Propaganda in the War in Somalia
Encyclopedia
Disinformation
Disinformation is intentionally false or inaccurate information that is spread deliberately. For this reason, it is synonymous with and sometimes called black propaganda. It is an act of deception and false statements to convince someone of untruth...
and propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
tactics, classed as forms of information warfare
Information warfare
The term Information Warfare is primarily an American concept involving the use and management of information technology in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent...
, by various parties to shape the causes and course of the conflict. These include assertions of falsification of the presence or number of forces involved, exaggeration
Exaggeration
Exaggeration is a representation of something in an excessive manner. The exaggerator has been a familiar figure in Western culture since at least Aristotle's discussion of the alazon: 'the boaster is regarded as one who pretends to have distinguished qualities which he possesses either not at all...
or minimization of the casualties inflicted or taken, influence or control of media outlets (or shutting them down), and other informational means and media to sway popular support and international opinion.
Low literacy rates in Somalia, estimated at between 17% and 19%, also greatly impact the effect of propaganda within the country (see related article on literacy in Somalia).
Claims of propaganda
Referring to the UN Security Council resolution to support IGASOMIGASOM
The African Union Mission in Somalia is an active, regional peacekeeping mission operated by the African Union with the approval of the United Nations in Somalia...
, a Kenyan diplomat said, "Unfortunately, the [U.N.] resolution was sponsored by the United States, and it will be used by the Courts as a propaganda tool. But at least there's a window." Muslims also were considered to believe US claims of Al Qaeda activity was part of a propaganda campaign waged by Washington:
In her most blunt assessment yet, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer last week accused the Islamic council of being controlled by "East Africa Al Qaeda cell individuals."
Islamists dismiss such allegations as Western propaganda, though some concede that the council is struggling to strike a balance between its moderate and fundamentalist factions.
Al Qaeda, for their part, have not been silent on the issue. On July 1, 2006, a Web-posted audio message purportedly recorded by Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
urged Somalis to build an Islamic state in the country, and warned all nations that his al Qaeda network would fight against them if they intervened there.
External powers such as Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and Eritrea
Eritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
have also been accused of propaganda to drum up domestic support for the conflict. Eritrea even claims the assertions it has troops involved in Somalia is part of a disinformation campaign being waged against it by Ethiopia. Once the TFG and Ethiopian troops advanced into areas previously controlled by the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) , some ICU supporters who saw its defeat were alleged to use media propaganda claiming allegations of rape, robbery and massacre by the Ethiopian troops for the consumption of Human Rights organizations. Most of these media reports were alleged to be transmitted by Shabelle Media Network
Shabelle Media Network
Shabelle Media Network is a television and radio news organization. It was founded in 2002 in Merca, Somalia.-History:The Shebelle Media Network runs Radio Shabelle, which is one of the country's most respected privately-owned radio stations....
and other organizations controlled by the Habr Gidir Ayr sub-clan, which was the support base of the ICU.
Claims of troops and casualties
One of the greatest debates has been over the presence or quantity of troops of the various external powers involved. There were various claims of involvement of Ethiopia before its open admission of presence in Somalia, as well as speculation and arguments about the quantity of troops both before and after the admission. One claim by the ICU put the number of Ethiopian troops at 35,000. Ethiopia consistently insisted it had a "few hundred" advisors in the country until it increased its admission to "3,000 - 4,000." Independent claims put Ethiopian strength at anywhere between 8,000 and 20,000. Eritrea consistently denies presence of any troops in the country, though the TFG and Ethiopia both consistently accuse it of having up to 2,000 troops in Somalia. Other assertions include a wide range of other nations contributing troops, from Uganda to Islamic nations from which mujahideenMujahideen
Mujahideen are Muslims who struggle in the path of God. The word is from the same Arabic triliteral as jihad .Mujahideen is also transliterated from Arabic as mujahedin, mujahedeen, mudžahedin, mudžahidin, mujahidīn, mujaheddīn and more.-Origin of the concept:The beginnings of Jihad are traced...
have volunteered.
Casualty reports have also conflicted, where one side might claim to have lost only a few troops while the opponent claimed to have inflicted hundreds. The positions of advance have also been disputed, such as one report where the ICU claimed to be within 10 km of Baidoa; the government denied the ICU had advanced that far. Such claims and counter-claims have been common in the conflict.
Media manipulation and repression
Media manipulationMedia manipulation
Media manipulation is an aspect of public relations in which partisans create an image or argument that favours their particular interests. Such tactics may include the use of logical fallacies and propaganda techniques, and often involve the suppression of information or points of view by crowding...
, including the arrest of journalists (such as the September arrest of Radio Simba journalist Osman Adan Areys) and journalist union leaders, has been an issue in ICU-controlled areas of the country. The ICU also shut down East Africa (Mogadishu) and HornAfrik (Kismayo) radio stations.
On the other side, the TFG was accused of shutting down FM Radio Warsan in Baidoa in 2006 and again in January 2007 and arresting numerous journalists attempting to report on Ethiopian troops in Baidoa. In November 2007, the federal government and Ethiopian
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
troops were crawing down of freedom of press. http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=30931§ionid=351020501
On January 15, 2007, the TFG closed the radio stations for Shabelle Radio, Horn Afrik, IQK, and the television station Al-Jazeera in Mogadishu, without stating a reason. Later, it was said the radio stations had ties to the Ayr
Cayr
Ayr is a Somali clan, part of the Habar Gidir group .-Relations with the Islamic Courts Union:...
clan, which supported the Islamic Courts, and, according to government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari, had broadcast reports about government soldiers: "They said our soldiers were looting the markets and harassing people, which was totally untrue... They are using the media to undermine the government. They have been doing this for months." An employee of one of the broadcasters said the government "doesn't want free media that really give people the real information. They want distorted information... they don't want us to say the Ethiopian armies are supporting the government." The media ban was lifted the next day, on January 16.
Iran Media
The Iran state funded news agency, Press TVPress TV
Press TV is a 24-hour English language global news network owned by the Iranian government. Its headquarters are located in Tehran, Iran, with bureaux in Beirut , Damascus , London , Seoul and Washington DC ....
, has been accused of spreading propaganda by Ethiopians, using the term "intentional errors" to describe reporting on several issues from a pro-Insurgent point of view, a claim taken up by many media organizations in the west.