A fatal car accident involving a people carrier and a truck transporting the popular narcotic of Khat have claimed 15 lives and wounded another 11 around the port city of Berbera.
The dead and wounded have been transported to Berbera General Hospital and the death may raise due to the nature of injuries according to medical staff currently treating the wounded. Most public hospitals in Somaliland do not have the capacity to deal with multiple shock trauma patients.
Reports from the scene of the accident state the majority of the dead were the passengers of the Toyota Noah minivan are Ethiopian nationals heading Bossasso, the regional capital of the Puntland State of Somalia.
According to multiple media reports, the eight-passenger seat Toyota Noah minivan was carrying at least double its intended passenger count.
Authorities rarely enforce vehicle gross weight in Somaliland and many third world countries and it’s common to share a road with vehicles loaded with twice the cargo and passengers they were intended to carry.
Trucks transporting Khat are legendary for reckless driving and routinely travel at a high rate of speed and have been involved in multiple fatal accidents in the past.
Somaliland Minister of Transportation and Road Development Hon. Abdullahi Abokor Osman
In a wide-ranging interview with Saab TV, the Minister of Transportation and Road Development of Somaliland Hon. Abdullahi Abokor Osman spoke about his ministry’s effort to curb the rate of accidents by targeting three contributing factors, driver expertise, a vehicle’s road-worthiness and road conditions and added that they are now working on tightening driving issuance while not hampering the sector.
The Minister added that in the first six months of 2019 the Ministry of Transportation and Road Development has achieved a 9.3% reduction of road accidents compared to 2018 and that is largely attributable to tightening of driving license issuance.
The Ministry of Transportation and Road Development did not respond to a request for data supporting the numbers cited by the Minister in his interview.
Minister Abokor did not mention that Somaliland is the country that has right hand side roads with majority of its vehicles are also right handed.
Despite the Minister’s claim of 9.3% reduction of traffic accidents and road fatalities in Somaliland, today’s accident is a reminder that automobile accidents is the leading cause of death in Somaliland.
There has been no official statement from the government of Somaliland on the cause of the accident.
The Auditor General of the Federal Government of Somalia Mr. Mohamed M Ali has uncovered large scale corruption in his latest financial audit report for 2018.
The Auditor General, in the Basis for the Adverse Opinion section of the audit report, stated that external donor contributions were understated or misreported to the treasury by nearly half of the 38 million dollars largely contributed by the European Union and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
3.7 of the 17 million donated by the European Union ended up in offshore accounts according to the Auditor General “Whilst the European Union made a total of US $ 17,004,816 as external assistance to the Federal Government of Somalia for the year ended 31 December 2018, only a total amount of US $ 13,266,667 was disclosed in the annual financial statements because the SFMIS captured the latter amount whilst the balance of US $ 3,738,149 was in an offshore bank account.”.
The Saudi contribution of 20 million dollars seems to have fared the worst, in terms of misappropriation where almost 67% of it ended up in offshore private accounts.
The Auditor General’s report did not say what the 18 million dollars that ended up in offshore accounts were used for.
This report directly contradicts many statements by representatives of the United Kingdom Ben Fender and others who have praised Somalia on its financial transparency and anti-corruption posture to work towards debt relief and attracting more aid dollars.
United Kingdom Ambassador Mr. Ben Fender with Somalia’s Prime Minister Mr. Hassan Ali Khaire
One of my top priorities is to help Somalia towards debt relief. Here’s why it matters so much. Honoured to co-host an event with PM @HassanAKhaire last week to make the case. The FGS, FMS and partners all need to join hands to make this happen – but every Somali will benefit. pic.twitter.com/piGNUbP4zB
One glaring omission from the Auditor General’s report is the contribution by the United States which is considered one of the largest donors to Somalia and has multiple ongoing projects it has been funding through its aid agency USAID. It is unclear if the United States directly contributes cash to Somalia’s Federal Government.
