It's time Somaliland was declared independent by Jeremy Sare-

Jeremy Sare
guardian.co.uk,


While Somalia in the south is in chaos, the north is safe and democratic – yet seems invisible to the international community

The recent spate of piracy off Somalia's coast is yet another symptom of the country's collapse of stability and some of its peoples' intense desperation. Reports that the pirates or hijackers of the Ukrainian vessel had begun shooting each other formed a perfect microcosm of Somalia's brutal inner turmoil.

But in the northern half of the country, known as Somaliland, there is no such mayhem. Given its close proximity to the ravaged "failed state" of Somalia, it is astonishing that Somaliland should be stable, safe, democratic and largely crime-free.

To most people, Somalia is synonymous with bloody anarchy – simply one of the most dangerous places in the world. Only the few people with an active interest in the Horn of Africa seem aware of Somaliland's peaceful existence. The leading authority on the region since the 1950s is Professor Ioan Lewis – his book, Understanding Somalia and Somaliland, published in July, leads you to the conclusion. In comprehending the unending enigma of the Horn, one course of action is clear – the peaceful north must be allowed to declare independence from the endless chaos of the south.

That view is privately shared by many governments in Africa and in the wider world, but Somaliland's declared independence of 1991 is still yet to formally recognised by any nation and it remains an "invisible" country.

Diplomatic recognition is the perpetual obsession of the Somaliland government; without it, the country remains starved of foreign investment and aid. In all probability, it would take just one country, such the US, to move on the issue and the rest, with a handful of exceptions, would be bound to follow. However, none of the main players wants to be first, so they are engaged in a multiple "Mexican stand-off".

The few countries who openly oppose recognition (Egypt and Italy) argue "former colonial boundaries should not be redrawn". But Somalilanders agree. The country was a former British protectorate which became independent in 1960 and simultaneously joined in union with the former Italian colony of Somalia. By the mid-1980s the union was rapidly disintegrating; the mass bombing in 1988 of Somaliland's capital, Hargeisa, where 50,000 civilians were killed extinguished any thoughts of reconciliation.

The collective policy of finding a peaceful solution in the southern half of Somalia has not progressed even after 15 peace conferences in as many years. One Somali commentator called this apparently pointless exercise, "the policy of following a blind camel". A Senlis council report published in April says, "the international community needs to be reawakened from its torpor on Somaliland".

But Ted Dagne from Washington's congressional research service argues: "Somalia must develop a federal structure that gives regional autonomy." For the Somalilanders in the north this political theorem is plainly non-sensical. They see the failed union like two brothers who went into business together – while one brother was sober and hard-working, the other went off the rails, destroying the company's stock along with its reputation. Yet it is to the "reckless brother" the international community relentlessly turns to for a solution.

The Somaliland president Dahir Riyale Kahin visited the US in April in the hope of broadening support towards the goal of recognition. Somaliland has certainly passed any democratic test set by Washington in establishing a multi-party system, holding free and fair elections and upholding freedom of speech.

There is now a division of opinion at the top of the US government on this issue. Pentagon chief Robert Gates sees Somaliland as "an entity that works". But Dr Jendayi Frazer, second in command at the state department said: "The US will not take the first step to recognising Somaliland before the African Union."

A change of president in January may alter that position, or before that Bush may be persuaded that Somaliland recognition could be part of his "African legacy". The military see the strategic importance of having a base in the Gulf of Aden as a bulwark against al-Qaida and the deep-water port of Berbera could be ideal.

Ultimately, these are the factors which are likely to determine Somaliland's chances of gaining equal nation status under the UN and not its efforts, against the odds, to create a democratic and free society.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/08/somalia.africanunion

Somaliland: A Year From The Terror Attack

On Thursday, October 29, 2009, was marked the first anniversary of the suicide bombings in Hargeysa, which left twenty four people dead and more than thirty others wounded. It was the first of it’s kind in Somaliland since the declaration of it’s independence from the rest of Somalia in 1992.

