Kings College, London:Somalia

The saga continues.

In October, Kings College welcomed two experts on the role of piracy on the high seas surrounding Somalia. The War Studies department continues their fascination with the Horn of Africa nation on the following lecture topic:

Monday 14 December, 17.00
CSD Research Programme: Public Lecture
"Protracted State Failure and the Somalia Crisis"
Speaker: Professor Ken Menkhaus, Davidson College, NC
Chair: Professor Mats Berdal
Location: War Studies Seminar Room (k6.07)

The biography of the speaker reads as follows:

Professor Ken Menkhaus of Davidson College, NC, specializes in the Horn of Africa, with a particular interest in Somalia. He has researched, written, and conducted policy work on such topics as humanitarian relief, peacekeeping, post-conflict development assistance, collapsed states, protracted conflict, and Islamic movements in the Horn of Africa. In 1993-94 he served as special political advisor in the UN operation in Somalia, and was visiting professor at the US Army Peacekeeping Institute in 1994-95. In 2002 he was awarded a USIP research grant to complete a book on protracted conflicts in the Horn of Africa. Among his publications are Somalia: State Collapse and the Threat of Terrorism (Adephi Paper, Oxford University Press, 2004).

Now, this gentleman was involved in Operation Restore Hope. For those indivudals who have seen Black Hawk Down by Ridley Scott you pretty much know how the whole story went down [admittedly from the perspective of a British film maker fascinated by all things American]. Now Wikipedia states the following:

Unified Task Force (UNITAF) was a United States led, United Nations sanctioned multinational force which operated in Somalia between 5 December 1992 – May 4, 1993. A United States initiative (code-named Operation Restore Hope), UNITAF was charged with carrying out United Nations Security Council Resolution 794: to create a protected environment for conducting humanitarian operations in the southern half of Somalia.

Even the simplest of simpletons can see what Professor Menkhaus' perspective is on the region. A post on this seminar will be published on the 14th December outlining the folly of pretence.

Why Prevent?

The Prevent agenda, preventing the formation of terror groups from communities within the UK, is targeting the Somali community because of recent developments over the last 12 months.

Earlier posts highlighted two contradictory articles in The Independent newspaper; one indicating that there was an existential threat within the UK and the other suggesting that the MI5 [no less!] is coercing young Somali males to spy on their community.

The narrative in this instance began with an article from Jonathan Rugman [Foreign Affairs Correspondent for Channel Four News] in The Times: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article5741300.ece and the film report that was aired on Channel Four on the topic: http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/politics/international_politics/somalias+terror+recruits+return+to+uk/2954747

The scene has been set, what happens next is up to YOU!

Council Spending Uncovered: The Prevent Agenda

Over £12 million has so far been given out by local authorities to fund community groups through Prevent projects.

There has been insufficient monitoring of how Prevent money is spent, with the Government unsure of what groups Councils have disbursed money to.

Around £850,000 has been given to the Muslim Council of Britain’s official affiliates through different Prevent funding streams. Funding for these groups has risen by £300,000 from 2007-08 to 2008-09.

Of the £38,000 initially allocated to the controversial Cordoba Foundation, only £4,000 was withdrawn. This is despite the Cohesion Minister stating in Parliament that Tower Hamlets Council had terminated their agreement with them.

The Prevent Strategy is part of the Government’s response to the threat of terrorism from Islamist extremists. Aimed at stopping people from becoming terrorists, the Government has given Local Authorities money to fund projects administered by community groups, as well as giving out grants themselves directly. However, there have been ongoing concerns about the groups receiving funding and it has not been clear how taxpayers’ money has been spent. The TaxPayers’ Alliance has used Freedom of Information requests to compile the data that the Government was unable to give Paul Goodman MP, a Shadow Minister for Communities and Local Government, earlier this year. So for the first time, spending on the Prevent Strategy is listed in detail to show how much each organisation received individually in the 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 financial years.

To read the full report, detailing all Prevent spending, please click here (PDF).

Key findings:

Over £12 million has so far been given out by local authorities to fund community groups through Prevent projects.

There has been insufficient monitoring of how Prevent money is spent, with the Government unsure of what groups Councils have disbursed money to.

This paper managed to get more detailed information on local authorities’ Preventing Violent Extremism grants than that obtained by Paul Goodman MP through parliamentary questions.
The TPA has been able to ascertain how much each organisation received, rather than the total amount each local authority received – an itemised account of PVE expenditure.

Around £850,000 has been given to the Muslim Council of Britain’s official affiliates through different Prevent funding streams.

Of the £38,000 initially allocated to the Cordoba Foundation, only £4,000 was withdrawn. This is despite the Cohesion Minister stating in Parliament that Tower Hamlets Council had terminated their agreement with them.

