If you want to understand what is happening in Borama today, you must start long before modern politics, long before the old Somali state collapsed, and even before the map of Somalia was drawn.
You must go back to the world that shaped Somali identity for centuries — a world governed not by parliaments or constitutions, but by clans, xeer, and traditional authority.
Before the modern state, clan power wasn’t chaos — it was order
Somalis lived under a system that outsiders rarely understood. It was unwritten but remarkably functional. Territories were not carved by colonial lines. They were defined by relationships, alliances, grazing cycles, and heritage.
A clan wasn’t simply a “political group.”
It was:
- the social safety net,
- the justice system,
- the defense force,
- and the economic foundation.
Pastoral wealth — especially camel herds — determined influence, territory, and negotiation power. For generations, this system held Somali society together.
Then modern politics arrived — and ignored everything that kept society stable
The Somali state built in the 20th century attempted to replace clan structures with imported political models. It created ministries, parliaments, and bureaucracies that did not align with how society actually functioned.
This mismatch produced stress fractures that deepened until the state collapsed in 1991.
Once the state disappeared, people fell back on what they trusted:
their clans, their xeer, and their traditional boundaries.
This marked the beginning of what we would today call a long, slow restructuring of clan power across the country.
The South hit rock bottom — then reinvented itself
Clan warfare devastated southern Somalia. Eventually, ordinary people got tired of the cycle. They wanted an authority that wasn’t tied to sub-clan rivalry. This is how the Islamic Courts movement emerged: a homegrown response to chaos.
But their rise frightened neighbors and international actors. Ethiopia intervened militarily, and in the vacuum that followed, Al-Shabaab grew into the insurgency the country still battles today.
The north avoided this kind of total collapse — but it paid another price: 30 years of political imbalance hidden under the surface.
Somaliland’s stability was real — but it wasn’t equally shared
For decades, Somaliland projected an image of calm governance. And yes, compared to the south, it seemed impressive. But internally, power sat almost entirely with one clan family: the Isaaq.
Other communities — Harti, Samaroon, Ciise — had limited influence.
Their political weight never matched their population, history, or geography.
This imbalance held for 30 years.
Until Laascaanood exploded in 2023.
Laascaanood 2023: The moment the story broke open
The uprising in Laascaanood did not simply remove Somaliland from Sool and Sanaag.
It broke the illusion that the region was politically unified. Local clans reclaimed their political agency, aligned with the Somali federal system, and reshaped the balance of power in the north. Now become the member of Somalia federal state
It was the largest adjustment of clan authority in the region in decades.
Boorama is now going through its own reckoning
The clashes of the past 48 hours — tragic as they are — are not random. They are part of a long, quiet debate within Awdal about who gets to decide the region’s future.
Two major clans dominate the conversation:
Samaroon clan”
A community that feels its political weight has been overlooked for 30 years.
They see how Sool and Sanaag reclaimed their autonomy and are asking:
Why not us?
They want a political structure that connects directly with Mogadishu and gives Awdal real representation.
Ciise clan
A border-straddling clan, present in Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Somalia.
Their strategic position makes them wary of a breakaway Somaliland.
They face constant geopolitical pressure and see a united Somalia as essential to regional stability.
Boorama’s real question is simple — but historic
Awdal must decide:
- Does it remain under Hargeisa’s political orbit?
- Or does it build its own administration under Somalia’s federal system?
- Does it open Borama’s airport and reconnect the region to national trade routes?
This is not just a political moment.
It is a generational turning point.
- Clans are redefining their futures
Somaliland’s internal cohesion is being tested
The north is entering a new political chapter
And for the first time in decades, Awdal is the one holding the pen.
