the killings, "the SOS is still committed to its aid operations and does not intend to close its office in Somalia."
SOS Kinderdorf International began operations in Somalia in 1983 and started a major medical emergency relief and food programme in 1990 when civil war broke out in the Horn of Africa nation.
Somaliland seceded from the rest of Somalia in May 1991, five months after the dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was overthown, plunging the country into clan warfare.
The territory has yet to be recognised by the international community, despite remaining relatively calm alongside the rest of anarchic Somalia.
BBC, 22 October, 2003, 07:36 GMT 08:36 UK
Shot teacher 'was devoted'
Enid and Richard Eyeington were killed on Monday
An aid worker shot dead in Somalia put his devotion to teaching above concern for his own safety, according to his brother.
Richard Eyeington, 62, originally from Pelton Fell in County Durham, was shot dead on Monday alongside his wife Enid.
He had been living and teaching in Africa for 40 years and had taken over as headteacher at a school in the Republic of Somaliland in 2002.
His brother, John, said he had been concerned about his brother's safety when he moved to the country.
Foreign hostilities
He told BBC Radio Newcastle: "I talked to him in August 2002 about Somalia and he said it would a bit bleak but all right.
"He said it was a 'good part' of Somalia.
"He didn't raise any concerns about it [hostility towards foreign workers], but he must have realised there could have been some."
Mr Eyeington and his family first moved to Africa in 1962, where he worked as a teacher in Kenya.
They later moved to Swaziland where Mr Eyeington was headmaster of a school attended by the children of former South African president, Nelson Mandela.
Boarding school
The Eyeingtons joined SOS Children's Villages in June 1995, working in Swaziland, before moving to Somaliland in September 2002.
Their mission to the country was to be the couple's last challenge before retirement.
John Eyeington said teaching was in his brother's blood.
He added: "It was mostly children he taught, including a boarding school in Swaziland which was a good school by all accounts.
"He was devoted to it. He just went head down and went in.
"He didn't put too much emphasis on his own safety, or I don't think he would have gone."
BBC World Service
Associated Press Worldstream, October 22, 2003/DATELINE: NAIROBI, Kenya
U.N. restricts staff to capital city after unidentified gunmen kill two British teachers in breakaway Somaliland
The United Nations on Wednesday restricted its staff working in the breakaway republic of Somaliland to the capital city two days after unidentified gunmen shot and killed two British teachers working at a secondary school in the region in northwestern Somalia.
"The U.N. has requested all staff in Somaliland to concentrate in Hargeisa and observe a 6 p..m. curfew and has made the same recommendation to the staff of non-governmental organizations," Wendy Carson of the Somalia Aid Coordination Body said. About 50 staff are affected by the restriction.
But Carson said there had been "no talk of suspension of activities."
The bodies of Richard Eyeington, the headmaster of Sheikh Secondary School and his wife, Enid, a teacher at the school, arrived in Nairobi Wednesday by plane from Hargeisa. Both worked for the Austrian charity, SOS Children's Villages.
They were shot Monday night through the window of their apartment in Sheikh, 140 kilometers (87 miles) northeast of Hargeisa, by gunmen who fled the scene.
On Oct. 5, Italian aid worker Annalena Tonelli was shot and killed in Borama, 125 kilometers (78 miles) northwest of Hargeisa. Oyaw Abdiwahid Ukash, a third international aid worker, was killed in the Gedo region of Somalia on Sept. 14.
In a statement, the SACB, which coordinates activities of donors, U.N. agencies and non-governmental organizations working in Somalia, said the latest deaths indicate "a serious deterioration in security focused on international aid workers."
Somaliland, which broke away from the rest of Somalia when that nation descended into chaos in January 1991 following the ouster of President Mohammed Siad Barre, has remained relatively peaceful, while clan-based fighting has swept the center and south of the Horn of Africa nation.
A number of U.N. agencies and non-governmental organizations are carrying out relief and development projects there, and a World Bank team recently visited. Despite having held several presidential and parliamentary elections and established legal institutions, Somaliland has not succeeded in gaining international recognition.
And authorities in Somaliland, the western half of the former British colony of Somaliland, have refused to take part in Somali reconciliation talks in neighboring Kenya.
British Somaliland and Italian colony of Somalia joined in 1960 to form the independent republic of Somalia.
