Monday, October 28, 2013

Somalia: UN Envoy Regrets Killing of a Journalist in Mogadishu

 UN Envoy Regrets Killing of a Journalist in Mogadishu: "The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, has learnt with deep sorrow of the death of Mohamed Mohamud Tima'adde, a reporter with Universal TV, on the evening of 26 October.

Mohamed succumbed to injuries he sustained on 22 October, when he was ambushed and shot several times in Mogadishu's Wadajir district by unknown assailants who managed to escape.

He becomes the seventh journalist to be murdered in 2013; Somalia continues to be one of the most dangerous places to practice journalism in the world.

SRSG Kay noted that the media had a crucial role to play in fostering peace and stability in Somalia, and stressed the need to protect journalists and press freedom in the country.

"My heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Mohamed Mohamud Tima'adde, and to all media practitioners in Somalia," SRSG Kay said. "UNSOM continues to work with the Federal Government of Somalia to strengthen the security and justice sectors in order to ensure that the streets of Somalia are safer and violent criminals are brought to justice.""

'via Blog this'

Contested Abyei votes whether to join Sudan or South Sudan | GlobalPost

Residents of the flashpoint Abyei region claimed by both Sudan and South Sudan were voting on Monday in an unofficial referendum to decide which country they belong to, a move likely to inflame tensions in the war-ravaged region, officials said.
"The people are voting to choose to join South Sudan or to be part of Sudan," Rou Manyiel, chairman of the Abyei civil society organisation, told AFP.
Patrolled by some 4,000 Ethiopian-led UN peacekeepers, the area is home to the settled Ngok Dinka, closely connected to South Sudan, as well the semi-nomadic Arab Misseriya, who traditionally move back and forth from Sudan grazing their cattle.
Only the Ngok Dinka are voting in the referendum -- although organisers insist it is open to all -- and the Misseriya have already angrily said they will not recognise the results of any unilateral poll.
Abyei was meant to vote on whether to be part of Sudan or South Sudan in January 2011 -- the same day Juba voted overwhelmingly to split from the north -- as part of the 2005 peace deal which ended Sudan's civil war.
That referendum was repeatedly stalled, and Sudanese troops stormed the enclave in May 2011 forcing over 100,000 to flee southwards, leaving a year later after international pressure.
Ngok Dinka leaders last week said they would press ahead with their own vote.
However, the United Nations and AU have warned that any such unilateral move could inflame tensions in the oil-producing zone and risk destabilising the uneasy peace between the longtime foes.
"There are long queues of people, but things are peaceful and calm," Manyiel added, a senior Ngok Dinka community leader. "They began to vote on Sunday and they will finish voting on Tuesday, the third day."
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir met last week with his southern counterpart Salva Kiir amid pressure to settle Abyei's future -- one of the most important and sensitive issues left unresolved since Juba broke free two years ago -- but despite calling talks "fruitful" no breakthrough deal was made.
An AFP photographer in Abyei said long lines of residents were lining up to cast their vote, with ballot papers marked with two symbols to chose from: a pair of clasped hands symbolising a vote to be part of Sudan, and a single hand if people want to join South Sudan.
Abyei, once oil-rich but with production now tailing off, is a key area of emotional and symbolic significance for both the fledgling South and the rump state of Sudan.
On Sunday, the African Union accused the Sudan government of preventing an AU delegation from visiting Abyei, accusing Khartoum of blocking it "for contrived security reasons".
Last week Misseriya leader Mukhtar Babo Nimir told AFP his people had the option of also holding their own unilateral referendum if, as they have now done, the rival Ngok Dinka hold their own ballot.
Sudan and South Sudan clashed heavily last year along their un-demarcated border, after furious rows over oil.
International pressure eventually reined the two sides back in, with leaders signing a raft of deals, most of which however are yet to be implemented.
When South Sudan split away, it took with it oil fields accounting for 75 percent of the reserves -- with production totalling some 470,000 barrels per day -- that Sudan used to call its own.
Landlocked South Sudan complained that the north was demanding too much to use its pipelines and port facilities, and the shutdown cost both countries billions of dollars.
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