By Hassan M. Abukar

Ambassador Mohamed Osman Omar, who had represented Somalia in many countries including Yugoslavia, India, Iran, China, Tunisia, Tanzania, and Sudan, died in London this past weekend at the age of 77.

He was also the head of protocol in the Foreign Ministry, and played an instrumental role in the Organization of the African Union summit that was held in Mogadishu in the early 1970s.

Ambassador Omar was one of a few Somali diplomats I had the honor of personally knowing. His son, Jeylani, and I attended the same elementary and intermediate school, Moallim Jama, and were classmates. Jeylani and I lost touch after our school days, but in 1976 our two families became neighbors in the Hamar Jajab District. By that time, Jeylani and his younger brother Osman were in India for vocational training. My sister was also a diplomat and hence was a colleague of Ambassador Omar in the Foreign Ministry. She had done a small favor for his family while he was stationed abroad, and my family was amazed that Ambassador Omar’s family never forgot it. On holidays, Ambassador Omar’s family would bring us cake, Halwo, and other Reer Hamar pastries as a gesture of appreciation. This continued for many years, even after my sister had been posted abroad.

I finally met Ambassador Omar in Cairo in the late 1970s while he was posted in Tehran. I felt fortunate to have spent two days showing him the city during his short vacation. He was sociable, witty, gregarious, and full of vigor. He spoke several languages, had a sharp mind, and employed brutal honesty when he spoke. Occasionally, he talked to me in English. I was then fresh out of high school and had just arrived from Mogadishu. In other words, my English was not as sharp as his. Like a school teacher guiding his pupil, the ambassador corrected me every time I made a grammatical mistake. He was relentless and became animated in teaching me proper way of speaking.

Ambassador Omar is one of the few former government officials who have authored books chronicling their experience in government. His memoir, The Road to Zero: Somalia’s Self-Destruction (1992), was powerful and bold. He dedicated it to the Somali people and, perhaps, summarized the country’s path to self-destruction with the Somali aphorism: “Hal bacaad lagu lisay” (A camel milked into the sand has all its efforts dissipated). Until his sudden death, Ambassador Omar was active in various intellectual forums expressing his views and imparting knowledge to the old and the young. Unlike many former Somali officials who have yet to share with the Somali people their extensive government experience; Omar stands tall in putting his story in print.

I would like to conclude this obituary with a political joke that Ambassador Omar told in his book, The Road to Zero. During the last days of Siad Barre’s rule, an interesting conversation took place between the president and his Reer Hamar barber.

Barber: Aabe [Father] Siad, may I ask a question, Sir?

President: Yes, what is it?

Barber: What is all the excitement in the countryside?

President: You Hamaris never understand anything. It is just the regional games. What else did you think?

Barber: Oh, interesting. Then aren’t the finals going to be in the capital?

Indeed, the barber had foresight and the “excitement” in the countryside finally reached Mogadishu dislodging Barre and his 21-year-old regime.

May God have mercy on Ambassador Omar.

Hassan M. Abukar
Email:abukar60@yahoo.com .

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Hassan M. Abukar is a political analyst.