(iv) Consultation with Somaliland: A group of the IFCC travelled to Somaliland in April and May 2011 and were welcomed by senior officials of the Somaliland government and traditional leaders. The Commissioners also met with members of the Somaliland civil society including women, youth, traditional elders and university students in several regions of Somaliland. The Commission has distributed copies of the CDC in Somaliland, received feedback and recommended further submission to the Commission via the IFCC website

Progress Report of the Independent Federal Constitution Commission on

The Consultation Draft Constitution

Mogadishu July 2011

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background

1.2 The Mandate of the Commission

PART TWO: ACTIVITIES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN CIVIC EDUCATION

2.1. Benefits of Civic Education

2.2. Purpose of Civic Education

2.3. Tools of Civic Education

2.4. Partners in Civic EducationPART THREE: PUBLIC CONSULTATION OF THE CDC

3.1. Consultation: a divine decree

3.2. The Characteristic of Public Consultation in the Qur’an

3.3. Priniciple of Public Consultation

3.4. Public Consultation in the ancient & modern covenants

3.5. The Somali Constitution making experience with Public Consultation

3.6. The Potential of the Public Consultation

3.7. Consultation with TFIs

(i) Consultation with the Head of the State

(ii) Consultation with the Prime Minister

(iii) Consultation with the Ministries

(iv) Consultation with the PCC.

(v) Consultation with the Somali Women Parliamentarian Association

(vi) Consultation with the TFP Committee for Reconciliation and Restitution and the

National Reconciliation Commission (NRC)

3.8. Public Consultation with Regional States, Administrations &Communities (i) Consultation with Mogadishu Local Government

(ii) Consultation with Galmudug Regional Authorities

(iii) Consultation with Puntland Regional State

(iv) Consultation with Somaliland

(v) Consultation with the Communities of South-West Regions

3.9. Consultation with Civil Society

(i) Consultation with Somali Women Groups

(ii) The Gender Audit

(iii) Consultation with Disabled people

(iv) Consultation with Somali Diaspora

(v) Consultation with Minorities

(vi) Human Rights Sensitization Training

3.10 Peer review of CDC by international and Somali experts

3.11. Public Consultation Unit

PART FOUR: THE WAY FORWARD

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This report was preceded by two Progress Reports, the first published by the Independent Federal Constitution Commission (IFCC) on the 20^thof May 2010 and the second on the 1^st of July 2010. The first report contained the initial agreed upon constitutional framework and principles of the Consultation Draft Constitution; and in the second report, the IFCC explained the visions of the CDC, the drafting process and presented a summary of the IFCC’s recommendations. This report covers the activities and accomplishments of the IFCC during the period from July 2010 to July 2011 mostly in respect to Public Participation, namely in the two fields of Civic Education and Public Consultation of the CDC, two equally essential elements in the process of Constitution-making.

Civic Education prepares and elevates the citizen from being a distant observer into a direct participant in the country’s political process with informed opinion. The prevalence of short-wave trasmitters and radios in Somalia, has allowed the IFCC to utilize radio based civic education programmes since March 2009. The Civic Education activities and achievements arefurther explained in part two of this report.

Public Consultation should not to be taken lightly. It is not only a human logic, or an innovation introduced bythe internationally accepted modern practices of Constitution-making, but a Divine Decree recorded in the Holy Qur’an, addressed to mankind to practice mutual consultation in the conduct of all aspects of their life, in public and private affairs, and a supreme objective of the Shari’ah, as explained in Part Three of the report.

After the launch of the CDC in July 2010, the IFCC worked in Nairobi for a few additional months engaging in work planning with partners and undertaking capacity building workshops. The IFCC then returned to Mogadishu to continue and strengthen the IFCC presence inside the countryto ensure public participation. In the relatively secure regions, the IFCC was able to conduct consultation with the Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs), and carry out in-depth Public Consultation and Civic Education with Somali citizens and civil society organizations.

At this junction, the IFCC intends to express its appreciation and gratitude to Ministry of Constitution, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation and the officials of the Ministry for arranging the return of the IFCC to Mogadishu, providing office premises, financial contributions and facilitating us in meeting the President, Prime Minister and members of the Council of Ministers . Without the tireless effort and help of the Ministry, we could not have achieved as manypolitical consultations and outreach as we have to date.

