His Blood is not Good Enough

A problem I never wrote about in Somalia is the phenomena of Murder based on Stature . The More successful you are , the more your chances of being killed . Cliche? Behind every Successful man is a pack of haters ? . But see the difference is you are not dying because they are hating on YOU per say . It's not personal you see. It's simply tribal business.
Let me Explain
I remember when my Father [allah yir7amu] first brought me to Somalia, though he wanted to visit his hometown , he would say it was too risky and he would probably be killed as pay back for a crime someone from the same tribe committed years ago .At that time it seemed like another exaggerated fairy tale  and there was no way people could be so unreasonable .
But a few days ago I heard of 2 similar stories . A man who was killed for a crime his brother committed . The problem is the brother who committed the crime wasn't hiding or on the run , he was living just like everyone else , Like he was a man with no blood on his hands - No one wanted him , because his blood wasn't valuable enough.

"He's a Looser , his blood is not equal to my tribesman, No one will mourn his death" .

So instead in the middle of the night , the innocent brother who was minding his  bussiness was dragged out of his house and shot dead .
A Bussiness Man for a Bussiness man , A Doctor for a Doctor , A Sheikh for A Sheikh .
that's the rule .

And what else would make people act so barbarically and irrationally but the mind numbing , ego stroking ideology of Tribalism .
And no matter how many successful people of our nation are born , the laws of tribalism will keep our nation tied down and forever in the shadows of poverty, barbarism, and illiteracy .
You would think Religion ,common sense, and humanity would protect one from shedding blood so  easily , so intentionally , so righteously but it is heartbreaking and frustrating to see how our nation has crumbled to it's knees because of a name - Reer Hebel.

Make A Difference

I remember a few months ago , My friends and I were introduced to a man who would push us to make a difference . A man who forced us to look at things from a new perspective regardless of what the norm was .
I would love to mention his name but I would have to make sure it is okay with him . So for the time being let's call him Prof. A .

Prof A had a philosophy . In arabic: "إن لم تزد شيئا على الدنيا فأنت زائد عليها "  [If  you do not add anything to this world , then you are simply an addition/burden on it] and then he would ask you 

Are you simply an addition or do you have something to add? 

it's a simple statement yet so profound in meaning and very much true . After a 2 hour long conversation over dinner with prof.A . We were all very much inspired to make a difference , to leave something behind in a city that we had no tribal/family ties to.
After much thought we decided the best addition one could ever make was that of knowledge . like the famous quote " Give a man a fish and you have fed him for a day , teach a man to fish and you have fed him for a lifetime" . At the time we were 5 girls , so we decided to each financially support a child who could not afford education. Surprisingly we did not have to go far to find such children . a few doors away from our own house we found 3 familes with 8 children, all of which were staying at home yet of school age, and some loosing a parent.
Our initial plan was simply sponsoring 5 children , soon we had 2 other girls in and now we could sponsor 7 kids . At the time it was almost the end of the school year , so we decided to enroll them into a Quranic school . After explaining to the dugsii teacher what we wanted to do , he offered to take in the 8th kid as well free of charge .

I know it might seem like a very straighforward , easy to execute kinda plan right ? WRONG!!
In a Country that has been over exposed to NGO's and free handouts , the parents of the children were very skeptical of our intentions and in no time news was spreading of "These Arab girls who were working with an NGO and were offering to pay for tuition".  and as people estimated how much of the funding we were slipping into our pockets and how many thousands of dollars we were selfishly holding back , the clan ideology came into play : on more than one occasion we were told to help our Clan's needy instead of those we were not related to. - "Your people need it first" .

A few months later ,On eid we were able to give out a humble sum of money to the families of the children [3 families in total ] and an exceptional woman who herself raises 4 children by picking up trash from families for less than 25cents per pick up.
 Now we are planning on adding another 5 children to the Quranic School and this time an aunty from Saudi Arabia has taken up their sponsoring and paid an advance for 5 months.

