Elders of dominant clan in Somali capital call on government

[Hiiraan boy]

MOGADISHU, Somalia: Elders of the dominant Hawiye clan in the Somali capital called Tuesday for the government to immediately release political prisoners who are in its overflowing detention centers, echoing the concerns of human rights groups.

Meanwhile, a grenade attack on a police foot patrol in Mogadishu's main market killed at least two civilians, witnesses said. A similar grenade attack in a southern district of the city wounded four people, including a senior police officer, said Abdullahi Mo'alim, the Dharkinley district commissioner.

Mogadishu has seen little peace since government troops backed by Ethiopian forces drove an Islamic movement out of the city in December.

The elders, who are predominantly from the Abgal branch of the Hawiye dropped one main demand of its rival Hawiye clan, the Habre Gedr, which called for the withdrawal of the Ethiopian troops.

One the two chiefs of the Abgal clan, Abdi Imam, told The Associated Press that Ethiopians "would only leave once Somalis agree on something."
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After two days of talks in the capital, the elders urged the government "to immediately and unconditionally release detainees."

"Government jails are overcrowding with prisoners mainly innocent people," said the elders in a statement issued Tuesday.

Last month, a Somali human rights organization accused Somali and Ethiopian forces of killing and arresting innocent civilians without proper judicial process in its hunt for Islamic insurgents. The government denies such accusations.

The government wants the Hawiye to attend a reconciliation conference scheduled for July 15, which is envisioned as a chance for elders to deal with clan grievances. The conference agenda itself falls short, in the view of some, because it will not address the makeup of the government or its policies.

A previously pro-government clan that controls the southern port town of Kismayo said Tuesday it would boycott the talks unless political issues are tabled, Abdinasir Hirsi Shaarib, the spokesman of the Marehan clan, said.

The Council of Islamic Courts ruled Mogadishu and much of southern Somalia for six months last year before being pushed out. But insurgents linked to the group have vowed to launch an Iraq-style guerrilla war unless the country becomes an Islamic state.

Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned against one another, defending clan fiefdoms. The government was formed in 2004 with the help of the United Nations, but has struggled to assert any real control.