Somaliland: the first recognition. A One-off or a Harbinger of Inevitable Change? |
The Israeli government has officially become the first UN member state to formally recognize Somaliland as an independent state – an event awaited in Hargeisa for over 30 years.
Somaliland: A Brief Background Note
During the colonial era, the territory currently known as Somaliland was part of the British Crown constellation from 1887 to 1960. In the “Year of Africa,” both British and Italian Somaliland gained independence from their former metropoles and, by a UN decision, were united within a single state of Somalia. Over the time, the Isaaq clan, an influential force in Somaliland, became dissatisfied with its secondary role in the country’s political system which, coupled with the defeat in the war with Ethiopia, led to the outbreak of a civil war, triggering centrifugal processes, primarily in the north regions of the country. Consequently, in 1991, during the Grand Conference of the Northern Clans in Burao, elders and leaders of various northern factions proclaimed the establishment of an independent Somaliland. This political entity never gained recognition from any state; however, within a few years, it became the most stable polity in the........