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SOMALILAND LAW

Welcome to the SOMALILAND LAW.COM

(and incorporating Somalilandlaw.org)

The aim of this website is to disseminate information about the Constitution and laws of the REPUBLIC OF SOMALILAND.  The full texts of the Constitution and some of the main laws are found here in English language, or in Somali, where no translation is currently available.  The site will also contain news of the constitutional and legal developments in Somaliland, as well as commentaries and articles. 

Somalilandlaw.com hopes to contribute, as far as possible, to the advancement of the Somaliland legal system, and the entrenchment of democracy and rule of law in Somaliland.  We will support, in particular, projects and initiatives aimed at improving Somaliland legislation, the legal system and legal education, and those which promote respect for the rule of law and the entrenchment of human rights.

Somalilandlaw.com is  a not-for-profit, independent website. The texts and articles  provided here can be used for information but should not be reproduced,  without the express   permission of the website owners. All right are reserved.

For all enquiries and comments, please contact us at:

info@somalilandlaw.com

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For any articles or news items relating to Somaliland law which contributors may wish to be considered for publication on this website, please contact:

 Ibrahim Hashi Jama LL.B, LL.M, editor@somalilandlaw.com

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT IS NEW?

[If you have visited the numerous  pages of this website before, you may need  to refresh your browser’s pages often to see new information and updates]

 

30/05/2021: The first combined House of Representatives & Local Council Elections shall be held on Monday 31 May 2021. The relevant elections laws and codes of conduct are available at this Electoral Laws page.

 

01/05/2021 Updates on the following new laws:

- Labour (Amendments & Additions) Law, No. 31/2020 (May 2021)

- Insurance Agency Law, No. 92/2020 (May 2021)

- Somaliland Ports Agency Law, No. 94/2021 (May 2021)

- Somaliland Special Economic Zones Law, No. 93/2021 (May 2021)

- Law on the Registration of Free Zone Commercial Companies, No. 96/2021 (May 2021)

 

24/04/2021: Updates on the two  ( 3 monthly Official Bulletins) covering October-December 2020 and January - March 2021, as well as various Special Official Bulletins covering single laws which are are now available at this SLLaw Gazette Page.

We will be covering here and their relevant website pages 6 new laws, which are currently available at the above page.

 

15 November 2020:

 - No translation of the 2020 Elections Law is currently available. The Arrangements of the articles of the Law in Somali and English is available here for quick reference.

HORIZON INSTITUTE Press Releases on the Inadequacies of the Juvenile Justice System

 

26 October 2020: The new consolidated Elections and Voter Registration Law, No. 91/2020 has come into force on 19 October 2020 and is available at this Electoral Laws page. 

 

Third Official Gazette July- September 2020.

 

September 2020 Updates:

August 2020: The House of Representatives approved a new bill amending the 2018 Sexual Offences Law, titled,  in Somali, Xeerka Kufsiga, Sinada iyo Xadgudubyada la XidhiidhaLr. 78/2020, which in English translates as Rape, Fornication and other Related Offences Law No. 78/2020. Comments on the Bill and an English translation prepared by the Somaliland Horizon Institute.

 

New page on Somaliland Evidence Law

2020 second Official Gazette April - June 2020 (Available here)

 

On 26 August 2020, the Somaliland Constitutional Court quashed, for the first time a law (the 2020 Organisation of the Judiciary Law) in toto. Copy of the Court Decision and a Statement issued by the two Houses of Parliament are available hereCommentary on the Decision to follow...

 

26/06/2020 SSE Press Release on the 60th Anniversary of the Independence of Somaliland (26 June 1960).

 

(Note: No new laws are currently available since March 2020)

 

27/04/2020: Updated Organisation of Judiciary Law page.

 

08 April 2020: Somaliland Official Gazette - Issue 1 (Jan - March) 2020.

Two new laws gazettd on special Supplements dated 04 April 2020:

-Organisation of the Judiciary (Amendments and Additions) Law No. 24/2020.

-Posts and Telecommunications (Amendments and Additions) Law No. 50/2020

Details of both laws will be available, in due course,  in the relevant pages of this website.

 

30 March 2020: The new Local Government Law - Updated page.

 

20 January 2020:

Somaliland Official Gazette - September, November and December 2019 Issues (No October Issue)

 

Three new 2019 Laws gazetted on special separate supplements dated 20/01/2020:

1. The new Districts and Regions Self-management Law - No. 23/2019 replacing the previous 2002/7 Law.

2. The Somaliland Anti-Money Laundering Law - No. 87/2019.

3. The Somaliland Armed Forces Pensions and Gratuities Law - No. 88/2019.

We shall also be covering these laws in more detail in their relevant webpages. In the meantime, the official (Somali) gazetted available, as indicated above. 

 

29 September 2019: Somaliland Official Gazette - July and August 2019 Issues.

 

17 August 2019: Somaliland Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) Policy (July 209) - Ministry of Trade, Industry & Tourism

 

Somaliland Official Gazette June 2019

 

06 July 2019: The new consolidated Somaliland Police Force (Amendments and Additions) Law 2019 replacing the 2017 Law.

 

Also: The Somaliland Money Transfer Businesses Law - No. 86/2019

 

05 July 2019: Somaliland Official Gazette May 2019 Issue

 

26 June 2019: Somaliland Societies in Europe (SSE) Press Release on Somaliland’s 59th Anniversary of Independence - The SSE ‘extends felicitations to all the Republic of Somaliland nationals at home and abroad on the occasion of the 59th Anniversary of the independence and birth of the sovereign State of Somaliland on 26 June 1960 (Independence Day). Ever since the re-birth of the State of Somaliland as the Republic of Somaliland on 18 May 1991 (Re-acquisition of Independence Day), 26 June and 18 May have been considered as national days meriting statutory holiday for celebrations and commemorations, and both will continue to be so marked for their importance to the national identity, independence and territorial integrity of the Somaliland people and country. Both national days have special significance to the nation and, in effect, reflect the two sides of the same coin that cannot separated.’ SSE Warsaxaafadeedka Sanadguurad 59aad ee Xorriyadda Somaliland.

 

28 May 2019: Somaliland Official Gazette February, March and April 2019 Issues

Somaliland Telecommunications Usage Monitoring (Oversight?) Regulations 2019 (in Somali)

House of Reps Rules (2014) in which replace the 2006 Rules.

 

31 March 2019: Update Page: Somaliland Police Laws Annotated tet of the 2017 Police Law .. Intorductory article addressing the need for a ‘civil’ rather ‘military’ Police Force. Two Compilations of Current and Past Somaliland Police  laws

 

23 February 2018: A new 2018 Somaliland Code of Conduct for Judges and Prosecutors has been issued in October 2018 by the Somaliland Judicial Commission and replaces the previous Code. Copy of the Code in both Somali and English is available at the link above.

 

13 February 2019 - January 2019 Official Gazette - Includes the first detailed Private Sector Education Regulations issued under the National Education Law. 