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 22, 2003
SOMALILAND: DEMOS STAGED AGAINST MURDER OF BRITISH TEACHERS
Demonstrations have been held in Berbera and Shiikh districts, Sahil Region against the barbaric killings of Mr Richard Gardener and his wife Enid Eyeington in Shiik on Monday evening.
According to Sahil Region reporter Abdisalam Harir, various people including regional leaders, Islamic scholars, elders and the general public took part in the demonstration in Berbera by marching on the main street and converging at 26 June Stadium in which the mayor, elders and Muslim scholars addressed the rally. They said the murder was a plot to damage the existence of Somaliland. They urged the people to be wary of acts which are meant to harm Somaliland's security and sovereignty.
Our reporter in Shiikh Hasan Khayre says a big demonstration was held in the district by elders, leaders, intellectual and others. Among those who took part in the demonstration were the minister of education Hasan Haji Mahmud Gadweyne and the state minister in charge of internal affairs Adan Waqaf.
The leaders told the rally that the acts were the work of enemies of Somaliland. They urged the residents of Shiik District to ensure that the murderers who committed the barbaric act were arrested.
Others who spoke were the district deputy commissioner Abdi Artan, and Chief Aqil Muhammad Mahmud Handule.
Source: Radio Hargeysa in Somali 1700 gmt 22 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
Belfast News Letter (Northern Ireland), October 22, 2003
BRITISH HEADMASTER KILLED BY GUNMEN; HUSBAND AND WIFE SHOT AT SOMALILAND BOARDING SCHOOL
UNIDENTIFIED gunmen shot dead the British headmaster of a boarding school in Somaliland and his wife, police said yesterday.
Richard Eyeington, 62, and his wife, Enid, 61, were shot through the window of their apartment at the Sheikh Secondary School in Sheikh, 550 miles north of Mogadishu last night, said a Somaliland police official.
He said the bodies of the two Britons who worked for the Austrian aid agency, SOS Childrens Village, were discovered yesterday, and five bullet casings were found nearby on the floors.
Dahir Riyaleh Kahin, president of the breakaway republic of Somaliland, said: aaWe will spare no efforts in bringing the culprits to justice, and we will fight to the end to insure that such killings are not repeated.
He said that the killing of the two Britons and that of an Italian woman two weeks ago was aimed at damaging Somaliland, the western half of a former British colony in the Horn of Africa.
Dr Hussein Bulhan, executive director of the Academy for Peace and Development in the Somaliland capital Hargeisa, said the Austrian agency had worked hard to restore the school that had been destroyed in 1989 when forces loyal to former Somali president Mohammed Siad Barre attacked the region to stifle dissent.
Everybody here is dumbfounded and outraged. These were people dedicated to Somaliland and to rebuilding the education system, said Bulhan. aaThere is a shock wave here in this town (Hargeisa), and we are not going to rest until these two killings have been explained.
British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland joined together in 1960 to form the independent nation of Somalia. That nation disintegrated in January 1991 when Siad Barre was ousted.
Somaliland declared itself independent from the rest of the country, but it has not been officially recognised.
The deaths come just two weeks after an award-winning Italian aid worker was killed in Borama, Somaliland, about 140 miles west of Sheikh. Annalena Tonelli, 60, was shot on October 5 outside the hospital she founded to treat tuberculosis patients.
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 21, 2003/Source: Radio Hargeysa in Somali 1700 gmt 21 Oct 03 ) BBC Monitoring
SOMALILAND GOVERNMENT "VERY SAD" ABOUT MURDER OF BRITISH COUPLE
The president of the Republic of Somaliland has sent a message of condolence on behalf of the government and the people of Somaliland to the Addis Ababa-based British envoy for the family of the (murdered British couple), SOS (Austrian agency assisting school headed by slain Briton Richard Eyeington) and the British government.
The president said the government was very sad about the matter and promised to use all its resources to nab those responsible for the barbaric act and arraign them in court.
BBC Monitoring International Reports, October 21, 2003//Source: Radio Hargeysa in Somali 1700 gmt 21 Oct 03) BBC Monitoring
SOMALILAND ANNOUNCES 10,000 DOLLAR REWARD FOR INFO ON MURDER OF BRITISH COUPLE
An emergency meeting which was held by the cabinet of the Republic of Somaliland that was chaired by the president of the Republic of Somaliland, Hon Dahir Riyale Kahin, has discussed the heinous murder of Garden (phonetic, Richard G. Eyeington) and his wife who were working at Shiikh High School.
