The Pros And Cons Of Somaliland As A Democracy

Somaliland, a nation north to the violent and failing state of Somalia, is in the midst of “a remarkable political transformation,”(Kaplan 2008, 143), and is described as a democratic state. How does one come to the conclusion that Somaliland is a democratic nation? The first step to answering this question, is in defining democracy and the prominent factors which act as conditions nations must meet in order to be considered democratic and then determine if they are applicable to Somaliland. Democracy is such a broad concept in the modern world, it is defined by Philippe C. Schmitter and Terry Lynn Karl as, “a system of governance in which rulers are held accountable for their actions in the public realm by citizens, acting indirectly through
However, these other critical conditions, system of regime, citizens, and competition prevent Somaliland from being identified as a democracy. Based on the facts stated above, Somaliland cannot be concluded as a democracy, but as a nation striving toward it. Somaliland cannot be identified as a democracy yet as it is still on route to becoming one. Since it is shaping up to become a democracy there are certain conditions laid out by Schmitter and Karl of democracy that Somaliland does fit into which are the rulers, public realm, elections, cooperation and representatives. In democratic states, “[rulers] can give legitimate commands to others,” (Schmitter, Karl 1991,76). A democratic ruler must be held responsible for their actions. This is evident in Somaliland as there have been fair elections that have been won by the opposition party. This leads to the conclusion that citizens have had the opportunity to hold their ruler accountable over the years when deciding to re-elect them or not. Another concept of democracy that is evident in Somaliland is the public realm which “encompasses the making of
There is not a system of regime, concept of citizens is disregarded and not a fair competition. A system of regime is, “...patterns that determine the methods of access to...public offices,” (Schmitter, Karl 1991,76). There is not a definite system of regime as there have been postponed elections which do not give Somaliland a strong foundation moving forward, as it needs to create a systematic way of conducting business. The condition of a democratic citizen is not evident in Somaliland, as there was a ban on a weekly magazine thus citizens were denied the freedom of press. Furthermore, minorities such women are not as well protected. For example, “Women remain excluded from traditional governing structures, and hence from the regime...,”(Kaplan 2008, 151). The idea of competition is in correlation with the concept of a citizens as it is also ineffective in Somaliland as, “...politicians were jailed...for attempting to form a new political party,” (Kaplan 2008, 151). Therefore, the government practically decides who is legible to compete against and who is not. Examining the bigger picture of Somaliland as a democracy is accepted. However, when broken down with a need to categorize all of its actions with or against the idea of democracy, it is evident that Somaliland is still only en route to becoming one. The