SUMMARY

The Garre is a pastoralist ethnic group that lives in the border area between Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. The group is believed to inhabit around 50 000 people. However, there are some claims that the group is much larger and has several hundred thousands of inhabitants. The group is considered as being from the broader Somali group but the Garre language is a dialect of Oromiyya and this fluidity and ambiguous ethnic identity makes it hard to categorize them. There are Garre living in Kenya as well as in Somalia but they all see themselves coming from the same people although their exist some language differences between the people living in Kenya and the ones living in Somalia. The Garre living in Somalia is mainly resided in Lower Shabelle and Gedo and makes their living as pastoralist or employed in work along the coastal areas of Somalia. Also, large numbers of Garre inhabit Kenya and Ethiopia. The political leadership within the Garre is made up of clan leaders and administrators.

The Garre sub-clan of the Digil-Mirifle is a Somalia clan of the Digil denomination. The Digil-Mirifle clan is one of Somalia’s largest, making up around 20% of the country’s population. The Digil and Mirifile clans are often grouped together and referred to as the Rahanweyn, but the Garre are a specific sub-clan of the Digil denomination.

The Garre clan is sometimes divided into the Tuff and Quranyowa sub-clans, but other genealogies also exist. This sub-clan, like many others in Somalia, has constructed its own militia and engaged in non-state conflicts with rivalling clans and political organisations in the chaotic environment that followed on Somali dictator Siad Barre’s fall from power in 1991.

Like most sub-clans with ties to the Rahanweyn the Garre are known to have had firm links to the RRA (Rahanweyn Resistance Army), which was an anti-Aideed faction formed in 1995. In 2002 the group formed an autonomous region called the “South-West State of Somalia”. See the RRA actor description for more information on this actor. In the 2000s the Garre sub-clan had strong alliances with their kinsmen in Ethiopia and Kenya, clashing with their rivals also in these states.

The Garre sub-clan of the Digil clan (Digil-Mirifle) has been involved in the non-state category of UCDP organised violence.