Disputes - international:
"Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities to land-locked
Ethiopia and establish commercial ties with regional states;
"Puntland" secessionists clash with "Somaliland" secessionists to
establish territorial limits and clan loyalties, each seeking
support from neighboring states; Ethiopia maintains only an
administrative line with the Oromo region of southern Somalia and
maintains alliances with local Somali clans opposed to the
unrecognized Transitional National Government in Mogadishu
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 375,000 (civil war since 1988, clan-based competition for
resources) (2004)
This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005
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@South Africa
Introduction South Africa
Background:
After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many
of the Dutch settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own
republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred
wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native
inhabitants. The Boers resisted British encroachments, but were
defeated in the Boer War (1899-1902). The resulting Union of South
Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate
development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid
politically and ushered in black majority rule.
Geography South Africa
Location:
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Geographic coordinates:
29 00 S, 24 00 E