2+1=...

In Maths, two plus one always equals three.

In society, two plus one can equal a family.

In development, sometimes we have to force two plus one to be more than three. We do this by working with communities and local civil society, to ensure they are able to bring to the table that little extra bit. The more we collaborate, the more training workshops we design, the more civil society stands on its own two feet, the more we can add to the equation. The higher the equation, the better for mankind.

I am writing this from Benghazi, the soil where we have planted the seed of Humanitarian Forum Libya. Let us all be part of the equation and do our little bit for humanity!

The right time...

I am writing this brief note for you from Libya. We have been busy facilitating civil society workshops in Benghazi, Al Bayda and Derna. The response has been overwhelming and I would like to thank everyone who attended.

There are great needs on the ground and insh’Allah, The Humanitarian Forum will work with the local civil society to bridge that gap. This is the right time!

I will write more in the next few days.

I leave you for now with a photo from the workshop in Benghazi:

Tools of change

When I was visiting my homeland, I decided to gauge exactly the strength of the spirit of the youth. I had gathered a few of them in a group. They all had benefitted from an expensive education, were very smart and could potentially be the next humanitarian leaders.

I took them to a local trendy coffee shop in Cairo. I asked the group: “Look around you. Does this environment describe Cairo best?” They all denied it vigorously. We started walking together towards a rundown area. I ask them again: “Is this Cairo?” They stared in wonder and fear at the area, the houses and people.

I told them: “50% of people are living on the poverty line in and around Cairo. This is your reality, as future humanitarian leaders. You are the tools of change who can enable this to become so much more”.

Let us all be tools of change to make a difference around the world!

Rainbow, not Rambo!

Picture courtesy of IMDB

I think some, if not most of you, would have seen a film about John Rambo. He’s a solitary fighter against the system. The film franchise may have amassed millions at the box office worldwide, however I believe in unity and partnership. If you fight alone, you might lose. Even Rambo got help in the end!

In my opinion, a cause is stronger if it is supported by more people, with diverse backgrounds. It shows cohesion, it shows that the cause appeals to humanity. A rainbow of people can be the difference between an organisation succeeding in its mission or a society becoming whole and inclusive etc.

Let us not be solitary Rambos, fighting our way through the world and mistrust guiding our path like a beacon! Let us be part of one solidary rainbow, joining our hands to create something special- as individuals and organisations, from different paths of life.

Just another case of history repeating Part 2

In my previous blog I said I believe that the life of a being is sacred. I stand by it, and I will also share my belief that it is more sacred than the wealth of the land, value of oil or gold. A few moments of emotional thinking could make one lose their life, the lives of their friends, neighbours, family and country.

We need to think logically, not emotionally. When we shout, we cannot hear ourselves or the others; when we push, we cannot pull together. When we jump without help, we can land on our necks. Emotion is not the answer. Reason is the only way to peace in Abyei.

We shouldn’t pay attention to the skin colour, faith, language and history, when it comes to partnerships.  We should only look at the common value: we are all here together now and until the end of time. 

Let us cross the road of peace to reach social security and avoid the crossfire which could crucify us.  May God bring peace to our families in Abyei, Sudan and all over the world!

Just another case of history repeating... Part 1

I have spoken at length about the unrest in Abyei, Sudan just a couple of months ago. It makes me sad to talk about it again. It makes me even sadder to say that the situation hasn’t changed, maybe taken a turn for the worse.

Abyei is a crossroads between civilisations, cultures, history, faiths, values, languages. It is a crossroads between cities, towns, villages, rivers, valleys, forests and seas. It is a valuable link, a place for people to meet and discuss.

Crossroads should never divide, but bring people together in consensus and friendship. This makes me ask: what turns crossroads into crossfire in places like Abyei, Sudan, Africa and everywhere? Is it gold? Oil? Land? Water? Foreign policy? Anything else?

Who would even choose crossfire instead of a peaceful crossroads? Roads lead us to where we want to go. Fire makes us back away.

We should choose togetherness, as opposed to bewilderment and realise that the life of a human being is sacred.

To be continued...

A nation without a nation

A poem from Abdi-Noor Mohamed brought Somalia’s plight at the front of my mind again. How would you feel if you lost your property, your wealth and your family? How would you feel if you lost your land, your friends and your job? After this, imagine how you would feel if you lost your country. This feeling is in the heart of millions and millions and millions of Somalis, whether living in Somalia, refugees in neighbouring countries or living abroad.

Somalis ran away for their lives from a scene of death, destruction, devastation and uncertainty. The discussion today is not about building a shelter, schools, a clinic or roads. It is about feeling the agony, sharing the dreams and helping to secure the future. It is about bringing safety and security to a generic “me”, a stateless, homeless and hopeless Somali individual. Please don’t hate me and then smile at me. Don’t kill my father and then offer me food. Don’t burn my home and then shelter me. Don’t destroy my country and employ me.

I want you to really look at me and treat me with respect and dignity. We can help create a state together. Let us go together down this road.

I leave you with the poem that moved me:

Somalia is a nation without a nation
It is a nation without a national unity
There is no place you can call a nation
As the nation lives in a nation of terror

Mogadishu is a city without a city
It is a city merged within the city
There is no place you can call a city
As the city lives in a city of death
Kismayo  is a town without a town
It is a town within a town of no town
There is no place you can call a town
As the town lives in a town of fear
Somalia is a nation without a state

It is a nation lost in the middle of loss
As it is a nation of war at war with itself
It is a nation in endless despair
Fading in a horizon of terror
Thawing away like a wax
As it weeps Without tears
It is a nation in shock
Disappearing like a needle
Slipped in a deep chaotic well
As it leaves behind
Nothing but rings of good-byes
Abdi-Noor Mohamed

A Waltz for a night...

