NRC in collaboration with the Somaliland Ministry of Resettlement, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction held a successful handing over of the Digaale resettlement project in a ceremony held at the Digaale Community Centre in Hargeisa this week.
The event was attended by the Vice President of Somaliland H.E Eng. Abdirahman Abdullahi Ismail and other dignitaries including the Minister of the Ministry of Resettlement, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Mr. Ahmed Abdi Kahin, the Mayor of Hargeisa Municipality Mr Abdirahman Aideed Mohamed, the UNOCHA Somaliland Head of Office Mr. Francis Lenoh, and NRC Somaliland and Djibouti Area Manager Mr. Boisy Williams.
In his speech, the Somaliland Vice President expressed his happiness to witness the transformation in the lives of hundreds of people who were displaced during the 2011 drought and who are no longer internally displaced persons, thanks to the shelter and livelihood assistance from NRC and other humanitarian partners.
“It gives me great pleasure when I see all these people who used to live in poor conditions back at Mohammed Moge IDP settlement now proudly owning their homes and beginning a new life. They now have homes which can protect them from rain, hot sun and wind storms with received additional services such as water, a health post and a community centre”, said the Vice president.
Somaliland Vice President presents a certificate of achievement to NRC Somaliland & Djibouti Area Manager Boisy Williams during the handing over ceremony. Photo: NRC/Nashon Tado
The families that have been resettled at Digaale were transferred from the Mohammed Moge IDP Settlement in an elaborate process spanning over a period of two years. This was following the acquisition of a piece of secure land after dialogue and advocacy, which resulted in a breakthrough in November 2013, allowing the IDPs to own title deeds and live in more secure conditions.
“The history and processes leading to the establishment of the Digaale settlement has been long, difficult and at times nerve-wrecking………but the end has surely justified the means” said Williams in his speech on behalf of INGOs during the handing over ceremony.
NRC with funding from ECHO constructed 700 semi-permanent shelters and installed 700 water tanks beside each home to facilitate water access, in addition to a temporary health post. Furthermore, 300 latrines were constructed, 129 shelter kits, 829 hygiene kits, 700 non-food items, 829 solar lamps and 415 sanitation kits were distributed. A community centre was also constructed with funding from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA). Going forward, NRC with support from the Ministry of Resettlement, Rehabilitation & Reconstruction will link the project to development partners to ensure its sustainability.
However, a few gaps still exist including 129 semi-permanent shelters, 129 water tanks and 109 latrines and for which NRC has began discussions with various donors to obtain the necessary funding and other support. The NRC Somaliland programme has field operations in Hargeisa, Burao and Erigavo, with core competencies in shelter, WASH, education, food security and livelihoods while factoring protection as an integral part of all programme activities.
The Minister of Water Resources and the Director of Hargeisa Agency have revealed that more than 40 firms from all over the world have submitted their tenders to expand the existing Hargeisa water supply grid during a joint press conference.
Director of Hargeisa water agency Mr. Ibrahim Said speaking during the press briefing said, “The visitingrepresentatives of the 40 firms came to the country after the UN-Habitat which has been tasked to oversee the expansion of the Hargeisa water advertised the contract on behalf of the EU which will be providing the funds for the project and representatives of those firms will be in the coming days visit the main sources of water that supply the city of Hargeisa and they will also visit the eastern and northern areas of Hargeisa which are currently receiving little or no water all.
“The representatives of the at least 40 firms from Africa, Asia and Europe present here today are those ones who have placed their tenders and have been invited here today to do assessments and evaluate the expansion work needed to be done for the Hargeisa water supply.
The Minister of Water Resources Hon Hussein Mohamed Abdille said, “Further the additional water will see an increase of household connections and a sharp reduction in water trucking to the capital through un-hygienic water tankers pumping water from contaminated shallow riverbed aquifers.
Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, has a rapidly growing population. The principal water infrastructure for the city was built in the 1970s, and is not only aged and dilapidated, but also cannot meet the growing demand for clean, potable water. Hargeisa’s limited water availability is a critical shortcoming in essential service delivery, and seriously impedes the right to water access and local economic development.
HUWSUP will replace the current twin-transmission main that runs from the principal well field at Geed Deeble to Hargeisa with a high-capacity, single pipeline. This action will dramatically increase the capacity of Hargeisa’s system of supply from the current average of 9 million litres to a maximum capacity of 20 million litres a day: a 122 percent increase.
Upgrading the pumping and booster facilities will put in place up-to-date and cost-efficient technology, further securing the system for the long term.
By re-drillingand rehabilitating the existing boreholes, and developing new ones, HUWSUP will increase the water supply by a minimum of 3.5 million litres every day, bringing Hargeisa closer to international minimum standards for urban water consumption. This water will be safe and affordable, improving the lives of Hargeisa residents.
• Global Day of Action called in support of journalists detained in Egypt
• Stands of solidarity, vigils and events planned in 30 cities across the world
Events supporting Al Jazeera’s detained journalists in Egypt are planned in over 30 countries for this Thursday, 27 February 2014.
Al Jazeera hopes that, through the attention of the world’s media and partners, pressure can be brought to bear on the Egyptian authorities to hasten the release of Peter Greste, Mohammed Fahmy, Baher Mohamed and Abdullah El Shamy.
Al Jazeera English’s Mohamed, Fahmy and Greste have been detained since 29 December 2013. Al Jazeera Arabic’s El Shamy has been detained without charge since 14 August 2013 and has been on hunger strike in protest since 23 January 2014.
“We truly appreciate the solidarity from everybody right around the world,” says Dr. Mostefa Souag, general director of Al Jazeera Media Network. “The pressure, support and calls for our colleagues to be released have continued to keep the story in the news. The Global Day of Action is about the freedom of the press; it is about objective reporting and ensuring journalists cannot be gagged or silenced. We ask everyone to contribute to the Global Day of Action on Thursday. Journalism is not a crime.”
The hashtag #FreeAJStaff has gone viral worldwide, with quarter of a billion impressions on Twitter alone since 1 February 2014. The campaign has already had an outpouring of popular and political support worldwide, with institutions including the White House, European Union and the United Nations calling for the release of the journalists and for press freedoms to be upheld.
The campaign looks set to ramp up further with public events taking place in Nairobi, Sydney, Manila, Islamabad, Doha, Amman, Ankara, Berlin, London, Rio, Montreal, Washington DC and San Francisco on Thursday. Every continent of the world will see action.
Al Jazeera is urging people from all backgrounds to join in by supporting the rallies and amplifying the social media campaign using the hashtag #FreeAJstaff.
