| Name |
Views and Comments | Date |
| MSMegalommatis |
Dear Somali and Mahad,
Thank you for your valuable input that I noticed unfortunately with great delay. I will make of it an independent article, as your voice deserves to be widely heard.
My Very Best Regards |
7/5/2009 |
| Abdihim |
Obviously !!! the writer doesn’t know well the subject he is talking about |
5/1/2008 |
| Somali |
The northern secessionist saga is still puzzling the minds of the concerned and the spectators alike. Theirs is a disgraceful road never before traveled by any Somali, how many lines of ethics should be crossed before one's inner soul finds peace with a downfall of this magnitude? Anyhow, the separatist idea was originally proposed by individuals with clear intentions of using the North as a stepladder to Mogadishu based top leadership positions of the nation. For example, Ambassador Abdirahman Tuur denounced the separatism after he became the "President" of the northern enclave. Also, M. I. Egal didn't believe in it wholeheartedly. He was just waiting the right time to change uniforms. The disclosure of his plan to keep the nation together was always delayed by the on going hostilities and the lack of peaceful political means in the south, and eventually was cut short by his death.
The separatist group is desperately playing their ugliest card as they hope and lobby for the continuation of lawlessness in Mogadishu. Just recently, they received the returning warlords with red carpet during his transit stop at Hargaisa. Some other warlords made unexplained frequent trips to the enclave. It's becoming obvious that, the separatist group is just taking the first baby steps of establishing its anti-peace operatives in Mogadishu. To better their chances of achieving their ill-fated objectives, they are very determined to keep Mogadishu busy and burning. In his recent interview with one of the web based radio talk shows, Mr. Warabe said, "We are both from the major Erir tribe and we discussed some brotherly affairs", referring to his meeting with a Mr. Yalaxow – a Mogadishu based chaotic warlord. His real intent was to convince Mr. Yalaxow to undermine the relative law and order brought to Mogadishu. The northern separatist group that high jacked the will of the good northern people, breath one and only one thing, which is tribalism. They have no vision for nationhood
Recognition to the northern enclave will open the gates of hell and will serve no purpose whatsoever.
|
4/25/2008 |
| Somali |
Truth is sacred and if you tell the truth too often nobody will believe it!! Somaland is destined for extinction by by Somaliland. But Somalanders and their leaders may not view it in that way?! because it run by imbeciles and incompetent maniacs, unless one is blind-folded by myopic tribalist agenda their features as a key factor. It is referred to as an integral component of the state.
Although some scholars trace the origin of the state in one tribe conquering the other for plunder, with time the state gained legitimacy from its subjects. States which have no legitimacy in modern times is where so call Somaland belongs today ( even the name somliland is funny, what is wrong with a Somalian name)
A country means a political unit that is sovereign and is recognized by the international community under one national government.
A nation is a people that are homogeneous culturally, linguistically or historically, whether they are organized in one country or not and a state is a package of pillars of power and authority that enable the exercise of control over any one given country.
It is almost 15 years since the Isaaq secessionists, under the banner of the SNM, had declared the North-West Region of Somalia as an independent, separate state adopting its former colonial name of Somaliland. During this long period, the secessionists had embarked on a relentless crusade lobbying the international community for recognition. Despite this concerted campaign, no single country among the international community has recognized the self-declared independence of the rebel government. On the contrary, the international community continues to support Somalia’s unity and territorial integrity at all international fora, in particular
at the United Nations, African Union and Arab League. Far from coming to terms with the reality and accept their rightful place in Somalia, the secessionists persist in maintaining their defiance, persuading themselves that their ultimate goal is in sight. After 15 years, this looks like chasing a mirage.
Irrelevant justifications for recognition
1. The inviolability of Somaliland Borders
Often, the secessionists are keen to talk of themselves as Somalilanders, having not only a separate country with its borders but also belonging to a people who are distinct from the rest of Somalia. Are there really such people, sharing common values and identity that distinguish them from other Somali clans in the Horn of Africa? The answer of course is NO. It is only by arbitrary British colonial conquest that those clans found themselves in the conquered British area. They could have been part of the French part or the Italian part. But that is how the division of the Somali homeland was arbitrarily settled by European colonial powers. Rather than therefore sharing exclusive ties, some of the clans had closer blood ties with kith and kin outside the boundaries of British Somaliland than they had with those inside the British colony. For example, the Harti clans in British Somaliland
belonged to the wider Harti and Darood clans in neighbouring counties of Italian Somalia, Ethiopia and North East Kenya. The Gadabuursi and Issa clans for their part were part of their clans in Ethiopia and Djibouti. The Isaaqs on the other hand were the only clan who were predominantly based in British Somaliland. Thus, the curving up of
the Somali homeland in the Horn by the European colonial powers have drawn artificial boundaries in which clans found themselves involuntarily both inside and outside these boundaries. Because some clans found themselves within the artificial boundary of former British Somaliland does not mean that they automatically assume special and closer bonds that are distinguishable from the rest of their fellow Somalis in neighbouring Somali territories.
