Mogadishu Somalia Domestic Service (in Somali) — 1700 GMT

(Summary) The World Muslim Congress met behind closed doors this afternoon. The head of the Somali Republic delegation spoke about the value and importance of Islam and how it came to Somalia. He said that Islam first came to Somalia and then spread to the rest of Africa.

The minister said:

“It is surprising that an African government is colonizing western Somaliland. This government came to western Somaliland in accordance with an agreement concluded in Berlin in 1885. One can conclude from this that an African government colonizing other Africans differs in no way from other colonialists.”

The minister said the way the western Somalis were treated was incredible:

“The condition of the people of western Somaliland under this colonialist government is most unhappy and Islam is being eradicated from the country and its preachers slaughtered. Among those murdered because they preached Islam were Shaykh Abdilqadir Ali, Shaykh Hassan (names indistinct) and the great Muslim leader Shaykh (name indistinct).”

The minister also mentioned Somalis who died for the cause of Islam including Sultan Olol Dinleh, Hirsi Hassan and many others. The minister continued:

“I would like to remind you that when this colonialist government took over the country, it closed all mosques, burnt books on Islam and demolished big mosques and built churches in their places.”

Turning to the Somaliland under French rule, the minister said that the country was handed over to officials of Jewish origin in 1957. The owners of the country, the Somalis, made continued protests but to no avail. The conference of nonaligned nations took proper steps about this issue and passed resolutions urging that the Somalis in the French Somaliland be granted their independence.

Mr. Sheikh Mohameid Mohamed Farah made a brief reference to the NFD, another Somaliland, and said it was not proper to give details of what the British did to the Somali country.