To build on the online #FreeAJstaff campaign, Al Jazeera will be using Thunderclap, which will allow people to pledge a Tweet, Facebook post, or Tumblr post containing the same message that’s unleashed, all at the same time, throughout the world.
1. Visit http://thndr.it/1nTMx5Z and click on a red “Support with” button for Twitter, Facebook, or Tumblr.
2. Click “Add My Support”
3. You’ll be prompted to authorize your account so Thunderclap can post a message for you; agree.
4. Spread the word and get other people to do it.
What happens: At 14:00 GMT on Thursday, 27 February 2014, Thunderclap will post simultaneously to the hundreds of Twitter and Facebook accounts supporting the campaign in a truly global action.
Somaliland media has grown exponentially for the last two decades from a handful of newspapers into a fully fledged free media and into a dozens of daily papers, including national TV and other private TV channels.However, although media growth is partially due to fledgling democracy in Somaliland, nevertheless, media in Somaliland lacks professionalism and directions, and even viability to survive in a non productive sector.
Media in Somaliland are going through difficult phases, partly due to lack of proper qualified journalist with experience and the knowhow to run a very important sector in a democratic society. The other things which let down their profession are lack of financial backbone, in order to run a quality paper, or a decent TV channel of that matter.
It seems to me that Media in Somalia and Somaliland are abused and misused by the same people who’re crying wolf of censorship and threat of their lives.No doubt Somalia and Somaliland media is evolving, but it seems not only they endangering their lives, but also they become an agent for hire and creators of mischief. Firstly, they don’t self censor themselves and secondly there are no other statutory or entity in Somali/Somaliland which monitors their profession.
According to most countries Media regulation is the control or guidance of mass media by government and other bodies.Therefore, this regulations via law, rules and procedures, can have various goals or objectives, for example, intervention to protect a stated public interest or matters that may be beneficial to the media or society in general.Obviously principle targets of media regulations, as anyone can find or research on other world media are the press, radio and television, also include film, recorded music, cable, satellite, storage and distribution technology (discs, tapes, etc), the internet, mobile, phones, etc.
On the other hand censorship is the suppression of speech or other public communication which may be considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, politically incorrect or inconvenient as determined by a government, media outlet or other controlling body. It can be done by governments and private organizations or by individuals who engage inself-censorship. It occurs in a variety of different contexts including speech, books, music, films, and other arts, the press, radio, television, and the Internet for a variety of reasons including national security, to control obscenity, child pornography, and hate speech, to protect children, to promote or restrict political or religious views, and to prevent slander and libel.
Now if we really study the above rules and regulations followed by most countries around the world, where does Somali/Somaliland stand in that case? The answer is very simple none or rarely. What we have now in our countries is kind of irresponsible journalism which more often upsets the ruling government and creates enmity in an already volatile society. And since those governments didn’t set clear regulations for the media to follow, all we have now is mistrust and blaming of each other.Media in Somalia/Somaliland become tribal entities, and most often they don’t care or even aware the damage they do, as long as they convey their message of hate and bias directed to whomever or whatever they want to criticise or demolish.Amazingly, considering the amount information out there to be reported and explored, all we read now is nothing more than personal attack, rumours and insults exchanged and facilitated by so called media.
It’s time media in Somalia/Somaliland do act and come up with ideas that could help the reputation of the profession and stop misusing it for their own end.Media plays a very important role in a democratic society; and in fact they suppose to nurture and guide our democracy and the rule of law and not hinder it.It’s unacceptable to have a free media without responsibilities, for instances if you make a defamatory comment on TV, radio, the internet or in print then you can be sued for libel, but since Somalia media don’t have the financial muscle to pay the fine imposed on them, they’re risking to be imprisoned.Media around the world are the same, you just cannot write, print or say whatever you want, and then get away with it.
Already the government of Somaliland is becoming serious of dealing with their media, in order to regulate and censor them, by closing one of the big daily papers (Waaheen), which had a numerous opportunities to change their attitude towards a decent reporting, but to no avail.While recently Universal TV, owned from Somalia, has been suspended and their offices closedin Hargeisa (capital of Somaliland), due to their persistence of undermining the sovereign status of Somaliland, and by airing too many programmes that are very critical the unity and security of the nation, according to ministry of Somaliland broadcasting department.
Somehow, it seems to me that both opposition parties and Media has one thing in common, and that’s, they both want democracy and freedom without responsibilities.Therefore, it’s no surprise here that both media and opposition parties in Somaliland use the same method of irresponsible airing of their view without inhibition, and then shield their misdeeds in the name of democracy and freedom.And because of that, now the government is coming hard on them to regulate and censor their dangerous reporting
The government after long period of tolerance has started to monitor and censor of what they see as out of control and aggressive media. On the other hand the media has failed to censor themselves, and although, the government may suspend the license of some media, nevertheless, they’re still resisting to be censored, for instances, internet based news websites outlets, and other independent TV channels broadcasted abroad or via internet.However, this may still push the government to block or charm their broadcasting capabilities, just like China, USA, and Iran and oters do when dealing with internal or external threats.That means nowadays technology and technical knowhow will allow any government to block or jam what they perceive to be hostile to their national security.
For instances, some nations who’re blocking and jamming TV and radio broadcasting are, for example, USA, UK and others who has taken off the air Press tv, the Iranian broadcaster’s English language outlet,two years ago, after Ofcom (office of communication-see more what they’re and do) revoked its license for breaching the communication act. Thus, Ofcom, has contacted BSKYB, the satellite broadcaster that carries the press t Channel, to have it removed from its broadcast schedule, others who done the same include also Sky Satellite service.Also, some other western nations like Spanish broadcasting, had also decided to remove or revoke whatever agreement they have with Press TV.Of course, it all depend on how one country perceive on another country’s broadcasting material, which weights down their decisions.That means, if any country deems a particular broadcasting being threat to their national security, then they have the power to cut loose any broadcasting channel, by blocking, jamming, or revoking their license, according how far a country can go to control their airwaves.Likewise, Chinese government has recently jammed BBC World News, because of the stories they regard as too sensitive to their authority or even to their Chinese subject.
