UN Monitoring Group and Politics of “Good Governance”

U.S. Role in the World

by Abukar Arman | on July 27th, 2012 | 77 comments

Security Council extending the mandate for the Monitoring Group UN Photo/Ryan Brown

Since its inception, the U.N. Monitoring Group on Somalia (and Eritrea) has been rolling over controversies, mainly in its reporting, sourcing, and unsubstantiated claims. I just got through reading its latest report made of truths, half-truths, and a whole lot of innuendoes that implicate at least four present/past officials and presidential candidates with certain level of skepticism.

This is not to deny or dismiss any accusations made against anyone in the report for I neither have the facts to prove nor disprove their actions or inactions. It is to simply practice the fundamentals. In politics, a moderate dose of skepticism is a healthy requisite that only the gullible can afford to ignore — especially when the entity in question has a record in political myth-making.

In its 2007 report, the Monitoring Group made two outlandish claims that were clearly orchestrated to pave the way for Ethiopia’s invasion and occupation of Somalia. They claimed that al-Shabaab (Sunni extremists) has exported 720 of its militant fighters to help Hizbullah (Shi’i nationalists) of Lebanon in its fight against Israel, and that Iranian scientists were mining uranium for their nuclear program in Dhuso Mareeb. This wild claim, which was a page out of the Iraq war playbook, has earned Ethiopia the International Community that it needed to fund and sustain that failed project. You may read more on The Making of Another Iraq.

Interestingly, this latest report comes out only a few weeks before Somalia was to emerge out of a long transitional period on August 20^th, and due to its broad media coverage, it ends up dominating the political discourse. Much of the report is insightful and apolitical while the rest is clearly used for political reasons or simply as a red herring.

The central questions dominating the political discourse are no longer: Why are certain elements within the International Community is forcing a controversial new constitution on the Somali people? What specific geographical boundaries of the new constitution? Would the new government be able to fully claim its sovereignty? Would it be able to claim its national assets in various Western banks? And would it have the right to demand the U.N. agencies and varies NGOs who are members of the Ghost-lords network to open their books and report publicly how they have been handling roughly around $1 billion aid money to Somalia per year? It is about $130 million that the Monitoring Group claims has not been accounted for or may have been misappropriated by officials in various transitional governments since 2000. Make no mistake, these are very serious revelations in this report that if proven accurate ought to be grounds for prosecution.

Indeed, “kleptocracy” and institutionalized corruption is still alive, although there is snail-pace progress toward improvement. Decades since independence, before any institutions of checks and balances could be built, clans would and continue to compete on who should have the exclusive rights to this ministry or that. The driving assumption almost always being if an individual from one’s clan were to be granted that exclusive right he or she would favor individuals from his or her own clan by way of nepotism.

While exploiting that inherently unflattering reputation coupled with the successive status of being rated the most failed state, the Monitoring Group uses two different yard sticks for ascertaining allegations.

A case in point, the Monitoring Group exonerates Eritrea against allegations of illegally arming al-Shabaab with shipments of weapons despite multiple testimonies and reports from, according to the report, government officials, “an intelligence report from a military source,” “an international organization with contacts on the ground,” and the Kenyan government. Despite all these, the report concludes “The Monitoring Group received no credible reports or evidence of assistance from Eritrea to armed opposition groups in Somalia during the course of the mandate.”

On the other hand, the report directly condemns various members of the current and previous transitional governments based on claims made by two disgruntled employees who were both (for the right or wrong reasons) sacked disgracefully. Should such information not be relevant? And what was their attitude before they got the urge to go public with their seemingly not-so-divinely-inspired claims? I suppose only when they support foregone conclusions. When it comes to incriminating or condemning people based on unsubstantiated individual testimonies or that of an entity, credibility should be the determining factor. Therefore, it is utterly reprehensible for the Monitoring Group to recommend the Security Council to take punitive actions against these accused officials.

Weeding out corrupt officials out of the political system is in the best interest of Somalia, but it is a matter that Somalia can investigate and pursue on its own. If the fast approaching end of the transitional period means Somalia would be able to claim its lost sovereignty and be given enough room to handle its own affairs, then the new parliament and government should deal with this matter.

Meanwhile, if this is about the promotion of good governance and the protection of revenues and donated funds, the Monitoring Group should consider urging the Security Council to demand the Ghost-lords and all U.N. agencies that are tasked to provide services to Somalia to open their books and list any and all tangible projects that they have completed in Somalia. Coincidently, the report has nothing to say about the laboratory of international corruption in Nairobi that profoundly hinders any significant progress in Somalia. It says nothing about the almost $1 billion per year squandered in Nairobi that the Transitional Federal Government has no say or knowledge as to how, when and where it is spent.

It is interesting how the allegations in the report are solely based on monies collected or promised the government on bilateral bases. It is even more interesting how these crocodile tears against corruption started immediately after officials within the TFG requested all U.N. agencies to open their books and to hire an independent firm to conduct general audit and administer forensic accounting to reclaim Somalia’s assets in various Western banks.

It is about time the Security Council reconsiders the absolute power it granted to the Monitoring Group. It is about time to “police the police” or monitor the Monitoring Group since they have full immunity from any law suits for lies that they occasionally propagate, not to mention defamations and character assassinations. It is about time that the Security Council protects the integrity of that august institution.

Sadia Ali Aden

This is an excellent piece. “Policing the police” and “monitoring the monitoring group” is a desperately needed measure. The UN’s monitoring group appears to be more interested in who stole the crumbs instead of the ghost-lords who have not only stole the cookies but the whole cookie jar. Thank you for shedding light on the bias in the system and the international community’s support that sustains it.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Sadia, for the kind words and feedback.
- Ismail D. Osman
  
  It has often been said that power corrupts. But it is perhaps equally important to realize that weakness, too, corrupts.
Abukar Sanei

Thank you ambassador Arman for the piece!

It goes like this: I am the boss, and I just dig on what others are doing, and NO one can talk about what I am doing! When the MG report was leaked, many people questioned the purpose and the timing. And as you pointed out, why the report is not comprehensive, and failed to cover the Ghost lords of Nairobi, who are misusing the money that is allocated for Somalia, if we are really serious about combating corruption?

No one defends corrupted individuals, and Somali leaders must clean their hands, but the MG report that we read this week is just a hoax!
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Sanei, for the feedback. You are absolutely right: no one should defend corrupt politicians who are proven guilty. We just want to remind those who are in charge of the policing, judging, and executing the guilty to standardize their procedures and policies. Can we have a single measuring stick?
Ahmed Siad

Mr. Arman
I am surprised that we Somalis over long period keep talking about $1 billion per year misspent by beyond the reach folks in Nairobi that the Transitional Federal Government has no knowledge as to how, when, and where it is spent. The Monitoring Group is talking about $ 130 million misspent or appropriated by few corrupted and punishable Somali leaders. What a wise Monitoring Group has come in and taken their place to make Somalia a better place?

