Under the Radar: An unrecognized democracy emerges in Somaliland

- On 13 November 2017, Somaliland, an unrecognized country, went to the polls to elect its fifth president since its founding 26 years ago. Somaliland’s role in the region is changing as key players in the Gulf are waking up to its strategic location. 

Somaliland was a former British protectorate that secured independence on 26 June 1960. Five days later, it united with the Italian protectorate of Somalia to form the Somali Republic. It was during the regime of ruthless dictator Mohamed Siad Barre that the North (modern-day Somaliland) decided it had enough, and launched the SNM, its rebel movement.

Somaliland music workshop ‘a success’

- In what is seen as major inroads made in Somaliland’s cultural sector, the Music In Africa Foundation (MIAF) is proud to announce that a music training workshop and performance programme under the auspices of the Music In Africa Connects (MIAConnects) project was successfully implemented in the self-declared state’s capital, Hargeisa, in mid-October.

The MIAF partnered with the Hargeisa-based Redsea Cultural Foundation (RCF) earlier this year to support both established and upcoming music professionals in a region where the dictatorial regime of Mohamed Siad Barre between 1969 and 1991 led to a devastating civil war that saw all art forms, including audio recordings, looted and demolished.

Presidential Elections: Somaliland

The Minister for Africa:

- On 13 November, people across Somaliland took part in elections to choose a new President. The UK played an active role as part of a group of international donors in supporting the Somaliland National Election Commission in planning, preparing and delivering these elections.

On 16 November, the international election observation mission stated in its initial findings that it had not witnessed irregularities on a scale which would undermine the integrity of the result. The UK joined international partners in expressing our deepest regrets for the loss of life caused by violent protests in some locations in the days which followed the voting.

J.Somaliland, 15 wasiir (PhD) oo bilaash ku shaqeeyaa laga helayaa-ye Toloow, ma la danaynayaa?

"M/weyne dalka iyo dadka cid wax u-qaban karta oo aqoonteeda leh u xul"- Cali

- Waxa la isku habaaraa " Talada Allah kaa qaad ama Taagtaada Allah kum tuso". Aniga oo aan hakranayn J.Somaliland hadana, waxa aan la qarin Karin ee muuqata in wax wayni Dawladeena si ka yahay! Waxan is-waydiiyaa mararka qaarkood, waar toloow, xukuumadihii kala dambeeyay ee J.Somaliland soo maray maxay ku diideen inay dadkooda aqoonta iyo waayo-aragnimada balaadhan ku galadan ee magaalo kasta oo dalkeena ka mid ah hoganaya ( iyaga oo mushaharkoodii hawl-gabka qaata) ama dibadaba ku gudhaya ka faa'iidaystaan??

War-baahinta Caalamka Oo Si-balaadhan U-baahisay Doorshadii J.Somaliland.

 Warbaahinta kala duwan oo ay ka mid yihiin; BBC, VOA, FOXNEWS, TRIBUNE [USA], WASHINGTON POST, NEWYORK TIMES, NEWS24, HORNDIPLOMAT, AFRICAREVIEW, MAGAZETINI, BLOOMBERGQUINT, CETUSNEWS,  iyo Wakaaladda Wararka ee dalka Shiinaha oo la yidhaa [XINHUA], ethiopiaobserver.com, mereja.com, updatesnews.com, worldnews.easybranches.com, worldaffairsjournal.org, newsafrica.ga, kenya.myasalon.com, latestafricanews.com, daily.news.itthon.ma,

- Beesha caalamka iyo warbaahin fara badan oo dunida ka mid ah, ayaa ka hadashay natiijada doorashadii Madaxtooyada Somaliland ee Guddiga Doorashadu shaacisay 21-kii bishan November, taas oo ay ku guulaystay xisbiga KULMIYE oo ay u sharraxnaayeen Madaxweyne Muuse Biixi Cabdi iyo Madaxweyne-ku-xigeenkiisa Cabdiraxmaan Cabdillaahi Ismaaciil (Saylici) oo helay in ka badan 55% codadkii shacabka Somaliland dhiibteen.