On the 29th October 2008 at around 10am the first car bomb exploded at the UNDP office, after one minute another one exploded at the Ethiopian Trade office just behind the presidency and the third one exploded in about two minutes after that at the Presidential Palace.

The unimaginable has occurred in Somaliland and majority of the people were not aware of what was happening. The whole city was under panic as the smoke raised to the sky, human bodies flying over and the sound of the explosion filled the ears of the city residents. People started to move here and there, all curious and wanting to know what was taking place at their city and country.

In no time, it was clear that what has always been seen on the TVs has arrived home. Car bomb, suicide attack and the similar things that are happening in places like Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries are not that far from Somaliland anymore. The same thing happened in Somaliland that day while people were witnessing.

Hargeysa hospital was full of dead bodies and those wounded in the attacks. With it’s limited medical assistance and equipment it managed to give the first medications to the victims. Some were flown to Nairobi, Djibouti and other countries for medication. The rest were treated by Hargeysa hospital’s heroic physicians and nurses.

After all, it was clear that the Al-Shabaab group who is based in Southern Somalia was behind the attack. The suicide bombers were identified and some were arrested in connection with the incident while others managed to escape to Mogadishu.


Since that time, Somaliland security forces have been proactive in carrying out operations against suspected terrorists in order to prevent such incidents from taking place in the future. The whole population is know helping the authorities in order to prevent from another tragedy. Many were arrested in the last couple of months and some explosives were captured by the police due to police and citizens being proactive on the fight against terrorism.

The attacks carried a message for the world that can be summarized as:
• Anything that is happening elsewhere in the world can happen in Somaliland and in the Horn of Africa. The actions of Al-Qaeda in Asia can be transferred to other places in the world be it in Somaliland and other countries.

• Al-Shabaab is specifically targeting Somaliland this time. They believe the country is a partner with Ethiopia and United States in the war against terror.

• Destabilizing Somaliland is a great opportunity for Al-Shabaab to expand their operations elsewhere in the Horn of Africa where they can establish new training camps and carry out attacks against other countries like Djibouti and Ethiopia.

• Al-Shabaab is not different from Alqaeda when it comes to the objectives, operations and danger. In a recent video, the Al-Shabaab leaders were praising Osama Bin Laden as being a hero and promised to take his path.

One year from that catastrophe day Somaliland has learned to improve it’s security and to take stronger measures against any possible attack in the future. Somaliland leaders need to focus on the external enemies that the country is facing rather than the internal affairs that is currently consuming most of the country’s resources. There is also a need to focus on the educational system in the country. The youth must be given enough awareness against such extreme ideologies.

Today marks a very sad day for the Somaliland people. Many families will remember their loved ones who died during the attacks and wounded will also remember the horrible situation they faced on that day.

Source: Somalilandpress Team
http://www.somalilandtimes.net/sl/2009/405//35.shtml

Accepting Somaliland May Help Stabilize Africa's Horn

By Dr Charles Tannock

After almost two decades as a failed state torn by civil war, perhaps the world should begin to admit that Somalia – as it is currently constructed – is beyond repair. Some of the country, however, can meet at least a basic standard of governance. The northernmost region, Somaliland, situated strategically at the opening to the Red Sea and home to roughly 3.5 million of Somalia’s 10 million people, is more or less autonomous and stable. But this stability fuels fears that Somaliland’s people will activate the declaration of independence they adopted in 1991.

At the end of September, Somaliland will hold its third presidential election, the previous two having been open and competitive. Unlike many developing countries, it will welcome foreign observers to oversee the elections, though, unfortunately, most Western countries and agencies will stay away, lest their presence be seen as legitimizing Somaliland’s de facto government.

But Somaliland’s strategic position near the world’s major oil-transport routes, now plagued by piracy, and chaos in the country’s south, mean that independence should no longer be dismissed out of hand. Indeed, following a fact-finding mission in 2007, a consensus is emerging within the European Union that an African Union country should be the first to recognize Somaliland’s independence. A 2005 report by Patrick Mazimhaka, a former AU deputy chairman, provides some leeway for this, as Mazimhaka pointed out that the union in 1960 between Somaliland and Somalia, following the withdrawal of the colonial powers (Britain and Italy), was never formally ratified.