The meeting discussed the Shiikh incident in detail and linked it with the recent one in Boorama and said they were attempts to obstruct Somaliland's independence following the current international focus on Somaliland. The meeting discussed peace and security in Somaliland and agreed on the following:
1. The improvement and strengthening of security in the country especially for foreign guests.
2. To thoroughly crackdown on activities that are inimical to our statehood and to carry actions against those responsible.
3. To speedily crackdown on the perpetrators, arrest them, arraign them in court. The government has promised 10,000 dollars to anyone who provides credible information that leads to the arrest of the perpetrators.
4. The cabinet urged the public to be wary of actions by forces opposed to the sovereignty of Somaliland its full independence and to help security organs to do their work.
Press Association, October 21, 2003
EXTREMISM FEARS FUELLED AFTER SOMALIA KILLINGS
BYLINE: Vanessa Allen, PA News
The killings of a British couple in Somalia just a fortnight after the fatal shooting of an aid worker in the troubled country will fuel fears of growing extremism.
Somalia has long been seen as a failed state with a history of terrorism, famine, forgotten wars between factions, botched US interventions and a descent into savage anarchy.
But Somaliland - a self-declared and unrecognised republic within the troubled state and the site of all three killings - was considered an unusually stable area of the Horn of Africa.
Aid agencies had found it safer than the rest of Somalia, despite the fact that it was not recognised as a separate republic by any international power.
But fears of growing unrest and extremism, possibly fuelled by the West-led invasion of Iraq, grew after the attack on Italian aid worker Annalena Tonelli on October 5, shot dead by a lone gunman outside the hospital she founded in Borama.
And today the bodies of Richard Eyeington, 62, and his wife Enid, 61, were found in the boarding school they ran in Sheikh - victims of unidentified gunmen.
The breakaway republic's president, Dahir Riyaleh Kahin, vowed to bring their killers to justice and warned both attacks were aimed at damaging Somaliland, the western half of the former colony of British Somaliland.
The Eyeingtons' boarding school was established during British colonial rule and was mostly destroyed in fighting launched by former dictator Mohammed Siad Barre in 1989.
Its colonial history could have made it, and the Eyeingtons, a powerfully symbolic target for terrorists.
Somalia has appeared on lists of countries linked to al Qaida, Osama bin Laden's network of terror.
But Peter Elbourn, the British Council's regional director for eastern and central Africa, said he had seen no evidence of terrorism or threats against Westerners in Somaliland.
Mr Elbourn, who has worked in the region for the past three years, told PA News: "Somalia fell to pieces. If anywhere's going to be defined as a failed state it's Somalia, whereas Somaliland is as stable and well-run as many places in the world.
"It has been a relatively stable and sensible part of the Horn of Africa, so this is very worrying."
He added: "Its failure to be seen as a separate state has in turn created problems because of the lack of recognition, which has made it difficult to get money from aid agencies and donors.
"It's desperately poor and desperate poverty has an effect. Poverty can pull a society in a different direction.
"And borders in this part of the world are very porous, and there are an awful lot of guns and people either with a political agenda or a straightforward robbery agenda.
"We all know these people choose soft targets, whether they're bandits or terrorists.
"The very poverty of the place and its status as a non-place make it perhaps more vulnerable to people with ill intentions."
Mr Elbourn said aid agencies and businesses including airlines had begun working in Somaliland even thought the Somalian capital of Mogadishu was seen as too dangerous.
British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland joined together in 1960 to form the independent nation of Somalia.
But the country disintegrated in January 1991 when president Mohammed Siad Barre was ousted.
Somaliland declared itself independent from the rest of the country but has never been officially recognised.
Africa News, October 20, 2003/BYLINE: The East African
Somalia; Tonelli Murder a Blow for Somaliland
SOMALILAND'S QUIET quest for international recognition may encounter obstacles following the recent killing of an award-winning Italian aid worker.
"This is harmful because it undercuts Somaliland's whole claim to be an island of stability and safety," says an Africa specialist at a Washington think tank.
"They'll find it's harder now to be taken seriously here and in Europe."
Annalena Tonelli, who had worked with Somalis in East Africa for more than 30 years, was shot dead on October 5 on the grounds of a hospital she founded and financed in the Somaliland town of Borama. The death of the beloved aid worker unleashed waves of sorrow in Kenya as well as in Somalia.
Several hundred mourners attended Tonelli's funeral in Wajir last week.