 

January 2019:

-Somaliland Official Gazette: October, November & December 2018 Issues

 

- New Laws: Urban waste Management and Sanitation Law No. 83/2018

                        Somaliland Coastguard Force Law No 85/2018

                      Both laws came into force on their gazetting on 5 January 2019.

 

10 November 2018: New laws - Fisheries Law No. 84/2018 repealing the 1995 law. The Public Procurement Law - Law No. 82/2018.

(To be updated shortly: Somaliland Police current and past laws)

 

08 October 2018: Updates

- Somaliland Official Gazette July and August 2018 Issues

 Also New major Gazetted Laws available in Special Supplements and also in their relevant webpages here, such as: 

- The new Somaliland Companies Law No. 80/2018 replacing the old law with effect from 1 September 2018.

- The Environmental Management Law No. 79/2018 [Environmental laws page]

- The National Education Law No. 77/2018.

- Rape and Sexual Offences Law No. 78/2018 (as gazetted, but it is reported that it will be amended by the House of Representatives at its next session).

- The National Water (Amendments) Law No. 49/2010 (2018)

 

22 June 2018: Recent updates-

Somaliland Police Law to be updated shortly - in the meantime, see here copy of the new Police Force Law (with a copy of the list of the articles in Somali & Eng).

 

20/03/2018: Report of the International Electoral Observer Mission of the 13 November 2017 Somaliland Presidential Election.

 

- Somaliland Official Gazette - January (3rd Feb) & February (3rd March) 2018 issues.

 

31/01/2018: Three important bills - The Police Law, the Prisons Law and the Civil Aviation Law -  have finally become law and were gazetted on 6 January 2018 . Copies of the laws are now available there, but we shall also be updating separately  their relevant webpages where more information about the laws will be be found. A new page will be covering Somaliland’s previous and current civil aviation laws. 

The gazetted copy of the Presidential Regulations (Decree Law?) amending the  Organisation of the Governmental and Public Bodies is also available here, but we shall also also cover it in the Administrative  Law page.

 

13/12/2017: The new Republic of Somaliland President (elected on 13 November 2017), Mr Musa Bihi Abdi,  has been sworn into office today, and details of the full results of the election by polling station.

 

26/10/2017: Somaliland Presidential Election (13/11/2017) Codes of Conduct for Political Parties for the Media, and Procedure for Resolution of Complaints/Disputes (all in Somali) are available here at the Electoral Laws pageAlso our Somali Compilation of the Election Law and the Codes and complaints/disputes Procedure in one volume.(77 pages).

 

29/09/2017: Somaliland’s first Regulations dealing with control of vehicle axle loads- Xeernidaamiyaha Lagu Maamulo Baabuurta Culayska Xaddhaafka ah 2017.

 

Updates: Somaliland Official Gazette: June, July and August 2017 issues.

 

11/08/2017: Updated pages: Somaliland HoR (Revised) Standing Orders 2006 [REPEALED] and Somaliland House of Parliament pages - UPDATE 18/08/17: Please note that the 2006 House Rules are still current and the 2014 new draft Rules which were  available at the House Website are NOT yet in Force. 2014 Rules are now in force.

 

20/07/2017: Updates pages: Somaliland Lawyers Association and the Somaliland Official Gazette

 

04/07/2017: English translation & Annotation of the Gazetted Presidential & Local Councils (Consolidation & Amendments) Law - No 20/2001 (2017) (pdf 51 pages).

 

10/04/2017: Updates on the Somaliland Voter Registration and also  International Observers’ Report on the Voter Registration.

 

01/04/2017: The Presidential & Local Councils (Amendments) Law has now been published in Supplement 1 of the Somaliland Official Gazette (April) dated 01 April 2017 as a Consolidated Law. This very welcome official consolidation replaces the official 6th Schedule Amendments Law gazetted on 4 February 2017, as well as our own recent consolidated Text of this Law (see below).

 

26/03/2017: Somaliland’s new Public Finance Laws (in  updated Public Finance Law page)- See the gazetted and other  versions of the laws as well as arrangements of the Articles in each law (in both Somali & English). The new laws are the Public Finances & Management Law; the Customs Law; the Inland Revenue Law and the State Auditor General Law. The fifth law, the Public Procurement Law is still in parliament.  The texts currently available are in Somali.

 

28/02/2017: The Presidential & Local Councils Elections (6th Amendments Schedule 2017) Law (No. 20/2001) (in Somali) as gazetted on 4/02/17.

 

20/02/2017: New Page: The independent 1960 State of Somaliland Constitution and main laws- Oath of office of the Prime Minister, Minister and the National Assembly members. Status as new State under International and treaties into.

 

 Somaliland Official Gazette January 2017 Issue dated 04 February 2017

 

06/02/2017: The Republic of Somaliland Declaration of its EEZ and details of its maritime zones in a letter to the UN dated 21 January 2017. Also map of the zones.

 

05/02/2017: Somaliland Maritime Laws page updated with a historical review of maritime laws and copies of the the 1989 Somali Maritime Law which replaced the 1959 Maritime Code Law extended to Somaliland in 1966.

 

Somaliland Official Gazette December 2016 Issue dated 07 January 2017

15/12/2016:Somaliland Official Gazette November 2016 Issue dated 03/12/2016

29/11/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette October 2016 Issue dated 5/11/2016

14/10/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette September 2016 Issue dated 1/10/2016.

04/09/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - August 2016 Issue dated 03/09/2016.

 

28/08/2016: Somaliland Societies in Europe (SSE) Statement - Somalia’s Latest Selections Process & Somaliland: Here we go again!’  “Somaliland’s successive elected governments have repeatedly and unequivocally confirmed that Somaliland was not and will not be a party to any post 1991 Somalian political arrangements, and the current on-going selection procedures for Somalia are no different from the numerous previous Somalian selections. We endorse that message again ...”

 

06/08/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - July 2016 Issue dated 06/08/2016. This issue includes two important Public Finance Laws: 1. The Somaliland Inland Revenue Taxes Law (Law No. 72/2016) and 2. The Somaliland Customs Laws (Law No. 73/2016, both coming into force on their publication in the Gazette. [We shall be covering the details of both these new laws and the  remaining new public finances laws, as well as  the repeals of the old laws, in this Public Finances Laws Page).

This Gazette also includes 7 Decrees establishing 7 new districts.

 

26/07/2016: Text in Somali and English translation of Annex 1 (May 2016) amending articles 7 and 26 of the 2014 Voters’ Registration Law.

 

19/07/2016: Copies of Somaliland Immigration Department Circular Order dated 24 April 2016 and follow up Notification Order dated 9 July 2016 on the procedures for obtaining travel visas to Somaliland.

 

16/07/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - May 2016 Issue dated 04 June 2016 and June 2016 Issue dated 01 July 2016.

NEC deadline for production of final Voters’ Register in Articles 7 and 26 of the 2014 Voters’ Registration  Law amended to read “within” 6 months of the election (May 2016 Gazette).