In fact nothing was more serious than what happened to TheNews International phone-hacking scandal— dubbed “Hackgate“, “Rupertgate“, or “Murdochgate” by the press – is a controversy involving the now defunctNews of the Worldand other British newspapers published byNews International, a subsidiary of the then-News Corporations. Employees of the newspaper were accused of engaging inphone hackingpolice bribery, and exercising improper influence in the pursuit of publishing stories. And after long investigations by the British government, Ropert Murdoch corporation conceded defeat for their magnitude of wrong doings, which resulted News International, announced on 8 April 2011 that it would admit liability in some of thebreach of privacy,cases being brought in relation to phone hacking by theNews of the World. The company offered an unreserved apology and compensation to eight claimants, but will continue to contest allegations made by other litigants news.
This resulted James Murdoch, the son of Rupert Murdoch announcing on 7 July 2011 that after 168 years in printtheNews of the Worldwould publish its last-ever edition on 10 July, with the loss of 200 jobs.News Corporation said that all profits from the final edition would go to good causes. Downing Street said it had no role in the decisionJames Murdoch conceded the paper was “sullied by behaviour that was wrong”, saying “if recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our company
I just mentioned few countries who went a quite length, in order to control their airwaves and what their subject can hear or listen, but there are also many countries who revoked the license of TV’s and radiosbroadcasting of either local or international. Among them are USA, UK, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, China, Cuba, Spain, Israel, Venezuela, et al.By the way, coming back to recent incident between Somaliland VS universal TV, the whole things wasn’t one incident, but a catalyst of errors previously done by Universal TV, that were deemed sensitive or danger to national security, such as airing talk shows and current affair programmes that would destabilize Somaliland existence as sovereign state. Suffice to say, any country that have internal or external problems with unwanted media can either block and jam their broadcasting ability, or otherwise revoke their license to broadcast inside the country. Nothing is impossible for any country to unleash their full fury against any media which they consider as enemy or instigators of hate and division among their subject.Probably they either flex whatever power they have to dismantle any media or probably hire capable nations or agencies to do their bidding.Either way, it’s not impossible to corner the media, even bringing a numerous libellous cases against them, to make them bankrupt or even with prison sentences.
Naturally, everyone of us wants a thriving media, but if they behave as though they’re above the law, then someone should bring down to earth, at least that’s the hard way of civilising them, and In fact, I believe it will be good for them to go back to school, in order to learn how ‘’media Vs law’’ works, in order to find out those important issues such as, defamation, libellous act, discrimination, and hate speech, contempt of court, et al.
So, what’s the way forward for both the media and the government of Somalia and Somaliland to solve their differences, and make peaceful co-existence? I will suggest few things to this madness.Firstly, the media in Somaliland and Somalia should censor themselves before being censored, and they should also understand what the media can and can’t report in a democratic society.Astonishingly, I sometimes wonder whether the Media in Somaliland do understand or even aware how international media works, especially when it comes self censorship. Are they aware, for example if they make defamation to ordinary decent members of society; what would happen to their already struggling papers? In fact, Somaliland media aren’t aware the possibilities of being sued for defamation? Indeed this alone can make them bankrupt, instead of being imprisoned.Media in Somaliland and Somali should take their provision seriously if they want to survive and be part of democratic institutions.Secondly, Media isn’t a child’s play without responsibilities, therefore, they should employ gate keepers whose responsibility is to monitor and examine whatever their publications or broadcasting is reporting or allowing to be read in their media outlet.
Am sorry to say, Somaliland media has become a tribal affiliated institution, which lacks a balanced and decent reporting, I have to admit, some of them are even disgrace to the profession, since all they do is more or less a prostitution of media provision. The only people we heard when government Vs Media escalates is SOLJA, (the union of media in Somaliland), but, somehow am not sure whether they train or held seminars to help their union about the media and the law, and the danger of media not self censoring themselves.
After more than 20 years, who do we blame for the diplomatic stagnation of Somaliland? And, how do we go around this never-ending “mythical Somalia’s Unity” quagmire in order to attain our political goal? We know that, legally speaking, we, Somalilanders have a strong case because we’ve, already, existed as an independent nation (meaning our cause is not in conflict with that “outdated/irrelevant” AU and UN territorial indivisibility act). Not to mention that,
in 1961 Somalilanders said “NO!” to the union with Somalia in a referendum
by 54%. “NON!” a l’union avec la Somalie.
So, to answer the above questions bluntly and humbly, we can, first of all, only
blame ourselves, to certain degree, and of course our past and current governments.
Some will argue that Kosovo, East Timor, Eritrea, South-Sudan, South-Ossetia, Abkhazia, had, all, some powerful political friends such as (respectively) the West/NATO, Russia,…whereas, we, Somalilanders, didn’t and still don’t. Because, for example and unfortunately, our neighbouring Djibouti (former French Somali territory) and the anti-democratic-arab-muslim supposed brothers, sadly ganged up, not only, on our beloved democratic Somaliland but also, and always, gang up on any freedom loving people on this Earth, such as the West-Saharan Republic’s people.
By the way, let’s not forget that Djibouti (this former French Somali Territory) itself rejected the union with Somalia in 1977 and chose to go its separate way. Yet, Djibouti, is against Somalilanders’s wish to go their separate way as well but tirelessly and hypocritically, advertises Somalia’s unity/indivisibility Propaganda. People say:” La malice revêt souvent
le manteau de la sagesse”. That’s Djibouti and Its dictator Mr. I.O.G’s behaviour in the region.
Dishonest, dangerous and malicious!
As to Africa, I’d like to say: ”YOU ONLY GET ONE LIFE, SO LET’S NOT WASTE OUR TIME ON LOSERS”. AFRICA SHOULD CLEAN ITS HOUSE FIRST!
Having said that, we need our, somewhat, passive and inert leaders to approach all friendly nations and sympathetic to our cause, like Russia, Israel, these newly independent countries and certainly not Turkey, Somalia’s corrupt leaders Bankroller. Why not trust Turkey or count on fruitless negotiations with Somalia in Turkey? Because Turkey is never neutral and honest peace broker. It, cruelly, mistreats its own citizens, the Kurdish ethnic groups and denied them, for decades, the basic human rights such as the simple and natural right of teaching and learning their Kurdish language. Turkey still refuses to acknowledge the genocide committed by its army against Armenians. So, for the Turkish government: “Charité bien ordonnée, commence par soi-même”, basically meaning: “Before teaching us moral lessons on Somali brotherhood, Turkey should apply the same kind of morals to itself”.
Speaking of political friends, we all know that some of our so called Arab-muslim brothers, like Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Bahrain, Mauritania, Tunisia, Turkey…etc, all enjoy friendly diplomatic relations with Israel. A move that I applaud and commend in the name of peace and respect.