Tonelli worked with Somalis in Kenya for several years but was deported by the Moi government in 1984 after she helped bury Somalis killed by Kenyan soldiers in what became known as the "Wagalla massacre."
Four men have been detained in connection with Tonelli's killing, but no one has been formally charged.
Emissaries from Somaliland, which broke away from Somalia more than a decade ago, have held unpublicised meetings with American and European officials in recent years.
In 1999, the Somaliland president came to Washington for talks with officials in the Clinton administration, and also lobbied at UN headquarters in New York on behalf of observer status for Somaliland.
The region's foreign minister is due to arrive in the United States this week for a round of meetings at the State Department and with non-governmental organisations. The visit will act as an indicator of the extent to which the Tonelli killing has damaged Somaliland's reputation.
Leaders of the self-declared independent republic do not disguise their hope of eventually gaining recognition as a sovereign state, but they so far have not launched a full-scale campaign for backing from the US and European governments. International recognition would be valuable to Somaliland because many types of donor assistance are available only to sovereign states.
State Department officials, on their part, acknowledge that Somaliland is far more stable than Somalia and also holds greater short-term economic promise.
Walter Kansteiner, soon to step down as assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, suggested several months ago that the US should help Somaliland build on its achievements. But Mr Kansteiner and other members of the Bush team have given no hint that US recognition might be forthcoming.
Somaliland can rely on a few influential advocates in Washington. Among them is David Shinn, a former US ambassador to Ethiopia, who has argued that "the United States needs to take Somaliland more seriously." Mr Shinn made the comments in an African affairs newsletter published by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, an independent research organisation respected by many US government policymakers.
Mr Shinn suggested that Washington should open a small liaison office in Somaliland for the purpose of monitoring a larger aid programme. Such a move would signal US support without denoting diplomatic recognition, Shinn said.
In an interview last week, Shinn agreed that the Tonelli murder had resulted in a setback for Somaliland's efforts to gain international standing. But the former ambassador added that much will depend on whether the killing is shown to be an act of personal vengeance or a politically motivated assassination.
It is unlikely that either the US or European Union will establish formal ties with Somaliland unless neighbouring nations act first. Member states of the African Union are reluctant to extend recognition to any breakaway region due to fears that they would thus be encouraging additional cessations.
Ethnic groups in many African nations are dissatisfied with the often-arbitrary boundaries drawn by the colonial powers. Somaliland did win recognition from several countries after gaining its independence from Britain in 1960. But within a few days, Somaliland chose to unite with Somalia, a former Italian colony. The country remained whole until 1991, when Somalia's dictatorship collapsed and Somaliland separated.
"It's vital that the Somaliland authorities find Tonelli's killers and try them fairly," says the Washington-based Africa specialist who requested anonymity.
Africa News, October 17, 2003/BYLINE: The Herald
Somalia; Somaliland Seeks Admittance in African Union
THE Republic of Somaliland is courting Zimbabwe's support so that it can be admitted as a member of the African Union.
Somaliland's representative to sub Sahara Africa and Malaysia Mrs Jawahir Mohamed Ali Sheikhmadar was in the country recently to meet Government officials over the issue.
She had already been to Mozambique as part of her tour to seek support for admittance into the AU. The AU does not recognise Somaliland, based on its fundamental premise of respecting colonial boundaries.
The United Nations also does not recognise the legality of the country because when it separated from Somalia in May 1991 there was no government in Somalia.
Somaliland got its independence from Britain on 26 June 1960 and five days later Somalia also became independent.
The two then merged to become one country.
Somaliland then pulled out of the union in 1991 after a devastation of the country by the Siad Barre regime.
She said standing as an independent country was not a contravention of the AU charter because the country assumed the boundaries that existed before independence in 1960.
"It is not a case of cessation by any means. It is dissolution of a union between two independent countries that consummated voluntarily.
"We simply dissolved an unhappy union," she said.
Mrs Ali Sheikhmadar said Somaliland wanted a peaceful relationship with Somalia, but not as a part of Somalia.
She invited Zimbabweans to invest in the country and said Somaliland provided vast opportunities in agriculture, tourism, the media and mining.
The country has a population of 2,3 million and is bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia to the west and south-west, Somalia to the east and south and the Gulf of Aden in the north.
The country offers incentives such as non payment of duty on all imports that are related to one's business venture, holiday incentives and guaranteed property rights.
She said she would be opening an office in Harare soon that would be responsible for the promotion of trade between the two countries.
