Fatuma Ali
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
The first article was written by Mr. Bashir Goth and it was about the title of the leader of the Federal States. Mr. Goth was right in his suggestion to the coming leader of Hiiraan State, to choose the title of governor, because that is what the job is about. Mr. Abdiwali Gaas and the other so called presidents are not presidents of sovereign states but leaders of states that are part of the Federal Republic of Somalia and their boss is the president of the Federal Republic of Somalia. It seems that all the so called presidents of the federal states are forgetting this and behave as though they are totally independent from Mogadishu. The only president that is independent from Mogadishu is the president of the de-facto state of Somaliland but that is another story.
There were comments on Mr. Goth’s article that expressed understanding and support, while others brought the tribal card into the conversation. Mr. Goth’s tribe was mentioned in the comments, as if this has anything to do with his sombre suggestion. Mr Goth is expressing himself as a concerned Somali and not as a Samoroon. Am I, as a Hawadle person, not allowed to have an opinion on what is going on in other parts of my country other than Beletweyne? Are our intellectuals and thinkers, such as Mr. Goth not the source of ideas and proposals that can move our country ahead?
The other article was about the recent death of David Bowie, one of the greatest artists of our time. David Bowie was married to the famous Somali model Iman. Some of the comments on the article were just outrageous. Iman was called “sharmuta” and her tribe Majerteen was named. Why is Iman a “sharmuta”? Can a Somali woman not marry a white man and still be a decent person? What are you talking about? What has Iman’s tribe got to do with David Bowie’s death? Iman is a great model and an example of how gracious and beautiful our women are. In addition, she uses her fame and position in charity work that she does for her country of origin, our common country Somalia.
Hiiraan and the other Somali online websites give as the possibility to discuss, to exchange ideas, and to learn from each other.
It is wrong to use these important platforms to insult and to devaluate the opinion of others. In the process of reconstructing our society we need to talk with each other without being suspicious of each other. Let us get this dialogue started with a civilized rhetoric and in a polite tone.
Fatuma Ali
Email: [email protected]