According to the Washington Post, the United States has contributed a total of 441 million US dollars to Somalia in 2018.
The Auditor General also produced two separate Compliance Audit reports for security and non-security related sector in which most of Somalia’s Federal Government entities such as the Ministry of Defense, Somali National Army and NISA did not bother to submit annual accounts for auditing in 2018.
Aniga iyo wafdi aan Hogaaminayo ayaa maanta soo gaadhnay magaalo madaxda Koonfur Galbeed ee Baydhabo si aan qaybgalo shir sanadeedka Xeer Ilaaliyeyaasha dalka oo halkaas ka dhici doona. Sidookale, waxan u kuurgali doonaa xaalada Gobolka iyo ta Garsoorka Koonfur Galbeed gaar ahaan pic.twitter.com/mhLPF41xFY
Somali government officials frequently travel overseas and even to other towns short distances from the Capital Mogadishu on private jets due security concerns.
Somalia Finance Minister Abdirahman Duale Beileh confirms the country bought the new embassy building in Washington D.C. from Columbia government for $4.3 million. Locating at Wyoming Avenue, the new Embassy was inaugurated on Friday evening by @M_Farmaajopic.twitter.com/H8vmeDjqVr
Somalia’s President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo has inaugurated a 4.3 million US dollar embassy in Washington DC while it has a little over 5 million budgetted for all embassies for 2019. It is unclear if subsequent Auditor General reports will shed light on source of the US embassy funding.
The Mayor of Hargeisa Mr. Abdirahman M. Aideed “Soltelco” has embarked on a media blitz to explain away why Somaliland’s capital city of Hargeisa is a disaster zone and blamed everyone but his utter incompetency.
The Mayor seems to suffer from a delusion that he is convinced he has accomplished more than any other mayor in the history of Somaliland. Perhaps including Eng. Mohamed Hashi Elmi.
Former Mayor of Hargeisa Eng. Mohamed Hashi Elmi.
In an interview with Horn Cable, the Mayor explained all the ills of Hargeisa are someone else’s fault, mainly the citizens. He thrown in a zinger involving cats and car bombs in Mogadishu.
On social media, many allies and defenders of the Mayor are asking those criticizing him “instead of taking a photo of a pothole why not fix it? It’s your city too”. There is something wrong with this nonsensical defense. It is not the job of an ordinary citizen to stop traffic and get the road construction material and crews and start doing the job of the Mayor and the local government. This is what they have been elected to do and this argument defeats the purpose for their existence.
This is as if the police told the people of Hargeisa they are too busy but to go ahead and solve their law enforcement needs themselves. Makes no sense.
In a different promotional video, the mayor claimed that the Hargeisa Local Government, under his leadership has built 274 kilometers of new roads in Hargeisa. That is roughly the distance between Hargeisa and Burao when traveling through Berbera and Sheikh.
We suspect that the Mayor is lying outright or has lost his tenuous grasp on reality or there is a remote chance the 274 kilometers of road are made of a new invisible material. What is more alarming is his blissful ignorance of how dangerous the road conditions are in Hargeisa. Especially in the current rainy season.
Flooded center of Hargeisa, between Gargaar and Jirdeh hotels
The Mayor has clearly no shame, for if he did, he would have gracefully resigned but that brings another interesting question; how does the President see all of this? Could he be equally clueless? Could it be possible that the Mayor has campaigned for President Bihi’s election and is being rewarded with zero accountability?
President Muse Bihi Abdi with Mayor Soltelco and his deputy during his presidential campaign in 2017.
We don’t know, but the Mayor reminds us of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic tale of THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES. No one seems to bother telling him he is criminally incompetent.
Somaliland Chronicle is responsible for the content of this editorial.
