Somaliland polls set for January

The self-declared republic of Somaliland is to hold presidential elections in January, sources close to the Somaliland government told IRIN on Tuesday.

An independent electoral commission will be established and about 10 candidates are expected to participate, the sources said.

The election date emerged during a three-day visit to Ethiopia by a Somaliland delegation, led by the current president Dahir Riyale Kahin.

The delegation, which includes the foreign and trade ministers, is due to meet Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi later on Tuesday. The ministers are expected to press Addis Ababa to increase its use of the Red Sea port of Berbera.

Informed sources told IRIN that the elections are another step towards convincing the international community that Somaliland is committed to peace and development in the region.

It also follows visits to the region by envoys representing Britain, Italy and a forthcoming visit by Denmark. Two American congressional aides have also visited Somaliland.

“We will hold the elections in January but we will need assistance," an official Somaliland source told IRIN. "We want the international community to be involved.”

Kahin, who was former president Muhammad Ibrahim Egal’s deputy and replaced him after his death in May, pledged to hold elections within eight months. After the death of Egal, Somaliland was faced with a choice of either multiparty elections or holding a national conference of all the clans to decide the way forward.

Somaliland unilaterally declared independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 after the downfall of former leader Muhammad Siyad Barre. It has remained relatively free from the chaos
and war that has ravaged other parts of Somalia.

“The international community is starting to take a serious look at Somaliland," a regional analyst based in Addis Ababa told IRIN. “A delegation from Somaliland has visited officials in
several European capitals. The World Bank is also starting to take a look."

“If the elections, which will have to be funded by someone, are a success and fair, then I think we could see some sort of international recognition for Somaliland," the analyst added.

“Although the death of Egal was sad as he was a respected statesman, it has presented Somaliland with an excellent opportunity which it should seize,” he said.