Somaliland

Type of Government

Somaliland declared its independence from Somalia in 1991. Since that time, its transitional government has worked toward establishing a democracy, although the country is not officially recognized by the international community. Nevertheless, Somaliland adopted a constitution in 2001 and has established a functioning government. Its executive branch comprises a president, vice president, and council of ministers. The legislative branch consists of a bicameral parliament that includes the House of Elders and the House of Representatives. The judiciary is headed by a Supreme Court appointed by the president. The president, vice president, and members of the House of Representatives are elected by popular vote.

Background

Somaliland lies in the eastern Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and the Gulf of Aden. The climate is tropical with four distinct seasons—rainy spring, dry summer, rainy autumn, and dry winter. The spring rains (April through June) are especially important, as a drought following the arid winter can be disastrous to the livestock, which is the backbone of the economy.

The coastline along the Gulf of Aden was settled by Arab tribes as early as the seventh century and was firmly established as a sultanate by the tenth century. The sultanate fell apart in the sixteenth century, leaving the area to form small states.

European colonization and influence followed in the nineteenth century, with England, France, and Italy all gaining footholds in the region by the late 1800s. The French acquired what would become Djibouti, the Italians took over central Somalia and later consolidated it with territory in the south, and the English established a protectorate over Somaliland in 1884. Although the English largely left Somaliland to its own devices, most importantly as to its traditions and culture, its rule was not without native opposition. The most famous of these militant groups was the Dervish movement led by Sayyid Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh Ḥasan (1864–1920). Known as the “Mad Mullah” by the English, Ḥasan led a twenty-year armed revolt against English, Italian, and Ethiopian colonial forces that was fraught with violence and turmoil. It is estimated that approximately one-third of Somaliland’s male population died during this period.

Except for a brief occupation by Italian forces from 1940 to 1941, England retained control of Somaliland until June 26, 1960, when it granted the country independence. Five days later, however, on July 1, the nation joined the former Italian Somalia to form the democratic Somali Republic. The union was not a happy one.

The northern people of the former Somaliland grew quickly dissatisfied with the new republic’s divisions of political power and designation of faraway Mogadishu as its capital. This discontent was made worse as it became clear that many clan-based traditions of the Somalis were not easily compatible with Western democracy. Internal conflict came to a head with the assassination of the country’s president, and ensuing bloodless military coup d’etat by General Mohamed Siad Barre (1919–1995) in 1969. Barre declared Somalia a socialist state the following year.

Barre’s government instituted innovative social policies, such as the introduction of Somali script and a huge literacy campaign, but its popularity began to wane as it grew more iron-fisted and controlling. Crackdowns on everything from traditional social organization to religion soon rendered the populace frustrated and restless. These misgivings were exacerbated by governmental corruption and clan politics. Tensions between north and south also increased, especially after masses of refugees with southern sympathies settled in the north following the 1977–78 Somali-Ethiopian War. Those tensions led to armed resistance to the government by the Somali National Movement (SNM) beginning in 1981. Ten years of civil war and governmental repression followed, finally resulting in the ousting of Barre and collapse of the republic. Somaliland declared itself an independent nation in May 1991, but it did not gain recognition from the international community.

As Somaliland worked toward building a stable state, one of its greatest challenges was to incorporate the various clans into the government by blending traditional and democratic systems of rule. Somaliland citizens overwhelmingly (97 percent) approved a constitution and reaffirmed their independence in 2001. In April 2003 they conducted their first direct vote for president, and in May 2005 the first popular parliamentary election was held. As of 2007, however, Somaliland was still awaiting recognition as an independent state.

Government Structure

Shortly after Somaliland declared its independence, various clans began vying for control. The SNM quickly realized that a transitional national government could not impose order on its own. Thus, it called for a council of clan leaders, the Guurti, to both settle the conflicts of the time and choose a group of elders to resolve future disputes. It proved effective in melding the traditions of old with the aspirations of a new republic, and the council persevered as bloody clashes among rival clans erupted throughout the years. In 1996 the Guurti formally transformed itself into the upper house of a bicameral parliament. It also drafted a transitional national charter, appointed an interim parliament, and established a Supreme Court.

