Somaliland Decides!
- Get link
- X
- Other Apps
Voters in Somaliland are today casting their ballot in parliamentary and local elections.
In this year’s elections, 246 candidates are gunning for 82 parliamentary seats while 966 are vying for 249 district municipality seats in the republic’s six regions.
The region has invited international observers for the elections, including political figures from elsewhere in Africa.
More than one hundred international observers including Uganda’s former opposition leader, Kizza Besigye and ex-president of Sierra Leone, Ernest Bai Korma are in Somaliland keeping an eye on proceedings.
Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991 but no country has recognised the region. Despite lacking international recognition, Somaliland has maintained its own independent government, currency and security system.
John Githongo, an anti-corruption campaigner from Kenya who is in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, as an observer, in a Twitter post described the region as “the one Somalia with a bottom-up democracy that seems to organically work.”
Greg Mills, director of a South Africa-based group that is observing the polls, said in a statement that the semi-autonomous region “represents an example of an African country which is committed to democracy and development and deserves the support of every African who wants to see progress on this continent.”
Somalia considers Somaliland as part of its territory. Several rounds of talks over possible unification have failed to reach a breakthrough and the region continues to assert its right to independence.
- Get link
- X
- Other Apps
Comments
Post a Comment