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| Somaliland- a myopic and
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Following the Berlin conference in 1884 by the European powers in which the African continent was divided up among themselves, perhaps no people have suffered so badly as the Somalis from that conference. The Somali homeland was divided into: British Somaliland, French Somaliland (now Djibouti), Italian Somaliland, and then at a later stage the British had given away a part of the Somali homeland, to the Ethiopian king as a gift. That part is what is now known as the Somali region of Ethiopia and the pillage of the Somali homeland did not stop there. It was just in 1963 when the British gave another Somali territory to Kenya after it became independent on December 12, 1963. This took place despite a Referendum held earlier on October 5, 1962 under the auspices of the British Government and supervised by an independent Commission composed of a Nigerian Judge, G.C.M. Onyuke, a Canadian Major General, M.P Bogert and P.A.G. Field, Secretary. And for the record, we have to remember what Prof. I.M Lewis (British anthropologist who is paradoxically now one of the staunchest voices for Somaliland and dismemberment of Somalia into clannish enclaves) wrote about this referendum: “The Commission found that the Somalis who they estimated made up 62 per cent of the NFD´s population ` almost unanimously` favoured secession from Kenya with the object of ultimately joining the Somali Republic. (1)
In the above-mentioned balkanisation process of the Somali homeland, some of the Somali clans found themselves partitioned across the arbitrary colonial boundaries, in a similar way as the Germans found themselves divided by the notorious Berlin wall. But unlike the Germans who had a physical wall, Somalis had moved freely across these artificial borders and had no impedance to crisscross within their homeland.
When the former British and Italian Somaliland gained independence on 26 of June 1960 and first of July 1960 respectively, the people from these two parts had simply united by default, and understandably reinstated two parts of their common homeland to form the present day Somalia. This was the first fulfilment of an almost century old Somali dream, an aspiration to end the colonisation and artificial boundaries put between the Somalis.
Nine years after the independence, gained from the British and Italian powers the civilian president of Somalia, Mr Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke was assassinated on 15th October 1969 and this event had only precipitated a pre-planned coup d´etat headed by Mohamed Siyad Bare, which took place on 21 October 1969. This military takeover was generally welcomed and blessed in the beginning by the Somalis as the prevalent gist of the civilian government, headed by Mr Mohmaed Ibrahim Egal (a northerner) was marred by corruption and institutions based on cronyism. Unfortunately, no sooner the military regime had consolidated its power than, its true colours have emerged and had become one of the most dictatorial regimes in Africa.
Bad governance, rampant corruptions and atrocities committed against all Somalis regardless of their clan and regions have created Somali opposition groups of which the most important were SSDF, SNM, USC and SPM. All these opposition groups were exclusively clan based and also had two more distinct properties in common: First- they had no viable political vision except to topple Siyad´s regime on tribal basis, second: They were all based in Ethiopia, a traditional foe of Somalia, thus bequeathing Ethiopia almost a deity-wish and much sought–after opportunity to manipulate Somalia and its crisis up to this present day.
Finally in 1991 the USC, through popular uprising had driven out Mohamed Siyad Bare from Mogadishu, the capital city and this rendered the central government to collapse, and the whole nation to be in chaos and transform the country into a marauding militias and warlord’s habitat.
In the wake of power vacuum created by the collapse of Somalia’s central government, members of the Somali National Movement (SNM), who exclusively hailed from one clan in the north-west of Somalia and who waged guerrilla warfare, from their bases in Ethiopia against the central government, have unilaterally declared the North-West region of Somalia as an independent state called “Somaliland.” This unilateral declaration had taken place in Burco in May 1991.
For the last 16 years advocates of this rebel entity have been embarking on an inexorable crusade, lobbying the international community for recognition and despite this no single country among the international community has recognised this clannish administration. On the contrary, the international community firmly supports Somalia’s unity and if any thing, sees the break-up of this homogeneous nation along clannish lines as myopic and nincompoop’s wishful thinking. Far from reconciling with the reality the secessionists seem to have lost their sense of right and wrong and are chasing an international recognition which remains as distant as ever and as a last resort they are employing all means of tricks, dependent on a hidden enemy’s sleight of hand.
