Fall of Barre Government Welcomed by Somalis in Washington, DC

By Dima Zalatimo

Adams Morgan, the colorful "ethnic" center of the national capital, is a gathering place for the city's 3,000 Somali refugees. In January, many spent their time exchanging bits of news from their war-torn homeland. Telephone lines had been severed as fighting between soldiers loyal to Somali dictator Mohammed Siad Barre and soldiers from a coalition of rebel groups spread to the capital city of Mogadishu. The fighting finally ended on January 27, as Barre fled the capital in a tank convoy headed south towards Kenya.

Despite the lack of direct contact between the refugee community and their homeland, Somalis in Washington have a remarkable information network for gathering news. It includes a pay phone in Adams Morgan used for telephone calls to and from Italy, where there is a large Somali community, facsimile messages from opposition groups and, of course, word-of-mouth.

"If one of my relatives flees (from Somalia) to Ethiopia in the morning, he will call me that afternoon to tell me about the situation, " explained 31-year-old cab driver Ibrahim Warsane. "As soon as I hear, I circulate the news. We all do the same."

Warsane, like most Somalis, came to the US as a student before hostilities broke out between the Barre regime and opposition forces six years ago. As the economic situation in Somalia deteriorated, many Somali students were forced to leave school to support themselves. This accounts for the visibly large number of Somali cab drivers in Washington.

The Somali community in Washington is predominantly male. Due to the limited funds of Somali families, most chose to send only their male children abroad for a college education. Warsane also explained that, in Somali society, it was not acceptable for women to leave their families unless they were married. Many more women are found in Toronto's Somali community of 40,000 immigrants, mainly families and married couples.

Before Barre's ouster, most local Somalis did not feel his embassy in Washington, located in one of DC's elegant Watergate buildings, represented them. In fact, a group of Somalis were arrested when they quietly protested the embassy's legitimacy. It is unclear whom the embassy in Washington, DC represents today, as Somali diplomats could not be reached for comment.

To fill the void, members of the Adams Morgan-based community developed their own support system.

"If somebody dies, we collect money from the community for a funeral. If some body loses a job, we help him or her find another one, or collect money to pay the rent, " explained Omar Haj Suleiman, a construction worker.

While the Somali clan system is at the heart of political rivalries in the African country, which is roughly the size of Texas, abroad it is not so divisive. In fact, the system also serves a support function for Somalis when they emigrate from one country to another.

Warsane explained how the system works: "If one of my cousins moves to Washington from Germany or Italy, he will look me up and tell me he needs help finding a job or a place to live. I may not even know him, but because we are related, I help him out until he can stand on his own. "

"Here all Somalis act like one big clan, said Warsane. "We are all one ethnic group. We have one religion and speak one language."

Inter-clan rivalry was exacerbated when Barre, a member of the Marehan clan, which accounts for one percent of Somalia's eight million people, took power in a 1969 military coup. Exiles say he consolidated his rule by playing the nation's half dozen major clans against each other.

In the past six years, however, the Barre government has faced growing opposition. In northern Somalia, members of the Isaak clan, aligned with the Somali National Movement (SNM), ousted the government and took control of the region. In 1988, hundreds of civilians were killed in the northern city of Hargeysa when government aircraft bombed it, creating even more opposition to Barre.

"Here all Somalis act like one big clan. We are all one ethnic group. We have one religion and speak one language."

The Somalia Patriotic Movement (SPM), made up of the Ogadeni clan, controls southern Somalia. The group which played a major role in seizing the Indian Ocean port city of Mogadishu is the United Somali Congress (USQ), composed mainly of the Hawiye, the majority clan originating in central Somalia.

These three main opposition groups operated independently until last summer, when they came together to depose Barre.

When Ethiopia was aligned with the US and Israel, Barre's government was closely aligned with Cuba and the Soviet Union. In the 1970s, when the USSR began to supply large quantities of arms to Ethiopia's Marxist government (which Israeli military advisers continued to support), Barre turned to the US and other Western countries for arms and aid to support his war against Ethiopia for control of the Ogaden desert. Barre's government received as much as $100 million annually in US economic and military aid in the 1980s. With the decline in superpower rivalries, however, and as reports of Somalian human rights abuses increased, US aid to the Barre government shrank to less than $9 million last year. The Barre regime also received arms from Egypt and China.

Suleiman said that for the past six years he and other Somalis have been working with congress members, urging them to take measures toward ending all US aid to the Barre government.

"He was very corrupt," charges Hassan Mohammed, a student at the University of the District of Columbia. "The people of Somalia never benefited from the international aid. It all went to Barre's family and clan."

Somalis in Adams Morgan were jubilant, yet cautious, about the news of Barre's ouster. While they had waited anxiously to see Barre removed, they realized that the return of normalcy would take time.

"It will be difficult to restore law and order," stated Suleiman. "Everyone in the country owns an AK- 47 rifle. They are very cheap in Somalia.1t will also require a lot of economic aid to rebuild the ravaged nation."

Another fear is that the loosely aligned and deeply divided coalition of opposition groups will crumble, renewing fighting in the country. The new president, Ali Mahdi Mohammed (who originally was overthrown when Barre seized power), said he would hold office only until free elections could be organized.

"The groups came together only because they had a common enemy, Barre Suleiman explained. "But now he is gone:

Speaking about the future, both Suleiman and Warsane shared the vision of a free, democratic Somalia. Both also are eager to visit the homeland.

"When I go to Somalia, I want to kiss its ground and help my family and my people as much as I can, " explains Warsane. "But my future is here in America. I want to establish roots here."

Dima Zalatimo is features editor of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.

SIDEBAR

Somalia at a Glance

Population: 8,424,269 (July 1990).

People: Almost entirely Sunni Muslim; Somali is common language, although Arabic, Italian and English are spoken.

Area: 637,660 square kilometers.

Economy: Remains one of the world's poorest and most underdeveloped countries, with few resources. Bulk of foreign exchange comes from livestock.

History: Divided into French, Italian and British sectors at the end of the 19th century. Somalia was partially reunited in 1960, when the British- and Italian-ruled areas formed a republic and joined the Arab League. Barre's 1969 coup introduced socialism.

Strategic Significance: Situated on the Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab El Mandab and the route through the Red Sea and Suez Canal.

Land Disputes: Southern half of boundary with Ethiopia is a provisional administrative line; territorial dispute with Ethiopia over Ogaden; possible claims to Djibouti and parts of Ethiopia and Kenya based on unification of ethnic Somalis.

Inflation Rate: 81.7%

Total Fertility Rate: 7.3 children born/woman (1990)

Literacy Rate: 11.6%

Source: The World Factbook 1990