Siad Barre
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| Siad Barre | |
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| In office October 21, 1969 – January 26, 1991 |
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| Preceded by | Abdirashid Ali Shermarke |
| Succeeded by | Ali Mahdi Muhammad |
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| Born | 1919 Shilabo, Ethiopian Empire |
| Died | January 2, 1995 Lagos, Nigeria |
| Nationality |  Somali |
| Political party | Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party |
| Spouse | Khadija Maalin and Dalyad Haji Hashi[1] |
| Religion | Islam |
Mohamed Siad Barre (Somali: Maxamed Siyaad Barre) (1919 – January 2, 1995) was the Head of State of Somalia from 1969 to 1991. Prior to his presidency he was an army commander under the democratic government of Somalia which had been in place since independence in June 1960. During his rule, he styled himself Jaalle Siyaad (Comrade Siad). The word Jaalle also translates to the title Mr.
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[edit] Early life
Barre was born into the Marehan clan near Shilabo, Ethiopia, although he later claimed to have been born in Garbahaarreey in order to qualify for the Italian colonial police force.[2] Before he joined the police force, Barre had been an orphaned shepherd. He had no formal education, but attended some military courses in Italy. He became the Vice Commander of Somalia's Army when the country gained independence from Italy in 1960. Barre became an advocate of Soviet style Marxist government after spending time with Soviet officers in joint training exercises in the early 1960s.
[edit] Head of state
In 1969, during the power vacuum following the assassination of President Abdirashid Ali Shermarke, the military staged a coup on October 21, 1969 (the day after Shermarke's funeral), and took over. Barre was to rule for the next twenty-two years. He established a pervasive personality cult, assuming titles such as macallinka (teacher), aabaha aqoonta (father of knowledge),[3] and Guulwaadde (Victorious Leader).[4] Large posters of him, many of which can still be seen today, were common in the capital Mogadishu during his regime.
One of the earliest deeds of his regime was to introduce the Somali language as the education delivery language. All education in government schools had to be conducted in Somali. This was necessary as there was a growing rift between those who spoke the colonial languages, and those that did not. Many of the high ranking positions in the government were given to those people that spoke either Italian or English. To keep everyone on an even playing field, the Somali language was finally written down. The Latin alphabet was selected as the means for writing the language. The establishment of the Somali language as a national language, created a new confidence in the masses. In 1972, the second anniversary of the military government, all government employees were ordered to learn to write and read Af Soomaali within six months.
Siad Barre also championed the concept of a Greater Somalia, which intended to unite all ethnic Somalis in one nation state. Thus he aimed to incorporating Djibouti, the Somali region of Kenya and most importantly the Ogaden, which was part of Ethiopia but was inhabited by ethnic Somalis, into the Somalian state.
The Somali national army invaded the Ogaden and was at first very successful, capturing most of the Ogaden. This first phase was ended by the Soviet Union's sudden shift of support to Ethiopia, followed by almost the entire communist world siding with Ethiopia. The Soviets began to distribute aid, weapons, and training to the Ethiopians, and also brought in Cubans to assist the Ethiopian regime. Ultimately Somali troops were pushed out of Ethiopia.
Control of Somalia was of great interest to the Soviet Union and the United States due to its strategic location at the entrance to the Red Sea. After the Soviets abandoned Barre, he subsequently expelled all Soviet advisors, tore up his friendship treaty with the Soviet Union, and switched his allegiance to the West. The United States stepped in, and until 1989 was a strong supporter of the Barre government, providing approximately US$100 million per year in economic and military aid.
On the international front, Siad Barre played an important role in 17 October and 18 October 1977 when a Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) group hijacked Lufthansa flight 181 to Mogadishu, Somalia, holding 86 hostages. West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt and Barre negotiated a deal to allow a GSG 9 anti-terrorist unit into Mogadishu to free the hostages.
Siad Barre was hands on leader from early on. Early achievments inlcluded creating over two dozen factories of mass production such as mills in Balad, Marerey sugar cane processing facilities, first meat processing house for local consumption and exporting markets and many other successful industrialization activities. The president precided on many decisions and he has shown to have personal interest in those projects. Locally, the military government after solving the long standing Af Soomaali language problem, which the previous government was not able to solve in terms of deciding what alphabet should be used, Arabic or Latin.
Second massive public services for the citizens of the nation came to be the resettlement of drought affected people of northern regions. The drought which occured in 1974 was known as the Abaartii Dabadheer or rought translation, Lingering Drought. The Soviet Union which had strategic relations with the Siad Barre government had airlifted thousands of people from the drought devasted regions of Hobyo and Ainaba. New settlements of small villages were created in Lower Jubba and Middle Jubba regions in such settlements like Dajuuma, Sablaale and Kuntuwaareey. Horogle settlement in Middle Jubba was later added. These new settlements were known as the Danwadaagaha or Collective Settlements. The new comer families were introduced into farming when their previous environments of north and centeral Somalia they only dealt with livestock herding.