 

04/o5/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - April 2016 Issue dated 07 May 2016.

 

19/05/2016: Somaliland: A Unique State and Nation Spanning 3 Centuries, Press Release (Statement) by the Somaliland Societies in Europe on the 25th Anniversary of the Re-assertion  of the Independent State of Somaliland : “Many new countries in Europe and elsewhere have joined the international community since 1991 and it appears that Somaliland’s location in Africa and its misfortune to have been once part of the one of the most drastic state failures have overshadowed its unique (sui generis) case as highlighted in the conclusions of the African Mission to Somaliland in 2005.

23/04/2016: Law on the Delineation of the Organisation of the Government and of Independent Bodies - Law No. 71/2015 (Gazetted on 05/03/2016) - Pdf Copy of the Law and brief preliminary comments.

23/04/2016: Forestry and Wildlife Conservation Law - Law No. 69/2015 (Gazetted on 06/02/2016) - Pdf copy of the Law and a review of previous  laws

 

15/04/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - 2016 Issues:

- January 2016 Issue dated 06/02/2016

- February 2016 Issue dated 05/03/2016

- March 2016 Issue dated 02/04/2016

 

07/03/2016: Translated and annotated copies of the 2014 Voters’ Registration Law and the new Regulations issued by the Electoral Commission, as well as copies of various Codes of Conduct relating to the currently ongoing voter’ registration are now available.

Also a compilation in one volume  of the Somaliland VR Law and Regulations (170 pages - pdf) .

 

28/02/2016: The House of Representatives (HoR) has recently decided to consult widely about the long awaited revision of the 2005 HoR Election Law  and in particular about the controversial issue of the regional allocation of the 82 House seats. A note and comments on the consultation exercise.

07/01/2016: Somaliland Official Gazette - December 2015 Issue (02/01/2016)

07/01/2016: Decree announcing commencement (on 16 January 2016) of the  2016 nation-wide voter registration. Annotated translation of the 2014 Voter Registration Law available (soon).

 

19/12/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette -November 2015 Issue (05/12/2015)

 

29/11/2015:Time for re-casting the failed Somaliland-Somalia talks about the union that ended nearly 25 years ago” A Press Statement by Somaliland Societies of Europe (and endorsed by other Diaspora organisations) - “It is in the interest of both the peoples of Somaliland and of Somalia (as well as of the countries in the Horn and beyond) for the current failed talks to be recast into an internationally mediated process that can finally lay to rest the defunct union of Somaliland and Somalia. It has been nearly 25 years since Somaliland re-asserted its independence, and adding the eight or so years before then when the then Somali Republic State waged war against the people of Somaliland, the former two states of Somaliland and Somalia that united in 1960 have been in a state of disunion longer than they have been in a union. An amiable separation will avoid repetition of the costly war of the 1980s.

 

28/11/2015: Tower Hamlets Council passed, on 19 November 2015, a motion to recognise Somaliland as  an independent  state.

 

27/11/2015: Presidential Decree extending (for the second time) the term of office of the Political Associations & Parties Registration & Approval Committee (RAC) for another 2 years to 2017. Copy of the Decree (as gazetted).

Editorial Comment on the legal issues involved in the RAC term extension

 

26/11/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - October 2015 Issue (07/11/2015)

 

15/10/2015: Two reports were issued this month about the successes of Somaliland and the challenges facing it: 

- The International Crisis Group (ICG) issued, on 5th October 2015, a report titled “Somaliland: The Strains of Success”.

- The  Institute of Security Studies (ISS) issued, on 13 October 2015, a report titled “Somaliland at the cross roads: protecting a fragile stability”. “Since 1991, Somaliland has consistently confounded expectations, maintaining its steady progress in the face of obstacles which would have derailed plenty of other developmental states. History, therefore, is on its side. Long may the good news story continue.” (p. 13)

 

12/10/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - September 2015 Issue (04/10/15).

 

12/09/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - August 2015 Issue (05/09/2015)

 

31/08/2015: New Page - Somaliland Supreme/Constitutional Court (still completing): See Copies of recent Constitutional Court decision this month & last month. Text of the latest decision 02/2015 on the date of the Elections and initial Commentary: “A ‘bitter pill’ for the immediate ailment but no cure”.

 

06/08/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - July 2015 Issue (01 August 2015).  Copies of the Presidential Decrees (dated 27 July 2015) appointing 7 new Justices of the Supreme Court and dismissing two Justices are in this issue. With the newly recently appointed Chairman of the Court and two Justices already in post,  the Court shall now have 9 justices and the Chairman (the minimum number of justices, under Art. 101 of the Constitution  is 4 - not including the Chairman 4) . Under Art. 105  of the Constitution, it still remains the case that whilst the President must consult the Judicial Commission in the appointments of the Justices (and of the Chairman), neither their appointments nor their dismissals require parliamentary approval and there is no legal obligation on the President to consult the Commission about their dismissal although, in practice,  the President has done so in the current and past cases.

 

16/07/2015: Update Page- Somaliland Companies Law - Overview of  Somaliland Companies laws since 1947 : Copy of the Indian Act as extended to Somaliland in 1947, and a SLLaw.com pdf copy of the 2004 current 2004 Somaliland Companies Law ...

 

16/07/96: Somaliland Official Gazette - June 2015 Issue (04 July 2015)

Quality Control Commission Law (No. 68/2014) now in force as from 4 July 2015

 

19/06/2015: New page Somaliland Copyright Law charting Somaliland’s copyright laws since the first law in 1912 (the 1911 Copyright Act) and the last one which was the 1977 Somali Democratic Republic Copyright Law. Although neither of them have been widely implemented, we discuss their coverage and in particular the full text and a summary of the main provisions of the 1977 Law as well as the way forward for Somaliland to adopt a new and up to date Copyright Law. For other Intellectual Property Laws see this old page.

 

11/06/2015: Somaliland Council of Ministers (Cabinet) Rules of  Procedure (May 2015). Also for historical purposes, Somali Republic 1976 Council of Ministers Rules.

 

11/06/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - May 215 Issue (06 June 2015)

 

16/05/2015: Somalilandlaw.com Commentary: The term extensions are wrong in law and wrong for democracy: A call for an immediate Constitutional Court review and a statutory reform.

15/05/2015: House of Elders (HoE) latest three term extensions on 11 May 2015- Copy of the HoE Resolution (in Somali) and a summary of the 3 extensions.

08/05/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - April 2015 Issue  (02/05/2015). This issue includes a Corrigendum (Correction) of the previously gazetted (in January) version of the Voters Registration (Amendments & Additions) Law 2014 - The details of the corrections to both the previously (i.e January) Gazetted and the identical January HoR website published versions of the Law are explained in detail in this Voter Regsitration Law page.

