Several European countries spearheaded by Britain have decided to contribute £ 200,000 - 250,000 in support of presidential elections to be held in Somaliland on April 14, 2003. The amount could be termed as only modest if weighed against the magnitude of assistance needed by the country’s National Electoral Commission. But this support from the international community has a wider symbolic importance for Somaliland. The move indicates a shift in the previous position of the international community, or at least some of its members, who used to ignore Somaliland’s self-made achievements in such areas as peace and reconciliation, disarmament, governance and democratization.
Obviously, leading democratic governments in the world and a number of countries in the region have opted in the past not to lend support to the democratic transformation that Somaliland has been undergoing over the years, lest their involvement be interpreted as tacit recognition of this country’s proclamation of independence. This was a mistake.
The previous policy has not only deprived Somaliland of the opportunity to get international assistance for its efforts toward economic recovery after long years under dictatorship and war, but has also led many Somalilanders to question the seriousness of claims by certain world governments and institutions that peoples yearning for the institutionalization of peace, democracy and good governance may turn to them for help. Instead of helping, some members of the international community have actually sought to create problems of political, economic, security and diplomatic nature for Somaliland. The Saudi ban on the entry of Somaliland livestock animals into the Kingdom (other Somalis exported little if any to this market) is nothing other than a sort of punishment for Somalilanders for sticking to their right to self-determination. Because of this cruel stance by the international community, this country’s emerging institutions in such non-political sectors as health, education and Sports have been denied external help or participation in internationally recognized forums or events. In the wake of the Arta conference, the international community, ironically, gave the mandate of Somaliland’s representation in world bodies to the TNG, a staunchly anti-Somaliland group that controls a small segment of Mogadishu and many of whose members are wanted for war crimes committed against Somaliland civilians in the eighties.
Therefore, the decision of certain European countries to provide assistance to Somaliland's presidential elections is a welcome departure from the previous policy of passive engagement that the international community has pursued when dealing with this republic. This gesture will certainly have significant positive effects on the electoral process in Somaliland. The move will help remind Somalilanders that the world will be watching them with great interest when they cast their votes later this month in the country’s first presidential elections.
Since Somalilanders have already had successful municipal elections last Dec 2002, they ought to do even better this time. The 3 political parties contesting the elections should play by the rules of the game. Stakeholders must bear in mind that any attempts to rig the elections will automatically kill this country’s chances of eventually winning recognition from the international community and might also undermine its hard-won peace and stability. The stakes involved are much higher than winning the presidency. Success or failure will to a large extent depend on whether Somalilanders, particularly the incumbent government, observe the principles of fair and free elections.
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