SOMALILAND FORUM
www.somalilandforum.com
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Editorial
President Egal Died But
Somaliland Is Here To Stay
We share with the people of
Somaliland their shock and grieve over the terrible loss of our President,
Mohamed Ibrahim Egal, who died yesterday morning in a military hospital in
Pretoria, South Africa.
Death is an inevitable event
that every creature is bound to meet. Mohammed Ibrahim Egal’s soul, may Allah
rest it in eternal peace, was of course no exception. But one cannot fail to
notice the feelings of total disbelief that his countrymen and women have
already shown in reaction to the news of his death. Despite being overwhelmed
by feelings of shock, loss and sorrow, Somalilanders however have once again
demonstrated their maturity and wisdom in dealing with times of national
calamity. Shortly after the news of Egal’s death arrived in Hargeisa yesterday,
Vice President Dahir Riyale Kahin was sworn in as President of the Republic of
Somaliland. It is not the first time that Somaliland has accomplished a smooth
succession of power in the country’s leadership.
In fact, Somaliland has never
experienced a power vacuum since its inception in 1991.
At this juncture, we are
confident that the people of Somaliland will heed the calls of unity from their
government leaders and across the nation, and uphold the country’s peace and
stability. This is a time for atonement and reconciliation.
We also commend the responsible
way in which the leaders of the political opposition parties and civic groups
have reacted to the unfortunate loss that this country has sustained in the
death of its president. The people of Somaliland take great consolation
in this expression of patriotism and unity of purpose.
To the enemies of this country, we say that President Egal is dead,
but the Republic of Somaliland is here to stay.
Somaliland President Egal Dies (1929 – 2002)
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Pretoria, South Africa (SL Times): The President of the Republic of Somaliland, Mohamed Ibrahim Egal, died Friday in a military hospital in Pretoria, South Africa.
Mr. Egal arrived in Pretoria last week, for medical treatment. He was admitted into a military hospital on Thursday April 25 for a medical check up after experiencing numbness in his legs.
Initially his condition was so bad
that he had to be taken from the plane to the hospital in an ambulance.
Iqbal Jhazbhay, a South African who
represents Somaliland affairs in his country, was at the side of President Egal
during the treatment.
Egal was also accompanied by his
wife, Kaltum Haji Dahir, and five children from another wife, Asha Saeed Aabi,
in addition to a delegation comprising foreign minister Mohamed Saeed Gees,
information minister Abdillahi Mohamed Dualle and governor of Bank of
Somaliland, Abdirahman Dualle.
Mr. Jhazbhay said Mr. Egal had
responded well to initial treatment and was walking on crutches. He was in good
spirit and sharing Jokes with members of his delegation that had accompanied on
the trip.
In their attempt to determine the cause of the numbness,
doctors at the military hospital then performed an exploratory bowel operation
known as colonoscopy.
During the procedure in the early hours of Friday President
Egal, 74, sustained laceration and died from a complication arising from
pressure on his heart and lungs.
Mr. Jhazbhay added that Mr. Egal’s
advanced age had also been a factor leading to his death at 10am Pretoria local
time. He said the Somaliland delegation members did not suspect negligence on
the part of doctors or hospital staff. President Egal’s body is expected to be
flown back to Somaliland on Sunday; a Somaliland government said last night.
In fulfillment of his will,
President Egal will be buried near his father’s grave in the port city of
Berbera.
The late President was born in 1929
in Odweine about 75km southwest of Buroa. In the early fifties, Egal went to
England on a 2-year college education course on the subject of commerce.
In 1956, Egal became the Secretary
General of Somaliland’s independence Party, the Somali National League.
When Somaliland gained its
independence from Britain on June 26, 1960, Mr. Egal was elected Prime Minister
of the new independent state of Somaliland.
After the independent state of
Somaliland merged with Somalia on July 1960, Mr. Egal became the Union’s first
minister of defense and later its minister of information. He resigned in 1963
to form an opposition party, the Somali National Congress (SNC).