'Prevent' is one strand within the broader ‘Contest’ strategy, the others being ‘Pursue’, ‘Protect’ and ‘Prepare’. The strategy has since been updated – the Government announced ‘Contest 2’ in March of this year – and the revised approach places a greater emphasis on the Prevent agenda. This spending is broken down in to different funding streams:

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) directly administer the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund and the Community Leadership Fund. They also funded other selected projects in the 2006-07 financial year.

The Government have promised £45 million to local authorities over three years as ‘Preventing Violent Extremism’ (PVE) grants. PVE money is allocated to those Councils with Muslim populations of more than 5 per cent. Most of those Councils are in urban areas.

In 2007/08, qualifying Councils received money through the ‘Pathfinder’ fund, and each local authority was then able to devise its own plan for how to use the money. Generally, third parties were invited to apply for funding by submitting project plans to the local authority, who then decided which projects to fund and therefore the organisations to administer them. In 2008/09 money was given to Councils in the form of Area-Based Grants and the money was not ring-fenced by Government. The freedom afforded to Councils means that they have spent the money in different ways. Some have set out three-year spending plans and others have not used any of their funding.

The report concludes that skilled policing and robust intelligence are the most effective ways of tackling violent extremism, and these millions of pounds of taxpayers' money could have been far better spent. Government and/or councils need to accept that there are serious flaws in the Prevent scheme and consider its immediate abolition.

The full report can be downloaded here (PDF).

Matthew Sinclair, Research Director at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said:
“Giving councils millions of pounds to dole out to hundreds of community groups clearly creates a massive risk that money will be wasted or finance groups hostile to Britain's liberal, democratic values. The Government has failed to avoid endorsing or funding radicals in the past and as such it's totally unrealistic to expect local councils to be able to assess which groups warrant funding. Grants to community groups aren't just risky though, they can also be divisive and wasteful. Politicians of all parties need to acknowledge that the approach has failed, cancel this programme and start focussing directly on stopping terrorists.”

The arrogance of ignorance...

At the London Somali Youth Festival last night, 300 people turned up at Hampstead Town Hall for therapy. Along with the 299 other attendees I was told that the Somali community in London apparently suffer from a lack of confidence; the current status of its members can be improved by a dose of self-pride. It was that simple, all the ills associated with the Somali community in the nation's capital could be put right through a celebration of poetry, song and dance.

I sat back and let the wave of optimism and hope, that the organisers worked so hard to create, wash over me. I looked around as most of the people in my vicinity nodded in approval of the night's event, clapping intermittently and showing their support for the evening's festivities. Kids dressed in traditional clothes danced to songs sang by their elders about the old country. Various personalities, Somali and non-Somali, got on stage and voiced their support for this cause. Only through these kinds of events could integration be achieved. Kids needed to sing and dance, engage in sports related activities and generally be brought close to the bosom of their culture for them to realise that they were British and Somali.

Then I looked a little closer. I looked around me and noticed that the majority of these people knew each other. The festivals organisers were in effect preaching to the converted. Friends, family members and associates came out to show their support for the hard work of the organising committee. If you looked hard enough you could see that the committee was largely comprised of the same people behind Kasmo newspaper. Reading the newspaper before I attended the festival, I already understood their agenda. Whilst one could see that they had some good intentions behind their endeavours, the message they wanted to get across was loud and clear. The message was thus; Somalia has had problems since the government was overthrown in 1991 and the chaos that ensued has pushed the country into the abyss. The Diaspora community, in London through cultural awareness, Somalis can play a role in bringing back the good old days.

This ahistorical take on Somalia is the sole reason why it will never return to the good old days. For example, the veneration of the old flag of Somalia and the national anthem is an indication of support for the old Barre regime. But there are millions of Somalis who hate the flag and national anthem that represents the rule of the former dictator. See Somalia has not been a failed state for 20 years, it has been a failed state since the General Mohammed Siyaad Barre and his cohorts overthrew the elected government in 1969. The lack of appreciation for the facts and historical analysis will forever be a barrier towards progress for a vast number of the Somali community. We walk blindly towards oblivion; the arrogance of ignorance masks our ability to engage in rigorous self-analysis.

The recent emphasis of being British and Somali typifies the stupidity that is evident within the most prominent personalities in the community. Your Britishness is never in question; there is no test that one needs to pass to prove one's loyalty to Queen and country. The revisionist strain that runs through some Somalis, that because their forefathers shed blood for the Empire in the past they qualify to be considered as British as their fellow citizens, is total bullshit. Citizens are bound by the social contract [their rights and responsibilities] within the state they reside. By default, when one is in the UK one is a citizen and this is only brought into question by their social contract. All of this debate about Britishness is a red herring. People should consider the relevance of having a social contract when they have no place in mainstream society. Here is where things get tricky, are you a citizen of a state when you have no place in society?

