Anti-Somaliland Campaigners: Descending to the Lower of Pan-Somali Polemics

Xaaji Xunjuf · February 18, 2010

Written by Abdulaziz Al-Mutairi

Feb 18, 2010 at 08:47 AM

In last two decades, Somalia was dooming into devastation, and until today it has no signs of a recovery. After the collapse of brutal regime of Siyad Barre, the armed struggle between rival Mohamed Farah Aideed and Ali Mehdi, and beginning of Warlords, the international community hosted many peace conferences for Somalis to settle their differences including the latest in Djibouti. However, all failed due to reasons with personal interest.

The entire infrastructure of Somalia collapsed and thousands of civilians were killed and other run away from their homes to the refugee camps in Kenya. The rape of women is common in southern Somalia and millions of children don’t go to schools, in addition to bloody so-called Islamic fundamentalism. This nonsense conflict in Somalia takes different shapes including tribal, political and religious.

In other hand, Somaliland restored its lost sovereignty of 26th June 1960 with colonial border. Somaliland focused on peace-making, state building, democracy, creating social services including free education to all Somaliland children from Elayo to Loyado cities. Today’s Somaliland is based on 1960 territory that won independence from Britian and 35 countries including Israel, Egypt, Ethiopia and the five permanent members of Security Council recognized with predefined colonial border, permanent population, capacity interrelations with other states. We should remember that entire African states are based on colonial border.

Somaliland rehabilitated refuges from Ethiopia. These refuges escaped the air bombing, killing and ethnic clearing against the people of Somaliland by the brutal military regime of Barre. Somaliland established multiparty political system and organized free and fair elections under international and African observers. Somaliland disarmed thousands of militia, trained and transformed them into National Army and Police. In last 20 years, Somaliland had three consecutive elected presidents and two parliaments in addition Municipal Council.

The election took place without outside support. The democracy in Somaliland is homegrown, and every Somalilander contributed in to the democracy creation. The voters standing in long queues hit the headline of international news agencies. Somaliland established sustainable economy and social services, and today the government regularly pays the salaries of more than 150,000 security officers including army, police and jail guards.

All these remarkable achievement was in less than 20 years, and without international support. UN, AU or EU did not send nor did Somaliland request crisis diffusers and election experts to support Somaliland in democracy development and state building. The commitment of the people of Somaliland towards peace, democracy and independence led these developments and progress.

Unfortunately, the international community spends millions of dollars to restore peace and security in Somalia, and neglected to help Somaliland in state building and democracy promotions. AU fact-finding delegate to Somaliland in 2005 advised the African Union to recognize Somaliland because it fulfils all the requirements of statehood.

Moreover, Somaliland is victim of terrorist attacks from lawless Somalia including Al-Shabab recent suicide bombing at the sensitive locations in Somaliland including UN Headquarter and Presidential Palace.

There is Anti-Somaliland campaigns via the media, and they misbelieve that success of Somaliland will have backfire on their interests. Such campaigners tried many times to create chaos between Somaliland tribes who lived together for thousands of years in peace and harmony. The Anti-Somaliland figures support the recent bombing in Las Anod City of eastern Somaliland, and these series of bombs killed security officers and large number of civilians.

In unsuccessful attempts, the Anti-Somaliland figures hire writers on the internet to change the centuries old history of Somaliland into their own favor. They talk to governments in Africa and Asia to disable their trade connection with Somaliland, which led the ban on Somaliland livestock to Arabian Peninsula.

One of such Anti-Somaliland campaigners is Former Somali Foreign Minister Mohamed Abdullah Oomar in the cabinet of Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, who asked the WFP and UNDP to stop their development and aid programs in Somaliland. This desperate attempt was to downgrade Somaliland.

The below paragraphs are note of Somaliland Constitution in 1960; this is to prove to Anti-Somaliland campaigners that Somaliland was an independent country with defined borders and today, it restored its lost sovereignty after 40 years of detrimental union with Italian Somalia. If anyone need more prove about existence of Somaliland and its constitution, he/she either visit www.somalilandlaw.com or www.untreaty.un.org and search for Somaliland agreements with Britain, and announcement of UK that Great Britain don’t represent Somaliland because it is an independent state:

A note on the Somaliland Constitutional History between 1946 to 1960

Somaliland Constitutional History – 1946 to 1960

The Somaliland Protectorate was of course governed directly by the Queen’s representative, the Governor, who exercised all legislative and executive powers.

In 1946, an Advisory Council was established. This consisted of 48 selected members representing all the districts and the sections of the community. It had no executive or legislative power and only met usually once a year. The Council’s main purpose was “to stimulate the interest of the people themselves in the administration of the country and the in the collection and expenditure of public funds” (Touval, S Somali Nationalism, Harvard University Press, 1963, at page 107). Selection to the Council took the form of nominations made at clan meetings, with the District Commissioner aiming to “ensure that a reasonably representative body of delegates is sent from each District” (Lewis, IM The Modern History of Somaliland Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1965 at page 279).