Ahmed Siad
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ahmed, for the feedback. If I understood your question correctly, the simple answer is to allow all to open their books. The best way to prevent corruption is through transparency, transparency, transparency!
  - Ayan
    
    Forgive me for asking this Mr.Envoy. Are you by any chance suggesting that the current IMG Report is invalid because it does not cover all financial aspects. Particularly the UN offices in Nairobi .If so then am sorry to say you sound like a person who is saying not only my friends are corrupted. Shame. Get a grip Mr. Envoy.
    - Abukar Arman
      
      Ayan, I don’t what gave you that impression. Here is my response “…the simple answer is to allow all to open their books. The best way to prevent corruption is through transparency, transparency, transparency!” The key word being “all”.
Yahya

First of all, the suggestion that next Somali government/ parliament should be allowed to deal with these accusations of corruption based on the foregone conclusion that these institutions will be transparent themselves i think is preposterous. Just as it is relevant to take account of the fact that ‘sources’ used by Monitoring group are ‘disgruntled’ former employees, it is equally important bear in mind that those that make it to the next Somali parliament/government would not have done so not through a ballot but through an equally dubious process arguably controlled by the very same individuals that stand accused of corruption and is only fair to say that they’d be biased in a way. Somali politicians need a spring clean, that opportunity has been lost the day signatories of the road map plan were given unlimited authority to fine tune the transition to their advantage and be both players and the referees, it is therefore safe to say at this point, that these men will have been at advantage as far as such an investigation by next government/parliament concerned and therefore that, in my opinion, is not a viable option.

It is understandable that the writer takes Monitoring Group’s report with a pinch of salt, but find it curious that he questions the legitimacy of this entire report based on fact that source are ‘disgruntled former employees’,so much so that he comes across as almost dismissive of it. Yes it is only fair that UN finances on Somalia should be accounted for, but, these former government employees obviously have access to insider information that ordinaries like i and many others wouldnt have, therefore, shouldnt their accounts, whether right or wrong, atleast not stir a certain level of interest on the subject and pave way for atleast launching of an investigation? UN funds spent in name of Somalia havent been accounted for, yes, arguably true, but should we turn the other cheek on the sewer stirring corruption in Somali government because the UN is unable to put its house in order?
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Yahya, for the feedback. Rest assured I am not against the entire report; only a portion of it. If you believe in the 80/20 rule, the twenty that matters the most (the red herring).
  Yahya you wrote: “Somali politicians need a spring clean, that opportunity has been lost the day signatories of the road map plan were given unlimited authority to fine tune the transition to their advantage…” If you don’t mind me asking: Who granted them this “unlimited authority” and declared them the only political stakeholders? The Somali people or perhaps themselves?
Mohamed

The UN monitoring report on Somalia should have also said something about “Somaliland” since it is legally under, international law, still part and parcel of Somalia. The exclusion of somaliland from the report not only raises eyebrows but fundamentally dents the credibility and authenticity of the reports as malicious, ill-timed and politically motivated.

Thanks Arman for the well written piece
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Mohamed, for the kind words and feedback. On one hand, according to various reports, Somaliland is relatively less corrupt than other parts of Somalia. On the other hand, the Monitoring Group is let by a gentleman whose political views on Somaliland and its ambition to secede is well documented.
  - Moaghe
    
    Mohamed I do not see the validity your argument that the exclusion of Somaliland from the report dents the credibility of the report. Just because Somaliland is considered internationally to be part of Somalia, is no basis for including it in the report. Among the existing Somali administrations, Somaliland is the only administration that has its own system of tracking projects funded by the international community. Whatever was allocated can be verified. What is being questioned is the money from Arab countries that these TFG officials misappropriated and stole when the Somali people needed most. Secondly, Somaliland does not receive bilateral aid from Arab countries nor does it have Saracen or any of the companies mentioned in the report which are breaking the arms embargo imposed by the Security Council. The UN Monitoring Group’s mandate is to report if there were violations by Somalis and foreign countries of this embargo. If you have read the report, you will see that it has gone as far as exposing the US government breaking the arms embargo by the use of its drone operations.
    I cannot understand why you Mr. Arman could not see the work this team of experts have done for the Somali people. It is wrong of you to discredit the work of a team of experts and say the Monitoring Group is led by a gentleman whose political views on Somaliland and its ambition to secede is well documented. Sorry Mr. Envoy but you are not being objective in your reply and you are being influenced by your political background and peer-group, amongst other things (TFG envoy). You are living in the US for the past twenty plus years and the way I see it you are still lingering on a Somalia from the past, failing to understand the changes that took place since you left the country decades ago.
    Mr. Arman you said the report came out a few weeks before Somalia was to emerge out of a long transitional period on August 20th. There is nothing malicious or ill-timed. The mandate of the Monitoring group was to end July 29, 2012. It is only natural that they present their report before that date. You also say, the report is based on claims made by two disgruntled employees who were both (for the right or wrong reasons) sacked disgracefully. I think you should be encouraging whistle blowers who risk their life and reputation. They refused to accept the offers given to them. Simply said they refused to be part of a corrupt system. If what you are saying is that the UN Monitoring report is flimsy and that exposing ’corrupt’ top Somali government officials run counter to the intended aim of increasing transparency, transparency” (which you seem to reiterate), then I am struggling to see what could possibly be wrong with whistle-blowers, and through the evidence they presented the UN Monitoring group are able to substantiate their findings.
    And would it have the right to demand the U.N. agencies and varies NGOs who are members of the Ghost-lords network to open their books and report publicly how they have been handling roughly around $1 billion aid money to Somalia per year? This aid money goes into projects. External auditors audit their accounts. The donors setup accounting systems, and there are monitoring and evaluation systems in place. You can easily get that information. The question is where is the $130 million, has it gone into personal accounts? I am sure you would have liked some of that money coming your way to cover expenses for your financially defunct office.
    Second, UN monitoring team having conducted field-research and interviews with all of those people implicated in the report – and substantiating the information they collected from the field over the last 3 years crisscrossing the region. I would argue the most important factor in the UN team conduct is not the notion you so blatantly say the report is clearly used for political reasons or simply as a red herring but rather, the values, attitudes and overall expertise of the team. This is not to say they could not have used the report for political reason, but we should be more concerned where accountability mechanisms are seen as the ‘answer’ to the problems in Somalia. Make no mistake, these are very serious revelations in this report that if proven accurate ought to be grounds for prosecution. This is exactly what the Somali people want and deserve. If that is difficult for someone like you to understand then I do not see any point of trying to help Somalia end the transition on August 20th. If nothing is done to stop these corrupt officials to run for office then Somalia is better off to be put under a UN Trusteeship.
Ayan

