Somaliland leaders accuse Somalia of weaponizing its new e-visa and ETA systems to undermine Somaliland’s sovereignty — echoing 1980s-era repression and threatening digital control over borders, finance, and airspace.
HARGEISA, Somaliland — When Somalia launched its new e-visa and electronic travel authorization (ETA) system this year, it was hailed in Mogadishu as a step toward modernization. But in Somaliland, the program is viewed through a darker historical lens — one that evokes haunting memories of the policies that preceded the Isaaq genocide of the late 1980s.
What might appear to outsiders as a simple bureaucratic reform — digitizing visa payments and traveler data — is seen by many Somalilanders as a high-tech continuation of a long campaign to control, marginalize, and ultimately undermine their self-governing republic.
“This isn’t just about visas,” said a senior Somaliland analyst who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue. “It’s about surveillance, restriction, and domination — the same playbook Somalia used before the genocide, only now with digital tools.”
Echoes of the 1980s
For many Somalilanders, the parallels are chilling. During the military rule of Mohamed Siad Barre in the 1980s, the regime systematically targeted the Isaaq clan — the majority population in Somaliland. Early tactics, survivors recall, involved economic and administrative restrictions that left Isaaq communities isolated and impoverished.
“I was supposed to be one of those people in that grave,” said 54-year-old Nuur Ismail Hirsi, a survivor of the genocide period. “I have never been able to make peace with the past. Every day I cry for the souls of all those people still buried beneath us.”
Citizens were denied passports unless they traveled to Mogadishu, where many were detained, robbed, or killed. Business ownership, property rights, and trade privileges were stripped away under the chilling slogan “Isaaq magayo” — “The Isaaq are not allowed.”
“It began with paperwork — with who could travel and who could trade,” recalled Ahmed Warsame, a retired merchant in Hargeisa whose father was killed in 1988. “Now they say it’s about e-visas, but it’s the same idea: to decide who belongs, who can move, and who can prosper.”
Key Historical Parallels Between 1980s Suppression and the Current E-Visa System
| 1980s Tactics Under Barre Regime | Current E-Visa System |
| Blocked Somalilanders from obtaining passports abroad unless they traveled to Mogadishu, where they faced robbery or death | Requires all travelers to Somaliland to obtain permission from Mogadishu |
| Implemented “Isaaq magayo” policies banning business ownership and trade | Could prevent Somaliland businesses from bringing in skilled migrants |
| Used control mechanisms to destroy economic capacity | Centralizes visa and revenue collection in Mogadishu |
| Systematic economic warfare against the Isaaq population | Potential to redirect even Somaliland’s president through Mogadishu |
Between 1987 and 1989, the Barre regime massacred an estimated 50,000 to 200,000 members of the Isaaq clan, while half a million people fled the country. A 2001 UN report concluded that “the crime of genocide was conceived, planned, and perpetrated by the Somali Government against the Isaaq people of northern Somalia (now Somaliland).”
A Digital Leash on Movement
Under Somalia’s e-visa system, all travelers — including those bound for Somaliland — must apply online through a centralized Mogadishu-run portal. Payments are processed through banks under Somali federal jurisdiction, such as Premier Bank, and personal data is stored in national databases controlled by the federal government.
Critics argue that this framework grants Mogadishu not only financial leverage but also the ability to dictate who enters or exits Somaliland’s airspace — even determining which foreign officials its leaders can meet abroad.
“They can deny entry or departure for anyone from Somaliland at will,” said Ismail Ahmed, founder of WorldRemit and a prominent advocate for financial transparency. “This is not a digital convenience; it’s a digital weapon.”
“An Open-Air Prison”
For many in Hargeisa, the e-visa system feels like a form of encirclement — what one activist called “an open-air prison built with code rather than barbed wire.”
“It’s no longer about soldiers or checkpoints,” said a civil society leader. “It’s about servers and systems. If they control the databases, they control our borders — and our future.”
Analysts warn that Mogadishu could use the centralized system to block Somaliland officials from traveling abroad, deny entry to international investors, or redirect foreign visitors through Mogadishu as a political assertion of jurisdiction.
