Mohamoud Ali Shire - Exile

Exile

Soon after Hassan's defeat, the British, dreading the prospect of another several decades of costly and difficult battles with yet another Somali potentate, set about attempting to neutralize Sultan Shire's influence. In short order, Shire was secretly invited to a conference in Yemen, ostensibly to discuss possible ways of settling differences. After a short session before the meeting was scheduled to begin, he was taken into custody by the British authorities. Sultan Shire was later tried without proper representation in a kangaroo court. Due to his vehement and active opposition to foreign rule over his territory, Shire was sentenced to exile in the Seychelles for a period of seven years. On May 3, 1920, on board the HMS Odin, Sultan Shire was delivered to British authorities in the Seychelles from their colony in Bombay, India. At the time of his arrival on the archipelago, a number of other prominent anti-imperialist leaders were also exiled there, including Sa'ad Zaghloul Pasha, the former Prime Minister of Egypt, with whom Sultan Shire would soon develop a rapport.

Despite this confinement, Shire managed to maintain his sultanate's autonomy, even after his ultimate return from exile. The Sultan continued to play a prominent role in local affairs until his eventual death a few months after independence: existing documents show that the British administration regularly sought his support before introducing any major policy changes so as to avoid alienating the influential leader.