I did not know we had a Somali Envoy in US until now, and the author being that envoy gives me a clear picture where this article is coming from. But for him to base his argument on that the UN offices for Somalia in Nairobi misappropriates more money than the mentioned culprits in the IMG report says it all. It is a cheap argument to say the least.
We have a report now on how millions of $ that was destined for the destitute in Somalia made its way to the coffers of the two Sharifs and their cohorts ( I am beginning to suspect the author is one of them), now unless the Envoy has a counter argument detailing how the report is misguided. I suggest he stays silent or be charged with preventing the cause of justice.
- Ahmed
  
  What about the credibility of Matt Bryden who champions for the successionist policy of Northern Somalia?
  - Ayan
    
    Whatever gave you the notion that Matt Bryden’s profile is under scrutiny here bewilders me.Bryden gave you facts A,B &C – come up with a counter argument that diminishes his. For heavens sake he could have even been married to a Tigre no one gives a hoot, and that is besides the point.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ayan, for the feedback. You certainly are entitled to your personal opinion, but not to any personal facts. The later is what it is! My argument was based primarily on the Monitoring Group’s record as a political instrument and a myth-maker, and I offered facts to substantiate my claim.
  - Ayan
    
    Thank you, Mr Envoy. And likewise I respect and understand your point. ‘Myth-maker’, how? When the source of the IMG Report was primarily a TFG Counselor in UAE, former head of the National Security, just to mention few of those who were interviewed and who all are either past or present TFG employees.
    I agree with your initial argument that all entities should be brought to account. However the one on the scale now, the TFG, is beyond horrendously corrupted, but to use your argument as a leverage at this stage will give the criminals a freehold.
    My only fear is that the UN and the bodies responsible for sanctioning and banning might be lenient. The call to bring an end to this despicable and unprecedented manner should be made rather than the opposite.
    - Abukar Arman
      
      Ayan, you wrote: “Myth-maker’, how?” In response, I would offer you the second and the third paragraphs to re-read. “This is not to deny or dismiss any accusations made against anyone in the report for I neither have the facts to prove nor disprove their actions or inactions. It is to simply practice the fundamentals. In politics a moderate dose of skepticism is a healthy requisite that only the gullible can afford to ignore; especially when the entity in question has a record in political myth-making.
      In its 2007 report, the Monitoring Group made two outlandish claims which were clearly orchestrated to pave the way for Ethiopia’s invasion and occupation of Somalia. They claimed that al-Shabaab (Sunni extremists) has exported 720 of its militant fighters to help Hizbullah (Shi’i nationalists) of Lebanon in its fight against Israel, and that Iranian scientists were mining uranium for their nuclear program in Dhuso Mareeb. This wild claim, which was a page out of the Iraq war playbook, has earned Ethiopia the International Community that it needed to fund and sustain that failed project. You may read more on The Making of Another Iraq.”
      - Ayan
        
        With all due respects Mr.Envoy please forgive me if I have misunderstood you. Are you asking to assume they are wrong because they called a window a door in their earlier reports? And please accept my apologies once again for asking this direct question(s). Just try to remove your envoy tag for a second and I ask you. Do you believe , or have hint or even suspect that the prime leaders of the TFG are guilty or partially guilty of the accusations levied on them by this IMG report or the previous World Bank report or even the one made by the disgruntled former employe (Fartaag)?
        It is the holy month of Ramadan please forgive me if I may have in way or the other irked or disoriented you in any of my unprofessional questions.
        On the other hand you don’t really have to answer, but I want you to know the effect of corruption, nepotism and related factors of this TFG has affected directly or indirectly thousands if not millions like me. And at the moment our primary concern is getting rid of them and bringing them into account. For us , Matt Bryden, UNPOS and the rest who are cowered in Nairobi are of less concern, because we have been let down by the very those who were supposed to protect us.
    - Abukar Arman
      
      Ayan wrote, “Do you believe , or have hint or even suspect that the prime leaders of the TFG are guilty or partially guilty of the accusations levied on them by this IMG report or the previous World Bank report or even the one made by the disgruntled former employe (Fartaag)?” Ayan, as I said a number of times in public, if you ask me whether or not the current system is conducive for corruption and whether or not there individuals within the system who are already corrupted, I would say there is ample evidence out there to indicate that. However, if you ask me whether A, B, C, and D are in fact corrupted and should be prosecuted, I will be either naive, unfairly self-serving, or outright unjust to say “Yes” without any evidence and due process. Again, as I said in the article, the system lacks the institutions to ensure checks and balances and to weed out the corrupted. Ramadan Kareem!
Ahmed M. Yassin

Somali people don’t have what it takes to go after their corrupted leaders and bring them before court of law at this difficult time. It is an important that international community to help Somalia under this difficult time to stop this corrupted individuals. We as a people “Somalis” must clean our house before we talked about how much money the UN or NGO’s has misused any funds that supposed to be spend on us. In my opinion, It is shame any one who tries to say different on this.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ahmed, for the feedback. If you read the article without any preconceived notion you would have realized that I am not against “weeding out” any and all corrupted officials out of the system.
Ahmed

Who is the Coordinator of the United Nations Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group?Wikipedia:He is Matthew Bryden is a Canadian citizen,’married’ to a Somali woman from Somalia(land).He is also Known to carry Somaliland passport. Bryden has identified himself with Somalialand, a breakaway enclave in northwestern Somalia, and has lobbied for its international recognition. His publications: Rebuilding Somaliland: Issues and Possibilities, 2005
Somalia and Somaliland: Envisioning a dialogue on the question of Somali unity, 2004 [1]
The Banana Test: Is Somaliland Ready for Recognition, 2003 [2]
Report of the United Nations Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea Submitted in Accordance with Resolution 1916, 2010, coauthor

How can we expect an objective report from someone who is involved in the breakup of Somalia?UN is partially responsible for the destruction of Somalia and This monitoring group is one of the tools used.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ahmed, for the feedback. I don’t know about his marriage, I know of his thinly veiled bias.
Ismail D. Osman

I do not know what to make out of this piece. Nimaan kaa dejin doonin yuusan kuu rarin. Probably not what you’re looking for but entertaining all the same:
Greed and corruption has been severely underestimated and denigrated in Somalia, and these corrupt TFI leaders deserve to be prosecuted — unfairly so, in my opinion. There is nothing wrong with the UNMG report. I do not know what the motive of this article is as long as it doesn’t lead to anti-social behavior.