The cost of a night at the most expensive hotel in Dubai could be up to $10,000. The cost of celebrity endorsement for a product could reach millions of pounds. The cost of seeing someone behind everyone’s back could cost you your livelihood, credibility and dignity.

The use of super-injunctions has caused serious debate lately, and for good reason. We are living in the age of Social Media. Information is exchanged at the speed of light and freedom of speech reigns supreme. However, one’s freedom needs to skirt around everyone else’s freedom.

I can imagine someone spending the night helping others, guarding their family, protecting their country, worshipping God, drumming up more business, or other life values. However, I cannot imagine that someone spending the night trying to deceive others will be protected by a super-injunction.

In a free, democratic and open society, a public figure is, as the name suggests, public. They conduct their lives in public; some are even considered role-models. I feel sorry for the public and the law; however I’m less sympathetic towards the people abusing them.

The issue of the super-injunction reminds me of a waltz played on a merry-go-round. The music plays on and on, the horses move round and round until when it runs out of money and the show stops.

Country for sale – Eliza Do-Little Part 2

Photo courtesy of Moviemaker.com

After my colleague told me about one island nation planning to buy a new homeland due to its islands sinking because of climate change, they had another bombshell for me. They said, somewhere in the Pacific, another island nation is facing the same fate. The islanders, however, choose to do nothing to save their island, believing that God will do the work for them. While God’s mercy is all encompassing, even Noah built a boat, as it was God’s wish.

In all the scriptures, God says He will help us if we also help ourselves. Heaven does not shower silver, gold and food on the more laid-back, nor does it provide a person with oil, natural gas and minerals because they are kind.

We might agree that severe floods happen nearly every week in some part of the globe or another. That shouldn’t mean disaster preparedness should miss from the agenda of any country, be it island or not. We mustn’t be Eliza Do-Little, but strive to be Eliza Do-ALot.

I hope the people of this Pacific island nation listen to the wise words of God and act now to save their homeland, while we all play a part in solving this global problem: climate change. It is a shared responsibility, in my view.

Country for sale – are you interested?! Part 1

I would have never imagined such a topic up for discussion. Then I heard a colleague mention that an island nation has set aside a portion of their budget to buy a new homeland when climate change will sink its islands into the ocean. For a moment I couldn’t believe such a thing. Afterwards, the shock gave way to dismay. Can you buy a country, a nation at that, as if you would be buying new furniture, or some books?

The island nation is like the fingerprint of God, a place of extreme natural beauty, however, it seems, its appeal has had tourists coming in droves and this has been its downfall. My question is, if we leave this island nation aside, what about the Bay of Bengal? What about the Nile Delta? What about all the other oceans and seas and islands? What about all other God’s creations: birds, animals, trees, flowers?

In my view, putting up a “for sale” sign or creating a listing on a shopping website isn’t the answer. We need to fight the causes of climate change with everything in our power. Let us not destroy the planet and sell not only countries, but the future of our children.

Sweeties?

Colourful sweeties invoke no certain image or a solid view of the facts.  We cannot treat the lives, future or dreams of people like they are sweeties. In my view, honesty sits at the base of journalism ethics.

Anyone with a piece of technology can do a “press release” in the form of an image or a declaration. However, I believe Social Media can be a sword with two edges. An ordinary sword can clear the path inside a thick jungle, but it can also hurt you. With Social Media, one edge leads to social change and empowerment. The other edge can hinder the same social change, by distorting events.

Citizen-journalists must be very careful when presenting facts and follow the same ethics as journalists. Only this way we will be able to build a better future for ourselves and humanity.

Mr. Ahmad’s story

A long time ago I was in Almaty (Alma-Ata), Kazakhstan’s former capital and was interested in buying a cheap flat. I was introduced to Mr. Ahmad, a man in his mid to late 70s who wanted to sell his flat.

While chatting, I got to know Mr. Ahmad better and he shared his life story with me. What he had to say touched me deeply. He said he had been born in Dagestan and had been forced to leave his home, his family and his roots at the tender age of 16 and brought to work in Kazakhstan in the early 1950s.

Mr. Ahmad was a Muslim, but had been banned from performing any Islamic ritual, in public or in private up to 1991. He told me the system couldn’t break him and his faith and that he used to pray every night in his room, after locking the front door and pulling the blinds, and performed the 5 prayers all together.

Pausing in the midst of his story, he said he wanted to show me something very important to him. While I was thinking what awful life this poor man must have lead, he went to a dresser and opened one of the drawers.

He carefully took out an object wrapped in a scarf and brought it to me. I unwrapped the scarf and found a very old book, whose pages had gone crinkly from reading.  I saw the book was the Holy Qu’ran. Mr. Ahmad told me it was the only treasure he had and the only thing that he had left from his father.

Mr. Ahmad’s story shows that neither money, nor bullets can change someone’s personal beliefs. This isn’t just valid for Muslims, but also for the other religions.

Cultural values can be acknowledged or changed only through peaceful dialogue with other cultures and respect between the different parties. I am inviting everyone to take a seat at the round table of equality and contribute to the mosaic of cultures for the best of humanity.

International Children’s Day

Children in a Yemeni IDP camp

International Children’s Day should not be celebrated just on 1st June. It should be celebrated 365 days of the year, to make us realise that without them, there is no future for humanity. Children represent a bond between generations, cultures and society. They are a link to what was before and what will be when we are gone.

We need to end abuse, trafficking and the practice of child soldiers, keep children safe, healthy and in school. We are not on this planet just to produce children, but to prepare them for life and nurture them until they can spread their wings and fly on their own.

In my opinion, we should look at children’s issues all the time, instead of raising them one day of the year and burying them at the back of our minds the rest of 364 days of the year.