In a special report from Djibouti, the BBC's Andrew Harding examines how Somalia's
recent elections have empowered one sector of the population.
For the first time in this war-ravaged country, women have been given seats in
the parliament. At
the moment, it is still a parliament in exile - formed at a peace conference in
the neighbouring state of Djibouti. However, Sahra Korshel, one of the 25 new
female MPs, says the exile may not continue for long. "As
long as we have one voice, as long as we are committed , as long as we believe
what we are doing and why we are doing , we believe and we are convinced that
we will overcome," she says.
However, the women will have their work cut out. Somalia is a deeply conservative,
clan-based, Muslim country. Men call the shots, and shoot the guns though, women
MPs like Asha Haji Elmi believe that they can make a difference. "Not
now but in the future, yes, because we are already one step ahead of men," she
says. Chaos,
after all, is their speciality. Somalia's warlords and their rival clan militias
have profited from anarchy. They
have little reason to welcome the return of centralised government. Some
have threatened to use force to block the new parliament and its choice of president
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