HARGEISA, Somalia Oct 5 (Garowe Online) - A dispute within the Election Commission in Somalia's separatist region of Somaliland ended uneasily on Sunday after the region's main political parties supported the commission's chairman, Mr. Mohamed Ismail.

A meeting was held Saturday night in Hargeisa, the breakaway republic's capital, with opposition party officials and election inspectors present, Radio Garowe's Hargeisa correspondent reported.

The officials widely endorsed Mr. Ismail as the Election Commission's legitimate chairman.

A day earlier, four members of the seven-member Election Commission said they
"voted" to oust Mr. Ismail and his deputy from power.

But Mr. Ismail rejected the vote as flawed, saying that he and the deputy chairman walked out before the vote.

Observers fear the Election Commission dispute could delay the voter-registration process, which is a necessity before the March 2009 presidential elections.

Somaliland, in Somalia's northwestern regions, declared independence in 1991 but has not been recognized internationally.

Source: Garowe Online