In my opinion this is a very humble addition to a community that has given us personally the chance at a higher education. It is only fair to give back and hopefully InshAllah those of you reading this will be inspired to make a difference as well regardless of how big or small it may be . And in time I hope these very kids grow up and in turn give back to their communities and so forth .
- Contribute within your means , any way you can to your communities . Do it not for the love of fame , or for a name , or even with the expectations of an applause . Do it simply for the sake of leaving good behind and making a difference
 

Africa through my Lens

Why I've been missing and My Year

So a few days ago , I finally remembered I had a blog that I loved so much from once upon a time and as I was going through it I realized I haven't been blogging as much.
 (understatement for 3 posts over 9 months hehe)
So here I am flexing my fingers , dusting off my grammar and punctuation to put together a semi decent post on why I've been MIA. 

2012 has definitely been a very tough year for my Family and I . Apart from the regular stresses of Uni and hospital rounds and what not . My dad was diagnosed with a stage 4 Esophageal cancer last Ramadan .

As a medical student we're always throwing out differential diagnosis on rounds and one of the answers you can never go wrong with is Cancer. The resident asks you what's your differential ?
Safest Answer : TB, Cancer. Infection. . Overtime we become desensitized and such horrible diseases are just answers to us .
 We don't really completely understand how devastating it is , not only to the patient but also to their entire family .

I remember once having a patient whose symptoms were so similar to my dad's. Diagnosing him was like diagnosing my father , and I kept subconsciously avoiding esophageal cancer even though his symptoms were classic for the case. 
 I knew that would mean there was a big chance my dad had a similar condition .I was in denial  

How Did I find Out ? 

 Just after Eid ('011) , my family decided to move to kenya after spending 6 months with us ,and I wasn't about to miss the trip so I  tagged along for what was left of my summer break. 
A day before we left to Nairobi , my mom was just going through the luggage and she found my Aaboo's medical reports . Like most moms she just passed it to me and my cousin (also a med student) to look at and maybe learn a thing or two from it .
A chance to test my skills and showoff what I've been learning for 4 years . We walked over to the other room , stood by the window and stared at the X-rays and CT Scans. Instantly my heart dropped but I wasn't about to jump to a disease that meant my dad was dying . So I stayed calm , pulled out the medical report and read what the radiologist had to say . - It was Cancer . 

Fast Forward to May 25th '012
My Uncle calls to let us know that Dad passed away .
After a 9 month battle with stage 4 esophageal Cancer, 2 rounds of chemo, and 2 stent placement surgeries .At the age of 54 Aabo was no more with us. 

So that's been most of my year summarized in a few paragraphs , Oh not to forget being suspended twice from Uni . But that is a post for another day ^_^  

PS: just a quick note I might as well squeeze in . I know how most Somalis neglect their health and avoid check ups and all.  But  I just want to emphasize how important and live saving that hour or two you take out of your day to get a check up could be . 

- Dont take your Health for Granted , It's a Blessing so cherish it ;)





  

  

Sport or Diplomatic Tribalism

So if you have been following Universal Tv or simply the Somali Gossip lately , you will already know that Somaliland is having its annual Football championship in Burco . This is an interesting event for a few reasons . and the timing couldn't be anymore perfect . Here's why :

A few days ago, there was some tribal tensions in the northern region of Somaliland , precisely between Qabiley and Borama. I wont go into any specifics of the incident , since I have heard only one side of the story and am not very familiar with the whole situation. Let's just say there were Gunshots through 24 hours, Tribe Seniors Locked up and protests leading up to civilian clashes with the police - not very pretty at all.

So with a tribal feud building up slowly , what better way to settle it all than in the field with a ball - It was GAME TIME !!!! . a day after the tension started , there was a match between Qabileey and Borama. I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said the whole town was glued to their screens through the 90 minute game. - and if it isn't clear yet , it wasn't because the whole town were interested in football.
You even had the Old women on standby and everytime a goal was scored , they'd ask who scored [ that's how oblivious they were to the whole game. to them it was just a bunch of men running around with a ball , but what they knew was they were playing the so called enemy !!!! ] and when they were told it was Borama - The drums would be playing and the whole ilyilyilyilyilyyy was the national anthem for the next 30 seconds. this was clearly tribalism invading football , a more diplomatic way of solving issues. No Guns involved , just loads of sweat on the field and a ball.