In 1964, Egal was re-elected to
Parliament and then became Somalia’s Prime minister from 1967 up to October
1969. His government was toppled by
General Siyad Barre on Oct 21 1969; the military regime put him in prison for 8
years.
On May 18 1991, Somaliland won
10-year-old liberation struggle against Barre’s regime and proclaimed its
independence.
Abdirahman Ahmed Ali (Tur) was the
first President of Somaliland. Egal was elected President of the new Republic
in Boroma’s National Reconciliation Conference on May 3, 1993.
He was returned to office on Feb
23, 1997 in the wake of another National Conference held in Hargeisa on Oct
1996 – March 1997 for a term of 5 years.
Last January, his term in office
was extended for a period of one year.
Opposition Groups Call For Unity And Solidarity
Hargeisa (SL Times): All Somaliland opposition
parties have called upon the people and government of Somaliland to exercise
vigilance in order to safeguard the country’s unity, peace and stability.
The opposition parties, HORMOOD,
ASAD, SAHAN, UCID and BIRSOL have all appealed for caution and protection of
the country’s independence and sovereignty.
In a condolence message to the
public, a group of prominent politicians, Suldans and community leaders from
Buroa said this critical period could only be overcome through solidarity and
broad-based consultations.
As the news on the death President
Egal spread to every corner of the country and the globe, the electronic mail
address of Haatuf Media Network, which publishes Haatuf, The Somaliland Times
and Al-Haatef Al-Arabi, have been jammed since yesterday afternoon with
messages of condolences or inquires on the situation in the country.
We regret for not being able to
publish all the condolences received due to space constraints.
Dahir
Riyale Kahin is Somaliland’s New President
Hargeisa (SL Times): Vice President Dahir Riyale Kahin was sworn in yesterday afternoon
as the new President of the Republic of Somaliland, following the death of the
country’s President Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal yesterday morning in a hospital
in Pretoria, South Africa.
The swearing in of Riyale was done
in accordance with article 86 of the Somaliland constitution which says that if
the incumbent president dies during his last two years in office, the Vice
President will automatically assume the position of President. Immediately
after the Somaliland government received the news that President Egal has
passed away, an emergency meeting was held in the Somaliland Presidency.
The meeting was attended by Mr.
Riyale, leaders of both Houses of Parliament and Supreme Court Justices.
In this meeting, it has been
decided that Vice President Dahir Riyale Kahin should be immediately sworn in
as President in order to avoid any power vacuum in governance.
S.A. Government Expresses
Condolences Over Death Of President Egal
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Pretoria (SABC): The South African government has expressed its condolences to Somaliland over the death of its president, Mohamed Ibrahim Egal. Egal died after undergoing surgery in the South African capital, Pretoria, yesterday. He was admitted to One Military Hospital last week for a medical check-up.
Officials said at the time the 73-year-old president was experiencing numbness in his legs, which rendered him unable to walk. Somaliland obtained independence from Britain in 1960 and later voluntarily united with Somalia. Its withdrawal from this union in 1991 has not been recognized by the international community.
Message Of Condolence And Unity From Somaliland Community In
The UAE
On hearing the sad and shocking
news of the death of President Mohammed Ibrahim Egal, we the undersigned
members of the Somaliland Community in the United Arab Emriates, would like to
express our deep sorrow and grief on the country’s loss of not only its leader,
but a world known statesman, and one of Africa’s independence heroes.
On behalf of the Somaliland
community in the United Arab Emirates, we would like to extend our sincere
condolence and heartfelt sympathies to the family, relatives and friends of
President Egal, and to His Excellency Dahir Riyale Kahin, Acting President of
Somaliland and to the people of Somaliland as a whole.
It is time to remember Egal’s good legacies as the hero of the struggle for Independence from the British colonial rule and as the man who stood firm and resolutely against all odds for the sovereignty and independence of our country as the President of present-day Somaliland. Egal was a man of destiny and his name will forever remain synonymous with that of Somaliland.
As the Somaliland Community in the
UAE, we would like to reiterate our unequivocal support for the sovereignty,
peace and stability of Somaliland and our unwavering loyalty to the
constitution and leadership of our homeland.
