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Hargeysa,
Somaliland, August 29, 2009 – A ruling that Somaliland will hold its
oft-postponed presidential election without a voters’ list has prompted
demonstrations, a boycott threat and warnings that the state’s relative
stability is in jeopardy.
Somaliland, which unilaterally broke away from the rest of Somalia in
1991, is due to go to the polls on 27 September. The poll was originally
scheduled for April 2008.
In late July, President Dahir Riyale Kahin announced that he and the
National Election Commission (NEC) had decided to discard a hi-tech
biometric voters’ register that had recently been completed after two
years of work, claiming that computer server problems had generated an
unreliable list. A representative of Interpeace, a Geneva-based
organization that developed the new system and disputes the extent of
the problem, was abruptly deported.
The two main opposition candidates, Faisal Ali Warabe of the Justice and
Welfare Party and Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud of the Development and
Solidarity Party, have threatened to boycott the election and refused to
even meet Riyale unless he reconsiders his decision.
For his part, Riyale has ignored a parliamentary order to reinstate the
voters’ list, whose suspension the assembly deemed illegal.
The suspension led to demonstrations by opposition supporters, the
latest on 19 August in Hargeysa, the capital, with thousands of people.
"We want to show the president that we are fully committed to holding
the election using the voter registration lists," Mustafe Abdi, one of
the protesters, said.
According to reports from Lasanod, at least 37 individuals have been
arrested since the demonstrations began, including regional officials of
the two opposition parties.
Credibility questions
Yusuf Abdi Gabobe, leader of the Union of Somaliland Journalists, said:
"Everybody in Somaliland is worried about the country's current
situation. If we continue without mediation the situation could worsen
and conflict could arise."
Meanwhile, concern is mounting outside the country. The African Union’s
envoy, Nicholas Bwakira, arrived in Hargeysa on 25 August and was
scheduled to meet leaders of all major political parties. His visit
follows that of Ethiopian Deputy Foreign Minister, Tekeda Alemu.
Earlier in August, the US government expressed “profound dismay” over
the registration issue. “We believe the list forms a sound basis for use
in the elections scheduled for 27 September. We have directly urged
President Riyale to reconsider his decision,” according to a press
statement released in Nairobi.
Timothy Othieno, a regional analyst with the Overseas Development
Institute, a British think-tank, told IRIN that if the minority ruling
United Peoples’ Democratic Party (UDUB) went ahead with the election
without the opposition, "they will have no credibility domestically and
internationally and this may lead to instability. The lack of
credibility may lead to pressures within Somaliland for change, which
may not be attractive for Riyale both domestically and internationally."
But he warned even under current circumstances, the election date should
be maintained. “Any further delays will have denied Somalilanders an
opportunity to express themselves through the ballot box. There will
never be a perfect election and a consistent tradition of elections will
sort out these intricacies over time. The point being that Somaliland
needs to get into the habit of having regular elections even if they are
not perfect."
Three UK-based organizations invited to coordinate international
observers during the elections have also sounded the alarm. In a
statement released on 20 August, Progressio, the Development Planning
Unit at University College London, and Somaliland Focus (UK) expressed
“deep concern” at recent developments and hinted they would pull out.
“We feel that under the current circumstances, the only possible outcome
[of the election] would be seen by a significant proportion of
Somalilanders as lacking legitimacy. We are therefore concerned about
whether we are able to provide the coordination and observation role to
which we have been committed to date, unless the situation changes
markedly,” they said.
mj-js-am/mw
Source: IRIN, August 25, 2009
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