Phase 2 Topic Selection: Somalia Civil Wars §

Topic 1 §

• 1. I want to examine the cause of the Somalia civil war. Question: What political factors influenced the cause of the Somalia Civil War? What are the political causes of the Somalia Civil War?
  • pick one specific thing as affecting the cause
    • competition for resources
    • competition for power
    • repression by the military regime
    • the colonial legacy
• Sub-Research Questions

  1. How did the military repression on the citizens of Somalia start the Civil War?

     Timeframe: which event specifically

  2. How did the struggle for power after independence lead Somalia to civil war?

     • How did Somalia’s past with colonialism help create the Civil War?

Why choose this topic over the over 5?

• Researchable
• Not too early to look at
• Not too overdone

How it contributes to IR?

• Contribution to Literature review, scholarly debate, policy…
• It explores an event that’s still ongoing

might be hard cuz situation changes since the conflict began

• Specify which civil war or timeframe

Read literature review to make sure your research questions are correct

• no more than 0.5 page for theoretical study
• Analytical discussion
• Optional: conceptual framework

Present short talk about what you found out

Timeline of Study §

1969 - Mohamed Siad Barre assumes power in coup after the assassination of the elected president; he goes on to declare Somalia a socialist state and nationalizes most of the economy.

1991 - The ousting of Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 sparks a decades-long civil war between rival clan warlords and the disintegration of central authority. Former British Somaliland declares unilateral independence.

1. How did the military repression on the citizens of Somalia start the Civil War?

   The event that led to Barre being overthrown. (attacked 3 cities killing 50k)

2. How did the struggle for power between clan warlords and separatist after the dissolution of the government lead Somalia to civil war?

   • one clan lords declared himself as president (Ali Mahdi Mohamed) held office for 1 year
     • Other clans objected

Use theory of how civil wars work

• Classify civil war: pin point what civil war Somalia is in

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Concepts

• Westernization
• Centralized State System
• Scientific Socialism
• Instrumentalist

Theory

• Proxy War Theory
• Primordialism

May 19, 2021 Research Methodology

• Introduction
• Objective & Research Questions
• write literature review
• Research Justification