The subject who is truly loyal to these THUGS shall neither advise nor submit to arbitrary measures.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ismail, for feedback. You wrote: “Greed and corruption has been severely underestimated and denigrated in Somalia, and these corrupt TFI leaders deserve to be prosecuted — unfairly so, in my opinion.” I agree with the first portion of your assertion. Indeed, greed and corruption are underestimated. It is all in the eyes of the beholder. One man’s greed and corruption is another man’s creativity and shrewdness. Think of the finance and the banking industry. And I disagree with the second potion because of the enthusiasm and the unexamined conviction driving it.
  - Ismail D. Osman
    
    Brother Abukar – The accomplice to the crime of corruption is frequently our own indifference. Nepotism and corruption are ruining our nation. Crooked politicians Betray us every day, pocketing every penny, And we’re tired of this. We have to support whatever system that makes a corrupt guys ashamed of their deeds then only we can eradicate corruption.
    Start by these crooks. When we prosecute these corrupt politicians we can start looking how we can tackle those thugs in Niaroberry.
    - Abukar Arman
      
      Brother Ismail, I understand the frustrations. We all want to see the corrupted weeded out, but through a legitimate due process. I just cannot be party to any jingoistic campaign to tarnish people’s reputation in the court of public opinion.
- Ayan
  
  “The subject who is truly loyal to these THUGS shall neither advise nor submit to arbitrary measures.” could not agree with you more. So is this what this article is about?
  - Abukar Arman
    
    Ad hominem is a cheap way to engage and a sure way to undermine the potential for good discourse!
    - Ayan
      
      My apologies.. Mr.Envoy
      - Abukar Arman
        
        No harm done. Thanks.
Abdifatah Warsame

What an excellent piece. “Policing the police” I thank you brother Arman for defending Somalia’s honer against UN thugs from Nairoberry. May Allah SWT increase your wisdom and vision. I will say to Mr. Bryden and the so called UN Monitoring Group to go to hell.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Abdifatah, for the kind words and feedback. Also, thank you for the prayer, Ameen. No need to curse Mr. Bryden or any one else for that matter.
Ali Artan

Greed, Power & Money bal car isla hel oo camal san samee. A rapist (UN Monitoring Group) blaming its victims at its best, indeed!. Considering the timing of the report and the pronounced bias imbued in the gene pool of its drafters, The UN Monitoring Group reports have remained to be a wasted of bandwidth space, abusing of their mandate and enfringing the civil rights of the common man. By all means, this is NOT to say that the corrupted TFG officials should NOT be prosucuted if they are proven guilty. Let justice systems dances to public’s favor. And finally, my skewed view tells me that Somalia needs an external help in order we put our house in order since we’ve not managed well in the recent past whenever we have been left alone!
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Ali, for the feedback. You wrote: “And finally, my skewed view tells me that Somalia needs an external help in order we put our house in order since we’ve not managed well in the recent past whenever we have been left alone!” The future is much brighter when you consider where we have been as an ugly stage of development. And despite all the negativity propagated by certain domestic and foreign interest groups, we have been progressing as people, government, and nation. Generally speaking, when we, as people, start thinking strategically, we would start to appreciate the often underestimated line of progress that is found between “chaos” and “corruption”! We would work hard and anticipate progress one step at a time. Thank you, again.
dionysius

It is very disappointing that many of the respondents do not seem to be really outraged by this report. First, It is immature to discredit the messenger and ignore the message. Second, the fact that the report does not address other misdeeds is NO justification for the misdeeds in Mogadishu. Who cares if others beat their wives, you should NOT beat yours.
Third, any apology or attempt to apologise for any misdeeds by the TFG is brutality on the suffering masses of Somalis. Some of you should be ashamed.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, dionysius, for the feedback.
- Abukar Sanei
  
  dionysius, here is what makes your point invalid: let’s say that we have two felonies with same crime, and you are the judge. Is there anyway that you the judge talk about one criminal and disregard the other? Do you see any bias in the judge? That is the point that Mr. Arman wanted to make in this piece. If you did not get it, let me repeat again: Somalis DO NOT defend corruption and corrupted leaders, and what they want is a comprehensive report.
A. Siad

Dear Br. Arman,
Good Work. “Policing” is good and ‘policing the police’, will be better.
That is what I understood from your article.
I think corruption at all levels was/is one of the main causes of Somalia’s downside. I also think that it was/is mainly due to absence of a system of accountability, ‘check and balance’, in the country.
I guess the timing of the report by the Monitoring Group (MG) is good. Whatever the MG motives are and the proceedings, I think it will serve the purpose of ‘policing’ and will send a message that corruption /misappropriation of public funds will not be tolerated in Somalia anymore.
Since the Transitional status is coming to an end soon and major national developments are in the planning, this article may and will hopefully trigger an ‘action group’ or future Somali government to establish own ‘anti-corruption unit’ and/or ‘monitoring group’ that demands transparency and is transparent itself.
Ramadan Kareem
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Brother A. Siad, for the feedback. Indeed, policing is good. But, someone must be policing them to keep them in check. I also agree with you on the absence of fully functioning institutions of checks and balances. Allahu Akram [To those who are not familiar with it, the phrase means God's Most Generous & The Inspiration of Hospitality. It is the response "Ramadan Kareem which means Generous Ramadan as it is time of sharing and hosting]
Abdimahad

I found that report a touch of unreliability. One thing I learned here is that Al-Shabab was off-shoot to Ahlu -Sunna fringe group sticking with extreme unorthodox private principles, but I thought they were a part of parcel of Wahabism.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Abdimahad, for the feedback. The people that some media groups refer to as “Wahabis” are in fact Salafis. And, the Salafis as well as the Sufis (in this case Ahlu Sunnah wal Jama’ah) are all Sunnis.
Abdirisaq sabri

Abukar arman what a wonderful an eye opening report its , as a student of International relations in India this report really helped me to have a wide concept regarding the Somali’s intervention and i absolutely agreed with you to this amazing statement that really increases sense of nationhood among us “Policing the Police” and Monitoring the Monitoring Group this paves a way to Somalia to enjoy its complete sovereignty in any regard National and International affairs and Thank you for protecting our National integrity with Knowledge and patriotism God bless you Abukar Arman and God Bless the Republic of Somalia
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Abdirisaq, for the kind words and feedback. It is very humbling, indeed. And thank you for the Du’a or prayer.
Afhakame

Isn’t this a classic case of argumentum ad hominem? Mr Arman disprove what the reports asserts don’t attack Matt – mind you I am not particularly fond of him.

Arman, the report has left out series corrupt practices and monies stolen by Sheikh Sharif, Abdikareem Jama and also the PM Abdiweli. For example the one million from south Sudan mostly went to Mohamed Abshir Waldo whose daughter is policy adviser to the PM.

