Compromised or Secured: Inclusive Politics and Power-sharing in Somalia's Southwest State?

Overview

This article examines political inclusion and power-sharing in Somalia, specifically in the Southwest State of Somalia (SWS), with a focus on the 4.5 political power-sharing system, which was agreed upon by Somali delegates at the Djibouti Peace and Reconciliation Conference 20 years ago.

In Arta, Djibouti, in the year 2000, Somali peace delegates from various clans in Somalia met and resolved to share power based on this structure, which split Somali groups into four major clans and a semi-clan uniting minorities and marginalized communities in Somalia.

Initially, the adoption of this [4.5 power-sharing] system looked at who possessed power (arms) and controlled significant swaths of Somalia's territory, rather than who was a majority with the greatest inhabitants. Several clans’ regions, whose delegates were attending the conference, were occupied at the time by other [strong clan militias] from other parts of Somalia, who possessed guns and were economically powerful.

Somalia was desperate for peace and stability at the time, after a decade of devastating civil war and clan fighting that saw the troops of a UN-mandated humanitarian mission clash with forces loyal to General Mohamed Farah Aideed, a notorious warlord in Mogadishu in the 1990s, resulting in the downing of a 'Black Hawk' helicopter in Mogadishu in 1993. As a result, the peace delegates rushed to ratify the 4.5 power-sharing formula, which included several clans in categories to which they should not have been assigned; thus, peace and reconciliation were finally achieved.

Since then, political involvement and representation, as well as the development of government systems in Somalia, have been built on this power-sharing structure, in which clans are represented in created government branches and participate in political activities.

Many clans in the various regionally constituted governments, notably in Southwest State of Somalia, are either underrepresented, misrepresented, or do not participate in political and [governance] activities, and the power sharing arrangement is considered as undermined by many local political analysts .

At the state level, power is devolved and shared.

With the election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as the first President of the Federal Republic of Somalia in 2012, Somalia became a federal republic. He was elected by federal parliamentarians who were elected to the House of Representatives on the basis of a 4.5 clan power sharing agreement reached by clan representatives in Somalia's regions.

Except for Puntland, which had existed before the federalisation as a semi-autonomous regional administration in the northeast of Somalia and the self-declared breakaway republic of Somaliland in the northwest, the federal system was not devolved and regional federal states were not established at the time of the presidential election.

During President Mohamud's term in office, four Federal Member States (FMS) were established as part of the federalisation of Somalia, namely Southwest State, Jubbaland, HirShabelle, and Gal-Mudug. Clan power sharing and representation was a key component of these state formations, as the different clans and sub-clans required representation in regional government parliaments, councils of ministers, and local governance structures under the 4.5 power share system.

Unfortunately, at the state and local levels, clan representation and inclusive politics have been undermined, and many clans, despite constituting a large section of society, have found themselves underrepresented, misrepresented, or not participating in political and governance activities. As a result of this setback, sentiment has increased, and conflicts have erupted in many of Somalia's federal member states, as well as disdain of established political and governance institutions, as a result of the states' compromised power sharing.

Because a few sub-clans, or in some cases, lineages, have represented the wider clan for years while leaving other sub-clans without representation and participation in the political and governance spheres, the unjust power sharing has impacted not only the inter-clan system but also the intra-clan social structure and interactions.

These power-sharing disadvantages were evident in the recent disputed elections of members of the federal Parliament's Lower House, which sparked disputes among clans in some states and resulted in the election of some MPs being nullified after sub-clans claimed corruption and mismanagement in the election procedures, as well as misrepresentation of their clans.

Some clan leaders in the states claimed that they were not contacted and that no delegates from their clans were chosen to vote for Members of the Lower House of Parliament. This behavior demonstrates how clan representation and power are harmed in the pursuit of inclusive politics, and how some clans, primarily from minorities and marginalized populations are shut out of political power sharing and representation at the federal, state, and municipal levels.

