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The article “When Something Fails, Someone Was Unjustly Added or Omitted” argues that Somaliland’s lack of international recognition is a result of a flawed initial union with Somalia in 1960 and subsequent international missteps.

Here’s a breakdown:

  • The Core Argument: Somaliland’s union with Somalia was never legally ratified through a binding treaty. Therefore, Somaliland’s initial sovereignty was never fully extinguished under international law. The article’s title highlights this: failures stem from improper inclusion or exclusion.

  • Lack of Legal Merger: The author, M. Amin, argues that Somalia itself acknowledged the separate legal identities of British Somaliland and the Trust Territory of Somalia by submitting documents to the UN confirming that international treaties applied separately to each territory even after the declared union.

  • UN’s Role: The UN is criticized for perpetuating the idea of a unified Somalia even after the Somali state collapsed in 1991. The author claims the UN ignored Somaliland’s peaceful reclamation of independence and sidelined it from peace processes, while simultaneously legitimizing figures from the former Barre regime.

  • Geopolitical Interests: The author suggests that Boutros-Ghali’s UN leadership prioritized Egypt’s Nile water security, which led to suppressing the Somaliland issue, as recognizing Somaliland would have empowered Ethiopia.

  • Somaliland’s Position: The article emphasizes that Somaliland has established a functioning state with its own institutions, security, and economy.

  • Call to Action: The author concludes that recognizing Somaliland is not just a matter of law, but also a path towards justice, stability, and peace in the Horn of Africa.

  • Legal Basis: The article refers to historical treaties to define Somaliland’s borders, to reinforce Somaliland’s legal basis for its defined borders, and its claim to statehood.

The complete piece is as follows:

When Something Fails, Someone Was Unjustly Added or Omitted
Somaliland Flag

“When Something Fails, Someone Was Unjustly Added or Omitted”

By M. Amin, freelance journalist and researcher in Hargeisa, Somaliland

Part I: The Root of the Rift – A Union Never Ratified

“Haddii aad aragto arrin dhamaan weyda, macnaheedu waa in lagu daray cid aan ku jirin, ama laga reebay cid ku jirtay.”
“When something drags on endlessly, it’s because someone was added who didn’t belong—or someone was excluded who did.”

For over 30 years, Somaliland has been denied recognition by the international community—treated as a political problem instead of a legal solution. But beneath this denial lies a truth that international law has quietly acknowledged: Somaliland was never lawfully merged into Somalia.

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In 1960, British Somaliland and the Trust Territory of Somalia (former Italian Somaliland) each gained independence. The voluntary union declared on July 1 was political—not legal. There was no binding treaty, no act of ratification, and no formal succession of treaties unifying the two as one sovereign state.

The 1962 Yearbook of the International Law Commission (ILC) confirms this, stating that Somalia had no registered succession agreement with either the United Kingdom or Italy. Instead, Somalia recognized that international conventions would apply separately to “the part of the territory…which was formerly British Somaliland.” [UN ILC 1962 PDF]

This legal admission was ignored politically. Instead of acknowledging the fragile and unratified nature of the union, the United Nations recognized a unitary Somali Republic. Somaliland’s rights under international law were swept aside—a misstep that has undermined stability in the region ever since.

Part II: A Treaty Trail to Truth – Legal Identity Through Conventions

While Somalia claimed unity, it also submitted documents to the UN confirming that international treaties continued to apply separately to British Somaliland and the Trust Territory. This contradicts Somalia’s current claim that Somaliland is an integral part of its territory.

From the ILC report:

“With respect to six such conventions which had applied in British Somaliland but not in the Trust Territory, Somalia recognized that the conventions ‘will continue to be in force for the part of the territory…formerly British Somaliland.”

This demonstrates that Somalia never legally integrated the two territories into a single legal personality. If it had, the treaties would apply to Somalia as a whole, not to its parts separately.

In trade, the divide was also clear. Under GATT documentation, British Somaliland had a separate customs and trading status, unlike Somalia, which required waivers. [GATT Docs: 91870132, 90730297]

Even today, Somaliland manages its own ports, exports livestock to the Gulf, collects taxes, and operates diplomatic offices—all without donor dependency. Somalia, which cannot control even its capital without foreign troops, is permitted to impose illegitimate coercive measures on Somaliland, such as airspace restrictions, in violation of the UN Charter and the AU Constitutive Act.

This isn’t just unjust—it’s unlawful.

Part III: The UN’s Dual Failure – Ignoring Peace, Empowering Collapse

When the Somali state collapsed in 1991, Somaliland peacefully reclaimed the independence it had declared in 1960. No war. No secession. Just legal rectification.

Yet during Boutros Boutros-Ghali’s term as UN Secretary-General (1992–1996), the UN doubled down on the fiction of Somali unity. While Ghali launched operations in Mogadishu, Somaliland was excluded from peace processes, despite building a functioning state on its own.