“This is not simply airspace control,” said Dr. Amina Mohamed, a political scientist at the Horn Policy Institute. “It’s a geopolitical architecture of containment.”
Economic and Financial Implications
Somaliland economists warn that the system’s reach extends into trade, investment, and financial sovereignty.
The digital payment structure — funneled through Somali banks such as Premier Bank — gives Mogadishu access to sensitive financial flows linked to Somaliland’s travelers and diaspora communities.
“They’re not just collecting visa fees; they’re collecting intelligence,” said a Hargeisa-based banker. “They’ll know who travels, where they go, how they pay, and what they earn. It’s total oversight.”
For Somaliland, whose economy depends heavily on remittances, this intrusion threatens a critical lifeline.
“No country can afford to outsource its borders,” said another local economist. “Once you do, your sovereignty is no longer in your hands — it’s in your adversary’s servers.”
“It’s a continuation of the Isaaq genocide and Somalia’s strategy to politically, economically, and financially control and destroy Somaliland.”
The Economic Battlefield
Beyond travel restrictions, Somaliland officials argue that the e-visa system is part of a broader campaign to erode their economic independence.
“This isn’t just about airspace or revenue — it’s a continuation of the Isaaq genocide and Somalia’s long-standing strategy to control and destroy Somaliland politically, economically, and financially,” said one analyst.
They warn that Mogadishu could use the system to block international companies from entering Somaliland, force foreign firms to register in Somalia, and isolate Hargeisa from global commerce.
Despite lacking international recognition, Somaliland — which declared the restoration of its independence in 1991 — has built one of the most stable and democratic systems in the Horn of Africa, with its own government, military, and currency.
Calls for Resistance
In recent weeks, Somaliland figures at home and abroad have urged the government to take a firmer stance.
Ismail Ahmed has called on Hargeisa to suspend dollar transfers to Somalia, ban Somali-registered banks operating inside Somaliland, and alert international regulators in the UK, US, and EU.
“This is financial warfare,” Ahmed said. “We must respond with financial defense — cut the channels, freeze the transfers, and inform regulators that Somalia is using banking infrastructure for political coercion.”
Others have urged Somaliland to create its own independent e-visa and digital border systems.
“Somaliland needs its own system — one that safeguards national data and ensures only Hargeisa decides who enters and leaves,” said Khalif Hagoog, a civic technology advocate. “You can’t build independence on borrowed infrastructure.”
A Fight for the Skies — and the Future
The controversy over the e-visa comes amid a broader dispute over control of Somaliland’s airspace — a long-standing issue that has strained relations between Hargeisa and Mogadishu.
While international aviation bodies like the ICAO recognize Somalia’s nominal claim to the skies, Somaliland has operated its own airports and air traffic systems for years.
With digital travel systems now merging airspace management and immigration control, analysts say the stakes have never been higher.
“They can dictate a single point of entry,” said a former Somaliland aviation official. “Even the president could be redirected to Mogadishu if they wish — or denied registration altogether.”
A Continuation of a Historical Struggle
For many Somalilanders, the e-visa debate is not merely technical — it is part of a long continuum of resistance and survival.
“In the 1980s, they used guns and checkpoints,” said Warsame, the retired merchant. “Now they use apps and codes. But the goal is the same — to control us.”
For survivors of past atrocities, the current conflict serves as both a painful reminder and a renewed call for vigilance.
“In Somaliland, we have peace — and that’s it,” said Hirsi, his eyes filling with tears. “But we still don’t have recognition for what happened to us.”
Observers say Somaliland’s challenge now is to respond to this new front — one that blends technology, finance, and geopolitics.
“Restoring airspace is only part of it,” said Dr. Amina Mohamed. “Somaliland must fight back politically, economically, and digitally — to defend not just its skies, but its sovereignty.”
As the November 10th deadline for new airspace permits takes effect, the world watches to see whether this latest confrontation will lead to renewed dialogue — or deepen one of Africa’s most enduring political stalemates.