On the question of boundaries, it is true that Somaliland has inherited its colonial borders from the day it gained its independence. But Somalilanders misinterprets the OAU/AU Charter by claiming that it supports Somaliland’s right to its former colonial borders. The relevant provision of the OAU/AU Charter applies to the borders of independent states that are members of the Organization, and not to borders of a breakaway region that is recognized by the international community as part and parcel of Somalia. However, Somaliland’s borders with neighbouring countries would have been inviolable in line with the Charter of the OAU/AU as long as it remained an independent country, a conditions it fulfilled from the day of its independence on 26 June until the first of July 1960 when it joined Italia Somalia. Once the government and parliament (and people) of Somaliland had freely and voluntarily gave up their independence in favour of union with Somalia, and the emerging Somali Republic
was recognized by the UN,OAU and Arab league, the colonial borders of Somaliland with Italian Somalia had irreversibly ceased to exist.
Somlilanders (Iidoor) disingenuously argues that the decision to unite with Somalia was not "ratified" and therefore the act of union was invalid. Ratified by whom? The elected government of Somaliland took the decision which was approved by the elected parliament. Any one who read the day of independence and the union with Somalia would attest to the fact that the union had more support from the government and people of former British Somaliland than the case was with the South.
2. Full Control of the territory and Support from Somalilanders.
It is true that when regime changes occur in an undemocratic manner in countries that are impendent, one of the conditions for the recognition of the new regime is whether it is in full control of the whole country and whether it has support from its people throughout the country. A good example was the immediate recognition of the government of Mohamd Siyad Barre after it overthrew its predecessor, having satisfied the international community that it was in full country of the country and that it enjoyed, by all appearances, the overwhelming support of the Somali people. The control of parts of the former British Somaliland is not the same thing as that
of an independent country coming under the control of a new authority.
But for the sake of argument, one has to challenge moronic ideas and idiot claims that the overwhelming majority of the people of former British Somaliland support the secession and that its so-called government is in full control of the whole area of former British Somaliland. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The Harti clans in the North-West Region do not subscribe to the secession and remain an integral part of Somalia. Their regions and areas are under their own control. The need to be seen to be in full control of the whole territory was the main driving force behind the ill-fated attack on Lasanod last year by the Isaaq dominated forces. Indeed, it was the defending Puntland forces, comprising the Harti clans, which were able to thwart this desperate attack on Lasanod.
The Gadabuursi and Issa clans had little choice but to acquiesce to the SNM occupation and the subsequent rule from Hargeisa- at least for the time being. There is no doubt that they are hostages given their precarious geographical situation. But that is likely change as the new government of Somalia is able to progressively
extend its writ, at least initially to the non-Isaaq areas of the North-West Region. As for the Isaaqs themselves, there is the false assumption that they are monolithic and that they all support secession. That is a sweeping overgeneralization. Large sections of the Isaaq clan do still remain patriotic unionists, notably the Garxajis who had an honourable leading role in the independence struggle for the Somali people everywhere.
Support from outside
The somalilanders wants us to believe that the case for recognition has solid sympathy and support from certain influential external quarters. In this regard, he cites the support from a lone American journalist, the representative of the International Conflict Group (ICG) in Kenya, an individual well-known for his
pro-secessionist bias, and one or two solitary British Parliamentarians still hankering for their former colonial ties with the territory. This pitiful support has to be set against the fact that the British government and the rest of the international community had consistently supported Somalia’s territorial unity at the Security Council. If this is all the support the secessionists can master for all these 15 years of lobbying and denigrating the rest of Somalia, surely the hopelessness of the crusade should have made people question the futility of following a dead-end road that leads no where.
Contrast with the rest of Somalia
In their eagerness to secure recognition, secessionists never stop to brag of their stability and peace in Somaliland in contrast to the chaos in the rest of Somalia, much though true this is. Their hope is that the world will finally wash its hands from the seemingly endless disorder in Mogadishu and that in the end they will reward the one peaceful part, Somaliland, with the recognition it deserves. If there is one common prayer among the secessionists, it is their wish that the chaos and crisis in the South would continue unabated and that the newly established government in Nairobi would never get off the ground just like its predecessor-thanks to the warlords in Mogadishu. Whatever bad news emerges from Somalia people is seen as a blessing for the secessionists.
Antipathy towards other Somalis
Since the secession was declared, the antipathy towards the rest of Somalis in Somalia had reached intolerable proportions. Who would have believed until recently that a time will come when Somali nationals living lawfully in Hargeisa, as Somali citizens, or coming as visitors, would be "deported" as illegal aliens while foreigners such as Ethiopians, and even Israelis, are affectionately welcomed? This distancing from the rest of Somalia is not a new phenomenon related to the secession and recognition goals. It goes back to the early 1950s when some sections of the Isaaq clan in former British Somaliland opposed the raising of the S.Y.L flag at its office in Burco which led to the famous S.Y.L. verse: "Sanduluu ku iman saca faarsa tegey saddex maalintuu qado, sawaxaa ka dhigan safka haatan yidhi Soomaali aan diidno".