Stability, strategic location, government pro-Investments
policies are good Ingredients to attract foreign investors. Horn of African
Country (Somaliland, separated from the Former Somali Republic after the
collapse of the union in 1991). In the three past decades it made notable
progresses in many fronts. Stability, Democratic Process, Rule of Law and
Economic dev’t.
Twenty years ago Somaliland was a country emerging from a
civil war, there were hardly good schools, hospitals and parts of the country
was not easily accessible. Access to clean water, health and education were
difficult. Today, Somaliland is an stable, democratic and prosperous country,
its economy is growing very fast thanks to a booming private sector. The
private sector in Somaliland is the fastest growing private sector in the
region. Nearly more then quarter century on from the collapse of the “Somali
Republic and The Re-Birth of Somaliland Republic”, Somaliland has more going
for it than any of its neighboring countries i.e Yemen, Somalia. The future of
this young country is bright and foreign investors are beginning to see that
Somaliland is potential destination for their investments.
The fundamentals (to attract FDI) are certainly in place in Somaliland. Somaliland is a country with a population of 3.5 million people, half of whom are a working age and two thirds are under 35 years old. The young generation are relatively well educated and ambitious. Country’s GDP is growing at 3% a year1 and is expected to continue doing so for the coming few years. In large the growth is driven by the unregulated economy (private sector) and increasing inflow of foreign direct investment, notably the heavy investment from Dubai for their operation in Berbera Port, Corridor and Berbera Airport. The return of diaspora population is also having a positive impact in the local economy. Diaspora population not only brought back capital but they are creating new opportunities and transferring of the much needed skills that was missing in the country in the past. The recently restored livestock export can boost the economy significantly.
Following the improvement of the Berbera Port Capacity, the goods flow from Berbera to mainland Ethiopia has increased exponentially, as a result more jobs are likely to be created, other businesses will see the benefits from the increased economic activity (movement of goods and people), government itself will see increased revenues which it can use to invest in the public infrastructure. DP world invested heavily in Berbera port in the hope that the already booming and purchasing power of Ethiopian population is continuing to increase in the foreseeable future. Ethiopian economy is not showing any sign of slowing down, and if the country avoids internal political instability, it will need more corridors as Djibouti is almost operating at its maximum capacity and the demand for more imports is becoming inevitable as more and more Ethiopians start seeing increasing income which will increase the demand of goods. This presents huge opportunities for Somaliland and its foreign and domestic investors.
The other attraction for foreign investors considering to
invest in Somaliland is the, unsurprisingly, the cheap labor. The main
attraction is however the geography. Somaliland is located Ethiopia’s eastern
flank; it has access to that country’s massive consumer market. With the long
coastline, too, Somaliland has the potential to create smaller and functioning
ports which can serve fisheries industry. Somaliland’s infrastructure is
relatively poor but it is recently improving, Berbera Corridor, Erigavo Road,
Rehabilitation of Burao-Berbera Road, Potential Djibouti-Borama Road, Telecom
is owned by the private sector and access to internet and telephone is not
expensive compare to the other countries in the region. The number of flights
is growing, the upgrade of Berbera International Airport has been completed, and
the capacity of Egal Airport has also improved in the past years and so the
number of airlines and flights. Internet usage and access is the highest in the
region, energy is relatively expensive but solar energy infrastructure is
becoming widely available and if this trend of using alternative energy
continues its likely the energy costs will decrease.
Another Somaliland’s attraction is the relative political stability. Somaliland has no external debt which is a positive thing, but there are areas of concern which can put off foreign investors namely, currency stability, inflation. The domestic consumption is also growing as the rate of urbanization is growing rapidly, estimated figure is putting urbanization rate at 50%. For investors watching Somaliland, key development will be the completion of the Berbera Port Upgrade, Berbera International Airport, Berbera Corridor And The early successes of the new investments i.e Cement Factory in Sahil Region, And Other Middle Size investments made in recent years, if all the above ventures fair fairly then it’s inevitable we will see more and more inflow of foreign direct investment in Somaliland in the coming few years.