Baroorto orgiga kaweyn.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Afhakame, for the feedback. With all due respect, I don’t know if you actually read the impetus article and understood its core argument. Nowhere in the article is the name Matt Bryden who leads the group is mentioned or attacked. His name came up as part of the subsequent discussion in this forum. I deliberately stayed away from his personal life and family ties and only mentioned his well documented bias in favor of the balkanization of Somalia. There are volumes of material available on-line. You may verify my claim.
Moaghe

(resubmitted)
Mohamed I do not see the validity your argument that the exclusion of Somaliland from the report dents the credibility of the report. Just because Somaliland is considered internationally to be part of Somalia, is no basis for including it in the report. Among the existing Somali administrations, Somaliland is the only administration that has its own system of tracking projects funded by the international community. Whatever was allocated can be verified. What is being questioned is the money from Arab countries that these TFG officials misappropriated and stole when the Somali people needed most. Secondly, Somaliland does not receive bilateral aid from Arab countries nor does it have Saracen or any of the companies mentioned in the report which are breaking the arms embargo imposed by the Security Council. The UN Monitoring Group’s mandate is to report if there were violations by Somalis and foreign countries of this embargo. If you have read the report, you will see that it has gone as far as exposing the US government breaking the arms embargo by the use of its drone operations.
I cannot understand why you Mr. Arman could not see the work this team of experts have done for the Somali people. It is wrong of you to discredit the work of a team of experts and say the Monitoring Group is led by a gentleman whose political views on Somaliland and its ambition to secede is well documented. Sorry Mr. Envoy but you are not being objective in your reply and you are being influenced by your political background and peer-group, amongst other things (TFG envoy). You are living in the US for the past twenty plus years and the way I see it you are still lingering on a Somalia from the past, failing to understand the changes that took place since you left the country decades ago.
Mr. Arman you said the report came out a few weeks before Somalia was to emerge out of a long transitional period on August 20th. There is nothing malicious or ill-timed. The mandate of the Monitoring group was to end July 29, 2012. It is only natural that they present their report before that date. You also say, the report is based on claims made by two disgruntled employees who were both (for the right or wrong reasons) sacked disgracefully. I think you should be encouraging whistle blowers who risk their life and reputation. They refused to accept the offers given to them. Simply said they refused to be part of a corrupt system. If what you are saying is that the UN Monitoring report is flimsy and that exposing ’corrupt’ top Somali government officials run counter to the intended aim of increasing transparency, transparency” (which you seem to reiterate), then I am struggling to see what could possibly be wrong with whistle-blowers, and through the evidence they presented the UN Monitoring group are able to substantiate their findings.
And would it have the right to demand the U.N. agencies and varies NGOs who are members of the Ghost-lords network to open their books and report publicly how they have been handling roughly around $1 billion aid money to Somalia per year? This aid money goes into projects. External auditors audit their accounts. The donors setup accounting systems, and there are monitoring and evaluation systems in place. You can easily get that information. The question is where is the $130 million, has it gone into personal accounts? I am sure you would have liked some of that money coming your way to cover expenses for your financially defunct office.
Second, UN monitoring team having conducted field-research and interviews with all of those people implicated in the report – and substantiating the information they collected from the field over the last 3 years crisscrossing the region. I would argue the most important factor in the UN team conduct is not the notion you so blatantly say the report is clearly used for political reasons or simply as a red herring but rather, the values, attitudes and overall expertise of the team. This is not to say they could not have used the report for political reason, but we should be more concerned where accountability mechanisms are seen as the ‘answer’ to the problems in Somalia. Make no mistake, these are very serious revelations in this report that if proven accurate ought to be grounds for prosecution. This is exactly what the Somali people want and deserve. If that is difficult for someone like you to understand then I do not see any point of trying to help Somalia end the transition on August 20th. If nothing is done to stop these corrupt officials to run for office then Somalia is better off to be put under a UN Trusteeship.
- Sadia Ali Aden
  
  Dear Moaghe, I just wanted to make a couple of gentle corrections to your comment. 1) Contrary to your argument, (Somaliland) receives bilateral aid especially from UK. 2) The UN Monitoring group has the authority to demand for the UN agencies, and other agencies who are among the “ghost-lords” to open their books for accountability sake. For instant, if the argument is that 70% of the money given to the TFG is stolen and not spent on projects, wouldn’t it be fair for the Monitoring group to demand, investigate and produce what percentage of the larger aid money ($1billion/year) given to the “ghost-lords” on behalf of Somalia is stolen and what percentage of that is spend on projects?. It is fair to request Transparency and accountability and that I believe is all the author is asking for.
  
  Peace,
  Sadia
- Abukar Arman
  
  Than you, Moaghe, for the feedback. If you read my previous comments you would have noticed that I already acknowledged (and I salute) Somaliland for setting up relatively better administration processes as a result of the peaceful condition that it has enjoyed much of the past two decades. That said, the real issue is not, as you suggested, why Somaliland is excluded out of the report, it is about whether or not an expert’s findings on a subject that he/she is demonstratively bias against be taken for a face value. Consider reversing the role and see if that would help. Let us assume a team of experts that prepared a report on Somalia was led by an individual who promotes the unity and the national sovereignty of Somalia is sacrosanct and focuses the report on Somaliland. This time, instead of missing funds focuses the report on how it has been getting weapons to adequately equip its army, would you have taken that team’s findings for its face value?
  You wrote: “Mr. Arman you said the report came out a few weeks before Somalia was to emerge out of a long transitional period on August 20th. There is nothing malicious or ill-timed. The mandate of the Monitoring group was to end July 29, 2012.“ Of course, it is commonsensical to submit their report before their mandate expired; by the same token, it is equally commonsensical to not wait till the last minute. One would assume that it is in the group’s professional best interest to submit the report way before the expiration date in order to allow the council an ample time to review and hear any counter-arguments and protestations, unless, of course, the renewal was fait accomple. As you may know the Security Council has already extended the mandate for the MG before conducting its official hearing on July 31st.
  On using disgruntled employees: By the way, the report is not unique in exploiting such opportunities. It is used in law enforcement and other investigations, after all the allegations made by such people could very well be true. I raised this issue not to suggest that the accused are all innocent but to simply point out to the political inconsistency of their reporting. That is why I offered the comparison between allegation brought against Eritrea and TFG officials. The former, though the allegations were coming from multiple sources, was exonerated and declared blameless while the latter, though the sources were questionable and there no other facts to cross-check with, was accepted as “the whole truth and nothing but the truth”. That I find it very interesting, to say the least!
  You also wrote “This aid money goes into projects. External auditors audit their accounts. The donors setup accounting systems, and there are monitoring and evaluation systems in place. You can easily get that information.” With all due respect, you sound credulously confident. Could you please share with me and this august forum where exactly we may find that information? And if that was a hyperbole on your part; no problem. Just provide us the dollar amount spent by these two agencies UNPOS and UNDP on Somalia last year and cost breakdown of any and all projects they may have completed in Somalia. Fair enough?
  Lastly, you wrote “If nothing is done to stop these corrupt officials to run for office then Somalia is better off to be put under a UN Trusteeship.” Moaghe, whether the accused are proven guilty of the allegations or not, as Somali citizens, no domestic or foreign authority has the legitimate right to deny them their right to participate in the political process.
Samsam

I don’t believe that someone would actually sit down and write something like this, …..what in the name of God you are talking about!!?? you are a joker Mr Arman, I think you are just sitting down and playing with us!. Due justice in Somalia!! Maybe you need to leave everything else and re-visit this, take a time off to think, because I see that nothing like this is happening at the moment! Maybe then you might be able to tell us how someone living in someone else’s property would provide that due justice!
You make me puke, really Mr Arman!

