Somaliland National Election Commission and the three political parties agreed to hold Parliamentary and local council elections in 9 months. The agreement between the three political parties of UCID, Waddani, and Kulmiye follows a series of meetings to set the election date for the long-overdue parliament and local council elections. The last time parliamentary elections were held in Somaliland was in 2005.
According to a statement released by the National Elections Commission, one of the main tasks in the critical path to free and fair elections is voter registration.
There have been multiple breakdowns in negotiation between the political parties on holding elections on time and the selection of the current members of the National Election Commission. The chairman has been a lightning rod for opposition parties who accused him of close ties with the incumbent party of Kulmiye and an active campaigner for President Bihi’s election in 2017.
The NEC and the 3 national political parties( WADDANI, UCID & KULMIYE) finalized today their on going discussions regarding the time for the overdue joint elections of the House of Representatives and local govnts. They agreed elections to be held within nine months -May 2021. pic.twitter.com/R2NRbquv30
Social media is saturated with posters of candidates for parliament and local councils across the country.
Multiple term extensions and failure to hold parliamentary and local council elections have been an issue for Somaliland’s reputation as a budding democracy in East Africa where free and fair elections are rare.
In a scathing letter written to United States Secretary of State, Mr. Michael Pompeo by 20 members of the United States Congress expressed grave concern over the deteriorating security situation in Ethiopia.
The strongly worded letter addressed to Secretary Pompeo begins with “We write to convey our serious concerns about the recent unrest in Ethiopia. Reports of security force abuses, ethnic and religious violence, and the departure from democratic norms are alarming and have led to a more dangerous and unstable environment.” and urges him to engage with the Ethiopian government to prevent violence and protect civilians.
Ethiopian musician Haacaaluu Hundeessaa poses while dressed in a traditional costume during the 123rd anniversary celebration of the battle of Adwa in Addis Ababa. Photograph: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters
The latest spat of unrest that claimed the lives of hundreds of people in ethnic violence and security forces crackdown follows the killing of popular Oromo singer Hacaaluu Hundeessaa on June 29th in Addis Ababa.
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The Ethiopian Prime Minister Mr. Abiy Ahmed was widely viewed as a reformer for his early steps of freeing political prisoners and working with regional leaders including Ethiopia’s long term enemy Eritrea on peace and reconciliation. As a result of his efforts, Mr. Abiy was awarded Nobel Price in 2019.
Areas of concern of Ethiopia’s current trajectory includes the regression of democratic values including the indefinite delay of elections and the imprisonment of political opponents.
The letter signed by the 20 congressmen to Secretary Pompeo questions Ethiopia’s long-term viability as a US strategic partner and an ally “An unstable Ethiopia with violence, ethnic division, and politically motivated prosecutions will be a less reliable partner for the United States and will fail to project our democratic values. Ethiopia’s current situation will create lasting and harmful instability if it is not addressed, undermining its future and U.S. interests.”
Ethiopia is one of the largest recipients of US aid in Africa with nearly a billion dollars of year allocated.
The letter urges Secretary Pompeo to work with the Ethiopian government, as well as political opposition and local activists, to call for and advance respect for basic human rights and democratic principles in Ethiopia, including by encouraging the following steps:
Dialogue with all political parties on a plan for rescheduling elections, and renewed efforts to ensure a free and fair pre-election environment;
An open internet and full freedom of speech for citizens, opposition parties, and the press; • A revision to the state of emergency measures to reflect international standards, to safeguard against abuse and ensure that they are time-bound and in force only as absolutely necessary;
• Respect for due process and a fair and fully transparent judicial process for all those arrested during the recent unrest;
A transparent and independent examination of human rights abuses reported by leading international groups and the media;
A denunciation of ethnic and religious violence across the country, including those who may have used the murder of Hacaaluu Hundeessaa as a pretext for targeting those from other communities;
A transparent and independent investigation into the murder of Hacaaluu Hundeessaa.
In response to the Somali Federal Government’s condemnation of the bilateral ties between Somaliland and Taiwan, Somaliland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said “The government of the Republic of Somaliland sees Somalia’s reaction toward Taiwan’s Representative Office in Somaliland as “astonishing and mystifying”.
In an interview with the BBC Somali Service, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Yasin Hagi Mohamoud Hiir (Faratoon) politely called Somalia’s territorial claim over Somaliland as delusional.
As Taiwan officially known as the Republic of China opened its Representative Office in Somaliland, The People’s Republic of China and the Federal Government of Somalia have once again condemned the diplomatic ties between the two unrecognized republics!
The latest round of condemnation of the bilateral ties between Somaliland and Taiwan comes a day after Taiwan officially opened its Representative office in Somaliland.
