President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo's Plans for Somalia

Somalia's Newly Elected President Promises Change

Erin Worley 

Feb. 22, 2017 

Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, dual U.S.-Somalia citizen, hopes to make some major reforms in Somalia. President Mohamed plans to revamp the military, fix the humanitarian issues in the country, and overcome the issues caused by the country's famine. President Farmajo believes it will take 20 years or more to fully implement these changes or truly fix the country, but it seems as though he has a good head on his shoulders and is up to the challenge. 

Somalia has been in need of a strong leader for a long time. In addition to the famine wreaking havoc on the country in recent years, Transparency International recently named Somalia as the most corrupt country in the world. This, coupled with the pushback from the two extremist groups with a foothold in the country, al-Shabaab and the Islamic State, means that President Farmajo must be vigilant in working towards his campaign promises.

This is the first time in decades Somalia has democratically elected a new leader. While celebrations are being held all over the country, my only hope is that this country is able to come together and stand behind their leader even after the extravaganza of this election wears down. After all, in a country so strongly divided by clans and harsh ideologies, life for this new president may be incredibly difficult once people forget about the glamour of the election. I think the U.S. and the U.N. need to continue to support Somalia, and not let the newfound hope that this election brings simmer into chaos or discontentment.

The Last of the Farc Rebels Arrive in Demobilization Zones

Columbia's Largest Rebel Group Due to Turn in its Weapons 

Erin Worley 

Feb. 18, 2017 

The last of The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (Farc) have arrived in demobilization zones to turn in their weapons--ending more than half a century of fighting. The Farc have been causing unrest in the country since 1964 when they took up arms against the Columbian government. 

The Farc, which mainly consist of poor farmers and plantation workers, began their revolt against the government due in the 1960's because of the overwhelming inequality in the country. The main source of the inequality started in the 19th century when the country began paying off its debts by selling large chunks of land to private owners. 

The Marxist-Leninist ideology of the Farc was met with rough opposition from the government. The Farc began losing their power in recent years when the U.S. government started sending millions of dollars in aid, training and supplies to Colombian security forces in an attempt to fight the Farc rebels. 

The Columbian government and Farc finally agreed to a peace treaty aimed at stopping the fighting and restoring peace in the war-torn country. While many Farc rebels have voiced concern about the government not upholding their end of the deal, they have still turned in their weapons and are waiting in camps for shelter and further instruction.

More Dead in the Midst of India and Pakistan's Best Kept Secret

The 70 Year Fight Over Kashmir Claims Eight More Lives

Erin Worley 

February 12, 2017 

Eight people have died and two dozen have been injured in Kashmir due to a gun battle between militants and security forces on Sunday. The fight began in the Kulgam District after security forces were given a tip about a house militants were hiding in. 

Kashmir has been the source of major dispute between India and Pakistan since the Partition of India in 1947. Both countries claim ownership of the land and neither side seem willing to give up any time soon. 

Despite the fact that India and Pakistan both try to keep this dispute hidden, (and there are therefore many things that are impossible to know about it), one thing for certain is that the fighting has claimed at least 43,000 lives in recent years. While Kashmir is arguably one of the most beautiful places in the world, the blood that has been shed over it is devastating. 

A resolution needs to be put in place to stop the fighting. While no solution will be ideal or make everyone happy, measures can be taken that will formalize relations and slow down the violence. One such solution could be to divvy up the three sub-regions of the state--Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh in a way that makes sense demographically, politically, and religiously. I think this beats our current solution which mainly involves squeezing our eyes shut and pretending it isn't happening. 

This video does an excellent job of explaining the background of this dispute.

Trump's Muslim Ban

Donald Trump's Controversial Executive Order 

Erin Worley 

February 1, 2017 

On January 27, 2017, Donald Trump signed a controversial executive order. The order, titled Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States has received international attention and outrage. This order has effectively banned the entrance of Muslims from seven Middle Eastern countries––a direct violation of the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution. 

Banned countries: 

                                  

Section 1 of the executive order discusses 9/11. In this section Trump mentions, "State Department policy prevented consular officers from properly scrutinizing the visa applications of several of the 19 foreign nationals who went on to murder nearly 3,000 Americans." He then goes on to use this as justification for the ban. This is where the problem starts. Of the 19 hijackers in the 9/11 attack, 15 were from Saudi Arabia. However, as noted above, Saudi Arabia did not make the list of banned countries. In fact, neither did Egypt, Lebanon, or the United Arab Emirates, the three countries who make up the remaining four hijackers in the 9/11 attack. So, why use 9/11 as justification for creating this ban, if none of the countries involved in the hijacking are added to the list? 

In order to avoid the legality issues that come along when the POTUS violates the U.S. Constitution, Trump continues to rebut this executive order by claiming that it is not a Muslim ban, when in fact it is. 

Section 5(b) of the executive order states, "Upon the resumption of USRAP admissions . . . [Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security will] prioritize refugee claims made by individuals on the basis of religious-based persecution, provided that the religion of the individual is a minority religion in the individuals country of nationality." Without going any further, this violates the U.S. Constitution simply because it prioritizes certain people based on their religion. In a country built by immigrants and sought after for its promise of freedom of religion, this executive order is eliminating hundreds of years of progress in one quick sweep. 

To be more specific about how this constitutes as a Muslim ban, let's look at the religious breakdown of the countries in which Trump banned the "religious majority," according to the CIA Factbook statistics. 

                                 

Looking at the religious statistics of these countries, how is this order anything but a Muslim ban?How is this not a violation of the Supreme Law of the Land? How have we allowed this to happen?