We have a firm belief that with the
wisdom and great resilience of our people, Somaliland will prevail over this
calamity, and will continue to safeguard its unity, sovereignty, peace and
stability. We also call upon all Somalilanders in the diaspora to renew their
support and loyalty for our country’s unity and sovereignty at this critical
juncture of our country’s history.
We belong to Allah and to him we
shall all return.
Signatories:
Sultan Mohammed Abdi Ali.
Ibrahim Barre Nuur
Mohammed Saeed Egeh
Dr. Omer Ibrahim Huseein
Mohamoud Hassan Sa’ad
Warsame Dirie Muse
Omar Abdi Shire
Noah Amin Arre
Bashir Sh. Omer Goth
Abdurahman Omar Sh. Ibrahim
Noah Barkhadle
Hussein Warsame Siyaad
Awil Gooh Abdi
Abdi Dhiilood Ali Shire
Amiin Abdillahi Ali
Mohammed Farah Gureh
Barre Adam Abdillahi
Saeed Dirir Eid
Mohammed Abdi Awl
Hykal Abdi Mohammed.
Somaliland
Forum Critique Of The Secretary-General's Report On The Situation In Somalia
And Somaliland (S/2002/189) April 29, 2002
Many years ago,
the Somalia Task Force composed of concerned academics and NGOs wrote a
follow-up assessment of a report of the UN Secretary-General to the Security
Council. In their assessment, the Somalia Task Force wrote (Somalia News
Update, "Critique of the "Report by the Secretary-general the
Situation in Somalia, 17 September 1994," Vol. 3, No. 25, October 11,
1994):
"There are
a number of dangers inherent in misleading and possibly politicised reporting
within the UN. First, it is possible that the Security Council will act on
faulty information, issuing resolutions that do not serve the best interests of
either the host population (in this case, the Somali people) or the
international community. More realistically, however, most of the
Security Council members have their own independent sources of analysis and
will not be misled by poor reporting on the part of the Secretariat. But
that presents a different kind of danger to the office of the Secretary-General
-- namely, the erosion of the credibility of the institution. In the case of
Somalia, UN agencies, non-governmental organizations, member-states, the media,
and the Somali people are all well aware of the actual political situation in
Somalia. The UN only damages its own credibility by issuing reports that distort
or omit the truth."
That was in
1994. Sadly, 8 years later, the Secretariat's reporting on Somalia and
Somaliland is as erroneous as ever.
On Somaliland
1. First, the
report bundles together two countries that have nothing in common: Somalia, in
turmoil, and Somaliland, termed last year the most peaceful country in Africa
(See Afafe Ghechoua, Jeune Afrique L'intelligent, "Somaliland: Et
pourtant, il fonctione," number 2114, July, 2001, p. 28-31.). This kind of
bundling does not help anyone to understand the situation in either Somaliland
or in Somalia proper. Sadly, this has become a common pattern under the
Secretariat's reports.
2. The report,
always referring to Somalia, without distinguishing between Somaliland and
Somalia proper states: "Somalia remains one of the most dangerous
environments in which the United Nations operates." While that may be true
for Somalia, the reader wonders what that has to do with Somaliland, obliquely
referred to as being part of Somalia. The fact that is omitted from the
report is that Somaliland is today one of the most stable and peaceful nations
in Africa. Somaliland has firmly established its democratic system,
which, although it is far from perfect, nevertheless, has been hailed as a
model for Africa. We invite interested readers to consult the extensive report
on Somaliland presented by the most prestigious of African magazines,
Jeune Afrique, in the very issue that carried also the Lusaka conference of the
OAU heads of state, which the Secretary-General attended last year. As
witnessed by the Jeune Afrique journalist, Somaliland is "probably
the safest and the most peaceful in the continent: not even a revolver is to be
seen in the belts of the police." (Translated from French) (See
Afafe Ghechoua, Jeune Afrique L'intelligent, "Somaliland: Et pourtant, il
fonctione," number 2114, July, 2001, p. 28-31). One well wonders
then what is the whole exercise of the report when a school child doing a
research project would be able to find factual errors in it.
