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The Vampire of
Barawe
The Untold Stories
Omar Hassan Sheegow
Every new era brings new realities that are harsh and difficult to
contemplate. The continuous subjugation and torture exposed to the natives
of Banadir, lower Shabelle and Jubba are new realities that are the
consequences of the Somali Civil war which is mainly fought to conquer the
Southern regions of the Republic. Somalia is a country that is politically
dominated by the central region tribes, the domination is not however,
because they exceed by number other Somali clans, but it is simply because
they succeeded to transform the nation into a mobocracy. It is the result of
the mobocracy that caused the natives of breadbasket regions to be
marginalized and targeted. After the fall of the military regime warlords
have emerged and instituted a clan based power or mob with instantaneous
formation of ring leaders claiming to be the blessed representative of the
Mogadishu warlord(s). This has led hundred of thousands of the natives of
Banadir, Lower Shabelle and Jubba, including the Somali Bantus to flee to
the neighboring countries. Cities like Hamar Weyne, Shingani, Afgooye,
Wanlaweyn, Qoryoley, Marka, Barawe and the surrounding villages have
witnessed horrendous crimes against humanity as they launched a campaign of
ethnic cleansing against the natives of these cities.
Barawe which is one of the districts of lower shabelle is under the
complete control of a mobster who is alleged for willful killing, torture,
inhumane treatment, taking of hostages and extensive destruction and
appropriation of property. The man, who could be compared as one of the
cruel mobsters of Italy was resettled in the area in 1976 by the Somali
military regime as the result of the famous Dabadheer drought that hardly
hit the central regions of Somalia. Prior to the collapse of the military
regime, the man, Mr. Abdullahi Halane
Duhulow worked as guardian at the
Sandune Fixation Project in Barawe. He started to pursue his dreams
when members of his sub-subclan who were part of the USC militia captured
the city in early February 1991. He commended his closely related militia to
remain in the city and he is alleged to have ordered them to loot, rape and
kill. These actions were widely reported by the media at the time. His
violence and intimidation tactics led him to gradually emerge as the most
unchallenged ring leader in the area. His conspiracy and intimidation has
led to the displacement of more than 80% of city residence and the
surrounding villages. He collects taxes from the locals on anything and
everything. He is a staunch advocate and a shareholder on the charcoal
business that has caused a desertification of millions of square feet of
land. “Killing you is easier for us” Mr. Halane repeats all the time when he
meets local elders. His mobsters terrorize the city by shooting
indiscriminately to crowded areas. The latest shooting took place in early
January 2004, in which 1) Mohamed Yahye
Jeilani was killed 2) Mohamed Haji
(lost his both legs) 3) Muhsin Abu-Mazeyn
(injured) and 4) Mohamed Aweis Omar
(lost one of his hands). After the events, Mr. Halane personally briefed
Shabelle Radio on the matter where he accused these young natives as
terrorists. The fact of the matter is that Mr. Halane calculated that he
could get away with impunity from the many atrocities he has committed.
Similar ring leaders do exist in every city and village of lower Shabelle
and Juba region, subjecting the residents of these areas to massacre, rape,
displacement and endless intimidation.
The heartbreaking facts are that people like Mr. Halane have found a
suitable environment to continue committing crimes without any one
questioning them. The country is in shambles, consequently becoming a
breeding ground for criminals. The only way to make Mr. Halane and his likes
accountable for their criminal acts is to collect and record the witnesses
and build the case for each crime they have committed in the last 14 years.
Every Somali should honestly record the date, time of each crime, the name(s)
of the victim(s) and the perpetrators and be confident that justice will be
served one day. Somali lawyers with interest on human rights should lead and
play role in bringing these mobsters to justice. No government can ever
survive in Somalia without committing itself to justice and equal rights to
its citizens.
Martin Luther King jr. once said “Our life ends when we become silent on
things that matters”. It is time for Somalis, particularly those from the
suffering regions to speak out against the mobsters and clan organized
criminals.
Mr. Omar Hassan Sheegow (e-mail:
Omaradde5@hotmail.com)
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