Worse, the UN ignored genocide. Mohamed Sahnoun, the respected UN envoy, resigned in protest as Barre’s remnants manipulated aid and prolonged the conflict. Yet letters from genocidal regime figures like Jama Barre, who branded the Isaaq majority “volatile,” were still circulated in UN diplomatic channels.

The UN legitimized the very war criminals who had destroyed Hargeisa—and dismissed the survivors who rebuilt it.

“When victims of genocide rebuild a society, and those responsible deny them recognition while demanding power—that is not diplomacy, it is injustice.”

Part IV: Ghali and Barre – Nile Politics, Misinformation, and Expansionism

Boutros-Ghali’s alliance with Siad Barre was not incidental. Ghali prioritized Egypt’s Nile security, and Somalia was critical to preventing Ethiopian control over the Blue Nile. Recognizing Somaliland would have meant empowering Ethiopia and weakening Egypt’s geopolitical leverage.

Ghali’s misinformation campaign suppressed the Somaliland issue to protect Egypt’s Nile water interests. Barre, meanwhile, sold the narrative that unity was sacred, while planning regional aggression. If Somalia overran Somaliland, it would renew claims on Ethiopia’s Ogaden and parts of Kenya.

Today’s Somali constitution review chaos is just another chapter in a long cycle. As the UN meeting 1093rd meeting TRUSTEESHIP COUNCIL Friday, 27 May 1960, reveals (T/SR.1093), Somalia’s inability to finalize constitutional legitimacy isn’t new—it’s permanent.

Djibouti, fearing business competition from Berbera and political disruption, continues to obstruct Somaliland’s recognition, lobbying behind the scenes. The motive isn’t law—it’s monopoly.

Part V: Recognition as Peace – A Path Forward for the Horn

Somalia’s collapse was not caused by Somaliland. It was caused by the dictatorship that destroyed it, and the international system that still lets the architects of genocide write the narrative.

The longer this injustice drags on, the more it destabilizes the Horn.

Somaliland’s recognition offers a legal, peaceful, and stabilizing model—a partner with functioning democratic institutions, real security, and a proven track record.

Let the proverb ring again:

“Haddii aad aragto arrin dhamaan weyda…”
“When something fails, someone was unjustly added—or excluded.”

Somaliland was unjustly added. Recognition now is not just law—it is justice, stability, and peace for the region.

Citations & Legal Anchors

  • UN Yearbook of the International Law Commission, 1962, Vol. II: Link
  • UN Treaty Records (Somalia’s treaty succession admissions): Pages 253–256
  • UN Security Council Archives: T/SR.1093
  • WTO/GATT Archives (Customs status of Somaliland): Documents 91870132, 90730297
  • Mohamed Sahnoun’s resignation statement, 1992 (public UN records)
  • Personal letters of Jama Barre and correspondence to UN (archived)

Here is the Somaliland Major boundary treaties 📜

  1. Anglo–French Agreement (Djibouti–Somaliland), 1888
  1. British Protectorate Treaties with Local Clans (1884–1886)
  • A series of the earliest treaties binding Somali clans to British protection, forming the initial substance of British Somaliland territory.
  1. Anglo–Italian Protocol (“Ford‑Crispi Agreement”), May 5, 1894
  1. Anglo–Ethiopian Treaty (Rodd–Menelik), May 14, 1897
  • Defined the southern land border with Ethiopia. It followed roughly latitude 8° N, enabling grazing rights across the Haud and Reserved Areas. It also included stipulations on trade and caravan access.
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  1. Haud and Reserved Areas Agreements (1930s–1950s)
  • Supplemental arrangements clarified grazing rights across the British–Ethiopia line.
  • One 1954–55 agreement returned Ethiopian sovereignty over these areas while honoring pastoralist movement for clans—a continued recognition of British obligations to Somali tribes. en.wikipedia.org+15scribd.com+15en.wikipedia.org+15
  1. Anglo–Italian Boundary Commission (1929–1930)
  • This commission physically demarcated the 1894 line with precision, formalizing field boundaries used on subsequent Somaliland maps.

🗺️ Summary of Somaliland’s Borders by Colonial Power

Frontier Treaty(s) Description
West (Djibouti) Anglo–French, 1888 Delineated with French Somaliland somalilandcurrent.com+12recognition.somalilandgov.com+12en.wikipedia.org+12
East (Somalia) Anglo–Italian Protocol, 1894; Commission, 1929–30 Followed 49° E then diagonally south; Bandar Zaida exception
South (Ethiopia) Rodd–Menelik, 1897; Grazing agreements, 1930s–1950s Defined Haud border, grazing passage rights, sovereignty restoration

Conclusion

These colonial-era treaties collectively established a clearly defined territory for British Somaliland, with internationally recognized boundaries. Since Somaliland reasserted independence in 1991, these inherited borders—from Britain, Italy, Ethiopia, and France—continue to define its legal and constitutional territory within Somaliland law. Acknowledging these treaties reinforces Somaliland’s legal basis for its defined borders and its claim to statehood.