Ethiopia is the obvious candidate to spearhead recognition, given its worries about jihadist unrest within Somalia. Moreover, landlocked Ethiopia uses Somaliland’s port of Berbera extensively. Yet Ethiopia may hesitate, owing to its fears that formally recognizing Somaliland’s independence could undermine Somalia’s fragile Western-backed Transitional Federal Government (TGF). But, as Somalia’s new president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, is a former head of the Islamic Courts, Ethiopia may choose the current status quo in Somaliland over the dream of stabilizing Somalia.

The key regional obstacle to recognition is Saudi Arabia, which not only objects to the secular, democratic model promoted by Somaliland, but is a strong ally of Somalia, which is a member of the Arab League (despite not being Arab) and the Organization of the Islamic Conference. Saudi Arabia supports the TFG financially and politically. Saudi pressure on Somaliland has ranged from banning livestock imports between 1996 and 2006, to threatening to reject the Somaliland passports of Hajj pilgrims.

When Somaliland’s people vote at the end of September, they will not be deciding explicitly on secession, but their steady effort at state building does amplify their claims to independence. So, two years after Kosovo’s independence, and a year after Russian troops wrenched Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia, it is high time for diplomats and statesmen to provide some guidelines as to when and in what circumstances secession is likely to be acceptable.

Does any self-selected group anywhere have the right to declare independence? If so, the richest parts of any country could decide to go it alone, thus impoverishing their fellow citizens. Even if greed is ruled out as an acceptable motive, in favor of traditional ethno-cultural nationalism, a profusion of tiny tribal states might make the world far more unstable.

Moreover, does anyone, for example, want to see China return to the years of bloody warlordism of the early 20th century? Not likely. Thus clear principles are needed, as neither self-determination nor the inviolability of national borders can be treated as sacrosanct in every case.

So let me attempt to outline some basic principles: First, no outside forces should either encourage or discourage secession, and the barriers for recognizing secession should be set high. Secession is in itself neither good nor bad: like divorce, it may make people more or less content.

Second, a declaration of independence should be recognized only if a clear majority (well over 50 percent-plus-one of the voters) have freely chosen it, ideally in an unbiased referendum.

Third, the new state must guarantee that any minorities it drags along – say, Russians in the Baltic States, or Serbs in Kosovo – will be decently treated.

And fourth, secessionists should have a reasonable claim to being a national group that, preferably, enjoyed stable self-government in the past on the territory they claim. Nations need not be ethnically based; few are entirely. But most nations are unified by language, a shared history of oppression, or some other force of history.

On this, admittedly subjective, measure, Somaliland qualifies as a nation. It was briefly independent (for five days) in 1960 after the British withdrawal, before throwing in its lot with the formerly Italian south, a decision which its people have regretted ever since. In this brief period, 35 countries, including Egypt, Israel, and the five permanent members of the Security Council, recognized Somaliland diplomatically (interestingly, Israel was the first to do so).

If Somaliland’s imminent multiparty elections are reasonably fair and open, the outside world, including the AU and the United Nations, will need to reconsider its status, which has been fudged since the collapse of Siad Barre’s regime in 1991. All three of Somaliland’s parties contesting the forthcoming election are adamant about wanting recognition of the region’s independence, which was confirmed overwhelmingly by a referendum in 2001. So there is no question of one clan or faction imposing independence on the others.

Given the interests of all the world’s great powers in stabilizing the Horn of Africa, there does seem to be movement toward accepting Somaliland’s claims. An independent Somaliland could be a force for stability and good governance in an otherwise hopeless region. So the world may soon need to test whether the controversial principles it brought to bear in Kosovo have the same meaning in Africa.

Charles Tannock is spokesman on the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee for the European Conservatives and Reformists Group. THE DAILY STAR publishes this commentary in collaboration with Project Syndicate (www.project-syndicate.org).

Source: The Daily Star, Tuesday, September 15, 2009