3. The report
states that Somaliland has enjoyed 'a high degree of autonomy for six years,'
supposedly under Somalia. While this error would have been entertaining in
other contexts, it sadly exemplifies a political exercise to frustrate the will
of the people of Somaliland as well as their valiant efforts to rebuild their
country after its total destruction by the last regime of Somalia. The
truth is Somaliland has reverted back to its sovereign status of 1960, soon
after the fall of the Barre dictatorship of Somalia. That was on May 18,
1991-that is twelve years ago. Since that day, Somaliland had functioned
as a state and went about its business as Somalia slid into further chaos,
prompting several UN responses such as the international intervention of 1993.
It is well known that Somaliland had a history, which is separate and different
from that of Somalia, just as Eritrea had a colonial history and a modern
history different from that of Ethiopia. Somaliland was known until 1960,
as British Somaliland, while Somalia was an Italian colony. Somaliland
became independent of Great Britain on June 26, 1960 before Somalia gained its
independence from Italy. However, an unconstitutional merger happened between
the two countries in 1960, which lead to the total annihilation of Somaliland
by Somalia. That, in turn, led to an armed struggle, which started in earnest
in 1981. And, it was as a result of its war in Somaliland that the Barre regime
of Somalia collapsed, leading to factional fighting, turmoil, and lack of a
national government in that country since in 1991. In contrast, the people of
Somaliland took a different path: they convened a national congress and
collectively restored their sovereignty and independence. What followed then
was a decade of reconstruction and institution building in Somaliland,
virtually without any assistance from the world. Let alone assistance-the
fact is while the UN has poured billions into restoring a semblance of
governance in Somalia, UN bureaucrats, especially those from Africa, have gone
out of their way to omit and ignore Somaliland in their efforts to advance
their careers. At the core of the issue is an OAU rule, which does not in
any way apply to Somaliland. That African fiat is known as the
inviolability of colonial frontiers. However, since Somaliland had its
own colonial frontiers, just as Somalia had its own, or any other African
nation, the rule does not apply to Somaliland. Moreover, Somaliland was
an independent state before Somalia became independent from Italy.
On Somalia
1. The report
speaks of a "Transitional National Government,"(TNG) and a president,
Mr. Abdikassim Salad Hassan, who is none other than the former interior
minister of the fascist Barre regime---he was also a lifetime minister. But the
report does not mention the fact that there is no government in Somalia, and
that the TNG or the Arta Faction, named after the town in Djibouti where they
were actually mustered and entertained by President Guelleh of Djibouti who
actually distributed the appointments to an entity he was forming and
subsequently named Mr. Hassan as president of the new group, is not a
legitimate government but a group trying to usurp the personality of the
defunct Somali state. It is indeed strange that this is being referred to
as a government in the report. Especially, as Mr. Hassan's group controls
no more than few blocks in Mogadishu.
2. The reports
additionally omits to say that no government has given recognition to Mr.
Hassan's group as a Somalia government, if one may discount Djibouti, which created
the group in the first place, and Mr. Kadafi of Libya. We may well ask:
Why does the world refuse to recognize Mr. Hassan's group as the legitimate
government of Somalia proper? The answer is simple: there is no representative
government in Somalia proper and the group that claims to be the government of
not only Somalia proper but also, and behold, the Republic of Somaliland
itself, is trying to sell the goofiest scam in the world.
3. The report
called for the formation of a group of 'Somalia friends' composed of
neighboring countries. The fact is that the situation needs neutral parties,
especially from countries outside the Horn of Africa, including the United
States of America. Time and again, some neighboring countries, and in
particular, the tiny port-state of Djibouti, have shown to have no interest in
any other outcome except one that destroys the existence of Somaliland.
What Is Needed From The United
Nations
1. Recognize the
Existence of Somaliland as a Fact: Refocus all UN efforts by recognizing the
fact on the ground, which is two nations, one in turmoil, which is
Somalia, and the other peaceful and democratic, which is Somaliland.
