That Freedom Shall not Perish

Residents have told the Somaliland Times that the arrest on Thursday of 3 traditional elders who live in the area has caused a mass defection of supporters from UDUB in the 26 June and Koodbuur neighborhoods. The elders were picked up by the police in the morning but were released later in the evening.

Residents have blamed the Interior Minister for giving the order of arresting the 3 elders. The Minister has however denied involvement saying it was a police action apparently taken to forestall plans by the elders to disturb public order.

The 3 elders had clashed with the Minister of Interior a few days earlier in connection with a government policy on demarcation of regional administrative authorities in the northwestern coastal areas of Somaliland. The elders have accused the government of incorporating constituencies that traditionally belonged to the Hargeisa region into the Awdal region. They said the coastal localities of Eil-Sheikh and Abdi Geedi have been deliberately annexed to Borama in order to deprive Hargeisa of an access to the coast. In a statement to the press, more than 20 elders and Aqils have called on President Rayale "to act as president of the country and not the governor of Awdal."

Meanwhile, the newly elected Municipal council of Hargeisa has accused the Minister of Interior of embarking on a systematic interference in the affairs of the local government. "The Minister is unable to come to terms yet with the fact that the city has elected its council and that he has no authority over here anymore," said Jama Shabeel, a council member and spokesperson, on Thursday. The council stressed that they will not allow the incorporation of Hargeisa constituencies into other districts. "We understand that a number of Hargeisa Aqils have been arrested and we are going to investigate this matter very closely as the detainees belong to our constituency," the spokesman said.

It was not known yet why the government chose to antagonize leaders and inhabitants of Hargeisa city when presidential elections are only days away. But according to one rumor that has been in circulation since Wednesday, the government might have wanted to create enough tension in the capital and the coast as reasons for postponing the elections.

Because people today, as well as their doctors, are so cavalier about consuming many different agents simultaneously without the awareness that they are in fact consuming "drugs" it is important to talk about interactions between these agents. By now everyone is probably aware of the potentially lethal interaction of alcohol and barbiturates or tranquilizers. In this case the simultaneous consumption of alcohol and a few tranquilizers can together produce an additive effect greater than either one alone. The result can be an unintentional suicide. They can just as easily happen between something in the diet or in environment. However, there are many reactions, which can be severe and at times life-threatening. Your doctor may not be aware of the various medications you are taking simultaneously, so you will have to guard against potentially dangerous combinations very carefully.

The ability of a drug to effect a cure or relieve a symptom is often a mystical process. Part of the process is a direct scientific cause-and-effect relationship, but much of medicine relies on your own body to do the job. Antibiotics, for example, often only slow down the invading bugs, allowing the body's own defense mechanism to take over and get a better hold on the little devils. In many cases, drugs can only provide symptomatic relief rather than actually produce a cure; they can decrease the intensity of diarrhea, peptic ulcer, or angina pectoris without actually curing the underlying problem. Thus your own body, and especially your psychological state, can profoundly modify the manner in which a drug exerts its curative powers. If a person wants to believe that the medicine he buys will help him go to sleep, it will. If someone thinks he is taking a powerful pain remedy, it will help alleviate his suffering. And if he has to pay through the nose for medication, the chances are that it will "work" that much better.

Although we have been taught to scorn anything "mental", it is important to recognize that the role of our heads play in our attitude to and recovery from disease is probably tremendous. There are countless examples from disabling infirmities under the guidance of a friendly radio preacher, or at various miracle cure locations. Even though modern medicine refutes such cures, it is often unable to determine the role of the placebo effect in its own practices. A visit to your white-coated doctor provides significant psychological support for any cure.

To be continues next week

Obviously, leading democratic governments in the world and a number of countries in the region have opted in the past not to lend support to the democratic transformation that Somaliland has been undergoing over the years, lest their involvement be interpreted as tacit recognition of this country's proclamation of independence. This was a mistake.

The previous policy has not only deprived Somaliland of the opportunity to get international assistance for its efforts toward economic recovery after long years under dictatorship and war, but has also led many Somalilanders to question the seriousness of claims by certain world governments and institutions that peoples yearning for the institutionalization of peace, democracy and good governance may turn to them for help. Instead of helping, some members of the international community have actually sought to create problems of political, economic, security and diplomatic nature for Somaliland. The Saudi ban on the entry of Somaliland livestock animals into the Kingdom (other Somalis exported little if any to this market) is nothing other than a sort of punishment for Somalilanders for sticking to their right to self-determination. Because of this cruel stance by the international community, this country's emerging institutions in such non-political sectors as health, education and Sports have been denied external help or participation in internationally recognized forums or events. In the wake of the Arta conference, the international community, ironically, gave the mandate of Somaliland's representation in world bodies to the TNG, a staunchly anti-Somaliland group that controls a small segment of Mogadishu and many of whose members are wanted for war crimes committed against Somaliland civilians in the eighties.

Therefore, the decision of certain European countries to provide assistance to Somaliland's presidential elections is a welcome departure from the previous policy of passive engagement that the international community has pursued when dealing with this republic. This gesture will certainly have significant positive effects on the electoral process in Somaliland. The move will help remind Somalilanders that the world will be watching them with great interest when they cast their votes later this month in the country's first presidential elections.

Since Somalilanders have already had successful municipal elections last Dec 2002, they ought to do even better this time. The 3 political parties contesting the elections should play by the rules of the game. Stakeholders must bear in mind that any attempts to rig the elections will automatically kill this country's chances of eventually winning recognition from the international community and might also undermine its hard-won peace and stability. The stakes involved are much higher than winning the presidency. Success or failure will to a large extent depend on whether Somalilanders, particularly the incumbent government, observe the principles of fair and free elections.

I am looking forward to 14 April, in common with most people living in Somaliland. It will be the first time ever that I vote in my homeland. Having missed the December municipal elections, the prospect of taking part in a free and fair election to choose the next president of Somaliland will not only be a new experience, but given what it has taken us to get here, a deeply rewarding one. The people whose job it is to ensure that the elections fulfill our expectations are the six men and one woman who make up the National Electoral Commission (NEC). Their task is not an enviable one, given the unique circumstances of Somaliland.

The last presidential elections took place so long ago, in 1968, that more than 60% of the electorate has no memory of them. And for those who do remember, they recall the violence, the political tensions and the deeply flawed nature of the exercise which paved the way for a military coup d'?tat. Everyone agrees that this time, we must all play by different rules. But with everything so new, we are all learning, including, and especially, the Commission itself.

The Commission was established in December 2001 with a five-year mandate to prepare municipal, parliamentary and presidential elections. In December 2002, they organised countrywide local council elections contested by six political parties, a milestone in Somaliland's political journey. They were not perfect, with a lower than expected voter turn-out, allegations of vote-rigging in at least one region and complaints by the opposition parties that the government used national resources to further it's party interest, shortages of human and financial resources, transport and communication equipment.

Despite the lack of familiarity with voting, political parties and procedures, the calm and orderly manner in which the vote took place throughout the country came as a pleasant surprise to everyone. The Chairman of the Commission, Ahmed Haji Ali, known as Adami, paid a warm tribute to the voters. "The success of the election was due to the public. They policed themselves, stood for hours in the blazing sun and showed in every way possible their commitment to the electoral process. Our confidence in the voters is the most important legacy of those elections." Candidates from the three most successful parties-UDUB, KULMIYE and UCID-are now the contenders for the post of president.

There were other lessons as well that the NEC has been trying to address in the run-up to the presidential elections. One of the most important is their decision to bring in a chairman and a secretary for each of the polling stations who will not be a native of that area, so that local people cannot collude in electing a person of their choice. As the Chairman put it, "they are less likely to blow whistles to each other when outsiders are in charge." To better service urban areas, polling stations have been increased from 800-900. To pre-empt double voting, a penalty of one year in prison has been introduced for anyone caught casting their vote more than once. Women, in particular, are being targeted as their use of henna and hair dye on their fingers made it easier for them to multiply their votes. But now equipped with the facilities that detect this ruse, the NEC is looking to women's organizations to spread the message among women. And to give the police the time and flexibility to prepare its force adequately, the NEC has decided to transfer funds to the regional forces directly.

One of the major weaknesses of the local council elections was the quality of the representatives of the political parties, who were often young and inexperienced. Since then, the parties and the Commission have worked out an appropriate training programme. Each of the three parties will select 36 candidates who will be trained from 6-8 April and who will in turn train the 900 agents that each party will field on election day. The NEC will finance the full training programme which will take place in Erigavo, Burao, Borama and Hargeisa and which will cover all the regions.

Although local council members were selected by their parties, the ease with which people abandoned party loyalty to vote along clan lines disappointed many people. But where poverty and unemployment are widespread and the family and clan are the only reliable social security system, and where political parties are uncharted territory, it is not difficult to understand the choices people make. "After all", said one of the Commissioners, Shukri Haji Bandere, "the municipality is not going to bury you when you die." As the election draws closer, alliances are shifting rapidly as each party seeks to boost its electoral chances, bringing people of different clans together.