The high profile ceremony was attended by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the two countries. President of Taiwan Ms. Tsai Ing-wen has thanked the government and the people of Somaliland for their warm welcome.
Somaliland government has so far rebuffed efforts by China to prevent it from establishing ties with Taiwan in exchange for a liaison office of its own in Hargeisa and development package.
This is the second time that China and Somalia have condemned the bilateral ties between Taiwan and Somaliland on grounds of territorial integrity of Somalia and violation of the One-China policy.
Although Somalia in the past has been very focal about Somaliland’s dealings with foreign nations, it has been powerless to stop Somaliland from clinching direct foreign investment such as the DP World’s Berbera port expansion project and maintaining ties with many countries.
Somalia is experiencing a tense political and security spasms following the auster of the Prime Minister, the potential extension of the current government’s mandate and a sharp spike in Al-Shabaab terror attacks around the country. The deadline to appoint a new prime minister has expired.
Although the United States of America has spent billions on Somalia in development and security, Somalia’s alignment with the People’s Republic of China goes against the Taipei Act. The Taipei Act was passed by the United States as a direct response to China’s effort to isolate Taiwan diplomatically.
It is unclear if China will try to exert pressure on Somaliland from neighboring countries such as Djibouti, Ethiopia, or Kenya.
The most likely candidate might be Djibouti according to regional analysts due to the high Debt-to-GDP Ratio and the overwhelming reliance of Somaliland’s telecommunication sector on Djibouti.
Very few academics or policy makers are talking about the impact of climate change on heritage. Yet heritage is essential for social wellbeing, for identity creation, for safeguarding traditional knowledge and livelihoods and for sustainable development.
The conversations taking place are mainly on the effects of climate change in wealthier countries. One recent study estimates that only 1% of research on the impacts of climate change on heritage is related to Africa. Yet climate change has already resulted in loss and damage to African heritage.
Three of us are contributing authors to the Africa chapter of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change’s sixth assessment report. Our research for the report has drawn our attention to the total lack of quantifiable data on the impacts of climate change on heritage in sub-Saharan Africa. So we teamed up with a climate scientist with years of experience working on the continent and set about highlighting the threat of different kinds of climate change and climate variability to heritage in Africa.
Our research is conclusive. Without significant intervention some of Africa’s most important heritage will be lost as a result of the direct and indirect impacts of climate change over the coming decades. There is a need for research into the impacts of climate change on different forms of cultural heritage in Africa, and to highlight the possible harmful effects these losses will have on society more generally.
The next ten years will be a critical period in which research agendas can be developed that will have a practical application for the management of African heritage in the face of climate change.
The bad news
Coastal erosion and sea-level rise have damaged African World Heritage Sites. The Roman city of Sabratha on the Libyan coast and the colonial forts along the coastline of Ghana are slipping into the sea. Natural sites are also under threat. Relict Guinean coastal forests have largely disappeared, partly through coastal erosion.
By 2050, Guinea, The Gambia, Nigeria, Togo, Bénin, Congo, Tunisia, Tanzania (including Zanzibar) and the Comoros will all be at significantriskfrom coastal erosion and sea-level rise.
The view from the heart of Stone Town in Zanzibar. ALEXIS TOUREAU/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Villages and towns associated with the historic Swahili Indian Ocean trading networks are all forecast to suffer significant loss from sea-level rise and coastal erosion in the coming decades. These are almost all located on the coasts of Mozambique, mainland Tanzania, Kenya, the Comoro Islands, Zanzibar and Madagascar.
A host of unique heritage locations are built on coral, sand or mud – all at elevations less than 10 metres above sea level. These include Ibo Island in the Quirimbas Archipelago in northern Mozambique, Shanga and Pate islands in Kenya, Pemba and the ruins of Kaole in Tanzania, Mahilaka in Madagascar and Suakin in Sudan. A combination of underlying geology and low elevation make these sites extremelyvulnerable to coastal erosion.
In addition, low-lying World Heritage Sites that are densely populated, such as Lamu Old Town and the Stone Town of Zanzibar, are located in regions of Africa predicted to be most severely impacted by shoreline retreat.
Inland of the coast, the World Heritage mud-built town of Djenné, on the Inland Niger Delta, is suffering multiple threats, exacerbated by climate change. Rock art sites in the Golden Gate Highlands National Park in South Africa are experiencing biodeterioration due to microbial activity arising from increased humidity.
But African heritage is predominantly lived heritage, which presents unique opportunities for heritage conservation.
Why a site like Djenné matters
Take Djenné in Mali, a town composed almost entirely of earthen buildings. Because of its unique vernacular architecture and its iconic mosque, it was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1988. There has been a conspicuous degradation of its mud architecture. The reasons are complex but climate change has definitely worsened the process of loss.
