Somalia's Newly Inaugurated Parliament Holds First Session

VOA News
02 Sep 2004, 16:35 UTC

Somalia's newly inaugurated parliament held its first session Thursday, in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

Members nominated a temporary chairman, 83-year-old Hirsi Bulhan Farah. He will serve until the parliament elects a speaker.

All but a few of the 275-member assembly were present for Thursday's session. About 12 others have not yet taken the oath of office. Once fully established, the parliament is to elect a new president of Somalia.

The nation has been without a functioning central government since the overthrow of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. But factional leaders have been in Kenyan-sponsored negotiations for nearly two years, trying to set up a new government and put an end to fighting between warring clans.