If Matt Bryden is bad, you are even worse than him!
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Samsam, for the feedback.
deeqoow

Dear Mr. Arman I just want say Thank you very much.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Likewise, thank you Deeqoow.
Afxakme

Armaan that is true and my apologies my dear brother.

I just don’t like even if a hint of defense for these horrid men shariifeyn and Abdiweli. They should all go in front of a court rather than come back.
- Abukar Arman
  
  No harm done, Brother Afxakme. You demonstrated good character and a quality that is in short supply with our people.
Kucadaye

Abukar, in your response to Moaghe, you said

“whether the accused are proven guilty of the allegations or not, as Somali citizens, no domestic or foreign authority has the legitimate right to deny them their right to participate in the political process. ”

Ain’t you saying that a crook found guilty of stealing money meant to buy milk for starving Somali children can run for public office and by extension use that stolen money to buy votes to win and steal again?

Abukar, with all due respect, although I share with you that there is a political agenda behind the report, at the same time I find your implicit and perhaps unintended defense of corrupt TFG officials, specially the two corrupt semi-illiterate Shariifs, astonishing.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Kucadaye, for the feedback. I am not here to defend any person(s). I believe whoever commits a crime should pay for the crime that he/she has committed, but that should in no way prevent him/her from participating in the political process if he/she so desires. There is no need for arbitrary prevention in democratic systems. Any win or loss should come through a process, whether through general voting or Parliamentary vote of confidence. Thank you for granted me benefit of the doubt and an opportunity to explain myself.
Moaghe

Clearly this is a polemic topic and questions on the report can go in many directions, from accountability to credibility to human rights abuses. However, what you are doing is killing the messenger putting into question the UN Monitoring Group team’s integrity be it Matt or the others. I do not see the logic to discredit a report comprising of 417 pages with proof of evidence and interviews with the leaders in question that is fully documented, and you conclude the coordinator Mr. Matt Bryden is demonstratively bias against Somali unity to be taken for a face value. How much influence can he have on a report of this magnitude? What about his team mates, how come we hear no voices of dissent? Do you honestly think the international community would put someone like Matt in charge of this program, a gentleman whose political views on Somaliland and its ambition to secede is well documented? Mr. Arman you are forgetting the prime objective which is as you said “It is about time to police the police”, and to end the systematic looting carried by these corrupt officials who are stealing the little resources given to the Somali people. I would appreciate if you would focus on the primary issues of the “report” and what, specifically and in general, can be done to accomplish this and not the gentleman.
Abukar you are begging the question. “… whether the accused are proven guilty of the allegations or not, as Somali citizens, no domestic or foreign authority has the legitimate right to deny them their right to participate in the political process. Then who has it? Do you think the technical support committee in charge of organizing the elections and vetting the candidates has that mandate? Would you agree that Somalia needs to come up with new definitions and new rules with regard to electing leaders? If Somalia fails to do so now then what do you think would come out of the much awaited process of ‘ending the transition for Somalia’?
If we take your suggestion that any win or loss should come through a process, whether through general voting or Parliamentary vote of confidence, who will police the politicians before they are elected? I am sure you do not mean to suggest a feeble process that should in no way prevent him/her from participating in the political process if he/she so desires. How on earth would you justify leaders usurping millions and with such money they could be early harbinger and win the elections buying their way into villa Somalia? It is the Somali people who will lose twice if this is allowed to happen. First the corrupt politician steals their money and with their money he steals the power and breaks the embargo to buy arms and create insecurity in the country. In addition to defending the principle of the need for arbitrary prevention in democratic system, it would be wise if you would also defend the process of electing less corrupt leaders who are accountable to the Somali people. By being accountable to the Somali people they will also be accountable to the international community as well. Only then can Somali leaders demand transparency and accountability from the Ghost-lords, as you put it. Remember the old saying; those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.
Legitimate electoral process that is free and fair is what the Somali people want and I think like you say whoever commits a crime should pay for the crime that he/she has committed and like the others commenting, would argue that one of the best ways to do so is a clearly written process of selection. One of the problems, however, is that there is no system with clear policy guidelines in place, there will be problems as we’ve seen with current and former Somali transitional governments channeling massive amounts of money to personal accounts and the limited oversight to prevent money wasted, fraud, abuse, and contracting and control issues. The timing of the report is perfect and nothing ill-intentioned about it. If this report came out after the elections and one of those people implicated was elected, what confidence and legitimacy would he have? Better now than later.
In conclusion, can we suggest that since the technical support committee, a Somali mechanism setup by the TFG and supported by the international community can be entrusted to use this report and the evidence presented to stop any politician mentioned in the report to run until he clears his or her name in a court of law, domestically or internationally? This they owe it to the Somali people and if not stopped now, what should be the way forward for Somalia?
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Moaghe. I will try to answer as much as I can on your second (sorry) lengthy post of 788 words and over a dozen of questions. Please consider posting a few questions at a time in your next ones, that way we can have more focused and productive dialogue or debate.
  So, let me start by reiterating a response that I have posted more than ones: my article had nothing to say or do with Mr. Matt Bryden. My argument was that the entity known as the UN Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea is a thinly disguised political instrument with record of fabrications and lies. And I believe I have provided evidence to support my claim- that entity’s 2007 report which, in my opinion, was the lowest professional deceit on par only to the lies that led to the Iraq war. By the way, in 2007 when the Monitoring Group submitted its lies Mr. Bryden was not a member of that team, though some say he was a consultant for the team. Either way, I would rather focus on the entity that has a well-established myth-making record.
  Moaghe wrote: “Abukar you are begging the question. ‘… whether the accused are proven guilty of the allegations or not, as Somali citizens, no domestic or foreign authority has the legitimate right to deny them their right to participate in the political process.’ Then who has it? Do you think the technical support committee in charge of organizing the elections and vetting the candidates has that mandate?
  Moaghe, if it were up to me (and it is not) I would not trust such power with any individual, committee, or a council who can use it for political reasons. I would have only trusted a political process that excludes no one who meets the basic bureaucratic requirements. Our collective vision ought to be to establish a democratic system that would not violate our faith and culture that not only provides all citizens equal access, but the power to elect and oust their leaders as they see fit. Because once you grant people the authority to arbitrarily exclude any from participation based on their “criminal record”, you would automatically exclude people like Mandella to ever run for an office. [I know we don’t have a Mandella in Somalia, but, remember policies are not made only for the present situation…]
  Moaghe wrote “Would you agree that Somalia needs to come up with new definitions and new rules with regard to electing leaders?” I agree with you.
  He also wrote: “If Somalia fails to do so now then what do you think would come out of the much awaited process of ‘ending the transition for Somalia’?” I am not sure. Remember, we are we are mainly because our myopic, zero-sum self and clan interests that often compromise the important and indeed existential issues. That is why the Ghost-lords do what they do with shameless impunity. They use mesmerizing phrases with pacifying effect such as “ending the transitional period”. This would be great if it means that Somalia would be able to claim its sovereignty and get the Ghost-lords off its back so that it can conduct its own domestic and international affairs and re-cultivate old bilateral relations. But I am afraid what is being cooked for us is far from that. What does ending the transitional period mean to a country being literally forced by Ghost-lords to accept a new provisional constitution that, among other shortcomings, does not define the geographical area called Somalia which that document is supposed to reign supreme? Don’t forget that the Republic of Somalia already has a democratically ratified constitution. I hate to say, but, until the sons and daughters of that nation stand and reclaim it from the Ghost-lords, business will continue as usual whether or not the next government is called transitional or any other name. Until we come to the conscious understanding that the difference between “Transitional” and “Provisional” is the difference between “Western” and “Occidental” we will continue to chase our tail till God knows when.
  Moaghe wrote :”One of the problems, however, is that there is no system with clear policy guidelines in place, there will be problems as we’ve seen with current and former Somali transitional governments channeling massive amounts of money to personal accounts and the limited oversight to prevent money wasted, fraud, abuse, and contracting and control issues.“ I agree, Moaghe. That is why building institutions of checks and balances are very critical to sustaining peace and surviving as a nation. This should certainly be our collective priority. However, let us not forget that we did not have this luxury less than a year ago when al-Shabaab was controlling much of Mogadishu and the country.
  Per the suggestion in your conclusion, I think I have already answered that. Peace!
kucadaye

