By Khaatumo Forum for Somali Peace, Development and Unity

History is full of cases when the most unlikely antagonists would have a truce or cessation of hostilities when needs and circumstances dictated. In our own times, and in our part of the world, we have Somaliland and Puntland, for all appearances enemies and at loggerheads over their baseless ludicrous claims over the Khatumo regions of Sool, Sanaag and Cayn (SSC). Yet, there is more to it than meets the eye. Despite their occasional spats and sideshows – often for public consumption – they maintain nonetheless an unholy and undeclared strategic alliance as demanded by their interests to ensure that the SSC regions remain their helpless prey to serve their different misguided aims.

Khatumo’s SSC regions have been once again, during the last weeks, the target of renewed combined and coordinated aggressions from Somaliland and Puntland. It is an aggression jointly mounted each time the people of Khatumo, at home and abroad, are seen to be making concerted efforts and progress to break out for good from the grip, occupation and hegemony of these two predatory neighbouring clan enclaves and take its rightful place as a member State of Federal Somalia. This time, the trigger for their actions is the on-going endeavours to establish a united regional administration for Khatumo and its sister, Makhir State. Not surprisingly, this development has sent the alarm bells ringing in both Somaliland and Puntland and the desperate efforts to thwart this initiative.

For Somaliland, the emergence of a united Khatumo-Makhir State would be more dire, putting to rest for ever the prospect of any recognition for its enclave – if ever there was one in the first place – and hence usher the demise of the secession. For Puntland, it would mean losing the economic and diplomatic gains that the international community and the Federal Government injudiciously granted it on account of its spurious claim on the SSC regions, gifts that hitherto enabled it to punch above its weight on Somali affairs. In their doomed endeavours to derail Khatumo’s progress and its unity with Makhir, their knee-jerk response is more of the same aggression.

This week, Somaliland’s occupying militia in the SSC have been flexing their muscles and exercising their fire power, rampaging through the region, occupying villages, such as Ceegaag (not that far from Buhoodle). As usual, civilians have been displaced, and defenceless groups – women, children and the aged not able to escape the aggressors – have been the main victims of human rights abuses. Looting and raping, always second nature to these occupying undisciplined ragtag militia from the secessionist enclave, has been reported from several places. It is a form of terror meant for the people of free Buhoodle to surrender or flee the town while they still have time as the occupiers attempt to close on it from several directions. Their calculation is that the capture of Buhoodle, or the threat and terror they generate, may seal the end of the Khatumo administration, now provisionally based in the town. It is pure wishful thinking. They would be proved wrong as they had been some years ago in their disastrous assault on the town and Kalshaale areas.

Puntland has taken leaf from Somaliland’s book which uses its clans as a weapon for territorial annexation and ethnic-cleaning in the SSC regions which precipitated the 2011-12 Kalshaale/Buhoodle clashes. Copying Somaliland’s modus operandi, Puntland has connived with its clans to engage in ongoing blatant annexation and expropriation of Khatumo’s patrimonial lands in areas in Sool. They are no doubt taking advantage of Khatumo’s preoccupation with the liberation of its regional capital, Lascanod, and other occupied areas from Somaliland. What spurs their aggressions is the assumption that Khatumo cannot fight on two fronts at the same time.

In waging their unholy alliance to occupy and/or expropriate Khatumo, Puntland and Somaliland are wrongly calculating (though rightly counting on the impotence or indifference of the central government in Mogadishu) that Khatumo cannot defend itself and face them both. They are patently wrong. The SSC people have a history of resisting mightier foreign powers for decades and they will have lesser problem confronting ragtag militia from these two predatory clans. Khatumo will of course stay the course and there should be no doubt in anyone else’s mind that they will win with the will of Allah. These clan predators are playing with fire and they would be hoisted with their own petard.

Somaliland and Puntland are able to enjoy free hand in their criminal activities in the SSC regions only because the Federal government headed by Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud had abjectly abdicated its national duty to defend its territory from both external and internal enemies threatening its unity and stability. No one expects military action from a government that cannot even defend its lair at Villa Somalia . But raising its voice would have been, if nothing else, a solace and encouragement for those who are defending Somali unity at all costs and all on their own. When a government fails to do that minimum, it is not worth the name and we could be better without it.

Alas, for the political elite in Mogadishu, and above all the President, Hassan Sheikh, pursuing personal political interests is the name of the game in town. He relies for his support (and for his re-election) mainly on those members in Parliament hailing from the secessionist enclave. He is in hock to them now (and hence to Somaliland) as he will be if re-elected with their backing when it will be payback time. The stakes are very high and for our sake and for those who care about Somalia’s survival and unity. All hopes are pinned on the emergence of a true national patriotic leader from the forthcoming elections: without it, there will be no Somalia much to the pleasure of secessionists and the enemies of the State.

The international community shares much of the blame. What have encouraged Puntland and Somaliland to commit their unwarranted aggressions in the SSC regions is the silence of the international community, and the abuse of the resources they have given to these two northern regional administrations for humanitarian and development purposes (some of it earmarked for landlocked Khatumo and its SSC regions but never reach them). That aid has been diverted for occupation, land grab, human rights abuses, crimes against humanity, ethnic cleansing and what have you. What is happening this week in the SSC regions is a wake-up call to the international community to awaken to the looming conflict in the area. All the more so as it is now being exposed that Somaliland is working hand in hand with Shabaab for their respective benefits.

Fadumo Osman
Chairperson
Khatumo Forum for Somali Peace, Development and Unity
Email: osmanyare2@gmail.com