Ambiguous Relations

[Liqaye]

Edititorial from somaliland times.

 

 

Knowing ethiopians and having watched their entire game plan un-fold, somaliland is being used, pity that the editor is grabbing at straws

 

 

Somaliland-Ethiopian relations are often described as good. However nobody can tell how good these relations are. The question often asked is: are the ties between the two countries strong enough as to equally satisfy the basic needs and aspirations of both sides? Many Somalilanders do not think so. Rather, they feel that the relations between the two countries are strongly tilted in favor of Ethiopia.

 

Because of its genuine desire to have a peaceful and mutually beneficial relations with Ethiopia, Somaliland has earned the animosity of certain quarters inside and outside this region that furiously appose Ethiopia. The Al-Itihad-ONLF alliance, nurtured and supported by the forces of international terror, is one good example of such quarters. This alliance, as the ONLF chairman, Mr. Mohamed Omar Osman, pointed out during an interview with him by the BBC Somali Services on Tuesday, has always viewed Somaliland’s cooperation with Ethiopia on security matters as constituting a major stumbling block against their plans. Somaliland is also being victimized by totalitarian Arab regimes, particularly those of Egypt, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Libya and Syria, not only for having withdrawn from the 1960 union with Somalia but also for taking a pro-Ethiopian stance since declaring independence in 1991. Driven by extremist ideologies, greed and the desire to exercise hegemony over others, the above Arab governments are working over-time on various schemes to force Somaliland to rejoin Somalia.

 

For Egypt, the re-emergence of a strong Somalia state (to be made up of Somaliland and Somalia) would give Egypt an ally on the Eastern border of Ethiopia, in case of conflict between Ethiopia and Egypt over the waters of the Nile. The Saudi involvement serves to deflect criticism that the kingdom's wealthy rulers do not care about poor Arabs. It is also an opprotunity for Saudi Arabia not to cede Arab leadership to Egypt, with the added advantage that there are no real costs to be paid. For Djibouti, opposing Somaliland’s independence means getting more money from Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich Gulf States. The Bathist regime in Syria supports the concept of greater Somalia because paying lip service to Arab unity is part of its strategy of survival. For Qadafi, recognition of Somaliland as sovereign state would seem a bad omen for starting his grand project of seeking the creation of the Union of African states.

 

Most of Somaliland's people harbor feelings of gratitude towards Ethiopia because of the support it gave to Somaliland’s liberation struggle during the eighties, when other Somalis were trying to slaughter as many Somalilanders as possible. Ethiopia hosted hundreds of thousands of Somaliland refugees who lived there after fleeing genocide. The present Ethiopian government which has been in power since 1991, has shown sympathy and understanding toward Somaliland's quest for recognition. But despite all of these positive factors, there is growing disappointment among Somalilanders about the Ethiopian government's reluctance to widen the scope of relations between the two countries beyond the current level that is largely confined to cooperation on security matters. Somalilanders cannot understand why the same Ethiopian government which allowed Eritrea to secede and become independent is not forthcoming when it comes to recognizing Somaliland, which from a strictly legal standpoint, has a stronger case for being recognized as sovereign state.

 

There is no doubt that Ethiopia itself has frequently come under external pressure to persuade it against going ahead with Somaliland’s recognition. Somalia's warlords such as Abdiqasim Salad Hasan never seem to tire of accusing Ethiopia of trying to dismember the non-existent state of Somalia. But while Somaliland has not relented in the face of external pressure, the Ethiopian side has comparatively shown a tendency of yielding to blackmail at the expense of its long-term strategic interests in the region. Hence the new argument now that Somaliland could perhaps be better off if it took a neutral position with regard to regional affairs. Proponents of this argument view the Somaliland-Ethiopian security cooperation as an arrangement that tends to serve one side’s interests – Ethiopia’s. They cite the assassination attempt carried out in Las-Anod by Abdillahi Yusuf against Somaliland's President, Dahir Rayale Kahin, as a typical example of the Ethiopian government’s insensitivity towards Somaliland’s concerns. They argue that Abdillahi Yusuf who is fed, clothed and armed by Ethiopia should have received a harsh response from the Ethiopian government. The Ethiopian government’s decision to close informal trading activities at the border, towards the end of last year, has also made many Somalilanders even more confused as to the real intentions of the Ethiopian side. And in the aftermath of the recent arrests of ONLF fighters in Hargeisa, the question being widely asked these days is why should Somaliland bother itself with the security of anyone, when everyone else, especially its neighbors, are unwilling to recognize and respect the basic aspirations of Somaliland's people to be the masters of their destiny and live in peace in their own independent country. It is in Ethiopia's interests that this new argument does not become the dominant one in Somaliland; and the best way to ensure that it does not, is to start addressing Somaliland's concerns