About the Author Awale Shirwa served as Minister of Planning and National Development for the current government, he studied development economy with the focus on Sub Saharan Countries., holds Msc Degree From University of London and MA Degree from University of Surrey. and is currently Trade and Investment Analyst, Commentator and Horn Of Africa Economic Development Specialist.
Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of Somaliland Chronicle and it’s staff.
According to multiple sources President Bihi is finalizing a major reshuffle of his administration. If it materializes, this would be the third reshuffle President Muse Bihi Abdi since taking office nearly two years.
Both allies and opposition figures have criticized the President for picking too many political neophytes with little to no expertise in their respective portfolios.
Important positions, such as the heads of Somaliland’s Military, Police forces, and Judiciary have remained unchanged since their nomination by former President Ahmed Mohamoud Silanyo.
General Abdillahi Fadah, General Nuh Tani
General Nuh Tani
Somaliland Chief Justice Hon. Adan Haji Ali
Health issues have led the former Minister of Health to resign, where current the Minister of planning have been on medical leave only days since his appointment.
According to multiple administration officials who spoke to Somaliland Chronicle on condition of anonymity, the upcoming reshuffle would affect many ministries including Interior, Education, Youth and Sport, Livestock and Fisheries.
Though we have been unable to confirm directly from the Presidency, sources have pointed out that this could be the biggest reshuffle of President Bihi’s presidency and may include changes to Military, Police and Judiciary.
Sources add that President Bihi may also restructure some ministries such as the Livestock and Fisheries Development.
Some Chinese firms had invested mainly in Africa’s ongoing development but Choqqin Foreign (International) Construction Corporation (CICO), a state-owned firm exploited the legal loopholes and played by the playbook until caught red-handed. This company has been mired in notorious dealings and contracts for road constructions across East Africa; most of its contracts were done through backdoor channels. Its first project deemed a lawful but ever since, any following contracts they won were scandalous and a breach of the contract processing laws. They were accused of bribery of the award-contracting committee but fell short of feeding their road construction workers afterwards.
22
August 2017, the African Development Bank ADB delisted Chongqin International Construction Corporation (CICO) the
bank’s investigation found that the Chinese company engaged in fraudulent
activities in regard to the ADB –funded projects. In their operational resume,
the company falsely claimed of fitting work experience to the project
requirements to desperately win the contract an experience which later turned
out to be nonexistent. The construction by this firm was suspended for a year.
This
company involves in series of financial scams and cooked their books disregarding the investment
laws in East Africa. A falsely established firm known as EUTAW received a road
construction contract but immediately sub-contracted 100% of the works to CICO
which was against the law; the firm may change their name to evade a detection
of the real notorious name firm. This company has been blacklisted for
committing financial crimes regularly. Anyone complicit in the Ponzi scheme was
persecuted.
The
Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) of Uganda
accused this firm of tinkering and asked for the persecution of the contractor for the violating of the laws.
After
all, violate any laws in any the country they operated for financial greed, the
Chongqin International Construction Corporation (CICO) is said to get attained
in the finalists list in Somaliland road construction bid. Independent
observers and foreign investors keen on Somaliland upcoming business
opportunities are worried that this unethical firm may apply the same deception
techniques to win the project of Hargeisa Bypass Road (Route 200). Already the
company has been shortlisted for the contract based on operational expertise
that didn’t materialize followed a humble scrutiny of the google obvious data.
The investigative expertise of Somaliland Award-contract Committee is limited
if not virtually nil.
This
company also mistreated its workers in so many ways.
Trademark
East Africa should aware of the corruption practices and deal with it swiftly.
Using
fraud and manipulation, Chongqin International Construction Corporation (CICO)
will try to win the internationally-funded road construction of Hargeisa Bypass
Road that’s a part of the Berbera seaport to the rest of Africa particularly
Ethiopia’s vast market.