In recent years the secessionist’s campaign for recognition has shifted to involve some foreign personalities, who are lured to be surrounded by vast “tapestry of lies and ludicrous claims “ and this is, to have an invented cause be promoted in the international arena. These foreign personalities have three well-defined strands (i) some are mere predators who are supporting the secessionists purely for pecuniary reasons. They can be under direct pay-roll of the secessionists or under the cover of so-called NGOs: who impede Somalia’s unity and stability by stoking Somali crisis (ii) There is another group, mostly British MPs and octogenarian remnants of the British Empire who hanker for a return to their by-gone colony (iii) There are also a misled group who act like parrots that readily utter whatever fed by the secessionists.
An article by Prof. Peter J. Schraeder posted in Somaliland.org and other Somali websites, on 2006-12-20, entitled: Why the United States should recognize Somaliland’s Independence is classic case in point. In this article Prof.Schraeder strongly urges the US government to recognise the afore-said clan entity. His argument is based on the secessionist’s standard templates of already failure-doomed claims. I am not sure where exactly in the above groups, Prof. Schraeder fits, but one thing is certain: Given the paucity of facts in the article’s content, it is crystal clear that the secessionists have fed the professor their propaganda and he instantaneously spelled out these claims well before completing the process of swallowing.
To debunk the Professor’s argument, which is a replica of the secessionist’s stereotype justifications for an international recognition, let us have a look into the genesis of the entity that he wants to be recognised by the US:
Declaration of Somaliland’s independence:
The secessionists and their cohorts like Prof. Schraeder keenly talk about declaration of Somaliland in Burco, in May 1991. For the information of Mr Schraeder and the like, it must be noted that during the collapse of the central government, the traditional leaders of different clans from the north of Somalia as well as the political wing of the SNM came together in Burco in 1991. The objective of the gathering was to have a conference where the attendees would discuss ways of restoring peace and stability in their respective regions. But unfortunately on the last day of the conference, and contrary to the good faith of the attendees of the conference, an armed mob of the SNM who were in a state of rage surrounded the conference venue and demanded that SNM politicians and the clan elders in attendance, to declare the northern regions as a separate and independent nation. Having the top echelon of the political wing of SNM being frightened of their supporter’s perturbations due to the lack of any viable political vision and the fact that some SNM members were ultra-chauvinistic and for a long time dreamed to have a separate homeland, where their clan can be the top dog, the armed mob at the conference compelled the conference to adopt this unilateral declaration. So, one can verily conclude that this unilateral declaration had nothing to do with all other clans.
Secessionists love to revive the British rule:
A more palatable claim which is a thing of the past but the secessionists amicably recall every now and then, is that Somaliland was once under the British rule, and had its own borders, and therefore must be recognised. This is in line with the professor’s argument in which he states as: “It is important to reiterate that Somaliland’s current boundaries are those of the original British Somaliland Protectorate created in 1884 and the independent country recognised by the international community beginning on June 26, 1960, and therefore have a solid legal basis under international law”
Sadly enough, this kind of statement must be incongruous to the very international law referred by the professor. How can any decent person, who is privy to the international law would, in the first place, legalise colonial borders, which became obsolete and ceased to exist with all the illegalities of a colonist power. It is obvious that the professor like the secessionists, as they see it, history of what they call Somaliland begins from the date of British colonisation and ends on the date of its independence. They are conveniently ignoring the `Union of Somalia Law No. 1 of 1960` which overrode all the laws before June 26, 1960. Contrary to the Professor’s claim not a single country recognised Somaliland during the four days between its independence and 1 July, 1960, as the Somaliland’s Legislative Assembly (which comprised of all the clans in the north) had, prior to Somaliland’s independence informed the UN and international community that Somaliland would unify with South Somalia and consequently shall be internationally recognised as a unified state – the Somali Republic. So, unless the Professor is speaking through his hat, one clan has no solid legal basis to abrogate the act of union (Atto di Unione) signed by the governments of North and South.
As for those who long for the British rule, they must understand that visualising and reviving the British rule is a down-right insulting to the many Somalis who had been humiliated under occupation. Instead, we have to enshrine and glorify freedom and unification brought by, thanks to those who resisted the colonisation and all its attributes. It is an irony that Burco, which is boasted and swanky as being where “Somaliland’s independence” is regained, was the hub of the anti-British rule spearheaded by men like Haji Farah Omaar and Sheikh Bashir. It is also an irony that those who obdurately love to turn the clock back and base their justification for secession, on the by-gone British rule are the offspring of those who suffered most, and been subjected to all kinds of humiliation by the British colonisers. One does not need much effort to find out the scale of humiliations and degradation inflicted to Somalis in North-west of Somalia when the British conquered what some call now Somaliland – historical facts speak for themselves.
