We received hundreds of emails from you during the last
three weeks mostly concerning the prickly question of foreign
troop deployment in the capital to disarm the young militias,
to restore law and order and to train Somali army and police
force. Most of the emails are in response to MM Afrah's
latest Talking Point "Disarmament
in Style," which received thousands of hits mainly
from Somalis across the continents and at home.
Following
is some of the selected ones:
"I see there has been a great deal of struggle by
Abdullahi Yusuf and his inner circle in trying to maintain
his relationship with Ethiopia, defying the wishes of
the Somali people and international opinion. Moreover,
I must say that he has "worn" some victories,
by avoiding a visit to the capital, but certainly not
the hearts and minds of the overwhelming majority of the
Somali people at home and in the Diaspora.
Somalia deserves better than this."
M.
Caafi,
Melbourne (Australia)
I
am in favour of foreign troop deployment in Somalia, particularly
in the capital to disarm those gangsters who ruined our
country and massacred our people in cold blood. Let alone
Ethiopian troops coming to Mogadishu, I would suggest
that troops even from the devil himself should be welcomed
to teach a lesson or two to the so-called Mooryaans and
their warlord masters by giving them their own bitter
medicine.
Mr. Afrah, you have been there as the only journalist
representing international news organization, you know
what it is like to be shot at by those crooks.
Yusuf
M. Noor,
Helsinki (Finland)
"I strongly disagree the deployment of foreign troops
on our soil, particularly from Ethiopia and Kenya. However,
if it is necessary to deploy troops from the African Union,
I suggest that they should come from countries like South
Africa, Uganda, Egypt and Ghana, but they should come
under the command of Somali generals with clean track
records and accomplishments, as suggested by MM Afrah
in his Talking Point."
A.
Yoonis,
London, United Kingdom.
"Why
all the fuss about Ethiopian peacekeeping forces to be
deployed in Somalia? I am really in favor of deploying
Ethiopian soldiers, particularly in Mogadishu. They will
be offered the same lessons as those given to the Americans
and Pakistani peacekeepers in Mogadishu in 1993/94. I
would say to the Ethiopians: Welcome to Somalia and we
will settle our ancient scores for the last time!
Remember Black Hawk Down?"
Abdurahman Egeh,
Ohio (USA)
.
"I don't sense a great deal of peace and stability
will result the deployment of foreign troops in Somalia.
I concur with MM Afrah's idea of voluntary disarmament
with the help of the civic society and the fledging Islamic
Courts. I also don't see Abdullahi Yusuf being able to
commit himself to the well-being of the Somali people.
They deserve much better than this military guy."
Deqa
Yusuf,
Toronto (Canada)
"When are the so-called politicians going to take
their heads out of the sand? As Mr. Afrah writes: "Somalia
is a country already saturated with blood and tear,"
and bringing in foreign troops as peacekeepers is only
going to make matters worse. How many innocent people
are going to have to die before Abdullahi Yusuf realize
that it was big mistake to beg for foreign troop deployment?"
Yassiin
M. Robleh,
Abu Dhabi (UAE)
"If
the United Nations and the African Union really want to
prevent more bloodshed in Somalia, they should put more
funds and impartial staff to prevent weapons flow from
Ethiopia into Somalia. They will also ensure that maximum
jail sentences are applied to those who choose to profit
from arms trafficking. Collecting the already existing
weapons should be left to what was left of the Somali
National Army and the police with the help of the civic
society and donor countries"
M.
Jabril,
Cape Town (South Africa)
**********
JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR 2005
YOUR
COMMENTS
"Excellent
and courageous writer with logical views and straight-forward
meanings. It is impossible to get one like him nowadays
from a country once called Somalia. We need you more than
ever, Mr. Afrah. Your comments are highly regarded. Please
keep it up the good work. To me, you are a true Somali!!!
Abdullahi
Ali
E-mail address provided, but no location given
"I
knew Afrah from Somalia when he was the editor-in-chief
of HEEGAN. He is a man of principles and honesty, a true
Somali who has been using his pen to promote the Somali
cause. His messages inspire all who are relentlessly working
to make Somalia once again a respectable country in the
community of nations. I believe he is not only journalist
of the year 2005, but was journalist of the years that
passed and those to come. May His Almighty bless him."
Dr.
Omar Maye,
Leeds, United Kingdom.
"The
old man deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for he writes everything
we are all missing; PEACE! He also hits hard on those
who try to put obstacle to peace.
Keep it up old man. Do not slow down!"
Aweys
Ottawa (Canada)
THE
MAN DESERVES OUR APPRECIATION. I DON'T KNOW HIM PERSONALLY,
BUT I DON'T THAT NOW. IT IS A GREAT PLEASURE TO KNOW HIM.
HE IS SOMEONE WHO SHARES NAME WITH US (SOMALIS) WHOM WE
CAN DEPEND ON HIS ADVICE AND INFORMATION IN THIS PERIOD
OF TURMOIL AND MISTRUST. AFRAH, YOU MAY BE OLD BUT STILL
YOU HAVE THE STRENGTH TO EDUCATE US FROM THE TRIBAL IGNORANCE.
THANK YOU AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
Ibrahim Cali (BOOCOW)
E-mail address provided, but no location given.
Really,
MM Afrah has succeeded opening the window for anyone of
us to watch what is going on in Somalia without adding
anything that's not true. Thanks for his courage to stand
on the right ground.
Moalem.
E-mail address provided, but no location given.
Compiled and edited by MM Afrah E-mail afrah95@hotmail.com
or afrah@banadir.com
NOTE
FROM THE WEBMASTER: For those of you looking
for a challenge, we've added the chance to cast your vote
on any thorny question, like the current debate on foreign
troop deployment in our country, as well as your E-mails
based on any subject that appears on this Website, like
the one above.
So, let's know what you think of our new ventures. E-mail
us at comments@banadir.com
and have your say. Your views are crucial in keeping of
your favorite Website. Your support has been overwhelming.
We hope you enjoy the new addition and agree that these
upgrades make your daily read even better.
Thanks to you and keep sending your feedback and we will
post them from time to time!
--The Webmaster.