Africa News, October 15, 2003/BYLINE: UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
Somalia; Kahin Trip Set to Strengthen Somaliland - Djibouti Relations
Relations between Djibouti and the self-declared republic of Somaliland, northwestern Somalia, are set to improve following a three-day visit to Djibouti by the Somaliland president, Dahir Riyale Kahin.
Abdillahi Muhammad Duale, Somaliland's Information Minister, told IRIN on Wednesday that the "Riyale administration has been extremely busy strengthening relations with neighbouring states, and this trip is part of that". Kahin, who is accompanied by four cabinet ministers and a number of members of parliament, is in Djibouti "at the invitation of the government", Duale added.
Meanwhile, a Djibouti official told IRIN the two sides discussed bilateral issues particularly, economic cooperation. "We discussed ways of improving trade ties and exploring areas of further cooperation," he noted.
The sides also discussed "how best to bring closer the two brotherly peoples", added the official. A more comprehensive meeting is scheduled to take place on Thursday, after which a statement will be issued.
Kahin's trip to Djibouti is his second since he assumed the Somaliland presidency in May 2002 after the death of Muhammad Ibrahim Egal.
Relations between the two sides soured following Djibouti's hosting of the Somali peace talks, which led to the establishment of the Transitional National Government (TNG), and Djibouti's continued support for it.
The Somaliland administration boycotted the Arta talks, accusing Djibouti of interfering in Somalia's internal affairs.
However, a regional analyst told IRIN on Wednesday that Djibouti "will most likely continue to support the TNG and Somali unity in general, and will not compromise on this".
The people on both sides of the border were one and the same, he said, so they "had to take advantage of this kind of opportunity to eventually solve their differences and find areas of common understanding".
Source: USAID Famine Early Warning System Network, Date: 9 Oct 2003
Somalia: Falling incomes, rising malnutrition in the Sool Plateau
Due to falling incomes and rising malnutrition, an estimated 11,170 highly food insecure households in the Sool Plateau pastoralist food economy zone need urgent humanitarian assistance.
NATURE OF THE CRISIS
The 2003 gu rains (April-June) largely failed in the Sool Plateau. Most better-off households migrated with their animals to other areas, leaving a growing number of poor households. After four years of successive rain failures, poor livestock productivity and significant livestock losses, pastoralist households face fewer options for obtaining food and income. The Food Security Assessment Unit (FSAU) estimates that over 50% of the sheep, goats, and camels have died over the past four years. Income from the sale of livestock and livestock products (milk, ghee and meat), that normally accounts for 80% of total annual income, has dropped in half as the number of marketable animals and their prices decline. Market purchase of food staples, which used to supply about 68% of daily calories, has slipped to 52% with the erosion in household purchasing power, even though staples are generally available. Livestock must rely on water trucked in from distant sources, but a 200 liter drum of water now costs up to SSh 45-50,000, 9-10 times the price in normal times.
Poor households increasingly resort to extreme coping mechanisms (such as culling new-born calves to save the mothers) and environmental degradation (particularly cutting trees for charcoal making), which further weakens their livelihood base. A nutrition survey by FSAU, UNICEF and the Somaliland Ministry of Health in May-June found that global acute malnutrition (GAM) rates reached serious (12.5 percent) levels in children (based on WHO categories). Screening of children registering at UNICEF supplemental feeding centers in August found GAM rates well into the critical range (20 percent). Malnutrition trends are likely to continue upward as households divert food expenditures for increasingly expensive water. FSAU estimates that poor households are consuming only 65-75 percent of their calorie requirements.
NEXT STEPS
For the short term, FSAU and others recommended water trucking, cash for work, and targeted general food distributions in the highly vulnerable areas of the Sool Plateau for 1-2 months. WFP distributed 112 MT of food aid during July and August to about 1,200 households while UNICEF provided rations through its supplementary feeding programs. These distributions provided temporary relief, though many needy households were left out. Starting October 6, a multidisciplinary inter-agency team led by UNDP and OCHA (including FEWS NET) is reassessing short- and medium-term options in the Sool Plateau, looking into food security, water and sanitation, pastoralist livelihoods and coping strategies, health and nutrition, environment and education issues.
This Warning will be updated on the basis of the Sool Plateau assessment report expected later this month.
FEWS NET is funded by the US Agency for International Development and implemented by Chemonics International Inc. For further details, please visit the Somalia Country Center at
http://www.fews.net/Somalia.
