The Greater Somalia League (GSL) was a political party in Somalia that advocated for the establishment of a Greater Somalia.
A political party is an organized group of people, often with common views, who come together to contest elections and hold power in the government. The party agrees on some proposed policies and programmes, with a view to promoting the collective good or furthering their supporters' interests.
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia (Somali: Jamhuuriyadda Federaalka Soomaaliya; Arabic: جمهورية الصومال الفيدرالية, translit. Jumhūrīyah aṣ-Ṣūmāl al-Fīdirālīyah, is a country with its territory located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti and Somaliland to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Guardafui Channel and Somali Sea to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. It is separated from Socotra by the Guardafui Channel in the northeast and from the Seychelles by the Somali Sea. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland, and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains and highlands. Climatically, hot conditions prevail year-round, with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall.
Greater Somalia comprises the regions in or near the Horn of Africa in which ethnic Somalis live and have historically inhabited. The territory historically encompassed British Somaliland, Italian Somaliland, French Somaliland, the Ogaden in the Ethiopian Empire, and the Northern Frontier District in the Colony and Protectorate of Kenya - at the present day, it encompasses Somalia, eastern Djibouti, the Somali region and Dire Dawa in Ethiopia, and the Lamu, Garissa, Wajir and Mandera Counties in Kenya.
The GSL was led by Haaji Mahammad Husseen. It was formed by dissidents of the Somali Youth League (SYL). [1]
The Somali Youth League (SYL), initially known as the Somali Youth Club (SYC), was the first political party in Somalia. It played a key role in the nation's road to independence during the 1950s and 1960s.
The party was fiercely nationalist and called for the unification of all Somali areas into one state. It charged the Somali Youth League with not wanting the unification of Somalia. Haaji Mahammad Husseen and a group of his followers were arrested after violent protests and put to trial. [2]
The GSL boycotted the 1958 municipal election, charging harassment from the SYL. [3] It also boycotted the later 1959 elections. [4] In 1958, Halima Godane was elected to Mogadishu's city council, representing the party. [5]
Halima Mohamed Yusuf, better known as Halima Godane (1935–1994) was a Somali poet and activist..
During its existence, the party enjoyed good relations with the Republican Union in French Somaliland. [6]
Republican Union was a political party in French Somaliland.
French Somaliland was a French colony in the Horn of Africa. It existed between 1883 and 1967.
The President of Somalia is the head of state of Somalia. The President is also commander-in-chief of the Somali Armed Forces. The President represents the Federal Republic of Somalia, and the unity of the Somali nation, as well as ensuring the implementation of the Constitution of Somalia and the organized and harmonious functioning of the organs of state. The office of President of Somalia was established with the proclamation of the Republic of Somalia on 1 July 1960. The first President of Somalia was Aden Abdullah Osman Daar. The current office-holder is the 9th President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed ‘Farmaajo’, since 16 February 2017.
Italian Somaliland, sometimes also referred to as Italian Somalia, was a colony of the Kingdom of Italy in present-day northeastern, central and southern Somalia. Ruled in the 19th century by the Somali Majeerteen Sultanate and the Sultanate of Hobyo, the territory was later acquired in the 1880s by Italy through various treaties.
Aden Abdulle Osman Daar, popularly known as Aden Adde, was a Somali politician. He was the first President of Somalia, serving from July 1, 1960, to June 10, 1967.
The Somalia national football team nicknamed ocean stars represents Somalia in men's international football. It is controlled by the Somali Football Federation (SFF), and is a member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
SYL may refer to:
The Somali Republic was the official name of Somalia after independence on July 1, 1960, following the unification of the Trust Territory of Somaliland and the State of Somaliland. A government was formed by Abdullahi Issa Mohamud and Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal and other members of the trusteeship and protectorate administrations, with Haji Bashir Ismail Yusuf as President of the Somali National Assembly and Aden Abdullah Osman Daar as President of the Somali Republic. On 22 July 1960, Daar appointed Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as Prime Minister. On 20 July 1961 and through a popular referendum, the people of Somalia ratified a new constitution, which was first drafted in 1960. The administration lasted until 1969, when the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC) seized power in a bloodless putsch and renamed the country the Somali Democratic Republic.
Abdirizak Haji Hussein was a Somali diplomat and politician. He was the Prime Minister of Somalia from 14 June 1964 to 15 July 1967. From 1975 to early 1980, he also served as the country's ambassador to the United Nations. A former Secretary General of the Somali Youth League, Hussein played a leading role in the nation's early civilian administration.
Abdullahi Issa Mohamud (Somali: Cabdullaahi Ciise Maxamuud, Arabic: عبد الله عيسى محمد was a Somali politician. He was the 1st Prime Minister of Somalia during the trusteeship period, serving from February 29, 1956, to July 1, 1960.
Somali African National Union (SANU) was an early political party in Somalia. It represented the coastal Banaadir region.
Parliamentary elections were held in Italian Somaliland on 8 March 1959.
Parliamentary elections were held in Somalia on 30 March 1964. The result was a victory for the Somali Youth League (SYL), which won 69 of the 123 seats.
Yasin Haji Osman Sharmarke was a Somali political figure and activist.
Haji Bashir Ismail Yusuf, commonly referred to as Haji Bashir, was a Somali politician. He was a prominent Somali Youth League (SYL) member and the first President of the Somali National Assembly during the Somali Republic's early civilian administration.
Osman Haji Mohamed, also known as Osman Baketti, was a Somali politician. He was a prominent figure in the government of the Trust Territory of Somalia and the succeeding civilian administration of independent Somalia.
The Somalia national u23 football team nicknamed The pirates of the oceans, represents Somalia in men's international u23 football. It is controlled by the Somali Football Federation (SFF), and is a member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA).
The 1969 Somali coup d'état was the bloodless takeover of Somalia's government on 21 October 1969 by far-left military officers of the Supreme Revolutionary Council led by Siad Barre. Somali troops supported by tanks under the command of Barre stormed Mogadishu and seized key government buildings and ordered the resignation of the country's leaders. The coup deposed President Sheikh Mukhtar Mohamed Hussein and Prime Minister Mohammad Egal and led to the twenty-one year long military rule by Barre and the imposition of a Marxist-Leninist government in Somalia until 1991.
The British Military Administration of Somalia or (BMAS) was the control of the regions of British Somaliland and of the former Italian Somaliland by the British from 1941 until 1949. At the end of 1949, it became a United Nations trust territory which would last from 1950 until 1960 whilst under Italian administration.
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