Siadists on the ropes

Siadists on the ropes



If you are an experienced boxer severely battered during the whole round, you know that pulling out some late-round flurry and pumping your fist up could help you influence naïve judges and therefore steal the round. For those unfamiliar with the Sougal-Siadist debate in Awdalnews, let me summarize Sougal contentions:


The majority of NSPU members do not hail from Somaliland
Sool and Sanaag were properly represented during Burco conference
Major politicians from Sool and Sanaag major did belong to SNM, did attend the Burco conference and were subsequently part of Somaliland administration. Remember, pretending falsely that what they call SSC was completely and from the start totally devoted to Somali unity is a major rally cry of Siadist.
Nobody was held at gunpoint during Burco conference.
In regards to these points, Ali H. Abdulla rebuttal is coming in decisively weak. He does not dispute any of them. His only contention refers to Qaybe presence and to the number of Garaad in attendance.

A Chinese proverb states that when the wise points to the moon, the idiot looks at the tip of the finger. The central question is the degree of involvement of senior Lascanooders in the Burao conference and the early days of Somaliland. Even if Qaybe was not present in Burao (which fact we cannot verify since the conference was a long one and people used to come in and come out), it is clear that Qaybe and other senior Lascanooders were no die-hard Somali unionists. They went on to take on prestigious political seats in Somaliland. When NSPU is trying to convey that SSC was monothilically opposed to secession, they are hit hard by crude facts.

According to me, a meaningful rebuttal should address the following questions:


Were Sool and Sanaag delegation truly representative of the political will of this region ? If Qaybe was absent, a lot of others Lascanood politicians like Galayr and Garaad Gani were present, why they should not be considered as legitimate voice for SSC ?
Did any participant of the conference EVER complain of being held at gunpoint ?
When Sougal is asking why SSC representatives did not take refuge into Puntland if they felt threatened by SNM, Abdullah is answering that Puntland did no exist at that time. Of course, Puntland, in terms of political entity, came into play in 1998, but Bari and Mudug were outside SNM influence in 1991 and controlled by warlord Abdillahi Yusuf. Abdullah knows all that but unable to refute Sougal argument, he chose diversion.

Meanwhile, the author says that Garad Saleebaan did voice his objection to the conference in an interview with the BBC English Service. Big deal. Everybody knows that Sool Garaads were and are divided, Garaad Saleebaan being the most vocal in his opposition to Somaliland. But did he mention during the BBC interview that he was held at gunpoint? And did the senior Garaad Qani had any reservations against the outcome?

Thanks to Sougal, it appears to me that Siadists are on the ropes. Their decade old lie of people held at gunpoint is crumbling fast and it seems that none of their rumblings is able to save it.

Haboon Ali
haboon_ali@hotmail.com