 

15/04/2005: The House of Representatives has published at its website (on 31 March 2015) a new corrected version of the Voters’ Registration (Amendments & Additions Law) 2014 which  is different in a few places from the version previously published by the House and Gazetted in early January 2015. A copy of the new text and our comments on the differences between this and the earlier text are available at this page. We understand that the next (May) issue of the Official Gazette shall include the final corrected version of the Law as a corrigendum (correction) and we shall publish that  as the final definitive text of the Law.

 

05/04/2015: The Somaliland Criminal Justice Compendium has been launched by  UNODC on 31/03/2015. The Compendium consists of  six English and Somali language tools and manuals on crime prevention and criminal justice in Somaliland and is designed to enhance the Somaliland criminal system. We shall keep copies of these much needed manuals at this Criminal Justice page for reference.

 

05/04/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - March 2015 Issue  (04/04/2015).

Included in there is the Establishment of the Zakah Registration Officer (Pres. Decree No. 0460/032015 of 07/03/2015).

 

30/03/2015: On 26 March 2015, Cardiff City Council passed a motion calling ‘on the UK and Welsh Governments to recognise Somaliland as a sovereign state’. This the second UK city that made such a call - see below for the motion passed by Sheffield City Council on 2 April 2014.

 

17/03/2015:Somaliland Official Gazette - February 2015 Issue (07/03/2015).

 

25/02/05: In the light of the forthcoming debate in the House on the necessary changes to the 2005 HoR Election Law, I have reproduced a copy of the 2004 Jirdeh HoR Ad Hoc Committee Report here which is especially relevant to the ‘sunset clause’ 12(1) regional seats allocation of the 2005 Law that needs to be either re-c0nfirmed or amended.

21/02/2015: Updated page: The House of Representatives Election Law 2005.

09/02/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - January 2015 Issue (07/02/2015).

 

09/02/2015: Somaliland National Commission on the Control of HIV/AIDs Law (SOLNAC) (Law No. 67/2014) has come into force on its publication in the Gazette on 07/02/2015.

 

20/01/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - December 2014 Issue (03/1/2015).

 

14/01/2015: Civil Society Position Paper on Issues of Voter Registration and the Electoral Systems (SONSAF): Recommendations on the Voter Registration and on the Presidential and HoR elections.

 

06/01/2015: Somaliland Voters Registration (Amendments and Additions) Law- (Law No. 37/2007 as amended in 2014) (in Somali) was passed by both Houses and then signed by the President on 23/12/2014.

 Also: Brief Editorial Comment on the new Law (06/01/2015), and copy the Regulations relating to the Citizenship Registration and ID Cards.

Update: The Law came into force on 3 January 2015 when it was gazetted  in the December 2014 Issue of the Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

06/01/2015: Somaliland Official Gazette - November 2014 Issue. (December issue to follow shortly).

04/12/2014: Voter Registration in Somaliland: What to Watch in the Run-Up to Elections, Horizon Institute Discussion Paper No. 1 (20/11/2014)

 

29 November 2014: The House of Representatives approved today on a unanimous vote the 7 member new National Electoral Commission.

 

17 November 2014: The House of Representatives has published on its website some of the important bills currently  being considered by the House which include:

Prevention of and Combatting Terrorism Bill... Civil Aviation Bill.. Organsisation of the Government Bill.. National Education Bill...

ALL available at this Somaliland  Bills Page

 

17 November 2014: Somaliland Official Gazette - Latest Issue 10 (October 2014) - Issue 9 (September 2014).

 

17 November 2014: Somaliland Focus (UK) issues another Open letter to the Somaliland President on Media freedom in Somaliland: the arrest of reporters from Horn Cable TV and SomSat TVdated 16 October 2014.

 

31 October 2014: Somaliland’s Union and Disunion & the Lessons of the Scotland Referendum - A Press Release and a detailed Statement issued on 30 October 2014 by the Somaliland Societies of Europe (SSE) and endorsed by other Somaliland Diaspora Organisations: “If a 300 year old peaceful and prosperous union of two states has been considered for a possible dissolution through self-determination of the people of one of the states, then the dissolution of  a 30 year union of the two states of Somaliland and Somalia in May 1991 after a ‘genocidal’ war waged by the government of the union against the majority of the Somaliland people, and at a time when there were no avenues for the exercise of democracy, let alone internal self-determination, should surely be acceptable to any Somalian government claiming to be the successor to the pre 1991 government

 

28/10/2014: Flawed Scholarship & Dangerous Prescriptions (28/10/2014)- Centre for Horn of Africa Strategic and Policy Studies’ Critique of the CDI (Conflict Dynamics International) Report  on Cultivating Consensus - Exploring Options for Political Accommodation in Somalia (Feb 2014).

04/12/2014: A second critique of the CDI Report from the Somaliland perspective by  Adam Haji-Ali Ahmed and Abdi Zenebe (31/10/2014).

24/12/2014: Twisting Talks between Somaliland and Somalia: A third Critique on CDI Briefing Paper - by Mohamed Ahmed Mohamoud and Mohamed Abdillahi Dualeh (Dec 2014).

 

16/09/2014: Updated page - Somaliland Maritime Law ... Recent developments: Somalia’s EEZ Proclamation and Somaliland’s Protest Note re Somaliland Seas. Somaliland Territorial Seas - update...

15/09/2014: Updated page - Somaliland Police Law- Copy of the 1994 Police Law ... Current status of the 2013 Police Bill  

 

02/09/2014:  Pages updated in June/July/Aug 

- Issues 4 to 8 (April to August) of the Somaliland Official Gazette

- Updates on the Somaliland Police page - update on the Somaliland Police Bill... Decree on Establishment of the Somaliland Fire Brigade July 2014 (part of the Police Force) ..

 

- For historical purposes:  full copies (not available before) of the first Somaliland Citizenship Law 1960  of the Independent State of Somaliland ... and,  after the union and until May 1991,  the Somali Citizenship Law 1962 and the Somali Citizenship Regulations 1963.

 

06/05/2014: Updated Pages: Somaliland Citizenship/Nationality & National Origin spanning three centuries.  Also copy of the first Independent Somaliland Citizenship & Nationality Law 1960.

 

13/04/2014: Issue 3, March 2014, Somaliland Official Gazette. Two Presidential Decrees in this Issue:

 - Citizens’ Civil Registration Committees (PD No. 0378/032014 of 02/03/2014), and

- Re-possession of Privately Occupied Government Houses and Land (PD No. 0379/032014 of 08/03/2014

 

06/04/2014:  Sheffield City Council Calls for the International Recognition of Somaliland - Text of the Council motion (02/04/2014)

 

03/03/2014: Issue 2, February 2014, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

08/02/2014: Disabled Persons’ Access to Public Buildings Decree  Dec 2013

 

08/02/2014: Ministerial Order on Traffic Law  Ban on buses with left side doors, vehicles annual tests and Driving licences - with effect from 1/1/2014.

 

08/02/2014: Issue No 1, January 2014, Somaliland Official Gazette.

                          Issue No 12, December 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

24 December 2013: Issue No. 11, November 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette. Note this issue includes the President’s Decree putting into force the 2014 Budget.

