Somaliland government welcomes the discovery of lost Dervish Film

Hargeisa (Somaliland.com) – Somaliland’s government welcomed the discovery of a long lost Dervish film and expresses commitment to advancing the history of the Dervish anticolonial struggle. 

Suleiman Yusuf Ali Koore, the minister of information today in a press conference commended the discovery as crucial to the revival of the Dervish legacy. The epic four-hour-long film was found in the National Film Archive of India vault after thirty-four years of its completion in 1985. It is made by Somaliland poet and playwright Saeed Salah Ahmed. The minister stated the government’s commitment is to advance the legacy of the Dervish movement.

Suleiman Yusuf Ali Koore announced that the government will organize conferences to celebrate and commemorate the historical nationalistic struggle of the Dervish movement. He said the conferences will be held at the nation’s capital Hargeisa, and the historic bases of the movement in Taleh and elsewhere.

The Dervishes waged a relentless war against the British rule in Somaliland between 1898 and 1921. It is credited with the inception of Somali nationalism and inspired all later nationalistic movements across the Somali regions.

Minister Suleiman Yusuf Koore asserted that the dervish heritage belongs to Somaliland people who are very proud of it. He stated that Somaliland could not be antagonized by invoking the legacy of the Dervish movement.