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Somalia (Somali: Soomaaliya; Arabic: الصومال, As-Suumaal), formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a coastal nation at the Horn of Africa in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the north and mid-west, Kenya on its south-west, and the Gulf of Aden on its north, and the Indian Ocean at its east. The Somalian state currently exists solely in a de jure capacity; Somalia has no recognized central government authority nor any other feature associated with an established independent state. De facto authority resides in the hands of the governments for the unrecognized entities of Somaliland, Puntland, the Supreme Islamic Courts Council and the weak, but United Nations-recognized, Interim transitional government in Baidoa about 250 kilometers north-west of the capital Mogadishu. Violence has plagued Somalia since warlords ousted former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
History The independence of the British Somaliland Protectorate from the United Kingdom was proclaimed on June 26, 1960. On July 1, 1960, unification of the British and ex-Italian Somaliland took place. The government was formed by Abdullahi Issa. Aden Abdullah Osman Daar was appointed as President and Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as Prime Minister. Later, in 1967, Mohammed Ibrahim Egal became Prime Minister in the government appointed by Abdirishid Ali Shermarke. Egal was later chosen as President of the self-declared independent Somaliland. He died in a hospital in Pretoria on May 3, 2002. In late 1969, a military government assumed power following the assassination of Shermarke, who had been chosen, and served as, President from 1967–1969. Mohamed Siad Barre, a General in the armed forces, became the President in 1969 following a coup d'état. The revolutionary army leaders, headed by Siad Barre, established large-scale public works programmes. They also successfully implemented an urban and rural literacy campaign, in which they helped to dramatically increase the literacy rate from a mere 5% to 55% by the mid-1980s. In the meantime, Barre assassinated a major figure in his cabinet, Major General Gabiere, and two other officials. Intermittent civil war has been a fact of life in Somalia since 1977. In 1991, first insurgent forces led by Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, leader of the (SSDF), and President Ali Mahdi Mohamed officially was unrecognised head of the government. The same year, the northern portion of the country declared its independence as Somaliland; although de facto independent and relatively stable compared to the tumultuous south, it has not been recognized by any foreign government. Following the failure of Operation Restore Hope and beginning in 1993, a two-year UN effort (primarily in the south) was able to alleviate famine conditions. The UN contingent included some US troops, 18 of whom were killed in fighting after a helicopter was shot down in Mogadishu (as shown in the film "Black Hawk Down"). The UN withdrew in Operation United Shield by March 3, 1995, having suffered significant casualties, and the rule of government has not yet been restored. Yet another secession from Somalia took place in the northeastern region. The self-proclaimed state took the name Puntland after declaring "temporary" independence in 1998, with the intention that it would participate in any Somali reconciliation to form a new central government. A third secession occurred in July 2006 with the declaration of the state of Jubaland. The territory of Jubaland is now declared its Regional Autonomy by its people. Col. Barre Aden Shire Hiiraale, chairman of the Administration of Jubba Valley Alliance Dooxada Jubbais the most powerful leader there. A fourth self-proclaimed entity led by the Rahanweyn Resistance Army (RRA) was set up in 1999. This "temporary" secession was reasserted in 2002, leading to de facto autonomy of Southwestern Somalia. The RRA had originally set up an autonomous administration over the Bay and Bakool regions of south and central Somalia in 1999. Somalia was one of the many countries affected by the tsunami which struck the Indian Ocean coast following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, destroying entire villages and killing an estimated 300 people. The 2nd Battle of Mogadishu started in May 2006. The battle was fought between an alliance of Mogadishu secular warlords known as the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism or "ARPCT" and a militia loyal to Union of Islamic Courts or "UIC". The conflict began in mid-February. Several hundred people, mostly civilians, died in the crossfire. Mogadishu residents described it as the worst fighting in more than a decade of lawlessness. The Islamists accused the U.S. of funding the warlords through the Central Intelligence Agency in an effort to prevent the Islamists gaining power. The U.S. State Department, while neither admitting nor denying this, said the U.S. had taken no action that violated the international arms embargo of Somalia. A few emails describing covert illegal operations by private military companies in breach of UN regulations have been reported by the UK sunday newspaper The Observer. The president of the Somali transitional government, Abdullahi Yusuf, told the BBC the alliance of warlords was not fighting on behalf of the transitional government, even though several of the warlords held cabinet posts. Four powerful warlords who had been serving as ministers were sacked. On June 5, 2006 the Islamic Militia said it had taken control of the whole of Mogadishu. On 14 June 2006 the last ARPCT stronghold in southern Somalia, the town of Jowhar, fell with little resistance to the ICU. The remaining ARPCT forces fled to the east or across the border into Ethiopia. The warlords' alliance effectively collapsed. The transitional government called for intervention by a regional