Another long lasting public project which was personally tied to the president's efforts in building civil society which came together for the greater good, was the Shalanbood Sandune Stoppage. Every weekend scores of agricultural and environmental engineers with thousands of common citizens went to volunteer in planting trees, shrubs and pushing back sandunes which was creeping into farming lands of Lower Shabeelle.
Barre's government was plagued with various clan-based rebel groups. In the north of the country, the Isaaq clan was discontented with the fact that they were sidelined. The Isaaq clan developed a rebel group named the Somali National Movement (SNM), who were supported morally and financially by Ethiopia. In order to combat these rebels, there were many raids against the north. Also in the north, there was a rebel group called the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF), which was led by Abdullahi Yusuf. Clan based militias, particularly the Hawiye clan started a campaign of immense proportions of killings, rape and torture in the northern and middle regions of Somalia. In the late 1980s, rival factional groups began to make substantial territorial gains, especially in the northern Somaliland region. These rebels received aid from Ethiopia in hopes of overthrowing the Somali government.
By 1991, the situation in Mogadishu was very dire. The rebels, led by warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid and his rebel group, the United Somali Congress (USC) attacked Mogadishu. Aidid fought against government forces, and Barre was finally overthrown on the evening of 26 January 1991. He was succeeded by Ali Mahdi Muhammad, another warlord of the Hawiye clan until November 1991, but Ali Mahdi's government never managed to exert political or military control over most of the country as by then, Somalia was thrown into chaos. Ali Mahdi and Aideed's personal militia and clans fought against each other, both vying for President.
[edit] Death
After leaving Mogadishu in January 1991, Barre temporarily remained in the southwestern region (GEDO) of the country which is the power base of his Marehan Clan where he launched a military campaign to return to power. He twice attempted to retake Mogadishu, but in May 1991, he was overwhelmed by General Muhammed Farrah Aidid's army, and went into exile. He initially moved to Nairobi, but opposition groups there protested his presence and support by the Kenyan government, so he moved to Nigeria only two weeks later. He died on January 2, 1995 in Lagos, Nigeria, from a heart attack and his remains were buried in Garbahaarreey state of Gedo Somalia.
[edit] Quotes
"In our Revolution we believe that we have broken the chain of a consumer economy based on imports, and we are free to decide our destiny. And in order to realize the interests of the Somali people, their achievement of a better life, the full development of their potentialities and the fulfillment of their aspirations, we solemnly declare Somalia to be a Socialist State."
- Siad Barre proclaims Somalia a socialist state, October 20, 1970[5]
"When I came to Mogadishu...[t]here was one road built by the Italians. If you try to force me to stand down, I will leave the city as I found it. I came to power with a gun; only the gun can make me go."[6]
"...They too are scoundrels. I do not say that because they are making criticisms but because they are damaging Somalia. There are also Ethiopian exiles in the United States who criticize the Mengistu regime. However, at the same time they say: Give food to the Ethiopians who are starving. However, the Somalis are saying: Stop aid to Somalia, because Siyaad Barre is a bad man. Do you understand the difference?"[7]
"...The more intelligent a man is, the more harm he can do, if he so wishes." (explaining why he sent Opposition leaders, plotting against the Government to house arrest)[8]
[edit] External links
- "Preserving American Security Ties to Somalia", by Michael Johns, Heritage Foundation Backgrounder, December 26, 1989.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Obituary: Siad Barre
- ^ David D. Laitin and Said S. Samatar, Somalia: Nation in Search of a State (Boulder: Westview Press 1987), p. 79
- ^ Mohamed Diriye Abdullahi, Culture and Customs of Somalia, p. 34
- ^ Somalia: A Country Study, "Siad Barre and Scientific Socialism"
- ^ Somalia: A Country Study, "Scientific Socialism, 1970-1975"
- ^ Abdullahi, p. 41
- ^ Interview De L'ex President Somalien Syad Barre - djibnet.com - Forums de discussion, Chat Djibouti
- ^ Interview De L'ex President Somalien Syad Barre - djibnet.com - Forums de discussion, Chat Djibouti
| Preceded by Abdirashid Ali Shermarke |
President of Somalia 1969 – 1991 |
Succeeded by Ali Mahdi Muhammad |
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| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Barre, Siad |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Barre, Mohamed Siad (full name); Barre, Maxamed Siyaad (Somali); Jaalle Siyaad (sobriquet) |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Head of State of Somalia |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1919 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Shilabo, Ethiopia |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 2, 1995 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Lagos, Nigeria |