While the parties look to the Commission to organize a fair election, the Commission is asking the parties to use the forthcoming elections to help transform the political landscape of Somaliland. "They must not appear to be the property of an individual or a group", said the Chairman, "but be national in their composition, outlook and policies. Above all, they must show the people that they are responding to their needs." Confidence in political parties is the only hope of diluting the importance of political allegiance to clans. But even with goodwill, progress will be slow since economic insecurity limits people's choices.

Clashes and tension between Somaliland and Puntland have raised concerns about voting in parts of Las Anod and the El Afweyn area of eastern Sanaag, which border Puntland. The NEC knows that worries about safety will inhibit voters, keep out its own staff as well as observers, and make it easier to stuff ballot boxes. Commissioners have been sent to the areas to verify the situation, and voting will take place in those areas only upon their recommendation.

Accusations that UDUB, the party of the incumbent president, is misusing the resources of the government, prompted the NEC to issue guidelines which forbid the use of official cars for campaign purposes and the use of shared national symbols, such as the flag, as the logo of UDUB. After consultations with the Commissioner of Police, it was agreed that cars violating these rules would be taken to the headquarters of the traffic police until the slogans were removed. So far, seven cars have been taken in by the police. But only two days ago, the Vice-President traveled to Berbera with a huge fleet of government vehicles to campaign for UDUB. The Commission also criticized the recent appointment of new ministers of state without portfolio, dubbed "ballot-box ministers." The Commission recognizes that there is little it can do in reality. "We don't have investigators or people who can arrest the offenders", commented the Chairman, "and the institution that can monitor and control these wrongs doesn't exist." He added that he and his colleagues sought to prevent abuses "by the shovel", but that mistakes "by the teaspoon" were to be expected.

Lack of funds and transport continue to worry Commission staff. Most of their funds have come from the government, with contributions from Britain, Denmark and Switzerland. It is particularly unfortunate that the United Nations, which has spent millions of dollars on meetings that reinforce the power base of the warlords in Somalia, has given no support to the elections.

Looking beyond the April elections, establishing a census and the provision of identity cards or voter registration cards are essential in order to help Somaliland move forward politically. But most important of all is to come up with a well-thought out, and on-going, civic and voter education programme that aims to take politics to the people, and not merely to bring the people out for periodic elections. In this context, the Commission said they have begun discussions with the Ministry of Education about the teaching of civics in schools. They also want to train local council members, many of whom do not understand what is expected of them or how to do their job. And as Shukri Haji Bandere pointed out, local councils do not operate in a vacuum; their shortcomings cannot be corrected if the police force and judiciary do not function well.

Addressing these inter-connected issues is not a responsibility that lies only, or even principally, with the Commission or the government. Political parties and local NGOs should raise the political awareness of their constituents and help them to keep politicians to their election promises. It would be a huge mistake if voter education becomes, like so much else in Somaliland, a subject discussed in the same small groups meeting in workshops in the hotels of Hargeisa. The wider public, whose welfare has been ignored for the most part, will continue to be shut out, and the political process, on which our collective future depends, will make little progress.

The very fact that vigorous campaigning is taking place peacefully in Somaliland for presidential elections is a remarkable feat in itself, given recent history. That this is happening despite the lack of recognition reflects the go-it-alone approach that has marked Somaliland's emergence from the political ashes. Much rides on how well the NEC acquits itself of this important responsibility. We all wish them well, and must do our best to help them help us.

Rakiya A. Omaar is the director of the international human rights organisation, African Rights.

Politicians in Somaliland are making political hay about the crisis in Punt land and its spillover into Somaliland sovereign territory. The intent is clear: connect the governing party UDUB, in some surreal way with the problems in Puntland and by extension suggest that UDUB and, clearly, President Rayyale, have bungled the issue. Showing Somali Landers another reason not to vote for UDUB and President Rayyale.

Obviously, Somali Landers are now quite used to the new phenomenon of "defections", where our politicians can defect to several parties, and indeed, their former principles and commitments simultaneously changing in the same record speed. Somali Landers, struggling to make ends meet every day, are watching these developments in "shock and awe" to use current international political nomenclature. To their morbid amusement, the opposition has taken to convince the electorate that those who have defected to their ranks have based their defections on high-minded and principled objections to the current purge within UDUB.

One important issue that has been a lightening rod for these defected politicians has been the issue of Puntland and the issue of General Ade Musa's presence in Hargeisa.

To wit, the issue that these defected politicians are calling the "art of the possible" is the entry into Somaliland of military forces loyal to General Ade Musa and Jama Ali Jama. These defected politicians argue a simple logic. They suggest that we should put our heads - not unlike ostriches - into the sand and bury our heads so that we shall not see nor hear any evil from Puntland. Secondly, they posit that since these factions do not recognize Somaliland, we should not pay any attention to their tribulations nor pay any heed to their comments. Our precious leaders in the opposition has even said that unless they recognize Somaliland neither succor nor aid should be extended to these factions fighting for the control of Puntland.

Pace dear reader and see below why the policy of the office of President, the minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minster of Internal Affairs is sound and accurate.

First, Somaliland stands for the rule of law, it is opposed to coup d'?tat and unlawful rebellion against a legitimate government. That is the basic law of Somaliland and it is also the basic law of its Foreign Affairs. It is also the basic law in its vigilant Internal Affairs policy. That said, Somaliland is also a state with all the accoutrements of a legitimate state. In short Somaliland must behave and act like a state and not like a clan.

The proponents of what has been called by the immediate former Minister of Education, that the state of Somaliland ought not to act in that old and tested, real politic policy of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" is completely erroneous when it comes to states that are democratic.

It should be remembered that the term of office of that brutal nemesis to democracy, Abdillahi Yusuf - a warlord it should be remembered who is responsible for the assassination attempt at Las Anood - had expired as every child knows, and the supreme court of Puntland impeached Abdillahi Yusuf and his administration. The warlord subsequently refused and was chased out by popular insurrection by the people of Puntland only to return with hired guns to reign a new tyranny on the people of Puntland. This is why Gen Ade Musa is fighting the warlord Abdillahi Yusuf. Once we take out the clan calculus one understands the underlying issue. This is not a fight between two sub-clans, but between the forces of democracy and those of dictatorship.

What then should be the position of the State of Somaliland, any child can deduce from the above comments that we ought to support morally the popular aspirations of all Puntlanders - a state in neighboring country Somalia - for democracy and the rule of law. We gain a friend in Puntland, and by extension peaceful co-existence by supporting the forces of democracy there. We gain nothing if we appease the warlord Abdillahi Yusuf who sees elements of cowardice and lack of resolve in Somaliland by his repeated claims over our sovereign territory in every conference and setting that this particularly distasteful warlord speaks.

The Government of Somaliland's policy on this issue is sound and accurate, the militia in Somaliland should be disarmed and quartered with General Ade giving assurances of not using the territory of Somaliland as a place for military expedition to Puntland during this important election period. The Government of Somaliland must support an active opposition grouping to Abdillahi Yusuf because he poses a clear and imminent danger to Somaliland and its territorial integrity, whilst Gen. Ade Musa supports the aspirations of the people of Somaliland. The government of Somaliland has acted in a proper way by calming nerves and keeping the peace. Ruining the fabric of peace in our neighborhood is easy, mending it however is complicated.

The enemy of democracy and the rule of law is my enemy and the friend of the rule of law and democracy is my friend. Somaliland gains friends by this policy and does not appease a strident warlord.

The opposition ought to pay more attention to these concepts rather than making political hay over sound government policy.

A.M.Ali Hashi "Dhimbiil", Ottawa, Canada, Dallo57us@yahoo.com

HARGEISA, Somalia (AFP) - President Dahir Riyale Kahin of Somaliland was declared the winner of the country's first presidential poll since it broke away from Somalia 12 years ago, with a razor-thin margin of 80 votes, officials said. Kahin garnered 205,595 votes in last Monday's election against 205,515 for the opposition Hisbiga Kulmiye (Solidarity Party) candidate Ahmed Muhammad Silanyo, the deputy chairman of the electoral committee Abdullahi Jawan said.

The third candidate, Faisal Ali Warabe of the Justice and Restoration Party (UCID) garnered 77,433 of the total 498,639 votes cast during the Monday election.

Some 800,000 Somalilanders were eligible to vote out of a population of around three million.

Immediately after the announcement, supporters of Kahin's Unity of Democrats (UDUB) Party took to the streets of Hargeisa and other major towns in the breakaway republic to celebrate, raising both the party and the country's flags.

Minutes before the announcement of Kahin as the winner, his main opponent Silanyo said he would accept and abide by the electoral committee's verdict.

Warabe also accepted defeat and congratulated UDUB and its leader for winning the election.

The elections were contested by the ruling party and two opposition parties. Several organisations and countries, including South Africa, sent observers. "We observed that the voters were free to fill in and cast their votes free from any sign of intimidation or undue influence. The atmosphere at the polling stations appeared relaxed," declared a representative of the Addis Ababa-based Inter-Africa Group, a democracy advocacy which observed the election.

