Nationalism, and other non-clan principles such as religious principles, Sharia, Shura or its modern version, popular sovereignty, is strongest where clan cohesion weakens due to decline of blood relations resulting from substantive increase of migrant communities.
Nomadism tends to favor blood relations due to lack of settled life and a constant movement in search of posture and water; as people settle, more diverse relationships other than blood relations develop, gradually becoming more dominant than the blood relations.
When this happens old structure of societies crumble, new structures are needed to replace them.
Agrarian communities tend to face this transformation early on than their nomadic kinsmen and women due to intensive and cooperative nature of primitive agrarian life; it is precisely for this reason agrarian societies are more likely to adopt a universal principle wholeheartedly than than their nomadic countrywomen and men to support new stable and diverse relationships.
Generally speaking, centralized state institutions emerge to replace old tribal structure as people adopt more sedentary lifestyle and abandon more nomadic lifestyle.
For the first time in modern Somalia we see these transformations occurring right In front of our noses.
We expect cases where clan had lost its cohesive power to maintain a modicum of stable relationships that can be harnessed to galvanize collective action, the commitment to non- clan principle is strongest.
If so, agrarian communities in Bay and Bakool regions, and by extension southern and central Somalia communities, will display greatest commitments to non-clan principles, such as strict implementation of Sharia to support new social order, or Shura, to allow people to determine their political fate, elections and so on and regime of right and responsibilities, or amalgamation a of the two thereof.
No doubt, strict of implementation of the law, not as Shebab understands it, since they are one of many groups in Somalia , and elsewhere, but the law as most people will assent to its implementation owing to their recognition of its legitimacy, Ma'aruf, is necessary to establish lasting peace.
From this point of view proponents of Sharia have some truth in their argument, but their tendency to impose themselves on others and deny their right to determine their own political fate and force on others their understanding of the law mars their modicum achievement.
Nomadism tends to favor blood relations due to lack of settled life and a constant movement in search of posture and water; as people settle, more diverse relationships other than blood relations develop, gradually becoming more dominant than the blood relations.
When this happens old structure of societies crumble, new structures are needed to replace them.
Agrarian communities tend to face this transformation early on than their nomadic kinsmen and women due to intensive and cooperative nature of primitive agrarian life; it is precisely for this reason agrarian societies are more likely to adopt a universal principle wholeheartedly than than their nomadic countrywomen and men to support new stable and diverse relationships.
Generally speaking, centralized state institutions emerge to replace old tribal structure as people adopt more sedentary lifestyle and abandon more nomadic lifestyle.
For the first time in modern Somalia we see these transformations occurring right In front of our noses.
We expect cases where clan had lost its cohesive power to maintain a modicum of stable relationships that can be harnessed to galvanize collective action, the commitment to non- clan principle is strongest.
If so, agrarian communities in Bay and Bakool regions, and by extension southern and central Somalia communities, will display greatest commitments to non-clan principles, such as strict implementation of Sharia to support new social order, or Shura, to allow people to determine their political fate, elections and so on and regime of right and responsibilities, or amalgamation a of the two thereof.
No doubt, strict of implementation of the law, not as Shebab understands it, since they are one of many groups in Somalia , and elsewhere, but the law as most people will assent to its implementation owing to their recognition of its legitimacy, Ma'aruf, is necessary to establish lasting peace.
From this point of view proponents of Sharia have some truth in their argument, but their tendency to impose themselves on others and deny their right to determine their own political fate and force on others their understanding of the law mars their modicum achievement.
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