Puntland: From a Utopian Vision to a Clan Enclave

[NASSIR]

A great piece. Offers solution.

 

From a Utopian Vision to a Clan Enclave

[Taleexi]

Good read.

[Thankful]

Support for this new regional alliance grew immediately, mapping a state that stretches west to Ceerigaabo and south to Gaalkacyo.

Why is it whenever reer maakhir don't get their way they start complaining about the whole state. It's one thing if they have issue with the former admin, but why say "utopian vision to a clan enclave. Then they say stretches to Ceerigaabo and south to Gaalkayo, well what happened to Ceerigabo. How'd they lose it, it is in the control of NW Somalia's admin and they will never allow them to be pres or vice pres. They haven't even allowed them to run for the position. Yet in Puntland they came in second place in voting for the presidency. Puntland has been very good to them and has received little in return. They need to look at 3 options, either to the NW Somalia, NE Somalia or making an independant state. They have to stop blaming all their problems on others and try and threaten to run away if they to get what they want. They did it last time with the maakhir project, thinking people would beg them to come back and when that didn't happen they came back and ran for presidency of Puntland. When I was in Puntland at the time, I thought, "wait a minute didn't these guys claim their own state."

 

Although both of the previous administrations had failed to fully incorporate Makhiri regions into Puntland, the Makhiris at home and abroad are still waiting for the new President (Faroole) and his Interior Minister (Ilka Jiir) to deliver their promises.

Puntland owe's them nothing. They came close to winning the Presidency so they need to stop with the empty threats. They need to focus on getting control of the land to their west that is in the NW Somalia admin's hands. Then they'll become very important. Blame whoever they want, but don't call the whole state a clan enclave, especially when you tried to develop one called Maakhir.

[Fiqikhayre]

^Saxib, that is what they were complaning from.

 

The least you as the accused of having something, they desperately need, could do is to listen and take your siblings hurt to heart and try to understand where this feeling is coming from and to find a practical solution to it.

 

That is if you consider yourself of the responsible kind. Alienation is real and if you don't want to lose that responsibility, it is better for you the sooner you understand before it is to late.

 

Remember we are into this together.

[General Duke]

A good piece the title was a bit dramatic. We need to spend time on the solutions to these percieved bias that some of our community memebers hold.

 

Puntland is developing, it will take time to address every issue, and the most important thing that we have is peace and we need to strengthen this.

 

Again aside from the title the piece is not all that bad.

[Thankful]

Aw Muuse Ismaciil

 

The days of pointing fingers and blaming others is over in Puntland. How many tribes are their in in the state? No one is intitled to anything. Every tribe can not be given a position or special treatment, there is just not enough government positions to accomodate all of them. So you must choose people individually on their basis of their merits not because they come from certain area. This entire article never mentions what people of Maakhir can offer to Puntland. Instead the writer says:

"If leaders are neither prone to compromise nor execute their functions with transperancy and accountability, regional tensions are bound to re-emerge.

Moreover, in some cases the resulting tensions will turn into conflicts as in the case for Majiyahan.

The threats need to stop, there is no need for them. The write needs to think of this famous quote "Don’t ask what your country can do for you. Ask instead what you can do for your country” – John F. Kennedy.

[Xudeedi]

From Thanksfulsp "Puntland owe's them nothing."

Adeer SSDF communities have gained so much at the expense of the Makhiris. Notable examples are the peace pact of Bosaso, Taxes that the authority collects from infastructures we share such as the road in Bari, port, and the airport. The authority must show transparency to its stakeholders and provide services to all regions equal or else it looses its legitamacy.

[NASSIR]

Wlc Xudeedi.

 

ThankfulSP, are you asking reer Sanaag to conquer and occupy other clan's territory?

The city of Erigavo(not most of its Makhiri villages) is co-owned while its control and management structure has neither violated nor modified the 1992-3 peace treaty and the jurisdictions it had set. However,The legitimacy of Puntland state rests on the loyalty of its people and it's borders are exactly the clan's borders. While Sanaag is 90% Makhiri in terms of demographics, there is a binding peace agreement the Makhiris entered with the two "Somaliland" clans of western Erigavo and ElAfwayn from 1992-3.

Vide this agreement, which preserves the peace and safeguards the territorial borders of Each clan.

Regulations agreed at a Special Conference between the ********* and ******** at Shimbirale, 8-18 November 1992

 

With effect from 18 August any property stolen or looted should be returned immediately. Anybody who suffers injury cannot take revenge on the clans of the criminal but will seek payment from the individual responsible or from his immediate sub-clan.

