What Do You Know About Somaliland: A country under a country?
Have you ever been to Somaliland? Have you heard about the country that sold its sovereignty? I guess NO! Here I will tell you some of the most important things you need to know about Somaliland.
Where is Somaliland Located?
Somaliland is an unrecognized country that locates in the Horn of Africa, and it’s internationally recognized to be part of SOMALIA. It lies in the Horn of Africa, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden.
Somaliland Sovereignty
Somaliland was colonized by the British colonial, it was a British protectorate from 1888 to 1960 when it gained its independence from the British colonial government. This is all normal, but what happened in the next 72 hours after the people of Somaliland gained their sovereignty and independence became a shock to the whole world. Hours after their independence gaining, a neighboring country, Somalia, also gained its independence from the Italian colonial government.
Somaliland decided that it was better for the two Somali governments to unite as one country namely Somalia. This is the moment when Somaliland loss its independence! They joined Somalia as one country in 1960, breaking a record as the country with the least number of days with sovereignty and independence.
Somaliland After Joining Somalia
These are some of the main things Somaliland suffered after it joined Somalia in 1960:
1. Economic problems, as the southern part- Somalia- hijacked the economic policy
2. Lack of representatives in the House of Parliament
3. Lack of or few executives e.g. president & deputy president, the cabinet of ministers, deputy ministers, directors generals, and more.
4. Understimations and sometimes attacks from the government
What Happened Next?
After a long war between the government of Somalia and militias led by movements from the northern part of the country, Somaliland withdrew from Somalia and got their independence once again on 18th May 1991 with the help of the strongest movement which caused Somalia to fall apart named SNM (Somali National Movement), but this time without international recognition.
By Amin A Aidid
amincafe blogspot