I dont particularly remember the score , but Borama did win that day and the Gunshots and clashes from the day before were followed with celebrations, drum playing and a joyful feel in the air.

Peace is restored once again to Borama, thanks to the beautiful game of Football :).

PS: To the readers of the blog, I'd like to introduce myself . I am the co-writer of this blog while Fatma is away. I will simply go under Anonymous for now but I will add my contact info to the "about me" page for those of you who are interested in knowing me . Hopefully I will be able to bring you an interesting read .

Eathquake Alert - Aftermath

I think I'll start this post off with a curse . A curse on the idiot who thought it would be funny to pull an April's fool 6 months early. May the Ground split into two and drag you six feet under !!!!.
Yes the Earthquake alert was a huge prank. But it sure had almost everyone scared .


So At around 2:30 am My phone starts ringing, while I snored away , I could tell something was making a very annoying sound but oh well I just imagined it was the background music to my awesome dream which I can't even remember now . Two minutes later my little sister is literally running circles in the room and yelling out "AN EARTHQUAKE'S COMING ..IT'S COMINGGG OMG OMG OMG" . She tries to tell me that we're all dying and it takes me a good one minute to take in everything she's saying . when it finally got through I ran in circles with her , felt my heart pound right out of my chest and eventually got to waking the rest of the house up. 
By now everyone was terrified , except for my cousin who found it all nonsensical and did not even bother to get out of bed . As we sat contemplating what to do next , we decided to get dressed, grab our passports and money and stand outside the house. I managed to get in a blog post and a facebook status update right before we headed out 

 ( this is to show how social networks have over the years undermined something as serious as possible death )

" Oh you guys pray for me I'm about to die  wink wink kisses :)" 

2 hours later and we're still sitting on our doorstep waiting for some 5.0 devastating earthquake to hit. We were freezing and starving but still terrified of heading back in .To make things worse the city dogs were having a singing choir  and every time they would start howling we would stand and squat a little , making sure our legs were firm on the ground. Apparently the howling of Dogs is an ineffective indicator of an earthquake coming - lesson learned.
 It was only at around 5:30 am when the sun rose that we realized this was a horrible prank . We headed back in and that was the end of it - Just another day in Borama, Somaliland/North Somalia

Earthquake alert

So it's 3:07 am and I just got a phone call that there's probably going to be a really bad earthquake anytime through tonight. I am freaked out and the fact that I've never been through any sort of Earthquake drill makes me even the less capable to deal with anything . I know that hiding under tables and staying away from windows is completely useless in this part of the world . The Only drill I know of is "Run For Your Lives" . The  housing infrastructure is so weak , a mere 3.0 would bring it down to rubble.

To those of you awake at this very hour , Your prayers would be of much value to all of us in Borama and it's surroundings . Keep them Du'as coming please.
Goodnight 

Foreigner in My own Country

I bet you all are wondering what could I possibly mean with such a strange topic . My fellow Somalis might think I am referring to tribalism and what not . Ofcourse that would be relevant to the Subject in hand . But I am referring to the strange , unreasonable politics within Somalia  and it's many regions ( that Includes Somaliland).

So last month after a 2 month holiday in Kenya , I landed in Berbera Airport . As we made our way through the Immigration booth I handed the officer my Somali passport .The next few moments would introduce me to the sad reality that Being Somali meant being Homeless. As I waited for the officer to stamp my passport and hand it back , he casually asked me for 30 dollars . When I asked him what for , he was quick to tell me I was a "Foreign Passport Holder" . It literally took me a good 2 minutes to completely comprehend what he was saying . How could I be a Foreigner in Somalia when my Document clearly stated I am Somali !!!!. He then quickly mentioned how in Somaliland, (yet to be recognised Independent Country, still recognised by the International communtiy as Somalia) they classify  the "New Somali passport " as foreign and If I had the old green one I wouldn't have to pay .

