Somalia: Update to SOM23731.E of 24 April 1996 on the situation of the Warsangeli (Darod)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1999 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | SOM31452.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Somalia: Update to SOM23731.E of 24 April 1996 on the situation of the Warsangeli (Darod), 1 March 1999, SOM31452.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ac7530.html [accessed 4 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
According to a professor of political science at the College of Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusettes, who specializes in Somalia and Somaliland politics, the Warsangeli are a subclan of the larger Darod clan (12 Mar. 1999). He explained that the Warsangeli inhabit the Sanaag region, at the extreme east of Hargeisa in Somaliland. Sanaag is also home to the Dulbahante, another subclan of the Darod (ibid.). The professor added that currently, the Warsangeli are divided between those who support an alliance with the unrecognized Republic of Somaliland, and those allied to the recently formed Puntland administration. He emphasized however, that the division is not acrimonious (ibid.).
Information available to the Research Directorate suggests that alliances among the Warsengeli have been shifting. In 1995, the Deputy Defence Minister in the government of Somaliland, Mohamed Ali Yussef was a Warsangeli (AC 22 Sept. 1995). According to the Supplement to Information on Country Conditions on Somalia, the Warsangeli, under the United Somali Party (USP), were opposed to Somaliland's independence (15 Feb. 1996, 4). At the same time, the USP reportedly enjoyed close links with the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF) (ibid.), a Majertein/Darod group (AC 17 Jan. 1997).
In January 1997, the Dulbahante and the Warsangeli reportedly sent representatives to Sodere conference which convened 26 Somali faction leaders at the Ethiopian hot-spring resort of Sodere (AC 17 Jan. 1997, 2). However, Somaliland was not represented and President Mohamed Egal of Somaliland reportedly "firmly rejected" the Sodere agreement, reached after the meeting resolved to set up a 41 member National Salvation Council (NSC), with a mandate to organize a transitional government (ibid.).
In July 1998 Darod clans in northeast Somalia reportedly set up "Puntland," a regional autonomous administration with a constitution, but pledged not to secede from the rest of Somalia (Borneo Bulletin 29 July 1998). "Puntland" was born out of 71-day long meeting in the northeast town of Garowe. Colonel Abdullahi Yusuf, leader of the SSDF was elected president. Puntland will reportedly be governed by a 69 member parliament and nine ministers (ibid.). Corroborating this information, the HOB adds that "Puntland consists of Harti-ihabited areas, including Bari and Nugal and parts of Mudug, Sanaag and Sool regions. However, the fact that Sanag and Sool are already part of the State of Somaliland might raise tensions between Somaliland authorities and the new Puntland authorities, and create tension for other actors" (Nov-Dec. 1998, 1).
The Indian Ocean Newsletter of 21 November 1998 states that "since his inauguration, Yusuf sees himself as the leader of Majertein, Dolbahante and Warsangeli clans of north-eastern Somalia which make up the Harti group (Darod), which includes members of general Morgan's partisans." The same source further explains that General Morgan (Said Mohamed Hersi), a Majertein, is fighting against Hussein Mohamed Aidid for the control of Kismayo in southern Somalia (ION 13 Feb. 1999). This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please see below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Africa Confidential [London]. 17 January 1997. "Somalia: The Sodere Spirit."
_____. 22 September 1995. "Somaliland: Limited Powers."
Borneo Bulletin. 29 July 1998. "Somalia May Break into Small States." (NEXIS)
Horn of Africa Bulletin [Uppsala]. November-December 1998. Vol. 10. No. 6. "Somalia Goes Regional."
The Indian Ocean Newsletter [Paris]. 13 February 1999. No. 845. "Somalia: Puntland Police."
_____. 21 November 1998. "Puntland to the Rescue of Jubaland." (NEXIS)
Supplement to Information Session on Country Conditions on Somalia, Toronto Front. 15 February. 1996. Matt Bryden. "Briefing Paper for IRB Information Session on Somalia."
