Thread by @thebhlub

Somaliland will not exist in 10 years.

A radical shift is a needed. We need to go back the spirit of 1991.

Please read.

In the first 10 years of Somaliland's existence, we were a nation that was utterly devastated by genocide and subsequent liberation war.

But the story of Somaliland; what we stood for, what we believed in, was crystal clear.

Somehow this is not the case today. A quick example:

1. In Feb 1996, the High Court of Somaliland sentenced AUN Abdirahman Tuur, the founding father of this nation, to death in absentia for rejecting Somaliland's independence.

Somaliland was uncompromising and stood firm, even against the very man who led its liberation.

2. In 2001, our greatest president, AUN Egal, survived parliamentary impeachment on charges related to treason, by just a single vote.

His crime?

"Not being sufficiently firm in his opposition to union with Somalia."

3. As recent as 2013, President Silanyo informed then UN Special Rep. Nicholas Kay that UNSOM should not operate in Somaliland on grounds that its not part of Somalia, and UNSOM was mandated to work in Somalia only.

Said meeting recounted by Special UN Rep Nicholas Kay.

You can literally feel the sense of respect, perhaps even admiration for Somaliland in his words.

A small impoverished unrecognised nation stood firm and said no to UN influence because it ran against its ideals.

And before Nicholas Kay, Special Rep. of the United Nations Secretary-General Augustine Mahiga came grovelling to Hargeisa to issue a full apology for a passing reference to Somaliland as a federal state issued by his office.

Somaliland was clear and resolute in its stance.

4. Presidents Silanyo and Riyaale dealt directly with British and French Ambassadors to Ethiopia and Djibouti respectively, because ambassadors sent to Somalia have no mandate in Somaliland.

Now compare that consistent, principled, uncompromising stance of the old Somaliland with the reality we have today.

And ask yourself truthfully, is this the same country?

We have Pres. Biixi agreeing to meet UN reps touring federal states within the same week.

There is a clear schism between the old Somaliland and this new one.

Somewhere in the process, we lost direction in exchange for donor projects and $$.

No two ways about it.

This was the itinerary of @UNSomalia visiting Federal regional administrations to discuss elections:

14 January - South West
24 January - Galmudug
25 January - Puntland
28 January - Hirshabelle
31 January - Jubaland

3 February - #Somaliland

Would this happen in the old SL?

Compare these two Security Council statements:

2013: UN Rep. Nicholas Kay stated that #Somaliland authorities told him he has no mandate in SL and is not welcome.

2020: UN Rep. @UNSomalia casually refers to Pres. Bihi as a regional leader.

Its not the same country anymore.

Today we have Director Generals in Somaliland requesting funds to be transferred to "Care Somalia" to implement projects in Somaliland.

Same "Care Somalia" that explicitly refers to SL as a region.

Imagine the fate of a DG in the 'old Somaliland' sending a similar letter.

In 2023 we have Director Generals like @cabdirashed who nonchalantly use Somalia as their location on Linkedin because he has a business interests in Somalia.

A government official of Somaliland with Somalia as their location, would that fly in the 'old Somaliland'?

Notice how NGOs describe Somaliland on their websites. Language has shifted over the years, eroding our sovereignty. This is @ActionAidUK's Somaliland page over the last 6 years.

Our president broke all protocols when he openly accepted international aid money via Mogadishu following the Waaheen fire.

Some argue that we desperately needed the money.

I say its precisely during tough times when hard principled decisions can be taken.

Perhaps nothing represents the sense of decay we're discussing than what happened to the genocide memorial in Hargeisa.

We had a raw, explicit, honest monument
replaced on a whim by @BilemohamedAli with a vacuous expensive pastiche devoid of any meaning.. but looks more fancy.

Somaliland is dying.

A planned, slow, calculated death by 10,000 cuts.

And what will kill Somaliland eventually, isnt some bankrupt dhabayaco, a little Harti rebellion, or even Somalia's scheming.

Its the indifference of the sons and daughters of this nation.

Yes Kulmiye failed, Biixi, Kaahin.. the lot of them.

But why didnt we see an uproar in the streets about Somalia conducting a voting exercise on Somaliland soil?

Unfortunately its not just the politicians. Our people have been infected too.

Our collective indifference in the face of an organised global scheme to slowly but surely amalgamate Somaliland with Somalia, all the while we're fully absorbed in minutia of inner SL politicking, is what will eventually lead to the death of SL.

I have no solutions.

End.

Addendum:

Landers arguing in the comments about which president was worst: you're not paying attention.

This thread was never about point-scoring or singling one president out, it was to juxtapose two VERY DISTINCT states of sovereignty.

It was to underline a clear trajectory.

Many think that if Somaliland were to cease to exist, it'll be because some random president will one day wake up and announce that we will unite again with Somalia in a televised speech.

This is the real world and not a dramatic production.

The path to destroy our country goes through 100,000 small, seemingly innocent steps taken diligently over an extended period of time to soften and re-shape our understanding of what sovereignty means.

You can place the blame on any president you want, take your pick.

You can place the blame on Kulmiye..

Or the opposition..

Or on state organs like the parliament..

Or on citizens who didnt care much for Somalia elections taking place on SL soil.

But its all meaningless.

The most important thing to do now is:

1. For EVERYONE IN SOMALILAND to see this trajectory and understand what it means for SL.. and

2. For us to start having serious discussions about how we can change that and take the country back to its uncompromised state of sovereignty.