Making the State Work: the Role of the Civil Society Actors in Somaliland
Keywords:
state building, civil society, political stability, SomalilandAbstract
Since its separation from the rest of Somalia in 1991 following a bitter and long armed struggle against the ruling military regime, Somaliland Government has managed to restore peace and order through non-state actors representing the society at the grass roots. This civil engagement has served as a milestone in managing its state building efforts and to remain less fragile than the other parts of Somalia. This paper critically examines how three separate but interrelated key actors: traditional elders, the women, and the media have an important role to play in achieving a socioeconomic development and thus ensure political stability. The study combines both primary and secondary data to come up with concrete findings. In primary sources, interviews from academia, civil society, and close observation by the researcher were conducted. In secondary data, relevant literatures from books, journals, policy documents, among others were reviewed. The conclusion unveils that indigenous civil society organizations in post-conflict situations are key actors in the creation of social networks that could contribute stability and the strengthening of peace within the society at large in the long-term.
References
Abokor, Adan. Barrett, Georgina. Bradbury, Mark & Yusuf, Haron. (2006). Further Steps to Democracy. London: Published by Progression.
Adam, Hussein M. (1994). Formation and recognition of new states: Somaliland in contrast to Eritrea. Review of African Political Economy, no. 21:59, 21–38.
Berouk Mesfin. (2009). The political development of Somaliland and its conflict with Puntland. Institute for Security Studies, no. ISS Paper 200: 1–20.
Booth, Charlotte. (2007). Between victimhood and agency – Somali women’s role in conflict and peacebuilding, Horn of Africa Bulletin, Life & Peace Institute.
Bradbury, Mark. (2008). Becoming Somaliland. London: James Curry Publishers.
Dini, Shukria. (2008). “Gender, Society, and Politics in Somaliaâ€. In Somalia: Current Conflicts and New Chances for State Building. Volume 6 (English Edition). Berlin: Heinrich Böll Foundation.
Dualeh, Hussein. (2002). Search for a New Somali Identity. Printed in the Republic of Kenya.
Farah, Ahmed & I.M.Lewis. (1993). Somalia: The Roots of Reconciliation. A piece of original research commissioned by Action Aid.
Gabobe, Yusuf. Ali, Farhan. Blanchard, Matthew & Nicole Stremlau. (2009). The Role of the Media in the Upcoming Somaliland Elections: Lessons from Kenya. London: University of Oxford.
Gardner, Judith & El Bushra, Judy. (2004). Somalia: The Untold Story the War Through the Eyes of Somali Women, Pluto Press, London.
Gordon, Ruth. (1999). Growing Constitutions. Journal of Constitutional Law, no. 1.3: 528–582.
Gundel, Joakim. (2006). The role of traditional structures in security, rights, law and development in Somalia. Nairobi: Danish Refugee Council & Novib/Oxfam.
Hall, Douglas. (1961). Somaliland’s Last Year as a Protectorate. African Affairs, no. 238: 26–37.
Haldén, Peter. (2008). Somalia: Failed State or Nascent States-System?, edited by Karl Sörenson, 11–58. Stockholm: By Swedish Defence Research Agency.
Hansen, Peter. (2009). Governing Khat: Drugs and Democracy in Somaliland. Copenhagen: Danish Institute for International Studies.
Harper, Mary. (2012). Getting Somalia Wrong?: Faith, War and Hope in a Shattered State, Zed Books, London.
Human Rights Watch. (2009). Somaliland: ‘Hostage to Peace’ - Threats to Human Rights and Democracy in Somaliland. New York: Human Rights Watch.
H.Adam, Nasri. (1996). “Testimony from Somaliaâ€. Looking at Peace through Women’s Eyes, edited by Joy Mutero. Nairobi: Regal Press Limited.
ICRW. (1998). “After the Peace: Women in Post-Conflict Reconstructionâ€. Washington DC: The Centre for Development and Population Activities.
International Crisis Group. (2003). Somaliland: Democratization and its Discontents. Africa Report N° 66. Nairobi/Brussels: International Crisis Group.
International Crisis Group. (2008). Somalia: To Move Beyond the Failed State, International Crisis Group, Nairobi/Brussels, Africa Report N°147.
I.M.Lewis. (2002). A Modern History of the Somali: Revised, Updated and Expanded. 4th edition. United Kingdom: Long House Publishing Services.
Kinfe Abraham. (2002). Somalia Calling: The Crisis of Statehood and Quest for Peace, 1st edn, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Medhane Tadesse. (2002). Al-Ittihad: Political Islam and Black Economy in Somalia. Addis Ababa: Mega Printing Enterprise.
Mesfin Wolde-Mariam. (1977). Somalia: The Problem Child of Africa. Addis Ababa: Artistic Printing Press.
Mushtaq, Najum . (2007). Somalia: Anatomy of an unending conflict, NEW AFRICAN. 2007, 41st Year. February 2007. No 459
M. Ali, Nasir. (2011). Ethio-Somaliland Relations Post-1991: Challenges and Opportunities, International Journal of Sustainable Development, no. 4. pp. 1-10.
M. Ali, Nasir. (2013a). ‘Overcoming Diplomatic Isolation: Forging a New Somaliland Approach’, Somaliland Development Series 3, published by the Social Research and Development Institute (SORADI) as a policy paper.
M. Ali, Nasir. (2013b). ‘The Quest for Free Press and Expression in Africa: Identifying the Challenges and Lessons from Somaliland’. Hargeisa: Unpublished paper.
NAGAAD. (2007). Women’s Political Participation in Somaliland: An Evaluation of the 2005 Parliamentary Elections. Hargeisa: NAGAAD Umbrella Organization.
Schoiswohl, Michael. (2004). Status and (Human Rights) Obligations of Non-Recognized De Facto Regimes in International Law: The Case of ‘Somaliland ’. Lieden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
Tarekegn Adebo. (2005). Post-conflict Peacebuilding and Prospects for democracy with reference to Africa. Sweden: Printed by Temdahls Tryckeri AB, Östervåla, 9–37.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
- Papers must be submitted on the understanding that they have not been published elsewhere (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, or thesis) and are not currently under consideration by another journal published by any other publisher.
- It is also the authors responsibility to ensure that the articles emanating from a particular source are submitted with the necessary approval.
- The authors warrant that the paper is original and that he/she is the author of the paper, except for material that is clearly identified as to its original source, with permission notices from the copyright owners where required.
- The authors ensure that all the references carefully and they are accurate in the text as well as in the list of references (and vice versa).
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
- The journal/publisher is not responsible for subsequent uses of the work. It is the author's responsibility to bring an infringement action if so desired by the author.