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, became independent on June 26, 1960, but days later united with the Italian colony in the south to form the republic of Somalia. It seceded from Somalia in May 1991, five months after late Somali strongman Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown, plunging the east African country into anarchy. Somalia still has no central government and is wracked by clan warfare. Abdulkassim Salat Hassan, the president of the Transitional National Government (TNG), which only controls pockets of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, congratulated Somaliland on its peaceful election. Salat, who, like much of the international community, has not recognised Somaliland as an independent entity, said Somalia's northern region had made considerable progress in pacifying its fiefdom.

Kahin, 51, started his political career as governor of the western Awdal province, and subsequently served as Somaliland's ambassador to Djibouti, before late president Mohamed Ibrahim Egal appointed him vice president in February 1997. Trained in Russia as a security officer, Kahin is the first president to be elected popularly by the people. The country's first president Abdurahman Ali Tur and his successor, the late Egal, were both appointed by the Council of Elders. Kahin succeeded Egal on his death last May.

The enclave's National Electoral Commission said Kahin received 205,595 votes, 42.08 percent of the those cast, against 205,515 votes, 42.07 percent of the total, for his main challenger, Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo. The enclave, which has not been recognized internationally but is relatively stable, is hoping that holding a democratic election will win it international recognition.

The April 14 vote was monitored by international observers.

Previous presidents in Somaliland have been picked by parliament.

Kahin, of the United Democratic Party (UDUB), pledged to work jointly with the defeated opposition parties in developing the enclave of 3.5 million people.

Silanyo, of the Solidarity party (Kulmiye), a veteran politician who was once a minister in Barre's government, was not immediately available for comment.

The third candidate Faisal Ali Warabe, of the Justice and Development Party (UCID), received 77,433 votes.

Electoral Commission chairman Ahmad Haji Ali Adami urged the losing parties to accept the result: "There is no other asset that Somaliland can rely on than peace, and as such I would like every candidate, whether defeated or not, to respect the result of the elections."

An estimated 900,000 people had been expected to vote. It was not immediately clear how many had cast ballots.

Ahmed Mohamed Mohamud Silanyo of the Kulmiye party received 205,515 votes, or 42.07 percent, officials said in the capital, Hargeisa.

Faysal Ali Warabeh of the U'id party finished third with 77,433 votes.

The supreme court is expected to confirm the results in 10 days.

Kahin assumed office in May after President Mohamed Ibrahim Egal died. Warabeh said he would cooperate with Kahin but it was unclear whether Silanyo would accept the results.

Earlier, Silanyo accused Kahin of manipulating the electoral process, including by allowing residents of neighboring Djibouti to vote.

All three candidates campaigned on the promise of obtaining international recognition for Somaliland, which broke away from the rest of Somalia in 1991 as the Horn of Africa nation descended into chaos after the ouster of longtime leader Mohamed Siad Barre.

The region of an estimated 2.5 million people has been relatively peaceful, compared with the rest of Somalia, where heavily armed clan-based factions control regional fiefdoms. More than a dozen peace conferences have failed to produce a comprehensive settlement.

Somaliland relies on revenues from the port of Berbera on the Gulf of Aden and on aid agencies for development and rehabilitation funds.

Somaliland's leader won the election by 80 votes

Results from presidential elections in the self-proclaimed state of Somaliland - the first since it broke away from Somalia 12 years ago - show a narrow win for the current leader, Dahir Riyale Kahin. The National Electoral Commission announced on Saturday that Mr Kahin had defeated his closest rival, Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo, by just 80 votes. The third candidate was Faisal Ali Warabe.

Commission chairman, Ahmad Haji Ali Adami, urged the losing parties to accept the result. "There is no other asset that Somaliland can rely on than peace and, as such, I would like every candidate, whether defeated or not, to respect the result of the elections," he said.

But it is not clear whether Mr Silanyo will accept the result. He has accused the president of exploiting his powers to manipulate the electoral process, including allowing residents of neighboring Djibouti into the country to vote.

Officials of Mr Kahin's party, the Unity of Democrats (UDUB), said he won most of the votes in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, while the opposition took the majority in the western Burco area.

Independence claims

The relatively stable area of Somaliland announced its secession from Somalia in 1991, as the rest of the country descended into anarchy.

President Kahin took office last year, following the death of the long-standing leader of the breakaway republic, Mohamed Egal.

He has promised to introduce greater democracy and to fight for international recognition of Somaliland.

The vote, nearly a week ago, was reported to have been largely trouble-free and fair, although there was no voting in three eastern districts.

A South African team which monitored the voting, has said the process was peaceful, orderly and transparent.

Somaliland's administration relies on revenue generated at the port of Berbera on the Gulf of Aden, and depends heavily on aid agencies for development and rehabilitation funds.

The Somali electoral commission announced that the Udub party received 205,595 votes, or 42.08 per cent, a whisker above the vote won by the Kulmiye party led by Ahmed Mohamed Mohamud Silanyo, which obtained 205,515 votes - 42.07 per cent.

The Ucid party received 77,433 votes.

The announcement means that Kahin will remain president of the breakaway republic of Somaliland for the next five years, while his party's deputy chairman, Ahmed Yusuf Yasin, will become vice president.

The leader of the Ucid party, Faysal Ali Warabeh, announced he would cooperate with President Kahin and his administration, but it was not known whether the Kulmiye party leader, who was not seen in public on Saturday, would accept the results.

Before the official election results were announced, Silanyo's supporters were celebrating victory in the streets of the major city of Hargeysa. Before the election, Silanyo accused the government of electoral abuse and asked for the closure of the borders with Djibouti, claiming that people from that country were being allowed in to vote in the election. Silanyo also called for a stop of all travel within Somaliland so as to avoid multiple voting of individuals.

During the campaign, each of the three parties promised to deliver international recognition for Somaliland, which claimed independence from Somalia in 1991.

The eastern Sanag region and most of Sol and Buhodleh districts did not participate in the election due to territorial disputes between the autonomous administrations of Somaliland and Puntland in northern Somalia. dpa ow mga sc

Speaking to Jamhuuriya last night, Mr Warabe said members of both opposition Kulmiye and ruling Udub parties had been involved in double voting, especially in Burco east of Hargeysa and that he will not do any follow up. "I see the two parties Kulmiye and Udub , said to be leading in the election, as parties that will not bring any change. I really have no hopes and I don't see if they can take the country anywhere" said Mr Warabe...

"The counting of ballot papers was also rigorously transparent," the South African observers noted in their statement obtained by AFP. "We believe democracy was served by this exercise," the statement quoted mission leader Shannon Field as saying.

The statement added that the delegation was proud to have been associated with the people of Somaliland at "this historical juncture". "We wish the people of Somaliland the very best for their future and we are assured that they will build on their stability and democracy," the statement concluded.

The South African observer team toured all parts of the country where elections took place and were due to meet Somaliland Election Commission (SEC) team on Thursday befor leaving the country.

The announcement of the results of the presidential vote has been delayed until Friday due to flooding in the country.

Deputy Electoral Commissioner Shukri Haji Bandaro said delays had also been experienced in counting votes cast in Buroa, Somaliland's second city. One of the two opposition candidates, Ahmed Mohamud Silanyo, has already claimed he would emerge the winner. "I am not the electoral commission and I can't tell you figures at this time. But from the result I got from Kulmiye poll agents, it is clear we won," Silanyo said. Silanyo told AFP: "Unlawful arrest and intimidation against my supporters was rife in Hargeisa during the night."

Police dismissed this allegation.

Also Wednesday, armed police broke up a demonstration staged by some 200 people demanding the electoral commission pay them for their monitoring work during the election.

One witness said police fired live rounds over the heads of the protesters. Police were deployed outside the commission's offices in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, an AFP journalist reported. "The protesters have no right to stone anybody and block the main highway. At least they should demand their rights in a peaceful manner and in a lawful way if they have not been paid," Interior Minister Ismail Aden told AFP at scene of the demonstration.

Police said nobody had been arrested.

Somaliland, once a British protectorate, unilaterally declared its independence from Somalia in 1991, five months after the overthrow of President Mohamed Siad Barre and more than 30 years after forging a union with the rest of the country.

But despite setting up all the institutions of statehood -- a government, civil service, flag and currency -- Somaliland remains unrecognised internationally.

Political observers here believe that the UCID would emerge last of the three parties that contested Monday's presidential elections, Somaliland's first. "Whoever wins the election is recognized in the hearts and minds of our people, so please acknowledge our freedom," said Faisal Ali.

Faisal Ali pointed out that foreign countries "paid undeserved attention to the warring factions in Somalia by hosting more than a dozen high profile conferences, but they deny the right of recognition to Peaceful, democratic and self-governing Somalilanders."

Somaliland's incumbent president, Dahir Riyale Kahin of the ruling Udub Party faces a strong challenge from Ahmad Muhammad Silanyo of the Kulmiye Party and Faysal Ali Warabe of the Justice and Welfare Party. Both opposition contenders have expressed concern that the polls may not be free and fair....

Mr Shannon Field who was the chairman of the South African delegation, said people especially women were very keen to vote.

