Somalia: Federal MP Blocked from Traveling to Southwest State Amid New Restrictions

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A female legislator from Southwest State said she has been barred from traveling to Baidoa by authorities at Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu on Thursday morning, a claim that has previously been denied by senior government officials.

Sareedo Mohamed Abdalla, a federal MP, surfaced on social media, where she was being denied the opportunity to catch a flight to her home state.

The incident comes days after other planes carrying passengers were also blocked. This comes amid worsening political tension between Southwest State and the Somali Government. "The Federal System, we established in Somalia two decades ago has collapsed," she said.

Abdalla asserted that there is currently no functioning government in the country, highlighting the "political and administrative disarray".

The former president of Somalia Sharif Sheikh Ahmed condemned officials for imposing travel restrictions on Members of Parliament, maintaining that the government is unjustified to violate fundamental human rights including freedom of speech and movement.

Sources maintain this is the second time the flights to Baidoa have been blocked at Aden Adde International Airport in less than a week, showing new travel restrictions on Southwest State that brew the ongoing political tension between Southwest State and the federal government.

"This incident on September 19, 2024, reflects broader governance issues, with travel restrictions specifically targeting MPs from Southwest State, suggesting a strategic move by the federal government to control political activities in Baidoa," said an official within Southwest State.

Last week, leaders from Southwest maintained that they are in support of the Ethiopian troops who are part of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) having assisted in flushing out the Al-Shabaab militants from the state.

The central government wants the Ethiopian forces to leave upon the expiry of ATMIS tenure in December, in anticipation that the new mission dubbed the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) shall be under Egypt.

Somalia accuses Ethiopia of infringement of its territorial integrity and sovereignty following a clandestine deal with the breakaway region of Somaliland which allows it access to 30 kilometres of the Red Sea in exchange for recognition of the secessionist state.

Southwest lawmakers insist that Ethiopian troops should continue serving and attempts by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to hold discussions with Abdiaziz Laftagareen are yet to succeed. There are reports that he is using Turkish ambassador Alper Aktas to broker a meeting between them.

GAROWE ONLINE