Therefore why can’t we or shouldn’t we do the same with Israel, the first state who recognised Somaliland in 1960 as an independent state? Why not with Russia or even Venezuela? Are we mentally and psychologically possessed, controlled, brainwashed by the Arab-muslim brotherhood propaganda machine?
We, Somalilanders, (I mean, our leaders), need to stop being naively subservient to some hostile, anti-basic human rights and bellicose states and put our politico-economical interests first.
On top of partying, every year, for May 18th, we, also, have to advocate for our self-determination rights and sovereignty as vehemently, (peacefully of course) as we can. We are, almost, everywhere on this planet. We need an efficient, active and competent LOBBY group set up and funded by the government of Somaliland in order to shoulder our brilliant Foreign affairs minister and reap the fruits of our unfinished democratic, legitimate and peaceful struggle.
We should remember how, tirelessly, the former Yugoslav republics citizens were present day and night, winter and summer, in the streets of everywhere? In other words, they were LOBBYING hard for their freedom.
Again and finally, our political leaders should engage and approach any state willing
to assist us in our cause in order to break this vicious/mythical Somali Unity quagmire.
God bless Somaliland Republic!
By a proud Somalilander in Nouméa, New Caledonia
• threatens government employees and Turkish nationals
• denies al-Shabab has been ‘pushed out’ of many towns
• questions Kenya’s claims that Westgate Mall attackers are dead
An al-Shabab spokesperson has dismissed hopes that the December appointment of Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed Mohamed as the new prime minister of Somalia would lead to negotiations between the government and the al-Qaeda-linked group.
In an exclusive interview with al-Jazeera’s Hamza Mohamed, al-Shabab’s Sheikh Ali Dheere said, “The people we are fighting with is because of ideology. They want to colonise us. They want to erase our religion, our people and our land. Those people bring a new face every time. Every new person that comes into office works for them. So for that reason, they are no different to us. Whomever the Christians bring, no matter their name or background, we will not negotiate with them because they have no decision-making powers. They have no powers to refuse or accept anything. What you lose by force you return by force. We will not negotiate with anyone. The country is ours.”
al-Shabab was pushed out of Mogadishu in mid-2011 but in the last few weeks has claimed responsibility for a series of suicide bomb attacks, as well as Friday’s unsuccessful attack on the presidential compound.
When challenged about the civilian casualties involved, Dheere said, “Anyone who works for the apostate government, no matter where and at what level, they are supporting the apostates and the Christians who sent them. Our stand is clear is on such people. We will fight them and kill them anywhere we see them. Anyone who supports the Christians, either through the pen or by carrying a weapon, they are the same to us and we will kill them… We don’t kill civilians who don’t work for the apostate government. We protect them. We do not harm them.”
Dheere said al-Shabab is also targeting Turkish nationals working in Somalia. “We want to tell the Turkish people their government is an enemy to the existence of the people, the country and the religion of the people of Somalia… Them building roads, schools and hospitals is similar to a man who wants to slaughter a goat. If he feeds that goat, is it any good to that goat? He is going to slaughter it anyways. The schools they have built, they teach our Somali children bad behavior; they teach them music; they teach them everything that is bad for them.
“The biggest enemy of the Muslim people is NATO and Turkey is part of NATO. NATO is a union of Christians. They are the number one supporters of that union. NATO uses Turkey as the hammer that’s used to crush Muslims. They first came into the country saying they are here to help the people. They then start saying there is military agreement between them and the apostates and AMISOM. They train the intelligence services. They have taken off the shirt they were wearing when they came in and put on another one. Anywhere we see Turkish people, they are no different to us than the Americans, the British and AMISOM.”
According to Dheere, al-Shabab is fighting for the Muslims who live in Mogadishu. “They are the people whom we want to free from the enemy. We take great care in protecting them. We don’t just go and blow a place up or fire bullets aimlessly. There is a lot of intelligence before an operation. We only attack a place when we are sure the people in there are the apostates, the Christians and those that support them.”
He admitted there may be Muslim casualties. “We pray for that Muslim person and the martyr who carried out the operation to go to paradise. Also we have warned the Muslim people not to go close to apostate bases and where the Christians are. Most of the population has heeded our warning.”
He denied that al-Shabab has been pushed out of many towns in Somalia. “The towns you mentioned that al-Shabab left, we did not leave because of a military defeat. If an army is defeated, their weapons are seized, their soldiers are killed, their deaths publicized. None of that happened. That shows al-Shabab left those towns on their own accord. al-Shabab leaving those towns only shows a change of tactics. al-Shabab will not be finished. Somalia belongs to al-Shabab. The land and the people are ours. We will not leave our land because of an enemy. We hope to be back in those towns as soon as possible.”
The Kenyan government has claimed that the Westgate Mall attackers are dead, which Dheere questioned. “All that Kenya said, nothing is believable. Nothing of what they said is true. Look at how many times they went back on what they said. They first said there were 18 individuals in the mall. Then they said they were 15. Another time they said they were 4. Another time they said a woman was leading them. They said they were all dead. Another time they said they were alive. Even when people could hear the bullets, they were saying the fighting was over. That shows what they say has no basis. It is not something anyone can believe. In our own time we will say whether the men are alive or not. For the individuals involved and for military reasons we will not disclose now.”
The regime in Ethiopia is making a desperate second run to bring international respectability to its corrupt mining sector by re-applying for admission as an Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) candidate. According to Anthony Richter, Chairman of the Board of the Revenue Watch Institute and a board member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), Ethiopia’s 2010 application was rejected because the EITI
board concluded that Ethiopia’s ‘Proclamation on Charities and Society’ would prevent civil society groups from being sufficiently independent and meaningfully participate in the process. The board decided, in effect, not to admit Ethiopia ‘until the Proclamation on Charities and Society is no longer in place.’ This is the only such instance in the history of EITI where a country has failed to be admitted and the grounds for this action was clearly rights-based. (Italics added.)
EITI is an international organization consisting of a “coalition of governments, companies, civil society, investors and international organisations” which “through robust yet flexible methodology company payments and government revenues from oil, gas and mining are published, and discrepancies are reduced.” Simply stated, EITI aims to promote accountability and transparency by requiring corporations and governments in member countries to come clean on revenues generated in their extractive industries. EITI is widely recognized for its “standards that promotes revenue transparency at the local level.”