Source URL:
http://www.fews.net/
The Indian Ocean Newsletter, October 4, 2003, TECORE WIRELESS / SOMALILAND; N. 1058/www.africaintelligence.com
Contract in Somaliland
Tecore Wireless Systems of Columbia, Maryland (United States) has just received an order from Telsom Mobile to install a GSM network in Somaliland that will be connected with that of Mogadishu. The mobile telephone network, which will operate under the name Telsom Somaliland in Hargeisa and in neighboring towns, will be the first of its kind to connect the self -proclaimed state of Somaliland with the rest of Somalia. Created by Somatel and Telcom Somalia in February 2001, Telsom Mobile is GSM's principal operator in Somalia.
Source: UNICEF, 30 Sept 2003
UNICEF Somalia Review Sep 2003
Somalia marks International Peace Day
UNICEF Somalia Representative Jesper Morch joined on September 21 with Somaliland administration officials to celebrate the International Day of Peace in Hargeisa, Somaliland. The main festivities were held at Hargeisa stadium, which had previously been rehabilitated through a joint effort by UNICEF, the Somaliland administration, and community members who made financial contributions. To mark the Day sports tournaments were held and among activities were a regional football tournament, marathon and sprint races. Peace Day trophies were presented to the winners.
An evening reception was held at the Somaliland House of Elders at which Mr Morch, staff of UN partner agencies and donor representatives were present. The Hargeisa Voluntary Youth Committee (HAVOYOCO) circus group presented songs, poems, and Somali folklore dances and performed an acrobatic show.
Morch addressed the gathering and praised the people of Somaliland for their efforts in maintaining peace and stability. He said the challenge now was for Somaliland to ensure that children and women benefited from better education, water and health services, and that protection rights of vulnerable community members were recognized and respected. He called for more support to the youth, saying they should be given a hearing and opportunities to realise their dreams, since they provide energy, direction, purpose and idealism for society. During his visit Mr Morch had meetings with Somaliland President Dahir Rayale Kahin and members of his cabinet.
Peace Day was covered by local and national media including by BBC TV which featured a story on the how the Day was marked in Mogadishu.
Political Developments and Security
A Round Table meeting of international aid and humanitarian agencies working in Somaliland was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and was attended by among others, a 12 member Northwest Somalia ('Somaliland') delegation including several key ministers. The Somaliland Foreign Minister, Edna Aden Ismail, noted the political significance of the welcome interaction between the UN partner agencies and donor representatives and the Somaliland delegation. Among organizations represented were UNICEF, UNDP, UNHCR, WFP and the World Bank. It was the first time the authorities of Somalland had such an opportunity to hold talks with the international donor community. Somaliland is a self-declared republic
Somaliland and Puntland were stable during the reporting period with no major conflict or hostilities reported.
Health programme highlights
A workshop was held in Hargeisa to train health workers in how to utilize information, education and communication materials. The trainees are based in maternal and child health (MCH) centres and health posts.
UNICEF repaired nine refrigerators for use in the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) in Togdheer and Sool regions. Also provided were spare parts and on-the-job training in basic maintenance to health workers in six maternal and child health and outpatient dispensaries in the two regions.
'EPI acceleration' is the approach used for immunization in Somalia. In the past, routine EPI activities in which children were brought to health facilities proved inadequate in preventing recurrent epidemics of vaccine-preventable diseases throughout the country. Consequently, UNICEF and partner health agencies in Somalia agreed in late 2000 that, given the current instability and breakdown in health services in the country, a different approach was required to ensure the vaccination of children at high risk of contracting preventable diseases.
This led to the concept of 'EPI acceleration'. It involves organizing EPI immunization activities in select towns. Here, teams of vaccinators go to specific locations where children can be brought. A social mobilizer alerts the community about the presence of the teams and the mothers/guardians bring the children. The exercise takes place in each town for five days in a month, over a period of three months.
UNICEF, in collaboration with health authorities in Togdheer region, screened the eyesight of 7,654 school children aged between six and 18 years in 10 schools of Burao town. Some 95 children were found to have impaired vision and require glasses. Some 11 children had congenital and traumatic cataracts that needed to be operated on. Some 270 children were treated for various eye diseases.
Nutrition programme update
UNICEF in collaboration with the Somaliland administration Ministry of Health started a de-worming programme for school children in Borama and Burao towns. The exercise aims to target some 20,000 children and to reduce malnutrition and infections among school children. During the eye- screening exercise in Burao, some 5,212 children were provided with de- worming tablets.
