62
Despite being heralded as a new chapter in Somaliland’s democratic history, the 2005
parliamentary elections were besieged with challenges which reflect systemic and ongoing
problems in the political system. The elections were met with resistance from existing House
members and suffered from an incomplete electoral law, largely in regard to the distribution of
seats over the country’s six regions.
101
The problem of distributing seats fairly was
compounded by a lack of census or voter registration data, which has remained a problem in
subsequent elections.
The lack of an election law caused a delay to the elections and a growing frustration from
opposition parties. With the election date set for March 2005, Speaker of the House Ahmed
Adan Qaybe, requested technical assistance from the international community to formulate a
viable electoral law and an international consultant was recruited. In December 2004, a draft
electoral law was distributed to the House of Representatives for review. The new draft was
contentious, and pitted the majority of the house members against a handful of leaders who
were stridently opposed to the new law. After a number of re-draftings and debates, facilitated
by the Academy for Peace and Development in May 2005, an electoral law was passed, paving
the way for the elections to take place.
102
Significantly, both houses extended their terms in September 2010, on the basis that the
government would not be able to organize another election straight after the 2010 presidential
poll. The
Guurti
voted to increase its term by another three years in addition to the four it had
already been granted. The House of Representatives, whose term was supposed to expire in
December 2010, gave itself an extension of two years and eight months.
Representation of Women and Marginalized Groups
The parliamentary representation of women and marginalized groups (the traditional
occupational castes known as
Gabooye
) was not addressed in the constitution. While women’s
groups and civil society organizations campaigned for provisions to enable women and
marginalized groups greater representation in the new parliament (including a proposal to
reserve seats for women and minority groups in July 2012),
103
these requests were rejected by
the House of Representatives after the provision for quotas was deemed unconstitutional.
104
101
Disagreements over this issue were clan-based in nature, with for instance, the ‘indigenous’ clans of Hargeisa
arguing that with more than 40 percent of the total electorate their region should get at least 40 percent of the seats.
This frustrated minority clans who already felt that they had been marginalized in parliament.
102
A Vote for Peace: How Somaliland Successfully Hosted Its First Parliamentary Elections in 35 Years
. Rep.
Hargeisa: Academy for Peace and Development/Interpeace, 2006. Print.
105
Known as the
Reserved Seats Bill 2012
. In particular, the proposed women’s quota has been an issue strongly
supported by women’s groups, particularly following Kulmiye’s campaign platform for the presidential election,
which included a commitment to a quota. It is difficult for Somalilanders to understand the concept of a quota
however, “Islamic and Somali culture equalizes the status of men and women. That does not mean that people see
men and women as the same or having the same roles. A lot of men ask, ‘Women have a role. Why do they want to
be exceptional?’ Many women say, ‘A woman can’t represent us. Clan politics is a man’s role. Our role is to raise a
family, look after the household, raise and educate children, and to support our husband.’” (After Borama, ARI,
2013).
104
Berrkhad Dahir (2012) ‘Somaliland lawmakers oppose parliament quota for women and minorities’.
Sabahi
.
06/09/2012.
