profile Hawa Aden Mohamed When Hawa Aden Mohamed was a young girl, her father made a decision that would change her life, and through her, transform the lives of thousands of Somali girls: He sent her to school.

by: Clar Ni Chonghaile, in Galkayo Photo: F. Juez – July/2012

Offering the Gift of Knowledge and Hope

oday, Hawa Aden Mohamed is the formidable awareness classes for women, tailoring courses, vocational train- force behind an ambitious education programme for ing for boys, as well as food and non-food relief to the displaced. women and girls in Galkayo, a According to UNICEF figures, since GECPD town that straddles Somalia’s began its work, the percentage of girls re- semi-autonomous region of ceiving education in the area has risen from Puntland and the neighbour- approximately 7 per cent to 40 per cent, pro- ing Galmudug region. Hawa Aden pelling the Mudug district to the top spot for TThe small, dynamic woman, known as girls’ enrolment in Somalia. Mohamed Mama Hawa or Eedo (aunt) Hawa, has dedi- Born: Baidoa, Somalia, 1949. cated her life to helping Somalia’s women and More than a daughter, sister, or wife 1973-74: Teacher, training college in Somalia. girls, but says there is still so much to be done. 1974-87: Director of the Women’s Education De- War and traditional patriarchy have long partment at the Somali Ministry of Education. 1987- stifled women’s rights in Somalia, making “Without education you do not exist” 88: UNICEF consultant with the Somali Women education ever more crucial. Education can Organisation. 1988-90: Manager of national NGO Underlying all her actions is Mama Hawa’s Somali Women Concern, which she founded. 1991: provide women with the means to take care belief that education is at the root of eve- She fled Somalia, and settled as a refugee in Cana- of themselves, offer hope, and perhaps most rything, especially when it comes to girls. da. 1995: Returned to Somalia; est. Juba Women importantly, give them a voice. Education Centre (JWDC) in the port town of Kis- “I think not having education is a kind mayo. 1999: The militia invaded Kismayo, and de- A 2011 study by TrustLaw found that Soma- of disease … without education, you are stroyed the JWDC centre. She fled once more, this lia was the fifth worst place in the world to be unaware of so many things … without edu- time to Galkayo, Puntland, and established GECPD. a woman. Among the factors cited were high cation, you do not exist much – physically In the news: Hawa Aden Mohamed is the win- maternal mortality, female genital mutilation ner of this year’s Nansen Refugee Award. She is yes, but mentally and emotionally, you do the founder and Executive Director of the Galkayo (FGM), rape, lack of health care and economic not exist,” she says, her voice echoing in an Educational Center for Peace and Development opportunities, and poor access to education. empty conference room at a UN compound (GECPD). The Award Committee, in their state- “It is only because of my age that I can sit ment, said that Mama Hawa had been chosen in Galkayo, where blue plastic bags dot the because “All of her work contributes to an environ- with men and talk freely, because I am not the trees and bushes like flowers. ment where displaced and returnee women and daughter of my father, I am not the sister of In 1999, defying local opposition, Mama girls can seek, defend and advocate for their fun- my brother, I am not the wife of my husband,” damental rights.” Hawa co-founded the Galkayo Education Mama Hawa says, adding that young girls must n n I think not having education Center for Peace and Development (GECPD). be taught to speak up, in their own names. is a kind of disease … without Today, the GECPD is at the heart of life in Galkayo, providing oppor- “That in itself is empowerment … when [the men] say ‘you are tunities and hope to both residents and thousands of displaced per- the sister of …’ you can say, ‘no, I am so-and-so. I am not only the education, you are unaware sons driven here by Somalia’s cyclical conflicts and regular droughts. sister.’ How does that happen? It is through education.” of so many things … without Record number of girls attending school Inspired by the death of a sister education, you do not exist much. The GECPD offers free education to young girls, literacy and Mama Hawa’s own story offers the perfect example of what edu-

20 perspective NO. 03.2012 NO. 03.2012 perspective 21 HOPE THROUGH SKILLS. At the GECPD, young people displaced by war and drought can improve their PEACE-MINDED. The slogan on the wall behind her reflects Mama Hawa’s sentiments. Armed conflicts have marked great A FORMIDABLE FORCE. Mama Hawa has long been an advocate for women’s rights, but says there is lives through practical training and education. parts of her life, and she has herself been a refugee. still much to be done. She enthusiastically describes her plans for the future: among other things, she wants to open a professional college for women.