UNICEF supported growth monitoring and promotion activities for about 5,700 children aged under five years in the Awdal and Togdheer regions, and in the internally displaced person camps in Hargeisa.
UNICEF, in collaboration with the Somaliland Ministry of Health and Labour, started the second round of integrated malnutrition intervention activities in Eil Afwein and Hudun districts, while the first round commenced in Dhahar district. All the three districts are located in the drought-hit Sool Plateau of northern Somalia. About 2,000 children aged under five years are expected to benefit from the intervention activities which include immunization, nutrition screening, supplementary feeding, treatment of the major childhood killer diseases, distribution of vitamin A and Iron-cum-folic acid as well as nutrition education.
In Hargeisa, UNICEF supported Edna Maternity Hospital in organizing a breastfeeding management and promotion training for 130 Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) and 42 hospital staff.
During the survey, mothers and caretakers were interviewed as to whether their eligible children had suffered from diarrhoea, acute respiratory infections and malaria in the two weeks prior to the survey. They were also asked whether the children had contracted measles in the past one month; received vitamin A supplementation in past 6 months; and their measles and polio immunization status was ascertained. Those with children aged less than two years were interviewed on their feeding practices. Data entry and analysis is underway.
Water and Environmental Sanitation update
In Somaliland, the Mayor of Borama and the Awdal Utility Company which has been formed to run the Borama Water Supply System signed a lease agreement for the management of the company. It will take over the system from October 1. A USAID mission visited the project on September 24. Meanwhile, construction works for the Gabiley Water Supply and Geed Ballaadh Water Project continued in September.
Education highlights
A five-day training workshop for 15 community mobilizers was held in Somaliland during the month. The workshop aimed to improve the capacity and skills of community mobilizers so that they are able to train community education committees (CECs) to support the education sector. The mobilizers aim to turn CECs into organized, effective and efficient entities. The CECs' roles include rehabilitation, enrolment and school management, and even dealing with disciplinary problems. A similar workshop was held in Garowe, Puntland, from August 28 to September 3, 2003. Some 18 people participated.
A Non-Formal Education (NFE) workshop started at the Family Life Education Centre in Burao for 62 NFE teachers from Youth and other CBOs from Sool, Sahil and Togdheer regions.
In Puntland, a 20-day Non-Formal Education (NFE) course was held for 53 teachers from Mudug region. These trainees were the second group to be trained this year, and only one group (from Nugal region) remains to be trained for the three regions that make up Puntland. During the training, findings of the recently-completed UNICEF child protection study were presented to participants.
Construction of three schools in Puntland: White Towen in Bossaso, Nawawi in Gardo, and New Waberi in Garowe, is in the final stages. UNICEF has also recently started construction/rehabilitation of nine more schools in Middle Jubba. Abaqbeyda, Yowkoyow and Wardhujley primary schools in Bakool region are nearing completion.
Youth
UNICEF, in collaboration with the Somaliland administration, organized a Leadership for Organizational Development (LOD) workshop for 54 youth leaders at the Family Life Education Centre in Hargeisa. In Mogadishu, orphaned youth at the SOS village in Mogadishu were trained in Leadership for Organizational Development (LOD) in late August. The 71 trainees comprised of both boys and girls ranging in age from 14 to 22 years. Among topics covered included leadership styles, communication, conflict management, HIV/AIDS and substance abuse.
Follow up meetings on the UNICEF Youth Radio and TV/video production and broadcasting project were held in Hargeisa and Burao. Participating youth groups were presented with equipment for production of radio and video programmes. Each group will produce and air two radio or TV programmes within the coming three months.
HIV/AIDS prevention and control
UNICEF facilitated the attendance by four youth and two NGO representatives at the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) held from September 21-26 in Nairobi, Kenya.
In Somaliland, UNICEF facilitated a workshop on capacity assessment in readiness for implementation of the HIV/AIDS Strategic Framework Action Plan. The objective of the one-day workshop was to identify individual and institutional capacity building needs. Some 46 people from international NGOs, Somaliland administration, HIV/AIDS technical committees, local NGOs, youth and women's organizations and health workers participated in the workshop held in Hargeisa.