Power-sharing and representation in Southwest State of Somalia

Southwest State of Somalia was founded in 2014 in Baidoa after squabbles over the autonomous administration of six or three regions were finally settled in a power-sharing agreement between two politically opposed groups as a member state of the Federal Republic of Somalia. The state now consists of the three regions of Bay, Bakool, and Lower Shabelle.

Shariif Hassan Sheikh Adan became the first president of the newly formed Southwest State on November 17, 2014.

The new Southwest State formed a parliament, a council of ministers, and regional and district-level decentralized governance. The development of these state institutions and the proper functioning of the state government in Southwest State required clan power sharing. Clan representation and participation in the political and governance structures were seen as crucial to the federalization process and the Federal Government of Somalia made every effort to guarantee that the Federal Member States practiced inclusive politics.

Was, however, political inclusion and representation attained in Somalia's Southwest State?

Simply put, the response is a resounding 'No.'

The society in Somalia's Southwest State (SWS) is made up of structurally diverse social groups, the bulk of which are culturally and linguistically linked yet divided into mixed clans and sub-clans.

Political representation is not equally distributed among clans, and minorities and the marginalized are disproportionately harmed and socially disenfranchised, with little or no participation in political and governance sectors.

Rotational representation of clan sections (social groups) in inclusive politics and political institutions is rare, especially for the social group of clans whose clansmen and women are not empowered politically or economically and are misrepresented by a few clan elites, mostly from one social group of the interrelated sub-clans.

Because they belong to a minority or marginalized community, and/or are actively excluded from participation, some clans are completely unrepresented and do not participate in political and governance activities.

The clan population composition is a major determinant of who represents whom in the political realm, and clan social groups are unequally represented in terms of political and economic prospects, resulting in an imbalance of power, status, and prestige. Disparities in social activities and unequal access to social amenities such as education, which enable political involvement and representation, are a reality in Somalia's Southwest State, causing a setback for some of the member clans.

Recommendations on political involvement and inclusion

The issues stated above about political inclusion and representation of clans in Somalia's Southwest State are key concerns that must be addressed in order for all of the state's groups to participate and be represented in political and governance activities.

The federalization process can be stalled, and efforts to democratically stabilize Somalia are hampered by social and political exclusion. The 4.5 power-sharing system provided a quick answer to Somalia's decades of armed violence and insecurity, but it did not address the essential issues of political power-sharing, participation, and representation. Some clans continue to dominate political spheres despite their social statuses, owing to their power, while others who would otherwise play key roles in politics are misrepresented and excluded.

As the author of this piece and a native of the Southwest State of Somalia (SWS), I would suggest the following:

? That the government of Southwest State of Somalia (SWS) ensures political inclusivity and representation for all of the state's communities, as well as the 30 percent female representation in the federal parliament.

? That marginalized and minority groups are empowered and given opportunities to participate in and be represented in political and government circles.

? That the clans themselves agree to cycle participation and representation between the various intra-clan social groups and sub-clans.

? That, in accordance with the federal constitution, the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) should monitor social and political inclusion, as well as interaction with the state at the state and municipal levels.

? That the international partners should push the FGS and FMS to consider political inclusion, participation, and representation as a necessary metric for assessing political implementation.

? That minorities and marginalized clans should take the initiative to become interested in and participate in political and governance activities on their own.

N.B. Southwest Vision for Change (SV4C) is a movement in Southwest State that aims to empower communities, especially those that are socially and politically underprivileged, such as minorities, disadvantaged, and marginalized populations.

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Mohamed Sheikh Yarow,

BA in Development Studies

Bachelor of Public Administration

?Email: [email protected]

?I've written several analytical pieces about Somalia's political, humanitarian, and development issues, with a special focus on the Southwest State of Somalia. My publications can be found on my blog, myarow.bogspot.com. For interesting topics and shared materials, you may also follow me on the following social media platforms:

?www.dhirubhai.net/mohammedyarow

@myerow is my Twitter handle