Youth of Somalia: From heroes to criminals and victims
Mohamud M Uluso
2013-06-27, Issue 635 <
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/issue/635>
http://pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87930
<
http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/87930>
The prolonged civil war changed everything for Somali youth. Hopeless, they
became prey to a host of unscrupulous warlords, politicians and religious
fanatics. Hundreds of young Somalis are today languishing in jails all
overall the world
It is hard to mull over the history of Somali Youth and not first feel pride
and then despair and sadness because of the bright past and tragic present.
First, thanks to the mass mobilization and effective leadership of a small
group of young Somalis, the British Somaliland protectorate and Italian
Somaliland trusteeship gained their independences and formed the Republic of
Somalia on July 1, 1960. On May 13, 1943, a group of thirteen young Somalis
got together and decided to form a political organization called Somali
Youth Club (SYC) later renamed Somali Youth League (SYL) on May 15, 1947.
They penned down the indelible principles of their political platform based
on nationalism, unity, education, equality and justice for a prosperous and
strong Somalia which was divided at that time into five parts under
different colonial powers as a result of Berlin Conference of 1884-85 on the
scramble for Africa.
Five of the thirteen Somali Youth League founders were 17 and 18 years old,
while six were age 24 and 26 and the remaining two were 28 and 33 years old.
The African Youth Charter adopted in July 2006 defines youth as individuals
aged 15 to 35. The group courageously and successfully led the Somali
nationalist movement for the liberation and nationhood of all Somalis. They
defeated the curse that divides the Somali people into clan chauvinism.
Indeed, the representative of the British colonial military administration
scorned the ambition of the youth when they applied for permission because
of the intense clan division among the Somali people. However, the Somali
Youth League founders proved the administration wrong and succeeded in
resisting the clan syndrome. The Somali Youth League enjoyed considerable
followers and enthusiastic support everywhere in the Somali lands.
All national post-independent governments echoed the national principles and
sentiments set by the Somali Youth League founders. Frequently, today's
young generation in the Diaspora form organizations with the same name to
keep alive the psychological nationalistic fervor and unforgettable legacy
left behind by the thirteen young heroes of the league. Somalis inside and
outside Somalia often sing in social or political gatherings the Somali
Youth League era songs for tribute and societal uplifting.
The revolutionary military regime which overthrew the civilian government in
1969 gave special attention to the youth and established a national youth
organization called Somali Revolutionary Youth Organization (SRYC) which
played an influential role in the power consolidation of the military
regime. In addition, the regime established a Cabinet Ministry for Youth and
Sports which became a fix cabinet position in any Somali government
thereafter.
The regime undertook many programs that promoted the development, political
participation, and socialization of the youth. The government offered free
education up to university and free health care and guaranteed employment
for all university graduates. In addition, it invested in the promotion of
competitive sports and games among secondary school students or regional
tournaments for boys and girls. It organized cultural competitions during
annual celebrations.
All secondary graduates were required to undergo a boot camp for civic
training. This has facilitated the social integration of the youth from the
different regions and social backgrounds. The participation of youth in the
political process expanded and increased youth awareness. Notwithstanding
the significant dropouts of girls for different reasons, it is particularly
important to note that during the revolutionary military regime the equal
treatment between girls and boys and access of girls to education and
employment has substantially improved. More girls benefited from the
government policies and sponsored programs.
After the adoption of the script of the Somali language in 1972, the
government launched two historical campaigns for urban literacy and rural
development. The secondary schools students played a crucial role in both
campaigns conducted in 1973 and 1974. Since the rural development campaign
became an internationally admired success, the Somali youth were also heroes
in the eyes of millions of Somali population for their contribution to the
profound economic and social changes that took place in the country at that
time. In 1975, late minister of education Abdirizak Mohamed Abubakar
received on behalf of Somalia the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) literacy Prize.
Unfortunately, unchecked escalating corruption, economic mismanagement and
political repression eroded the initial success stories and the State became
a dictatorship which dashed the aspiration and expectations of the youth so
that many of them either joined rebel movements or travelled outside the
country for better opportunities. Precipitously, the political, economic and
social situation of Somalia deteriorated.
Finally, the military dictatorship collapsed in 1991 and the ensued civil
war for power struggle and resource control among rebel clan factions made
the youth victims and perpetrators of violence. Today, the situation of the
Somali Youth imbues a sense of sadness and despair despite national and
international efforts to reverse it. The Somalia Human Development Report
2012 of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) focuses on empowering
Youth for peace and development and describes the youth situation as
follows:
"With two decades of endless civil war and unrest, Somali youth face harsh
realities. Many are poor, uneducated and unemployed, or have left the
country as migrants or refugees. Others have joined the armed militia,
either voluntarily or involuntarily and use violence to earn quick money,
through robbery, ransacking or piracy. With few choices or outlets to
express their anger, they are ready recruits for engaging in risky
behaviour. A lost generation poses significant challenges not only to youth
themselves, but also imposes formidable economic, political, and social
costs a real threat to national stability."
