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The Safe Haven Next Door
The Horn of Africa has endured decades of violent repression, civil
war, terrorism, and piracy. But after a period of neglect, the
international community has taken preliminary steps to restore
political stability in the region.
This new approach is evident in Somalia, where a new government,
with support from the United States and others, is making a
concerted effort to move forward. There are signs of progress.
Expatriate technocrats are returning to help rebuild. Piracy off the
coast of Somalia has diminished, with attacks falling from 239 in
201 0 to 46 in 2012. The British Embassy recently reopened its
long-shuttered doors. Yet the country’s stability remains fragile,
as witnessed just days ago when al-Sh abab terrorists bombed
Mogadishu’s judicial complex, taking the lives of 29 innoce nt people
and injuring more than 40 others.
Ironically, the world has paid much less attention to a nearby model
of success. Just north of Somalia, the Republic of Somaliland enjoys
starkly different circumst ances. Having chosen to unite with Somalia
after gaining independence in 1960 — we had been separate colonies
under British and Italian rule — our people reasser ted their right
to self-determination in 1991 as our neighbor descended into chao s.
Since that time, Somaliland has been a virtual island of good
governance, peace, and security in the Horn of Africa. There is no
safe haven for terrorists on our lan d, no pirates off our coast.
Experts around the world have advocated for the diplo matic
recognition of our nation, yet support from the United States and
others for our independent, sovereign status remains just out of
reach.
Our success has come through decades of struggle and suffering. In
the 1980s, th e Somali regime of Mohamed Siad Barre waged a brutal
campaign against Somalila nd, killing 50,000 civilians. Like many
others who have experienced similar atrocit ies, we learned an
important, tragic lesson: Never again would we allow such a thi ng to
happen to our people.
As Somalia subsequently disintegrated, Somaliland built a
functioning, stable, and democratic state. While the international
community spent millions trying to save Somalia from itself, we
focused on maintaining peace within our borders, building strong
state institutions, and creating a sustainable economy. Since 2000,
Somalil and has held five peaceful elections and preserved a culture
of consultative democracy.
In the last year, Somaliland has taken deliberate efforts to renew
dialogue with Somalia’s leadership. Most recently, with the support
of the Turkish government, Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
and I signed a communiqué in which we affirmed our shared commitment
to build trust and improve relations between our governments. Future
talks will aim to strengthen cooperation in the fight aga inst
terrorism, extremism, piracy, illegal fishing, toxic dumping, and
other serious crimes. Most importantly, with international support,
the Somaliland-Somalia dialo gue process must seek to provide final
clarification on the status of our political relationship.
Somalia and Somaliland can and should be equal partners. Yet as we
proceed dow n this track, we hope and expect that those looking to
support Somalia’s aspirat ions will also seek ways to support ours.
Engagement with Mogadishu to sustain its transition to a viable
entity and suppor t for Somaliland’s national aspirations need not be
mutually exclusive. In this rega rd, international conferences to
address the region’s economic and humanitarian needs are welcome,
but must be coupled with steps to address political issues tha t
might otherwise stifle or undermine such support. Likewise, security
assistance must be aligned with efforts to resolve these same issues
so as not to breed new instability should a final agreement be
reached.
U.S. defense officials have called Somaliland “an entity that
works,” and for good reason. Our government does work, and with
proper diplomatic recognition, it will be able to contribute more
effectively to a sustainable and prosperous future for the Horn of
Africa. To this end, we are building on our new dialogue with
Somalia to both expand relations with other governments and pursue
observer status in international organizations, starting with our
region’s Intergovernmental Autho rity on Development and the African
Union.
We are not asking others to take a chance on what Somaliland may one
day beco me, but rather to simply recognize what we have already
achieved. Somaliland is a fully functioning sovereign entity. From
1960 to 1991 we gave unity within a “Grea ter Somalia” a chance. It
did not work, and we cannot turn back.
In the midst of violence and now a fragile peace, Somaliland’s
people have protect ed — and will continue to advance — our cause of
freedom and security because we know their true value. In
partnership with our neighbors and with the support of the
international community, we can ensure that the entirety of the Horn
of Afr ica will experience the peace and stability that we have in
Somaliland.
By: Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud (Silanyo)
Source: FP Foreign Policy
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