The
inclusion of this firm into a list of the contractors list reflects the weak
institutions of Somaliland government, which failed to detect the murky
background of this corrupt firm.
The World Bank, the EU donors and other stakeholders should carefully watch the bidding system of Somaliland in the light of this corrupt company.
Despite 30 years of independence and five peaceful transfers of power, Somaliland has gotten democracy basics wrong. It has had a history of elections delays, multiple term extensions for the parliament and local councils.
The last round of negotiations to get the elections back on-track between the three political parties of Waddani, UCID and Kulmiye ended in a stalemate when the Parliament rejected to vote on the motion to increase the members of the Electoral Commission from 7 to 9. This was the article of an agreement the parties agreed to on July 27th, 2019.
This has brought the dispute full circle where the opposition parties accused the President and his party who hold the parliamentary majority to reject the motion on a legal technicality and never bringing it to a vote in the Parliament. Because of this, Mr. Hersi Haji Hassan the Leader of the Waddani declared that his party has withdrawn from the agreement.
Multiple late-night rounds of negotiations between the President, his party and the senior leadership of the opposition parties at the President’s office followed and according to sources present at some of those meeting, the parties discussed the impediments to elections and ways to move forward to ensure elections are held on time.
On August 29th, 2019, President Bihi sent a letter to Waddani and UCID opposition parties expressing his regret over the rejection of the motion in the parliament to increase members of the National Election Commission from 7 to 9 and promised that he will ensure that the motion is brought back to the new parliament for a vote as agreed upon.
President Bihi’s letter to UCID Party
President Bihi’s letter to Waddani Party
As a result of two days of meetings and negotiations on the 7th and 8th of September 2019, the two political parties have agreed to keep the democratization process alive by removing obstacles to the parliamentary and local council elections.
The three parties of Waddani, UCID and Kulmiye are working to nominate their members to the new National Election Commission. So far, only the House of Elders has nominated their two members where one of them has withdrawn his candidacy.
All indications are that Somaliland Parliamentary and Local Council elections will occur though it is clear that the agreed-upon deadlines will not be met according to the current and outgoing Chairman of the National Election Commission.
President of Somaliland HE Muse Bihi Abdi announced today that the Berbera Airport will be used for civilian purposes. The President’s off the cuff remarks was short on specifics and did not address the fate of the existing agreement signed with the United Arab Emirates to use the airport as a military base.
During the height of the joint Saudi and United Arab
Emirate’s campaign in Yemen against the Houthi militia, the government of
Former President Ahmed Mohamoud Silanyo signed a deal with the UAE to use
Berbera Airport for military purposes, though at the time the scale and if UAE
planned to project military power from Somaliland soil was downplayed by
Somaliland government.
One of the components of the Berbera Airport agreement
stipulated that UAE will build a new airport for civilian use in Berbera.
According to a senior Somaliland Government official who is
privy to ongoing talks between Somaliland and UAE and spoke to Somaliland
Chronicle on background, the President’s announcement that the Berbera Airport
will be used for civilian purposes is the result of mutual understanding
between UAE and Somaliland.
According to other sources who would not speak on the record for fear or getting ahead of the President and appearing to clarify his statement, the President presented the idea of mixed-use of the airport during his last visit to the United Arab Emirates, instead of the construction of a new civilian airport as stipulated by the previous agreement of the two sides.
The United Arab Emirates has been slowly scaling back its involvement in Yemen conflict; even Somaliland government has categorically denied that UAE may use the Berbera base to launch attacks on the Houthis. It is unclear if this has influenced the UAE’s decision to agree on the mixed-use of the facility.
Current discussion between the UAE and Somaliland government
are centered on the management of the civilian airport which according to the
President would cement Berbera as a major trading hub.
It is unclear if existing agreement already ratified by
Somaliland Parliament will be amended or a new one will be signed by Somaliland
and UAE governments. It is also unclear whether President’s announcement today
is premature since final agreement of this new Berbera Airport arrangement is
not yet finalized with the UAE, especially on the management of the civilian
airport.
