My Deepest Condolence

I offer my deepest condolence to those who suffered in the attack Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un. Surely we belong to Allaah and surely we will return to Him. This is the Muslim prayer upon hearing of death. I offer my deepest condolence to those who suffered in the attack. By: Asiya Garow

Our hearts go out to the individuals and families - who have been struck directly by this terrorist tragedy. The direct victims started their day on that Wednesday, as we all did, expecting the ordinary. And suddenly, without warning, without reason, they became the innocent victims of a terrible, premeditated strike against order and humanity. We have all suffered personal losses, but this goes beyond the experience of most civilized societies, and we can only offer our deepest sympathy, our prayers, and our determination to ensure that, while terrorists can take lives, they cannot destroy free societies, or our faith in our ability to prevail over the most brutal instincts of human kind.

The people who committed this atrocity are extremists. That is who they are. We must be very careful that in responding to this crisis that we do not create new victims or blame whole communities for the acts of people who in any society would be judged extremists. Those bomb-blasters, whoever they are and whatever their causes are, simply don't care about my country and its people. I pray Allah shed light onto them and make them realise that what they're doing is wrong, very very wrong. With unfortunate there no doubt that S/landers are living in dangerous and troubling times and now more than ever they must ensure that the needs and voices of all Somalilanders are not only being heard but listened to as well. The fight against terrorism will not be won unless all Somalilanders regardless of clans, class or colour are united in this resolve. Only by working together can we ensure our safety and security.

As I am sure you will agree, Somalilanders do not want to live in fear therefore We need to stand together to defeat terrorism and we must have a focussed public debate on what steps we as a country have to take to counter the fear that terrorists have sewn. This is not a job for the governing party alone, Guurti nor is it a job for those closest to the President. We have to encouraged within ourselves wherever we are located. we have one thing in common and that is peace love and unity in our fragile nation.

I wonder when the politicians will learn to act instead of react. As usual, none of the politicians are thinking in my opinion- not with their brains, anyway.The S/land Government response to the attacks should adhere to three basic criteria A.S.A.P: it should be legal, moral and thoughtful. It should be legal under both domestic and international law, sanctioned by the United Nations, and multilateral in scope. It should be moral in not taking more innocent lives. And it should be thoughtful in asking why this has happened, what grievances against us are legitimate, and what can be done to decrease the cycle of violence.
Taking these criteria into account, I would urge my government to implement the following Three policy actions in order to increase domestic security.
1. Protect somaliland ppl by improving our intelligence (if we have) gathering and analysis, and by taking far stronger preventative security measures.
2. Work multilaterally to find the perpetrators of the crime and bring them to justice. This should be done under the auspices of the United Nations and the international treaties on terrorism and sabotage. 3. Focus on preventing any further attacks especially with chemical weapons (it is possible). Stopping such attacks should be a top priority.

lets this be a lesson for all that tribal politics and let us put this clanism war aside for now and hold each other hands to rebuild the trust that was damaged by this event. I sincerely hope that one day we will have an open forum where grievances can be voiced and acknowledged. For most, a listening ear, a supportive society, and assurance of justice and protection from harm would be sufficient to heal the wounds.

Peace Love and Unity.

By: Asiya Garow