SL leaders still smell theBritish Rule,therefore they will not sit with other Somalis

[Liibaan]

Somaliland leaders still smell the British Rule, therefore Mr Donal Payne, they will not sit with other Somalis.

 

 

Saturday, 11 July 2009 01:02

In an attempt to alleviat the ongoing targedy in Somalia, Mr. Donald M. Payne of the United States Congress invited the TFG of Somalia, Puntland administration and Somaliland administration to a meeting in Washington on 25th June, 2009. Initially all the three entities accepted the invitation but only the TFG and Puntland representaives have attended the meeting, while the Somaliland´s "foreign minister" being ill-advised by foreign whistle-blowers did not show up in the meeting, claiming that "Somaliland is an independent country which has nothing to do with other Somalis".

 

 

 

 

 

 

Following this and during the congressional hearings in Washington DC, Hon Donald Payne, Chairman of Committee for African Affairs at US Congress had, bearing in mind that the so-called Somaliland is not sui generis and its people are not diffrent from other Somalis, stated the following: If they [somaliland people] want to be isolated, they can be assured that I will do all I can to isolate them.

 

 

This statement by the congressman, which certainly did not cut ice with the secessionists, has apparently prompted an outcry among those who are desperate for a secession, to the extend that in an article: to Awdalnews.com, Hon Donald Payne was likened to a warlord and a terrorist of Somalia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In another letter: , which has appeared in some Somali websites and addressed to Hon Donald Payne, Mr Mohamed Baranbaro, the author of the letter tried to convince the congressman and his associates that “Somaliland” deserves an international recognition. If anything this type of letter is a downnright insult to the intelligence of any learned congressman, like Hon Donald Payne. There is a paucity of truthfulness in the said letter and its content is basically a rehash of the secessionist’s stereotype and ludicrous claims for a much sought international recognition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These types of acts clearly reflect how the “leaders” of one clan in North-west Somalia want to mislead the international community and get an interantional recognition for a pretend state called, Somaliland. Institutions like the US congress and all other international fora are privy to the fact that the concept of “Somaliland” is the invention of some disgruntled “politicians” of one clan among the five clans in northern Somalia (former British Somaliland), who acting upon tribal dominance and taking the advantage of the collapse of the Somali state, unilaterally declared in May 1991, a secession of the area from Somalia and adopted a former colonial name of Somaliland.

 

 

For the last 18 years the secessionists and some hired foreign agents have been relentlessly campaigning for Somaliland´s recognition and these often present flimsy justifiactions as pre-requisite for a recognition. Among these justifications are that Somaliland is democratic, peaceful and both presidential and parliamentarian elections were conducted or that all the clans in the former British Somaliland are identified with the secession. All these, justifiactions which are similar to the hackneyed collection of claims stated by Mohamed Baranbaro do not hold water and a point-by-point rebuttal to these claims is given below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Somaliland was an independent nation with internationally delineated boundaries and was recognized by 34 nations including 5 permanent members.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a lie and I challenge anyone who can produce a single country, let alone 34 countries or the 5 permenant memebers of the UN, which ever recognised Somaliland as an independent state. It is irrational that any government would have recognised a transient adminstration as an idependent state, that was only to exist for 4 days (26 June -1 July 1960) and then to disappear for good after joining an adminstartion from the South to form the unity government of the Somali Republic. Mr Baranbaro is day-dreaming if he thinks that his claim is available in the archives of the UN or in the records of the 34 countries , mentioned in his letter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Somaliland existed before Somalia was granted independence. Once Somalia achieved independence, Somaliland then initiated a Union with Somalia for a greater “Somali Republic”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There had never been a state called Somaliland unless one erroneously beleives that the then British Somaliland Protectorate was a separate state and was not an occupied part of the Somali home by the British colonisers. Also, the union was not initiated by the North, but it was an aspiration of all Somalis.

 

 

3.This Union was never legally formed thus never bound Somaliland to perpetuity.

 

 

Contrary to this claim and unless Mr Baranbaro is speaking through his hat, one clan has no solid legal basis to abrogate the act of union (Atto di Unione) formed and signed by the governments of North and South in 1960.

 

 

4. Somaliland never relinquished her right to restore her independence at any point. Somaliland restored her independence in 1991 after 30 years of the disastrous policies that saw the aerial bombardment of cities, the massacre of over 50,000 innocent people and the systemic humiliation of the people of Somaliland.

 

 

 

The writer of this claim, like all the proponents of secession beleives that his clan had solely inherited from the British, all the territories of the former British Somaliland Protectorate and by virtue of this, his clan alone decides in an on-and-off mode, when and how the north-west of Somalia can be part of Somalia. Again, Mr Mohamed Baranbaro as usual heaps all the blames to the unity itself or the South but conveniently ignores that the politicians, both from North and South were to be blamed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The secessionist´s claim that 50 000 of their people were killed by the former Somali president, Siyad Bare who was from the South, is exceedingly over the top and even if this and other fabricated stories were true, these would not justify for an international recognition to Somaliland, as the said regime which had army officers both from North and South of Somalia, also carried out killings in the South and central parts of Somalia. One, must also recall that the people of Sool, Sanag and Cayn of North Somalia were massacred by thier thousands during the Darwish movements in1900 – 1921. These massacres were committed by the British colonisers with the collobration of Somalis and Ethiopia. This historical fact is not an invented one, but it is documented and can be found in the world libraries. From these library records, Mr Baranbaro can find out who were these Somalis who collobrated with the British colonisers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. The Somaliland public voted overwhelmingly- on more than one occasion - to rescind the union. This decision is neither reversible nor open to negotiation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is again a wishfull thinking to contemplate that all clans in the north-west regions of Somalia are behind the secession. The fact that Somaliland militia occupies in the unionist Sool region and its capital Lasanod which they invaded in October, 2007 speaks for itself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Somaliland's case is unique in that the recognition of Somaliland will not set precedent or infringe upon African Union protocol or convention.There are no other formerly independent and recognized nations seeking to exita union or reclaim independence.

 

 

There is nothing uniqueness in the secessionist´s cause and simply put, if Somalia is divisible so is the so-called Somaliland. World bodies like the UN, AU and all other international organisations know that if this clan-entity is recognised this will let the genie out of the bottle, therefore the unity of Somalia is sacred and untouchable.

 

 

 

7. Somaliland fulfills all requirements for statehood; a) the nation has a permanent population, b) had been independent once before, c) has a clearly defined territory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The secessionists always highlight their fond for the legacy of British rule and its attributes, like a defined territory, based on arbitrary boundary and drawn by the British . One has to know that such boundary was illegal in the first place, and became obsolete once the internationally recognised boundary of Somalia was in place and, if an arbitrary boundary was to be counted one has to remember that the Turks, Egyptians and even the Omanis ruled some parts of the Somali home and as a result had drawn their respective arbitrary boundaries. One wonders why unlike other regions of Somalia and of all those powers who occupied Somalia, the British legacy in Hargeisa is olfactory and aural – Was there very special bond between the British colonisers and those who still evocatively remember the British rule?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Mohamed A Mirreh10 July, 2009