Mogadishu - back then and now | City Gallery

[musa90]

Mogadishu 1984 video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSfJp-4AQWY

One of Africa's most beautiful cities at that point

[Kenguy]

Mogadishu from above.

image hosted on flickr

[CaptainX]

Probably all of you know Somalia is a country in the Horn of Africa that has had a civil war for 20 years now.

Most of you don't know Somalia was a huge vacation destination before the civil war and was known for its beaches, beautiful people, and its calm and austere nature.




Before 1991.






image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr





image hosted on flickr

[Rekarte]

Good photos!
Regrettably, what is happening in the country

[Matthias Offodile]

Thanks for shaing these wonderful pics. I am sure that very few knew about this.

Really, it is a full-blown tragedy to know what the country has turned into. Deplorable, in a word!

[nairoberry]

now im depressed

[Xusein]

Mogadishu was once one of the most beautiful cities in Africa, IMO. Now, it's not really even a city. Depressing.

[Skyprince]

Very beautiful and relaxing, just like Aden .

[Xusein]

^ Well back then, maybe?

[Skyprince]

for sure. I've seen several youtube videos of Mogadishu before the war and it was lovely, magnificent and relaxing , just like Aden & Salalah ( in Oman ) the two cities that I adore the most. How about your "hometown" Burao ?

[Xusein]

Compared to Mogadishu back then, it is a dusty sleepy town. Back then, it was the place to be in Somalia. Nice villas, great weather, great architectures and boulevards. Especially since the government put all their money there and neglected the rest of the country.

Burao is obviously much better than Mogadishu now, since they have rebuilt from the war and it is very safe, but I don't believe it was comparable to that city in the past. It will never be as big and as lively or as important.

Many other cities worldwide have been left to nothing due to war in the past and have rebuilt. Once they finally get their acts together and notice how pointless their fighting has been, I am sure the city will come back to life. Mogadishu is not dead, it is currently in a coma.

[CaptainX]

Originally Posted by nairoberry

now im depressed

Don't be. Even in War, total anarchy, and statelessness unprecedented in modern times, Mogadishu has tried to fight back a little. But Somalis are all over the world now and have fostered economic potential, once Somalia gets its act together the world will witness the Mogadishu and Somalia that rises out of the dust

Even in War, Mogadishu tries to fight back


SOMALIA NOW












Other parts of war-torn Somalia


Hargeisa







Bosaaso


image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr



Rest Parts of Somalia Now including villages built from scratch (remember there is no government, just civil society)

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr

image hosted on flickr



image hosted on flickr









Really opens your eyes doesn't it?

The thing most people do not know is that since 1994, most of everything you hear about Somalia was around Mogadishu, the rest of the country especially the north was peaceful and this is how Somalis rebuilt themselves while being ignored by the rest of the world. No government, not a single outside investment, no foreign banks to take loans from, no world bank and IMF to give anything, this is the result of pure capital, cold hard capital from the Somali people themselves.

However, without a government to provide basic services, and fighting heaviest in the early 90's, most Somalis fled to Kenya and then beyond to Europe, middle east, and north america.

But since then this is how Somalia continued to exist until 2005 when a political storm hit the country with an Islamic group taking over Mogadishu, Ethiopia invading and American bombing. The good thing is most of the country was spared fighting but unfortunately Mogadishu was re-destroyed and a new refugee crisis has emerged and Somalia's name has once again taken a hit and private development has ceased.

We are waiting to see what occurs now. But one thing is for sure, Somalia will be in a better position then before because it can no longer stay in the status quo of statelessness and the world has realized it, hence the re-engagement. Somalia has to come out of this episode with a government that works.

Then we, the Somali people, are really getting to work.

[StormShadow]

Ugandan peacekeepers

[Xusein]

Thanks for the update. Here are some pics that I found on Facebook.

Not sure when they were taken, although I don't think they are recent.

[Xusein]

Okay, it's obvious now that they are not recent. We truly are our own biggest enemies.

[Xusein]

[daniellle]

Will it ever end

[Ayatulahi]

....

[Ayatulahi]

- edit

[Matthias Offodile]

What a pity but TIA! Always expect the unexpectable...