The Somaliland (Constitution) Order in Council 1955 was made on 10 February 1955, but did not come into force until 1957, when the first Legislative Council was set up for the first time. The Council consisted of 15 members, and was presided by the Governor. The rest of the members consisted of the three ex officio members (the Chief Secretary, the Attorney General and the Financial secretary), five official members who were heads of the Government Departments and six unofficial members nominated by the Governor.

Nominations for the latter six seats were sought in the Advisory Council, but no agreement was reached on the nominations. “In the end, however, as was to be expected, 24 candidates representative of the main clans and lineages in the six Administrative Districts of the Protectorate were proposed, very much on the basis of the Advisory Council” (Lewis: 280). There was an Executive Council which consisted of the Governor, the 3 ex officio members and two of the heads of the Government Departments.

The Somaliland (Constitution) Order in Council 1959 came into force on 20 February 1959. There were of course demands for elected representation on the Council, and in 1959, a new Council was formed, which consisted of the Governor as President, 12 elected members, 2 nominated unofficial members and 15 official members. In March 1959, elections for the 12 seats were held by secret ballot in a limited number of urban and rural districts and a vote by acclamation was sought in the remaining districts. Although the election was boycotted by the main political party, the Somali National League (SNL), because their demand for “an unofficial majority” (i.e Somali representation) in the Council was not accepted, this was, in effect, the first Somaliland election. Voters were males over 21 years old. In town constituencies, voters were required to possess either a dwelling or 10 camels, 10 head of cattle or 100 sheep and goats. The 12 seats were divided equally amongst the six principal districts.

The Somaliland (Constitution) (No.2) Order in Council 1959 came into force on 21 November 1959. The number of the elected members of the Council was increased to 33 and the appointed membership was reduced to 3.

The Somaliland (Constitution) Order in Council 1960 came into force on 16 February 1960. The composition of the Legislative Council remained the same, but the executive Council now consisted of three ex officio members and four unofficial members appointed by the Governor from among the elected members of the legislative Council. The Executive Council was designated as the principal instrument of policy and its members “shall be styled Ministers”. Elections for the legislative Council were held in February by universal adult male suffrage.

This Order therefore heralded the second and more comprehensive Legislative Council elections which were held in February 1960. SNL won 20 of the seats, the USP, 12 seats and the NUF, 1 seat. Although the SNL and the USP won all but one of the seats, the number of votes which they obtained was only a little more than twice of that NUF. (SNL and USP gained 68.75% of the votes (as compared to NUF’s 31.25% and that netted them 99% of the seats – see Touval, S Somali Nationalism, Harvard University Press, 1963, at page 106). Four ministerial posts were held by Somalis for the first time, and the SNL leader, Mr Ibrahim Haji Ibrahim Egal was one of the ministers and the Leader of Government Business in the Legislative Council.

On independence on 26 June 1960, the first Constitution of the independent State of Somaliland came into force. The Constitution which was annexed to the Great Britain Somaliland Order in Council 1960 (S.I 1060 of 23 June 1960). The Constitution, which consists of a total of 53 sections and a schedule is important, because marks the unique juridical status of Somaliland as an independent, sovereign state, albeit, for a short period. The Executive consisted of the Council of Ministers – a Prime Minister and three other Ministers- which had the full executive authority vested in them. Up to three Assistant Ministers may be appointed by the Prime Minister from among the members of the Legislative Assembly.

The Legislature consisted of the Council of Ministers and the members of the Legislative Assembly. The Assembly consisted of a speaker and 33 members. Under s.18 of the Constitution, the first Legislative Assembly was the Legislative Council elected in February 1960. The term of office of the Assembly was three years, which applied also to the first Assembly. The Prime Minister had, however, power, under s.38 to prorogue or dissolve the Assembly at any time, which would lead to a general lection within three months of the dissolution.

The Judicature consisted of the Somaliland High Court, the judges of which shall be appointed by the Council of Ministers. Section 40 set out clear terms for tenure of office of judges who shall hold office until the age of 62, and can only be removed from office “for misbehaviour or for inability to discharge the functions of his office”. If the Council of Ministers consider that a judge ought to be removed from office for these reasons, then it shall appoint a tribunal of no less two persons “who held high judicial office in Somaliland or any other country”. Other than the High Court, the Constitution stated that Somaliland shall have such other subordinate courts as prescribed by law.

By:Abdulaziz Al-Mutairi

Email: az.almutairi@yahoo.com