I think, Moaghe or Mooge, is Matt or one of his Nairobi Qaat-chewing Somali cronies. Why would he go as far as defending the Ghostlords who are pretending to be clean and are putting the lime light on equally corrupt TFG.
It is like the pot calling the kettle black. Neither the Ghost_lords or the TFG has been accountable to the Somali people for the past two decades. Both were and are benefitiaries of the gut wrenching misery of the Somali people.

It time the Somali people seek and demand genuine Somali-made solution. I believe it can be done if the Ghost_lords and their funders stay out and give chance for the Somali people to iron out their differences and seek durable solution.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Kucadaye, I agree. All should open their books and be accountable to the Somali people. No individual or entity should be immune to transparency. That said, I must disagree with your attack of Moaghe. You are well informed and are articulate enough to debate him or to intellectually challenging him without insults. I hope Moaghe does not reply in kind. Peace!
Moaghe

Thank you Kucadeeye. I am neither a friend of Matt nor one of his chewing cronies. For your information I never chew and hate khat. Let us not call ourselves names. It would be helpful to stay focused on the issue and not the person. The issue is not about me but about the article Mr. Arman raised to refute some of the findings of the UN Monitoring Group Report. So far we have had good discussions so let us keep it that way. Ramadan Kareem and remember Surah Alhujarat
O you who believe! Let not a group scoff at another group, it may be that the latter are better than the former; Nor let (some) women scoff at other women, it may be that the latter are better than the former, Nor defame one another, nor insult one another by nicknames. How bad is it, to insult one’s brother after having Faith [i.e. to call your Muslim brother (a faithful believer) as: "O sinner", or "O wicked"]. And whosoever does not repent, then such are indeed Zâlimûn (wrong-doers). I rest my case.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Moaghe, for the enlightened response and for your forbearance. Ramadan Kareem. Peace!
Moaghe

Abukar thank you for your prompt response. I will keep it short. Abokar wrote, I would have only trusted a political process that excludes no one who meets the basic bureaucratic requirements. How do you do that? Somalis should start to trust a system of some sort that will grant people authority. All of these positions president, prime minister, speaker of the house, minister are all positions that wield a lot of power. Those who are granted these powers steal the money when and how they want. We all know money makes the merry go round. Sitting president, prime minister, speaker of the house, who are all signatory to the road map etc. and contesting for the same seat. Who are also implicated in this report, how will this establish a democratic system that would not violate our faith and culture and still provide citizens equal access to justice? Somalis will never have the power to elect and change their leaders as they see fit so long as there is no authority that can determine who is less corrupt. To be just to everyone, candidates implicated have to clear their names before contesting. Without this system you would automatically exclude people like Mandella to ever run for an office and instead have corrupt officials. Salaam!
- Abukar Arman
  
  Moaghe, I think you and I are in agreement that the system is broken and that it needs fixing. And I suspect you would agree that fixing it would require a process of its own, and that process would have short-term and a long-term phases. And that the short-term phase might not be all that great, hence the situation at hand. And to put things in perspective, in recent years, the first, the second, and the third priority of the government was security (followed by humanitarian issues, reconciliation, and then good governance). Any reasonable person– and I count you as one– would agree that under such conditions, setting up the ideal process that empowers the average citizen or simply general election would be an unrealistic expectation. So, the process that I proclaimed in my earlier post is the one that you and I (and others who want to reclaim their country) must work hard for.
  Moaghe, you have every right to like or dislike any politician or a leader. But, I just would like to remind you that there is a clear distinction between being implicated and being guilty. Please keep that in mind lest you transgress against others and become an aid to certain elements that are determined to destroy people’s reputations in the court of public opinion.
Dahir

Thank You, Mr Envoy for remind us who is the IMG because they are the number one the enemy of Somali people. IMG claimed before Iranian connection with uranium in Dhusa-Mareeb. IMG claimed Sunni -Somali volunteer fighters joined Shia Hizbullah in Lebanon against Israel. These IMG claims are false and ridiculous , and I think other claims such as Somali-TFG corruptions are false and ridiculous also.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Dahir, for the feedback. The Monitoring Group is a ferocious political instrument whose credibility is manifestly questionable, but I would not call that entity ” the number one the enemy of Somali people.”
Moaghe