To those of you not familiar with the Somali passport system. Back in the days when Somalia had a functional , capable government run by Siad Barre , there was this green  passport. As Somalia progressed into Civil war and with the fall of the government , The Somali passport had become the easiest travelling document to forge . Anyone could get it . As long as you had a few American dollars on you You would become a Somali Citizen in less than 24 hours.
Fast forward 15 years and Abdulahi Yusuf came into power . He introduced the Somali E-passport and discontinued the old one, making it mandatory on every Somali willing to travel to get the new Document ( the blue one), a blessing for most Somalis in the Diaspora with a Somali passport. Less forging , more authentic documents , recognized travel document

To sum things up , the old Somali document is not recognized anymore , and 9 out of 10 times you will not be granted entry into any country with it . On the Other hand the Somaliland Government has yet to be recognized , therefore making any S.Land travelling document worthless. So the question is what would make me a national of Northern Somalia/ Somaliland ? . A travel document that is no longer recognized or one that has yet to be recognized? 

Rape, Teen Pregnancies and Society

Last night as my mom , the maid and I sat watching tv. My mom mentioned how 2 girls were raped a few days ago by 3 guys on their way home .The maid instantly jumped in and said

 ”They knew the guys , they didn’t just get kidnapped and raped , so they deserve what happened to them”.

 Before I could respond , my mom was already at it :

 ” Just because they knew them does not give them the right to rape .Would you be okay with getting raped just because you were out with a guy ?.  No one deserves to be raped and those men should be sentenced for life”.

It was only then I realized how Rape and teen Pregnancies have become fairly common over the last few years in this part of the world. 

I cannot even begin to put my frustration into words when it comes to rape. But when in Somalia, Rape takes on a whole new dimension. Rape in Somalia is a quick way to make money for some. You are probably wondering how ? . Let me Introduce you to the Clan Ideology : If any harm happens to you , your Clan serve as your Justice system.There will be a meeting with the victim’s clan Seniors and the Offenders clan seniors. They will discuss the amount of damage caused and the most suitable ruling. Usually the only suitable ruling is a certain sum of money set by the Victim’s Clan. So when a girl does get raped , the rapist does not get punished in any way or form. However the two clans have a sit together and decide on the number of dollars to be payed as a form of compensation.Now here’s the interesting part .This so called compensation for the girl never makes it into her hands , However it is divided among the Clan members and the closest it get’s to the lawful recepient is through her father . A mere 2-4% of the actual compensation.the offender always walks away free of charge with a simple scolding not  to repeat the offense so as his Clan do not have to pay anymore money. Behold the Clan/tribe Ideology!!!!. That is only One of the many reasons why Rape is so frequent around this place. Another reason being that very thinking so many people share ; TURNING THE VICTIM INTO THE CULPRIT.  

“Oh why was she out after 9pm” .

” why was she with a guy in the first place” .

” Why was she walking in that part of town alone” .

” Why was she dressed in that manner” 

She brought it on herself ,SHE WAS ASKING FOR IT , SHE DESERVES IT !! SAY NO TO SYMPATHY , SAY NO TO LOGIC , SAY NO TO REASONING!!!

I just don’t understand these statements. Nobody wants to be raped . It could happen to anyone really . It could happen at 12pm noon, to a woman dressed like a ninja. It is society that is messed up for trying to make excuses for such kind of people. Why not make excuses for the victim instead. Why not Question the offender’s behavior. Why not for once put aside all the sexism and Just say right from wrong.

About a year ago I did a post on teen girls burning themselves for what I considered silly reasons .[ here’s the post ]. Back then Rape was not so common, However there was a reasonable number of teen pregnancies.

Back in march this year I was assigned to the Gyn/Obs ward at the general Hospital in town , we did 6 days a week , 7 hour shifts for 3 months. The one thing that caught my attention during that period was the number of little girls that were coming in pregnant. Before this time , I was only familiar with the daily gossip that went around town but what I was not aware of was the actual scale of this issue.But what made this even more interesting is how when they were asked about the father of the child , Most of them responded in the same manner :

He refused to claim responsibility for the child and is in no way planning to be a part of this.  

Most of these girls were lured in with dreams of being married and finding her happily ever after. They were all promised love and support , only to be used and dumped. For those of you that are sitting there thinking “Oh well she did consent to it ,She should take responsibility for it .” Isn’t the fact that she is going through with the pregnancy while still in school enough proof of her owning up to her mistake. But my question is why not place the same harsh stigmas on the other person involved,Afterall it was not a pen that impregnated her. It is that guy you make excuses for time and time again

” Oh he was young and naive” .

