Dokument #1210698
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Autor)
Information on the Absguul (Abesguul) clan
is currently unavailable to the DIRB in Ottawa. However, the
following information on the Abgaal, a sub-clan of the Hawiye clan
may be helpful. According to Somalia: A Nation in Turmoil,
the Hawiye clan, of which the Abgaal is a sub-clan, occupies the
south-central region of Somalia, and the capital, Mogadishu, is in
the middle of Abgaal country (Samatar 1991, 12, 20). The Hawiye
clan is the second largest group after the Darood clan (ibid.).
The Shaping of Somali Society describes the Abgaal
Darandoole as a section of the Hawiye clan and states that the
group began settling in the area around Mogadishu in the 16th
century (Cassanelli 1982, 73). According to the source, the
Hawiye-affiliated clans and sub-clans include Gaaljacal, Baddi
Addo, Murursade and Abgaal (ibid., 106). The New York Times
mentions that the Abgaal, who control northern Mogadishu, are a
merchant class and consider Mogadishu their city (9 Dec. 1992).
The main clan militia operating in Somalia,
the United Somali Congress (USC), is dominated by the Hawiye clans
(Samatar 1991, 22). Africa Confidential adds that the two
leaders of the Somali conflict are the two Hawiye leaders,
President Ali Mahdi Mohammed of the Abgaal clan, and Mohammed
Aydeed of the Sa'ad sub-clan of the Habr Gidir (25 Oct. 1991,
5).
For further background information on the
Abgaal sub-clan, please refer to the attachments on the Hawiye
extracted from A Modern History of Somalia and The
Shaping of Somali Society. With regard to the current situation
in Somalia, please refer to pages 236 to 239 of Country Reports
1992. Concerning the history of the United Nations Operations
in Somalia (UNOSOM), please refer to pages 40 to 45 of Human
Rights Watch Report 1994.
The sources consulted indicate the
importance of the Hawiye clan and its two leaders, one of whom is
Abgaal, to the present Somali conflict. The role of the undisputed
leader of the Abgaal, Ali Mahdi, who also happens to be the
president of Somalia, could give some indication of where the
Abgaal stand and their role in the present conflict. The attached
electronic and print media accounts provide information on the
Hawiye leaders and the conflict between them.
This response was prepared after
researching publicly accessible information currently available to
the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does
not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular
claim to refugee status or asylum.
Africa Confidential [London]. 25
October 1991. Vol. 32, No. 21. "Somalia: Fragile Agreements."
Cassaanelli, Lee V. 1982. The Shaping
of Somalia: Reconstructing the History of a Pastoral People,
1600-1900. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Country Reports on Human Rights for
1992. 1993. US Department of State. Washington, DC: US
Government Printing Office.
Human Rights Watch. December 1993.
Human Rights Watch World Report 1994. New York: Human Rights
Watch.
Samatar, S. Said. 1991. Somalia: A
Nation in Turmoil. London: Minority Rights Group.
Africa Confidential [London]. 3
December 1993. Vol. 34, No. 24. "Somalia: Aydeed Faces His Own
People," pp. 3-4.
_____. 25 October 1991. Vol. 32, No. 21.
"Somalia: Fragile Agreements," pp. 5-6.
Agence France Presse (AFP). 12 June
1993. "Aideed: From Shepherd to Warlord." (NEXIS)
The Associated Press (AP). 16 February
1993. AM Cycle. Tom Cohen. "Residents Return to Shambles in
Formerly Wealthy Neighbourhood." (NEXIS)
Cassanelli, Lee V. 1982. The Shaping
of Somalia: Reconstructing the History of a Pastoral People,
1600-1900, pp. 72-75.
The Christian Science Monitor
[Boston]. 19 January 1993. Robert M. Press. "First US Troops Exit
Somalia...." (NEXIS)
Human Rights Watch. December 1993.
Human Rights Watch World Report 1994. New York: Human Rights
Watch, pp. 40-45.
The Indian Ocean Newsletter
[Paris]. 25 December 1993. No. 604. "Somalia: Talks on UN-Held SNA
Prisoners," p. 3.
Lewis, I. M. 1988. A Modern History
of Somalia: Nation and State in the Horn of Africa. Boulder,
Co.: Westview Press, p. 6, 24.
The Los Angeles Times. 3 January
1993. Home Edition. Daniel Williams. "Clans Make Reconciliation in
Somalia Improbable." (NEXIS)
Manchester Guardian Weekly. 13
December 1992. Jean Helene. "Surviving in Mogadishu." (NEXIS)
NewAfrica [London]. November
1993. No. 313. "What's Wrong in Somalia," pp. 14-15.
The New York Times. 9 December
1992. Final Edition. Jane Perlez. "Mission to Somalia...."
(NEXIS)
Reuters. 3 December 1993. BC Cycle.
Buchizya Mseteka. "Ethiopia Hosts Talks to Reconcile Somali
Factions." (NEXIS)
Samatar, S. Said. 1991. Somalia: A
Nation in Turmoil. London: Minority Rights Group, p. 12,
20.
West Africa [London]. 22-28
November 1993. "Somalia: At the Mercy of the Warlords," pp.
2113-2114.