Mr Adami thanked all politicians who contested in the elections, international observers, the local and international media and all those who have participated in the election of the president and the vice-president. He declined to state the number of ballot papers counted and who was leading and said the commission will announce preliminary results on 18 April.

He said results from Hargeysa, the capital, were in, but "we are still waiting for the others. This has pushed back our timetable by at least two days", he said. Adami said the voting had been "peaceful and orderly with not a single report of violence". He added that voter turnout had been heavy, with most of the estimated one million or so Somalilanders eligible to vote, casting their ballots. He admitted, however, that there were problems in the disputed regions of Sool and Sanaag. He said voting was proceeding normally in some districts, but in others "it is not going very well because of security reasons".

The two regions fall geographically within Somaliland, but most of their clans are associated with the neighboring self-declared autonomous region of Puntland. The Puntland authorities had warned that they would not allow elections to go ahead in Sool and Sanaag.

Somaliland's incumbent president, Dahir Riyale Kahin of the UDUB party, faces a strong challenge from Ahmad Muhammad Silanyo of the Kulmiye Party and Faysal Ali Warabe of the Justice and Welfare Party. Both opposition contenders have expressed concern that the polls may not be free and fair.

Meanwhile, other sources in Hargeysa told IRIN that Kahin was ahead of his main opponent, Silanyo, in early results. Adami, however, dismissed this "as mere speculation". He stressed that "a fair picture of how the election is going will not be known for another two days".

Foreign observers from the UK, the US, South Africa, Ethiopia and the EU, who were monitoring the election, have not yet announced their verdict on the process.

People in the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland have voted in their first multi-party presidential election. Almost one million voters were thought to have cast their ballots, hoping the election could boost its attempts to secure international recognition. Votes are now being counted after a largely peaceful poll, with a final result expected on Thursday.

The current leader of Somaliland, Dahir Riyaale Kahin, is being challenged by candidates from two opposition parties.

Mr Kahin took office last year, following the death of the long-standing leader of the breakaway republic, Mohamed Egal, in May.

The relatively stable area of Somaliland announced its secession from Somalia in 1991, as the rest of the country descended into anarchy. Mr Egal was elected president two years later, but the territory has never won international recognition.

The vote was reported to be largely trouble free and fair, but there was no voting in three eastern districts bordering neighbouring Puntland, where some violence was reported.

Main challenger

The three parties are known as:

the ruling UDUB, or United Peoples Party, the Kulmiye party, which translates bringing people together; the UCID or Welfare and Development Party.

The president's main challenger appears to be veteran Somali politician, Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo, of the Kulmiye party. He was a major player in the united Somalia Government of Siad Barre in the 1980s. But he left to lead the Somali National Movement which fought against Barre and ousted him from what is now called Somaliland.

During the campaign UCID candidate Feisal Ali Waraabe expressed doubt that the election would be free and fair.

Although Somaliland has yet to gain international recognition, delegations from the UK, the US, South Africa, Ethiopia and the European Union will observe the polls.

The Election Commission chairman has criticised the authorities for not handing over all the promised funds to supervise the polls. He has also expressed concern about a hostile atmosphere in the eastern areas.

HARGEISA, Somalia (AP) -- Thousands of voters cast ballots Monday in the first multiparty presidential election since the Somaliland republic broke away from Somalia in 1991 to escape the violence and chaos that has beset the rest of the nation.

The polls opened at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) and were to close at 6 p.m. (1500 GMT) as voters chose between incumbent President Dahir Riyaleh Kahin and veteran politicians Faysal Ali Warabeh and Ahmed Mohamud Mohamed Silanyo.

The former British Somaliland, which joined with the Italian colony of Somalia in 1960 to form the Republic of Somalia, declared its independence in 1991 as civil war raged across much of the southern part of the country following the ouster of longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

Somalia has not had an effective central government since then.

In contrast to much of southern Somalia, which is ruled by heavily armed, clan-based factions that have carved the country into a patchwork of fiefdoms, Somaliland, with an estimated population of 2.5 million, has enjoyed relative peace, although it has failed to gain international recognition.

All three candidates have pledged to ensure that the region remains stable, to create more jobs and to try to gain Somaliland the recognition many Somalilanders crave.

"I am happy that Somaliland is making a history; it is the first time that the Somaliland people are voting for a president of their own," Kahin said while casting his ballot.

Votes were to be counted at each of the 97 polling stations, and preliminary results will be released Friday, Ahmed Hajji Ali Adami, chairman of the electoral commission, said. The supreme court will announce the final results 10 days later.

A presidential guard casts his vote at a polling place in Hargeisa.

Very early in the morning in the capital, Hargeisa, queues of several hundred people -- men and women -- lined up separately, waiting for the polls to open at 06:00 A.M. (0300 GMT). The electoral commission said it expected more than 800,000 people to vote Monday, out of a total population of around three million.

President Dahir Riyale Kahin of the Unity of Democrats (UDUB) Party, who hopes to be returned to the post he inherited from the late Mohamed Ibrahim Egal -- who had been appointed to the job by a council of elders -- voted at the civil service commission near the presidential palace at 06:30 A.M.

His two opponents in the race, Ahmed Muhammad Silanyo of the Hisbiga Kulmiye (Solidarity Party) and Faisal Ali Warabe of the Justice and Restoration Party (UCID), both voted at the same polling station within the first hour.

The crowd enthusiastically cheered the three candidates as they arrived, dipped the tips of their little fingers on their right hands into indelible ink and registered, before voting.

Kahin has pledged that he will spend most of his efforts to democratize Somaliland and to secure international recognition for the state, which unilaterally broke away from the rest of Somalia in 1991.

Although it enjoyed a few days of true independence in 1960, just before it united with Somalia proper shortly after ceasing to be a British colony, Somaliland remains unrecognized by the international community.

From the early 1990's, as Somalia degenerated into anarchy and the rule of the gun, Somaliland built up many of the institutions of statehood.

It adopted provisional Constitution in 1997, which was ratified by a referendum in May 2001 and, as well as a president and government, boasts a police force, penal code, currency and customs.

Yet it has no seat at the United Nations General Assembly and is unable to enter into bilateral or multilateral agreements with lenders. Its budget for this year is some 30 million dollars (28 million euros).

Only neighboring Ethiopia has a diplomatic presence in this country at the top of the Horn of Africa.

"My hope is that the international community will support this democratic progress," Kahin told AFP on the eve of polling day. "We should be praised for this wonderful thing we are doing. The international community should give us credit for this and recognize us," he said.

"If the election takes place peacefully Somaliland should gain the recognition of peace-loving countries. Our children will then get scholarships to go other countries," Asha Liban, a mother of six, told AFP near a polling station. "If there is peace and recognition, six of my children will be doctors, engineers and maybe prominent politicians," she added.

Votes will be counted at the polling booths when balloting ends.

Municipal elections last December drew 440,000 people to the polls. More than a million people voted in a 2001 referendum on the country's new Constitution.

A throng of observers and photographers and 32 international observers from 14 countries have arrived here to monitor the process. More than half of these observers are from South Africa, which currently chairs the African Union.

* Somaliland incumbent president and UDUB party Chairman, Dahir Rayale Kahin,

* Ahmed Mohamed Sillanyo, KULMIYE party boss and former leader of Somaliland resistance against dictator Siyad Barre's rule, and

* Faysal Ali Warabe, a returnee from the Diaspora who recently founded the UCID opposition party.

With one hour to go before the polling came to an end at 6:00 P.M., voting has reportedly gone peaceful at polling stations throughout the country.

Voting didn't take place in some parts of Sool region, including the provincial capital Las-Anod. In the Sanag region, five polling stations were not opened in time.

According to the National Commission Electoral Chairman, Ahmed Haji Ali, plans for holding election at these localities have been canceled at the last minute due to delay in forwarding the electoral material intended for polling stations there.

Teams of international observers are in Somaliland to scrutinize the polling. The largest observer mission has come from South Africa, the current chairman of the African Union. The delegation of South Africa consists of 12 people who represent various institutions in that country, including the South Africa Electoral Institute.

A mission led by Swedish Liberal party parliamentarian Birgitte Ohlosson has also arrived. Accompanying her are Peter Schuckink Kool and Hanad Mohamed Abdi, also from the Swedish Liberal party (Folk Partiet). Other delegates include a Canadian Parliamentarian, diplomats from the UK and USA as well as representatives of organizations in Ethiopia, Norway, Holland and a number of other countries. The process is also being observed by experts from the EU.

Local observers have predicted a hot contest between incumbent President Rayale and KULMIYE candidate Silanyo. Though being a sitting President may work in Mr. Rayale's favor, however the elections were expected to be a close race between him and his major opponent, Mr. Silanyo.

Rayale and his running mate Ahmed Yusuf Yassin were predicted to carry the votes in the two regions of Awdal and Sahil, their respective birth places while Silanyo was expected to emerge as top winner in his hometown Buroa, Togdheer.

There were also indications that people who have stayed undecided until the last minute might have increasingly voted for UCID's Faysal Ali Warabe.

