Flag of Somaliland
 |
|
| Use |
National flag 
|
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted | October 14, 1993 |
| Design | A horizontal tricolor of green, white which means the peace achieved after the war, and red Which stands for the blood that had to be spilled for independence, with the Shahada inscribed in the green stripe, and a black 5-pointed star charged on the white stripe |
The flag of Somaliland is used in Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region of Somalia. Having established its own local government in 1991, the region's self-declared independence remains unrecognized by any country or international organization. It contains the Pan-Arab colors of green, black, white and red. On the green stripe, there is the Sunni Shahada in white script, similar to that of the Saudi Arabian flag.
The Constitution of Somaliland, as approved on May 31, 2001, by referendum:
Article 7: The Flag, the Emblem and the National Anthem
1. The flag of the Republic of Somaliland shall consist of three horizontal, parallel and equal sections, the top section, which is coloured green and has inscribed in its midst in white in Arabic language La Ilaha Ill-Allah, Muhammadan Rasulullah ( لا إله إلاَّ الله محمد رسول الله, There is no god except for God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God); the middle section is white and has at its centre a black star; and the bottom section is coloured red.
The government set out principles on how to use the flag. It should be treated with respect and used very carefully and sensitivity. Because the Shahada has huge importance in Islam, the first pillar of Islam etc, regulations have specially been made on the usage of the flag.
It is forbidden for Somalis to fly the flag at half mast because it has the Shahada (which says in Arabic There is no other god except God, Muhammad is the Messenger of God) written on it so it will be an un-Islamic and disrespectful way to treat the flag. Even if the President or someone with a high Somaliland governmental status dies, the flag does not fly at half-mast. When the second President of Somaliland Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal died, he received a state funeral and thousands of Somalis flocked to witness his funeral and mourn his death but the flag of Somaliland was raised at full mast instead of the traditional half-mast gesture. Moreover, if a person is seen lowering the flag at half-mast, they might be taken to jail or to court and it would be considered as a criminal offense. Similar rules, for the same reason, also apply to the flags of Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
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Wikipedia