 

29 November 2013: Update:  Somaliland Organisation of Judiciary Law - (2003 & 2008) - Riddle of the two texts of this Law - COMMENT. The 60 Articles version endorsed by the HoR is now used predominantly.

 

28 November 2013: New Update - Somaliland Civil Procedure Code. Background, full copies of the 1974 Civil Procedure Code. Brief comment on the need for  considerable changes in the Code...

 

25 November 2013: NEW UPDATE - Somaliland Civil Code - new introduction and, for the first time,  copies of the large 1973 Civil Code in Arabic (and Italian),  as well as the Somali full text in scanned separate files under  their relevant chapter headings. No English version of the Code was ever done but we have provided now chapter headings in English.

 

17 November 2013: Media Issues:

 -  Somaliland Focus UK, in , writes to the Somaliland  Gov’t (on 11 November 2013) on  its concerns about the  ‘harassment and intimidation’ of the news media.

- Somaliland Independent Media Declaration and Legal critique of a new Media Bill said to be considered by a House Committee.

-Short Editorial comment.

 

06 November 2013: Issue No. 10, October 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette

25 October 2013: Somaliland Open for Business: New Investment  Portal and Guide

 

22 October 2013: Issue No. 9, September 2003, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

05 October 2013: The Advocates Law 30/2004 (as amended in 2013) came into force on 28 September 2013 - the consolidated text (as passed) and a note on the changes.

 

Law on the Privileges of Former Presidents, Vice Presidents & Members of Parliament Law No. 62/2013 - The Law came into force on its signature by President on 28 September 2013.

 

26 September 2013: Roads Development Levies Law (Law No. 64/2013) passed by the House on 24 September 2013 and signed into law by the President on the same date. Copy of the Law and a note.

15 September 2013: Issue No. 8, August 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

Updates Pages: Somaliland Prisons Bill 2013 and Justice Minister’s Briefing on the Bill to the House.

House Bills Page - update on bills that have become laws and copies of new bills at the House which has recently started its 22nd session

 

28 August 2013: Issue No. 7, July 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

11 July 2013: Somaliland Statistics Law (Law No. 60/2013) signed by the President on 16 June 2013 and coming into force on the date of its gazetting on 6 July 2013.

 

11 July 2013: Issue No. 6, June 2013, Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

12 June 2013: Steve Kibble and Michael Walls, Swerves on the Road - Report by International Election Observers on the 2012 local elections in Somaliland, Progressio, June 2013: “... while the election in all its phases was free, … ‘equal opportunity cheating’, or to use more prosaic language, widespread multiple voting, prevents us from declaring the election ‘fair’ “

 

Issue 5 (May 2013) Somaliland Official Gazette

 

10 May 2013: Issue 4 (April 2013) Somaliland Official Gazette

 

02 May 2013: Somalilanders Speak - Lessons from the November 2012 Election - Report by Makokha J and Yusuf A (Safeworld April 2013)

 

25/04/2013: UPDATED PAGES:

 Maritime Law - Somaliland and Somalia Maritime regime strategy

Piracy Law: Presidential Decree (2012) establishing the Somaliland Counter Piracy Co-ordination Office and overview of the work of the Office.

Fisheries Law - updates

 

20/04/2013: On 6 April 2013, the House of Elders extended the term of office of the House of Representatives for a further period of 2 years and 27 days and then extended their term for another 3 years.

 

06/04/2013: The Somaliland Traffic Law 2013 - Xeerka Wadda Marista Gadiidka (Xeer Lr. 56/2013) has been signed into Law, on 30 March 2013, by the President. It has been published in the Somaliland Official Gazette dated 6 April 2013. This much need law is now in force.

 

06/04/2013: House of Elders - Direct or Indirect Elections? See previous bills

 

Pages UPDATED in February/March  2013

February 2013 Issue - Somaliland Official Gazette

Airport Security Tariffs Law - Law No. 61/2013

Establishment of the Good Governance Commission Law -Law No. 58/2012

 

Somaliland National Water Law - Law No. 49/2011

Somaliland Civil Service (English & Somali) - Law No. 7/97

 

14 January 2013: New Laws signed by the President on 09 January 2013 -

 The National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Law: Law No. 59/2012

 The Health Professionals Committee Law (as amended): Law  No. 19/2001.

 

13 January 2013: Updated pages ... Electoral laws ... Political Parties ... New issues of the Official Gazette  .. Immigration Law ...

 

03 December 2012: International Observers’ early statements on the Somaliland’s fifth set of elections since 2002.

 

25 November 2012: Articles on the Emergence of the Somaliland new political parties -

Part one: The Election and the RAC Determination

Part two: Election Over: The three parties and floor crossing

 

25 November 2012:  28 November Local Elections International Observers’ Press Release - “The 55-strong team has assembled in the capital city of Hargeisa, ready to deploy to all six Somaliland regions, where voters will turn out at more than 1,700 polling stations on November 28th. The mission follows previous observations of elections in Somaliland in 2002, 2005 and 2010 ...”

 

November 2012: Updated Pages - Somaliland political parties Laws; The Art.6 Code of Conduct..

 

10 November 2012: Issue 10 Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

12 October 2012: Doing Business in Hargeisa ... Coming soon New page “Business and the Law” gathering together in one page business laws currently scattered in various pages.

 

11 October 2012: Updated pages -  new issues of the Somaliland Official Gazette.

 

11 October 2012: Islamic Banking Law (now in force) ... Comments on whether or not banking laws should also go to the HoElders.

 

19 September 2012: Somalilandlaw.com Unofficial Consolidation of the 2001 Election Law and its 5 Amendments now available in English and also here.

 

05 September 2012: Somalilandlaw.com Unofficial Consolidation of the 2001 Election Law and all its 5 Amendments is now available in Somali. A copy of the 2001 Law, as it was originally passed and copies of each schedule are available here.

 

26 August 2012: Somaliland Diaspora Groups issue a Press Release and an “August 2012 Statement” about Somaliland and Somalia’s new constitution and gov’t. The gist of the message is: “We are ..., yet again saddened by the fact that Somalians are still busy crafting constitutions and governments that claim to include Somaliland, when it is clear to everyone that since 1991, Somalilanders have not only established peace, but have adopted, a long time ago,  their own Constitution and have their own democratically elected president and parliament.   Whilst we hope that Somalians achieve the peace and stability that has evaded them so far, we urge them and the international community to accept and respect the irreversible decision of the Somaliland people to re-gain their sovereignty in May 1991.  We state unequivocally once again, ‘We have our own constitution and elected representatives, good luck with yours’.”  

