Nairobi, April 7 -- Somalia has, since the start of February, been trying to rewrite the Constitution, redirecting focus on a document that could encompass the basic principles and laws and determine the powers and duties of the government and its citizens.

It is an exercise that should have been done years ago but was delayed by fragile state institutions and the general security problem posed by the Al Shabaab.

On Saturday, the bicameral parliament passed certain amendments to several articles in the first four chapters of the provisional constitution of 2012.

But the move caused more cracks by smoothing over past divisions. Puntland, the semi-autonomous federal state and one of the oldest in the country, promptly rejected the review...