Part of the strategy of the secessionists is that there may come a time when the South will lose patience with their unyielding secession and finally give up on them and say" good riddance!!" After all, who needs who? The Isaaq homeland is indisputably barren and impoverished. Remittances from the Diaspora, relief aid and petty commerce are the main source of livelihood. As people who are otherwise resourceful and enterprising, and who are dependent on trade with the rest of the Somali territories, you would expect them, if they were rational, to support Somali union that would guarantee them open boundaries, where they would have unrestricted
movements, selling their products wherever they want, making their financial investments at the most profitable locations wherever it might be in Somalia, and making their preferred residence anywhere they choose in Somalia. In a federal Somalia, they will still have their beloved Hargeisa as regional capital and have their own regional assembly. Indeed, you will expect few Southerners to come to Hargeisa for business or pleasure whereas the attractions of the South for Northerners are immense and profitable-given of course peace and stability,.
The choice between secession that leads to isolation and missed opportunities and membership of Somalia is quite obvious. The problem with the secessionists is that there are no leaders with vision, courage and integrity who are prepared to face to the hard facts and the necessary decisions even if they have to risk initial
unpopularity. Those who are presently in government or in the opposition parties have come to outdo one another in their eagerness to endear themselves to the uninformed masses that have been daily fed with anti-Somalia hate propaganda. Sooner or later, the secessionists would have to come round to the other famous S.Y.L
verse:"Soomaaliyey toosoo, toosoo isku tiirsada ee…."Amin |
4/25/2008 |
| Mahad |
Somaliland is colonial name, and as such, are contradictory to the term nationalism. Simply on the basis of the colonial roots, many former colonies have discarded their colonial appellations and adopted titles that are of more indigenous or un–colonial derivation.
You may discuss the details and timetable, but you do not question its validity or wisdom at all.
In fact, when one adds up all the effort, and sacrifices required to create a state from scratch for a group of people who are not even a cohesive society, who don't have anything in common other than their hatred to all People of Somalia, then the whole enterprise does not make any sense whatsoever.
|
4/25/2008 |
| Somalilander |
First all, let me say that you are the worst hater ever. Ignorant is an undestimated word for you. Whotever you trying to prove, I am sure you must be embarrased (that is if you got any dicency) about your pathetic peice of meaningless article as the truth about Somaliland and its achievement is beyond your understanding or observation for that matter. |
3/21/2008 |
| MR DUALEH |
MR SO CALLED PROF, DR. MOHAMMAD SHAMSADDIN, YOUR ARTICLE IS GROSSLY BIASED AND IS BASED SOLELY ON DISTORTED FACTS. SOMEBODY OF YOUR CALIBRE SHOULD HAVE DONE ENOUGH HOMEWORK BEFORE INDULGING YOUR FOREIGN SELF INTO THE AFFAIRS OF SOMALIS WHICH IS EXTREMELY COMPLICATED. SOMALILAND IS RECOGNISED GLOBALLY AS THE ONLY SHINNING EXAMPLE OF SELF-GOVERNANCE BASED ON MAINTAINING PEACE, CREATING DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS DESPITE OBSTICLES. YOU SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF SOMALILANDERS INTO ACCOUNT, RATHER THAN THEIR FEW SHORTCOMING. |
1/10/2008 |
| Ibarahim. |
kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk.. Carying baby.. ! Laascanood is part of Somalia . Somalilanders are somalis. So what is the fuss..? as for Ogadens how many Ogadens puntland deported for the last three years why dont u say some thing about it.? .. U have no shred of somalism in ur blood.. u r biast, racist, triblist who have nothing to offer but hate and divesiveness. NSP dont represent Nothern Somalis Since u dont have one single Isaak memeber among ur ranks.. u r punch of losers who are part of the problem. U dont have the gut to critize Ethiopians who sloughtered somalis in masses and you are quick to pin point somaliland's little wrongs.. What a hypocrat.. Shame on U..!! |
10/29/2007 |
| Somali |
Very informed article, especially considering the author being non-Somali. |
10/28/2007 |
| Abdirahmen |
yes,its true that Ogadens were extradited to Ethiopia,but this is isolated incident, there huge demonstration against the handover, but your website never covered why?!!,its seem that u losing crediblity, if want demonise millions of people , its just show far you hate us ,and that gets you in the middle of nowhere |
10/27/2007 |
| Momin |
Hallaluljah NSPU. I like the way you planted this article as if it were the work of this professional student - Megalommatis. It is so obvious it wouldn't even make a novice laugh. |
10/26/2007 | |
