The question of the state and the rise of modern day terrorism in Somalia, 1990-2013

Abstract

The absence of a central state with an effective functioning government since 1991 plunged Somalia into civil war and chaos. This was fanned by other factors such as the rise of clanism, lack of efficient leadership, terrorism and environmental factors. This led to the loss of lives of many Somalis. Many fled and became refugees in neighboring countries. Somalia was declared a collapsed state because of the complete absence of the state capable of meeting its international obligations. This led to the gradual disintegration of Somalia with different factions claiming independence. In the midst of these difficulties, Somalia was abandoned with very limited intervention as a result of the casualties sustained by the international community in 1992. Faced with the situation and the need for survival, war lords claimed territories, imposed their own means of security and imposed taxes on the locals. Others, to ensure economic gains, took to piracy. The methodology used in this study is the qualitative method which is partly descriptive and partly analytic. Since literature about piracy on land remains relatively limited, data was gathered mostly from secondary sources and some primary sources through interviews with some key players with firsthand knowledge on the situation in Somalia. The data was immediately analysed based on the deductive data analysis strategy within the scope of the research to come out with the findings. The findings revealed that the absence of an effective functioning government in Somalia undoubtedly led to piracy that flourished off the coast of Somalia. This was due to the fact that the absence of coast guards exposed Somali territorial waters to foreign fishing vessels and the dumping of waste. This, coupled with other factors on land such as unemployment, forced Somalis to turn to piracy. Thus, piracy is only a manifestation of the events on land which the country has experienced since 1991. It is argued that direct military action by the international community is necessary eliminate the challenges posed by piracy. Countries affected by piracy should continue to assemble a force capable of escorting maritime vessels through the Gulf of Aden. However, this is only a short-term solution. A long term solution is to rebuild the state of Somalia with an effective government.