The Undisclosed Silent Victims in Somalia

There are warlords clouded themselves in many different fashions and guises in Somalia, and then there are seriously disturbed criminals in Somalia who have no sense of remorse for their specific target indigenous population who are defenseless, peace lovers, in seven regions in southern Somalia.

The following are some of the criminals who have no sense of guilt in their crime of committing genocide against Digil & Mirifle and other specific groups in that area: Indha Cadde, Abdiqasim Salaad, Hussein Aideed, General Morgan, Godane, Professor Gandhi & Ahmed Madoobe [ethnic Somali Ethiopian], Mohamed Yusuf Hajji [current Kenyan defense minister] & Farah Maalim Mohamed [current deputy speaker of parliament of Kenya], and many more who have committed crime against humanity specifically Digil & Mirifle community. The afore-mentioned criminals’ hierarchical levels can be described as evil behaviors, and they are also emotionally vacant.

This is a powerful wake-up call for 7 million Somali citizens, many of whom are vulnerable because their leaders repeatedly ignored warning signs of social and political catastrophes that would cause by marauding clans that hail from middle regions as well as ethnic Somalis from Ethiopia and Kenya who have vested interest in Southern regions of arable, farm lands and good for raising livestock.

Through the lenses of unfolding specific events from southern regions provide genuine examples and plausible explanations of the day-to-day specific triggering events in Southern Somalia, specifically, in Kismaayo.  The inclusion of Indha Cadde and other criminals like him to the new government can be both a barrier to political progress and threat to genuine indigenous southerners in Somalia, and such issues concern most peace loving, defenseless, and indigenous people in the seven Southern regions in Somalia: Benadir, Middle Shebelle, Lower Juba, Middle Juba, Gedo, Bay, and Bakool.

Impact on Marginalized Indigenous Somali Southerners

In retrospect, Somalia has been a very strong country; however, Somali dictator Siyaad Barre’s regime has systematically created social in-equilibrium in Southern Somalia. The mechanisms Barre’s regime suggested were unfortunate to Digil & Mirifle tribe and also have marginalized the indigenous clans and tribes in southern regions such as Lower Juba, Middle Juba, and Gedo. One plausible example is that former dictator has managed to exclude socially the indigenous people and some other specific groups along the political lines.

The good news is that the creation of dysfunctional incentives is often intentional and, in fact, ran despotic leadership’s doom. The collapse of Somalia is a result of the corrosive effects of envy, greed, and divided loyalties combined with the deeper issue of marginalizing Digil & Mirifle and fostering Somali Ethiopians and Somali Kenyans in those regions.  These actions were and are fatal due to intentional attempts to alienate or eliminate certain population. Remember each uncorrected risk is one more social and political disaster waiting to happen.

Barre’s regime transplanted his clansmen and also largely some Somali Ethiopians and Somali Kenyans and that is why Somali Ethiopians and Somali Kenyans are in the lead in making a federal in Juba land. The despotic regime controlled the means of producing beliefs about pseudo-reality through religion, education, and media; for support, the regime used to point to the lack of consensus on national values.

In fact, Barre’s regime has campaigned to destroy the indigenous people in Kismaayo and other areas by spearheading to urbanize and detribalize these seven regions in the Southern Somalia due to the following factors:

ü Presence of revolutionary forces with its administrative structure and law enforcements, which were commanded by his clans men

ü Establishment of multi-clan society settlements under the guise of unlawfully seizing the land of the defenseless indigenous people

ü Mobilized many nomadic families and changed the demography within these seven regions in the south

ü Barre’s regime has impoverished and socially excluded along political lines the indigenous people by over serving and empowering the nomadic groups he has mobilized into the area

ü Despotic regime has also created social disequilibrium in the arable land that are mainly occupied by Digil & Mirifle

ü Despotic regime has launched a public relations campaign to undermine the main vernacular Maay language in the Southern Somalia by overemphasizing the Maxaa language. The undisclosed crime and cultural genocide committed by Barre’s regime against Maay population in Somalia. We know that clearly, language reflects the culture of a society. Language also shapes the reality of a culture and that is how people can conceptualize their environments.

Federalism in Somalia
Current social problems must be addressed before their magnitude overwhelms us, there is no a single local or indigenous person in kismaayo claiming to make a federal Juba land; Instead, there are outsiders who are claiming federal Juba land that caused communal response which is fear mixed anger. I believe that is a bad day for 7 millions of genuine Somali citizens. It has been reported that these outsiders victimize the defenseless and indigenous people as part of a sadistic, self-serving ritual of evil or clan allegiance.  These patterns are the result of both individual choice and nomadic societal structure. There are also many other criminal and acts of genocide at play. One hypothetical question- is there a victimless crime?

Let me place the issue in its proper context. The populations of these regions are underrepresented that makes the case simply foul game.  Juba land federal is already sending loud unethical and unmoral messages, and it serves to maintain the privileges of certain groups who desperately want to deny the rights of defenseless and indigenous peoples. Dear elite intellectuals look at carefully the proponents of federalism in Juba land. They all hail from respectively ethnic Somalis from Ethiopia and Kenya.

It is crystal clear that powerful groups are keeping the locals and indigenous in subservient position. This prevents further progress and eventually leads to fatal collapse. Therefore, genuine Somalis are silent victims and voiceless. Obviously, there are many labyrinths of multi-ethnic and multi-clan which demands social equilibrium and equality. The significance of social equality in Juba land federalism can be and may be solved through the following factors:

ü Who are the indigenous people? Who is not?

ü Who should be vested power? Who does not?

ü Who has prestige? Who lacks?

ü How can we establish a fair social system?

In conventional wisdom describes that social stability requires a consensus and support of society’s members, but not crony capitalism fashion that is molded with ulterior motif that is guided by short sighted clan hegemony. Somalia does not need open door policy because it puts indigenous people in dilemma; more specifically, the Digil and Mirifle community will suffer the brunt of geopolitics of Kenyans and Ethiopians. We see a crime and acts of genocide already at play in three regions in Southern Somalia: Lower Juba, Middle Juba, and Gedo.

I would like to redefine the architecture of protecting our people because the duty of all Somali citizen should be to respect and defend of the other. I do not think the status quo will allow viable federal system in the Lower Juba, Middle Juba, and Gedo. Advice for current Somali government, you have to realize that danger element at work that you must consider it unique, and you should also remember that a violent at present is the single best predictor of future violence.

Some hypothetical questions:

Why are we justifying the aggressive intentions of outsiders, a large number of whom are hostile to the indigenous people? Why our judgment is clouded by a plethora of natural biases? Why the new Somali government is not charging those who have committed genocide? Why Indha Cadde and Professor Gandhi are loose so far?

The question is whether we, genuine Somalis, have the wisdom and the will to change. Please join me in the quest to find out the solution.

Mohamed Mohamed

Dept. of Anthropology & Sociology

North Dakota State University