By Osman Hassan
Sunday June 26, 2022
The demand for independence and union
The Somali Youth Club, the forerunner of the Somali
Youth League, were the fathers of the independence of Italian Somaliland, the champions
for the freedom of other colonised Somali territories and the unity of the
partitioned five Somali territories. Somalis everywhere embraced their message.
But it was British Somaliland that put
into practice the quest for Somali unity.
As
the independence of Italian Somaliland approached
for 1ST July 1960, it sparked widespread demand among all the clans of British Somaliland for independence in order to unite immediately
with Italian Somaliland on its date of independence. In response,
Somaliland Legislative Assembly, acting on this popular demand, unanimously adopted the following resolution:
“That it is the
opinion of this House that practical steps should be taken forthwith for the
immediate unification of the Protectorate and Somalia, That prompt action is
essential to achieve this most cherished aim, and can be fully justified by the
special importance which popular support in the country attaches to its early
achievement, That the day of independence and unification with Somalia must be
1st July 1960, the date which Somalia will
attain its full freedom”.(see Report
of the Somaliland Protectorate Constitutional Conference held in London May
1960)
Following the adoption
of this Motion, Mr Mohamed Ibrahim Egal, as leader of the Legislative Assembly
led a delegation to
London in May 1960 to seek the requested independence from the U.K. in order to
unite with Italian Somaliland. Britain reminded them that it had separate
protectorate treaties with the clans except one and the would have unsubscribe
from these treaties and independence. However, it went along with the demand when
assured by its governor in the territory that the Legislative Council were
acting on the wishes of the clans in adopting its resolution demanding
independence. On this basis, Britain granted independence on 26 June and subsequently united with Italian Somaliland on 1st July1960 in line with the wishes of all the clans. No one clan forced others to this union just as none can take others from it.
On
June 27, 1960, the Legislative Assembly of Somaliland passed the Union of
Somaliland and Somalia law, which states in Article 1(a) that:
“The
State of Somaliland and the State of Somalia do hereby unite and shall forever remain
united in a new, independent, democratic, unitary Republic the name whereof
shall be the Somali Republic”
This
article has become verbatim Article 1(a) of Somalia´s Act of Union, promulgated
by the National Assembly on 31 January 1961. As from that date, the Act of
Union set out the new Republic´s administrative components as consisting of the
“Northern Regions” and those in the South referred to as ”second-named
Regions”. As of that date, the name “Somaliland” of the former British and
Italian colonies has ceased to be applicable and therefore any who adopted it to
any part of Somali Republic (Somalia) would be in contravention of the Act of
Union (as SNM has done).
The facts about the
independence and union
The secessionists have
falsified the truth about the history of British Somaliland, the facts about
its independence and the union. It is therefore necessary to restate the facts:
·
That, as the Report of
the Somaliland Protectorate Constitutional Conference held in London May 1960
verifies, the clans of British Somaliland collectively decided in April 1960,
well before independence, to unite with Italian Somaliland and not after
independence as secessionists falsely claim;
·
That the independence
sought from Britain was not an end itself but for the sole purpose to unite with Italian Somaliland;
·
That Somaliland’s five
days independence was
merely a transition
meant to lead to the
union of 1st July 1960;
·
That, contrary
to the secessionists’ claims, no country bothered to recognized a country that
would only remain independent for only 5 days;
·
That, the union of 1st July 1960 was between independent Somali people, sharing
one flag and one aspiration to unite, irrespective of their geographical
location in those territories;
·
That all the northern
clans were
equally behind the move for the union unconditionally;
·
That no one clan forced others to seek
independence, be part of the Union and hence no one clan has the right to force
others to secede from the Union.
The Secession
The first to try to dismantle the union were sections among
northerners. With them, the euphoria for the union gave way to disenchantment, not
so much that they lost out in the Union since they had their fair share but harking
back to the good old days under British rule when the clan was the top dog
among its subjects. So began efforts on the part to put the clock back and unchain
from the Union.
First, a group of military officers staged a failed
coup d’état in 1961, aiming to break up the union. Following in their
footsteps, the Somali National Movement (SNM), a rebel militia from the clan, taking
advantage of the collapse of the Somali State in January 1991 and the ensuing disintegration
of the Somali National Army, and laying their hands on its massive arsenal, unilaterally
declared the secession on 18 May 1991, not of their own clan enclave, but of
all the Northern Regions. They renamed it once again Somaliland, contrary to
the Act of Union.
The oft repeated justification for the secession is
attributed to crimes committed against the clan by the ousted military regime. Needless to
say, they are not alone in having misgivings against the military regime of
Somalia or leader. But others did too. And others had misgivings against other
clans who committed war crimes against them. But all preferred to bury the
hatchet for the sake of building a new Somalia in which they could all be
better off. Only one clan is the exception to that grand national
reconciliation
One would have thought the secessionists would share
that common vision adopted by the rest of Somalis and see the secession as irrelevant
now that their detested military regime and its leader are gone, and that Somalia
has become a federal State where its regional members are semi-autonomous and federal
power shared along 4.5 system in which they enjoy a lion´s share (as the semblance
of the unity has to be maintained). Such equality under the federation however
remains unappealing to them when in the North they are more equal to others as
the realities attest to. As they see, they have the best of both worlds - de
facto a separate country on the road to recognition while still sharing power in
Somalia and using it to weaken and de stabilise it, and ensure it is no threat
to their aspirations for a separate independent country.
