A Response to Critics

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12 Jun 2013

Faisal A. Roble

My last article posted on Wardheernews, “Somalia Sliding back to Political Conflict” May 29, 2013, which must have touched, I assume, some raw nerves, and precipitously generated quite a significant feedback.  I must say that most of the letters were positive and supportive of my on-going engagement with the self-selected Dem-Al Jadid dominated regime in Mogadishu.  But some were decidedly critical.

One of the most supportive and poignant letters came from a young man, who said he is a native of Hargaisa, and a college student in London.  In his rather long letter, he reminded me of several articles I wrote over the years on the glorious past days of Mogadishu, the Mogadishu of the past that once was Somalia’s indomitable capital city, the deteriorating situation of the current regime, and the challenges facing Somalis.   He, like many other supporters, availed his service in the future to expose the dangerous political maneuverings Mogadishu cabal are spewing.

However, the most emotionally touchy letter came from a lady who said that she lost her husband in Mogadishu, and her undying hope that one day justice will be served. The most gratifying letter came into my wrack as I was drafting this essay and said the following:

“Mr. Roble, your account about the government of Hassan Sheikh derailing itself and sliding back to political conflict became prophetic as Mogadishu begins to instigate conflict inside Kismayo.”

As much as I would have liked to say “I told you so,” it is rather a somber and painful reality to see the hopes Somalis saw only few months ago being dashed in front of their own eyes.  Forget past missed opportunities, including the missed opportunities Ambassador Sahnoun had described in his book, Somalia: The Missed Opportunities, 1994, when the late General Aidid was on a political stampede of senseless killings, I am afraid we are currently witnessing in Kismayo the calm before the storm revisits us once again.

In acquiescence with my supporters, especially on the debacle the Mogadishu government generated, I have yet to see a more charlatan leadership than the current cabal in Mogadishu.  Hassan Sheikh and his associates succeeded to renew war and conflict in southern Somalia in less than a year.  Conflict is the last thing any sane person would wish for Somalia.Continued