Somali Youth League

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Somali Youth League (SYL)

The Somali Youth League was the first political party in Somalia. It began as the Somali Youth Club (SYC) in 1943 in Harar, during the British administration after World War II. It later opened an office in Mogadishu. The group started with 13 founding members.

The SYL wanted to unite all Somali-inhabited lands, promote universal education, develop a standard Somali language, safeguard Somali interests, and oppose the return of Italian rule. It banned clan-based membership to keep the party united.

In 1948, after a visit by an international commission, the Somali Youth Club renamed itself the Somali Youth League (SYL) and expanded its offices to British Somaliland, Italian Somaliland, the Ogaden, and the Northern Frontier District. The SYL supported Greater Somalia and worked with the United Nations to advance Somalia’s independence.

The SYL was influenced by earlier Somali religious leaders and aimed to empower educated Somalis to participate in politics. It continued to stress that politics should not be based on clan lines.

In 1949 the United Nations decided that Italy would administer the former Italian Somaliland as a trusteeship, not return it to Italy. The SYL pressed for independence and for Arabic to be the official language of the trusteeship, while opposing the return of fascist-era officials.

Throughout the 1950s the SYL grew and opened more offices, gaining broad support. In 1960, British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland gained independence and united to form the Somali Republic. The government was led by Abdullahi Issa Mohamud and Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal; Aden Abdullah Osman Daar became the first president, and Abdirashid Ali Shermarke became prime minister (and later president).

In the first post-independence elections in 1964, the SYL won a large majority, taking 69 of 123 seats. In 1969 the SYL won again, but President Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke was assassinated and Siad Barre led a military coup. The coup dissolved the parliament, banned political parties, and created the Somali Democratic Republic.

Somali Youth Day is celebrated every year on May 15 to honor the SYL and its role in Somalia’s path to independence. The SYL’s legacy lives on in Somali history as the country’s first major political movement.