A Message to KULMIYE 2nd Convention

by Dr. Abdishakur Jowhar
March 30, 2008

I am not a member of your party, but like all Somalilanders I am praying for your success. And I pray for our nation to be blessed with strong leaders and stronger political parties that can keep us free from the darkness of one party state and ugliness and primitiveness of a Personality Cult.

I have followed your convention with pride and interest as you tackled the crucial undertaking of proofing your democratic credentials. You need no reminders that our people are desperate for you to come out of this bitter political contest stronger, more united and more determined than ever before. It is clear from the magnificent and free exchanges of opinion in your convention that you are wise to the tsunami of failed elections, conflict, mass displacement and massive loss of human life and human dignity that has swept lately over our unfortunate continent.  Darkness at noon is fast approaching.  And I am hopeful you will pay heed to the point or two that I make, as you try to save our nation from its own folly. What I say here maybe elementary but the times are such that clarity of thought is more necessary than ever before and I will readily take the risk of appearing mundane even elementary.

Violence and the State

 The people of Somaliland have come to a basic consensus that the state must have total monopoly on the use of violence. The state, and the state alone, has the legitimate right to use force. There is of course profound implications for this Somaliland consensus and it is this: In their wisdom our people are willing to accept oppression over insurrection; any state over statelessness; and a bad government over no government at all. The nightmare that haunts this nation is the emergence of the deadly menace of chaos, anarchy and its twin sister the ascendency of the tribal monster.  KULMIYE surely gets this for it is top echelons, including my political mentor and friend Tol LAAWE, have previously carried the spear of the nation as they volunteered to pay the ultimate price for the glorious armed liberation, for the freedoms we enjoy, and for the peace we have. KULMIYE knows this and we need to hear it from them again and again.

Free and Fair Elections

The people of Somaliland are not asking for much from their leadership; whether it is those in power or in the opposition.  All they ever want in this fateful hour of the story of their nationhood is nothing more than a Free, Fair, Transparent and Legitimate Elections. This is the one central mission of the government of the day. And I pray that our president, Dahir Rayaale Kaahin will succeed in carrying out this task diligently, honestly and with due care and consideration for the future of this fragile nation.

The opposition political parties, including KULMIYE, have one central mission too: to ensure that our government carries out the monumental task of preparing the nation for Free and Fair elections BEFORE THE ELECTIONS ARE HELD.  KULMIYE must know that the day of the elections will be already too late to ensure its fairness and legitimacy and that the day after the elections is nothing but water under the bridge. 

As a first step towards this goal Somaliland’s political opposition must come to a consensus that the THREE PILLARS of a Free and Fair Elections are met by our state before any elections are held:

1.      A Truly Independent Electoral Commission backed by credible dispute settlement mechanism (if I am not mistaken the Supreme Court of Somaliland has given up any credibility to function in this role for reasons the public understands clearly and that are beyond the scope of this message).

2.      Unequivocal, Unapologetic Free press: Including freedom in the airwaves of the nation; and an independent broadcasting commission that takes full and total control over the national radio and broadcasting service and that is based on the model of the BBC or similar independent news organizations or on the model of the Somaliland Electoral Commission.

3.      A Neutral Government Apparatus that is removed completely from the capacity and the temptation of influencing the outcome of the elections to the complete satisfaction of all the political parties in contention.

And the simple test of all: The consensus by all the political parties that these conditions are met. Failure of the opposition political parties to apply this test or their failure to act NOW on its results will be tantamount to a national betrayal. KULMIYE must know this!

Adopt the Ways of QARAN; Avoid Fool’s Peace

The consequences of the long and illegal incarceration of the leaders of QARAN Political Movement are not limited to the emergence of a new force in this nation’s political landscape.  It has also profound implications for the political process in this nation. The leaders of QARAN has shown clearly that in Somaliland peaceful protest and acceptance of imprisonment and incarceration is a political action strategy that is  more powerful and that is an effective alternative to armed insurrection.  KULMIYE must evolve, learn and adapt the rich harvest of QARAN to remain relevant and effective

We are blessed with a weak state that can be challenged and shaped and corrected more readily than most. At the same time we are cursed with a weak state that is fragile and that must be handled with care. What our government needs from its opposition is massive SHOW OF FORCE to encourage it to meet the prerequisites of free and fair elections, right NOW before the elections. KULMIYE must reject our government’s offer of a Fool’s Peace now and Old Man Chaos with its inherent blood and gore after the election.  KULMIYE must learn in this auspicious convention that the time for peaceful, measured and progressively escalating political action is not tomorrow but today.

KULMIYE must learn the ways of QARAN to speak for the nation, to lead the nation in protest, to suffer for the nation in the prisons of the state and to deliver for the nation a FREE and FAIR ELECTION whose results could be supported by both the winner and the loser and by international public opinion who would become the arbiter of last resort. And if our government is incapable, or God forbid unwilling, to deliver such an election than a way must be found for them to get out of the nation’s kitchen precisely as QARAN called for and in their place a government of technocrats with only the one mandate of making Free and Fair Elections possible must take its place.

I sign off here with the nostalgia of your slogan in the days of the struggle

GUUL IYO GOBANIMO!

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Dr. Abdishakur Jowhar
E-mail: [email protected]