The information contained in this Response was provided by two Somali specialists during separate interviews with the Research Directorate (16 June 1997). A former professor of History and African Studies at the University of Florida, Gainsville, now resident in Ottawa, and a doctoral student at York University, in Toronto, who specializes in the history of the Benadir people in Somalia, both stated that the Eyle (sometimes spelt Eile, Eiley, Eyla), traditionally hunters and gatherers, live between Mogadishu and Merca in the southern region of Somalia. However, they do not belong to the major clan families and have allegedly been "subjected to harassment" because they do not have militias of their own and lack protection from the Hawiye militias currently operating in Mogadishu and Merca.

The doctoral student explained that mainstream Somalis have always "looked down upon" the Eyle and treated them as outcasts because of their occupation. He further stated that in actual fact, the name Eyle is pejorative because it is derived from the Somali word for dog, "Ey." He said that they were given the name Eyle because they use dogs for hunting purposes. He further stated that the Eyle tend to associate themselves with the Rahanweyn and Digil/Mirifle clans but that these clans do not fully accept them (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.

Doctoral student specializing in the history of the Benadir in Somalia, York University, Toronto. 16 June 1998. Telephone interview.

Former professor of History and African Studies at the University of Gainsville, Florida, Ottawa. 16 June 1998. Telephone interview.

Cassaanelli, Lee V. 1982. The Shaping of Somalia: Reconstructing the History of a Pastoral People, 1600-1900. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Gilkes, P.S. September 1994. The Price of Peace: Somalia and the United Nations 1991-1994. Bedfordshire, U.K.: Save the Children's Fund.

The Invention of Somalia. Edited by Ali Jamale Ahmed. 1995. Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

Lewis, I. M. 1994. Blood and Bone: The Call of Kinship in Somali Society. Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

_____. 1988. Rev. ed. A Modern History of Somalia: Nation and State in the Horn of Africa. Boulder, Col.: Westview Press.

Electronic sources: IRB Databases, LEXIS/NEXIS, Internet, REFWORLD, World News Connection (WNC).