Mogadishu: Beneath the Ruins, Life Goes on
In Mogadishu, the areas of the city that had been formerly in the hands of the Shabab have been destroyed very much, yet people have not stopped living because of the war.
People moved to safer areas, sent their children to school there, and moved back when the Shabab retreated. Homes and businesses have been rebuilt. Public buildings have not been rebuilt, mostly. Schools have been given cosmetic repair; sort of to make them just usable. More needs to be done, but at least this is a beginning.
I went to my former school in Shibis district, Mogadishu, to see how things were, given the destruction the school had suffered when the Shabab were being pushed back from their strongholds in the neighbouring district, Bondhere.
The school is severely destroyed, with many classes rendered unusable. The front part of the school looks like an image from Berlin in WW2.
The school is close to Jubba Hotel, from where the allied forces pushed northwards towards Manabolyo road junction. Some people say the school may have been a Shabab post that day.
I went to see the school in the early morning to catch the students at assembly. These students are a bit late for the assembly – like I always was.
The old gate is also missing. I am told a tank shell hit it, rendering it useless. It is now replaced by a white corrugated iron sheet.
After asking for permission from the new headmaster, I took pictures of students at the morning assembly.
Some students prepare interesting facts, stories, etc. And they sing the national anthem.
The headmaster told me that some students study in the afternoon because of lack of sufficient classes. Also, some students attend two other branches of the school in other districts. These were first opened when the school and students had been displaced. In Mogadishu, life does not stop for war; it simply relocates.
As I left my old school, feeling sad about how scarred it now looks, I saw the smiling faces of late students. The school looks horrible from the outside, but as long as students look forward to going there and get their education, looks don’t matter.
Notice how the roofs of most buildings are shiny. Yes, brand new. The mortars rained in this area like madness.
The Niqabis are also represented in the late crowd (in case you are wondering; those holes on the wall are caused by mortars that landed almost exactly where the girl is walking on, probably months ago):
And so, life goes on in resilient Mogadishu.
Click here to view these and more pics
Mohamed M, FD blogger from Somalia