The regime in Ethiopia is seeking EITI membership not to promote genuine transparency and accountability in its mining sector. Its real purpose is to use EITI admission and certification as a badge of integrity and a stamp of approval of good governance and good business practices as it markets its corrupt mining sector to investors. The candidacy appplication is a cynical ploy to use the EITI imprimatur to trick and lull potential international investors and financial institutions into believing that the regime is demonstrably committed to greater transparency and is in fact practicing accountability. It is a contemptuously audacious scheme to hoodwink EITI and foist on unsuspecting investors a false sense of political stability and convince them that they can expect full security for their mining investments. The fact of the matter is that the regime has no respect for private property of its citizens or foreign investors and maintains an overall hostile business environment. In its 2014 report, COFACE, the multinational that provides credit insurance and credit management services worldwide concluded that Ethiopia has “a difficult business environment marked by the lack of public sector data transparency, corruption and the crowding out of the private sector.”
According the WB, there are “seven areas of corruption risk” in the Ethiopian mining sector” including the “three main risk areas” of “license issuing, compliance with license conditions, and mining revenues”. The other critical areas of corruption include fraudulent practices in “compensations and obligations to local inhabitants, contracts with contractors and suppliers to the mining companies, falsification by mining companies of product quality, and theft of mining products and equipment.”
In the area of “license issuing”, the WB report states that “officials may extort or be offered bribes by mining companies in return for issuing licenses, for issuing licenses more quickly, or for specifying less-onerous license conditions.” A related risk is that “officials may secretly have ownership stakes in companies to which licenses are granted; acquire land for which a license application has been made; demand a share in mining companies or in their profits; and manipulate license registration to give themselves or their associates prior registration.” In “license compliance”, “mining companies may deliberately breach mining conditions (for example, environmental, health, and safety regulations, as well as the extent or area of mining)” with impunity.
In the area of revenue, “mining companies may deliberately understate output and profit and overstate costs to reduce royalties and profit taxes.” The regime has no independent means of verifying the revenues of mining companies. According to the WB, “Collection of royalties and income tax apparently depends almost entirely on the mining companies’ self-certification of output and profit because of the lack of resources at the Ethiopian federal, regional, and city licensing authority levels. It would, therefore, be relatively easy for the mining companies to exaggerate their capital and operating costs and understate their output and profit.” When “license operation and mining revenue breaches are discovered, the mining company may also bribe inspectors to overlook the breaches.”
The catalogue of corrupt practices in the mining sector documented by the WB in its 2012 report cover the entire spectrum ranging from bribes, falsification of records, shakedowns and take downs of mining companies and stealing compensation designated for local inhabitants to criminal use of insider information and fraudulent shell corporations. The egregious examples of corruption documented by the WB are mind boggling and include the following:
A mining company could be required to pay a large premium in return for a mining license. Senior officials and the mining company could keep this premium secret, and the officials could receive payment in offshore bank accounts.
An official may require the mining company to make a large donation to a charity if it wants the license to be issued more quickly. Although the charity may appear to be genuine, it may in fact be a front for a political party or for the official’s personal or family gain.
A mining company may submit a health and safety plan for a mining license in accordance with good practice, but an official may tell the company that unless it pays a bribe, he or she will impose additional and unnecessarily onerous health and safety conditions.
A mining company may submit an environmental management plan for a mining license that will inadequately control the leaching of poisonous chemicals into the water supply. Proper controls would [be costly]. The mining company may pay the official responsible for approving the license a bribe to approve the deficient conditions.
Officials may demand a share in the profits of a mining company. A mining company may agree to give an official’s relative a free share in the profits of the mining project if it receives a license on beneficial terms.
Officials grant licenses to companies secretly owned by them. Officials secretly acquire land that is subject to a license application.
An official who is aware that mining may take place on an area of land may lease the land in advance of the mine licensing. Once the license is granted, the value of the land may materially increase. The official thereby profits from his or her inside knowledge by selling or licensing his or her rights to the land to the mining company.
Companies illegally on-sell licenses granted to them.
Officials manipulate license registration.
An official in the department that issues mining licenses may hear that a mining company wishes to apply for a license. The official may alert a businessperson with whom he or she has connections, and the businessperson may quickly apply for a license over the same area. The official grants the license to the businessperson. The mining company then has to purchase the license from the businessperson, and the businessperson shares the profit with the official.
A prospector may discover minerals, mark the area, and contact the relevant licensing authority to receive a discovery certificate. A corrupt official may not register the discovery in that person’s name but instead notify a business colleague and register the discovery in the colleague’s name. The corrupt official may then falsely inform the discoverer that someone else had previously discovered the minerals.
Officials collude with mining companies to grant subcontracts to relatives. The licensing authority could, as a condition of the license award or social development plan, require the mining company to undertake a large amount of additional infrastructure works at the mining company’s own cost. For example, the mining company may be obliged to build or refurbish a road, a school, or a hospital. A government official could then require the mining company to award one or more of these infrastructure projects to a contractor secretly owned by a member of the official’s family.
Officials or community leaders may steal compensation that should have gone to local inhabitants. Mining companies may bribe officials to set compensation below a proper rate.
Local inhabitants may falsely claim that they occupy land subject to a license application.
Contractors and suppliers may engage in fraudulent transactions in tendering, submitting claims, and concealing or approval of defective works.
Mining companies may commit fraud by making false declarations about the identity and quality of minerals or by bribing certifiers to approve false declarations. A major, ongoing investigation into corruption of this type is under way in Ethiopia.
Smoke and mirrors in the Ethiopian mining sector?
The regime in power has been playing a magical game of smoke and mirrors with mining revenues. According to a recent report citing official regime sources, “The Ethiopian government earned USD 419 million from the export of minerals supplied by artisanal miners operating in the country in the first 11 months of the current financial year. Export of gold made up the largest proportion of minerals, generating USD 409.1 million in foreign currency, followed by gemstones and tantalum earning USD 9.3 million and USD 1.6 million. This income came from the export of 7878.3 kg of gold, 20,126.3 kg of gemstones and 32.95 tons of tantalum…. MIDROC Gold is the only company that is engaged in large-scale gold mining.” Other reports indicate the “export of minerals has become Ethiopia’s second largest foreign currency earner, contributing over 23 percent of overall export earnings.”
The fact of the matter is that no one, except those who hold the key to the lockbox of the mining revenues, know the actual amount of revenue generated by the mining sector. The regime claims it has no independent way of verifying mining revenues and must rely on information reported by the companies. How convenient! The fact of the matter is that principal beneficiaries of the mining sector revenues are the wealthy oligarchs and the businesses fronting for the oligarchs and other enterprises owned by the “Tigray People’s Liberation Front”. No one knows the depth and breadth of corruption taking place in the sale of mineral licenses and siphoning of mining revenues. There is credible anecdotal eyewitness testimony alleging that hundreds of pounds of gold are regularly spirited out of the country without inspection by plane from airstrips close to the gold mines. It is this brazen mining scam that the regime audaciously seeks to enshrine and consecrate with EITI imprimatur!