The people that I know and come across on a regular basis on the whole are the disenfranchised. The balance between their rights and responsibilities has destabilised. This has manifested itself in the way they behave and how they live. The arrested development of the Somali community is down to this particular dynamic. You only sense an appreciation of this from the non-conformists. Those individuals who do not benefit from a relationship with the state; these people are often the most critical of a system that has failed to serve the wider community. But these people are not considered as part of the narrative and no time is taken to consider their plight.

The festival lasted three hours, celebrating all that is wrong with a significant number of the Somali community. This group, who have the backing of those who hold sway in the corridors of power, are myopic in their assessment of their community. Whether this is deliberate or not you would have to ask them, but if unchecked their work will get us nowhere.

Mohamud Hassan - Aduun Waa Hadh Wareego, Waa Habeen iyo Maalin

As the beginning of Nabsiga Hiisha clearly states: the world is masked in a shadow, that envelopes it day and night.

This is an accurate assessment of the human condition for those who live their lives outside of the socially acceptable norms and practices that are usually associated with the mainstream. We are often told that life is not black and white, just a shade of grey. It is this shade of grey where everything takes place; where black and white collide. But there are those who exist outside of all the acceptable norms and practices; dipping in and out of the mainstream as and when they see fit. Machiavellian in the extreme; their ambition is made apparent by the total lack of direction visible in their peers. They are socially mobile, slithering their way to a position wherein which they can find comfort. At the expense of the very people they claim to be working to help. Which is tragic.

In an effort to provide an example to those readers who may find it difficult to follow my train of thought, I present to you Mohamoud Hassan. To give you a glimpse of what is happening within Somali community organisations; there is the London Youth Somali Forum, the Somali Youth Development Research Centre and the Somali Community Development Trust. All of them have one thing in common. Yes, you guessed it, the honourable Mohamoud Hassan. For the London Youth Forum, he is the representative/ambassador for the organisation in all 15 boroughs. His details on the website: http://www.lsyf.org.uk/index.php?menu_id=72&exmenu=72 are false. I have attempted to call him and got through to an advertising firm. He is the architect of the Somali Youth Development Research Centre: http://www.sydrc.org/. And he is the Director of the Somali Community Development Trust: http://www.scdtrust.org.uk/. All of these organisations are based in the same borough of London [Camden] and all of them receive public funding and support from the local authorities. Now, we can safely assume due to the evidential data associated with Somalis in the capital [and particularly in the borough of Camden] that to date these three organisations have done little in the way of addressing any of the issues faced by the very community they claim to so actively represent.

The dilemma here is clear; when asked 'what are you doing to address your current situation?' Somalis are seen as a lethargic, inactive element of society. The common refrain here is that they fail to 'help themselves' , but what people fail to realise is that some appear to be very good at helping themselves. Just look at Mahamoud Hassan and see what the current system has produced. The status quo allows for the likes of Mr. Hassan to operate without impunity. Sometimes they even operate at the behest of those who hold power in local authorities; often you hear their representatives ask ' why don't you speak to a Mr. Hassan from the London Somali Youth Forum, they are doing terrific work!'.

Now, I am not knocking the ambition of Mr. Hassan et al. As there are a number of his kind in the game, so to speak. His ambition is misplaced and the likes of Mr. Hassan allow for the system to manipulate the path Somalis could take towards a progressive understanding of their current plight and their future role in mainstream society. These kinds of individuals have every right to develop their careers and achieve all they can. But the greedy must not be allowed to cash in on the needy.

Getting hustled only knowing half the game......

Yesterday I went to a Kings College of London Africa Group seminar on Somalia, hosted by Professor Jack Spence OBE [Head of the Department on War Studies]. The first seminar of the year was titled:

'The Problems of Somalia, with Special Reference to Maritime Piracy' Speakers: Christopher Ledger FRSA JP, Deputy Chairman of Idarat Maritime Ltd Andrew Palmer, CEO of Idarat Maritime Ltd

The session lasted an hour and a half. I was the only Somali in attendance. There were upwards of 20 people in the room listening to two gentlemen who had absolutely no idea what they were talking about. It was actually quite astounding, it took me at least 30 minutes to reach the conclusion that their is some collusion between academic institutions and the world of business and enterprise when it comes to the domination and exploitation of the world's resources.