” He will grow to be a fine gentleman” .

“She seduced him into it , he would never have done it otherwise” 

NGOs in Somalia and the Rip-off

Over the past 20 or so years , the number of foreign NGOs in Somalia have increased noticeably . Now with so many non-governmental organisations in the region, you would expect to see a real visible positive difference in our society . Instead every once in awhile you see an unrealistic statistic pop up about the number of young mothers who die in child labor , or how 80% of the Somali youth are illiterate . 

I have been in Somalia during the past 4 years , for 10 months each year. Not once did someone knock my door and ask me to fill out a questionnaire , Not once was there a census conducted, Not once did i see an NGO put together an event to educate the public as a whole. Instead what i keep seeing is these very NGOs who claim to help pregnant women waste money that could have bought enough iron tablets for 9 months for at least 10 women .

A few months ago, we were called for a seminar that was about Postpartum hemorrhages and its effects on women. I am not going to deny that it was rather informative ,and i did learn something new . But what bothered me is why hold a luncheon for all the attendants when that same money can be utilized elsewhere. I can manage to eat lunch at home, I can bring along my own pen and paper for the seminar , I do not need a file to hold my papers, I will do just fine without all that .As long as i brought my mind with me , you have nothing to worry about. Your message will get through

Now with all that i have said , I am not pointing fingers nor accusing Every Single NGO of ripping people off. there's always the good and the corrupt , and this post is directed at the corrupt , financially draining NGOs that have done us no good , yet accept large amounts of donations in our name -Somalia.
Donations large enough to send some of their employees on a completely prepaid trip around the world.

Hopefully someday we will all realize how much harm has been done to our society through these so called non-profit organizations.

Finally - Change is in Progress

About a year ago , I wrote a post about little girls committing suicide by burning themselves. here's the link
Its been a year since and the trend has not gone away . BUT ..and here's the good news :  finally there are people out there who do notice and do care, people with the knowledge to change things around .
 Its just a beginning , but the fact that it is being acknowledged , and there are people who want to follow these little girls ,sit down with them, listen to their point of views and explain to them that they are the future of this country is just more than i could ever wish for. If only our society was not so brutal on little girls, We could have been a much greater of a nation .

So basically the Dean of the Nursing department in Amoud University put together a program , that includes health education for high school students and expecting mothers, antenatal care , and immunization for children under the age of 5 in the city's MCH (mother and child health centers) and visits to the city's prisons . This program will be carried out by the nursing students and the medical students together, under the supervision of the graduates. This will not be just any random program, it will be recorded and critically followed , and hopefully 6 months from now , there will be a visible difference in our society and their perception on health care .
I'll follow this post with an update as soon as we start hands on , which will be maybe a week or two from now . 

Somaliland Elections !!!!!

AND THE DAY HAS COME!!! : with every election there is that mix of  high hopes, dreams for recognition, and wishes for the best . question is how much of the public's opinion is looked at or considered  ???
 now i have promised myself i wouldn't get political, but this is " THE EVENT OF THE MONTH" . so a few words on it could do no harm .. just to make things clear,  I DO NOT SUPPORT ANY OF THE CANDIDATES, I REMAIN NEUTRAL IN THE ENTIRE ISSUE !!!! ..

now that thats out of the way , you are all wondering who is running ?. well for starters there are 3 candidates :

Dahir Riyale Kahin - For Unity, Democracy, and Independence [ UDUB]
President Dahir Riyale Kahin is Somaliland's third President. A member of the feared National Security Service under the late Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre, as Vice-President of Somaliland he took over after President Mohamed Ibrahim Egal died in 2002. He narrowly won the 2003 presidential election, amid claims of manipulation

Ahmed M. Mahamoud Silanyo - Peace, Unity, and Development Party [KULMIYE]
Ahmed Mohamed 'Silanyo', was widely expected to win the 2003 presidential election. He lost to the Unity Peace and Independence party candidate Dahir Riyale Kahin by just 80 votes. Silanyo was expected to win the next election but his party has problems. Always an autocratic Chairman, younger activists are challenging Silanyo, particularly since the party's March 2009 convention. Some senior members left and Kulmiye is weaker than in 2003.




