Historic Gadaa Assembly in Baalee Bahaa Enacts Six Major Decrees for Social Renewal

LAGA HIDHAA DHAADDACHA HEEROO, BAALEE BAHAA – A major Gadaa assembly of the Arsii Sikkoo Mandoo generation is currently underway at the historic site of Dhaddacha Heeroo, signaling a significant restoration of its traditional leadership structure and the enactment of sweeping social mandates.

The central act of the assembly is the formal reinstatement of the senior Dhaddacha Heeroo council. This council, comprised of the five senior Luba Gadaa from among the younger Gadaa classes operating under the Odaa Roobaa ritual center, is being restored to its full authority. This move directly implements a prior resolution to reinstate twenty (Dhaddachas) of the Sikkoo Mandoo generation.

With the restoration of this senior council, the assembly has proceeded to deliberate on and proclaim six major decrees (murtiiwwan gurguddoo), addressing critical issues from marriage and culture to security and environmental protection.

The Six Major Decrees of the Assembly:

1. Leadership Restoration: Formalizes the return of the Dhaddacha Heeroo council and the reinstatement of the twenty Sikkoo Mandoo Dhaddachas, completing a key structural revival.
2. Regulation of Marriage and Heerumaa (Bridewealth): Mandates that gabbarri (a customary fine or compensatory payment) must be settled in cases related to marriage and bridewealth, aiming to standardize and resolve disputes within these customary practices.
3. Cultural Revival and Propriety: Calls for the return and strict observance of safuu (moral and ethical codes) and traditional customs (aadaa fi duudhaa), emphasizing a cultural renaissance rooted in ancestral values.
4. A Universal Mandate for Peace: Issues a powerful decree on peace (nagaa), stating that all unresolved conflicts must be settled peacefully. It calls upon every individual to heed the call of Gadaa fathers and Siinqee (women’s institution) elders and come forward for reconciliation, placing peace as the foremost communal priority.
5. Curbing Illegal Migration: Addresses the concerning trend of youth being trafficked and illegally sent abroad. The decree states this must stop, highlighting the Gadaa system’s role in confronting modern social crises affecting its youth.
6. Environmental Protection: Decrees the protection of natural resources (qabeenya uumamaa), specifically ordering that deforestation (biqiltuu) must be halted and managed. This underscores the indigenous ecological stewardship inherent in the Gadaa system.

A Living System Addressing Contemporary Challenges

The convocation of this assembly and the scope of its decrees demonstrate the Gadaa system’s dynamic role as a living governance framework. It is not merely conducting ritual observances but is actively legislating on pressing issues—from safeguarding youth against trafficking to enforcing environmental conservation and mandating universal peace-building.

The reinstatement of the senior council provides the institutional authority to oversee the implementation of these far-reaching decisions. The assembly at Dhaddacha Heeroo thus stands as a potent example of indigenous sovereignty in action, using its restored structures to mandate social, cultural, and environmental order for the Arsii Sikkoo Mandoo community and beyond.