Deeq A. Posted July 7, 2018 The stand-off between Somaliland and Puntland forces near Tukaraq in Sool reminds many Somalis of early 1990s. It was the time Somali political leaders' failed to spare Somali citizens horrors of a civil war. What makes Puntland-Somaliland stand-off different is that Somaliland has taken a leaf from Somalia's 1960s book but modified it: Its irredentist claims are not made against a neighbouring country; it is made against a country Somaliland is a part of. The UN Secretary General urged Somaliland President to talk to Mogadishu about secession. Talks will not bear any fruits if Somaliland's starting point is that it is a sovereign state and its border with Somalia was demarcated in 1894. President Muse Bihi of Somaliland does not seem to have put a lot of thought into implications of this argument for people in ex-British Somaliland. Colonial borders principle was invoked against Somalia in favour of Kenya and Ethiopia in line with the AU ( then OAU) charter. The same principle will not be invoked against Somalia when Somaliland is questioning the sovereignty of Somalia. Source: Hiiraan Online Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