2. An International
Conference: UN needs to enlist the help of nations outside the region to solve
the Somalia imbroglio, such as the United States. It should call for
international conference on Somalia, not an IGAD conference, neighbors'
conference, African Union conference, or Arab League conference.
3. War Crimes
Tribunal: The United Nations needs to appoint a war crimes tribunal for Somalia
to help to put a closure on the past and heal the wounds. Serious war
crimes had happened in the ex-Somali Republic, and some people, including Mr.
Hassan, and some members of his so-called TNG, including certain generals, have
to answer for their part in the genocide campaigns of the Barre regime in which
they were top ministers and officers for as long as it had existed before any
meaningful reconciliation can take place.
Conclusion
Twelve years have passed since the fall of
the dictatorship in Somalia, 1991; all-past efforts have not achieved
anything in Somalia. Hence, it is time for the UN and the world Community
to refocus the UN's efforts in Somalia. Such a step will have to
start by addressing first and foremost the question of Somalia, without
Somaliland. Any other efforts that do not recognize that simple fact will
not lead to peace but to more turmoil in the Horn of Africa---The issue of
Somaliland, separate and distinct from Somalia, lies at the heart of peace in
the whole of the Horn of Africa.
The people of
Somaliland have overwhelmingly voted in a referendum, in May 2001, to stay on
course and keep their sovereignty. There is no way anyone can reverse that fact
without using force and going against the expressed will of the people
Somaliland.
Somaliland
Prospers In Nation Of Chaos, But Still Craves International Recognition
By Osman Hassan, AP Writer
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Hargeisa, April 28 (AP) - In the center of this dusty town of stone houses with corrugated iron roofs intermingled with thorn bushes, the rusting shell of a Chinese-built fighter jet perches on a brick platform.
Officials of the self-declared
"Republic of Somaliland" erected the monument last June as a reminder
of what happened the last time they were part of a united Somalia.
In 1988, as Somalia's civil war
intensified, dictator Mohamed Siad Barre sent warplanes - including the one
made into a memorial - to bomb Hargeisa, killing an estimated 40 000
people and forcing 400 000 more to flee the region.
"We can never stand again to
reunite with the rest of Somalia. We can stand no more destruction," said
bus driver Ahmed Hassan, echoing the views of most people in this northern
region.
In the years that followed Siad
Barre's ouster in January 1991, Somaliland has enjoyed relative peace and
prosperity pursuing its own path, while much of the rest of the Horn of Africa
country has been ravaged by clan-based fighting and banditry.
Despite the scars of the 1988
bombing raids and fighting in 1992 and 1994-96, Hargeisa boasts Somalia's only
working traffic lights and has a semblance of normalcy alien to much of the
country.
Gunmen on pickup trucks
Other Somali towns are filled with
young gunmen huddling in the shade or zooming around on the back of pickup
trucks, but Hargeisa's bustling streets are empty of militiamen and bandits.
Residents say the stability is
thanks to the leadership of Mohamed Ibrahim Egal, Somaliland's president, who
declared the region independent shortly after Siad Barre's ouster.
When the anti-Siad Barre faction
leaders in southern Somalia fell to fighting among themselves, Egal stayed out
of the war, set up his own administration and created a police force.
The region's borders are based on
colonial maps. Dominated by the Issak clan, Somaliland was a British
protectorate that united with Italian Somaliland in 1960 to form Somalia.
The international recognition Egal
craves has never come. But the majority of Somalilanders are convinced their
leader is following the right path, fearful that reunification with the rest of
Somalia would bring clan-based fighting.
"We just want to live in peace
and we are worried that reintegration with the south might bring us
instability," said Ahmed Ilyas, a businessman.
Last May 97% of the 1.2 million
voters in a referendum backed Somaliland's continued secession from the rest of
the troubled country, officials said.
Trading in khat
The vote was a rebuff to a
transitional Somali government led by Abdiqasim Salad Hassan that had been
elected at a peace conference in neighboring Djibouti in August 2000.
Egal shunned the peace conference
and refused to recognize Abdiqasim's administration, which has little influence
outside Mogadishu.