cation can do when combined with an indefatigable spirit and a father, who worked for the government and also owned some small it the Somali Women Concern, and says it was the first NGO in hind, left everything behind.” She ended up back in Nairobi and desire to serve one’s country. It is also a tale of family support. businesses, decided to send her to school when she was about 10. Somalia. But after Siad Barre was overthrown, she fled, first to immediately began planning her return. Born in central Baidoa in 1949, Mama Hawa had six brothers It was an unusual thing to do in Somalia in the late 1950s, but Kismayo, Somalia’s southern port city, then to Kenya, and from This time, she decided to go to Galkayo—her husband was work- and four sisters, but her eldest brother died as a young adult. Her when elders or friends criticized Aden “Amey” Mohamed, he there to Canada. ing in the same region at a research institute, but it was a risky mother passed away when she was a child, and she also lost a sister, brushed them off. Mama Hawa freely admits her experience as a refugee was choice. Not everyone approved of the GECPD. Fatouma, who died from an infection after she was circumcised “My father was special when it comes to girls,” Mama Hawa very different from the horrors experienced by the thousands of aged about seven. says. “It was very unusual. I remember the elders, his friends, Somalis, who over the past year or Unwanted and unpopular Her sister’s death inspires Mama Hawa’s continuous battle against asking, ‘why do you want to send your girls to school?’ And my so have left their homes to escape “We had a very difficult time with the com- FGM. An estimated 95 per cent of Somali girls are subjected to FGM, father used to say, ‘leave my girls alone.’” either the war against Islamist mili- n n When you are munity. We were not known … I got called all and most suffer the most extreme form of cutting, or infibulation. Her father, who died after a stroke in the mid-80s and was bur- tants or hunger caused by drought. a refugee … you sorts of names,” she laughs, listing some of the “Sometimes, when I talk about FGM, the hair stands up on my ied in Baidoa, did not explain his reasoning, and the young Hawa “Your rights as refugees were rec- criticisms: that she was a Christian, a feminist, a arms … My sister died from FGM,” Mama Hawa says. “How a father, did not think of questioning him – he was her father and this was ognised [in Canada]. You were fed, understand the word, woman not worthy of Islam. especially a father who knows, who can read, who can understand, what he wanted. clothed and sheltered,” she says. you understand being “The mosques spoke of us, said we were devils can allow his daughter …” Her voice trails off. “I really cannot say.” Today’s refugees “are in the bushes, … but we just kept quiet. And then afterwards, it Mama Hawa does not hold her sister’s death against her own Travelling the world no food, no water, no shelter.” a refugee. I feel very calmed down, when they saw how many, almost father. He was not involved in the decision, and the aunt who or- Mama Hawa left Baidoa to continue her schooling in the capital However, the very experience of sad when I see the 250 women, were taking classes in adult educa- ganized the circumcision, did not know any better. Mogadishu – the first step on a journey that would see her travel having to leave her homeland has tion. We had built around 12 schools.” “The word ‘why’ was not there,” she says simply. the world as a member of the Somali government, but also as a marked her. displaced. The GECPD did not have to make its case any- refugee, fleeing the chaos that erupted after military dictator Mo- “When you are a refugee … you more. Its students did. FGM – illegal, but far from eradicated hamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. understand the word, you understand being a refugee. I feel very There has been progress – some forms of FGM are now banned Mama Hawa trained as a teacher in Mogadishu, before being sad when I see the displaced,” she says. “We always say there is From ‘devil’ to saviour in Puntland, and a new constitution passed by Somalia’s Transi- awarded a scholarship to study in India. She spent four years in hope, we should not lose our hope, our torch of life. We say this, Mama Hawa has now extended her work to boys. She provides tional Federal Government in early August outlaws the practice Udaipur and a further four years in New Delhi, focusing on nutri- but in reality, it’s very difficult, especially for women and children.” carpentry and welding classes, and in 2010, she opened a Youth all together. It will, however, take both time and effort to do away tion and child development, before returning home and taking a Resource Centre for Peace to keep young boys off the streets and with this ingrained tradition. job in the Ministry of Education. She eventually rose to head the Returned, only to be displaced again prevent them falling into the clutches of pirates or armed groups. “The stigma is still there if you have not undergone FGM. There department of women’s education. Mama Hawa has tried to keep that torch blazing. In Canada, she She is now accepted by most of the community – a transforma- are girls, very beautiful, who have not done it, but we tell them, earned a living as a social worker, but in 1994 she decided to return tion that amuses her. ‘keep quiet, don’t say it,’” says Mama Hawa. A refugee to Somalia -- her husband had gone home and although she was “You are a witch in the beginning and now you are Mama, or She says men need to fight FGM too, but they dismiss the problem After 15 years at the Ministry of Education, she resigned. She comfortable, she felt she could do more with her life. Eedo,” she laughs. as a woman’s issue, a view she finds “saddening and disheartening.” wanted “to be free”, and went into the clothing business with a It was not an easy homecoming. She went first to Kismayo and Each day brings new challenges. Now Mama Hawa and her “God created us, we are what we are, and there is nowhere in sister. They brought cloth from India, Thailand and elsewhere, set up the Juba Women’s Education Centre, but was forced to team are teaching girls about Somalia’s new constitution, so that our holy book, or holy Koran, where it says that you have a bad and made clothes. “It was booming,” she says, somewhat wist- leave when the town became a battleground for rival clan-based they know their rights. Their education, and her own, continues. part and that part has to be cut. No.” fully. militias. She remembers the day she was evacuated by Médecins “Education never finishes. Everyday you will see something new. An unusual father At this time, she also started a non-governmental organisation Sans Frontières-Belgium – the 11th of June, 1999. Myself, I am not well educated. I cannot say everything. Education Mama Hawa’s life-long love affair with learning started when her to provide education and skills-training for women. She named “I even came without my glasses,” she laughs. “I left them be- is always a continuous learning process. Education is everything.” n

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