Why EITI must reject the regime’s candidacy application?
In its 2011 Rules, EITI made it clear that civil society freedom and participation is a cornerstone of its candidacy and membership criteria. To be eligible, the regime in Ethiopia “must take effective actions to remove obstacles affecting civil society participation”. It must respect the “the fundamental rights of civil society and company representatives substantively engaged in EITI.” The regime “must ensure there are no obstacles to civil society and company participation in the process” and guarantee that “ there is an enabling framework for civil society organizations and companies, with regard to relevant laws, regulations, and administrative rules as well as actual practice in implementation of the EITI.”
Moreover, the regime “must refrain from actions which result in narrowing or restricting public debate in relation to the implementation of the EITI” and ensure that “ civil society and company representatives can speak freely on transparency and natural resource governance issues”. The regime must guarantee that civil society groups that participate as members of the multi-stakeholder group “must be operational, and, in policy terms, independent of government and/or companies” and “should be able to operate freely without restraint or coercion, including by liaising with their constituency groups.” EITI emphatically requires that “civil society groups, companies and their representatives must be free to express opinions about the EITI without restraint, coercion or reprisal” and that “civil society groups involved in the EITI must be free to engage in wider public debates on the EITI.”
Civil society institutions have been decimated by the regime in Ethiopia
The regime’s 2009 charities and societies law (Charities and Societies Proclamation No. 621/2009) has been weaponized to completely decimate civil society organizations in Ethiopia. In February 2008, I critically reviewed the draft of the proclamation in a long commentary titled, “Probing the Feared CSO Draft Law.” I listed 10 compelling reasons why it should discarded. I argued the proclamation is a preemptive legal strike aimed at neutralizing and abolishing civil society institutions so that they will not pose a threat to the regime by promoting democratic practices. The proclamation facilitated arbitrary and capricious regulation of civil society institutions by granting unbounded discretionary quasi-judicial power to the director to the regulatory agency of the NGOs without normal judicial review. The proclamation is extremely intrusive in the affairs of civil society, micromanages them and imposes unreasonable and extremely burdensome financial accountability requirements, which the regime itself does not practice. It is punitive and has a chilling effect on civil society membership and participation. Ultimately, I argued the proclamation is manifestly unconstitutional, mean-spirited and discriminatory. Human Rights Watch commenting on the draft warned that “the intended and actual result of this law would be to make it nearly impossible for any civil society organization to carry out work the government does not approve of.” As I have often said, preaching constitutional law, due process and accountability to the regime in power in Ethiopia is like preaching Scripture to a gathering of deaf-mute and blind Heathen or pouring water over a slab of granite. The draft proclamation became “law” in 2009.
In February 2010, U.S. Undersecretary of State Maria Otero raised serious concerns with the late Meles Zenawi over the Proclamation asserting that the law “threatened the role of civil society” in Ethiopia. Meles ignored her concerns. However, the proclamation soon laid waste to civil society institutions in Ethiopia. According to one report, “the number of CSOs in Ethiopia has been reduced from about 4600 to about 1400 in a period of three months in early 2010. Staff members have been reduced by 90% or more among many of those organizations that survive according to my informants.” Simply stated, the Proclamation wiped out 70 percent of the CSOs in Ethiopia in three months! In the same month, the regime froze the assets of Ethiopia’s Human Rights Council, Ethiopia’s oldest human rights organization, and the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association, effectively incapacitating these two vital institutions; indeed for all intents and purposes outlawing them.
In October 2012, the regime announced closing down 10 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) under the Proclamation and threatened to revoke the licenses of dozens of other organizations for alleged misconduct. The regime also announced that 17 other organizations were under active investigation. The regime further alleged 400 organizations were operating in violation of the Proclamation and affirmed that appropriate action would taken against them. In November 2012, the Heinrich Böll Foundation, a German NGO which promotes democracy and human rights, packed up and left in protest against restrictions on its activities.
In February 2013, the regime banned three NGOs including One Euro, the Islamic Cultural and Research Centre, and the Gohe Child, Youth and Women Development Organisation accusing them of conducting “illegal religious activities”. In 2013, “out of 29 charities funded by US Agency for International Development, 27 can’t comply” with the Proclamation. In 2013, Human Rights Watch reported, “Ethiopia’s CSO law is one of the most draconian laws regulating nongovernmental activity in the world… Space for civil society, press freedom, and peaceful protest in Ethiopia has continued to shrink since 2010.”
The 2014 Bertelsmann Transformation Index reported, “The media and civil society organizations have been stymied by oppressive laws; trade unions and professional associations too have been forced either to toe the government line or, like the teachers’ union, be dissolved.” What is truly ironic is the fact that the majority of the current civil society stakeholders in EITI including Global Witness, Open Society Revenue Watch Institute, Transparency International among others would not be allowed to operate in Ethiopia today! Yet, the regime cynically and hypocritically seeks to join them and demonstrate to the world that it is committed to the free operation of civil society institutions.
Mockery of the EITI Protocol: The con game of the regime in Ethiopia must be stopped
The proffered candidacy application of the regime in Ethiopia makes a mockery of the EITI and its protocols. The regime knowing full well that it completely disregards EITI’s core value of respect for and protection of civil society organizations has nonetheless shamelessly applied for admission. The very act of submitting the candidacy application must be seen for what it is — an insult to the intelligence of EITI members and EITI as an institution, an affront to EITI values and a mockery of EITI members who have worked so hard for over a decade to bring about transparency and accountability in countries spinning in a vortex of corruption.
The bird-brained scheme of the regime to slide unnoticed into the EITI community by hoodwinking, duping and pulling the wool over the eyes of EITI’s Board reminds me of the old adage about the wolf in sheep’s clothing; better yet the proverbial pious Ethiopian wolf masquerading as a saint and praying among sheep. The regime wants to join the EITI in an attempt to mask its true nature to international investors– wolfish, predatory, rapacious, venal, corrupt, profiteering and devoid of any ethical sensibilities.
The whole idea in the EITI protocol is transparency and accountability. If the regime is unwilling to accept responsibility for its ongoing decimation of civil society institutions in Ethiopia, how can it reasonably expect to be a member of an organization whose sole purpose is transparency and accountability? A pious wolf praying among sheep? Which EITI country would not feel unsullied or willingly keep company with such an odious candidate?
