Below is an article published by UNPO:

Following presidential elections in Somaliland in July 2010 and the ongoing instability in Somalia that allows piracy to persist off Africa’s East Coast, the Dutch town of Nijmegen played host to a discussion focussing on how Somaliland, Somalia, and Puntland could coexist and what this, or the alternatives, might spell for the region as a whole.

With the participation of Mohamed Yunis Awale (Somaliland Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs), Sjoera Dikkers MP (PvDA), Andrew Swan (UNPO), Abdi Jibril (Somaliland Societies in Europe), and Dorothé Appels (Centre for International Cooperation) discussions took place over two hours with passionate engagement from an audience that could view the developing situation from several viewpoints. 

Moderated by journalist Rik Delhaas, discussions were prefaced by background to the current situation in the Horn of Africa given by historian, Anneleen Tilburgh, who has studied and written of the Horn of Africa since the collapse of Somalia in 1991.  The piracy situation loomed large but Ms. Tillburgh drew attention to the shifting nature of the conflict in Somalia - what had been a clan struggle was now becoming a conflict that was characterised by religion more than anything else.

Opening the discussion, Mohamed Yunis Awale spoke of Somaliland’s colonial legacy and the peaceful campaign to bring reform to the Siad Barre’s Somalia, but which was met with repression and the terrible destruction of Hargeisa in 1988 that left the city utterly destroyed.  Recounting the 1991 Burao Conference, he noted how Somaliland had been able to find solutions to its immediate problems and ultimately voted to unilaterally end the union first forged with Italian Somaliland in 1960.  Democratic consolidation had continued apace since that time, with repeated peaceful transitions of power, the most recent being in July 2010.

Despite non-recognition, “we like to contribute to the international community” Vice Minister Awale said, stating that this had increased in recent years, inparticular with efforts to combat piracy – Somaliland’s 850 kilometer coastline having avoided any pirate attacked to date.  But he also noted that the international community “shuts its eyes” to the situation in Somaliland.  Despite welcome aid contributions, Somaliland continued to exist on a government budget of approximately $60 million.  Security continuing to be the main source of expenditure, closely followed by education and healthcare - “we see chaos” in Somalia Awale told those present, and commented that until this changed Somaliland had to spend a large part of its resources to ensure security and stability, without which other services could not realistically function.

Talking of the international developments surrounding Somaliland and Somalia, Sjoera Dikkers MP, Member of the Dutch Parliament for the Labour Party and Director of the Evert Vermeer Stichting, spoke of the importance that women had to play in any reconciliation and development efforts in the region.  Domestically, the Netherlands would be keenly affected by any instability in the region due to its importance to international trade and shipping and the current administration in The Hague had to recognise this fact.  Consequently it was disappointing to see the cuts being made in the current budget and how starkly these contrasted to the policy being pursued in the United Kingdom, where development aid was on track to reach 0.7% of GDP by 2013.

Speaking for the UNPO, Brussels Project Coordinator Andrew Swan noted that Somaliland had made a significant step when it decided to join the organisation in 2006 – and since then the progress made had been remarkable.  Explaining the role of the UNPO, he spoke of its part in raising awareness of Somaliland’s situation vis-à-vis Somalia.  Much still remained to be done but the level of debate, interest, and engagement was rising he concluded.

Progress in differentiating Somaliland from the regional context was also being made with references in recent ACP-EU and African Union communiqués recognising the realities on the ground and making the first official and explicit references to Somaliland.  But obstacles still remained in the shape of those countries that saw a benefit in maintaining the status quo of the region and perpetuating existing influences over trade entrepôts, Nile waters, and proxy conflicts.

From the diaspora, the Somaliland Societies in Europe (SSE) had also been working to promote small scale projects that could support development and education in Somaliland and the integration of Somali into the societies of their host countries in Europe.  Chairman of the organisation, Abdi Jibril welcomed the opportunity to meet again Vice Minister Awale and welcomed the new government’s use of talent drawn from the wide Somaliland diaspora and also its technocratic expertise.  The Nijmegen meeting came after the April 2010 meeting of the SSE in Lyon, France during which the SSE have discussed how to support development in the region – an effort from which the SDO had itself grown.  In 2011 the tenth anniversary would be marked of the SSE with over fifty organisations from across Europe coming together to share experiences and future plans.

Closely connected to diaspora effort was the need to support diaspora groups as part of the ‘circular migration’ that could be seen in the Somaliland context.  This was one of the issues raised by Dorothé Appels, Director of COS Nederland, who spoke from first-hand knowledge of the changing environment in which aid agencies and non-governmental organisations had to work.  Although the Somaliland authorities had sometimes shown reticence at the developing independence of civil society “the Somaliland government has to be congratulated” on what it has managed to achieve she concluded. Responding to the question of recognition for Somaliland, the conclusion had to be she believed that this was ultimately something that would come if people wanted to see it happen.

Note:

The event was organised by the Somaliland Development Organisation (SDO) as part of the LUX Global series of discussions funded by NCDO and supported by CIDIN Institute of Radboud University. 

For more information about the Lux Global initiative, please click here.