As described in the above cited report, Somalia faces the challenge of
demographic pressure because 73% of the population is below the age of 30
and this 'youth bulge' remains a serious barrier to peace and stability in
Somalia unless immediate actions on employment, education, training and
economic support are undertaken. A survey conducted for preparation of the
report found that the unemployment rate among youth aged 14 to 29 was 67
percent, one of the highest in the world. The environment of violence,
unemployment and poverty deprived the youth hope and forced them to partake
in the conflict.
For the first time, the report analyzes the plight of the Somali Youth in
detail and advocates for their empowerment .defined as the expansion of
assets and capabilities of young people to participate in negotiate with
influence control and hold accountable the institutions that affect their
lives. as an essential condition for peacebuilding and sustainable stability
and development. The report proposes a holistic approach for removing
exclusionary policies and institutional barriers as well as for fostering
bottom up process based on community led initiatives that empower local
populations.
For the past two decades, the Somali State was absent from the debates on
youth empowerment taking place at the international forums like the United
Nations, African Union and Arab league. In July 2012, the Somali government
signed an action plan to end the use of child soldiers. But the
implementation and enforcement of the provisions of the action plan
throughout the country is hampered by the lack of government capacity to
persecute lawbreakers.
During the prolonged civil war, hopeless youth became prey for a host of
unscrupulous warlords, politicians and religious fanatics. These adult
exploiters lured, trained and forced the youth to become criminals by
committing murder, rape, looting and kidnapping. The youth also joined
piracy activities. Hundreds of young Somalis are today languishing in jails
all overall the world up to South Korea, Seychelles, Kenya, France, United
States, India, Libya, and Saudi Arabiya for piracy, kidnapping crimes or for
illegal immigration. Many died in the Sahara desert; others drowned at the
sea for seeking opportunity in far countries up to Australia and New
Zealand. World TVs show routinely images of dead bodies of young Somalis
lying at the beaches of Italy, Libya and Yemen. Others were killed by
international forces protecting the maritime navigation off the Somali coast
of Indian Ocean, while thousands are missing.
Thousands of youths and their families fled their homes and they are either
internally displaced people (IDP) or refugees in crowded camps in
neighboring countries with abject poverty. The lucky ones are those who got
resettlements in Europe, America, Australia and Canada. Somalia lost its
most precious assets for peace and development. The African Youth Charter
states that 'the Africa's greatest resources is its youthful population and
that through their active participation, Africans can surmount the
difficulties that lie ahead.'
A large number of youth who lost hope turned to religion for salvation and
comfort. This opened up an opportunity for the religious leaders to fill the
vacuum created by the statelessness by using the youth. So the religious
leaders formed Islamic courts and trained young generation for addressing
the intolerable level of insecurity situation. Inauspiciously, the emergence
of the Islamic movement attracted the attention of the international powers
engaged in the global war against Al Qaeda responsible for the terror attack
on America on September 11, 2001.
Somalia became target as it has been suspected a safe haven for jihadists
with link to Al Qaeda and for terrorist individuals who committed terror in
Kenya and Tanzania. The hunting of suspected individuals ignited a violent
conflict in Mogadishu between the forces of the Islamic courts and those of
a group of warlords allied to the US Government. The Islamic courts whose
backbone was a well organized and trained youth defeated the warlords'
forces and all of a sudden became the de facto rulers of south central
Somalia. This trigged the military invasion of Ethiopia in Somalia which
quickly chased out the Islamic court forces.
But the youth regrouped and formed the radical organization 'Al Shabab',
which means youth. Immediately they engaged a bloody war against Ethiopia
forces and Somali Government. In their fight against foreign invaders, Al
Shabab won the minds and hearts of a large segment of the population,
specially the young generation to the level that some of them became suicide
bombers. But their brutal tactics and indiscriminate killing of innocent
civilians have corroded the public support and their military capability
plummeted drastically. But what is frightening is that the youth not
supporting Al Shabab express lack of confidence and negative expectation
towards the political dispensation. Somalia needs urgent and substantial
international intervention to save its youth from self-destruction and
against the rest.
In the 21st century, the chance for the eruption of youth rebellion has
dramatically increased partly to the Arab spring which brought down
autocratic governments in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen. The youth's
frustration and agitation against the political system is increased by their
high awareness and connection facilitated by the social media. The average
percentages of awareness of female and male Somali youth to their rights of
education, decent work, participation in organization, political
participation, equality of young men and women, and freedom of expression
are 63.21 and 69.89 respectively. Therefore, it is far better to empower the
youth in facing the challenges of the real life within the democratic values
and norms. Lack of empowerment is disaster for the entire society.
One practical policy prescription put forward by the practitioners and
searchers of youth problems in conflict zones is the youth's involvement in
the allocation and management of resources intended for their empowerment on
the basis of the fifteen priority issues agreed upon by the international
community including the African Union like education, employment, hunger and
poverty, and health. The defeat of the terror ideology of Al Shabab and
recover the lost generation in Somalia depends on effective coordinated
national and international efforts focused on the urgent needs of young
generation in terms of security, livelihood, education and employment
support.
* Mohamud M Uluso is a Somali commentator
Received on Thu Jun 27 2013 - 10:58:04 EDT