Somalia is easily one of the toughest places to live today. More than a decade of hard violence coupled with an irresponsible government playing to the arrogant tunes of the clan leaders lobbying for power and pride has left many millions lifeless. Not many even contemplate leading a life with happiness and satisfaction in the near future. Militants, looters, bandits and security forces are to be seen everywhere. Ever since the Somali government fell in 1991, there has been complete chaos in the horn nation. Turned into a battlefield, there is fighting everywhere. Children hear to gunfire almost everyday.
Problems pile up, hunger everywhere
Hunger, poverty, militancy, civil strife, human rights abuses, food-aid delivery, forced displacement and security of aid workers are major issues here. The economy is so battered that feeding the population is an impossible task. Unfortunately, there is hardly any functioning government, which should ideally address these concerns. To make matters worse, the harvest has failed in Somalia’s Shabelle region, the traditional breadbasket. The country is experiencing its worst drought in 13 years. Though aid has been coming from far off regions, it doesn’t reach the hungry on time.
Health and Education
Women and children suffer the worst in any war-affected region. Many children have stopped going to schools for reasons ranging from militant attacks to hunger at home. A decade of war has done enough to promote illiteracy. Quranic schools remain the only accessible educational option to the many displaced people. On the health screen, Somalia has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world. Early childhood care is a dream here. Even the sick do not get adequate medical attention. Sexual violence against women is also widely reported.
Delivering aid after fighting pirates, sharks, bandits and looters
Shipping food from the fields of western countries to Somali camps has become very dangerous. Sea pirates round up WFP (World Food Programme) ships almost regularly and delay delivery. They attack with modern weapons and hold the containers at ransom. Next comes the problem of docking. There is no port in operation for now and ships are forced to stop a few miles before reaching land. Small boats carry food to the shores where people wait in neck deep water, ruled by hungry sharks, to manually transfer them to camps run by aid workers. The food is then repackaged and transported by trucks to the respective destinations. Check points on the way serve as ideal locations for ruthless bandit attacks. Over a dozen workers have been killed trying to defend the aid. At the destination the looters dominate. When some food eventually reaches the hungry population, it is at least a week or two behind time.
Aid workers continue good work
While freelance violence continues in Somalia, the aid workers have not lost hope and continue to work with people in dire straits. Their own security is often put to test, but for the moment it is only these souls who remain for the displaced. The government is a junk spectator and the clan leaders, uncaring rapists of their own country.
Image Credit: MSNBC Media
News Source: MSNBC