 

Those who suffer casualties should take no revenge measures themselves but inform the standing committee on peace. If they take steps by way of revenge, they will be treated as bandits.

 

The standing committee on peace will use the services of the peace forces when needed.

 

Anyone killed or injured while involved in acts of banditry will be treated as a dead donkey and should be denied any rights.

 

Any sub-clans engaged in acts of banditry which cause death or material loss should pay whatever damage they have caused. In addition, they will pay a bond of 100 female camels. This bond will be made over to the

joint administration

of the two sides, for common use.

-----------

 

In November 1992, some 400 delegates representing the ******** and the ******* met at Jideli. By the end of the conference

they had agreed that each clan would be responsible for maintaining law and order in its own territory.

A joint local committee of 30 members would be responsible for settling conflicts according to the terms laid down at conference. If more rain fell in the land of one clan, the guest community attracted by the pasture would be responsible for the protection of the lives and livestock of the host community.

Thus, you should know that the Makhirs control their territory from Erigavo to Bosaaso. Clan is the supreme authority in anarchic Somalia and if a clan, for instance, gives its loyalty to an administration like Puntland, They are well-positioned to pinpoint the failures of previous administrations.

The above article serves only a reminder of the previous administration's policy failures and the unbalanced distribution of the legislature. As far as I know, three major clans had agreed to form an autonomous regional administration and thus share it proportionally. For instance, 15 assembly members were given to Makhiris, 4 of which went to the Erigavo district, but stalled disagreement between the Makhiri sub-clans over its allocation, those member nominations went straight to other regions and of Haud.

It's now imperative to go back to the original set up of Puntland and clean up the slate. The Farole administration must also fulfill its promise to nominate the Haylaan Regional Council.

[ANWAR]

Good read.

[Fiqikhayre]

ThankfulSP, what I am alluding to, is that the days of clan identification are grind now in Puntland and henceforth, I am to be known a Puntlander.

 

To this, we all should aspire, to be Puntlanders that is. Inshallaah the stage is set for 2011, in two years time, when your loyalties will be to a political denomination of your choosing rather than to the narrowest clan denominator possible.

 

That is why I did not like the undertones because if you fraction us like that and believe me, such you did , like a chopped onion, to be cut in million pieces, I am sure that you will not most definitely stop at the Makhiris.

 

Already I did see signs of it, so our notion should not be to identify us by our lowest clan denominations such as Qardho, Garowe or Galkacyo but to be above such thing and call oneself a Puntlander. Puntland is already defined by the people and clans who live there, so there is no need to identify oneself by his sub-clan as we already share a common heritage and clan. Thus we should adopt the notion of Puntlander and identify ourselves by that only. There are already many Puntlanders whose clan are not from Puntland such as Hassan Guulwade and many others. It will be a gate-opener to many others inshallah, who want to be Puntlander and already love the state.

 

Coming back to the article, the Makhiris are now simply positioning themselves to lead Puntland in a few years time inshallaah in order to win the next election. That is what Garooweonline and President Faroole did during Adde Muse's reign and I know both you and me were sometimes against the tactics employed by that outlet.

 

Makhiris, I respect and I don't know who you think, they be, but believe me this folks are good and decisive people and they control their land's just as you do. Erigavo is a shared city just like Galkacyo is and the Makhiris have no one to fear as they control their share of the city and violating other people‘s areas is out of question, just as it is in Galkacyo. In fact in Galkacyo, out of 13 districts only 1 district is of the other side namely Baraxley and that 1 district is also a whole State by the name of Galmadug. The Makhiri people are not to be divided and are united behind a common cause.

 

In fact, they bargained themselves to get the Interior Ministers portofolio in order to position themselves for the next election as after the defeat in the election they realised they needed a foot in the government in the first place in order to mount a credible and real challenge for Puntland’s highest Leadership office i.e. the Presidency. Thus they bargained higher and with more and said they want X amount of Ministers but at the end Farole had to give them the Interior Ministry, which was all they wanted.

 

President Farole on the other hand has his sights on Villa Somalia and shall be god willingly in 1 ½ years time leading the nation as a whole. So come back and have a rethink about the things you said and accused your brethren off. Remember we are all proud Puntlanders and Somalis and that in itself is not a contradiction.

[Xudeedi]

Makhiri's are Puntlanders by both political outlook and ancestrial lineage. Because Puntland was birthed by mutual agreement, the authority is legitimaced through regional consent. With that being said, Makhiri's as stake holders have every right to demand greater services to the administration they legitimised. Before the formation of Puntland, Makhiri check points were present in the road that connects Bosaso to other regions. The Makhiri's agreed to remove those checkpoints and turn over some of there revenue to the state. If those road blocks were still present today, imagine how it would effect the flow of business with that road being the only road in the region. The airport in Bosaso is geographically located in a Makhiri area in which the administration had to pay the local clan when they wanted to extend it. If it was not for Makhiri cooperation, Puntland would have not been what it is.