President Bihi’s remarks created confusion where many news
outlets interpreted it as Somaliland’s cancellation of the Berbera Airport
agreement with the UAE. It is unclear if Somaliland government will clarify the
President’s statement.
The Berbera Airport’s runway was originally built by the Soviets in 1975 and later improved by the United States and designated as a Shuttle Alternate Landing site.
This is a developing story and will update you as we know more.
Lewis Center, Ohio—It’s a very rare in a male dominated and poverty stricken Somaliland for women to move head and run a business. But, a young woman worked hard and saved enough money to get a license to open for a 1,000 Sqft Warsan Ethiopian restaurant, in the dusty town of Burao. She even hired two female employees. However, last week, her dreams of serving the residents of Burao hit a wall after a local police SWAT team raided her business and shut down the restaurant, for failing to separate sexes. The police arrested her and the two of her employees, but they were all released later.
The local police were taking orders from a so-called Somaliland committee for the promotion of virtues and the prevention of vice (SCPVPV), which orchestrated the raid. This is un-elected religious zealots have kept a tight grip on the local government of Burao. The elected mayor, the police, the district attorney, and even courts are doing their bidding.
These religious vigilantes do mainly focus on harassing young women, people they do not like or who disagree with them or anyone they have a grudge against.
Somaliland has a lot problems that need to be addressed. We have rampant corruption in the business, faith and political leaders; the effect of chat and tobacco consumption on society, the problems of clan identity in our politics, and the allege sexual abuses and harassment or even rapes in the Madrasas or other school systems.Gender separation in the public is not one of them. The religious committee needs to focus things that will make the lives of ordinary people better.They should stop harassing women owned businesses.
Enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil is not only the most important Islamic duties, but it also one the basic tenets of Islam.
In fact, in the Koran, Allah states, “Let there arise from you a group of people inviting to all that is good [Islam], enjoining Al-Ma’ruuf (all that slam 0rders), and forbidding Al-Munkar (all that Islam has forbidden). And is they who are the successful.” [ Al-Imran, 3:104]
I am not questioning their motives, but what is the troubling to me is the manner the members of the committee of promotion of virtues and prevention of vice conduct themselves on their mission of spreading the good and warnings against the evil things.
Instead of calling people with wisdom and fair preaching, as Prophet Mohammed (SWT), used to do, they’re using a brute police force—which reminds many people the Faqash era repressive tactics. We just liberated the country from a vile dictatorship. Most people still remember midnight raids of the para-military police force and the abuses of the savage “Guul-wadayaal.”
Also, with the aiding and abetting of the local government, they banned from local hotels, restaurants and shopping places, events where gender were not separated. They also banned music and even Somaliland national anthem from all venues.
For instance, on October, 2013, the popular Somaliland band, The Horn Stars, planned to stage a concert with all ticket sold out at local hotel in Burao. Unfortunately, the event turned into mayhem: A group of paid thugs from religious committee smashed most of the vehicles at the parking lot of the hotel, and 9 people were injured. The police never interfered or arrested anyone regarding the injuries people suffered or the destruction of the properties.
Who is to make decision or laws about behaviors that is acceptable or forbidden ‘Haram’ under sharia-law: Our legislature or a brazen remnants of the Islamic Courts group?
In Somaliland, do we have on the books laws or statues requiring gender separation in all public places, including restaurants, shopping or work places?
For the sake of this argument, if we have laws requiring gender separation, then the young lady is violated our laws. Consequently, she must comply the law if she wants to continue to operate her restaurant. Period.
However, as far as I know, there are no laws in Somaliland, requiring gender separation in public places or banning playing music at weddings ceremonies—the most important event in a human event other than a birth of child or other social gatherings.
