human rights abuses continue, and not surprisingly, in the land of black hawk down...journalists in mogadishu and other parts of southern somalia are at higher risk of violence this year on account of their reporting than ever before so far, seven media workers have been killed with impunity; four have been shot and wounded; several have been detained for short periods; and more than 30 have tried to flee the country to seek refuge in kenya...
are the producers of entertainment tonight even remotely concerned???
new death threats from unidentified quarters have been made against officials of the national union of somali journalists (nusoj)...on thursday, shabelle radio's website said that its reporter abdirizak warsame had been arrested, beaten and robbed at a police checkpoint after identifying himself as a journalist...several media offices -- particularly the hornafrik media network of eight radio stations, tv channel and website, which has lost five staff in recent years -- have been shut down for some periods by various authorities or been violently attacked.
yours truly, and oh yes, amnesty international, is calling on the transitional federal government (tfg) to conduct prompt, effective and impartial investigations into these criminal acts of killing or threats of violence against journalists and to bring those responsible to justice...said lynn fredriksson, advocacy director for africa at amnesty international usa:
"The U.S. government must also use its significant influence with the TFG to ensure it works to foster a political environment in Somalia that respects -- rather than fears -- the role of journalists."
the intensifying abuses and reprisals indicate a disturbing pattern of violations of the right to freedom of expression and the media, as recognized in international and regional human rights standards and somalia's transitional federal charter...
all parties to the conflict should make public declarations of commitment to protect media freedom and the legitimate rights of journalists, who are now a high-risk group alongside other human rights defenders in the present conflict...and these steps would prove helpful:
- special protective measures by the authorities to stop violence, threats and harassment targeted against media workers on account of their journalistic work...
- the kenya government to lift its eight-month border closure to asylum seekers from somalia in order to allow journalists and other civilians at risk to seek protection...
- an urgent "press freedom initiative" from the international community -- u.n. agencies, international organizations and non-governmental organizations -- to prevent further violence, including close monitoring and advocacy and solidarity visits...
just to make it more real for you three journalists killed in the past month have been named as:
- abdulkadir mahad moallin (known as "kaskey") of radio banadir, killed on august 24
- mahad ahmed elmi of capital voice radio, shot dead on august 11
- ali iman sharmarke, head of hornafrik media, killed by a car bomb on august 11
the perpetrators of attacks on journalists in 2007 have not been identified yet the tfg police have made no arrests...
wtf???
and even amid the conflicts of 2006-7, journalists of the vigorous private media have worked openly, held training workshops or received international training to improve their professional standards of work..they have sought actively to protect their impartiality and safety and tried to obtain support from the authorities for their professional work...
most attacks on journalists were targeted, but abdulkadir mahad moallin "kaskey", aged 20, was killed as a result of the general lawlessness randomly affecting thousands of civilians, when bandits attacked a bus in which he was travelling from mogadishu after a training workshop to his home region of gedo...
peace f___ing out <3
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