Dreaming of Somaliland

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The last few months of 2017 have been characterised by global debates in relation to statehood recognition and its consequences for global order and the expansion of citizens’ rights.

Meanwhile, in Somaliland – north of Somalia, East Africa – Somalilanders, quietly and confidently, continued concretizing their own statehood dreams: over the last few months Somaliland has organised its third presidential election, which took place on November 13, demonstrating the strength of its electoral, multi-party and hybrid political system. All with the wish of one day being recognized by the world as a political entity in its own right.

Somaliland is a successful example of peace- and state-building. Unlike some other African countries – still suffering diverse violent conflicts and intensive flawed and/or militarized international intervention – in Somaliland, local actors were and are the main stakeholders leading, creating and sustaining a legitimated political order.

In times when we face new questions in relation to secessionist and independence movements, Somaliland offers an example how citizens can come to organise their own socio-political processes, making their voices heard so as to create fairer social orders without much “international aid”.

[ > openDemocracy  –  December 16, 2017 ]

ARGENTINA SOCCER CRIME CASE SHOWS EVOLUTION OF HOOLIGAN GROUPS

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A new round of arrests and charges in an unfolding racketeering case in Argentina involving a criminalized soccer fan club, or “barra brava,” points to these groups’ growing sophistication and capacity for violence.

On November 30, Argentine authorities announced that they had conducted more than 30 raids on various properties connected to the barra brava of the Club Atlético Independiente, one of the top-ranked teams in Argentina’s premier soccer league.

Argentina’s barras bravas have long been associated with smaller-scale criminal activities like extortion and drug dealing. But they have grown more powerful over the years thanks to protection from powerful teams that often have ties to potent political forces.

The Argentine government had taken steps to clamp down on such groups, including creating a government registry in early 2016 to attempt to track them. While these initiatives have achieved some results, they have also revealed the barras’ depth and sophistication, which will make these groups difficult to dismantle.

[ > InSight Crime — December 2017 ]

Game of Thrones. What happens to the princes in Saudi Arabia

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What is happening in Saudi Arabia may be misleading to ordinary people. The total number of royalty today belonging to the Al Saud family is over 25 thousand people. This “overproduction of the elite” is a heavy burden on the kingdom’s budget which causes numerous conflicts among the princes.

On November 5, about 60 people were arrested: more than a dozen princes, four incumbent ministers, and over 40 former and current influential civil servants, of whom Osama bin Laden’s brother Bakr bin Laden is best known.

Heir Mohammad ibn Salman clears his way to political power.

The arrests are accompanied by anti-corruption rhetoric. It is planned to confiscate the property of all those arrested, which could amount to an astronomical sum of several hundred billion dollars, which can help the country survive the economic recession.

[ > Institute of World Economy and Politics  —  November 09, 2017 ]