Non-Recognized States under civil war conditions: assessing sovereignty issues and perspectives of territorial entities in former Somaliaтезисы доклада
Аннотация:De-facto and\or de-jure dissolution of states and creation of political-territorial autonomies in poorest regions of the world today calls for a question whether it is possible to regard the emerging self-proclaimed entities in failed\failing States as non-recognized aspiring States, and consider them actors of the international system. These ongoing processes create a situation when it is hard to distinguish politically viable entities, which maintain the mechanisms of effective control and management of domestic and external security of self-proclaimed autonomies. This is seen by many as a threat to the security and democracy environment: the whole system of political interactions exists under conditions of regional power vacuum. In relation to regional security conditions these circumstances make it hard to outline politically viable entities, which maintain the mechanisms of effective control and management of domestic and external security of self-proclaimed autonomies. This can be seen as a threat to the security environment of the African Horn: the whole system of political interactions exists under conditions of a partial power vacuum. In international legal terms, a notion of a “belligerent recognition” may be applicable. In this sense, there emerges an opportunity for maintaining security at local levels: if the notion of a “belligerent recognition” is officially granted to viable local entities, it may arouse a certain degree of stabilization of political situation. This may be the case with Somaliland and Puntland, and to a lesser extent with Maakhir and Galmudug. The exercise of power over these territories and the maintenance of security is largely dependent on the activisation of new sub-state actors within the general configuration of a “failed state” scheme. These sub-state actors in case of Somali are represented by the ethnic clans and networks, which may be regarded as patronate-based local elites. These theoretical frontiers can become important in assessing challenges to governance in underdeveloped areas of the world. This paper seeks to explore the issue of non-recognized entities created in Somalia as this case is one of the most illustrative ones. In case of Somalia, there exists a number of self-proclaimed, diplomatically unrecognized units, which have been exercising a de-facto power in their territories for decades, and which now are acting and striving for recognition as actors of the international system in full right. However, the international role and status of these territorial entities remain unclear, as well as the basis and essence of sovereignty. This paper assesses the sources of sovereignty in current self-proclaimed entities on the territory of former Somalia and addresses the debates on whether any of these entities may aspire to a status of a State and the consequences this may bring.