344 Scarcity and Surfeit
the Awlyahan, meanwhile, have formed alliances with the minority Majertein
clan. However, control of deegaan through force in some cases is insufficient
to stake claims that 'stick', and effective occupancy is sometimes more
important to determining effective ownership of land.74
Deegaan as a Source of Conflict
The conflict in Jubbaland is very complex: many groups are involved and the
issues framing the conflict transform over time. However, access to and con-
trol of the pockets of productive land is at the core of the conflict in
Jubbaland. Control of productive environments in the Jubba River valley is a
chronic source of conflict, beginning before the arrival of Italian imperialists.
The potential for land and resources in the Jubbaland to generate livelihood
and political benefits motivates different groups and clans to stake claims.
Political competition and the role of land and resources in these have indeli-
bly shaped the nature of conflict in Jubbaland and Somalia more widely.
Cultural attitudes toward the land and resources, furthermore, are important
to understanding the conflict in Somalia. For example, in Somalia it is wide-
Iv acceoted that land and natural resources are eifts - from God and. therefore.
that no one individual or group should claim exclusive control. Cultural atti-
tudes such as these have stoked competing claims to deeg~n.'~ Availability
of resources alone does not lead to competition and conflict.However, it is
the perception of resource scarcity and the resulting claims by different
groups that leads to the onset of conflict. There is a perceived scarcity of
resources in Somalia that has encouraged different clans to stake claims to
the rich resources in the Jubba River valley.
With the eventual collapse of the Barre government in 1991, sub-clan dis-
putes over land and natural resources intensified. From 1991, with no central
authority to distribute resources and mediate competing claims, rights to
access, use and own land and resources became increasingly fragmented as
competing clans asserted their claims to different land and natural resources
in Jubbaland. Rights under customary tenure systems in many cases were
challenged during the period following the fall of the Barre government, a sit-
uation that persists. Even today, the process of reconciling different claims is
often violent. Conflict is common, although there are a few examples of
peaceful resource sharing. Customary rights to control the land and its
resources in this context have proved inconsequential. Instead, population
displacements by invading factions and land occupations prevail. Customary
rights are widely challenged by sub-clans and groups from throughout
Somalia, most of whom claim their own historical rights to land and
resources in Jubbaland. Instead, more powerful clans such as the Habar
Gedir or the Majertein stake broad claims to land and resources in Jubbaland,
although they lack customary rights by definition.