A 2019 aerial view shows the Niger river and the historic Malian city of Djenné. MICHELE CATTANI/AFP via Getty Images
The lowering of the high water stand of the Inland Niger Delta has meant high quality mud has become scarcer. Mud bricks must be sourced further afield at greater cost, which locals simply can’t afford. The result is buildings being repaired in cheaper materials such as concrete and fired clay bricks.
Traditional building methods are often perceived as being at odds with modernity and globalisation. But earthen buildings such as those at Djenné emit fewer greenhouse gases, consume less energy and maintain a high level of internal thermal comfort. They are more sustainable against climate change than brick and breeze block construction.
Some hope
Heritage has unseen potential. Traditional custodianship and community engagement will be at the forefront of a sustainable future.
The good news is that five years ago the World Heritage Convention adopted Unesco’s World Heritage and Sustainable Development Policy. The policy is built on the principles of human rights, equality and long-term sustainability. It’s potentially groundbreaking for African heritage, which has been beset by a colonial legacy of centralised heritage management.
It represents an opportunity for the restoration of traditional custodianship and local community engagement in heritage management. As heritage is reinserted into local lifeways, communities are able to reengage with traditional ways of doing things, which are often much more in tune with the environment. In this, African countries have the opportunity to be at the forefront of sustainable development.
And in our intergovernmental climate report, the Africa chapter has for the first time included heritage in its assessment. It identifies heritage as critical for a sustainable future.
Resetting the research agenda towards a sustainable heritage in the face of climate change will not only enable reengagement with the past, but will help mitigate the impacts of climate change beyond heritage.
The Ministry of Education and Science of Somaliland has announced the result of the high school final exams and according to a brief statement on the Ministry’s Facebook page from 184 around the country. Out of 10,537 students, none have failed, where only 84 students were absent.
Students from Togdheer and Awdal regions of Somaliland had the best scores in the country, despite their combined total students being less than Maroodijeeh.
The results published by the Ministry of Education show a disproportionate number of students performing poorly especially from Maroodijeeh region the largest school district in Somaliland almost half of its 4213 students had grades of C-, D, and D+.
Exam results by grade/regionExam results by region/grade
Due to the COVID-19, schools in Somaliland were closed since March 19th, 2020 as part of the efforts to prevent the spread of the virus and education programs were telecast on Radio and Television.
The Ministry of Education and Science did not administer an exam to 8th-grade students and instead has evaluated that their past score average. It is unclear if all students will be allowed to advance to secondary school.
In addition, the exam for the high school seniors was conducted in one day, instead of the traditional weeklong schedule. Students had to sit for 10 exams back to back in one day. According to the Ministry, this was part of its efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
No actual data was shared by the Ministry to clean how specific schools have performed, particularly public vs private schools. It is unclear how these exam results will affect student’s university and college entrance in Somaliland or overseas.
The Minister of Education and Science Hon. Ahmed Mohamed Diriye Egeh did not respond to request to provide more information about the exam results, to what extend did COVID-19 school closure affect the results and if he considered the telecast of education programs on Radio and Television was an effective substitute for actual classrooms.
A video of the destruction of an iconic tree on a cliff in Daalo mountain has emerged online. According to the video, the tree was removed by members of Somaliland’s armed forces to ensure the safety of the public who may want to take photos on the tree.
It is unclear if other measures to prevent the public from accessing the tree and the dangerous cliff were considered before its removal.
Daallo mountain is a lush national park located north of Erigavo in the Sanaag region of Somaliland and is home to rare plants including the endangered Gebel Elba Dragon’s Blood Tree.
According to media reports, the Minister of Environment and Rural Development, Hon Shukri Haji Bandari stated that her ministry will be taking legal action against the troops who destroyed the tree.
According to sources from Somaliland government, The President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi met with the Chinese delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the China’s Ambassador to Somalia Mr. Qin Jian who was in Hargeisa since August 1st.
Ambassador Jian whose efforts to meet with President Bihi were unsuccessful was reinforced by high-ranking officials from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on late Tuesday.
According to sources privy to series of meetings that took several hours, the Chinese delegation has presented a development package including road and airport infrastructure and the establishment of Liaison Office in Somaliland to President Bihi and members of his cabinet on the condition that Somaliland immediately halts its bilateral ties with Taiwan.
Sources add that President Bihi has rejected the delegation’s conditional offer and informed them that contrary to their request to cut ties with Taiwan, Somaliland is in fact working to strengthen diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
The meetings were attended by members of President Bihi’s cabinet including Dr. Saad Ali Shire the Minister of Finance Development, Hon. Mohamoud Hassan Saad (Saajin) the Minister of Commerce and Hon. Jama Egal the Minister of Minerals Resources and Energy.
The People’s Republic of China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has strongly opposed the establishment of bilateral ties with Somaliland.