In Puntland, UNICEF undertook field- testing of information, education and communication materials. During the training for Non-Formal Education teachers, sensitization on basic facts on HIV/AIDS was undertaken. A one- day meeting on HIV/AIDS awareness capacity building needs was held in Bossaso with some 20 people participating.
A meeting on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)/HIV/AIDS and Gender was held in Belet Weyne, Hiran region. Some 33 religious leaders from Hiran and Galgadud regions participated. Discussions centred on misconceptions and basic facts about gender and on HIV/AIDS, and the role religious leaders can play in increasing awareness of the community on prevention and control of HIV/AIDS, especially by fighting stigma and discrimination. The meeting also sought to sensitize the leaders on the harmful effects of FGM.
Emergency
The Sool and Sanag regions of northern Somalia are facing a serious famine and require urgent humanitarian aid. Residents of the two regions have appealed to both local and international NGOs for help.
In Bossaso, a fire broke out at an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp on September 6. No injuries or loss of life were reported. However, seven families had their shelters and property destroyed. This is the third IDP camp fire outbreak in Bossaso since July. The cause of the fire has not yet been established. UNICEF distributed some relief supplies to the affected families. As part of relief measures, a hand pump in the camp area is being repaired to enhance access to water.
If you have questions about the UNICEF Somalia Monthly Review please contact: Robert Kihara, Assistant Communication Officer, e-mail: rkihara@unicef.org
or Julia Spry-Leverton, Communication Officer,Tel: 254-2-623958/ 623950/ 623862/ 623959/ 350410,Fax: 254-2-520640/ 623965
For further information on UNICEF, visit its website at
http://www.unicef.org/
The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, October 1, 2003, Atlanta & the World; Pg. 1F
Quest for legitimacy;Atlantans lobby for recognition of native lands
BYLINE: CAMERON MCWHIRTER
Every Friday evening, taxicabs, limos and other cars crowd the parking lot of the Madina, a modest restaurant in a strip mall in unincorporated DeKalb County that has become the de facto cultural center for Somalis in metro Atlanta.
The patrons --- mostly men --- gather to eat goat meat and bean dishes that the menu describes as "Somali and East African food." Many of those dining, however, describe themselves not as Somalis, but "Somalilanders."
The distinction may be lost on most Atlantans, but it's the cause of numerous frustrations for immigrants and refugees who come from a region that people know --- if they know it at all --- as the northern part of Somalia.
"We've got our own money, our own judicial system, our own military and police. We've got a democratically elected president and parliament. We have our own flag," said Abdirazak Abubaker, 37, a U.S. citizen who runs one of the world's busiest Republic of Somaliland news Web sites from his house in northeast Atlanta. "We have all the attributes of a nation. Only we do not have the world to come to the conclusion yet that we are a nation. . . . We want recognition."
"Somalilanders" aren't the only ones in metro Atlanta who come from regions whose governments are not recognized by the international community. Combined, these governments have tens of millions of citizens. They run their own bureaucracies, fly their own flags and equip their own armies and police. They issue their own visas and some have their own passports. Some have their own money and stamps.
Somaliland's foreign minister, Edna Adan Ismail, is touring Somali communities in the United States to drum up support for her nation's bid for international recognition. (She is set to visit Atlanta on Oct. 8). Iraqi Kurdish leaders are pressing the new governing authority in Iraq for a federation-style union, while many Kurds are calling for complete independence.
Michael Beck, assistant director of the University of Georgia's Center for International Trade and Security, called these quasi-states "the gray zone problem" in a world concerned about terrorism.
The lack of international recognition also poses problems for the people who come from these places. They have to negotiate diplomatic, financial and practical problems never faced by people from legitimate countries. In addition to mundane problems such as sending mail, remitting money to family and friends, travel and immigration, they constantly have to explain where they come from.
GRAPHIC: Photo: Abdirazak Abubaker displays the Republic of Somaliland flag in his Atlanta home. A native of that northern Somali region, Abubaker, a U.S. citizen, says he and other Somalilanders want recognition for their homeland./ NICK ARROYO /
6. Republic of Somaliland
Location: Northern arm of what was Somalia.
Size: 68,000 square miles.
Population: About 2 million.
History: In 1991, Somalia on the Horn of Africa degenerated into civil war. The part of the country that once had been a British colony split off, declaring itself to be the independent Republic of Somaliland. For the last 12 years, the Somaliland government has operated its own government and army. But it remains unrecognized as a legitimate government by every other nation in the world.
Sources: www.somaliland.com, www.somalilandgov.com