Somaliland Pushing For Reunion With Somalia After 25 Years Of
Division
Somaliland’s main opposition leader has hinted at a possible
unification with Somalia ahead of next year’s elections.Somaliland, which acquired independence in 1991 during the civil war
that erupted after the collapse of Siyad Barre, still remains an
autonomous region of Somalia, subj ect to the Somali Federal
Government (SFG) in Mogadishu.Attempts to seek recognition in the past 25 years have failed as
most states and International communities have tended to respec t
“colonial borders”, laid down by European colonial powers in the
19th century.
Opposition leader Abdirahman Abdullahi has reached out to Somalia
Prime Minister to ensure t he merger of Somalia with Somaliland.Somaliland voters are set to go for a General Election on March 27,
2017, just months after Somalia holds its presidential polls on
December 28 this year
Abdullahi also reached out to the United Kingdom (UK), Denmark,
France, European Union (EU) and Germany through their
representatives during a meeting held in Nairobi on Wednesd ay.
“We want the international community to help our country hold free
and credible elections,” he said.Other participants in the meeting also held at Serena Hotel on
Thursday were a delegation from Somaliland, the opposition side and
Somalia Prime Minister Omar Sharmarke which was
The polls are set to continue amid talks on merging the two
countries.
Incumbent President Ahmed Mohamed, who won the country’s polls in
June 26, 2010, announc ed that he will not be seeking another term.
He fronted Muse Bihi to run on a ticket of the rulin g party – Kulmiye.The election will be the fourth elections in the country, previous
ones having taken place in 2003, 2010 and 2005 (parliamentary
polls).Since the 1960s, when most of the Af rican countries acquired their
independence, there have only only two significant alterations to
the colonial map.These are the division of Eritrea from Ethiopia in 1993 and South
Sudan from Sudan in 2011.
SOURCE: THE STAR KENYA
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