Osman Aw Mohamud ( so, Cismaan Aw Maxamuud), more commonly known as Buurmadow is a well known clan elder from

Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...

Biography

Mohamud was born in 1965 in

El Afweyn El Afweyn ( so, Ceelafweyn, ) is a town in the Sanaag region of Somaliland. El Afweyn is a major historical town in western Sanaag region and sits at the major road connecting the cities of Burao and Erigavo. By road, the town is approximately 28 ...

, in the Sanaag region of

to a family of nomads, with his father being a livestock trader. He belongs to the Musa Abokor sub-division of the Habr Je'lo Isaaq. He finished secondary school in 1979 and joined the Somali Salvation Democratic Front, a rebel group with the goal of overthrowing

Siad Barre Mohamed Siad Barre ( so, Maxamed Siyaad Barre, Osmanya script: ; ar, محمد سياد بري; c. 1910 – 2 January 1995) was a Somali head of state and general who served as the 3rd president of the Somali Democratic Republic from 1969 to 199 ...

's regime shortly after. In 1984 he subsequently joined the Somali National Movement, another rebel group with a similar goal. After the conclusion of the war and throughout the 1990s Mohamud was a business man. In 2000, he was crowned a ''boqor'', or king in Somali. Mohamud is known for his efforts at mediating regional conflicts, particularly among clans in Somaliland. He earned fame as a mediator between

Abdullahi Yusuf Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed ( so, Cabdulaahi Yuusuf Axmed, ar, عبدالله يوسف أحمد‎; 15 December 1934 – 23 March 2012) was a Somali politician and former colonel in the Somali National Army. He was one of the founders of the Somali ...

, the first and founding president of the Puntland region in northern Somalia and Mohamud Muse Hersi in the dispute over the presidency in Puntland between 2002 and 2003. With the help of his mediation, a peace agreement that prevented Puntland from an all out civil war and which guaranteed its stability for the coming years was finally signed in May 2003. Mohamud has since then been considered a man with great influence and with good connections to the governments of both

and Puntland. On 17 November 2011, he was arrested in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), visiting his wife who resides there while returning from a pilgrimage to Mecca. The government never offered formal charges against him, prompting

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

to issue an alert on his behalf; the group later speculated that UAE had arrested him at the prompting of Somaliland authorities. Mohamud was released on 5 January 2012. Upon returning to Somaliland on 15 March, Mohamud was arrested at the airport in Hargeisa. After forty days of detention, the local government charged him with what it termed "anti-national activity of a citizen abroad”, "subversive or anti-national propaganda" and "continuing offence" in response to a comment he had made while in the UAE criticizing a trip to China by President

Ahmed Mahamoud Silanyo Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud "Silanyo" ( so, Axmed Maxamed Maxamuud Siilaanyo, ar, احمد محمد محمود سيلانيو) (born 1938) is a Somaliland politician who was President of Somaliland from 2010–2017. He is a long-time member of the g ...

of Somaliland. On 8 July, these charges were dismissed and replaced by a charge of "insulting a public official", of which the judge found Mohamud guilty. Mohamud was subsequently sentenced to one year in prison for defamation, according to local law based on the colonial period

British Somaliland British Somaliland, officially the Somaliland Protectorate ( so, Dhulka Maxmiyada Soomaalida ee Biritishka), was a British Empire, British protectorate in present-day Somaliland. During its existence, the territory was bordered by Italian Soma ...

penal code. Amnesty International responded by declaring Mohamud a prisoner of conscience, detained "for exercising his right to freedom of expression". On 18 July, the Somaliland government pardoned Mohamud, apparently in response to international pressure, and he returned to his home in Hargeisa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buurmadow Living people 1960s births Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Somaliland Place of birth missing (living people) Somaliland politicians Somalian prisoners and detainees Somalian people imprisoned abroad Prisoners and detainees of the United Arab Emirates