The Bravan, Bravanese, or Barawan people are an ethnic minority group believed to be of mixed Persian, Arab, Portuguese and other descent (DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 7.1) with a history of nearly 2,000 years of residence in the port city of Brava (ibid; MRG June 2000; Bravanese Network n.d.a). Historically a merchant group, the Bravanese people are mostly governed by elders who are viewed as "honoured and respectable persons" (ibid.). Most Bravanese are followers of Islamic laws and Sharia (ibid). Bravanese, Chimini in their own language and Af-Braawe or Af-Brava in Somali, is the spoken language and is very similar to Swahili (Bravanese Network n.d.b; DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 7.2). According to information contained on the Bravanese Network's Website, the written form of Bravanese is not standardized, but instead a different script is used depending on the writers' educational background (Bravanese Network n.d.b). The most commonly used one today is the Arabic script (ibid).

As the Bravanese have not generally intermarried with members of other ethnic groups or with the main Somali clans, they have been able to preserve their own distinct ethnicity (DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 4.2). As with other ethnic groups in Somalia, the Bravanese, who are viewed as non-Somalis by the majority of the population (Peacekeeping Institute Aug. 1994), have been extremely vulnerable to targeting by clan militia since the collapse of central authority in 1991 (DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 4.2; Country Reports 1999, 2000, section 5). For information on the treatment of the Bravanese during the civil war please refer to Victims and Vulnerable Groups in Southern Somalia, a May 1995 Occasional Paper written by Lee Cassanelli, available in Resource Centres. As a result of this targeting, the Bravanese community has almost ceased to exist in Somalia, with only a few thousand remaining along the southern coast (DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 4.2). According to a statement made by Bravanese elders to a September 2000 joint British, Danish and Dutch fact-finding mission to Nairobi, Kenya, about 70 per cent of the Bravanese remaining in Somalia still live in Brava, which, as of the publishing of this report, is under the occupation of Aideed's Habr Gedir United Somali Congress (USC) faction (DIS Dec. 2000, chapter 7.4). The elders also stated that, although most Bravanese houses had been taken over by militia members, some Bravanese had been allowed to remain living in one room (ibid). In the same report, the Chief Security Officer, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Somalia explained that Habr Gedir control in Brava weakens periodically (ibid). By September 2000 - the period in which the fact-finding mission took place - much of Aideed's militia force had been pulled back towards Mogadishu, enabling the Bravanese to resume "some degree of control over their lives" and, as long as it is not viewed as a threat to Aideed, to re-establish local authority (ibid). However, it was felt that these gains were liable to be lost when militia control was reasserted (ibid).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate 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. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Bravanese Network. n.d.a. "The Bravanese People." http://www.coding-zone.co.uk/bravanese/people/thepeople.shtml [Accessed 29 June 2001]

_____. n.d.b. "The Bravanese Language." http://www.coding-zone.co.uk/bravanese/language/thelanguage.shtml [Accessed 29 June 2001]

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for1999. 2000. United States Department of State. Washington, DC. http://www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/1999_hrp_report/somalia.html [Accessed 29 June 2001]

Danish Immigration Service (DIS). Copenhagen, Denmark. December 2000. "Report on Minority Groups in Somalia" (Research carried out by the Joint British, Danish and Dutch Fact-Finding Mission to Nairobi, Kenya in 17-24 September 2000) http://www.udlst.dk/sjle1/somaliaeng00/heldok.html [Accessed 29 June 2001]

Minority Rights Group International (MRG). London, United Kingdom. June 2000. "The Situation of Somali Bravanese Refugees in Kenya" http://www.minorityrights.org/outsider/article.asp?issueno=55&articleid=29 [Accessed 29 June 2001]

United States Peacekeeping Institute. Carlisle, PA. August 1994. Paper written by a visiting professor. Published on Bravanese Network Website. http://www.coding-zone.co.uk/bravanese/people/status.shtml [Accessed 29 June 2001]

IRB databases

LEXIS/NEXIS

World News Connection

Internet sites, including:

AllAfrica.com

Amnesty International

BBC

European Country of Origin Network

Freedom House

Integrated Regional Information Network

International Relations and Security Network

Releifweb

Somalia News