In Burao—what we got is a complete breakdown of the chain of the command of the police. The Burao police have been compromised like the way organized crime syndicates infiltrate local police force.
It is prudent for the Interior Minister, Col. Kahin, who hails from East Burao, and the commander of the Somaliland police force, to do a complete thorough investigation how a fanatic religious committee took over the whole Burao city government and the police unit.
There must be accountability; we can’t compromise national security matters. If the Interior Ministry fails to shut down this brazen militant group—many people would assume that they’re a state- sanctioned organization.
There are reports that it receives funding and guidance from the Ministry of Religious affairs. More troubling, there are also credible allegations that it got funding from foreign entities as well as businesses, which used to finance remnants of the Islamic Courts and al-Shabaab.
The Agenda of the emboldened religious militant group is bigger than taking over the Burao city government. They have branches all over Somaliland towns and villages. They do not believe our constitution; they hate our system of government, our flag and our country. They’re very determined to bring down Somaliland and takeover our government under the guise of protecting Islam or clan identity.
The thuggish religious committee is not only abuses women, but it also the reason why many from Burao area in the diasporas have decided not to settle or open business in their home city.
However, I am praying for them to change their behavior and conduct because our faith is a religion of mercy, and Allah is the most merciful. But we must not be complacent against those who are trying to harm Somaliland. We must stop them before their narrow Wahabi interpretation of Islam poison the rest of the country. We must also be vigilant and protect our freedom because Somaliland is under siege.
About the Author Ali-Guban Mohamed is a freelance Journalist and the Editor of Gubanmedia.com. He is based out of Lewis Centre, Columbus, Ohio.
Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of Somaliland Chronicle and it’s staff.
Less
than a month from the day it was established, a 12-member loosely formed
coalition of so-called independent civil society organizations, published a
briefing entitled: “THE CHALLENGES OF DEMOCRATISATION PROCESS IN SOMALILAND:
THE WAY FORWARD.” It opens with a summary that states its purpose as “to
provide essential information regarding the challenges facing the
democratization process of Somaliland and to recommend steps to be taken to
address challenges and learn from past lessons.” Before proceeding to the rest
of the report, an attentive reader may stumble on the strange choice of words
in its purpose – that it does not aim, for instance, to discuss challenges to
democratization in Somaliland, but rather to provide“essential
information” regarding these challenges.
A
subtle question should have occurred to the drafters of the report: Can there
ever be such a thing as “essential information” on any of the democratic
challenges Somaliland faced in the past, faces in the present, and will
undoubtedly face in the future? Building institutions of democratic governance
is a time intensive process. It is afluid process rather than a static
condition. Institutions evolve over time and adapt to changing times and circumstances.
As a British sergeant once observed, “Somalis no good, each man his own chief.”
It seems these days that some civil society organizations in Somaliland are no
good; they are their own experts. They can sit somewhere, get their heads
together to make “sense” of the most important issues of the day, refer to a
recently published survey or report, and come up with an “analysis” and a set
of recommendations – to everybody else, except for themselves.
Without
using any indicators to support their views, the authors of the report make
bold claims: that the civic space started shrinking, that the line between
civil society and government became blurred, and that Somaliland’s democracy is
in decline. It would have been fine if they remained consistent and stood by
that “assessment,” but the same paragraph makes a counter-claim and asserts
that Somaliland “remains a leading democratic country in a turbulent region.”
This is a contradiction. If you see that the civic space has shrunk, the line
between government and civil society has blurred, and our democracy is indeed
in decline, how can you at the same time think that Somaliland is “a leading
democracy” irrespective of its geographic location? The group, it seems, is
confused and cannot present a consistent, well-articulated case to make their
point.
The
briefing divides the course of Somaliland’s recent democratic history into
three “phases”: A clan-based selection phase (1991 to 2001); a good-days phase
(2001 to 2008); and a less definitive third phase (2008 to current). It seems
that arbitrary phases are being imposed on Somaliland’s post-1991 democratic
experience. But the same “phases” may not serve the group’s intended purpose.