[GAAROODI]

saxib, the first toilet of las canod was built like 3 months ago by somaliland regional mayor and governer, they just got water after 40 years of being in somalia. Forget makhir, and forget getting help from puntland, at the moment it cant help itself.

 

Makhir is like three villages, badhan,dahar and las korey. Three villages. What is makhir saxib? three villages. In todays world you need to be bigger than three villages. In somaliland there are 86 villages bigger than las korey,badhan and dahar.

 

 

when somaliland comes there they clap there hands, when puntland comes they clap there hands, your going round in circles at least las canod made up its mind, they got a new school,hospital,wate r and a toilet.

 

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR.....LOOOL !

[Paragon]

^Garoodi, how is your post helping an issue or an argument between Puntlanders rather than antagonize?

 

It's not helpful.

[Koora-Tuunshe]

Garoodi.. adeer ragbaa xaajoonaaya...

 

Well writen article.

 

In la is dhaliilo way furantahay. Puntland Hanoolaato

[Thankful]

I've met Ilko'Jiir and he is definitely an honorable man. When I was in Garowe during the past elections, I saw all these candidates driving around with a ridiculous amount of bodyguards. Except Ilko'Jiir, who had an SUV with two guards. I don't know if the other candidates think it helps their image or status, but it was annoying. Ilko-Jiir spoke very well about bringing security and other help.

 

Ilko Jiir who had arrived from the U.S a few months earlier came in second for the Puntland presidency of 2009. Losing to President Faroole who himself had lost the elections before in 2005. So what is Maakhir complaining about? Do they actually feel Puntland is a clan enclave? Let me clarify what I said, Puntland owes now tribe nothing, they owe the people. We all came together and formed a peaceful region. Everyone sacrificed and must be given credit for their contributions. When the writer says "Puntland had transformed from a utopian vision to a clan enclave driven by SSDF power ambitions", I have an issue with it, especially after Ilko'Jiir's run and losing to someone who had already lost. He beat out so many other people. I'm not diminishing what reer Maakhir have done, but everyone has grievances and thinks they are getting the shorter end of the stick.

 

Aw Muuse Ismaciil,

 

Makhiris are not positioning themselves to lead in my opinion. The article is focusing on their grievances with the former admin. Cade Muse who they refused to give sanctuary to in 2003 and help negotiate a peace treaty with, by not allowing him set up a base on their lands when he arrived. Instead he went o Ceel Afweyn on the NW Somalia side where the honorable Buurmadow mediated the peace deal. Maakhir could have stepped in and done it themselves and position themselves as a powerful force, yet instead they took sides. That was a big mistake. Also, other area's in Puntland welcomed the oil explorations and the jobs and money it would bring to their already deprived regions, but Maakhir was against it because Cade Muse was involved. It wasn't huge equipment coming to extract oil or minerals but merely exploring. Like I said Makhiris are doing a poor job positioning them selves for the presidency. This article is obsessed with the previous leader and mostly addresses him when it is well known they have rejected him from day one; way before he was president and an opposition rebel leader. They need to become the opposition to the current leadership and show what they can bring to the table to help the people. They need to show what the current admin is doing wrong and how they can fix it. That is exactly why Nuradin Dirie refused the post that Faroole offered him, because he knew it would hurt his chances of running next time. How can you run against an administration that you work for? What changes can you bring when you are responsible for the current situation. Right now Nuradin is positioning himself for his next run at the top job, and from what I am hearing so is Gaagaab. While Ilko-jiir is busy with his work and standing side by side with Faroole other candidates are getting a head start and preparing to peacefully oppose the admin. Opposition groups usually say, this is what is wrong and this is how I’ll fix it. Faroole did it with the former admin, with a few other questionable tactics. But Makhiris who instead of writing articles of the current admin, they are writing about the admin before that. They need to realize that admin is long gone and is in the history books, do you think Nuradin and others are concerned with Cade's admin and writing these kinds of articles? Maakhir needs to forget about them and get serious if they want to get the presidency. I'm not saying Ilko-Jiir won't win, no one thought Faroole would and I’m not sure what maakhir is planning. I just think he has a better shot if he becomes opposition. Everyone knows Faroole wants to be president of Somalia and if you look at Puntland history usually the person who opposes the admin wins the next elections. Like I said, start thinking about the current admin and how you can bring changes to make it better and put away your long standing grievances with Cade Muse.