By: Latifa Yusuf
HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – The Somali speaking pen organization is celebrating its 40th anniversary.
The Head of state H.E Ahmed Mahmud Silanyo is to participate in activities commemorating the 40th Anniversary of Somali-speaking Pen organization in Djibouti to where he was warmly received by his host president Ismail Omar Guelleh.
While Addressing the nation at Hargeisa’s Egal international airport before departure this afternoon the president who once again commiserated with families of the three citizens who died during election violence last week, urged citizens to remain calm thus maintain security while the election body sorts out the disputed council election results.
Dr Silanyo who received an official invitation from the president of Djibouti Mr Ismail Omar Guelleh is accompanied by the 1st lady Ms Amina Weris, Dr Mohamed A Omar, Ms Zamzam Aden and Mr Ali Elmi Gelle the foreign, Education and Communication ministers respectively.
According to the minister of foreign affairs Dr Mohamed A Omar the president and entourage which departed on a private Cessna plane from Egal int Airport late afternoon shall be in Djibouti for two days at the Kempinski Hotel where it shall undertake various meetings in the sidelines of the Pen festivities.
Though the Somali-speaking Pen-SSP existence of 4 decades is to be commemorated the main purpose of the week long (17th -22nd Dec) meeting is to evaluate trends that have taken shape in the Somali language both oral and written.
With the large pool of prominent Somali linguists and poets in attendance recommendations from the five days of brainstorming shall be adapted by the SSP an organization that has over the years taken charge of promoting the proper usage of Somali language following the collapse of the Siyad Barre regime that funded the Somali language academy.
The presidential entourage was seen off by the vice president Hon Abdirahman Sayli thus join other dignitaries in Djibouti who include the president of Somalia Mr Hasan Sh Mahmud, the minister of culture of the Somali Zone five administration region of Ethiopia among others.