Before the regime’s application for EITI candidacy is considered, it must first demonstrate its own EITI – Ethiopia Institutional Transparency and Integrity by repealing the current proclamation and by enacting a civil society law that is civil, civic-minded and civilized.
The con game of the regime in Ethiopia to flimflam the EITI and sneak into that organization to gain undeserved international respectability must be exposed and stopped!
Professor Alemayehu G. Mariam teaches political science at California State University, San Bernardino and is a practicing defense lawyer.
Previous commentaries by the author are available at:
The Attorney General Hon Ibrahim Lidle Saleban has in the strongest terms denied President Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud Silanyo had summoned him for consultation on the possibilities of an extension of tenure in office when his term expires in June 2015.
The Attorney General was recently interviewed by the media regarding allegations the issue of extension, “ I surprised to see this allegationin media reports and I assure you that I and the head of state have not even once met to discuss those issues.
When it comes to issues relating to electoral matters then it would be wise for you to consult with the national electoral commission which is the sole body tasked with setting the date for future election as clearly stated in a Presidential decree.
In recent days reports carried by the media alleged that President Silanyo wants an extension of his term after his tenure in offices comes to an end in 2015.
Recently a tribal chieftain known as “BUUR MADOW” openly stated that the current President term in office should be extended.
The State of Somaliland received its independence from Great Britain on 26th June 1960, by Royal Proclamation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. In compliance with UN’s procedures to decolonization of former colonies, the official documents establishing the transfer of sovereignty to the Somaliland people were deposited with the United Nations.After the dissolution of the hasty and unsuccessful union with Somalia of the 1960 that never enjoyed a legal basis, in 1991 Somaliland reinstated to its sovereign state in 26th June 1960. It is common knowledge that the people of the Somaliland Republic had not only rendered the biggest contribution to the independent struggle in the colonial era, but surrendered everything they cherished most for the sake Somali Union, including the hard-won independence on June 26th 1960. These facts are not in dispute, though rarely acknowledged by the people of Somalia.
For many years, the people of Somaliland were subjected to a brutal oppression and a systematically ethnic cleansing campaign at the hands of the former cruel dictatorial regime and its ruthless cohorts. Whenever they reflect on those atrocities, it is still burning into their hearts & minds as the model for the highest degree of cruelty and terror against the humanity.
In conformity with International principles for Statehood, Somaliland’s outlook on its right to be independent and sovereign state stands on a solid ground. Somaliland has a very solid legal ground for seeking and demanding tirelessly international recognition. I believe that the international community is making a very serious mistake by ignoring the reality on the ground in the Horn of Africa Region. The Republic of Somaliland is an African Success Story. It is the Beacon of Peace, Stability, Democracy and Development in the Horn of Africa Region.
A foreign policy with audacity and confidence:
To keep pace with the transnational security and geo-political challenges as well as the economic and diplomatic relevant matters in the Horn of Africa region and beyond, a kind of thoughtful foreign policy with courage and daring instinct is of a paramount importance. This is the only way to serve and safeguard the ever more shifting geo-political interests of our country and people. Within a short period, the government of President Ahmed M.M. Silaanyo has spearheaded a different but smart foreign policy approach which undoubtedly will contribute to the long-awaited recognition of our country. The current Somaliland’s Foreign Policy approach is a hopeful and an encouraging sign for all peace and development loving Somaliland citizens, which is already resulted that our country makes the necessary diplomatic and economic progress into the right direction.
With the mind into the historical facts of our country and the errors and misjudgements made in the past by Somaliland’s political elites, the current Somaliland’s foreign policy focuses on the future and the way forward. It is a policy that explores more and more diplomatic boundaries and pushes to secure our country’s interest in exceptionally difficult circumstances. Somaliland’s foreign policy is a policy with audacity and confidence that breaks the barriers of self-imposed exclusion and limitation of the last two decades.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Somaliland Republic has beyond every doubt demonstrated throughout his diplomatic expertise a belief in a constructive policy of engagement in international issues for peace, democracy and security relevant issues. Through his praiseworthy actions and profound diplomatic foresight, the Minister of Foreign Affairs have put an end to all thosepessimistic voices and false impression circulated by Somaliland’s enemies, inside and outside the country. Somaliland Minister of Foreign Affairs Ho. Mohamed Bihi Yonis Proves his Critics Vehemently Wrong.
Being Somalilander is something special!
In less than 22 years, the Republic of Somaliland has been transformed from a forgotten and disadvantaged area; a sort of remote and second-hand ex-Northern Regions of Somalia, into a peaceful, prosperous, democratic, socially and economically vibrant country! Somalilanders have consolidated themselves, revived the long neglected infrastructures and social services, they developed the economic aspects of the country.Given the painful past and all atrocities endured by Somaliland people, this transformation is a remarkable achievement.
Somaliland people are known for their peace loving attitude, their perseverance and broadmindedness, freedom of expression, fight for freedom, culture of concession and tolerance. The true nature, power, moral fibre and quality of the people of Somaliland manifests when we are united and when we stand together- not when we are a splintered, quarrelling and polarized nation.
I believe there is something special about being Somalilander! The spirit of Somalilanders, our capacity for common and shared destiny that allows us to pull together in times of challenge and adversity, our natural problem-solving capacity that has served our country perfectly and helped us maintain our peace, stability and democracy; all those God-given qualities are something so special! It is something that we should be proud of being Somalilanders!
Regardless of the obvious progress and diplomatic advancement of the current Somaliland’s foreign and international cooperation policy, there will be always people who are prepared to take a second look, particularly those groups who are extremely sceptical, intolerant and narrow-minded who are apparently uncommitted and unconvinced for the Somaliland’s cause and case.
The antagonists of our country and nation (internal and external) leave no stone unturned to damage the name and existence of Somaliland. The fact is that the Republic of Somaliland is today more stronger than ever before to endure the ever increasing existential threat from the internal and external enemies. Regardless how much hatred and jealously are written, published and propagated on those biased media outlets (TVs, websites and newspapers), Somaliland’s case and cause, democracy process and its efforts for self-determination as a sovereign State will prevail.