South Lakes man gains insights into Somaliland presidential election

- A SOUTH Lakes man played a role in the third Presidential election in Somaliland. Robin Le Mare, of Allithwaite, serves on the Election Observer Mission, as as a result, gained first-hand experience into the political process in one of the most controversial countries in the world. The team arrived ahead of the election process, which began on November 13, to impartially observe and report on the election. 

Following Somaliland’s election, the 60-member mission, funded by Britain’s government and drawing on members from 27 countries is now finalising its interim report to Somaliland’s National Electoral Commission as observers return to self-declared capital city Hargeisa.

The Case for Somaliland Recognition By Mahamoud Adan Jama

UK congratulates Somaliland

The new president of S/land (Muuse Biixi

Somaliland’s ruling party candidate declared election winner

Hargeis. The ruling party candidate in Somalia’s semi-autonomous region of Somaliland has been declared the winner of the presidential election but the opposition claims irregularities in the vote.

The electoral commission says Muse Bihi Abdi of the Kulmiye party won 55 percent of votes counted while Abdirahman Irro of the Wadani opposition got 40 percent.

Somaliland ticks boxes of statehood

- The immigration official at the border between Ethiopia and the Republic of Somaliland says that, in his seven years of working at the small and dusty border post, he has never seen a South African passport before.

During the day, the air in Somaliland’s capital city Hargeisa is still and listless in the heat. There is not a great deal to do except nap to the lullaby of an electric fan, listen to the mu’addhin calling out to the faithful, or chew khat. Alcohol is banned, so there is no cold beer to help the day drift on by.

UK-Parliament debated S/land Election

Mobile clinics bring stable care to moving populations in Somaliland

Dallow, SOMALILAND — Twenty-year old Safia Ali Abdi had never been to the doctor before she lined up at a mobile clinic under an acacia tree one October morning this year. She left her home at 7am, carrying her five-month old son Sakaria in her arms along a four-hour walk to seek care. Both their mouths had been sore and bleeding, which made it hard for Sakaria to breastfeed. When Abdi arrived, she found three nurses and a midwife, with a line of patients waiting. The clinic was comprised of two tables, now stacked with medicine, scales to measure body weight, a wooden block for measuring height, and a tent for the midwife to examine pregnant women and new mothers. Abdi and her son were diagnosed with stomatitis, a condition that causes sores and swelling in the mouth. They were given zinc tablets and anti-fungal oral drops, and sent home.

Read more;

https://www.devex.com/news/mobile-clinics-bring-stable-care-to-moving-populations-in-somaliland-91419

To Improve Trust in Its Elections, Somaliland Goes High-tech

- Last week, Somalilanders went to the polls in a historic presidential election. Officials employed advanced iris-scanning technology to identify voters and prevent duplicate ballots — the first use of such a biometric system in a national election.

For Somaliland, a breakaway region whose independence has not yet been recognized by the U.N., the scanners also made a powerful statement about its legitimacy as a nation-state.

Voting Begins in Somaliland in Third Presidential Election Since 2003

- Polling stations have opened in the self-proclaimed republic of Somaliland for the third presidential election since 2003. A VOA Somali reporter in Hargeisa, Barkhad Kariye, says he saw long lines, with some people waiting since 3:00 a.m.

“They wanted to be the first to cast their ballot, people want to make sure they vote before polling stations close,” Kariye said.

The electoral commission has urged people to prioritize the elderly and the vulnerable. There are 1,642 polling stations were voters will cast their ballots.

The man who buried Somaliland's dead

- It was June 2, 1988 and Hargeisa was under attack. The rat-a-tat-tat of nearby artillery rose above the city and filled Ibrahim Abdullahi's ears, but the battle was in the north and hadn't reached his government-controlled southern district - at least not yet. As he nervously ventured outside, Abdullahi's mind raced. He had already sent his wife and eight children to safety in Ethiopia, but he felt a longing to stay in Hargeisa, a need to protect his modest mud-brick home and keep it occupied in order to deter looters and to defend the product of years of his own hard work.

