Mohamed Osman Jawari
| Mohamed Osman Jawari محمد عثمان الجواري | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President of Somalia Acting | |
| In office 28 August 2012 – 16 September 2012 | |
| Prime Minister | Abdiweli Mohamed Ali |
| Preceded by | Muse Hassan Abdulle (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Hassan Sheikh Mohamud |
| Speaker of Parliament | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 28 August 2012 | |
| Deputy | Jaylaani Nur Ikar |
| Preceded by | Muse Hassan Abdulle (Acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 December 1945 Afgooye, Somalia |
| Political party | Independent |
| Alma mater | Somali National University |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
Prof. Mohamed Osman Jawari (Somali: Maxamed Cismaan Jawaari, Arabic: محمد عثمان الجواري) (born December 7, 1945 in Afgooye, Somalia) is a Somali attorney and politician. He is the current Speaker of the Federal Parliament of Somalia. He also briefly served as acting President of Somalia in August and September 2012.
Background
Personal life
Jawari was born in 1945 in the town of Afgooye, Somalia,[1] to a family from the Rahanweyn clan.[2] He originally hails from the southern Bay and Bakool regions.[3]
He is multilingual. Besides Somali, Jawari also speaks Arabic, Italian, English and Norwegian.[4]
Education
After graduating from high school, Jawari obtained a degree in Law from the Somali National University in Mogadishu.[1]
Early career
Jawari is a lawyer by profession.[3]
In a political capacity, he held the Minister of Transportation portfolio in the government of former President of Somalia Siad Barre, followed by a position as the Minister of Labor and Sports.[1][5]
After the civil war broke out in 1991, Jawari moved to Norway. He later returned to Somalia in the 2000s.[1]
Jawari was subsequently elected as chairman of the committee of specialists tasked with formulating Somalia's draft constitution,[1][5] putting to use his experience as a legal expert while working alongside UN officials.[2] The constitution was eventually adopted in July 2012.[5]
Speaker of the Federal Parliament
Appointment
In 2012, Jawari presented himself as a candidate in the first elections for a Speaker of the Federal Parliament to take place within Somalia in two decades.[1] In the televised and radio-broadcast parliamentary session held on 28 August 2012 at the Gen. Kahiye Police Academy near the Mogadishu International Airport, Jawari beat four other candidates for the post,[3][6] all of whom had previously served as government ministers during the transitional period. The hopefuls included Abdiabshir Abdullahi, Abdirashid Mohamed Hidig, Hassan Abshir Farah and Ali Khalif Galeyr,[7] a former Prime Minister in the Transitional National Government. Jawari received 119 votes during the first round of ballots versus 77 votes for Galeyr, who placed second. Galeyr subsequently withdrew from the race prior to the second round run-off and congratulated Jawari, who was then named the new Parliamentary Speaker.[6][5]
Following the parliamentary session, Jawari stated: "I am honoured to have been selected as the first speaker of a [Somali] parliament that is not transitional and I hope we can be a parliament that serves the people it represents[...] The election was held in a transparent way and I hope that Somalia will continue elections that are held in a democratic way[...] I am confident that this parliament will help Somalia achieve positive changes in security and governance".[1]
Representatives for the United Nations, the European Union and the United States government all welcomed Jawari's appointment, urging the Somali authorities to hold the scheduled presidential elections without delay. US ambassador to Somalia James C. Swan described the speakership ballot as an "historic election", with UN Special Envoy to Somalia Augustine Mahiga writing in a statement that "this is a moment of progress and optimism." Similarly, Alex Rondos, the EU Special Representative for the Horn of Africa, called Jawari's selection "another positive step forward."[8]
Jaylaani Nur Ikar and Mahad Abdalle Awad were later chosen by parliament as Jawari's First and Second Deputy Speakers, respectively.[1]
President of Somalia
As Speaker of Parliament, Jawari also briefly served as acting President of Somalia while the parliament elected a new leader.[9][10] On 30 August 2012, the Federal Parliament convened and unanimously endorsed a new committee tasked with overseeing the presidential elections. At the parliamentary session chaired by Jawari, 15 MPs were named to the body, with former acting Speaker Muse Hassan Sheikh Sayid Abdulle appointed as the commission's chairperson.[11] Hassan Sheikh Mohamud then succeeded Jawari as President, having been elected on 10 September 2012 and inaugurated into office six days later.[12]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Mohamed, Mahmoud (29 August 2012). "Somalia successfully concludes first elections in over 20 years". Sabahi. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Mohamed Osman Jawari elected as new Somali parliament speaker". Middle East Online. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Somalia: Federal MPs vote Mohamed Osman Jawari as new Parliament Speaker". Garowe Online. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
- ↑ Said, Shukri (7 September 2012). "Somalia. Jawari nuovo presidente, Mogadiscio incrocia le dita". Migrare. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "Somali Parliament Elects Speaker for New Gov’t". Voice of America. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Osman, Mohamed (28 August 2012). "Somalia gets new federal parliament speaker". Somaliweyn. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ↑ "Five Candidates in Race for Somali Parliament Speaker". Shabelle Media Network. 27 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ↑ "Somalia 'must hold presidential vote without delay'". ANP/AFP. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
- ↑ "Countries Se-So - Somalia". Rulers.org. Retrieved 20 September 2012.
- ↑ "Office of the President". Office of the Somali President. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ↑ "SOMALIA: New Parliament endorses presidential election commission". RBC Radio. 30 August 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
- ↑ Somali lawmakers elect Mohamud as next president
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Muse Hassan Abdulle Acting |
President of Somalia Acting 2012 |
Succeeded by Hassan Sheikh Mohamud |
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