Ashenafi interview on Somaliland (MP3)
Ashenafi interview on Somaliland elections (RealAudio)

A Somali-born analyst says today's presidential election in the breakaway republic of Somaliland represents yet more proof of stability in the self-declared republic. Professor Said Samatar of Rutgers University says the election also sends a powerful message to the international community that, despite its fragility, Somaliland is capable of cleaning its house and maintaining itself. He says on the issue of recognition, he senses some flexibility on the part of the international community. He points to the presence of South African, West African and American observers at today's election.

Regarding the war in Iraq, Professor Samatar says Somaliland exhibits what he calls a split personality, a sense of islamic solidarity with the Iraqi people, coupled with a cautious approach not to upset the United States.

In Monday's elections, President Dahir Riyale Kahin faces a strong challenge from two opposition candidates: Ahmed Muhammad Silaanyo of the Kulmiye Party, and Faisal Ali Warabe of the Justice and Welfare Party. Mr. Kahin succeeded the long-standing leader of Somaliland, Mohamed Egal, after his death last May.

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, declared independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 after the collapse of the Siad Barre regime. The territory has yet to win any international recognition.

Professor Samatar spoke with English to Africa reporter Ashenafi Abedje.

"Our unrecognised democracy, peace and stability is much better than those in many other African countries, but it is unfortunate that the international community has failed the people of Somaliland by denying them deserved recognition," Kahin said.

But the chairman of the main opposition Hisbiga Kulmiye (Solidarity Party) Ahmed Mohamud Silanyo maintained his party would prove to be the "winner of the hearts and mind of Somaliland people and will emerge victorious." "Riyale printed money for the election, nominated ministers without portfolio only for the current election and gave funds to popularize UDUB," Silanyo said, charging: "Monday's election would be free, but not fair." "There is a difference between free election and fairness. No person would be barred from voting, but the use of state funds for the elections undermined fairness," Silanyo said, a charge that was rejected by Kahin.

But Silanyo pledged that he would comply with the outcome of the elections, but quickly added that he would "not have vied for the presidency if he was not sure of victory."

A top official with the Justice and Restoration Party (UCID) said his party will rely heavily on non-corrupt and true Somalilanders who care about the well-being of their people to win the elections. "Those who look for money are not welcome at the UCID offices, people with dignity and integrity will vote for us," the party official told AFP.

All three political parties contesting the Somaliland presidency meanwhile assured supporters that they would never accept unity with war-torn Somalia, which has lacked an effective central government for well over a decade.

Somaliland gained independence from British colonial rule on June 26, 1960 and days later united with the Italian colony in the south to form the republic of Somalia.

The former British Somaliland, which joined with the Italian colony of Somalia in 1960 to form the Republic of Somalia, declared its independence in 1991 as civil war raged across much of the southern part of the country following the ouster of longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

In contrast to much of southern Somalia, which is ruled by heavily armed, clan-based factions that have carved the country into a patchwork of fiefdoms, Somaliland, with an estimated population of 2.5 million, has enjoyed relative peace, although it has failed to gain international recognition.

All three candidates have pledged to ensure that the region remains stable, to create more jobs and to try to gain Somaliland the recognition many Somalilanders crave. "I am happy that Somaliland is making a history; it is the first time that the Somaliland people are voting for a president of their own," Kahin said while casting his ballot.

Votes were to be counted at each of the 97 polling stations, and preliminary results will be released Friday, Ahmed Hajji Ali Adami, chairman of the electoral commission, said. The supreme court will announce the final results 10 days later.

The governor of Hargeisa, the capital of the breakaway republic of Somaliland, Mohamud Amin Igeh, uses his cellular phone to deploy police at all stations in Hargeisa.

Hargeisa - Somaliland has taken a further step down the democratic road with a presidential election that is expected to be closely fought but peaceful.

South Africa has the largest observer team for this event, which was due to happen on Monday.

Dahir Riyale Kahan is asking his largely nomadic people to return him to the office he assumed when President Mohamed Egal died at 1 Military Hospital in Pretoria in May.

The other contestants in the three-way contest are former guerrilla leader Ahmed Muhammad Silanyo, who fought the dictatorship of Mohammad Siad Barre, and Faisal Ali Warabe, one of the 200 000 who returned from the diaspora to rebuild the country Barre had reduced to rubble.

In terms of the new constitution endorsed by a 2001 referendum, the presidential race is restricted to candidates from the three parties that came out on top of municipal elections held in December.

This is designed to filter the effects of the clan system that has paralysed neighbouring Somalia, leaving it with a government that controls little more than a few blocks of the capital Mogadishu.

Having borne the brunt of Barre's military repression, Somaliland ended its 31-year union with Somalia soon after the dictator's fall in 1991. The country remains unrecognised by the international community and has rebuilt itself without international loans or aid.

The economy is based on livestock trade, remittances from the diaspora, and local taxes.

Somalilanders take pride in their self-sufficiency, and the one issue uniting all three parties is the rejection of any notion of reunifying with Somalia. "We wish them no harm, but we also wish them to leave us alone. We have forgiven the genocide of Barre but we have not forgotten," said Edna Adam, the only woman in Kahin's government.

Adam and other women have said they will want a greater share of governance whatever candidate is successful.

The minimum voting age is 16, and voters will have to be identified by village elders because they have no physical form of identification. - Independent Foreign Service

It's a weekend today, Friday. I had a meeting with youth groups who could only get together on Fridays. On the way to the meeting, the streets of Hargeisa were bustling. I've seen not only 2 groups of women clapping and singing, cars with speakers and stickers busily roaming the streets. Songs and chants of the two more active political parties were everywhere. People teasing and heckling each other, shouting Kulmiye! Kulmiye! the other group chanting Udub! Udub! This is election fever Somaliland style.

There are very few posters on the walls of buildings, posters are too expensive. What is noticeable however are cars with stickers, and flags with Green and Y sign for Udub, and the green and yellow flag for Kulmiye, and a green and white flaglets of UCID (pronounced with silent C) you would find in stores. Small offices of the three parties suddenly mushroomed, complete with billboards and their flag. Women are the most active campaigners, they come in groups with a small drum made of camel skin on hand, they would go from village to village campaigning, singing and clapping for their political party. On major roads one would find busses full of singing women, clapping women, women beating their camel drums.

Children enjoy the election fever too. We passed by this group of children and women from the Kulmiye party dancing and singing in the streets. It was 8:30 pm and the streets of Hargeisa are still alive with songs and jubilation. They have something to rejoice about, the 12 years of relative peace in the country brought them at this point.

Being a clan-based society, government positions usually were divided according to clans. It was the clan elders who meet and decide what position should go to what clan. Late last year, Somaliland held its first democratic elections after 33 years choosing the local government officials in the process screening the political parties that would participate in this year's presidential elections. That election was noted to be the most peaceful in the whole of Africa for the past 20 years.

While the South of Somalia are busy with the UN sponsored peace conferences trying to keep more than 300 warring clans and warlord headed groups into the peace negotiating table, Somaliland is silently building its country.

It is expected that like last elections, there would be long lines of people in polling stations. Nomads would go to the election areas to cast their votes, the urban based population would do the same. Some people treat Somaliland's political construction as an internal affair, simply because the country had been relentlessly refused international recognition. But the people of Somaliland are equally determined to prove to the world that they are a nation worthy of recognition and respect.

Unlike the UN staff here who were ordered to shy away from the polling stations, my Somali colleagues together with our expat staff members were told to BE in the election stations. A proposal, which we willingly accepted. Who wouldn't like to be a first hand witness to the making of a proud nation like Somaliland?

HARGEISA: The only woman in the cabinet in Somaliland, a self-declared independent state in northwest Somalia, said Saturday that women deserved a greater share of power there. "I don't think women anywhere are satisfied with their share of governance," Edna Adam, the minister for social affairs and family development, told a group of international observers in Somaliland to monitor Monday's presidential election. "In Somaliland we're making progress with my symbolic presence in the government and we have recently appointed the first woman director general," said Adam, the widow of late president Mohamed Egal. "We are half of the population here and woman have always had the vote in Somaliland. We have provided the majority of the votes for candidates," she said. "Nevertheless we have not been consulted enough and we are sometimes excluded unnecessarily," she added, pointing out that there was only one woman on the six-person independent electoral commission.

"Seven of Somaliland's 900 polling station will be headed by women on Monday, and that has never happened before. We welcome the little progress made and remain determined to fight for our rights," said Adam.

Using her personal resources and international funds Adam, a midwife by training, has built and runs the foremost maternity hospital here.

Khadra Kaliil, representing the ruling Democratic Movement for a United Community (UDUB), said women would expect a bigger slice of government if President Daahir Rayale Kahin, was returned to the office he took up on Egal's death. "We have already said we want more women in cabinet," she said.

Ahmed Abdillahi Awale of the Welfare and Justice Party (UCID) that is fielding outsider Faisal Ali Warabi as presidential candidate said they were in favour of affirmative action for Somaliland women. "We would amend the constitution to get more participation by women in all branches of the government. We would practise postitive discrimination," he said.

