As Somali Crisis Swells, Experts See a Void in Aid By Jeffrey Gettleman
Read the Article at NYTimes.com
Once again, a journalist is afraid to speak the truth...
"United Nations officials now concede that the country was in better shape during the brief reign of Somalia’s Islamist movement last year. “It was more peaceful, and much easier for us to work,” Mr. Laroche said. 'The Islamists didn’t cause us any problems.'”
Well, of course they didn't cause them any problems. The radical Islamists are satisfied when they're capable of imposing their ideology upon others and enforcing Sharia law, as they have done for over a decade.
However, one must also ask for whom was this short time span so peaceful?
The ICU (the former political party of Somalia) was the unification of previous Sharia courts, and each ICU member controlled their designated district according to their personal interpretation of religious texts. However, 2 of the 11 courts were reputed as radical (1), one of which was linked to terrorist group Al-Qaeda and occasionally beat people for watching Western movies (2). The ICU also received military training from the terrorist organization, Hezbollah (3). Even a previous New York Times article observed an increasingly radical trend among the politics in Somalia. In the article the journalist relates,
"One Islamic leader in a town north of Mogadishu recently issued an edict threatening that anyone who did not pray five times a day would be beheaded," arguing that “It’s black and white...The Koran says people must pray.” (4).
Proposing to hack a person's head off from their neck because they didn't pray enough is... "peaceful"?
Also, a government founded on Sharia law inevitably restricts the human rights of its constituents, especially those of women. In Somalia 98% of women already are subjugated to human rights violations such as genital mutilation, where their labial folds and clitoris are removed usually by a family member using a dull knife, and without anesthesia (5). Although the ritual has no foundation from Islamic texts, it has become a cultural standard associated with religious obligation. If these women are already suffering now, how much more so would they be as the ICU (the former Islamic political party of Somalia) became increasingly rigid in their interpretations of the inherently sexist passages of the Quran and Hadiths?
Lastly, this group of Islamists might not have bothered the UN during their short reign; however, last year the ICU called for jihad against Ethiopia, who then vowed to "crush" the Islamists (6). The enduring war has entailed steep causalities and a humanitarian crisis, worsened by the fact that those who want to provide aid are fearful of the rampant suicide bombings and assassinations. Somalia, by the way, has a rich history of Islamic assassins murdering anyone, Somalians included, who works within a counter-terrorism network or refutes Muslim beliefs (7).
Ironically (or disgustingly), this whole article is about the humanitarian crisis in Somalia, yet not only does the journalist refuse to identify the jihadists as the catalysts for the worsening conditions there (they were never favorable), he actually includes a quote that represents them as not causing "any problems" and "peaceful." Talk about a spin.
"The United States and Ethiopia, Somalia’s neighbor and rival, quickly labeled the Islamists a threat and accused them of harboring terrorists from Al Qaeda."
Although the journalist implies that Ethiopia hastily (and recently) accused Somalia of Islamic extremism, documents revealing the association between Islamic leaders and Al-Qaeda have been existent for several years. One Somalian Al-Queda member, Sadiq Mohamed Odeh, has cooperated with the United States counter-terrorism efforts and admitted training dozens of fighters to battle U.S. and U.N. forces.
He also told the FBI that Al Qaeda worked with the leaders of a Somalian Muslim group al-Itihaad, some of whom are members of the ICU. One member of the ICU actually headed al-Itihaad (8).
Those Ethiopians...according to Gettleman, they're so impulsive! And yet, they prove so accurate! And ironically, the journalist exposes his own hastiness in assuming Al Qaeda doesn't extend into Somalia, and also his inaccuracy with the chronology of events.
"But the people in Afgooye’s squatter camps do not have a lot of faith. 'We want the Islamists back,' said Mohammed Ahmed, a shriveled 80-year-old retired taxi driver.
Mr. Mohammed said he was not especially religious. 'But,' he said, 'at least we had food.'”
After online research, I found that the economy did improve in the year of 2006 (9), but it also followed the same upward trend that had begun since about 2003. The recent economic collapse because of the war between Somalia and Ethiopia, however, is partially due to the ICU's provocation, so for the journalist to include this quote without a subsequent rebuttal conveys a false sense of prosperity due to the ICU.
It is true, however, that many Islamic groups, such as the Muslim Brotherhood or terrorist organizations Hamas and Hezbollah, often embrace charity as a way to win the "hearts and minds" of the population. They cater to the impoverished population's sense of oppression (while they are in fact oppressing them!), and then offer acutely needed services, such as hospitals or schools. Often, one has to sign pledges before receiving the services, and they are not offered to non-Muslims. This form of propaganda is highly effective at creating a "we" versus "they" psychology, where "they" (non-Muslims) are oppressing us, but "we"-the Muslims- will save you and provide you with services.
