By KAMALUDIN HASSAN Posted Tuesday, September 22 2009 at 16:35
I am a Somali citizen who loves Kenya for its brotherly relations and welcoming attitude towards Somalis in their time of need. But terrorist elements in Somalia are not as friendly as I, and most of my countrymen are.
That is why I decided to inform you that your government is neglecting your national security interests by failing to do all that it can to prevent Al Shabaab and other terrorists harming your country.
I am from Lower Juba Province of Somalia, which includes the strategic port city of Kismaayo and Ras Kiambooni where Fazul Abdallah, the mastermind of the US embassy bombing, lives in peace, a mere 17 kilometres away from your border.
As the case is with many African communities, my Ogaden tribesmen live on both sides of the border and include seven MPs in the Kenya Parliament, including the Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim and Defence minister Yusuf Haji.
But currently, as the situation in Somalia worsens, there is a military mission afoot in Nairobi as reported by the New York Times and confirmed by other sources.
It’s a plan by Amisom to invade Kismaayo and free it from Al Shabaab’s control. However, there are policy issues that can backfire and hurt Kenya’s security if not mitigated quickly.
The problem is that Ethiopia, which has a problem with the Ogaden tribe, has an undue influence over this operation.
They are using other small tribes like the Marehan, who inhabit Gedo Province across the border from Mandera, and the Majeerteen, who are concentrated in the pirate state of Puntland.
These client tribes of Ethiopia have no bearing on the reality on the ground and will not establish an effective local administration in the region to fill the power vacuum and deny sanctuary to international terror groups.
However, Ethiopia has succeeded in convincing Amisom to distance the Ogaden majority from the decision-making process.
This will force the locals to side with Al Shabaab and defeat the purpose of the mission as happened in the 1990s when Unisom committed the same mistake by driving the Ogadens out of Kismaayo and siding with the Majeerteen warlord named General Morgan.
If the Kenya Government fails to play a bigger role in this project, the Shabaab will win and direct their wrath against Kenyan targets as they threaten every day to blow up tall buildings in downtown Nairobi
Therefore, I urge you to pressure your government to protect your security by playing a bigger role in this vital region.
As you can see from the letter sent to the Kenyan government earlier this year by the stakeholders in the region, Kenya has historical connections and has natural allies across the border who can help to insulate you from the boomerang effect of the Somali crisis.
To make matters even worse, your government used this letter to appropriate $550 million from your national budget claiming it needs the money to defend itself from the spillover violence from Somalia, but up to now, nothing has been done.
I believe it’s time we, the people on both sides of this border, joined hands to ensure our common security, and start neighbourly dialogue to achieve this goal.
Mr Hassan is a programme director, New Americans Community Services, USA. (
kamaldacas@hotmail.com)