Abokar thank you for your reply. As you said you and I are in agreement that the system is broken and needs fixing. What we are not in agreement is the how. I was reading the other day a report the Auditor General of South Sudan presented to the South Sudanese Parliament. In his financial statement he has outlined the misappropriated funds and said if the misappropriated SDG 8million was properly spent and accounted for it could have paid salaries of 680 university graduate teachers to teach in elementary schools. The point is corruption benefits the few at the expenses of many. The missing $130 million has delayed and distorted economic development and prevented protection of basic rights and due process of the law. Not to mention how it has diverted scarce resources to feed a starving population and this money was aid and assistance from Arab countries. Instead of relying on AMISOM or foreign armies, doggy security companies such as Carecan, the TFG could have used that money to pay salaries for security personnel. I see how passionate you are to see Somalis taking control of their country. I would not agree more. Somalia is going to have elections in August to elect a government. Elections as we know are the signpost of democracy and it reflects people’s value and beliefs for selecting leaders. Electing the government grants people a government. This government has a constitutional right to govern the people who have elected it. The most alarming observable fact is to see the criminalization of politics ending up with a significant number of the elected representatives in August having being implicated in this report that could lead to criminal charges pending against them. The system of democracy will change forever into a criminal dictatorship. Unless this is prevented, by empowering the technical selection committee to properly vet candidates. Anyone who is IMPLICATED with corruption should first clear his or her name before they can run for an elected office. I do not like or dislike any of the candidates but with allegations hanging on their head, their reputation will be destroyed in the court of public opinion. They are better off to clear their name before assuming an elected office.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Thank you, Moaghe. I agree with all your well reasoned points except the last one. You wrote: “Anyone who is IMPLICATED with corruption should first clear his or her name before they can run for an elected office.” I cant accept this statement mainly for the following two reasons: 1) The burden of proof should never be the responsibility of the accused. “Al bayinatu ala man id’aa” (It is the accuser who should substantiate his claim by providing hard evidence,” said Prophet Mohamed (may Peace and Blessings of God be upon him) 1433 yrs ago. This concept which is found in a number of secular and faith traditions is the moral or ethical foundation of another often cited but seldom applied concept known as “innocent until proven guilty”.
  2) I am not aware of any process outside a legal process where one can prove his/her innocence. What constitutes “clearance” in the court of public opinion? How long would it take and how much would it cost before a person is declared innocent? And who, under such circumstances, has the authority to declare him/her “CLEARED”? As you ponder these rhetorical questions, please think of the issues of fairness and the much broader one, justice.
Faduma

Thank you Mr. Arman for the well written article. It is crystal clear that you are only saying let’s also find out how the UN spends the millions of dollars that are raised in the name of Somalia. I can tell you that Somalia has become a project for some of the international Community/ Organizations and unfortunately one of them is the monitoring group whose some of their members call themselves “Somali experts” that profited and made hundreds and thousands of dollars out of the Somalia’s civil war by writing mostly hear say reports.
Abukar Arman

Thank you, Faduma, for the kind words and the insightful feedback.
Moaghe

Thank you very much Brother Abukar for an inspiring discussion. I couldn’t agree with you more. If we take the hadith you quote, you mention one part of it and leave another important part out. “It is the plaintiff who should provide the evidence, and the oath is obliged on the one that contests.” [Al-Bayhaqi]. The Prophet of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم explained that the burden of substantiation is on the one making the claim. If the plaintiff fails to provide the evidence, then the defendant can take an oath upon his or her position and the judge will then reject the accusation. This way the concept of innocent until proven guilty is upheld. “Verily, in Yusuf and his brethren there were Ayat for those who ask” (12:7); I wish to remind you the story of Prophet Yusuf where Allah (SWT) relates to us how when the king’s emissary came to Prophet Yusuf and conveyed the news of his imminent release, Yusuf refused to leave the prison until the king and his subjects declare his innocence and the integrity of his honor, denouncing the false accusation that the wife of the Aziz made against him. He wanted them to know that sending him to prison was an act of injustice and aggression, not that he committed an offense that warranted it. He said, ارْجِعْ إِلَى رَبِّكَ (Return to your lord (i.e. king…) Tafsir Ibn Kathir. He said, `I sent back the emissary, so that the king would investigate my innocence and the Aziz be certain that, (I betrayed him not), with his wife, (in (his) absence. And, verily, Allah guides not the plot of the betrayers).’ ذَٲلِكَ لِيَعۡلَمَ أَنِّى لَمۡ أَخُنۡهُ بِٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَہۡدِى كَيۡدَ ٱلۡخَآٮِٕنِينَ
In light of the report by the UN Monitoring Group, all the Somali people are asking of their leaders is proof they did not betray their trust by stealing from them. Evidence is brought against them, rightly or wrongly they need to clear their names declare their innocence and the integrity of their honor, denouncing, according to them, the false accusation in the report. Prophet Yusuf stayed in the jail until he was exonerated of all the accusations and the truth was clear to all. Only then did he assume high in rank and was fully trusted. Our Prophet (SWS) praised Prophet Yusuf and asserted his virtues, honor, elevated rank and patience and said, (If it was me, I would have accepted the offer rather than await my exoneration first.) «لَوْ كُنْتُ أَنَا، لَأَسْرَعْتُ الْإِجَابَةَ وَمَا ابْتَغَيْتُ الْعُذْر»
Brother Abukar eventually no one can escape from justice if not now we will answer before Allah سبحانهو تعالى on the Day of Judgment. Let them exonerate themselves by making an oath on their position and no one will after that, mention the accusation anymore.
- Abukar Arman
  
  Brother Moaghe, sorry for the belated response. I was traveling with family. You are right the full Hadith is as you stated “It is the plaintiff who should provide the evidence, and the oath is obliged on the one that contests.” I mentioned only the first part of the Hadith because that is the portion that I thought was relevant to issue at hand. Because, it is in the absence of witnesses that the accused has the right to contest any evidence brought against him/her with an oath. The oath is not required against any accused without any evidence. Lastly, thank you for sharing Prophet Yusuf’s (Joseph) story, may God’s Peace and Blessings be upon him.
Michael D. Webber

I agree with many of your points. I think it would be interesting to see where the corruption really lies exposing TFG officials who line their pockets and UN agencies and NGOs which ciphon money meant to help build a better Somalia. From people I talk to in Somalia, I doubt this new process at forming a government will mean much unfortunately. Most of them say this was a process forced on them by the UN and the US. There are still many disagreements about what should go into the constitution, and the process of forming a new parliament will no doubt be very messy and full of clan politics.

UN Monitoring Group and Politics of “Good Governance”

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