Global Courant
Somaliland says it has no plans to discuss unity with Somalia, despite the Ugandan president’s willingness to act as a mediator.
The breakaway region of Somaliland said it has no plans to discuss unity with Somalia, appearing to contradict Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who said he would act as a “unification mediator” between the two governments.
The government of Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991, but has not yet received widespread international recognition for its independence.
“Any dialogue that takes place between Somaliland and Somalia will not be about unification, but rather about how the two previously united countries can move forward separately,” Somaliland’s government said in a statement late on Sunday.
Somaliland, which has remained largely peaceful for more than three decades while its neighbor has been ravaged by civil war, said it has “no plans for a dialogue to discuss unity with Somalia.”
Some clan elders in disputed areas along Somaliland’s border with the semi-autonomous state of Puntland say they want to be part of Puntland rather than Somaliland.
In February, heavy fighting broke out between Somaliland forces and militia members in and around the town of Las Anod. More than 200,000 people have been displaced since the start of the conflict. According to data received by Al Jazeera from hospitals in Las Anod in May, around 300 people had been killed and 1,913 injured.
Since its secession, the de facto independent country has cultivated the image of an “oasis of stability” in the Horn of Africa, holding disarmament and democratic elections despite the lack of international recognition. However, analysts say the conflict has negatively affected that image.
Museveni’s statement came a day after a meeting with Jama Musse Jama, a special envoy to Somaliland, in which he said: “Somalia and Somaliland must abolish identity politics if they want prosperity for their country”.
Reacting to Somaliland’s statement, Museveni’s deputy press secretary said the Ugandan state house had no comment.
Somalia’s ministers of information and interior have not commented on the situation, although Somalia’s position has been consistent that it considers Somaliland part of Somalia and wants unification.
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