East African peacekeeping force. UIC leaders opposed this, and lobbied African Union (AU) member states at an AU ceremony in Libya on September 9 2006 to abandon plans to send peacekeepers to Somalia. The Islamists are fiercely opposed to foreign troops – particularly Ethiopians – in Somalia. Steadily the Islamist militia backing the UIC took control of much of the southern half of Somalia, normally by negotiation with local clan chiefs rather than the use of force. The Islamists stayed clear of the government headquarters town of Baidoa, which Ethiopia said it would protect if threatened. But on September 25 2006, the UIC moved into the southern port of Kismayo, the last remaining port held by the government. On Wednesday, November 1st, 2006, peace talks between the UN-recognized interim government in the North and the Islamists of the south broke down. Many authorities fear civil war, and the US has issued travel advisories for US citizens in Somalia following threats of suicide bombers. * The Islamists later rebuffed the US warnings. Sheikh Yusuf Mohamed Siad told Reuters, "We have no plans to attack Kenya and Ethiopia, neither are we known to blow ourselves up. Suicide bombing is not a Somali culture."* Politics Somalia has had no effective national government since 1991, though there is an internationally recognized government in Baidoa. This government, called the Transitional National Government, controls only Baidoa and is not recognized by most Somalis to be legitimate. In the northwest, there is the breakaway republic of Somaliland, which declared its independence in 1991. Puntland in the northeast declared itself autonamous in 1998 and has not joined the Transitional Government, though the former president of Puntland is now the president of the Baidoa government and Puntland has stated its desire to join a future theoretical federated state. In the southeastern interior, Jubaland and Southwestern Somalia have both joined the Baidoa government, and its leaders are part of the Baidoa parliament. The other half of the country, with the bulk of the population, is controlled by the Supreme Islamic Courts Council, which controls the critically important cities of Mogadishu and, since September 24th, 2006, Kismayo. The Council is led by Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed. When asked if the UIC plans to extend its control to the rest of Somalia, Sheikh Ahmed responded in an interview: On October 14, 2004, Somali members of parliament elected warlord Abdullahi Yusuf, previously president of Puntland, to be the next president. Because of the situation in Mogadishu, the election was held in a sports centre in Nairobi, Kenya. Yusuf was elected transitional President by Somalia's transitional parliament. He won 189 of the 275 votes from members of parliament. The session of Parliament was also held in neighbouring Kenya. His government is recognized by most western nations as legitimate, although his actual authority is questionable. Many other small political organizations exist, some clan-based, others seeking a Somalia free from clan-based politics (such as the United Somali Front). Many of them have come into existence since the new president was chosen. As of late 2006, however, the Transitional National Government remains in control of only a relatively small portion of the country; by some accounts its control barely extends beyond the limits of its capital city of Baidoa. In addition, the political situation remains unstable; for example, on September 18, 2006, Abdullah Yusuf barely survived a suicide attack on his convoy in Baidoa, although twelve other people were killed.• Geography
Administrative divisions Somalia is divided into eighteen regions (gobollada, sing. gobol), which in turn are subdivided into districts. The regions are: 1 Awdal 2 Bakool 3 Banaadir 4 Bari 5 Bay 6 Galguduud 7 Gedo 8 Hiiraan 9 Jubbada Dhexe 10 Jubbada Hoose 11 Mudug 12 Nugaal 13 Sanaag 14 Shabeellaha Dhexe 15 Shabeellaha Hoose 16 Sool 17 Togdheer 18 Woqooyi Galbeed Economy
Demographics Somalia has a population of around 8,591,000. However, estimates are very difficult because of the political situation and the mostly nomadic nature of the Somalis. The last census was in 1975. Most outside analysts use this estimate but Somalia is one of the fastest growing countries in Africa and the world. Some estimates range between 15 and 25 million. Today, about 60% of all Somalis are nomadic or semi-nomadic pastoralists who raise cattle, camels, sheep, and goats. About 25% of the population are settled farmers who live mainly in the fertile agricultural region between the Juba and Shebelle rivers in southern Somalia. The remainder of the population (15%-20%) is urban. Because of the war, Somalia has a large diaspora community, one of the largest of the whole continent. There are over a million Somalis (including the minorities) outside Africa. Languages Nearly all inhabitants speak Somali, the official language. This standard was based on dialects from the Mudug province. The Somali language was not used extensively for writing until 1973, when a standard orthography using the Latin alphabet was decreed by the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC). Somali is now the language of instruction in schools. Culture Telecommunications Somalia's public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled; however, private wireless companies exist in most major cities and actually provide better services than in neighbouring countries, despite (or perhaps due to) Somalia's lack of government. Somalia has the cheapest cellular calling rates in Africa, with some companies charging less than a cent a minute. (''Telecoms thriving in lawless Somalia'') Companies providing telecommunication services are: See also Lists Government News Economy General information Other lij:Somalia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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