On several occasions the IFCC met and consulted with thePresident, the Prime Minister, and Parliamentary Committees of the TFP, Ministers and Ministry officials, the Mayor of Mogadishu and the Public. The IFCC also conducted hearings and consultation with civil society groups,

religious leaders as well as consultations with regional administrations including the Regional State of Puntland, Galmudug regional authorities and the Communities of the South-Western Regions, university students, business community, minorities, intellectual organization and the Somalis community living in Djibouti as well. The IFCC has completed its plan to startconsultation with Somali refugees in the Dhadhaab and Kukuma camps in Kenya as soon as entry visas for the Commissioners are obtained, and also to visit the refugee camps along the Somali-Ethiopian borders.

All submissions, views and opinions captured from public consultations are sent to the Public Consultation Committee of the IFCC, who then categorize, and translate public views, statements, comments and suggestions received in a very transparent and systematic manner.The Unit has produced two reports: (1) Technical Report and (2) a Thematic Report of “What the People Say”.. As an example, some summarized short notes of the IFCC’s findings are explained in Part Three of this report.

The IFCC has seen many challenges to the consultation and civic education process that has limited its ability to reach all of the Somali citizens. Due to lack of security and stability across Somalia, the IFCC has not been able to go to all areas necessary in order to complete andcomprehensive consultation process and additionally, access to Puntland has been delayed due to political tensions and debates. Despite many challenges, the IFCC has been able to accomplish a significant amount of consultations and outreach and will continue to do so until final drafting commences in October¹.

In conclusion the IFCC extends its sincere gratitude to the Somali public for their support and participation in the process and heartfelt appreciation to Inter national Partners , who without their financial and tech nical assistance most of the tasks undertaken by the IFCC would not have been possible.

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1.Background: The constitution making process is a requirement of the 2004 Transitional Federal Charter of the Somalia Republic. The Charter provides that a new Federal Constitution be drafted within two and half years of the formation of an Independent Federal Constitution Commission. It is thereafter to be adopted by popular referendum during the final year of thetransitional period. TheIFCC was appointed in June2006. In January2009, the TransitionalFederal Parliament extended its mandate by an additional two years to 2011 as a result of the

1

SeePart Four,“The Way Forward”Section of this report for further details on IFCC anticipated time line with the

goal of completing the final draft in December 2011.

Djibouti peace accord. This report was preceded by two Progress Reports, the first published bythe Independent FederalConstitution Commission (IFCC)on the 20^thof May2010 and the second on the 1^st of July 2010. The first report contained the initial agreed upon constitutional framework and principles of the Consultation Draft Constitution; and in the second report, the IFCC explained the visions of the CDC, the drafting process and presented a summary of the IFCC’s recommendations; This report covers the activities and accomplishments of the IFCC during theperiod from August2010 to May2011 mostly inrespect to PublicParticipation, namely in the two fields of Civic Education and Public Consultation of the CDC, two equally essential elements in the process of Constitution-making. Specific dates and venues have been omitted to avoid any security and safety concerns of future IFCC meetings.

1.2.The Mandate of the Independent Federal Constitution Commission: The primary mandateof the IFCC is to prepare a Constitution based on the Transitional Federal Charter (TFC). The IFCC must ensure that the constitution making process is as participatory as possible and that the people are informed of the purposes and stages of the process.

PART TWO: THE IFCC AND CIVIC EDUCATION OF THE CDC

2.1. Benefits of Civic Education: Civic Education is the forerunner of the next important stage ofPublic consultation which givesthe citizen theownership of theconstitution and elevateshim/her from beinga distant observerto a directparticipant with informedopinion and contribution.

2.2. The Purposeof Civic Education: The purpose of acivic education programme, among others, areto provide citizenswith information theyneed in orderto participate inthe country’s political process, and to encourage democraticvalues, attitudes and behaviour.

2.3. Tools ofCivic Education: The IFCC usesa broad rangeof tools in the civic education programme, including lectures, trainings, discussion groups, dramatization, role plays and mass-media.Upon the public launch of CDC in August 2010, the IFCC distributed a large amount of copies ofthe CDC andbriefed civil societygroups and interestedpublic officials across3 locations within Somalia —Mogadishu, Garowe and Galkaio.

