The inaugural meeting of Taiwan-Somaliland Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association took place at Taiwan’s legislature on Friday. DPP legislator Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀) was appointed as the chair of the association.
Taiwan’s Legislative Secretary-General Lin Jih-Jia (林志嘉) says he hopes the establishment of the association will facilitate a stronger relationship between the two parties. Vice Foreign Minister Alexander Yui (俞大㵢) says Taiwan and Somaliland both share democratic values, and says he looks forward to more collaboration on medicine, agriculture, fisheries, and information technology.
Somaliland’s representative to Taiwan Mohamed Omar Hagi Mohamoud says Taiwan and Somaliland share similar core values, including democracy and freedom, and the two are committed to pushing back against authoritarianism. He also says Somaliland supports Taiwan’s participation in international organizations, such as at the World Health Assembly as an observer, the International Criminal Police Organization, among others.
Somaliland is an autonomous region in northern Somalia, which broke away and declared independence from Somalia in 1991. Somaliland has informal ties with some foreign governments and representative offices in a network of countries. Though Taiwan and Somaliland do not have formal diplomatic relations, the two have established representative offices in each other’s capital.
By Sharon Lee
Radio Taiwan International
