Disclaimer: I am not try to be inflammatory; just asking an honest question that popped into my head following my observations.
Let's be real; no one has shown more support for Kenya's presence and the IGAD project than Ogaden. This support has even sometimes manifested in ways that could seem to some Somalis as "treasonous" and "fifth column". Now I have heard before the backhand quip "you are not even from Somalia" when addressing markedly taken Ogaden positions in Somalia---the best recent example I can give is the Mogadishu warlords charging some of the fighters for the ICU were Ogaden who are not Somali. I remember Guhad speak passionately against that a number of times.
The reality is those kinds of statements, while under the surface, were never embraced in mainstream Somalia discussions which accepted Ogaden as people of Somalia. Today, I honestly see a change. I see people who do not consider Ogaden as rer Somalia and who label them treasonous, someone even called them "fifth column" which is to say their entire citizenship in Somalia faces backlash. There has been a consideration that saw Ogaden as fellow pan-Somali citizens and allowed the Ogaden born in Jigjiga to work in Mogadishu as a national. For the first time, I see Somalis of Somalia who seriously categorize Ogaden as "the other", a foreigner.
If the IGAD project fails and/or Kenya leave, will the Ogaden presence in Somalia and consideration as a citizens of it have received a huge blow in the psychology and understanding of the Somalia national identity?