 The Press Release:   [English]  [Somali]

The August 2012 Statement: [English]  [Somali]

 

18 August 2012: With both Houses of Parliament passing the 5th Amendments Schedule to the 2001 Election Law at  extra-ordinary sittings on 7 and 11 August, the National Electoral Commission announced, on 12 August 2012,  that the long delayed nation-wide elections shall be held on WEDNESDAY, 28 NOVEMBER 2012.   As set out in Article 8 of the 2001 Election Law, the NEC’s declaration of the polling date was published, on 16 August 2012,  in a Presidential Decree (No. 082012).  The 5th Amendments Schedule was signed by the President on 12 August 2012

 

08 August 2012: Issue 6 (07/0712) and Issue 7 (04/08/12) of the Somaliland Official Gazette. Also Special Issue 4:  2012 Budget Supplement

 

05 August 2012:  Fourth Amendments Schedule to the 2001 Election Presidential Election Law Signed into Law by President on 25 July 2012, but the House (which is currently in recess) has been asked to re-convene for an extra-ordinary session on 7 August 2012 to reconsider the fourth schedule Amendments and specifically on the design of the ballot paper of the PR open list system.

Copy of the 4th Amendments Schedule as signed by the President (in Somali)

- Somalilandlaw.com Consolidation of the 2001 Election Law and all it 4 Schedules of amendments up to July 2012  - Xeerkii & 4tiisii Lifaaq oo Isku Dhafan.

    “In re-considering the 4th schedule amendments on 7 August 2012, Somalilandlaw.com urges the House to take this opportunity to add to the new Schedule 5 amendments the provisions relating to the reserved seats for women and excluded Groups which are included in our suggested draft schedule 5 amendments (see below).” - Editor (05/08/2012)

21 July 2012: House Committee Reserved Seats Bill proposes reserved seats at local councils and parliament for women and excluded communities. Somalilandlaw comments on the House Bill and a suggested  Somalilandlaw.com draft Amendment Law  amending the 2001 Election so as to prioritise, in the light of the fast approaching  local elections,  the reserved seats for local councils.  The House is now in its Ramadan Recess until early September 2012.

6 July 2012: New report (Heritage Foundation: 18/05/2012) recommends to President Obama:

    Recognize Somaliland’s provisional independence. Somaliland is a model that proves democratic governance in Somalia is possible. Hargeisa’s connections to Mogadishu are limited to the extent that Somaliland’s government is forced to deal with the effects of the TFG’s failures. Somaliland is a willing partner in the fight against piracy and terrorism and can do more, but is prevented from doing so by the fact that it lacks state status and therefore cannot participate in international forums.

15 June 2012: Issue 4 (April) Additional Supplement and Issue 5 (May) of the Somaliland Official Gazette are now available.

14 June 2012: CPJ  Calls on Somaliland President to end press crackdown

9 May 2012: Issue 4 (April) of the Somaliland Official Gazette is now available.

27 April 2012: NEW... English language translation and extensive annotations of the Consolidated text of the Regulation of the Political Parties and Associations Law & Amendments 2011... Also an update of the Political Parties & Associations page - summary of the legal developments to date.

24 April 2012: The Somaliland Central Bank Law -Law No. 54/2012 has been signed by the President and came into force on 12 April 2012.

10 April 2012: The  Maintenance of Public Order & Security Law Law No. 51/2012 is now in force as from  7 April 2012. The Law repeals the 1963 Public Order Law. Copy of the Law and other details... Handbook on this Law (to come)...

06 April 2012:  New  .. Some of the Bills at the HoR .. List of Post 1997 Laws (coming soon) ... New Website of the House of Representatives (RECOMMENDED see links on the right side of this page)

26 March 2012: New Somaliland Immigration & Refugee Law page .. Somaliland Immigration Law 1995 (full copy and English headings of the 47 articles)... Types of Somaliland visas.. Refugee Law 1984 as modified ... Somaliland Asylum/Refugee  Determination Procedures...

25 March 2012: Somaliland Police Regulations 1995 (full copy) .. Updated page - Police Law

21 March 2012:  [New PIRACY LAW PAGE]. Inadequacies of the Penal Code in tackling piracy

Somaliland Piracy Law  - Law No. 52/2012 (Somali text & English translation). 

Somaliland Transfer of Prisoners Law - Law No. 53/2012 (Somali text & English translation).  Both laws have now be signed by the President on 21 March 2012 and are now in force.

 

21 March 2012: Updated page: Somaliland Prisons Law...  Copies of:

the 1996 Somaliland Prisons Law and the 1996 Structure of the Corrections Corps Law..... Transfer of Prisoners Law 2012

 

16 March 2012: Updated Pages:   Somaliland Maritime Law .... Somaliland Territorial Sea and Contiguous & Exclusive Zones ...  Somaliland Fishery Law 1995 (text in Somali & an English Translation) ...

16 March 2012: ASIL Article [Vol. 16, Issue 9, 15/03/2012] on the effects of the incompatibility of Somalia’s 1972 Territorial Sea Law with the Somalia’s accession to and ratification of the UNCLOS. (Despite lack of recognition, Somaliland’s position is different, specially in its enforcements in relation to fishing in its territorial waters and EEZ claims under its own municipal law).

23 February 2012: Former Somalia General & Prime Minister  Mohamad Ali Samantar accepted liability before U.S. federal judge  for torture, extrajudicial killing, war crimes and other human rights abuses committed against the civilian population of  during the brutal Siad Barre regime -  Centre for Justice & Accountability

21 February 2012: House of Representatives passes the Somaliland Piracy Law [Law No. 52/2012] and the Transfer of Prisoners Law [Law No. 53/2012] - copies of both laws shall be available shortly in a new webpage.

11 February 2012: First Issue (Year 1, Issue 1) of the Somaliland Republic Official Gazette published (Chief State Counsel’s Office).

7 February 2012: Xeerka Doorashooyinka & Golayaasha Deegaanka 2001 iyo Wax ka bedellediisii 2009, 2010 iyo 2011 oo d

 

han- Somalilandlaw.com Consolidated copy of the 2001 Election Law with all its amendments (in Somali).

7 January 2012: Somalilandlaw.com welcomes the promulgation by President of  the Somaliland Republic Official Gazette Regulations 2012 on 4 January 2012.

22 December 2011: Consolidated text of the amended Regulation of the Political Parties and Associations Law 2011 FINAL (in Somali) .... Presidential Decree putting into force the amendments to the Law on 13 December 2011, and the amendments on their own.

22 December 2011: 2011 Amendments to the 2001 Election Law .......  2011 Amendments to the 2007 Voter Registration Law. Both amendment laws came into force on 13 December 2011.

15 December 2011: Law Forbidding Participation in Somalian Meetings 2003 (as amended in 2012): Text, annotations and brief commentary. This Law was amended on 5 February 2012.

11 November 2011: Updates ... Military Law ... Intellectual Property Law .

24 October 2011: Regulation of Political Parties and Associations Law House of Representatives passed on 22 October 2011 amendments to Law No.14/2011.  A Copy of the amendments on their own and a Somalilandlaw.com Office Consolidation of the the Law with its amendments in one text are now available .

