SOMALIA: Mild stimulant drug 'khat' makes a comeback in Mogadishu, Somalia, just a few days after the ouster of Islamist hardliners who'd banned the traditional Somali past-time of chewing the narcotic leaf

Perhaps the most telling sign of Somalia's remarkable power shift is the rapid return to Mogadishu's streets of the leafy twigs known as 'khat'. Traditionally chewed by most Somali men, but outlawed since June by hardline Islamists, the mild stimulant reappeared within hours of Mogadishu's recapture by government forces last week. "We are not interested with the politics of those who were defeated or those who are in power today, whether its Ethiopians or Somalis, this is our government and no one should interfere because they will fail," said businesswoman Kawathar Mohamed Dahir. Normally chewed in the afternoons and evenings, the leaf releases a mild stimulant, although users later feel down. It has a central place in Somali social gatherings, and gives a livelihood to traders and importers. The Somali Islamic Courts Council (SICC) beat a hasty retreat from the capital and much of the south they had controlled for six months after a two-week war with government forces backed by Ethiopian troops. After defeating warlords from Mogadishu in June last year, the SICC had brought some semblance of order to one of the most dangerous cities in the world. This attracted support from residents who have known little but violent anarchy, bitter clan rivalry and squabbling warlords since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. But bent on introducing sharia (Islamic) law the Islamists angered Somalis, who are traditionally moderate Muslims, after they formally banned the popular khat in November. The movement also sparked protests in some towns after it introduced other hardline practices such as closing cinemas, prohibiting smoking and some music and enforcing dress codes. The Somali interim government, led by President Abdullahi Yusuf, had sharply criticised the khat ban. Trader Amina Hussein Duale said her khat business was slowly picking up although the volume of the stimulant coming into Somalia remained low because Kenya had a direct flight ban to the Horn of Africa nation. Direct flights from Kenya to Somalia must receive special government clearance. "This is our daily life, we have orphan children, they messed up our businesses when they banned sale of Khat in our country, we were left poor and we were very, very sorry for what happened," said Amina Hussein Duale. The reintroduction of khat was also good news for Kenyan peasant farmers who grow and export the crop to Mogadishu in small cargo aircraft. Khat is not widely used in Kenya. Hundreds of Kenyan khat growers in the eastern province of Meru, where many farmers have uprooted coffee in favour of the profitable khat, had held street protests, saying the Somali ban had denied them their livelihoods.

ITN Source | January 3, 2007

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