Uso del equipo

It is a difficult task to single out the exact factors that contributed to the conflict in Somalia. As described in Chapter 2, the country’s current situation can be ascribed to several interrelated factors. These factors – political, economical and social, are all influenced by occurrences in Somali history.

The hostile relationship with Ethiopia, the struggle for resources, especially food, repression by the military regime, the demise of the agricultural sector, and the endless failed peace agreements made Somalia unstable.

Although being democratic in nature, the government that came to power in 1960 became destabilized by the influences of clan loyalties. Such influences stretched not just into mere local politics but the civil service, National Assembly and even the cabinet that was highly manipulated by clan interests. This problem of tribalism resulted in many public and private political figures utilizing their bonds of kinship to further their own political interests. These loyal relationships resulted in the government’s inability to effectively provide civil services. The populaces’ frustration with this misrule directly led to the military coup of 1969 in which Mohamed Siad Barre seized power.

Depending on the clan identity of the government, tribalism was also applied as discriminating tools against rival clans. The regime of 1960 oppressed the clans of the inter- riverine region in the fertile South in a process of land seizures by which private commercial land was given to subsistence farmers. This patrimonialism resulted in a direct shortage of agricultural produce such as sugar, banana and livestock plantations by means of state ownership. For a while, Barre’s Darod clan benefited, while the victims were the wealthier Hawiye. By also manipulating the markets, Barre favoured government producers. These

89 discriminatory practices did not only eventually lead to the demise of the agricultural sector between the Shebelle and Juba rivers, but also the suspension of Western aid.

The oppression by the Barre regime of certain clans led to the formation of warlord and militia groups that aimed to combat the tyrannical regime. This did not only arouse the ire of Barre but also provided a hostile and conflict prone civil environment. After a failed attempt to overthrow Barre in 1979, the government unleashed brutal oppression against the involved clans and civil war erupted. Unable to defeat the rebel and guerrilla forces Barre killed thousands of civilians in his attempt to crush the Isaaq in Northern Somalia and the Hawiye of the inter-riverine area including the capital Mogadishu. These gross human rights violations led to three noteworthy occurrence – the eventual downfall of Barre by Mohamed Farrah Aideed in 1991, the suspension of humanitarian aid (needed to address the famine resulting from Barre’s destruction of the agricultural sector) and the secession of Somaliland, in the north.

The most prominent historical instance relating to clan identity is certainly the legacy left by colonial superpowers with the partitioning of Africa. Although various internal factors can be said to have brought civil decay, a large school of thought holds the legacy of colonial rule being solely responsible for state demise.

The post-colonial Somali conflict originated as the indirect consequence of colonial partitioning. The colonial legacy provided a historical backdrop against which a multitude of local and international developments could impact resulting in the failed state. This is largely due to the borders drawn between the colonial powers active within the Horn of Africa – Britain, France and Italy, which cut across ethnic lines. With Somali independence in 1960, four million people of ethnic Somali origin was left settled within neighbouring countries. With the nationalistic hype surrounding Somali independence, it could have been anticipated that Somalia would go to great lengths to reclaim these territories, especially the Ogaden in Ethiopia.

This provided a blueprint from which further conflict would erupt. Where a colonial legacy is superimposed on ancient cultural and ethnic divides it always holds the promise of a

90 destabilizing civil society and military conflict irrespective of any additional shaping factors. As clan identity pre-dated the colonial partitioning, the arbitrary divide of African land without cognisance of the multitude of cultural considerations would inevitably lead to conflict.

It is important to understand the situation that ignited the Somali conflict – the inability of Somalia to find diplomatic ways to regain the territories divided by colonial partitioning. With the unwillingness of Ethiopia to part with the Ogaden, Somalia took arms. The resulting Ogaden War and the defeat of the Somali army at the hands of an Ethiopia/Soviet alliance dealt the nation a fatal blow and shattered the Barre regime’s irredentist dreams. This impoverished Somalia further and contributed to the legacy of the militarization of the Somali society, resulting in the presence of armed warlords and the eventual downfall of Barre in 1991. Then Somalia became stateless.

It has been stated that the meddling nature of Ethiopia within Somalia can be seen as a constant factor in the continuing demise of the Somali society – Ethiopia – Coptic Christian, harbour individuals and groups that oppose the Muslim Somali government; it undermined the Cairo and Arta peace conferences; it has been a persistent provider of weapons to militia and clan factions within Somalia, and it has invaded its neighbour several times, the last time in 2007. Even when it seemed that law and order can be restored within Somalia, as in the rule of the UIC, Ethiopia who is hailed a Coptic state in Muslim Africa, undermined the power of the UIC. Backed by the US, Ethiopia is eager to show its support to combat terror within the Horn of Africa. This stance has led to continuous border confrontations between Ethiopian and Somali militia.

In essence, a fundamental principle involved in the conflict in the Somali society is the inability and also the unwillingness of the government to regulate resource allocations and the provision of goods and services. For this reason Somali relied heavily on foreign assistance as source of food aid. Other aid except for weapons, have seldom been supplied. Combined with the government’s failure to uphold law, order and security, Somalia found itself in a free-for- all struggle between factions to capture scarce resources such as water, ports, infrastructure

91 and livestock. Resulting disputes were resolved by means of violence, advocated by the traditional Somali legal sytem, Heer.

This gave rise to various warlords who violently contested inter-clan rivalries, and while also fighting weak authoritarian ties created by various peace processes. Over time this contest resolved not so much over resources but the complimentary power that came with its possession. Factions did thus not only contest resources but also the right to reign. The battle for power and the weakening state of Barre’s regime lead to his eventual downfall in 1991. The vicious cycle continued as Farrah Aideed, the most powerful of all warlords, used food as weapon. With environmental hardship, the destruction of the agricultural sector and the effects of civil war, Somalia plunged into widespread famine. Aideed utilized this predicament – those who controlled the food resources would control the people. However, Farah Aideed was never a pirate.