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Jubbaland and Ogadenia: Two Regions with an Indistinguishable Past and Present Tales
A well-known American poet named Robert Penn Warren once wrote “The past is always a rebuke to the present”, which literally means that the past can reprimand the future. There are many similar quotes and poems that illustrate the importance of learning from history. History is a discipline that, if applied appropriately, can lead us in making better choices in life. Many philosophers, scientists and poets have written many important scripts on how the historical tales and events can better help us understand our futuristic deeds. In writing about the importance of history, Aristotle articulated “If you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development”. The histories of various ethnic-Somali populated states or regions have complex past that would take many pages to swathe the basics. The two states of Jubbaland and Ogadenia share very common tales including colonial past that very few people know about. These two states share borders, historical backgrounds, cultural and artistic connections, tribal lineage and many other semblances.
The most obvious analogy between these two regions is, of course, the fact that the populaces of the two regions are Muslims and ethnic Somalis. The major Somali tribe of these two regions is the Ogaden clan or Absame if you stride one step up in the tribal lineage ladder. Despite that fact there are no available statistics to indicate exactly the percentage makeup of the Ogaden tribes in these regions; most experts believe the Ogadens makeup over 85% of the populations of Jubbaland and Ogadenia.
Many people would make the argument that Ogadenia and Jubbaland are two different regions that fall within the boundaries of two different countries. They would say that Jubbaland is a province or state within Somali Republic. Historically speaking, Jubbaland has no historical background or ties with Southern Somalia. Jubbaland or Trans-Juba or Oltre Giuba as the Italians used to say, was colonized by the British and was part of colony of Kenya. Jubbaland natives had more ties and connections with their brethrens in Northern Frontier District of Kenya than they do with other Southern Somalis. The British conceded Jubbaland to the Italians to reward them in supporting and joining the Allies in World War I. The British also gave up on Jubbaland because the people of Jubbaland resisted colonial forces and even though they lacked modern weaponry or any other advanced combat equipments, they gave everything in their possession to defend their land from the colonial invaders.
Similarly, the Ogaden people struggled to gain their freedom from various colonies including the Abyssinian colony. The great Ahmed Gurey resistance for freedom was one of the many revolutions undertook by the Ogadens to free their lands. Many colonies including the Portuguese, the British, and the Italians, on several occasions, endeavored to gain control of Ogadenia and finally in 1942, the British colony awarded the Ogaden land to the Ethiopian Empire. Since then, the Ogaden people have been the subjects of many brutalities by the Ethiopian arms. Like their brethrens in Jubbaland, the Ogaden people have also suffered from various leadership problems that resulted in many conflicts among the natives of the land and a range of groups with different interests and goals as to how to achieve freedom for Ogadenia.
The genocide and the ethnic cleansing the Jubbaland Ogadenis were subjected to by British colonial forces with the help of other Somali tribes is a history rarely mentioned. Remember that Jubbaland or what the Italians would later call Altra Giubba consisted most of Southwestern Somalia including the current regions of Bakool, Bay, Gedo, Jubbada Hoose and Jubbada Dhexe. The Ogaden clans, who at the time made up the bulk of the Jubbaland population during the British colony, battled the colonial forces; however, the other Somali tribes took advantage of the Ogaden rebellion against the European colonies and rather than support their brethrens to defend the land, they supported the colonial forces.
The unfortunate saga of Jubbaland citizens continues today. The only difference this time is that there are no British or Italian imposing forces and there are no other European colonial enemies but there are marauders who kill, rape, and persecute the locals. The only difference this time is that the perpetrators look like the locals. Indho-Cadde and Hiiraale are good examples of the criminals who disguise themselves as either religious leaders or public servants who are trying to maintain peace. Well, the question I have is this; what is the difference between these two enemies? The Dhobley Massacre is no different than the ethnic cleansing of Cawlyahan Somalis from Baardheere and from the entire so-called Gedo region in the 1910s by the British colonies and their Somali supporters. Check this link on the Aulihan uprising of the 1910s.