The Somali government has reaffirmed its commitment to the One-China Principle and condemned Taiwan’s act that has undermined Somali’s sovereignty & territorial integrity. We appreciate that. The Democratic Progressive Party’s separatist activities will never succeed. pic.twitter.com/r9tiPZXzPY
President Bihi has asked close confidants to explore ways to strengthen Somaliland’s bilateral ties with Taiwan and explore the possibility of mutual recognition between Taiwan and Somaliland and close examination of the TAIPEI Act.
Although China has been successful in the past in preventing Taiwan establish bilateral ties with other African nations, this is the second time Somaliland is rebuffing China’s efforts to prevent bilateral ties between the two countries.
According to sources from Somaliland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, a delegation from the People’s Republic of China is due to arrive in Hargeisa as early as tomorrow. The Chinese Ambassador to Somalia Mr. Qin Jian has been in Hargeisa since August 1st.
Although no information about the agenda or details on the members of the delegation, sources indicate the delegation consists of high-ranking officials from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and will be arriving from Beijing.
It is unclear if President Bihi who previously declined to meet with Ambassador Jian will meet with the delegation from the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Somaliland has rebuffed China’s previous attempt to dissuade it from establishing bilateral ties with Taiwan.
The Somali government has reaffirmed its commitment to the One-China Principle and condemned Taiwan’s act that has undermined Somali’s sovereignty & territorial integrity. We appreciate that. The Democratic Progressive Party’s separatist activities will never succeed. pic.twitter.com/r9tiPZXzPY
China who claims Taiwan as part of its territory has made its position clear on Somaliland’s independence and together with Villa Somalia has registered strong opposition to the establishment of bilateral ties with Taiwan.
Somaliland is currently looking to strengthen its ties with Taiwan and is reviewing options for mutual or unilateral recognition.
Efforts to reach Ambassador Jian and the Chinese Embassy in Somalia for comments on the delegation was unsuccessful.
According to sources, the President of the Republic of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi has instructed close confidants to explore ways to strengthen Somaliland’s bilateral ties with Taiwan and explore the possibility of mutual recognition between Taiwan and Somaliland.
Sources who spoke to Somaliland Chronicle on condition of anonymity added that President Bihi has ordered a close examination of a law recently passed by the United States Congress known as the TAIPEI Act, and to immediately provide him with recommendations, and risk analysis on the pros and cons of unilateral recognition of Taiwan.
As a response to China’s aggressive policy preventing other countries from recognizing or maintaining diplomatic ties Taiwan, the United States Congress unanimously passed the Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative or the TAIPEI Act on March 26, 2020.
Section 3 of The TAIPEI Act explicitly encourages diplomatic and bilateral ties with Taiwan and discourages countries from any actions that undermine Taiwan.
President of Taiwan Tsai Ing-wen TAIPEI Act sponsors U.S. Senator Cory Gardner
Great to see #Taiwan stepping up its engagement in East #Africa in a time of such tremendous need. #Taiwan is a great partner in health, education, technical assistance, and more!https://t.co/wVej4KieZ4
Previously, the Whitehouse Security Council has praised Taiwan’s engagement in East Africa after Taipei and Hargeisa established bilateral ties on July 1st, 2020. Somaliland has had a string of diplomatic successes recently due to its strategic location in the Horn of Africa where Ethiopia and Egypt are now competing for closer ties with Somaliland.
Taiwan is China's inherent territory. China exercised effective jurisdiction over Taiwan since the China's Ming and Qing governments hundreds of years ago. Every inch of China's territory can't be discarded. if is not China's territory, China doesn't want an inch. #Somalia
Somalia’s opposition to Somaliland – Taiwan’s diplomatic ties and alignment with China, puts the United States Embassy in Somalia and Ambassador Donald Yamamoto who has thrown his full support behind President Mohamed Abdillahi Farmajo out of step with the rest of the United States government and specifically with TAIPEI Act.
Chinese Ambassador to Somalia Mr. Qin Jian
The Chinese Ambassador to Somalia Mr. Qin Jian arrived in Hargeisa yesterday for the third time this year and according to sources, President Bihi has rejected meeting the Chinese Ambassador who remains in Hargeisa. It is unclear if the latest visit of Ambassador Jian to Hargeisa is related to Somaliland’s potential recognition of Taiwan. Somaliland has previously rejected China’s demand to cut ties with Taiwan.
It is unclear how or who allowed the Chinese Ambassador to Somalia to return Somaliland after the statement from Villa Somalia reiterating China’s commitment to the territorial integrity of Somalia.
In addition, China and Somalia recently reached an agreement for joint patrols of Somaliland’s territorial waters.
Currently, fifteen countries around the world recognize Taiwan and after Eswatini, Somaliland would be the second country in Africa to officially recognize Taiwan.
