An Interview with MP Mariam Arif Ghassim

Background: Mariam Arif Ghassim is the Chair of the Constitutional Oversight and Review Committee in the Federal Parliament of Somalia. An attorney by training, she spent close to two decades in Mogadishu after the collapse of Siad Barre’s regime. She has a keen eye for all things “Mogadishu”: from the daily life and struggles of Mogadishu to the thorny to the intricate details of the constitution and the political landscape. She weighs her words carefully, but is not afraid to express her views even if they are not popular. In this conversation, MP Ghassim answers some of the political questions gripping the country.

1.      What is the status of the constitutional review? Any progresses and challenges?

§  We are almost done. The constitutional review process is at its end. The working team is composed of two sister constitutional committees which have different mandates although toward the same result. We are the Constitutional Oversight and Review Committee of the Federal Parliament and this body consists of ten legislative members. The Independent Commission for Review and Implementation of the Constitution is composed of five respected intellectuals. We have already completed the review of ten chapters of the constitution and the remaining five chapters will be finalized within the next month before the constitutional conference of Garowe. We are not replacing old chapters with new ones, but offering different options so that the national leaders, the legislators, and the people of Somalia have the chance to choose the best alternatives for Somalia’s future.

2.      As a country, are we better off today than we were four years ago?

§  In 2012, Somalia was just recovering from a devastating war. Signs of destruction and chaos were evident in every place, especially in Mogadishu, the capital.  People were exhausted, scared and extremely traumatized.  The 2012 election happened miraculously and without any major incidents. Nobody believed that everything would work so perfectly, thanks first to Allah and next to President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Prime Minister Abdiweli Gass’ leadership.  Naturally, the country is now more organized than before with functioning regional states. The general environment is more peaceful and better than four years ago.  This year, the election of the MPs will not be concentrated in Mogadishu. A good part of the electoral process load will be moved to the regional states of Somalia.

3.      How do you foresee the political climate this coming summer?

§  I think the political climate will definitely be more difficult, but certainly more democratic. In the past, the parliamentary member was selected by one, or at best, two traditional elders.  This summer, the elders will only have the power to endorse the name of the elected legislator. Fifty electors from every sub-clan are expected to vote for their preferred candidate and choose the best; instead of the old system of the iron grip and dominance of a limited number of clan leaders.

4.      What has the parliament accomplished so far and has it failed?

§  The parliament of Somalia accomplished a lot during the current mandate.  First of all, after almost twenty five years of lack of documentation and record keeping, an institutional memory with organized parliamentary records have been implemented thanks to Chairman Mohamed Sheikh Osman Jawaari. We passed more than thirty laws and international agreements. We finalized the constitutional review process. We conceded confidence vote to three governments.  We solved the political impasse between two prime ministers and the president.  The most important achievement of the current parliament is the fact we kept the three main institutions of the state together honorably.  The last and most significant task of the current parliament is to legalize the agreed upon election formula which, of course, contradicts with Article 64 of the Transitional Constitution of Somalia.

5.      As a parliamentarian leader, are you optimistic about the future or cautious?

§   I am, by nature, optimistic. The worst part of Somali history is at its end. Enough is enough and a quarter of a century is a long time.  We need to unite all our forces and intellect toward a better Somalia. A president or a prime minister is unable to change the country alone. Let us all work to create a better national state, regional state, region, district and village for the benefit of our people.  I am sure that united, we can change Somalia and divided, we will gradually lose our identity as well as our country.

6.      Some legislators have lost their lives in the hands of Al-Shabaab. How safe is Mogadishu in general and for parliamentarians in particular?

§  Yes, it was sad that we lost a good number of valuable and esteemed colleagues, may Allah shower on them his mercy. We all mourned for their premature loss and no member of the parliament feels safe enough to enjoy life. Al Shabaab is one of the civil war phenomena, but after all, they are also our children. They are the typical children of war who were misled and confused by the adult behavior of violence and hostility. Time will help them heal from the deep scars of war. Many of them faced scary, unbearable childhood experiences. The war trauma negatively changed their natural childhood innocence and good behavior. At the political level, it is important to understand their deepest emotions as well as their internal plea for help in an environment of indifference and insensitivity. A special program, at the federal level, should be organized in order to save the minors and teenage groups.

7.      How has the role of the international community evolved in the last few years?

§  I was in Somalia for more than two thirds of the last twenty five years of anarchy and stateless. My impression is that the international community has not had a positive common agenda about the Somalia crisis. They are mostly in disagreement about how to behave and solve Somalia’s endless political and economic problems. It seems to me that instead of helping Somalia, they are individually protecting their conflicting interests and national agendas, not by bringing the Somali people together, but by dividing them further.  Despite its continuous economic assistance, the international community is rather searching the solution of Somalia’s problem—not from inside but instead—outside the country. 

(This interview was conducted for Wardheernews on May 7, 2016).