The prevalence of short-wave trasmitters and radios in Somalia has made it possible for theIFCC to utilize radio-based civic education through the BBC World Service Trust (which reaches over80% of Somalihouseholds) Star FM and other locally based radio stations in Somalia.These Radio programmes include messaging spots, daily call in shows around specific topics, discussion programmes and segments of a fictional Somali family (the Quman & Qar iskatuur drama) that deals with every day life issues and its relation to the Constitution process. In addition to the radio based civic education, the IFCC also partners with Universal TV, the single

largest Somali TV station in the world to air weekly thematic programmes, call in discussion andpromotional spots. BBChas also providedtraining on theCDC to Somalijournalists and produced a handbook which assists journalist when covering the Somali constitution makingprocess.

TheCommision has alsobeen working withSouk-Tel, an organizationthat provides SMS outreach andis close toachieving its SMStarget of 300,000people for surveywork. Additionally, the IFCC has established a website for civic education and for the public to submit their views.

2.4. Partners in Civic Education: In addition to the above, the Commission has been working closely with partners supporting the process. These include the National Democratic Institute, which conducts periodical focus group discussions on the constitution process and has trained a group of Somali lawyers under its Somali Lawyers Resource Training (SLRT) program as a legal resourceteam to provideobjective technical legalinformation on theCDC to thepartners involved in the constitution process, and Saferworld, which is working closely with Non-State Actors in South Central and Puntland to conduct community discussions on the constitution as well as NCF, IIDA, COSPE, AWEPA, Max Plank Institute, Interpeace & UNDP. The also IFCC works closely with the UN Support Office for AMISOM (UNSOA) which is in the process of launching a UN radio in Mogadishu. Once operational the radio station will air programmes dedicated tothe constitutional process and citizen participation in the process.

PART THREE: THE IFCC AND PUBLIC CONSULTATION OF THE CDC

3.1. Public Consultation is a divine decree. It is not a matter which should be taken lightly. It is not only a human logic, or an innovation introduced by the internationally accepted modern practices of Constitution-making, but a Divine Decree recorded in the Holy Qur’an, addressed tomankind to practicemutual consultation inthe conduct ofall aspects of theirlife, both private and public, and give voice to those who are entitled to a voice. This applies, for instance, in privatedomestic affairs, suchas between husbandand wife, inaffairs of business,as between partners or parties interested, or public affairs such as departments of administration to preserve the unity of administration in the country, above all, in issues of collective interest and concern for all members of the society, such as in the process of making a Constitution forthe Community and in State affairs. Modern representative governments attempt to achieve these standards of inclusion and participation in state affairs.

3.2 The Characteristic of Public Consultation: In the Qur’an, public consultation is among the nine qualities²that describe s the ordinary man and woman in higher temporal and spiritual degree . Allah Swt says: [... And those who hearken their Lord, and establish regular prayers, who conduct their affairs by mutual consulta tion , who spend out of what we bestow on them for sustenance...] - Qur’an: 42:38;

3.3. This principle of Public Consultation: This principle was applied to its fullest extent by the Prophet Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (Pbuh), in his private and public life, and was fully acted upon by the early four Guided Khalifs. Thus Public Consultation is among the supreme objectives the Maqasid of the Shari’ah to promote, protect and preserve for mankind to adopt and observe mutual consultation as a sacrosant principle,hence the CDC , as embodied in its Founding Principles [promotes the higher objectives (maqaasid) of Shari’ah;;;; — Article 1 (1)of the CDC.

3.4. Through theannals of history,mankind kept devolpingconcepts to adoptthis divine decree into their temporal ways of life, each nation attempted to apply mutual consultation in state affairs, each to the extent of its civilization, space and environment. Modern and ancient conventionsand covenants stronglyhold the publicConsultaion as aGod-given and undeprivable Human Right, documents like the Sahiifatu- (the Scrolls of) -Medina of 622 AD, The UN Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 1966 (ICCPR), the AU Charter of 1981, The Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, 1990, including also the first UN Sponsored Somali Constitution of 1949; and the subsequentSomali Constitutions of 1960, 1979, 1990, the current Transitional Federal Charter in force in Somalia since 2004 and The Consultation Draft Constitution as well. All the above documentsand many more afirm Public Consnsultation as an non derogable Human Right, and a necessity for the authorship and ownership of the product by the people, namely the Constitution of the nation: the Temporal Contract of the Society with its people, who guartees the existance of the State.

3.5. In the past Somali Constitution making experiences, there has not been a direct public consultation. During the making of the 1960 Constitution people were consulted through itselected National Assembly representatives, who reconstituted themselves into a Constitutent Assembly and approved the the 1960 Somali Constitution after fortytwo sittings in thirty-one days³while this was representative in nature, this process did not directly involve the public.

