Somaliland

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Somaliland

Somaliland (Somali: Soomaaliland) is an
unrecognized de facto sovereign state state located
in northwest Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In May
1991, Somaliland people declared an independent
Republic of Somaliland that now includes five of the
eighteen administrative regions of Somalia, roughly
the region between Ethiopia, Djibouti, Gulf of Aden
and the former Italian Somaliland, an area of about
137,600 square kilometres (53,128 sq mi). The
capital of Somaliland is Hargeisa.

History
During colonial times, the region now claimed by Somaliland was the British Somaliland Protectorate. It
did not join a united Somalia (the rest of which had been Italian Somaliland) until 1960. British
Somaliland became independent on 26 June 1960 as the State of Somaliland, and Italian Somaliland's
independence came four days later, whereupon the two entities immediately merged on 1 July 1960 as
the Somali Republic.

In 1991, after the collapse of the central government in Somalia, the territory asserted its independence
as the Republic of Somaliland. It regarded itself as the successor state to the briefly independent State
of Somaliland but did not receive any international diplomatic recognition.

The economic and military infrastructure left behind by Somalia have been largely destroyed by war. The
people of Somaliland had rebelled against the Siad Barre dictatorship in Mogadishu which prompted a
massive reaction by the government.

The late Abdirahman Mohamed Ali was the first president of Somaliland, and Mohamed Ibrahim Egal was
his successor in 1993 in Borama. Egal was re-appointed in 1998 and remained in power until his death
on May 3, 2002. The vice president Dahir Rayale Kahin was sworn in as president shortly afterwards, and
in 2003 Kahin became the first Somaliland president to be elected in a free and fair election.

The victory of the Islamic Courts Unions against the warlords in Somalia could reintegrate the country,
though the country is still steeped in civil war.

Somaliland

The 6 regions of Somalia within Somaliland are:

Awdal
Saaxil
Sanaag
Sool
Togdheer
Woqooyi Galbeed

The main or historic cities in the Republic of Somaliland are:

Hargeysa
Burco
Berbera
Borama
Saylac
Ceerigabo
Las Anod

Politics
Somaliland has formed a hybrid system of governance combining traditional and western institutions. In a
series of inter-clan conferences, culminating in the Borama Conference in 1993, a beel (clan or community)
system of government was constructed, which consisted of an Executive, with a President, Vice President,
and Council of Ministers, a bicameral Legislature, and an independent judiciary. The traditional Somali
council of elders (guurti) was incorporated into the governance structure and formed the upper house,
responsible for selecting a President as well as managing internal conflicts. Government became in essence
a "power-sharing coalition of Somaliland's main clans," with seats in the Upper and Lower houses
proportionally allocated to clans according to a pre-determined formula. In 2002, after several extensions
of this interim government, Somaliland finally made the transition to multi-party democracy, with district
council elections contested by six parties, considered the "most peaceful in Africa for twenty years."
[citation needed]

The district elections also determined which parties were allowed to contest the parliamentary and
presidential elections, where a party was required to demonstrate at least twenty percent of the popular
vote from four out of the six regions. This important caveat ensured that parties would focus on consensus
building and would not organize around ethnic lines. Subsequently, three parties were selected to submit
presidential candidates: the UDUB party, Kulmiye, and the Justice and Welfare Party (UCID). On April 14,
2003, 488,543 voters participated in the presidential elections, which ran more or less smoothly. The result
was a slim eighty vote controversial victory for UDUB over the Kulmiye, complicated by allegations of ballot
stuffing against the incumbent UDUB. Despite calls for the Kulmiye to form a rival government, the party’s
leadership did not do so, instead choosing to abide by the ruling of the Supreme Court that upheld UDUB’s
victory. Despite minor demonstrations, the transition to the presidency of Dahir Riyale Kahin proceeded
peacefully. This transition, combined with the fact that Kaahin was not a member of the dominant Isaaq
clan, speaks volumes about the inter-clan commitment to peace-building and the rule of law. It could be,
according to Steve Kibble, "the first indigenous modern African form of government." Without a doubt, the
Somaliland government holds legitimacy in the eyes of its own people. Read more