Somaliland: Exhausted Consensus? North/South Divide? Opportunity for Meaningful Dialogue
348Shares
Sunday April 23, 2017
By Mohamed Ibrahim
Having returned from Hargeisa three months ago I found resilient, tolerant and striving society with a common courtesy and humour we are commonly known for as Somalis. When I was student I used to hear words like relative safety commonly repeated around my international relations subject class. In my time in Hargeisa, I got to know the meaning of the word in practice: the ability and confidence to go about your daily business knowing you have high probable chance of returning to your home unhurt or alive.
For someone who has seen hit and run drivers in the West, I was taken aback by particular incident I saw on the road while I was in Hargeisa. As my tax driver was driving me to a meeting there was a traffic jam. Having enquired, it became apparent another driver has run over a goat in the middle of road, blocking all other cars. One would expect the driver to run and leave the scene. But the goat as it lay dead on the road had a telephone number imprinted on her body. The driver called the number and said the following words: “War yaahe, there has been a tragedy. I run over your goat by accident. I sincerely apologise inaa deer. As you know, we have a culture, this is my number and you can find me at Deira Mall. I will recompense the value of the deceased goat” I found this quite amazing. There self evident, was application of self justice between society and commitment to the rights of animals or goats and value of life”
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As people sip coffee and teas outside cafes on their laptops or having the odd political gossip, you begin to appreciate the social and institutional achievement this society has developed over 25 years. Subsequent governments have made tremendous progress on democratic reforms and institutional governance. When you see a functioning police, military, courts, ministries - and a democratic spirit within society and government, one should not be surprised why they feel they are a nation state. You can sense and see the whole mark of state apparatus.
These achievements are something all Somalis with open mind and good heart should commend and welcome.
However, with the international recognition becoming an ever allusive dream and abject poverty proving a huge challenge, you sense a degree of alienation and young people are beginning to ask fundamental questions about their destiny socially, politically and economically - and rightly so after 25 years of allusive recognition.
Somaliland has now reached a tipping point where the political consensus and settlement that was agreed in Burco that brought about so much of the progress is now being tested. It's my assessment that this consensus is now exhausted fully - and if political leaders do not quickly map out a concrete political and economic direction that gives impetus for a renewed consensus and purpose, the results will be disastrous.
Mudane Coldoon changed the isolationist minds of many youth. They are now more wadani than many southerners
348Shares
Sunday April 23, 2017
By Mohamed Ibrahim
Having returned from Hargeisa three months ago I found resilient, tolerant and striving society with a common courtesy and humour we are commonly known for as Somalis. When I was student I used to hear words like relative safety commonly repeated around my international relations subject class. In my time in Hargeisa, I got to know the meaning of the word in practice: the ability and confidence to go about your daily business knowing you have high probable chance of returning to your home unhurt or alive.
For someone who has seen hit and run drivers in the West, I was taken aback by particular incident I saw on the road while I was in Hargeisa. As my tax driver was driving me to a meeting there was a traffic jam. Having enquired, it became apparent another driver has run over a goat in the middle of road, blocking all other cars. One would expect the driver to run and leave the scene. But the goat as it lay dead on the road had a telephone number imprinted on her body. The driver called the number and said the following words: “War yaahe, there has been a tragedy. I run over your goat by accident. I sincerely apologise inaa deer. As you know, we have a culture, this is my number and you can find me at Deira Mall. I will recompense the value of the deceased goat” I found this quite amazing. There self evident, was application of self justice between society and commitment to the rights of animals or goats and value of life”
advertisements
As people sip coffee and teas outside cafes on their laptops or having the odd political gossip, you begin to appreciate the social and institutional achievement this society has developed over 25 years. Subsequent governments have made tremendous progress on democratic reforms and institutional governance. When you see a functioning police, military, courts, ministries - and a democratic spirit within society and government, one should not be surprised why they feel they are a nation state. You can sense and see the whole mark of state apparatus.
These achievements are something all Somalis with open mind and good heart should commend and welcome.
However, with the international recognition becoming an ever allusive dream and abject poverty proving a huge challenge, you sense a degree of alienation and young people are beginning to ask fundamental questions about their destiny socially, politically and economically - and rightly so after 25 years of allusive recognition.
Somaliland has now reached a tipping point where the political consensus and settlement that was agreed in Burco that brought about so much of the progress is now being tested. It's my assessment that this consensus is now exhausted fully - and if political leaders do not quickly map out a concrete political and economic direction that gives impetus for a renewed consensus and purpose, the results will be disastrous.
Mudane Coldoon changed the isolationist minds of many youth. They are now more wadani than many southerners
You're using a dead goat as one of your Anti SL xaar
Sure we will grant ur three cities recognition
