The incumbent president of the Republic of Somaliland, Musa Behi Abdi, returned to the capital, Hargeisa, meeting a never-before-seen rapturous welcome from the public, political parties and government councils.
A sea of revellers waving the Somaliland and Guinea flags spontaneously either headed to the airport on cars or on foot or started lining the streets hours before the plane carrying the presidential delegation even entered Somaliland airspace.
It was a most practical, effective message meant for not only Mogadishu but to the world and the international community.
Mr Behi, speaking to the media at Egal International Airport, revealed that many countries openly siding with the tottering government of Mogadishu exerted an incessant diplomatic pressure to downgrade the reception it accorded the Somaliland delegation he led which was on a state visit to the Western Africa nation on President Alpha Conde’s invitation.
“Italy was among nations that bore great pressure on Guinea heeding the hysteric calls of the Mogadishu administration. In fact, Italy exerted the greatest pressure but to no avail. President Conde’ repeated, even at arriving at the (AfCFTA), Niger, conference, yesterday, that Somaliland had every right to determine its destiny,” President Behi said.
Somalia cried loud for anybody listening to help it keep on dreaming of owning Somaliland which, as had been made clear by Somalilanders elsewhere, it never did, it never would.
Italy was was a former colonial master of Somalia where, unlike Somalia, Somaliland was a protectorate of Great Britain.
President Behi called Mogadishu’s rash action to cut ties with Guinea for warmly and courteously receiving the delegation he led ‘base’ and ‘ridiculous’.
“Dictating to another nation not to receive another country to its soil is not a product of a rational mind,” he added.
Somalia called foreign envoys and heads of international organizations to a meeting at the AMISOM guarded airport, Sunday, to justify its blunder and try ‘instruct’ them to support them in isolating Somaliland.
President Behi underlined that the people who led the Mogadishu administration did what they did ignoring history in order to rekindle fresh instability in the region.
“These people are fully aware of what had been happening for the past 30 years, how Somaliland and Somalilanders suffered during that period and the abundantly recorded political history of Somaliland over the years,” he said.
“Fully cognizant of how Somaliland arrived at where it is now, they,” he said, ‘again embarked on a course whose repercussions they fully well know”.
“There is no other country in Africa that have told the colonials that you reach a pact with us before you land, thus signing one on the sea, before allowing them to set foot ashore. There is no other country in Africa which told them that no child of theirs should be born on land. There is no other country that has agreed with the then colonial giants that they would only agree to a protectorate treaty which gives them the right to choose the time of independence rather than vice versa. That is Somaliland, and Somaliland alone!” he stated.
The Dervishes, he said, were from Somaliland.
“It was the first movement that was bombed from the air in Africa,” he said.
“If need be,” he added, ” we will again defend this nation physically, diplomatically and with the mighty pen”.
President Bihi said Mogadishu conveniently wished to side pass the gruesome, painful history that necessitated that its people wrench back the independence they took to Mogadishu on a silver platter.
“We have lost more than 300 000 lives to depose the brutal regime from Mogadishu. We are still discovering massive mass graves. Our cities have been strafed and razed to the ground by its airforce, and we have recovered and re-built a modern, functioning state from the ashes. We have struck peace among all Somaliland clans and reunited them in lasting peace. Mogadishu knows that but chooses to mislead the world on another course,” he said.
Behi promised that the Republic of Somaliland was here to stay and that no amount of pressure or tantrums from the weak administration in Mogadishu can have the least effect on it.
“Somaliland is confident that its case is better understood by an increasing number of friendly nations in the world, and within the AU, and that it is not a matter that Mogadishu can dispense with as it pleased. None should be afraid for Somaliland. It is a reality that none can ignore anymore,” the president concluded.