"I believe southern Somalia
should sort out its problems first, then the two sides - south and north - can
sit together to discuss the future of Somalia," said Ahmed Mohamed
Silanyo, a veteran Somaliland politician.
Despite Somaliland's success,
analysts say the region is not so different from the rest of Somalia. It, too,
is ruled by an old political elite backed by a business cartel, creating riches
that benefit a few.
While Egal's administration
finances the security forces, Somaliland is dependent on aid agencies for
development and rehabilitation programmes. Many people in Hargeisa are
unemployed. Others survive by trading in khat, a semi-narcotic leaf chewed as a
stimulant in this part of the world.
"In the end, Somalia will be
reunited, but under a sort of federal system," predicts Farah Abdi, an
intellectual in Hargeisa. "The secessionism cannot work; it has been 10
years and we still have no international recognition."
Others say Egal has been using the
ghosts of Somaliland's past to scare people into supporting his cause.
The memorial of the fighter jet "is just a way of hammering the minds of the Hargeisa people with the idea of telling people that their enemy is in Mogadishu", said Ali Mohamed, another intellectual.
The Chairman Of UCID, Mr. Faysal Ali
Meets Somalilanders In Seattle
By Jamal Gabobe, Seattle,
Washington
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Seattle - USA
May 1 (SL Times): On Tuesday evening, April 30th, the Chairman of UCID, Mr.
Faysal Ali gave a talk to Somalilanders in Seattle. The event took place at the
Radisson Hotel and was attended by about one hundred men and women. Some of the
main points covered by Mr. Faysal Ali were:
1-Somaliland is now peaceful.
Somalilanders know that without peace and security nothing can be achieved.
Therefore, they will not allow anyone or group to disturb the peace or create
chaos. Somalilanders already know what war and conflict means. They also know
it is politicians who create chaos to serve their purposes, and that it is
civilians, especially the young and women who are the ultimate losers in times
of war.
2-The root of societal conflict is
lack of justice, not tribal affiliation. UCID believes if the root cause is
addressed and justice prevails in Somaliland, then conflict will lessen. UCID
is committed to justice and empowering the people of Somaliland, especially the
young, women and the vulnerable members of society, such as the handicapped,
orphans, war veterans and the oppressed.
3-Elections will
take place in Somaliland and UCID will participate in it. Shir Beled is not a
viable alternative.
4-Somaliland's current government is ineffective, and it is time for a new
vision and a new leadership.
5- UCID's development plan for Somaliland gives special importance to rural
development and improving the conditions of pastoralists, as well as the health
and the marketing of livestock.
6- One of the biggest problems in Somaliland is a crisis of representation. The
traditional representatives have become too politicized, and often put their
personal interests ahead of the interests of the communities they are supposed
to represent. Elections and one-man-one-vote should help in rectifying this
crisis of representation.
7- The Diaspora
can have a big impact if they organize themselves and become more active.
At the end of his presentation, Mr. Faysal Ali fielded several questions
ranging from the personal to the political. He answered them all, sometimes
going into great detail. Some of the issues he stressed in his answers were:
a) Somaliland is a state. Therefore, it must control its borders. It cannot let
just whoever wants to go in and out. Somaliland is now in the process of
remedying this situation with the issuing of identity cards.
b) Somalilanders must adhere to their Islamic faith and pray regularly.
c) With the
mushrooming of political parties in the country, Somalilanders now have
channels through which they can participate in the development of their
country, and should take advantage of that opportunity.
d) Somalilanders in the Diaspora can do a great deal in furthering the cause of
Somaliland abroad and securing international recognition for the country.
When the program came to an end late in the evening, Faysal Ali shook hands with the people. Like me, many of those present had only heard of him and have never met him before, so the evening was a good chance to meet the candidate face-to-face. His speech gave me a more clear picture of UCID and its chairman. His message of change, hope, and empowerment has a modern ring to it, which resonates in the Diaspora. When I asked Mr. Faysal Ali if it also resonates inside the country, he answered that it does. "People in Somaliland," he went on to say "want the same things you want. They want jobs, great schools for their kids, good health care, no corruption, and that's what UCID stands for." A very reassuring message indeed.