2

For more about the complete nine qualities see the Holy Qur’an: chapter 42 ‘Ash-shura’ (theMutual

Consultation), verses 37 —40.

3

From Ma rch 1 7 — June 21, 1960. [ See: Problemi Costitutzionali della Somalia nella preparazione all’Indipendenza

(1957 — 1960, PP 82 - di Giuseppe A. Costanzo, Milano Dott. A Giuseppe Editore — 1962.

7

The current public consultation of the CDC is the first of its kind. It is the very first occasion where the people of Somalia are being directly consulted.

Unfortunately,the security situationdoes not allowthe IFCC tocarry out amore robust campaign that is free from fear of harmony and that allows all the people of Somalia to use their free will to define and mold the kind of state they want for their country,their children and children’s children. The IFCC is doing its best under the circumstances in terms of outreach and traveling to all areas that have relative security.With all the challenges and risks around, theIFCC has registered relativesucess by meetingand consulting withprominent opinion makers from areas where it is imposible to hold public consultation, like the South-Western Regions of the country.

3.6. ThePotential of inclusive andparticipatory constitution makingprocesses willallow Somali citizens in the process to formulate long-term solutions and address their own peace, stabilityand democracy challenges.In the last two decadesthese challenges havesurfaced from deep political divisions, clan interests, resource conflicts, denial of political participation, violations of other human rights and from the failure to improve the quality of life for ordinary Somalicitizens. The voiceof common citizensis critical to the process,theneed to accommodateall perspectives isvital to achievewide support fora nationally-owned constitution.

The participatory and inclusive constitution-making process has the potential to:

·Garner wider support for Somali peace efforts

·Enhance the legitimacy of the Somali Transitional Federal Government

·Illustrate a break with the past where voices were suppressed at gun-point

·Provide a forum for national dialogue to promote reconciliation and forge a commonvision for the nation

·Create a well informed public that understands the importance of constitutionalism to their daily lives and has greater public ownership of the resulting constitution

·Lay a foundation for more democratic practices, a culture of rule of law and on-going participation in decision-making

·Influencethe contents ofthe constitution byensuring that factorscontributing to conflictare addressed

·Enhance public willingness to defend their rights and support the implementation of theconstitution

·Enhance the legitimacy of the final constitution

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3.7. Consultation with TFIs:

(i)Consultation with the Head of the State: The President of Somalia Sheikh Sharif Sheikh

Ahmed accompanied by the then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Hon Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, met the IFCC in Djibouti on April 1^st, 2010. The President called his visit a ‘golden opportunity’ to meet with the IFCC who is mandated to draft the Constitution of the country which is ‘the only opportunity Somalia has to break with its recent troubled history;’ He further urged the IFCC to base the constitution on the Islamic Shari’ah, andemphasized the need for the principle of the Islamic Shura (a body of mutual Consultation) in the new Draft Constitution. In Conclusion, he promised to provide all possible support,necessary for the commission to complete this highly important and noble task.

Subsequently,the IFCC met twice with President Sheikh Sharif at the Presidential Palace in Mogadishu. In a brief welcoming speech, the president extended a warm welcome to allmembers and embraced their achievementin producing the CDC.He reiterated he had stated in his meeting with the IFCC in Djibouti (when the IFCC was in theprocess of drafting the CDC) by expressing his full support on the constitution making process and emphasizing that the process uphold the principles of inclusivity, tolerance, openness and transparency.

For these enormoustasks ahead, thePresident urged thecommission to doubletheir efforts forthe common interestof the nationand produce thefinal draft assoon as possible.The president underlinedthat: “Somalia needs a constitution that reconciles people and brings the end of hostilities and ushers in peace and stability to the country.” Finally,he recommended that the membersestablish a goodworking relationship with various political organs in the country.

(ii)Consultation with the Prime Minister:On two different occasions the IFCC met with the then Prime Minister, H.E Mohamed Abdullahi ‘Formaggio’ at his office in Mogadishu. The PM pledged his support to the constitution making process and stressed the need to upgradethe awareness of the people through robust civic education to ensurethat the public has accurate information about the constitution-making exercise and their role in the process. He emphasized that people should be taught key constitutional issues and how aconstitution can impact their daily lives.

(iii)Consultation with the Ministries: IFCC continued to consult with a number of key

Ministries and Personalities within the TFG, such as the: Ministry of Justice and Religious;