Why Somaliland broke from Somalia?

Somaliland: Observation Mission Deployed to Monitor Historic Election

- On 13 November 2017, Somaliland will hold its third presidential election. A team of 60 international election observers from 24 different countries – including representatives of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) – have arrived in Hargeisa. The international election observation mission (EOM) will undertake various tasks before, during and after election day, such as examining the pre-election campaign, verifying access by political parties to locations for campaigning, the equality of access to the media, the procedures which will be employed for the distribution of election materials, voting itself and the counting and tallying of ballots. This election will be a landmark for Somaliland as this is the first time an incumbent does not run again for presidency, making it an important phase in Somaliland’s consolidation of its representative democracy. 

Breakaway Somaliland to elect new president

- The self-proclaimed state of Somaliland will vote for a new president on Monday, hoping to continue a series of democratic transitions of power that sets it apart from its troubled neighbour Somalia.

The northern territory, which is more tribally homogenous and stable than the rest of Somalia, broke away in 1991 and has been striving to attain international recognition ever since.

Three candidates are running for the state's top office, seasoned politicians Muse Bihi of the ruling Kulmiye party and opposition candidates Abdirahman Iro and Faysal Ali Warabe, who was defeated in previous elections in 2010.

Recognition a Key Issue in Somaliland's Presidential Election

- Somaliland's three presidential candidates have concluded their campaigns ahead of Monday's poll to elect the next leader of the breakaway region. Muse Bihi of the ruling Kulmiye party, Faisal Ali Waraabe of the For Justice and Development party (UCID) and Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi of the Wadani party held their final rallies this week in the capital, Hargeisa.

A central issue, as always, is how to win international recognition for Somaliland. Somalia, which was once governed by Italy, wants Somaliland to be part of a single Somali state. But Somaliland, which used to be a British colony and broke away from the rest of Somalia in 1991, wants to be a separate country.

DP World's Berbera Port Gets Election-Year Attention

- The Port of Berbera's future may depend in part on the results of Somaliland's upcoming presidential election. Opposition party candidate Abdirahman Irro has criticized the current government's $440 million deal with DP World for a 30-year lease on the port, and he has promised to review the agreement – along with other privatization efforts – if he should win the election. 

"Our party is welcoming of all investment projects in Berbera, but investment deals shouldn't be conducted under the table," Irro said. "We promise to review all the deals that were signed by the [current] administration."

Dood: Musharixiinta 3da Xisbi "S/land

Somaliland Elections on Track for November

- Somaliland’s National Electoral Commission has released the total number of registered Voters with Identification Cards to vote in the upcoming November election. The data which was released at a news conference Tuesday put the total number of registered and eligible voters in Somaliland at 704,089. Speaking to VOA Somali, NEC spokesman, Sa’id Ali Muse said the commission has completed the distribution and the cleaning up of voter registration identification cards and released the list to Somaland’s three political parties and the minister of interior. 

Dubai's DP World to develop free zone in Somaliland

- Dubai-based DP World announced on Monday that it will develop a greenfield economic free zone in Somaliland to complement the development of the Port of Berbera. 

DP World Group chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem and Republic of Somaliland Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Dr Saad Ali Shire have signed an agreement for the Berbera Free Zone (BFZ).

The development is based on DP World’s Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) in Dubai and aims to attract investments, encourage trade, create new jobs and position Berbera as a gateway port for the region, a statement said.

Somaliland election: Will the self-declared state show East Africa how it’s done?

- On 13 November, Somaliland will embark on its third presidential elections since it unilaterally declared independence in 1991. With the incumbent set to step down, voters at 1,600 polling stations across the autonomous region of Somalia will choose a new president.

Despite not being a recognised independent state, Somaliland is considered to be one of East Africa’s best-functioning and most stable democracies. The election, part funded by the European Union and UK, will be overseen by international observers and may be the first in the world to employ iris-based biometric voter registration.