Mohamed Jama, speaking for candidate Ahmed Silanyo, said one of the two vice-president's posts in their Junction Party (Kulmiye) was filled by a woman.

Women demanded a third of the party agents posts in the cities and got them, he said.

Women are the principal wage earners in 60 percent of Somaliland homes. Most of the voters on Monday will be women, while the men sit around chewing qat, he said referring to the mild narcotic leaf widely consumed in the Horn of Africa. Anyone who want to attain power and keep it in Somaliland must toe the women's line, said Awale, whose party ran a close second to UDUB in the municipal elections last December.

Incumbent president Dahir Riyale Kahin of the ruling Unity of Democrats (UDUB) party will be challenged by opposition politicians Ahmed Mohamud "Silanyo" of the Hisbiga Kulmiye (Solidarity Party) and Faisal Ali "Warabe" of the the Party of Justice and Restoration, known by its Somali acronym, UCID.

Somaliland's electoral law allows the existence of only three political parties, which become legal by virtue of holding a majority of local council seats in its six regions.

A vice president will also be elected on Monday.

A former British protectorate, Somaliland united with the Italian colony in the south in 1960 to form the independent Republic of Somalia.

But it unilaterally broke away from the rest of Somalia in 1991, five months after the overthrow of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

As Somalia proper degenerated into anarchy and the rule of the gun -- it still lacks any semblance of a working central government -- Somaliland, ironically, given its lack of international recognition, built up many of the institutions of statehood.

It adopted povisional Constitution in 1997, which was ratified by a referendum in May 2001.

Somaliland, which has a population of about three million, now boasts a president, government, police force, penal code, currency and customs. Yet it has no seat at the United Nations general assembly and is unable to enter into bilateral or multilateral agreements with lenders. Its budget for this year is some 30 million dollars (28 million euros).

Faction leaders in Somalia proper often call upon Somaliland's authoritites to renounce their secession.

Somaliland's council of elders chose Kahin as the president in May last year following the death of his predecessor, Mohamed Ibrahim Egal, in a South African hospital.

A member of the Gadabursi clan which is predominant in western Somaliland, Kahin had been Egal's vice president since 1997.

Silanyo held ministerial positions in both in Barre's regime and in Somaliland's government.

Warabe was one of the founders of the Somali National Movement (SNM), one of several rebel groups that fought for a decade to topple Barre's regime. Silanyo was at one time SNM's chairman.

Silanyo and Warabe are both members of the Issak clan, the dominant group in Somaliland.

The electoral commission has declared Saturday the last day of campaigning.

More police have been deployed in the capital, Hargeisa and other areas to beef up security in the run up to the poll.

The European Union and other donors funded a civic education campaign last year. Britain has donated 125,000 pounds (182,000 euros) for the presidential election.

Observer missions from Britain, the US, Denmark, Canada, Ethiopia, Norway and South Africa will be in Somaliland for the polls.

He said the Puntland administration had dispatched fuel to some of the most seriously affected districts in Sanaag to help in the trucking of water. Abdishakur told IRIN that the Puntland authorities "do not have the wherewithal" to deal with the situation, and they had called on international aid agencies to intervene before the situation deteriorated even further. He said the first priority was to deliver water to affected areas and to distribute food to those who had lost their livestock. "Some of the population have reached the stage where they are no longer able to cope," he warned. He appealed to the international donor community to come to the aid of the people of Puntland "before it is too late".

The livelihood of most of the population of Somaliland, like the rest of Somalia, revolves around livestock, and "livestock has already started dying", he said. He added that the Somaliland administration was calling on the international community to assist before the situation turned into a catastrophe. Trucking water to the most affected areas should be a priority, Awale said. Water points which had fallen into disrepair needed to be rehabilitated quickly, while those still functioning needed pumps to enable them operate, he stressed. Awale also said that food distribution in the most seriously-affected areas should be undertaken "as a matter of urgency".

"Mr. William Douglas Jackson, founder and President/CEO of Project CURE, came to Somaliland on a needs assessment visit an February 2001, following a proposal we submitted him and few follow-up meetings we subsequently held on matter. Upon return to the States, Mr Jackson did not rest for a moment until he put together these supplies", Mr. Egal said.

Before Mr. Jackson, himself, made that first trip to Somaliland in the Company of SOMAID officers, who introduced him to the sort of shoe-string services the hospitals were providing patients, it was not easy, Mr. Egal said, to convince anybody not bred and brought up in these climes to conjure up on his own - health conditions on the ground as they existed here in Somaliland.

"That 2 of 3 containers of supplies destined for, initially, a hospital each in, respectively, Hargeisa, Berbera and Burao, have safely reached the beneficiaries - with the other soon to follow - more than make up for any of the sleepless nights CURE and SOMAID officers spent in putting this first consignment together", Mr. Egal told The Republican on Tuesday, shortly before he flew back to his adopted home in Denver, Colorado, of the United States.

Egal, briefing members of the governing council of the newly formed association for Somaliland Journalists - SOLJA - the week before, said a great many of the migrant Somalilander communities would have taken more visible steps to contribute to the development and reconstruction of Somaliland if the local media took upon itself to assume the role of sentinel over deliveries and how they are exploited in practice.

Egal - as are many of his more enlightened compatriots in the Diaspora - was, obviously, a little troubled by stories of diverted materials and assistance packages that, inevitably, bombard the good Samaritan in developing regions. The fact is, though, the good use one puts to any assistance given him - even if it was partially delivered him - is something to thank God for.

As attested to by grateful officials at the three beneficiary hospitals, SOMAID has more than fulfilled the role it played in canvassing for and delivery of the supplies shown in its shipment manifesto (see table 1 and 2 for more details).

Minister for Health and Labour, Dr. Hassan Ismail Yussuf, himself, was present, at the Hargeisa Group Hospital take-over of supplies from SOMAID on Friday, March 28.

Besides items shown in tables 1 and 2, materials and health/treatment aids and accessories below the unit costs depicted were most abundantly evident among packages delivered to each hospital. Gloves, dressings, surgical masks, vacutainer tubes, birthing kits, splints, braces, casting supplies, patient restraints, respiratory supplies, oxygen masks, anasthesia supplies, cardiology supplies, wound care kits, urinary supplies - medical textbooks. medical journals, optic supplies, office supplies, sterile surgical gowns, urology surgery packs and supplies, ENT surgery packs and supplies, cardio - thoracic packs and supplies, nasal gastric and gastric large tubes.

"The people of these regions have decided that their destiny is with Puntland and not with Somaliland," he added. He warned that any attempt to bring election materials to Sool and Sanaag would be regarded as "a hostile act against Puntland". However, Somaliland Information Minister Abdullahi Muhammad Du'ale told IRIN that elections would take place as planned in the two regions and that ballot boxes would be sent there. "Sool and Sanaag have been part and parcel of Somaliland and will remain so," he stressed. Somaliland's presidential elections are due on 14 April.

Queuing jerry cans and up-turned donkey water-carts line and cluster at and around dry water kiosks. Parched throats listen to optimistic platitudes.

Hoarse whispers hiss to and forth among despairing mothers.

Unrelenting enterprising water vendors ask for the skies - and in cash upfront - when one is found.

Harassed family bread - winners cry in exasperation, impotent against the ferocious onslaught of distraught wives, who have to find water for wailing babies.

This has been a typical scene in the capital for the past several months. The siege under which an acute shortage of water put the city started mildly enough at the end of 2002, only to tighten the noose gradually around resident's throats to a stage where an irritating but tolerable has become a life- draining vice slowly dissipating at semblance of patience.

Only on Sunday, the week before (March 30), the President, Dahir Rayaleh Kahin, addressing a join session of the bi-cameral Parliament spoke of securing international assistance for the development of city water but said nothing of how people should cope with the current threats of shortage, or what the administration would do about it. in the meantime.

The very existence of Somalilanders, as a whole, is presently inching forward towards a nonnegotiable precipice of despair and deprivation.

What of a fast declining consumer powers of purchase, an upward spiralling inflation fast climbing up a steep incline, an ineffective regulating mechanism, excuses for the absenteeism, a campaigning administration that thinks nothing of forfeiting citizenry lives by flooding a weak, already teetering market with banknotes, freshly smelling of the offset they rolled from. Moreover, the notes only super facially look genuine but are, in fact, not so going by the new notes in departure in design and layout from old notes. That the public was not prepared for the changes by the bank of Somaliland or the government and the way the government is taking off all the plugs to garner, ostensibly, more support, as critics contend, makes the new banknotes suspect, too

"I've met the people in HAVOYOCO, they're young and idealistic. Imagine, the organization started with young Somalilanders collecting garbage and selling them to generate money" she added. HAVOYOCO is well known in Somaliland as a youth organization doing circus. They cater to the visual hunger of Somalis for entertainment. HAVOYOCO utilizes circus to educate the public about issues affecting the environment, HIV/Aids education, Female Genital Mutilation among others. They are hired by International Organizations and local non-government organizations for their awareness campaigns. "The money HAVOYOCO gets from the circus goes to the organization to fund its activities. The group now has 9 projects intended for the communities. It has a soap factory that employs women, a maternal and child health program, literacy programs for women and youth, now the organization employs 54 project staff, including paid teachers, and the group started 10 years ago by collecting garbage!" she added.

