1. First to become a nation based on AU and UN definitions or Charters, you have to have an internationally recognized boundaries created by an European colonizers, and also had gained your independence from that particular colonizer.
Eritrea is a nation today, because it had been colonized separately from the rest of Ethiopia. And if the Oromo nation were colonized separately from the rest of Ethiopia, Oromia would have been a nation today, the largest ethnic group of Ethiopia, ten times larger than Eritrea, population wise. Fortunately the Ethiopian Federal Government adopted Federal system which allows all Ethiopian nationalities to be self-governed.
2. Eritrea is also a nation today, because the Ethiopia Federal Government acknowledged the international law, and handed Eritrea its independence, instead of choosing the continuation of bloodshed between the two brotherly people.
3. Somaliland should have been granted its right of nationhood from the day the people of Somaliland declared their withdrawal from the union with Somalia. So many countries/nations in the world united and became one nation and when the marriage didn’t work went their own separate way. Egypt and Libya were united and then went their own separate way when the joint failed to work. Today Egypt is one of the worst enemy of Somaliland, when it comes to Somaliland recognition. Ironically Somaliland which united with Somalia, unlike the Arabs or Egypt who failed to unite after they gained their independence are now all against Somaliland to be recognized or gain its rightful nationhood.
4. Somaliland withdrew from the union with Somalia, not because of an individual or certain politicians, the withdrawal of Somaliland from the union was based,because the people of Somaliland suffered great deal from the union no single School, Hospital , University or roads were built. In the early eighties the people of Somaliland were subjected to genocide and atrocities committed by late dictatorial regime Siad Barre, where some cities like Hargiesa was bombarded and, millions were displaced and took refuge in Eastern Ethiopia.
5. Somaliland is not Puntland/Majetenia, a single clan that wants to secede from Somalia or ONLF, single Somali clan that is trying to secede from the rest Ethiopia and other Somali clans from Ethiopia. Somaliland is multi-clan, that share tradition and unique location.
6. The People of Somaliland are entitled to gain their nationhood and recognition from the rest of the World particularly the AU and the UN. like any other nation that fulfills the criterion to be nation enjoys their nationhood. Somaliland is not different from Djibouti or Eritrea.
7. I have heard the Somaliland president, and others in his administration and from the oppositions say that Somaliland has fulfilled the criterion to be recognized, for having peace, good governance and the processes of democratization. But the fact of the mater is, Somaliland already meets the conditions to be a nation and recognized regardless, good governance, democracy or even dictatorship, because it has defined territory and internationally recognized boundaries….
8. If the Somaliland people are not granted their right to be a nation like any other nation that meets the above said conditions, the world boundaries need to be redrawn and changed.
The Kurdish people are denied their right to be a nation simply, because the Kurdish territory was divided by the colonizer, as one part went to Iraq colonizer, another part went Iran colonizer, and more parts went Syria and Turkey. No one can deny that the Kurdish people are not Turkish, Arabs or Persians, but those countries refused to accept the uniqueness of these people/Kurdish and refused to grant them nationhood and independence because their argument is based on the boundaries that were left behind by the colonizers. And simply because the Kurdish territory was not colonized by a particular European country, neither the UN nor any another international organization recognizes the nationhood of the Kurdish people. Where on the other hand Somaliland who meets the conditions to be nation is denied its right to be a nation.
10. Another argument that the so called Somali intellectuals, make is they say, the world is uniting in the name of Globalization, and there is no need for Somaliland to withdraw from the union. But the question is, how they want to unite a democratic nation England and theocracy government Iran to unite? How Somaliland a democratic and undemocratic, government not elected by the people of Somalia, could unite?
11. My dear friends globalization will come when the people of the world value, humanity, human rights regardless of religion, color, gender and place or country of origin, and it’s going to take a long time for the people of world to agree on this issues.
By; Mohamud Aden Samatar
samatarapt@gmail.com