24 October 2011: Minister of Justice calls for aid to implement fully the Somaliland Juvenile Justice Law

23 August 2011: President signs the new Law No. 14/2011 on political associations and parties which came into force on 20 August 2011.

31 July 2011: The House of Representatives passed today the new Regulation of Political Associations and Parties Law - Law No, 14/2011. Copy of the law and background information.

26 July 2011: Appointment of the new Chief Justice approved at a joint session of both Houses (details to follow) and other changes at the Supreme Court.

 

June 2011: African Game Changer? The Consequences of Somaliland’s International (non) Recognition, Brenhurst Foundation Paper 2011/05

 

18 MAY 2011: Somaliland marks the 20th anniversary of the  reassertion of  its sovereignty.   Statement of the Somaliland Foreign Minister on 18 May 2011

omaliland Intellectual Property Law -  review and recommendations

New 2011  Laws: Somaliland Telecommunications Law. water Law  NDC Law. Updated Pages: Somaliland Administrative Law... Somaliland Police Law...  Criminal Procedure Code .... Traffic Code ... Public Finance laws... Somaliland boundaries... Prisons Regulations.... Presidents signs the Somaliland National Human Rights Commission Law (SLNHRC)

DISCLAIMER: The information and comments on the law in this website are provided free of charge for information purposes only. Every reasonable effort is made to make the information and comments accurate and up to date, but no responsibility for their accuracy or correctness, or for any consequences of relying on them is assumed by the author(s) or by the website owners/publishers. The information and comments do not and are not intended to amount to legal advice to any person on any specific case or matter.  

 

SLUK18MAY POSTER

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SOMALILAND CONSTITUTION

Somali (pdf)    English (pdf)

(Somali Text, as originally printed & signed on 30 April 2000)

 

For more constitutional information see Somaliland Constitutional Developments Page where you can find, for example:

And also  about the abrogated 1960 Somali Republic  Constitution and  its 1961 Referendum results as well as the  the 1979 Barre Constitution and its Referendum results.

 

NEW: Somaliland Civil Aviation Law

Somaliland Official Gazette

[From January  2012]

Also available at the Somaliland Chief State Counsel website

Direct links to sub-pages not listed on the left or the bottom of this page:

Commercial Laws - other

Trading Businesses Classification

Electoral Laws - Main page

Local Gov’t & Presidential Elections Laws.

House of Reps Election Law

Elders s/election bills

Voter Registration -New 2014 Law

Immigration & Refugee Laws

Juvenile Justice Law

Organisation of Justice Law

Criminal Justice System (NEW)

Legislation - General

Legislation - Bills

Somaliland Official Gazette

Notaries Law

Houses of Parliament Rules

Political Parties & Assoc. Law

Public Order & Security Law

Somaliland Seas - Territorial & other

Fishery Law

Piracy Law

NEW Somaliland Copyright Law

Recognition of Somaliland – claiming our rightful place within the community of nations: Information about Somaliland’s quest for international recognition available at the above  Gov’t official website

02 February 2015: The Case for Somaliland Recognition- A U-tube Presentation (35min.) by Mohamoud Adan Jama

The International Recognition of the Republic of Somaliland

See also below  for links  to some of the materials

 2001 Booklet: Demand for Somaliland Recognition  (pdf file)

When is a state a state? the case for recognition of Somaliland: A.K.Eggers (2007), Boston College International & Comparative Law Review, Vol 30:211

Somaliland  recognition:

1. SNM Executive Committee Paper 2000

2. Somaliland Forum Submission 2001

Somaliland: On the Road to Independent Statehood? J. Peter Pham, Ph.D. 13/12/2007

Somaliland Electoral Laws Handbook 2009.

For updates, see:Electoral Laws Page

National Electoral Commission

Somaliland Links

LEGAL LINKS

Somaliland Lawyers Association SOLLA (currently not available)

Somaliland Women Lawyers Association (not available)

Link to information about Somaliland Lawyers ... NEW

House of Representatives

 

Copies of (a selection of) Laws Signed by the President

 

BILLS (Draft Laws) at the House from April 2012

 

House Debates on Bills & other matters

House of Elders

Investmentguide-pdf

Somaliland Universities & Research Centres

Golis College

Hargeisa University

Amoud University

Burao University

Academy for Peace & Development

SORADI

Institute of Practical Research and Training

Abaarso Tech

Amoud University Medical School

The Horizon Institute

 

 Somaliland Civil Groups

Somaliland Non-state Actors Forum -   SONSAF

NAGAAD

HAVAYOCO

SONYO - Youth Umbrella

 

Somaliland Newspapers

Geeska Africa

Ogaal Newspaper

Haatuf

Somaliland Times

Jamhuuriya

Ogaalnews

Somaliland News Websites

Somaliland DWO

Awdalnews

Hadhwanaagnews

Somaliland.org

SomalilandSun

Togdhernews

SomalilandPress

Waaheen

 

 

 

 

Somaliland Radio & TV

Radio Hargeysa NEW

Somaliland National Television

 

Somaliland Political Parties

Wadani

KULMIYE

UCID

Somaliland Government

Somaliland Gov website

Ministry of Planning

Immigration Department

Ministry of Minerals & Water

Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International co-operation

Ministry of Education

Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Tourism

Ministry of Livestock

Ministry of Aviation

Association of Local Gov’t Authorities of Somaliland

Somaliland National ICT Commission

Somaliland National Tender Board

Chief State Counsel

Ministry of Health

Ministry of Internal Affairs

Ministry of Trade & Investment

Ministry of Justice

NHPC -National Health Professions’ Commission

National HIV/Aids Control Commission (SOLNAC)

Somaliland 1980s

War Crimes Investigation Commission

Somaliland Diaspora Agency

Somaliland Societies in Europe SSE

Somaliland Forum

UDDA (Ururka Daryeelka Distoorka)  Promotion of the Constitution Group

 

 

LINKS TO PRE-2011 FRONT PAGE POSTINGS

 

28/12/2010 President returns the Law on the Settlement of Salaries and Emoluments of the President, Vice-President and the Members of the Two Houses  (Law No. 46/2010) to the House  of Representatives.   UPDATE: The Law has since been signed by the President on 13 February 2011 - Copy of the final amended Law No. 46/2010.

Hargeisa Legal Clinic 2010 Annual Report.  Updated pages: Public Safety Laws ...  Public Finance Laws ...

Hope and Caution in Somaliland (09/12/2010) - Somaliland's government 'will need to be far more clear-sighted and long-term in its vision to obtain not just outside support but sustained momentum for democracy and development', write Steve Kibble and Michael Walls, in an assessment of the first few months of the new presidency.

Updated pages:  Security Committees abolished ...  1971 Prison Law ... 1996 Direct Taxes Law  and the Stamp Duty Law  etc... New laws signed by President M A M Silanyo ...

