SUMMARY
Unlike other multiethnic countries in the Sub-Saharan African context, the Somali society is characterized by a vast system of clans. Most of the population belongs to one of the five overarching clan families namely the Darod, the Isaaq, the Hawiye, the Dir, and the Rahanweyn (also known as Rewin or Digil-Mirifle). Each clan family is further divided into sub-clans and in some cases into sub-sub-clans. The origins of the clans are shared and each clan is related to the others, yet there are differences in terms of culture, tradition, and the form of life.
Up until independence in 1960, the Somali society was organized according to the clan system and each clan had a leader and a council of elders. These leaders played a major role in daily life and especially in intertribal relations. The council of elders was responsible for maintaining peace and harmony amongst the Somali people. Weakened clans were, for example, to be protected and were at times integrated into stronger clans in order to assure its survival. When inter-clan conflicts did occur, rules of conduct were agreed upon; such as caring for the injured or the treatment of prisoners.
During the post-independence era, traditional structures were replaced by modern governmental and judicial institutions hence removing the power once given to the clan leader and the council of the elders. As a result, relations between clans continuously deteriorated, which in turn also resulted in a stronger sense of affiliation to one’s own clan. This process contributed to, and was further strengthened by, the outbreak of the intra-state conflict in Somalia which began at the end of 1982. Clan-related conflicts continued to fuel non-state conflicts in Somalia.
The conflict between the Garre subclan of Digil clan (Digil-Mirifle) and the Jiddo subclan of Digil clan (Digil-Mirifle) was mainly over cattle and access to land, and was characterized by mutual cattle raids. Due to the availability of firearms and light weapons in Somalia, such cattle raids often ended with a deadly outcome. The mutual hatred expressed through these cattle raids resulted from disputes about land ownership. The Jiddo subclanclaimed that all the land in the Qoryooley region, a very fertile area, belongs to them exclusively, while the Garre subclan insisted on their right to use part of that land. This dispute was fuelled by years of drought in the late 1990s, making fertile land an even rarer resource.
The above-mentioned decrease in the importance of traditional structures and the disregard for traditional conflict resolution mechanisms allowed the dispute to turn violent and deadly. Throughout the whole conflict, clan elders and local Islamic courts tried to find a peaceful solution, and occasionally succeeded in concluding ceasefire agreements. However, those cease-fire agreements were only partly respected, and usually only managed to calm the situation for a short period of time.
The non-state conflict between the Garre subclan of Digil clan (Digil-Mirifle) and the Jiddo subclan of Digil clan (Digil-Mirifle) is first included in UCDP data in 2000. In June of that year fighting between the two groups led to more than 25 battle-related deaths.