May ALLAH (SXWT) protect and bless the Republic of Somaliland and its People
Three words comes to mind when I think of the current state of Somalia: clan politics, corrupt leadership and Insecurity. Many people want to adopt the convention of dispatching these inconvenient fact to the past memory hole, but unfortunately today South Somalia is unable to free itself from the narrowness and shortsightedness of the above three points. One only needs to read the current report by the UN Monitoring group and see how South Somali politics is toxic and confusing. It is as if some in the administration are going about their illegal business with a brazen assurance. Corruption, I came to realize, is too frail a word for what is happening in South Somalia. The greatest crack in the pot was exposed recently by UN Monitoring group report to the Security Council. The most startling point of the report was the funneling of weapons to Al-shabab by some in the current administration. This makes you wonder if the weapons are funneled to Al-shabab, with whom, or what, is Hassan administration at war with? It is as if there is innumerable termite boring away the foundation of these make-believe-government while the international community covers it with corrugated sheet on the exterior! I’m actually questioning now the assumption that President Hassan sheikh administration is genuinely engaged in tackling insecurity in south Somalia.
Pesky Al-shabab
As recent Al-shabab attack on February 21st so vividly proved, Mogadishu is not back to normalcy yet. The sad truth, which surely most Somali knows, is that Al-shabab believes in divine sovereignty and express deep frank disdain for popular secular governments. One can understand why Al-shabab’s religion/political movement bent on social and moral reform can appeal to many poor folks. After the recent attack by Al-shabab, President Hassan Sheikh first address was not to Somali people, but to UN special representative, Nicholas Kay. The leaders of Al-shabab saw this as an open goal and took to the air to convince the people how the foul claws of western imperialism have clutched at the heart of Somali government leaders. They opted to use their warped religious justification and interpretation in wooing more support for their corrupt views. Despite Somali government having borrowed muscles of African Union, they still even lose the propaganda war to Al-shabab. The African Union military response to Al-shabab didn’t achieve success beyond sporadically securing one main road in Mogadishu. It is in this moment, where Somali people are facing many undercurrent that are pulling them left and right, that Al-shabab takes advantage. The recent bold growth, proliferation, and increasing sophistication of Al-shabab will pull the country back to the drawing board. To attack the problem, I think Somalia president should embrace the advice of columnist, Feisal Roble in involving the security apparatus of regional states like Puntland. A better ameliorative measure will be to reduce the effect of Al-Shabab by turning the public against them. Indeed if there is a secret to speedy recovery, it rests primarily on the help of all Somali stakeholders. It is hard to imagine a solution to Al-shabab without regional governments working together in support of their mutual interests! Somaliland has been lucky since 2008, but that doesn’t mean Somaliland has any superior tactics to curb terrorism. It is just that Somaliland citizens decided not to accommodate a group that finds Islam not restricted to personal piety, but a comprehensive ideology that encroaches on political and public life.
Enemy Within
By now, most thoughtful people would take the UN report as self-evident. I was surprised to read tweets of a very prominent Somali opinion writer dismiss the UN Monitoring report as a Western alarmist sensational report. So much for a fecund imagination! Often I feel the most useful perspective of Somalia is one of neurotic. Everyone supports institution building only if it confirms to their narrow interest. Whether you see the report as sinister or ridiculous, the facts are clear. You have a government that have grown insensitive to running a clean government! One only feels that not only South Somalia is suffering from insecurity, but that the entire administration is decaying layer by layer. So far current Somali government administration has been schizophrenic and not able to create an environment that support a vision that includes reconciliations, accountability, and forgiveness. It is as if they’ve grown insensitive to their misery. It doesn’t take much brilliance to realize that there is a big problem in Villa Somalia. It would take time and great effort to try to reverse this injurious report. More and more, if you look at the record of insecurity in Mogadishu, the yearning of security by the president circle is one bad joke! Since the war against Al-shabab has serious international implications it goads the international community – for the danger it brings to the rest of the world-to funnel more money into the coffers of Somali leaders. The very nature of these circumstances makes me suspect whether Al-shabab attacks spring from the same source that it attacks.
Invisible Horizon of United Somalia
As the open-ended dialogue continues between Somalia and Somaliland, the elegiac lament for Somalia unity is only a dream for now. Currently, South Somalia can’t reasonably expect to live in a perfect harmony with itself. Although as a Somali, I find comfort in believing that all Somalis will be better off with a united Somalia, I’m afraid to admit the current State of Somalia is too uncertain to provide that elusive unity! It would come as no shock to acknowledge at this point, in rather a scornful tone, that I’m against the ways of Mogadishu politics! I’m not optimistic or positive about the prospect of Somali unity at this time, if anything I believe Somalia will vitiate and encumber the little progress made by Somaliland. Yes, I understand why some would argue that Somaliland is one clan project, but I beg to differ. In spite of its many flaws, however, Somaliland has provided a maximum opportunity for its citizens to exercise the freedom of self-determination-that is, they decided to live under laws of their own choosing. In the world of today no one people will take occupation as a sign of complacency. Many of the clans within the borders of Somaliland are happy to have Somaliland flags hoisted in their cities. Now, whether this is due to pressure from outside or within is yet to be seen, since they have not been presented with a feasible alternative to Somaliland. No one person residing in Somaliland and subject to its laws can be denied the rights that are available to others.
Somaliland fostered the development of its people more fully than Mogadishu administration could feasibly present at this time as an alternative. The establishment of Modern Somaliland-the creation of political legitimacy and creation of sense of national identity- didn’t come all at once. If anything it was a long route with occasional divisive and subversive political orders. But today Somaliland is at a place where it cannot be overpowered and swept aside by emotional rallying cry of Al-shabab. To understand why it is reasonable for Somaliland to commit itself to political equality among its citizens, one needs not to look no further than South Somalia, and see what is in store if they dare not free themselves from narrowness and shortsightedness of tribal identity! One can prognosticate what the future for Somaliland would look like if they dare try to entertain the woeful bleak politics of Mogadishu. Somaliland is a place where burlesquing of president by a television station is the big story of the week. They should bristle at the suggestion of being told they have the same priority as an administration with insecurity problems like Mogadishu. The international community always insisted that the antidote to Somali crisis is to pump more resources into Mogadishu only, but that has shown to be flawed. One is reminded of the golden rule “he who has the Gold makes the rule” .Unfortunately, the international community gave the gold to the wrong team. Yet, nothing could illustrate more vividly the visible failure of Somalia than what is happening in Mogadishu today. Although, the relation between Somalia and Somaliland is extraordinarily complicated-Since neither side wants to cede ground over their political differences-one area they can be of help to each other is deterring Al-Shabab! Whether tomorrow produces a new engagement with Somali politics and abiding reality of insecurity-or a continue reluctance to address such reality-would in large part determine the fate of Somalia!