Between 2001 and 2008, we held three elections: local council, presidential,
and parliamentary. From 2008 to the present, three more elections were held:
two presidential (2010 and 2017) and local council elections in 2012. One may
genuinely ask why one period, 2001 to 2008, should look any better than
another, say 2008 to 2017, while the same number of elections were held in
both? The group made no attempt to understand why elections are often delayed
in the first place. Contrary to what the group would want us to think,
extending office terms may not be that bad. If given the choice between holding
elections no matter what and delaying them for the right reasons, it is
my bet that a substantial majority of Somalilanders would choose the second
option. Holding peaceful, free and fair elections is not like ticking boxes in
a checklist.
What is
disturbing is that the country in the greater East Africa region to peacefully
hold the highest number of elections since the early 1990s when the cold war
ended, and that has successfully resolved internal conflicts with no external
aid, is now being admonished that its internal legitimacy and external
democratic credentials are at stake by a dubious group of civil society
organizations. Are they right?
Somaliland
is seen as legitimate by its citizens. It regained its independence in 1991 at
the grand conference in Burao. “As a polity,” Marleen Renders writes in her
book Consider Somaliland, “Somaliland began as an agreement between the
different clans and subclans of the Northwest. After two spells of intra-Isaaq
civil war and elder-brokered peace agreements, Somaliland remained peaceful and
proceeded to introduce a modern political system, while holding on to a formal
political role for its traditional leaders.” A state with a hybrid political
system was born perhaps for the first time in Africa. And as The Economist observed
on the eve of the 2017 presidential election, Somaliland “has a strong sense of
national identity.” Somaliland, it noted, is more socially homogeneous than
Somalia or indeed most other African states (and greater homogeneity tends to
mean higher levels of trust between citizens). Unlike most African countries,
“the social contract between government and citizens in Somaliland is unusually
strong”.
The
claim that Somaliland’s international credentials are at stake is also ill
founded. In 1999, as The Economist reports, Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal
argued that recognition would be dependent on the country’s pursuit of
democracy. He proceeded to devise a constitution that was put to a popular
referendum in 2001, the newspaper observes. It’s interesting to note that “for
fear of encouraging other separatist movements in the region,” as The
Economist puts it, “the international community, following the African
Union, has never obliged.” Exactly after twenty years when Egal had made that
argument, and not following Mohamed Ibrahim Egal in any meaningful sense but by
sheer coincidence, our civil society originations would want us to naively
believe that the pursuit of democracy will help us gain recognition from other
countries, many of them undemocratic. History, if anything, proves that
argument wrong. The current group went even further: they declared that our
young democracy is in decline simply because elections are sometimes held
behind schedule. But let’s not confuse building democratic governance as an
end in itself with employing democracy as a means to achieve
international recognition.
The
decision to hold elections, when and how – or not having them at all – is a
collective, political decision, not a legal one. Given its emphasis on the
importance of reforming electoral and other laws, it seems that the
ill-informed group does not realize the distinction between the political and
the legal. While there are overlaps, one is not the same as the other.
Holding parliamentary and/or local council elections this or next year, for
example, will remain a political issue and not a legal problem. Political
parties will have to come together and reach a consensus before they compete
for seats in the House of Representatives and in Local Councils. If anything,
this shows a robust, growing democracy that has yet to reach a peak, not one
that is in decline.
References:
1.
Renders, Marleen Consider Somaliland: State-Building with Traditional
Leaders and Institutions, Brill (2012).
2. The Economist, Why Somaliland is east Africa’s strongest democracy, Nov. 13, 2017.
The views expressed are my own, and don’t represent those of the Ministry of Justice.
About the Author Abdirahman Sheikh Hassan is the Director General of the Ministry of Justice and can be reached at @musaabaqo
Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints of Somaliland Chronicle and it’s staff.