With a referendum in May 2001, Somaliland endorsed a constitution that solidified its democratic intentions. It provides for a division of governmental powers among independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches. A president, vice president, and council of ministers make up the executive branch, of which the president is head of state. The president and vice president are elected to five-year terms on a joint ticket by direct vote of the people. Presidential service is limited to two terms in office. The council of ministers, or cabinet, is appointed by the president and must be confirmed by the House of Representatives by a majority vote. Both men and women may vote and run for office in Somaliland.

The bicameral parliament comprises a House of Representatives and a House of Elders, each with eighty-two members. To serve in the House of Representatives, members must be practicing Muslims at least thirty-five years old and high school graduates. They are elected by popular vote to five-year terms. The House of Elders is, as noted above, essentially the incorporation of the Guurti into the democratic government. Its role is mainly advisory, especially with regard to religion, cultural tradition, and security. Members must be at least forty-five years old and be well versed in either Islam or Somali tradition. They serve six-year terms.

The judicial branch is headed by a Supreme Court of no fewer than four judges, in addition to a chairman of the court. The judges and chairman are appointed by the president in consultation with the Judicial Commission. The chairman’s appointment must be confirmed at a joint session of parliament within three months of the nomination. Other courts include Appeals Courts of the Regions, Regional Courts, District Courts, and Courts of the National Armed Forces.

Political Parties and Factions

In an effort to avoid the clan-based rivalries that plagued Somaliland in the past, the constitution makes specific provisions as to political parties. First, it limits the number of parties allowed to just three. This is to encourage party formation based on ideology, as opposed to tribal loyalties. (National elections in the 1960s, for example, generated over sixty parties, giving way to political inefficiency and fragmentation.) Further, the constitution unequivocally states that parties based on regionalism or clan identification are illegal.

The three political parties competing at the time of the 2003 presidential elections were the Unity of Democrats (UDUB), Solidarity (KULMIYE), and Justice and Welfare (UCID) parties. The UDUB prevailed in both that and in the 2005 parliamentary elections, but only by a slight margin. The Solidarity Party was a close second in both elections, with the UCIC finishing third with nearly 16 percent of the vote in 2003 and 26 percent of the vote in 2005. Thus, there was neither a hugely disproportionately dominant party, nor were loyalties widely scattered among various factions.

Major Events

The British occupation of Somaliland was primarily characterized by inattention, which was a double-edged sword in its consequences. On one hand, Independence Day in 1960 found the country woefully neglected in terms of such things as education and basic services. There were, for instance, no sealed roads linking the major towns and only one secondary school was operating. On the other hand, England’s distant administration also left Somaliland’s traditions and culture mainly intact. Although this presented some later problems with clan rivalries, it preserved the fabric of society that likely gave the country a basic stability that allowed it to cope with internal dissension on its own.

The dictatorship of Barre also loomed large in the country’s history. The civil war was, of course, paramount among the regime’s brutal and repressive effects. However, the corruption, oppression, and ruthlessness of Barre’s government was also defined by its 1988 retaliation for SNM rebellion—ground and aerial forces devastated Hargeysa, leaving thousands of civilians dead and causing hundreds of thousands to flee to Ethiopia.

Twenty-First Century

Somaliland maintains its own police force, army, and government institutions, as well as having its own currency, flag, and national anthem. Yet ostensibly because of reluctance to further destabilize Somalia, formal recognition from the international community has not been forthcoming and remains foremost among the goals of the government. Somaliland continues to face the potential for internal conflict, especially resulting from Islamic extremism in the region. The country’s Muslims are traditionally moderate, and many are striving to neutralize fundamentalist influences within its borders.

Poverty and unemployment are other concerns. While there is a flourishing private sector, the economy remains dependent on contributions from outside the country, including those who have fled regional violence. Further, the country’s vital livestock industry was hard hit in 2007 by embargoes invoked against the possible spread of Rift Valley Fever, a mosquito-borne illness that affects domestic animals and may be transmitted to humans.

Fatoke, Aderemi Samuel Olumuyiwa. British Colonial Administration of Somaliland Protectorate, 1920–1960. Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, 1982.

Jacquin-Berdal, Dominique. Nationalism and Ethnicity in the Horn of Africa: A Critique of the Ethnic Interpretation. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, c. 2002.

Lawaha, Ahmed Shire. Political Movements in Somalia. Washington, DC: American University, 1960.