Thus, the Siyad Barre alleged ill-treatment of the
clan seems to be a red herring. The secession has been in the mind or in the making
not long after independence and SNM succeeded where its predecessor failed.
A Union
failed by its government
While
one-clan secessions in other African countries lasted for only short times, the
one-in Somalia is with us for more than 30 years. The contrasting fate of these
sessions is indicative of the different ways they have been dealt with by their
respective governments and international community. In the former case, they
were put down by forceful government action. In the case of Somalia, they did
the opposite - aiding or abetting it in one way or other. That permissive, if
not collaborative, stand by Mogadishu towards the enclave gave green light to some
members of Somalia´s international partners (IPs), (some sharing the
secessionists´ goal), to deal with it as a de facto separate country from Somalia.
It is these combined support, from Mogadishu and the IPs that are more than
anything responsible for its longevity.
If the Union
is alive today, at least in spirit if not in practice, it is only thanks to the
Northern Regions for their indomitable commitment to it, notwithstanding the price
they pay under SNM occupation and oppression wherever its writ reaches. And yet
for all that sacrifice, they never get mentioned let alone commended by
Somalia´s government leaders (always Southern) other than to give the Union lip
service on anniversary dates for public consumption rather than conviction.
The unionist
Northern Regions did not expect to be liberated by a government in Mogadishu
itself struggling for its survival. But they are constitutionally entitled to
political and material support, all the more when Khatumo and Makhir are in control
of around 90 percent of their lands, and a willing central government could
have easily extended its presence and services to these parts. That modest
action would have gone a long way to undermine the secession, That it did not
do so shows how it is more amenable to the sensitivity of the secessionist
enclave and its redline that the north is out of bounds for Mogadishu than it
is responsive to its constitutional obligations to defend the union and to be
seen to be doing so.
From Northern
Regions back to Somaliland
Far from getting
help in one way or other to maintain the union, the unionists are tarred
separatists when they are unconstitutionally lumped with the real secessionists
as part of “Somaliland” and under SNM suzerainty, and no longer exist as part of
the “Northern Regions” as per the Act of Union, or worse part of Somalia since
they are denied to be part of the federal system.
As part of its
conversion to the SNM “Somaliland” perspective, leaders in Villa Somalia do not
see the secession as one pursued by one clan in the Northern Regions but, much
to the delight of SNM, look at it as one between the central government and “Somaliland”,
making no distinction among the clans as to which is a secessionist and which
is a unionist. It signifies a return to the pre-union two States in which one
secessionist clan is now given veto power to deny the rights of unionist
regions or even of Somalia as a united country. .
The Status
of “ Somaliland” vis-à-vis Somalia has been set first by President Sheikh
Sheriff Ahmed as one between two equal “parties”. But it was President Hassan
Mohamoud, more than any other president, who in his first term in office, overrode
the constitution willy-nilly, and set
“Somaliland” on the road to a de facto separate country. And for that reason, blocked
Khatumo´s admission into the federal system, notwithstanding its qualification,
on the ground that the federal system has been completed. His rationale was
that no part of “Somaliland” can be part of Somalia, and for that reason Khatumo
was excluded from the federation:
Judging by
his supportive statements since his return to the Presidency, Hassan Sheikh
Mohamoud shows all the signs of continuing with his pro-Somaliland leanings, all
the more when he is in hock to them, having been re-elected with the votes of their
secessionist MPs polling in block. It is
a mark of how much, and how fast, things are changing under him in favour of
“Somaliland” that their MPs are now brazenly defending the secession with
impunity inside the federal Parliament, supposedly the very custodian of
Somalia´s unity
Even if he has
no power to override the constitution and formally let them go, he can still facilitate
their recognition by turning a blind eye to those countries wishing to do so, a
process once it reaches a certain critical mass renders any need of divorce
from Somalia irrelevant. Parliament would not be a saviour. Remembering the way
they were chosen, only cash matters and that is in no short supply.
Parallelly,
foreign governments, taking full advantage of the country´s chronic weakness, or
its servile venal leaders, prey on it and pursue their different agendas. An
example is the USA Senate going through the motions of a bill calling for the
USA to establish security protocol treaty with what is technically part of
Somalia but still over the head of its government and people. Hopefully,
President Biden will veto this half-baked inept plan.
Conclusion
26 June 1960
was the time when the unity of two Somali territories was round the corner and Greater
Somalia itself was on the horizon. In contrast, 26 June 2022 arrives when the
unity of the first two are on the ropes. Foreign governments had been the main
obstacle to Somalia´s unity or greater Somalia in the past (and still are). But
now, the worst enemy to Somalia´s unity are, first and foremost, those leaders in
Mogadishu, who are at best ambivalent about it, or worst work hand in hand with
Somalia´s enemies.
A recognition
of “Somaliland” by any country is bound to unleash clan wars in the north. Its
unionist clans, betrayed by their government in Mogadishu, are likely to declare
their clan independent regions in the footsteps of “Somaliland”. When that
process starts, it could unleash a Pandora box syndrome in southern Somalia. It
could too equally breaks up into separate clan enclaves. It could affect even neighbouring
countries, such as Ethiopia, already in the throes of ethnic-based civil war. Or
Kenya whose mumbo-jumbo clans have even less to hold them together. In all
this, there will be no winner except perhaps al Shabaab. When supporting the secession
can lead to all these nefarious scenarios, it is time not only to stop supporting
it but to face up to it and end it, a win-win for all, even for the misguided
secessionists..
Osman HassanOsman.
[email protected]