Abdi-Noor Mohamed
Friday, July 01, 2011
Well before the hall was packed at full capacity to observe 1st July (when I was still fresh in Sweden), a man sitting next to me has put a weird question by asking” What are we celebrating for? The man’s question seemed to have been immaturely articulated and quite irrelevant and I decided not to respond as I have had my fill of fruitless debates on the Somali issue over the past two decades. But from the contour map on his face which had vividly exposed the deep look in his eyes, I realized that the guy had more to tell than to ask. So I resorted not to judge him by the naivety of his question but by the seriousness of his trouble-bound mind. So with caution, I said "My invitation card says we are here for 1st July celebrations, I do not know if yours says something else or nothing at all". ”No…No... Brother" said he, bursting with laughter, rather weirdly though, as he made a little shout which suddenly died away in the thick noise that nearly cracked the well-painted walls of the hall. In fact I admired his impressive openness though at times he made me uncomfortable with his uncontrolled tune. As we exchanged few words, the hall became quieter and calmer but we did not stop our talk there. We continued it in whispers and short sentences despite the silence which had been descending in huge quantities like a fog in the woods. "Brother" he said one more time "I know why we are here but I want to know the rationale behind 1st July celebrations” Qiil, the stranger-turned friend, unleashed a hell of questions that centred around the glaring disintegration that had left Somalia in tatters, starting with” Why are we celebrating inside the houses and rented buildings around the world? ”why can’t we observe our Independence Day in our embassies just like other communities in the Diaspora?
I fumbled for a quick answer and from the surface of my mind I obtained nothing more than a question in an effort to answer his questions with a question and said: Are we united under one state and one government? If yes then we will be united in our celebrations if not we shall be dispersed around the world and rent houses to celebrate 1st July not as a symbol of unity but as a mark of disintegration. Then the silence which had been building up with a continuous pace has finally gained momentum. It has fitted itself in all corners of the room, making it difficult to open even a packet of sweets without disturbing others around you. This was a prelude to a wonderful speech as everyone had anticipated. But it did not bring Qiil´s whispers to an end nor did it reduce the intensity and strength of their messages.
Qiil felt even more irritated when the speech began. What annoyed him was that the speaker allocated a very limited time to the history and importance of 1st July and dwelt at length on warlordism, chaos and strife, terrorism and piracy rather than calling for peace to all Somalis around the globe. In hearing this, a look of dismay slowly built around Qiil´s face, saying “What is 1st July without mentioning the hero´s that had spilled blood for the sake of their nation? What is 1st July without honouring the heroes who united the Somalis with the power of their songs such as Husein Aw-Farah Dubbad and Abdullahi Qarshe. The songs of Qolabaa Calankeed and Dadkan Dhawaaqaya acted as the core of the struggle for independence during the colonial times. He felt unpleased with the way the speaker prioritized events in his speech and for that reason Qiil walked away. I remained behind. Should have I left too? I think so. Lastly we should not forget the efforts of the Somali Embassy in Nairobi by organizing an all-Somali 1st July celebrations along with two prominent somali artists of Sada Cali and Ahmed Naji Sacad. We hope more embassies will follow suit. But before getting embassies we must first get a unity government which is in charge of the country and its people.
Abdi-Noor Mohamed
Writer and film maker
Vaxjo, Sweden.
[email protected]