 

Self-Determination and Conflict Resolution: From Kosovo to SudanSpeech by Louise Arbour, President and CEO of the International Crisis Group to the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, 22 September 2010: In the case of Somaliland, insistence by the African Union on the increasingly abstract notion of the unity and territorial integrity of the Somali Republic, with Somalilanders governed again from Mogadishu, is both unrealistic and unsupported by more than twenty years of state practice. Any attempt to re-impose centralized control by Mogadishu would almost certainly open a new chapter in the Somali civil war.

 

Multi-party Democracy in the Horn of Africa: Somaliland 2010 Presidential Election (Outside link) ...  See also other reports about the election

Updated Pages: Military Criminal Code 1963 ...  Electoral Laws/Codes .

 Non-Governmental Organisations Law (passed by the House of Representatives on 10 May 2010 and now approved by the House of Elders).

National Budget Law (passed by the House on 10 May 2010, but returned by the President unsigned on 1 June 2010)

 

Electoral Laws updates May 2010 Second Amendments to the Presidential & Local Elections Law 2001 ... Somalilandlaw.com Text consolidation of the 2001 Election Law and all its amendments ...Codes of Conduct for the Political Parties ... Six point MOU ... First Supplement to the 2009 Electoral Laws Handbook (Supplement coming out soon) ..

 

Who do you Want to Dispense Justice - Committees or Courts of Law?”:  Somalilandlaw.com Editorial 21 March 2010. (Information about the continuing extra- judicial activities of the Somaliland Security Committees is also available at this link).

Hargeisa Law Faculty Legal Clinic Quarterly Report 2010: Mohammed M Jama, Director, Human Rights Unit, 20/03/2010

A note on Mohamed Barud’s “The Mourning Tree - An Autobiography and A Prison Memoir” published on 20 February 2010

 

Full English Language copies of the PENAL CODE 1962  (now available) and the CRIMINAL PROCEDURE  CODE 1963 (Available soon) -

 

Somaliland Veterinary Code (in Somali) (Also Somalilandlaw.com view about the controversy relating to the passage of the Law)

 

International Crisis Group Briefings: December 2009: Somaliland a Way out of the Elect0ral Crisis  ... see also: May 2006: Somaliland - Time for an African Leadership

 

UDDA Press Release on the Somaliland Security Committees’ extra-judicial activities - 29/12/2009 (in Somali)

 

RECOMMENDED: Somaliland Independent Scholars’ Group (ISG) topical papers on the Somaliland delayed presidential election- available at the website of the Somaliland Social Research & Development Institute (SORADI) 

UDDAA (and other Somaliland organisations, including somalilandlaw.com) issue a statement about the recent events relating to the long delayed 2009 Somaliland presidential election.

 

Somaliland Presidential and Local Elections law (Amendment) Law 2009  (in Somali)

Another unconstitutional term extension: Text (Somali) & explanatory note of the House of Elders’ Resolution on 13 March 2009 extending  the presidential term of office.

Updated Pages:  LabourEmployment Law as amended ...    Electoral Laws page .....  Mining Laws ...

 

SOMALILAND ELECTORAL LAWS Handbook (264 pages) in English & Somali by Ibrahim Hashi Jama, available for free downloading  from the  Electoral Laws page. 

Updated Pages:  Local Gov’t Law 2007.... Voter Registration Law & Amendments (Also now in English)..... Electoral Commission

The Somaliland Juvenile Justice Law (Law No: 36/2007)  has now come into force as from 21 April 2008: Somali text and an English language introduction.

The  Organisation of the Judiciary Law (Law no 24/03 & 06): This Bill was initially passed by the House of Representatives in 2003 and again in 2006  and was returned again   by the President. The President’s amendments were finally passed by the House, on 16 March 2008,  which could not muster the two thirds majority it required to push through the bill unscathed.  The Bill is now in force.

House of Elders Resolution on 10/04/2008 extending the Presidential term by one year. 

Somaliland Voter Registration Law (Law No: 37/2007):  Somali text of the final law passed in July 2007 and, now, as updated in 2008.

Jamhuuriya Interview with Somalilandlaw.com editor before the Guurti - Term extension decision - “Nabad xumid aan dalka ka jirini ma keeneyso Muddo kordhin distoori ah, laakin Muddo kordhin aan distoori aheyn ayaa nabad xumi dalka u keeneysa” -“Disorder that does not exist in the country will not bring about a constitutional term extension, but an unconstitutional term extension may lead to disorder”.

Somaliland Local Government Re-organisation through Presidential Decrees in an Election Year - An article (large pdf file) : 06/04/2008

Somaliland Cross-Party Parliamentary Group:  Formation (November 2007), Press Releases and visit to UK (February 2008)

New or Updated Pages: Electoral Commission .... Electoral Laws .... Environmental Laws ... Mining Laws

Courts of Law re-established in Las Anod, the Sool regional centre  31/12/2007

Somaliland National Human Rights Commission Bill submitted to the House by the Gov’t in November 2007:   Text in Somali. ALSO:     Jamhuuriya (Online) interview setting out Somalilandlaw.com editor’s comments on this Bill: 06/01/2007  (in Somali)

The new Somaliland Press & Publications Bill 2007: Text & comments (Somaliland.com urges the Representatives to reject this Bill completely and recommends instead the adoption of eight steps to strengthen press independence) - Somalilandlaw.com Editorial on this Bill: 07/01/2008

Protests about Somaliland Government’s “take-over” of the Somaliland Human Rights Network - SHURO-Net

 

Notes of APD forum  on the Somaliland Constitution: facilitated by Mr Michael Walls in August 2007

 

The Delayed Release of the three QARAN Leaders: An article exploring Somaliland law relating to presidential powers of “pardon & amnesty” 23/09/2007  (Update: The politicians were released on 18/12/2007)

Election Law Amendments 2007 Commentary Somalilandlaw.com Comments on the Somaliland Presidential & Local Councils Elections (Amendment) Bill 2007. (Update: This Bill was rejected by the House of Elders and has now lapsed).

 

Politicians Arrested: The imprisonment of  the three leaders of a new Somaliland political association, QARAN, on 28 July 2007 has led to wide spread condemnation - see for example the Press Releases from:   SHURO-NET              Somaliland Forum

 

Somaliland Presidential & Local Councils Elections (Amendment) Bill 2007- Text in Somali .

 

Somaliland Lawyers Association (SOLLA) Call for the abolition of the extra-judicial powers of the Somaliland Security Committees: Communique 07/06/2007

Shuro-Net Statement on the legal challenge of the extra-judicial powers of the Security Committees (23/05/07)

 

Somaliland Media Law: A Concept Paper by Associate Dean, Adam Haji Ali Ahmed, of HARGEISA UNIVERSITY LAW FACULTY.

Launch of the Somaliland Freedom of Expression Fund (Art.32 Fund)

Campaign to abolish the extra-judicial activities of Somaliland Security Committees

 

The Sheikh Concordat – Settling Constitutional Disputes in the Somaliland Way?- Article by Ibrahim Hashi Jama written in December 2006 and published in the Somaliland Focus Bulletin (www.somalilandfocus.org.uk)  

 

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