Because of poverty and the influx of international aid doing rehabilitation and reconstruction work, the 12 years of peace in Somaliland witnessed the mushrooming of local non-government organizations. It is a common but sad fact that some LNGO leaders are accused by communities of opportunism and corruption (a condition found in civil society circles worldwide, well almost). "So what is HAVOYOCO's secret I asked. "It's their sense of volunteerism, idealism and commitment. They are young and they just don't want to stop dreaming" she said. With sad eyes one could see her frustration "I just wish Somalis from the diaspora could see how Somalilanders despite the poverty and their struggle in everyday life continue to believe in dreams."

"It's not just about money, there are so many changes in my life ever since I decided to stay here, I don't have the comfort I had in England, but the impact I make in seeing how the lives of my countrymen are changed is enough, all these are not and cannot be bought by money" she quipped. "At the end of the day, I reflect about the things I did and by the implications of the decisions I made, I realized that every single day. I become richer."

Ayaan is one of the participants in the Health Advocacy Training I am facilitating, she's a Somalilander, one of the new generation of Somalis from the diaspora who have decided to return to Somaliland. She is one of HAVOYOCO's program coordinators, managing its Family Life and Child care program. She has been here for a year now and has no plans of going back to England. Not yet. She continues to dream with her fellow young Somalilanders from HAVOYOCO, she continues to struggle with their everyday problems and search for solutions.

We parted agreeing that indeed a person's spirit dies when dreaming stops.

Internal and foreign affairs

On matters regarding the country's internal affairs, the president said security had been tightened, while expansion of the administration has been completed in Sool Region eastern Somaliland; disputed with neighbouring Puntland by sending a reconciliatory committee, the outcome of whose work had been fruitful. He said the country advocated a policy of coexistence with neighbouring countries and the world at large in order to live in peace and non-interference, and urged the public, political parties and other institutions to refrain from provocative utterances about neighbouring states.

Terrorism

We hold the same position as the international community in regard to terrorism, in all its forms and aspects, as stipulated in Somaliland's constitutional charter the president said. We shall not accept those suspected of working for or aiding the Al-Qa'idah network or Al-Ittihad militant Islamic militant group accused of links with Al-Qa'idah, whose operations are not found in Somaliland. He said Somaliland was part of the international coalition in the fight against terrorism and would soon form a national anti-terrorism committee.

Iraq

On the Iraq issue, the president said he would like the matter to be resolved peacefully and diplomatically on the principles of international law and peaceful coexistence.

Emergency areas

He suggested that areas of Somaliland currently under emergency rule such as Laas Caanood, Hudu and Taleh be removed from such a status, to facilitate the forthcoming elections in the area. He said the Ministry of Interior Affairs was in charge of drawing border points and the level of taxation.

Foreign policy

On foreign affairs, he said Somaliland had dispatched various delegations into the Diaspora, with special attention had been given to our neighbouring countries, west Africa, Senegal and Mali. "We have representatives in the UN, Europe, Asia (Middle east) and North America," said Mr Riyale.

Elections

On the forthcoming elections, he said: We have completed parliamentary elections, which passed off very fairly and smoothly. We are now approaching the presidential elections which I think will mark the completion of our democratic process, which is also monitored closely by the international community, as a requirement for the recognition of our country.

Therefore, it is an obligation of parliament, the general public and the contesting political parties to undertake collectively their responsibilities and safeguard security, which is the basic foundation for holding elections. We also urge MPs to observe the electoral regulations.

It has not been possible to present to parliament this year's budget at the same time as completing the electoral rules and regulations, as you required. Our relations with Ethiopia grow stronger day by day and there are no rifts between us. I appeal to all the people of Somaliland to vote peacefully during the forthcoming Somaliland elections, just as they did at the previous one. I pray to God that the elections end in a peaceful manner.

Patronage Politics, Foreign Aid, and the Start of State Collapse

The 1960 unification of British Somaliland and Italian Somalia as an independent state did not result in a reduction of external financial support, nor the economic irrelevancy that IMF investigators and scholars predicted. Though no magnet for foreign investment, Somalia's rulers discovered that they could turn prerogatives of sovereignty into tools to attract external economic assets. Somalia's government perfected the art of playing to the diplomatic and strategic interests of former colonial rulers, superpowers and others willing to exchange aid for affirmation of a particular ideology, diplomatic alignment, or access to military bases. Rulers used these resources to attract popular legitimacy and manage domestic political rivals. The latter presented more pressing challenges and dominated the conduct of Somalia's external relations. As southern Somali agricultural projects shows, capital-based strongmen used foreign aid to build political networks that later provided key agents of violence and armed groups of followers when central control over this network collapsed. Ironically, the preferred strategies for building a state and political community on the margins of the global economy after 1960 also lay at the heart of state collapse and violent community fragmentation after 1990.

The high water mark of this centrally managed political project began with the coup of General Mohamed Siyaad Barre on 21 October 1969. Initially it appeared to be a state-building project. Barre (a former member of the Italian Somaliland and British wartime interim administration police) announced that all speakers of the Somali language should be unified in a single state, and supported crash literacy programs to propagate a new Somali script. In 1970 he unveiled an official `Scientific Socialist' ideology and invited the Soviet navy to lease the deepwater port of Berbera, in former British Somaliland. Barre took ideological cues and foreigner's cash where he could find it, combining Islamic poetry with the centralizing vision of Lenin, the cult of personality of North Korea's Kim Il-Sung and advice from Western creditors and donors who in fact remained his primary financial supporters even during his alignment with the Soviet Union. Barre also admitted to admiring Benito Mussolini, who he called `my former commander'. While Barre was insistent on ideological consistency, he did maintain a consistent pursuit of a centrally organized state-building project, whether of fascist or socialist inspiration. In this sense, Barre responded to the global incentives of his time, a political and economic world that supported state regulation of domestic economies and that provided financial support to leaders of new states who embarked on these projects.

Barre went even further, and vigorously pursued an irredentist project of consolidating all Somali speakers in a single state. This translated into official support for a Northern Frontier District Liberation Front in Kenya and a Front de Liberation de la Cotes des Somalis in neighboring French Somaliland. Somali state-building continued with the infiltration of Ogadeeni clan fighters of the Somali-Abo Liberation Front (SALF) and the Western Somalia Liberation Front (WSLF) to `reclaim' ethnic Somali territory in Ethiopia's Ogaden after a coup in 1975 amidst challenges from separatist movements in Eritrea, Tigray and Oromo. SALF and WSLF ties to the Somali government were tight enough that a government office in Mogadishu distributed their propaganda in the consolidated Bulletin of Somali Liberation Fronts, denouncing `Abyssinian colonialism' and calling for these regions to (re)join the Somali nation. By March 1978, however, Ethiopian counter-attacks reached Somali territory after Ethiopia's rulers made their own bid for Soviet aid. Barre's attack on Ethiopia had consequences decades later as Ethiopian leaders concluded that keeping Somalia very weak and disorganized after Barre's fall in 1991 was integral to their own security. Barre's Soviet backers abandoned him in 1978, preferring instead to align with a seemingly more genuine Marxist-Leninist ruling party in Ethiopia (which also is ten times more populous than Somalia). This came on top of the bad news for Barre in 1977 that French Somaliland voters rejected union with Somalia and opted for independence as the Republic of Djibouti in a referendum.

Despite Barre's loss of Soviet patronage, his regime managed to find a new external source of income. The US government established its own (more modest) military presence and gave Barre's regime more than $800 million in aid. A quarter of this was devoted to military expenditures. Italy was more generous. Conveniently for Barre, his Italian patrons were willing to include local politicians in insider deals in providing over a billion dollars in the 1980s for more than one hundred projects, which contributed to Barre's role as a distributor of largesse to his informal political network of associates, both inside government and in `private' (but politically well connected) business.

Overall, outside aid generated $2.8 billion for Somalia between 1972 and 1989, making Somali people Africa's greatest beneficiaries of aid on a per capita basis at that time. The geographic, sectoral and political distribution of aid, however, shows that most Somalis benefited very little as aid, not just from his Italian patrons, became a major source of corruption and kickbacks to regime favourites. The extreme dependence of the country on foreign aid for 90 percent of recorded development spending underlines the centrality of Barre in all avenues of economic life-as manager of formal state allocations and as patron to political allies-at the expense of broader community or commercial efforts. Barre's domination of these economic channels also entrenched his power in the institutional frameworks of communities targeted for development spending. He used these initiatives to overlay his own political network over old informal local networks. The consequence later would be that informal mediating institutions such as xeer and the authority of `traditional' leaders would be weakest in these areas once sustained conflict broke out in the late 1980s. Thus economic globalization in this manner laid the groundwork for state collapse. When examined in its patrimonial context, it also provides a guide for predicting which communities would organize their own responses to state collapse and which ones would not, and how each category would respond to economic opportunities in the 1990s and 2000s.

