Thursday, July 30, 2009

Somaliland is Undermined by Tribal Chauvinism

By Mohamed F. Yabarag

From the outset, Somaliland is peaceful, democratic, tolerant, and inclusive; a place where the rule of law is abided by all its citizenry and where people are equal in the eyes of the law. Is it? If you dig deep and explore further, however, you will come up with a different picture, an astonishing picture entirely different than what was portrayed of the country over the years. You will a see a country held back by tribal divisions and whose relative gains in terms of peace and social cohesion over the years is about to be reversed by a combination of events that are the products of its medieval and unjust social and political system – tribal power sharing.


Tribal power sharing should have been a short term solution, but seems to be staying put for a very long period, if not permanently. And this is bad news for all of us.

When most people were expecting Somaliland to take further strides towards democratization and possible statehood, it hit head on a brick wall. A process of undoing of what was achieved over the past 18 years seems to be under way in earnest. All those achievements made over this period with the support of perhaps the most peace-loving but clan-sensitive people in all Somali-inhabited territories are about to be reversed by an incompetent government and a society that failed to realize time and again the perils of tribalism.

Nowadays, tribalism is the buzz word in Hargeisa and elsewhere in the country. You look no further than the tribal websites of Somaliland to see how things are bad and getting nastier by the day. Somaliland may have been in relative peace for a long period of time, but it was never at ease with itself. The system on which it based its short and long term strategic policies - a power-sharing based entirely on tribal quota - is untenable and fragile to say the least.

Every clan is suspicious and will always be about the intentions of the other, hence prepared to defend its ground and beliefs to the bitter end at the expense of national unity. For instances, if a government minister is relieved from his post, his replacement will come straight from his immediate clan or sub-clan, even if a better candidate for the job is available elsewhere. Even the educated class is not immune from this craze. Either they are overwhelmed by the majority nomads, or have become willing partners of this tribal madness. They are at the center of this lunacy. There is no social cohesion in Somaliland; only fragmented tribes who are all jostling for privileges and political posts, often unfairly.

The fact that we put more faith on tribal power sharing than effective government institutions exacerbates our problems further. What we have now and seem to be proud of is tribal quota. Those with smaller and insignificant tribes (insignificant only in the eyes of big tribes) will never be able to reach their potential highs under this unjust system. Government institutions exist only in name and serve the interest of the ruling party as well as a few tribal chiefs who switch their allegiances depending on who has more money than the other. Despite the good name they amassed over the years, the un-elected and mostly illiterate Guurti are currently the worst of all.

The over-dependence on tribal power sharing system and the lack of trust in the existing government and civil institutions makes all clans edgy, suspicious and fearful of losing their standing in the tribal hierarchy that is part and parcel of Somaliland’s social system.

As we have seen on many occasions in many parts of the country, the simplest of incidents can trigger a tribal skirmishes which sometimes leads to all out war between communities in the same locality, often leading to the demise of innocent bystanders who are not part of the conflict like those murdered between Gabiley and Dilla road in a broad day light. The fact that the perpetrators of this heinous crime are still at large and protected by their members in higher places in Gabiley and even in the central government is an illustration of how tribalism is effectively shielding criminals from justice in Somaliland. According to the latest reports from Ruqi, a village about a few miles from the disputed area, local farmers are constantly being terrorized and harassed by Gabiley militia that has the full support of the local government officials to the extent that they did not plough their farms this year.

Even the leader of the opposition Kulmiye party, Ahmed Siilaanyo, has shied away from condemning these murderers outright for fear of losing votes in Gabiley region. In an interview with the BBC’s Ahmed Saeed Egeh, instead of condemning the Gabiley murderers, he waffled on the issue and blamed everything on the government, not because they failed to apprehend the culprits but because of what he perceives a government’s failure to implement an earlier arbitration which favoured the Gabiley militia. This land dispute between the brotherly communities in Ceel Bardaale is a typical example of what is in store for Somaliland and how such incidents can break up the country into tribal fiefdoms. If people in Somaliland think they are immune of what is happening in other parts of Somaliland, notably Mogadishu and its immediate environs, they are living in cloud cuckoo land. There is potential banana skin everywhere.

Despite the efforts of Somaliland elders to diffuse the conflict between the aforementioned communities, the next battleground is already drawn as other clans, who are not part of the dispute, have already been drawn into the conflict to support their clan kinships. This may even further escalate if not properly addressed.

The recent national registration system in which all Somaliland regions have swelled their ranks to a ludicrous level is another example of how the whole Somaliland society prefers to gain favours through a fraudulent tribal means. The head of Inter peace recently admitted in a BBC interview that they will never be able to correct the “server problem” in the same way crimes cannot be eliminated from streets. Disappointing but true statement! The next presidential election may further be delayed because of the inability of Somaliland government and its institutions on one side and the uncompromising attitude of certain die-hard regions who want the continuation of the status quo on the other.

On the other hand, the so-called political parties are divided along tribal lines. There are no ideological and political differences as such between the three main parties. The only differences being which tribe supports which party i.e. tribal allegiance. The chairmen of these parties will never allow to be challenged for the leadership of their respective parties until they retire or bow out for their own sake.

Ahmed Siilaanyo fought tooth and nail to avoid challenge for Kulmiye leadership, while President Rayaale has won the Udub leadership without facing a single contestant. He simply walked away with it. Faisal Ali Waraabe reiterated on more than one occasion that he will not allow anyone to challenge him because he “built the party from scratch and would not allow an outsider to walk into the leadership”, his words. In effect, he is saying over my dead body! An attempt to form alternative political parties for the disenchanted and disgruntled has exhausted following government insistence that no such parties are allowed by the constitution in spite of Somaliland lawyers saying on the contrary. Somali Landers are in a vicious cycle. In this perspective, their current choice is “take it or leave it”.

So, what is the solution to this immediate and acute problem? Although I would continue and make a few comments of my own about what the possible solutions may be, I would also appreciate if the reader takes time and makes his/her say on this.

First and foremost, whichever government comes to power in the next election (if there is an election) should make institutional-building as its priority number one in order to minimize the over-dependence on the unfair tribal power-sharing system. Not only the country badly needs institutions, but it needs independent and effective government and civil institutions that are free from tribal bias and government manipulation. If citizens know government institutions such as police and others will do their job effectively and bring criminals before a court of law that is not only independent but seen to be fair and independent in the eyes of the public, the role of tribal arbitration will be minimized.

Somaliland government should empower its institutions and minimize the role currently played by its growing number of tribal chiefs, who seem to be increasing at an alarming rate. Tribal chiefs have become a de facto institution in Somaliland and have almost taken the roles normally reserved for government and civil institutions. How can someone who declared his allegiance to his clan can be trusted and be fair? Highly unlikely!

Moreover, the country’s growing intellectuals, both in and outside the country, should take a lion’s share in this effort by educating the public about the pitfalls of tribalism and how relying on it heavily can be catastrophic and create more divisions. There are so many social problems facing us today, but I believe tribalism is the deadliest of all.

Mohamed F. Yabarag
Email: Myabarag@yahoo.co.uk

Source: Harowo.com

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