People in Somaliland are marking 22 years of self-declared independence from Somalia, but
they are still waiting for the world to recognise
their region as a country.
Celebrations were held in the capital, Hargeisa,
on Saturday, with people holding rallies, waving
flags from their vehicles and staging shows in
various stadiums.
Somaliland, which is more tribally
homogeneous than the rest of Somalia, has
been striving for international recognition since
it broke away in 991.
Ahmed Mahamoud Silany, the region’s
president, told Al Jazeera on Friday that,
despite Somalia's calls to be united with the
region, Somaliland is determined to retain its
independence.
"We would like to remain friends with Somalia,
we would like to cooperate with them.
"But as far as our independence is concerned.
It is not I who has decided, it's not my
government who has decided.
"It the people of Somaliland, and the history of
Somaliland, which has decided that Somaliland
is going to be, and has always been a different
country."
The UN and the African Union have both
rejected calls to recognise Somaliland.
'Oasis of peace'
Having escaped decades of conflict in Somalia,
Somaliland, which sits on the Gulf of Aden,
employs its own security and police forces,
justice system and currency.
It has a reputation for successfully maintaining
law and order for its population of 3.5 million.
Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri, reporting from
Hargeisa, said that while war has raged in
Somalia for decades, Somaliland has managed
to unite its people.
“In the last few years Somaliland has become
known as an oasis of peace in the horn of
Africa," she said.
Because Somaliland is not recognised as a
state, it is not eligible for international
development loans.
"Without recognition, it cannot get the foreign
investment it needs," Moshiri said, adding that
aid is instead sent to Somalia.
Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
The other horn of Africa
Behind stock images of a region trapped in
chaos, economies are growing and
governance is improving, politician says.
Politics , China, Eritrea , Ethiopia, Somalia
Somaliland waits for worldwide recognition
Citizens and leaders in the autonomous
region of Somalia say they are historically
and politically a separate country.
Post a Comment