Faysal Cali Warabe - For Justice and Development [ UCID]
leader of the second opposition party, the Justice and Welfare Party (UCID), has no political baggage from ex-President Mohamed Siad Barre's regime. This has worked in his favour and he has cultivated a successful, if relatively low key, media profile.



YES I GOOGLED IT ALL , I HONESTLY COULD NOT BE EXPECTED TO KNOW ALL OF THAT, let alone remember it , I HARDLY REMEMBER WHAT I HAD FOR BREAKFAST !!!!
voting starts in a few days or weeks, and hopefully things will run smoothly ; with as little manipulation as possible in an African country.[ don't yall sit there and act like it aint happened].. we all know there is no way to a 100% uncorrupted election, but according to claims we could come as close as 90% accurate votes. Using a facial recognition technology, should cut down on the inconsistencies . I'd say it don't get any better than this. Being in Africa; that is definitely an accomplishment.


another major event coming up is SOMALI LAND INDEPENDENCE DAY.!!!! . alotta festivities in the air in the s.land communities worldwide . like the many onlookers , I  got my cameras charged and ready to catch the excitement. 
definitely doing a post on that to0.  

Somalia - A Lifetime experience

3 years ago, on a sunny sad day , i was told of a place called Borame,and that i would be doing my degree there. The first question that popped in my head was " where is that??". i was in disbelieve when i heard it was in "SOMALIA". i was so sure i wouldn't come out of that trip alive!! . words from the news kept playing in my head " al-shabab, Islamists, UN, Somalia ". i was heartbroken, depressed, and mad at the world. i prayed for forgiveness and repented all of my sins, [ since i knew my clock was ticking].

A month later : as i stepped out of the plane , the weather was UNBELIEVABLE !!!!.being from the middle east where airconditioning pretty much keeps us alive ; the cold breeze and the cloudy sky was just breath taking!!!!

my first reaction inside the airport was : OMGGGG LOOK AT ALL THESE SOMALI PEOPLE!!!!! , my dad quickly hushed me, and told me " people can understand, you know !!!" [ i was used 2 using my somali as a secret language , now everyone around me could understand it, and they were all staring like i was an alien!!!!! ] . 4 hours later , i saw A GOAT FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE , 2 min later , BACAC!!! OMGG LOOK AT THE BACAAC!!!! [ bacaac = sheep], i had no idea what they were called in somali and i honestly believed that was a real name for it.



i was like a little lost child, in a different world . i would stare at everything and everyone. and i had so many questions, and no one was being helpful .







the one thing that had me thinking, was why everyone was chewing "GREEN LEAVES JUST LIKE GOATS " .. LIKE EWWWW ...SPIT IT ALREADY!!!
when i finally got to my new home, i was a bit relieved, things were starting to feel better.. the house had a huge balcony and WE HAD A MAID!!!!!! [ we have never had a maid before , so this was 5 star treatment], i was thrilled at the weather i quickly changed into something lighter and sat outside . one thing i didn't realize was going to meet my enemy : "THE MOSQUITOES".. apparently these tiny lil insects were feeding on my sweet, fresh blood all along ,, 2 hours later, i was swelling up like a pumpkin, and i didn't know why... i was having an allergic reaction and it was so bad, i had to get shots at the local hospital .
ever since that day, long sleeves and mosquito repellents were a must!!

3 years later : I AM STILL ALIVE !!!!!!, and living life to the fullest.
i wont lie and tell you, "SOMALIA IS THE AFRICAN VERSION OF HAWAII!!!" [ I'm sure most of you heard that from aabo or hooyo] , but its definitely a trip everyone has to take once in their lifetime . your whole perspective of life will be changed forever. the little things that most of us take for granted are Blessings we should be grateful for every single day of our lives.

FROM A 16 YEAR OLD , SPOILED LIL BRAT WHO WAS FULL O CRAP, TO THE WOMAN I AM TODAY, . I WOULD MOST DEFINITELY DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN!!!