At the beginning of the seminar, when the very elderly and clearly infirm Professor gave a summation of the professional experience of the speakers it was obvious that there was something amiss. I had done my research about the shady activities of the Idarat Maritime consultancy and their work in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. So I came prepared; I expected some degree of analysis of the revised maritime boundaries that came of the April 2009 discussions between the defunct Transitional Federal Government of Somali and Kenya. I also expected them to consider the connection between porous territorial borders int he Horn of Africa and the impact this may have regarding maritime traffic along the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. The postgrads and undergrads in the audience would be ideally prepared to engage in some debate about the nature of de-colonisation in the region; the lack of authority and legitimacy that undermines the work of the regimes across the African continent and the Southern hemispheres of the world. Where there are intersections between the horizontal [poverty, war, displacement] and vertical linkages [conflicts in the Horn, dictatorial regimes in the Horn, displacement of people in the Horn] would also be considered as part of the wider debate.

None of the above was addressed in the seminar. Instead Kings College of London, whose alumni include the great and good of the upper classes of the UK, was the forum for two businessmen to [a] garner intel that they clearly required due to their lack of general knowledge [b] give credence to their interpretation of reality that is so far gone it is untrue. Void. Defunct. Two words that could describe the paucity of debate at the seminar last night. A new low has been reached, a nadir if you like, for an academic institution to entertain the ideas of two mad men who masked their racist and at times offensive ideals under the cloak of intellect. Thing is, only one person in the room could really tell them where they were going wrong. Only one person in the room could tell them that their general interpretation of the reality in the region was false. Everyone else, all the suckers in the room, just lapped it up and accepted it as gospel. Writing down furiously word for word what the two retarded speakers were pedalling as their expert opinion on matters related to the ongoing crisis in the Horn of Africa.

We are all, as a collective, getting hustled only knowing half the game. It appears that some have abdicated their sense of responsibility in this regard and effectively allow for the status quo to continue because they gain from this climate of irrationality. But most of us, that is Somalis and others who have been outside of the loop, appear to be going along endorsing the raving lunacy that is being propagated by some against the few. Silence is complicity; while people are busy trying to eat they fail to see the food being taken off the table. While people are busy trying to find jobs, any jobs, they fail to notice that it is those who are doing the hiring and the firing that hold the power.

There is a desperate need to redress the imbalance that is holding back people from a range of different backgrounds, including Somalis. Without the necessary will to change things, you can not hope for a better future.

Act now or do not act at all....

Recently things have picked up a pace. It appears the the Somali Advocacy and Advice Network [S.A.A.N] could be in a position to be active in a number of areas:



[1] The Prevent counter terrorism officer for the London borough of Hammersmith and Fulham has approached S.A.A.N to help them prepare a seminar that would comprise their interactive community exercise targeting the Somalis in the borough. To quote the official line:



The workshops ...... enable community groups from any background to be Counter Terrorism Officers for the day in a bid to strike up dialogue and debate. The unique engagement style allows communities and particularly young people to discuss any perceptions they might have in a safe environment .



This scenario provides the ideal opportunity to raise the concerns of the community that have become apparent over the last 12 months [see the previous posts regarding incidents involving Somalis from the London boroughs of Ealing and Camden].



With the support from the local authorities, public sector bodies and other interested community and voluntary services the activities surrounding this particular topic shall take place in December 2009.



[2] The Head of Youth Services for the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham has approached S.A.A.N about working to produce an outreach programme that could be interpreted as a best practice model across London. This would involve engaging with Somali inmates in the Feltham Youth Offenders Institute and targeting those individuals who reside in the borough [and eventually those that reside in the wider set of boroughs that comprise the West London Alliance]. The programme would be focused on re-integrating these individuals back into mainstream society utilising existing services to help them take the necessary steps. The Muslim Chaplains of the Feltham Youth Offenders Institute and HMP Wormwood Scrubs would be involved in the process, along with the Governors and other interested individuals/bodies.



There is also the need to help communicate information regarding the criminal justice system to those families who have previously only come into contact with the Police and representatives of the legal profession through their children/siblings/relatives who have been accused of a crime.

To this end, S.A.A.N would be involved in trying to address these communication issues and engage other Somali community groups in a bid to producing a concerted effort to solve these problems.



[3] Collaborating with London Citizens on shared horizontal areas of activity [promoting the Living Wage, looking at poverty reduction strategies, increasing levels of employment and skills etc] that could be relevant to the Somali community. The scenario being that they could make their resources available for the work that S.A.A.N wants to get underway in the West London area, utilising their activities that could be applied to other communities and other areas of the capital. This could be pertinent for example when considering the possibility of making the Act Now series of seminars available to the different communities in London.


In the coming weeks we hope to have our base at the Urban Partnership Group office on the Uxbridge Road and be in a position to begin project related activities in the near future. Watch this space.......