The Cost of Dictatorship: The Somali Experience

Born in the rural countryside to camel-herding parents, Jama Mohamed Ghalib struggled after his parents' death to make a future for himself & set against his personal story the whole sad history of the Somali slide into dictatorship, famine & chaos, is revealed. After independence, his position in the police gave him extraordinary insights into corruption in the young Somali democracy, then in the grip of continuing struggle with Haile Sellassie's empire & the French imperial authorities of Djibouti. His principled reputation as police commander in the north brought him to the notice of Major-General Mohamed Siad Barre, when the latter overthrew the government & seized power in 1969. Eventually rising to Minister of the Interior, from the vantage point of an insider, Jama describes the erosion of human rights & the tragic degeneration of his country into dictatorship & consequent rebellion. He observed the ill-advised invasion of the Ogaden in 1977-78, the massive flows of refugees & the efforts of honest Somalis - albeit clan-based - to restore freedom, orderly administration & good relations with the outside world. Long since removed from power, Jama secretly recorded atrocities, assisted the rebels & began writing this book. Lilian Barber Press, Box 232, New York, NY 10163. $29.95, 0-936508-30-2 & paperback $14.95, 0-936508-32-9 plus $2.00 postage & handling.Ghalib, Jama M. is the author of 'The Cost of Dictatorship: The Somali Experience' with ISBN 9780936508306 and ISBN 0936508302.