Meanwhile, agricultural projects and programs absorbed 22 percent of development spending in the 1980s, with 90 percent of that allocated to large-scale commercial crop farming. Favoured groups benefited from the construction of dams, irrigation and plantation farming in the south. This southern area was the dominant beneficiary of this category of spending. Foreign experts complained that this priority excluded more numerous pastoralists, especially those in northern areas affected by conflict that continued long after the Somali invasion of Ethiopia, even though agriculture spending rose as a proportion of development spending during this period. Further accentuating the social differentiation that development spending promoted, social service expenditures fell from 6.3 percent of development spending in 1975 to less than one percent in 1989. By the 1980s, even this small amount was reserved in large part to provide housing for faculty and staff at the National University in Mogadishu.

Even though state support declined politically favoured groups continued to benefit. Industrial firms, for example, received 35 percent of development spending in 1975, dropping to 10 percent in the mid 1980s. This decline reflected the regime's acceptance of creditor advice to privatize industrial enterprises. This was carried out on the basis of political favouritism, and was immediately followed with massive manipulation of credit markets to benefit regime cronies. Administrative regulations depressed formal market interest rates for credit to -80 percent in real terms in 1984, compared to marginal positive rates in the late 1970s. Not efficient in economists' terms, negative rates ensured that credit would be distributed to politically powerful groups and businessmen. Lucky recipients later paid their creditors in severely depreciated local currency, which effectively meant that the state provided its favourites with a bonus for holding these loans. The fiscal demands of this policy meant that the politically marginalized had to seek credit on their own in much more expensive informal markets that did not enjoy patronage from the state. Alternatively they could leave the country in search of economic opportunities abroad. This further marginalizing politically disfavoured groups from Barre's informal patronage networks, though it would have positive significance in later years when their community leaders would find that they had influence over these overseas sources of income independent of strongmen associated with Barre's regime.

Likewise, policy failure coupled with a steady flow of foreign aid helped civil servants migrate into regime-sanctioned clandestine channels. By 1989, civil servants were paid only three to four percent of the real value of their 1975 salaries, and had to support themselves through corruption, bribes and kickbacks. Despite declining salaries, Barre increased civil service employment from approximately 20,000 in 1969 to over 56,000 in 1983. This made association with foreign financed development projects a vital part of the survival strategies of civil servants. Uncertainty and scarcity helped turn these projects into an even more valuable political resource for Barre. A foreign consultant observed, however, that the civil service lost a disproportionate portion of more educated employees, particularly those who came from the north who Barre regarded as less desirable as political clients. As shown below, politically marginalized communities in the north were forced to became more adept at exploiting the economic opportunities of clandestine markets and overseas employment on their own, often in defiance of the regime and in conflict with clandestine rackets that regime favourites ran.

Even when Barre's irredentist adventure and destructive economic policies brought growing popular insecurity, foreign relief aid offered him additional political resources that he could plow back into his `official' clandestine economy. UN officials, for example, complained that $100 million in relief aid to refugees of the 1977-78 war was distributed on the basis of clan leadership loyalties to Barre, and was used to reinforce the control of regime strongmen who were responsible for controlling distribution of relief aid in the camps. Aid workers testified that food was pilfered from convoys and sold in local markets with the connivance of local officials. UN officials used this same complaint over pilferage to justify intervention in the early 1990s. Nor is it coincidence that the same individuals and armed groups were responsible for this use of violence in both periods, though prior to 1990 this was an informal `official' state policy, while freelance in the latter. One aid worker estimated that three quarters of all supplies were stolen, with some going directly to pro-Barre militias that attacked clans that Barre believed opposed his rule. Massive over counting of refugees, 1.5 million by Somali government estimate versus 650,000 in the view of aid agencies also were geared toward generating resources for patronage.

"We had a lot of experience from that election," Commission chairman Ahmed Haji Ali Adami told IRIN. "There were some difficulties, we learned a lot of lessons, we put them on a very long list and we are trying to improve according to our ability and according to the finance we receive." For the presidential poll, the Commission says it submitted a budget request to the Somaliland government of $1.5 million, but was granted only about $1 million. Although it has received some financial pledges and training support from the international community, Commission members told IRIN that donors had been less forthcoming this time. For example, the European Union (EU) provided support for voter education in the local elections but has not extended funding this time.

"The reason is political," said Commission member Mohammed Sheikh Abdillahi. "Supporting a presidential election in a country that is not recognised would be construed as a political act."

The Electoral Commission nevertheless hopes to receive support from individual countries, notably Britain, Norway and Switzerland. The Electoral Commission has seven members. Three were selected by the government, two by the House of Elders and two by opposition parties. Two opposition candidates are running against incumbent president Dahir Riyale Kahin. There will be only one round of voting, with the winner requiring a simple majority.

The lack of a proper census means that there is no voter list. The Commission says it abandoned attempts to register voters in advance of the local elections, because it did not have the means.
900 Polling Stations

Commission chairman Ahmed Haji Ali Adami told IRIN there would be 900 polling stations across Somaliland. He said the ballot papers, printed in the UK, had already arrived, along with indelible ink that would be put on the hands of voters to prevent fraud. He added that the ballot papers had been counted, given serial numbers and put under lock and key. "As a commission we are ready," he said. "Apart from that financial constraint, we are ready. You can go around and see that everything is planned according to date. And I think technically we are ready."

The Commission says it is committed to taking ballot papers to all parts of Somaliland, including the eastern Sool and Sanaag regions, where the government has imposed a state of emergency. These areas have been experiencing insecurity owing to a territorial dispute with neighboring Puntland and spillover from fighting there.

But Commission member Mohammed Sheikh Abdillahi told IRIN that reaching remote areas posed considerable logistical problems. "You know this country has no roads and communications are very poor, and the country is very large," he said. "So to cover that is a big logistical nightmare."

The Commission says security is also a concern. The government will provide the necessary security personnel, but Abdillahi said voter education could also help. "There is a need to emphasize security," he said. "Somaliland people were the real heroes last time, the self-discipline in the queues was extraordinary, there was no need for policemen or anything. But we don't take anything for granted, and we want to emphasize again the need for security and peace during the election time."
Voter Education

The Commission says voters are highly politically aware and are likely to vote in big numbers. It expects at least a 50 percent increase on the 450,000 people who voted in the local elections. However, the Commission says it needs to provide more education on how to vote, especially for women. "The majority of the voters last time were women," says Shukri Haji Ismail, the only woman member of the Electoral Commission. "Last time they were asking many questions," she said. "About 70 percent of the Somaliland women are illiterate, and there were certain problems when they were trying to mark the ballot papers. But this time we will be trying to show them.

"Specifically we will be targeting the women and showing them, and telling them that if they want to vote for a certain party they should not be intimidated or pushed into voting for somebody else," she added. During the local elections, polling stations closed at 6pm. The Commission says it is considering an extension of voting hours this time, to ensure that everyone gets the chance to cast their ballot.

Those people studied made mistakes in the way they took their medication - either too much, not enough, or at the wrong time. Doctors like to blame their uncooperative patients for these errors, but according to these researches for the problem really lies with the physician for not communicating the instructions simply and clearly.

The true goal of this article, then, is to provide people with basic information regarding the potential hazards of drugs as well as of those medications physicians prescribe most often. My hope is to enable people understand how the medicines they take work in their bodies and how to approach simple medical problems before, during, and after professional medical intervention. It may help save you some money, but more important, it may help save your life.

What is a Drug?

With so much misinformation, emotion, and plain ignorance surrounding the whole field of "drugs" today, it is no wonder that people are confused and apprehensive. Our so-called drug culture is a never-ending source of editorials, commercials, and apprehension. Yet drugs are nothing new to our generation. The ancient Egyptians were masters of drug therapy, and one medical papyrus lists over nine hundred prescriptions. In fact, it is very likely that as far back as 2000 BC, Egyptian physicians were treating wounds and infections with a chemical derived from a fungus which probably was a near relative to penicillin. There is even a suggestion in some ancient manuscripts that the Egyptians might have had a birth control pill. Almost every culture has taken advantage of the chemicals nature has provided in the form of leaves, roots and bark in order to fashion remedies and cures. Such staples of modern therapeutics as aspirin, digitalis, and quinine (first used for fevers, then for malaria) are derived from natural plants. From a bird's-eye view, it is only fairly recently that we have learned how to isolate the active ingredients in plants and synthesize our own by-products chemically.

So what is a drug? Well, in reality it is just a word, which exists in people's minds. When potato first reached arrived in Europe, it was considered something very special, selling not as a food but rather - at high price - as a "medicine" for its aphrodisiac quantities. In its broadest sense, most people would consider any prescriptive agent a drug and, as a result of the current furor over abuse, any agent which is used illicitly for its physiological effects. Either naively or unconsciously, people generally fail to realize that many of the chemicals they casually consume are themselves drugs. As defined by standard pharmacological textbook, a drug is "any chemical agent that effects living matter".

Are vitamins drugs? Most