http://muse.jhu.edu/demo/northeast_afri ... mpson.html
About a month ago, I responded to an article by writer named Dr. Fiqi that was posted on Hiiraan online. Dr. Fiqi expressively explained how marauding militias from Gal-Gaduud region are abusing the locals of Jubbaland. I wrote to him and thanked him for his well-written piece, but I added that had Dr. Fiqi mentioned the latest massacre by these scandalous warlords in Dhobley, the article would have been perfect. I thought he had forgotten about the Dhobley carnage when he was writing the article and just wanted to bring it to his attention. I couldn’t believe that Dr. Fiqi didn’t know about the Dhobley Massacre that was barely a year ago. What surprised me the most was that Dr. Fiqi claims to be championing for the cause of those whose lands and personal freedoms are taken away. This strengthened my conviction that most Somalis regardless of what part of Somalia they hail from, believe that the Ogadenis in Jubbaland are in fact from Ogaden region of Eastern Ethiopia. Or worse yet, most believe that Ogadenis were recent immigrants to Jubbaland. The reality is Jubbaland would not have existed if it weren’t the struggle of Ogadens in Jubbaland. The only Somali tribe that stood in face of the enemy in Jubbaland was Ogaden Somalis. Here is another example of how Ogaden Somalis safeguarded their land and freedom from the colonial forces:
http://www.members.dca.net/fbl/singhbutta.html
While there are many celebrated icons in Somali history whose brave struggles for liberty are taught in history books, you hardly ever see a history book in Somalia that mentions the Kismayo slaughter of nine Ogaden chiefs by the British colony in 1890 only when they asked the British colony to leave their land. The history of Somalia or those who claim to know about it never mention Mahamud Mursal; the man the British colony and their cronies nicknamed the Poor Man of God. There appears to be systemic denial of the existence of Ogaden Somalis and their contributions to Somalia. Every administration of Somalia contributed to the downfall of Ogaden Somalis including the current so-called TFG, which seems to be offering incentives to warlords for their dreadful human rights violations. A good example is the case of the current ongoing discussions between the two factions in Jowhar and Mogadishu to meet in Kismayu when they know that Kismayu is occupied by criminals. The 21st October-raised so-called military generals of the previous Siyad Barre administration are also to blame for the miserable conditions of Jubbaland Ogaden populace. The likes of these include generals like Siyad Daud, Bile Rafle, Musse Hassan, C/raxman Khalif, the late Gabyow and many others. The reason I blame these generals for the miserable conditions of Jubbaland natives is that, while many other Siyad Barre era military officials are still with their people, these puppets used their people in order to better themselves.
Many Ogadens have to realize that the interests of Jubbaland and Ogadenia are tied together and what is good for one is good for the other. The best way to achieve a lasting peace for the people of Ogaden and Jubbaland is to put the interest of the people first. The Somali civil war was an imminent one because prior to the civil war, there were many injustices and disparities. Despite the destruction, the sufferings, and the hopelessness of the civil war, the civil war in Somalia enabled many masses, for the first time, to feel liberated and repossess what was taken from them. Unfortunately, the same civil war enabled many tribes and militias to employ a land-grab schemes to gain more lands by force and self-named governors like Indho-Cadde to emerge.
Many people including myself strongly believe that the natives of these regions can do better by reevaluating their interests in trying to find best way to attain a lasting peace. The people of Jubbaland need to forget their union with the rest of Somalia for a while until they establish a centralized Jubbaland administration. Like the people of Puntland have done, the Jubbaland people need strong leadership that can work on the interest of the people and can create harmonies among the various minority tribes in the region. One of the techniques the enemies of Jubbaland uses is to create hostilities among the natives of the region and take advantage of their desolations. The natives of the these regions suffered a lot during the colonial times in order to protect a Somali territory from a colonial adversaries, but the ultimate reward they acquired for their sacrifices is a denial of their basic rights.
Jubbaland and Ogaden citizens need to re-examine their goals because not too many people in Somalia have positive views about the name of Ogaden and what it stands for both in Ogadenia and Jubbaland.
