Ethiopian Journal

Somalia is a country torn by conflict, home to a people divided by history.

After nearly sixteen years submerged in anarchy, controlled by various warring clans, new measures to consolidate power on the part of militant Islamists and the recent transitional government have caused a great divide in opinion in Somalia and around the world; MCTC’s student population reflects stances on all sides of this issue.

“Most people are tired of war,” says Suleiman Isse, president of the Student Somali Association at MCTC. “They’ve been in war for 16 years against their own people and you can’t win that kind of war. I mean, you’re killing your own people!”  

After years of warfare, no warlord wants to be the first to disarm. “The former warlords are creating the conflict among the people,” adds Mr.Isse.

But with the attention of government troops on suppressing promised insurgent attacks, some believe that Somali leaders will have to look outside their borders for help to disarm the clans.

“Somalis won’t cooperate!” said one Somali student preferring not to give her name.

Without the cooperation of various clans in the process of disarmament, peace is unattainable.

Religion, politics and clan loyalties drive wedges between Somalis in country and abroad. At MCTC the issue is so fractious that Jamal Adam, advisor to the Student Somali Association, politely declined to say anything on record.

The majority of MCTC students interviewed preferred to remain anonymous. A poll of 20 students was taken with questions ranging from “Have you heard about recent violence or fighting in Somalia?” to “Who should head the Somali government?” Student responses illustrated the differences in opinions.

Recent attempts to govern Somalia began early last June. Militant Islamists took control and imposed a doctrine of 7th century Islam, Islamists forbid women to work in markets and outlawed commodities like cigarettes and khat (a native plant commonly used as a stimulant) which many people depended on as a source of income.

Islamist rule and the violence that ensued resulted in the displacement of thousands of Somalis in crude encampments, with no doctors, medicine, or electricity

The Islamic takeover drew the attention of the Ethiopian and United States governments. Regarding the Islamists as a regional threat, Ethiopia sent several thousand troops across the border to assist Somalia’s barely functioning government in halting the Islamic coup. Late December, with the help of Ethiopian troops, government soldiers retook the capital of Mogadishu.

Ethiopian involvement is a very controversial topic among Somalis. “There’s a long history between Somalia and Ethiopia,” says Mr. Isse. “Most students don’t want Ethiopian troops in the country.” But with the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops scheduled to begin as soon as possible, the focus shifts to holding the country together.

Allegations of Somali-Islamists having ties to Al-Qaeda and other insurgents has made suspected Islamist hideouts in Southern Somalia the target of multiple U.S. air strikes. But the risk of innocent civilian casualties provoking retaliation from clans has recently discouraged the attacks. The United States, with the encouragement of Somali leaders within the U.S., have begun pushing for negotiations between Somali Islamists and the Somali government.