Strip new Somali PM of his Norwegian passport’: Progress
Hassan Ali Khaire gave a video address after his appointment. Photo: Mraazaa/Wikimedia Commons
Norway’s anti-immigration Progress Party has called for Somalia’s new Prime Minister to be stripped of his Norwegian passport, arguing that a country’s leader should not have multiple nationalities.
Somalia’s new President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as Farmajo, announced Hassan Ali Khaire’s appointment over Twitter on Thursday, just a day after he was inaugurated.
Khaire, 46, who came to Norway as a refugee in the late 80s, has like most of his compatriots taken advantage of an exemption Norway gives Somalis from its ban on dual citizenship.
Mazyar Keshvari, the Progress Party’s immigration spokesman has argued that Khaire’s appointment as his country’s leader removed any justification for his dual citizenship.
“He should be deprived of his Norwegian passport,” he told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. “A country’s prime minister cannot have multiple nationalities. If conflicts occur, where they will their loyalties lie?”
The appointment of Khaire, who has degrees from the University of Oslo and the University of Edinburgh, marks a major step forward in Somalia’s attempt to establish a functioning government following 25 years of civil war and failed government.
Khaire, a former regional director for the Norwegian Refugee Council and later an executive with London’s Soma Oil and Gas, is seen as a capable administrator.
But Keshvari suggested it might be time to end the special treatment of Somali citizens, particularly those who take senior positions in the country’s emerging government.
“When someone has been appointed a Member of Parliament and even the Prime Minister of Somalia, we have to assume that they are Somali nationals,” he said.
“The fact that he has now become Prime Minister clearly shows that his need for protection should be seen as temporary and not permanent in nature.”
Dual citizenship is permitted by most countries in Europe, including Norway’s neighbours Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, but it is banned in Norway.
Hassan Ali Khaire gave a video address after his appointment. Photo:
Norway’s anti-immigration Progress Party has called for Somalia’s new Prime Minister to be stripped of his Norwegian passport, arguing that a country’s leader should not have multiple nationalities.
Somalia’s new President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as Farmajo, announced Hassan Ali Khaire’s appointment over Twitter on Thursday, just a day after he was inaugurated.
Khaire, 46, who came to Norway as a refugee in the late 80s, has like most of his compatriots taken advantage of an exemption Norway gives Somalis from its ban on dual citizenship.
Mazyar Keshvari, the Progress Party’s immigration spokesman has argued that Khaire’s appointment as his country’s leader removed any justification for his dual citizenship.
“He should be deprived of his Norwegian passport,” he told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. “A country’s prime minister cannot have multiple nationalities. If conflicts occur, where they will their loyalties lie?”
The appointment of Khaire, who has degrees from the University of Oslo and the University of Edinburgh, marks a major step forward in Somalia’s attempt to establish a functioning government following 25 years of civil war and failed government.
Khaire, a former regional director for the Norwegian Refugee Council and later an executive with London’s Soma Oil and Gas, is seen as a capable administrator.
But Keshvari suggested it might be time to end the special treatment of Somali citizens, particularly those who take senior positions in the country’s emerging government.
“When someone has been appointed a Member of Parliament and even the Prime Minister of Somalia, we have to assume that they are Somali nationals,” he said.
“The fact that he has now become Prime Minister clearly shows that his need for protection should be seen as temporary and not permanent in nature.”
Dual citizenship is permitted by most countries in Europe, including Norway’s neighbours Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, but it is banned in Norway.
Source:thelocal/Norge