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As southern
sudan, somaliland deserves au's recognition.
The African Union (AU) chief told
AP the organization intends to be the first to recognize Sout
hern Sudan as a new state should the result of its referendum be
secession.
Malawi’s President Bingu wa Mutharika made the statement on 26th Jan
2011 after meeting Southern Sudan’s Leader Salva Kiir. Mutharika
currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the 53-member African
Union. “Sudan will be on the agenda when the AU holds a regular AU
meeting later this month” He concluded (AP).
After 21-years of civil war against Arab compatriots, the early
results show strong support for secession. The final and official
result will be announced on early February 2011. The referendum was
part of peace deal signed 2005 between the late leader of Southern
Sudan Dr. John Garn and Sudan’s Arab led government in Khartoum.
This statement is showcasing the AU’s support to secession even
before the official result anno unced. It seems the AU
recognized South Sudan without agreed constitution, and no official
na me for the new government. No defined territory and population.
What is puzzling is why the AU
and other international organizations like UN are giving a blind
e ye to the question of independence by Somaliland?! The world
recognized southern Sudan gove rnment and Khartoum had no
option but to accept. It is very normal that independence and
sec ession could come from outside like East Timor, Yugoslavia,
Bangladesh. All these countries won independence with outside
intervention and local authorities were forced to accept.
This invalidates AU’s argument asking Somaliland to negotiate with
the shaky and powerless go vernment in Mogadishu over its
independence. Somaliland has elected government and parliam
ent and controls every inch of its colonial border (British
Somaliland), unlike transitional gover nment in Mogadishu that
controls less than two percent of the capital.
Somaliland has world-standard, modern and democratic nation; it
hosted free and fair elections; it has army that obeys international
military regulations; police with excellent human rights record;
currency that is circulated in many parts of East Africa; flag that
flies in many countries; national anthem; finally it has elected
parliament and government.
In 2010, the Somaliland opposition won presidential election and
there was peaceful, civilized an d democratic power transfer,
unlike many African countries where dictators hang on the power like
Ivory Coast and Kenya. Today’s Opposition Leader and Former
President Dahir Riyale Kahn handed over the leadership to the Former
Opposition Leader and today’s President Mohamed A hmed
Siilanyo – The power-transfer ceremony was rare seen in Africa.
UN’s charters that define nations say “A sovereign state is a state
with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external
sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, independence from
other states and powers, and the capacity to enter into relations
with other sovereign states”. Somaliland fulfills all these
conditions and more like democracy, free-fair elections, good
governance and excellent human Rights record, in addition to freedom
of expression.
Again, Somaliland’s case does not underestimate the right of
self-determination of the people of Southern Sudanese, instead the
government of Somaliland was first to vow recognizing the new
government out of Southern Sudan despite its unrecognized status.
Both people of Somaliland and Southern Sudan suffered under brutal
and merciless regimes for decades; both people faced discrimination
on different bases; thousands of both people were murdered in
addition to genocide and ethnic-cleansing by the regimes in
Mogadishu and Kharto um.
Somaliland and Southern Sudan
emerged after years of freedom armed struggle, they forced the
occupying regimes to leave or negotiate peacefully. In Somaliland,
regime was overthrown by force and Southern Sudanese forced Al-Bashir
regime to negotiate and accept their deman ds.
In brief, Somaliland was an independent nation for five days before
the disastrous unity with It alian Somalia on 1st July 1960.
Somaliland had designated Prime Minister and Cabinet before the
unity. The crawling unity continued until 18th May 1991, at the
rebirth of Somaliland.
After 50 years, AU is not
considering the freedom voice from Somaliland while it is offering
unc onditionally support to the new state in Southern Sudan that has
no colonial border and defined population, which conflicts with
African Union´s charter on the territorial integrity.
Interestingly, the strong diplomacy of Southern Sudanese and western
backing forced AU and its leaders to accept Southern Sudan without
considering the AU’s regulations that preserves the integrity of the
colonial borders African nations inherited from European colonizers.
In contradiction, AU is waving conditions in accepting Somaliland as
independent nation, which has a defined territory with bounders and
inherited from the former British Somaliland; Somaliland has
permanent population of 3.5 million. It controls its territory; it
has bilateral dipl omatic and security relations with
neighboring countries; Somaliland Passport is been used in Ethiopia,
Kenya and Djibouti. Somaliland President uses local passport while
traveling to Europe and USA.
It was USA Former President Bill
Clinton administration who started campaigning for southern Sudan,
which built up pressure on Khartoum regime and forced the AU leaders
to accept the new nation. Until today, former foreign secretary
Madeleine Albright is leading the campaign that freed Southern
Sudan. There are other USA famous figures including Congressmen and
VIPs.
Most probably there are different
interest behind such USA support including the oil in the reg
ion. It is very sure, that southern Sudanese without USA and western
support could have face difficulties and conditions in achieving
their dream of self-determination.
In such situations of AU’s failure, all members including Somaliland
are forced to seek outside su pport to convince AU leaders,
who cannot decide for their own destiny. Somaliland unambiguou
sly fulfills all the condition for statehood as per AU charter but
without western backing.
Somaliland has more territory and a bigger population than at least
a dozen other African stat es, we point out. Recognition will
not “open Pandora’s box in Africa”. Neither will it set a
preced ent that has been done already in East Timor and Kosovo. “The
international community is focu sed on Somalia, it is okay. We
are saying, ‘Keep doing what you’re doing in Mogadishu, but for
goodness sake help those who help themselves: Somaliland’.”
Congratulations to the Southern Sudanese:
The African Union (AU) Observers have certified South Sudan’s
secession vote “free, fair, credi ble and a true reflection of the
democratically-expressed will of the South Sudanese voters.” In its
preliminary statement on the conduct of the vote, which could lead
to the creation of Afric a’s newest country and pave the way
for the independence for Somaliland, the AU said the referendum was
conducted in a safe and peaceful environment.
By\Abdulaziz Al-Mutairi
Email:
az.almutairi@yahoo.com
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