This following picture shows a British lady who refuses to walk on her own feet when the British landed at the shores of “British Somaliland”. (2) It is seen here that she is being transported on the backs of Somali men.
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British Somaliland, 1912 |
Atrocities committed in the North of Somalia:
This is another justification which the secessionists often publicise to win the foreign hearts and minds to sell their cause. No honest Somali would deny or dispute that atrocities were committed against the Northerners by the dictatorial regime. But what is deplorable is to assume that atrocities were committed only against the northerners and other atrocities and crimes committed against Somalis from different parts of Somalia are not important. What is equally deplorable is to keep under wraps the crimes committed by the SNM against the innocent civilians and instead fabricate and invent stories implying that all the Somalis were against the northerners, when it is well-recorded that the real culprit was the previous dictatorial regime of which the current Somaliland leaders and most of the staunchest secessionists were part and parcel of it. Prof. Peter. J Schraeder has indicated in his article that 50 000 northerners were killed by Siyad Bare who was from the South. Such figures that often go exceedingly over the top and other fabricated stories will not draw the slightest attention from the international community for the latter realises these, as a propaganda tools from one clan that day-dreams to have their own pretend state in Somalia.
Somaliland has a legal case like Gambia and Eritrea and must be recognised:
Any one making an analogy between Somaliland’s claim to independence with Eritrea, Gambia, East Timor, former Yugoslavia and Soviet Union must be lacking the history and information on ethnicity make-up of these nations and their countries. For the record let us look at those countries:
The Somali case, at present, or as it was during the colonisation of Britain and Italy can not be compared to those countries that have disintegrated. A good analogy would be the case of former East and West Germany, but undoubtedly Prof. Schraeder has once again conveniently ignored this fact.
A national Somaliland referendum:
The professor has again shot himself in the foot if he believes that the so-called referendum was fair or reflected the real situation in “Somaliland”. Saying that in May 2001, a national referendum was carried out in what used to be British Somaliland and the number of ballots cast was 97%, simply does not hold water. The professor must have been wrongly told that “Somaliland” is a high-tech society like Sweden.
For one thing, more than one million of around a three million population of “Somaliland” hail from Sool, Sanag, Cayn and other parts of this territory where people do not identify themselves with the secessionist’s dream. Secondly, the so-called referendum as well as elections are only confined in Hargeisa and very few other dwellings, which are controlled by the secessionists. And therefore, the international community is very much aware of the so called “democratically elected government institutions, elections and referendums” are bogus and carried out on clan basis and it is only few misled foreign people like Prof. Schraeder who are making a mountain out of a Molehill.
Conclusion
By heeding to the secessionist’s propaganda and making a plea for recognition to Somaliland, Professor Schraeder has made himself to be among a dozen or so individuals who are morally corrupt. These include Mr Matt Bryden, the director of the Horn Africa desk of the International Crisis Group (ICG), an NGO which conceals his diabolically designed motives, and Professor Iqbal Jhazbhy of South Africa who is under the pay-roll of Somaliland administration. These people do not really care whether a Somali is from X-land or Y-land but they are clandestinely working to dwarf our nation and fragment our country so that Ethiopia’s long standing wish can be materialised.
In the view of the above, and before we become obliterated as Somalis, we urgently need our common sense to prevail and our conflict be solved in an atmosphere of dialogue and reconciliation without manipulative hands. I am sure many Somalis from the north and south of Somalia are now increasingly becoming aware of the prevalent dangers, threatening our unity and existence of our nationhood and that is why in the superbly organised conference, held in Washington DC on the 2nd of December 2006 by “Northern Somalis for Peace and Unity” (NSPU) was hugely attended by those who hail from all parts of NW Somalia.
Thanks to the Somali men and women who stand for: One country, one people, one nation.
By: Mohamed Ali Mirreh
E-Mail: mmirreh@hotmail.com
(1) Conflict resolution, Jim B. Smith1993, Nordic Inst.
(2) British Somaliland, Ralph E Drake-Brockman, 1912
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